INTERNATIONAL Women Master Nagpur’s Srishti Pandey has earned her first Grandmaster norm during the ongoing 24th Cape Town Grand Prix Chess-Cap Chess 2026 Tournament being held in Cap d’Agde, France. Srishti, with an ELO rating of 2263, topped the women’s category garnering six out of nine points. Three French players - Grandmaster Maurizi Marc Andrea (8), International Master Materia Marco (6.5) and Grandmaster Idani Poya (5) dominated the top three positions in this tournament. Srishti, who won the 2019 National Junior Chess Championship, achieved her first Women International Master (WIM) norm at the World Junior Under-20 Girls Chess Championship in October 2019. After completing her first norm in 2019, bravely facing the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, she completed her second and third norms in a span of just 15 days in November 2021. Srishti thus became Nagpur’s third and Women International Master (WIM) behind Divya Deshmukh and Mrudul Dehankar.