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SALT LAKE CITY — Indian chess phenom Gukesh Dommaraju became the youngest champion ever at the prestigious Candidates Tournament in Toronto on Sunday, with the men's division win qualifying the 17-year-old for a chance to challenge the current World Chess champion Ding Liren of China later this year.
Gukesh, or Gukesh D as he is known to his fans, will also be the youngest player to challenge for the world championship, a distinction previously held by the legendary Russian grandmaster Garry Kasparov, who played for the world championship at 20 years old and became the youngest winner at 22.
Gukesh was born in Chennai, India, the same place former world champion Viswanathan Anand grew up, according to Chess.com, and earned his grandmaster ranking at age 12. He is also the youngest player in the world Top 100 rankings.
In his final match of the 14-round, three-week-long Candidates tournament, he played grandmaster and five-time U.S. chess champion Hikaru Nakamura to a draw. After grandmaster Fabiano Caruana was unable to pull off a victory against fellow grandmaster Ian Nepomniachtchi, which would have led to a Monday tiebreak round, Gukesh secured the win.
During a press conference following the Candidates Tournament, Gukesh said he wasn't focused on the excitement around his accomplishment as the youngest player to challenge for the world championship and is, instead, looking ahead.
"I'm very excited to play in the world championship and really looking forward to all the preparations," Gukesh said, adding that his journey is "only halfway through."
While Gukesh attributed his win to maintaining a calm focus throughout the tournament, he said his nerves got the best of him as he awaited the outcome of the match between Caruana and Nepomniachtchi.
"I was watching the commentary for a while, but then I couldn't watch it," Gukesh said. "Me and Gajewski went for a walk, and once the result was done my father came running to us and said, 'It's over!' Probably the walk was the turning point!"
On social media, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised Gukesh's "remarkable achievement" and "extraordinary talent and dedication," per CNN.
Gukesh will face Ding in the World Chess Championship, which has not yet been scheduled but is expected to take place later this year. Ding became world champion in 2023 after he defeated Nepomniachtchi in a tiebreak, following the reign of five-time champion Magnus Carlsen, who declined to defend his title last year.
