Joel Sathiaraj of Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) student has won the Alfred Butts intercollegiate scrabble tournament.
Joel Sathiaraj was among the 108 scrabble players from 33 city colleges, who competed in the tournament organised by the American Center, U.S. Consulate-General Chennai in association with Queen Mary’s College last week. Jebrish T. and Anindita S. Raju from Presidency College finished second and third respectively.
The preliminary rounds were held in Queen Mary’s College and the finale was hosted at the U.S. Consulate-General Chennai’s American Centre. The Consulate-General spokesperson and diplomat Samantha Jackson said she was thrilled with the enthusiasm and passion the city’s scrabble community displayed. “The American Centre Chennai aims to promote education, intellectual engagement and cultural exchange through such events,” she said.
Queen Mary’s College Principal B. Uma Maheswari said the college was dedicated to empowering marginalised women and wanted to embrace scrabble as a transformative tool. It had roped in scrabble grandmaster Ranganatha Chakravarthy to equip its 5,000 students with communication skills. “The tournaments enhance the linguistic prowess of the students and fosters a spirit of healthy competition,” she said.
Director of Collegiate Education G. Geetha inaugurated the tournament and Mr. Chakravarthy was the tournament director.
