Four more titles in another successful year for Vishy Anand

NIIT Celebrates World Rapid Chess and MindChampion's homecoming

New Delhi, September 17, 2004

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NIIT, Asia's IT Training pioneer today welcomed and felicitated World Rapid Chess and NIIT MindChampion Viswanathan Anand for his glorious accomplishments in 2004 in the world of Chess.

Prof. P V Indresan, Former Director, IIT Chennai, graced the felicitation function and handed over a large handcrafted elephant symbolizing the victory ride of one of India's greatest sportspersons. The elephant, which in chess parlance is referred to as a "rook," is one of most important pieces on a chessboard. Anand has been striding the chess world in a fashion befitting the "King of Kings".

NIIT's Brand Ambassador , who has had unprecedented success over the last two years, is now marching towards his next goal--a target of 2800 elo points. Currently, only one other player, Garry Kasparov, has a rating of over 2800 points.

Anand will be leading the Indian team at the premier Chess Olympiad event, coming up in October. For the first time, India could be in with a chance of a medal.

For Anand, popularly known as Vishy, the year 2004 has marked by success and eminence. Recipient of the prestigious Chess Oscar for the third time in 2003 (he earlier won it in 1997 and 1998), Vishy has won four major international championships since January 2004 including the Corus Super Gandmasters Tournament in Wijk Aan Zee, Sparkassen Super Grandmasters Chess tournament in Dortmund, the Chess Classic of Mainz for the fifth time in Germany and the Sao Paolo Challenge in Brazil. He also won the Rapid section of the Melody Amber tournament in Monaco. His opposition in the above mentioned tournaments have included all the top players of the world. His successes have put him as a frontrunner for yet another Chess Oscar in 2004.

Congratulating the NIIT's MindChampion on a splendid 2004, Mr. Rajendra Pawar, Chairman, NIIT stated that Vishy was the most successful Indian sportsperson on the international platform.

"Vishy's performance in the international arena fills us with great pride. His achievements encourage us to replicate similar success across different spheres of life", said Mr. Pawar, while congratulating him on behalf of over 3 million successful NIIT-alumni. "He is not just a Brand Ambassador for NIIT but a Global Sports Ambassador for India."

Speaking on the occasion, Anand said, "The year so far, has been quite eventful. The recent performance against acknowledged players gives me a great sense of achievement and satisfaction."

"NIIT has made it a special moment of joy for me", he added

Mr. Pawar observed that "Success" was a big bond between Vishy and NIIT. While one was a brilliant thinking icon, legendary for his successful campaigns over all major international stars, the other was a premium educational Institution that had launched thousands of successful careers across the globe.

"Vishy's success and victories are a source of inspiration for thousands of NIITians who have created the same kind of magic in the field of IT. We are as proud of Vishy's achievements as we are of our students' successes," Mr. Pawar added.

About NIIT
NIIT, an acknowledged leader in the IT and IT-assisted training space offers Learning and Knowledge Solutions in 33 countries. Training over 500,000 learners annually, NIIT is the only Asian Education and Training Organization to feature among the IDC Top 20 Global IT Training market leaders, for four consecutive years. NIIT has trained one out of every three IT professionals and its alumni are working at all top IT companies.

NIIT's education offerings include: GNIIT--an industry-endorsed program for students seeking careers in the IT and BPO segments; CATS--offers training programs on advanced technologies for IT professionals; Swift--a platform for equipping ordinary people with basic computer skills; NetVarsity.com offers a blend of content, technology and services; while NIIT@School--a turnkey, IT integration program that provides computer-based learning in government and private schools.

NIIT's range of offerings in the e-learning domain are bolstered by its SEI CMM Level 5 assessed Knowledge Solutions business (KSB), which has emerged as a leader in the field. NIIT KSB offers integrated learning solutions that range from strategy and design to development, implementation and administration.

Its customers include Fortune 500 Companies, Universities, Technology Companies, Training Corporations and Publishing houses.

For further details, please contact:
Geetanjali Sharma, NIIT Ltd., Phone: +91(11) 26203377; Fax: +91(11) 26203386; E-mail: geetanjalis@niit.com
or
Ankur Hatibaruah, TBWA INDIA PR, Phone: +91(11) 26153683; Fax: +91(11) 26153682; E-mail: ankur@tbwa-india.com or Visit us at www.niit.com