All posts tagged: Youngest World Chess Champion

Gukesh: ‘My desire to win is probably stronger than my fear of losing… I’m a bit of a risk-taker’ | Chess News

Gukesh: ‘My desire to win is probably stronger than my fear of losing… I’m a bit of a risk-taker’ | Chess News

Published by Webster

When Gukesh became the 18th world champion of the world, one of the first things that struck him was how for many years the wallpaper on his laptop bore the faces of the 16 world champions in history. “This was before Ding Liren became world champion. But here I recently realised that now I am part of this group,” Gukesh told the official YouTube handle of FIDE in his first interview after becoming world champion. The 18-year-old had previously shared how when Viswanathan Anand had lost the crown to Magnus Carlsen in 2013, he had dreamed of being the one to bring it back to India. After becoming the world champion, that dream is coming true. “For 11 years, this trophy was not home. I’m glad that I will be the one to take it back home,” he said, laying a subtle emphasis on the word home by reiterating it twice with a smile. In Singapore, there were multiple times when he pressed for the game to go on even when he was in a …

Proud moment for India: Internet lauds Gukesh after he becomes youngest world champion | Chess News

Proud moment for India: Internet lauds Gukesh after he becomes youngest world champion | Chess News

Published by Webster

The internet was abuzz as D Gukesh defeated Ding Liren on Thursday to be crowned the youngest chess world champion. Gukesh secured the requisite 7.5 points as against 6.5 of Liren after winning the last classical time control game of the 14-game match that seemed headed for a draw for most part. “I was dreaming this moment for last 10 years. Happy I realised this dream.I got a bit emotional because I was not expecting to win. But then I got a chance to press on,” Gukesh said after win the crown. Gukesh’s mentor Viswanathan Anand was among the first persons to tweet out his congratulatory for his protege, saying it was a very personal moment of pride. Congratulations! It’s a proud moment for chess, a proud moment for India, a proud moment for WACA, and for me, a very personal moment of pride. Ding played a very exciting match and showed the champion he is.@FIDE_chess @WacaChess pic.twitter.com/o3hq26JFPf — Viswanathan Anand (@vishy64theking) December 12, 2024 Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated the young gun, …

Magnus Carlsen on what’s affecting Ding Liren: ‘He’s not completely recovered from last world championship’ | Chess News

Magnus Carlsen on what’s affecting Ding Liren: ‘He’s not completely recovered from last world championship’ | Chess News

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In less than three weeks, Ding Liren will defend his world championship crown against India’s D Gukesh. The 18-year-old from Chennai is bidding to become the youngest-ever world champion in history at Singapore in a battle that starts this month. In sharp contrast to Gukesh’s form going into the world chess championship battle, Ding Liren has been in a wretched rut ever since he became the world champion in 2023. Grandmasters who have played him have even speculated that he does not seem to enjoying the feeling of playing chess at all. Ding Liren’s predecessor on the throne, Magnus Carlsen, has offered some insight into what has gone wrong with the Chinese grandmaster. “I think people realise that the World Championship is a very tough thing. It’s one thing to prepare for the world championship. But I don’t think you can quite prepare for the intensity of the championship without actually playing it. A lot of people find it tough both to play but also to recover. What I think happened with Ding is that …

Gukesh makes surprise appearance on Kaun Banega Crorepati ahead of World Championship duel with Ding Liren | Chess News

Gukesh makes surprise appearance on Kaun Banega Crorepati ahead of World Championship duel with Ding Liren | Chess News

Published by Webster

Gukesh D, who is currently in the middle of preparing for the World Chess Championship battle with Ding Liren, recently took some time out from his training schedule to make an appearance on Kaun Banega Crorepati. Gukesh is hoping to become the youngest ever world champion at the age of 18. But before he can summit that peak, he must prevail over the reigning world champion from China in a 14-game World Chess Championship match that will be held in Singapore. Gukesh’s appearance on KBC came as a way of a pre-recorded video clip where he boosted the confidence of a contestant called Arjun Agarwal, who is a sixth-grader from Chhattisgarh. During the episode, the show’s host Amitabh Bachchan posed a chess-related question worth Rs. 3,000. That led to Arjun talking about his love for the game. Arjun is a district-level chess player. He spoke of his ambition to become a grandmaster and a doctor. Right after that, Bachchan started talking about Gukesh and asked Arjun if he wanted to emulate the Indian GM someday. …

Paddy Upton interview on helping Gukesh for World Chess Championship

Paddy Upton interview on helping Gukesh for World Chess Championship

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About six months back, when Paddy Upton was approached to coach an Indian athlete for his first appearance at a World Championship, the South African mind guru was not sure what to make of the offer. In the past, Upton helped the Indian cricket team claim the 2011 World Cup and the Indian men’s hockey team seal a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics. But this offer was different: it was a chance to help D Gukesh become the youngest-ever world chess champion at the age of 18. Paddy Upton has worked with athletes from 19 different sports, but rarely with someone this young, that too a chess player, on a one-on-one basis – which explains his initial hesitation. “I wasn’t sure about working with him initially because I tend to not work with people who are too young. They haven’t really matured or evolved. But Gukesh has just been an absolute blessing and a gift to work with. He is super-intelligent. We’re able to have amazingly detailed and deeply complex conversations,” Paddy Upton tells …