Gukesh Becomes the Youngest Chess World Champion, Creating History for India

 

India's D. Gukesh has emerged as the chess world champion, setting a record as the youngest player to achieve this feat. The 18-year-old clinched the title by defeating China's Ding Liren in the final game. Gukesh triumphed with a score of 7.5-6.5, securing victory with the black pieces. Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated him on this monumental achievement.

The 14th match, held on Thursday, proved decisive. At the end of the 13th match, both players were tied on points. According to the rules, the first to reach 7.5 points would win the championship. Gukesh’s victory in the 14th game gave him the crucial point needed to reach 7.5, making a tiebreak unnecessary. Overcome with emotion, Gukesh was seen shedding tears as he celebrated becoming the youngest world champion.

Born in Chennai, the hometown of India’s first Grandmaster and former world champion Viswanathan Anand, Gukesh comes from an accomplished family. His father is a doctor, and his mother is a microbiologist. Gukesh began playing chess at the age of seven, and within a year, he won the Under-9 Asian School Chess Championship. He went on to win five gold medals in various Under-12 competitions. At just 12 years, 7 months, and 17 days, Gukesh earned the Grandmaster title, making him India’s youngest Grandmaster and the second youngest in the world, after Sergey Karjakin of Russia, who achieved the title at 12 years and 7 months. Gukesh's meteoric rise in Indian chess captured the nation’s attention, and in 2023, he surpassed Anand to become India’s No. 1 chess player after 26 years.

At the age of 11, Gukesh declared his dream of becoming the youngest world champion. Back then, he had not even achieved the Grandmaster title. Yet, he made his dream a reality at 18, fulfilling the promise he had made to himself.

Gukesh is only the second Indian, after Anand, to win the Candidates Tournament. He is also a student of Anand’s chess academy, which once sparked controversy regarding his qualification for the Candidates Tournament. In 2022, the Chennai Grandmasters Tournament was added at the last minute to the Indian chess calendar, leading to speculation that it was organized to help Gukesh and fellow Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi qualify for the Candidates.

At the time, Viswanathan Anand, who is also the Vice President of FIDE, defended Gukesh. Anand argued, “If a player sees that finishing fifth in a tournament will secure a spot and plays for fifth instead of aiming for first, is he breaking any rule? I believe every participant plays to win. Organizing this tournament broke no rules, and there’s no problem with it.”

Anand’s defense proved justified. Gukesh won an individual gold medal at the Chess Olympiad in 2022 and became the youngest player to achieve a 2750 rating in 2023. In September of the same year, he surpassed Anand to top the Indian rankings. Now, as the youngest world champion in chess history, Gukesh has solidified his place among the legends of the game.