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Updated: Sep 28, 2018 09:03 IST

Indian chess player-turned-journalist Niklesh Jain turned heads and hogged all headlines when he proposed Colombian player Angela Franco at the ongoing Chess Olympiad in Georgia on Tuesday.

Niklesh said that the Olympiad is like a ‘temple for chess players’ and hence it was the perfect place to take this step and propose to his girlfriend.

Angela’s match was about to commence, and the final preparations were on when Niklesh decided to step up announce his intentions. It happened in the main hall where multiple matches were taking place as the Indian knelt down and presented the ring. It momentarily startled Angela, but then she agreed gleefully.

“Actually I am a chess player and she is too. There were a few places where I could have proposed her, but then I thought what better could it be then the Chess Olympiads. There are 189 countries who are playing here and for us, this is our temple,” Niklesh told Chess.com.

Olympiad LOVE! He speaks Hindi (India). She speaks Spanish (Colombia). But they found love through chess! He popped the question at @BatumiChess2018 playing hall before round 2. She said yes! ... And they are learning English, quick! 😂 Congratulations! @WOMChess @FIDE_chess pic.twitter.com/wtqmW26f6P — Susan Polgar (@SusanPolgar) September 25, 2018

“I had been planning this for some time. We have been dating for 1.5 years after we met in Barcelona in the Catalan circuit. We were playing our matches next to each other. I won that game against a tough opponent, even though I was not trying to impress her. But we started talking,” he added.

He informed that Angela paid a visit to India in January and both the families have accepted the relationship.

Even as every participant present at the room cheered the couple, Niklesh said that the world is for peace, for love and there’s no language, no colour, no bar of anything.