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Gukesh Dommaraju Biography

Gukesh Dommaraju, or D. Gukesh, was born on May 29th, 2006, in Chennai, and has recently emerged as a star in the field of chess. Since his young age, he has been fascinated by the game, and hence, he devoted his childhood to perfecting it for himself. The man has immense talent and dedication, which became the driving force behind his becoming the World Chess Champion.

Gukesh has had the support of his family and mentors since the beginning and it won’t be wrong to attribute his success to their efforts as well.  The parents have worked hard along with Gukesh, which ultimately gave him this esteemed title. His father, a well-established ENT surgeon, gave up his career, and his mother, a microbiologist, took responsibility for earning money for his family. His early education was at Velammal Vidyalaya, a renowned school for fostering chess talent. This school gave him the foundation to excel in this field. Throughout his journey, the 18-year-old travelled throughout the world and earned various accolades in that journey while recording historic victories.

Early Life

The family of the World Chess Champion gave him a supportive environment that nurtured his intellectual pursuits. He was born to Dr. Rajnikanth and Dr. Padma, who played pivotal roles in shaping his early life and career. Since they identified the talent of their child at a young age, they enrolled him into Velammal Vidyalaya. It was here that Gukesh was able to learn the intricacies of chess. His first coach here was Mr. Bhaskar.

His passion and interest developed for the game. Within six months of training under Mr. Bhaskar, he was able to become a FIDE-rated player with a rating of 1291. This early success gave him the fuel for his ambition and he was made aware of other great players around him such as R. Praggnanandhaa and Nihal Sarin, who were also renowned in the game.

Rising in the game

As his dedication to the game was immense, it allowed him to participate in several competitions, showing his skills and strategy. Gukesh participated in the Asian School Chess Championship in the under-9 category in 2015 and he won the same. This marked a very significant achievement for him in the game and he earned the candidate master (CM) title. In this competition, he was under the training of Mr. Vijayanand. In the year 2017, Gukesh earned the title of International Master during the Cappelle-la-Grande Open and he was merely 12 years old here.

Subsequently, as he was progressing in the game, he had to balance his academics also. His father left his job so that he was always there with him to accompany him to tournaments worldwide. Gukesh made sure that the parent’s efforts were not in vain. During the Asian Youth Chess Championship, Gukesh was successful in wining 5 gold medals. In this year itself, he won the under-12 title at the World Youth Chess Championship with 10/11 points.

No looking back

By 2019, Gukesh became the second-youngest grandmaster in history at 12 years, 7 months, and 17 days old.  This achievement was the result of his parents and mentor’s dedication, along with his concentration towards the game. Following this title, he continued to excel across different tournaments. He participated in multiple events across countries and performed exceedingly well.

Due to his consistent top-notch performance, he gained popularity amongst the legends of chess as well. Several renowned grandmasters have trained him throughout his career, which allowed him to attain this level of success. Notable names include GM Vishnu Prasanna and former world champion Vishwanathan Anand or as Gukesh called him, ‘Vishy Sir’.

As he rapidly rose through the ranks, he was able to surpass his mentor, Vishy Sir and he became India’s top-ranked player in September 2023. This ended Vishwanathan’s long dominance in Indian chess.

World Chess Champion

In early 2024, Gukesh won the Candidates Tournament, which cemented his path to the World Championship. He was not only the youngest player but also one of the challengers who was up against Ding Liren of China, who has been a reigning champion. His performance throughout the tournament was nothing short of remarkable and he established himself as an intimidating competitor on the global stage. For the last two years, he was training under Grzegorz Gajewski along with 3 other Polish Grandmasters: Radoslaw Wojtaszek, Jan Krzysztof Duda, and Jan Klimkowski.

The Championship Match

The matches of the World Chess Championship took place in Singapore. It was a series of 14 games, that were held between November 25, 2024, and December 12, 2024. The World Championship match took place between Gukesh and Ding Liren. The entire series of games noticed several ups and downs that made it very exhilarating. Liren took the lead in the first match and Gukesh was able to take the win in the third match.

The game witnessed several back-and-forths, which showed the level of intellectual superiority that the players possessed. Moving forward, Gukesh won the 11th game but Ding tied the 12th match. The next match was a draw, which led to the 14th game, a game that shall be written down in golden words in Indian history. Another tiebreaker was imminent until a blunder was made by Liren at the 55th move that allowed Gukesh to win in the next 3 movies. By the 58th move, Gukesh was declared as the World Champion.

At just 18 years old, and with a score of 7.5 in the game, Gukesh made history. As soon as his win was announced, his family, his coaches, and everyone else were happy and had teary emotions because their hard work had finally culminated into something that he had wished for a long time.

D. Gukesh Facts and Information

Full name Dommaraju Gukesh
Date of Birth May 29, 2006
Place of Birth Chennai, India
Family background Son of Dr. Rajnikant Dommaraju (ENT Surgeon) and Dr. Padma (Microbiologist)
Education Grandmaster: achieved in 2019
Chess title Grandmaster: achieved in 2019
Notable Achievement Several international tournaments, including the World Youth Chess Championships and Chess Olympiads
Playing Style Applies strategy and reflects adaptability on the board
Major Tournament Several international tournaments including the World Youth Chess Championships and Chess Olympiads
Recent Achievement Defeated Ding Liren and became the youngest World Champion on December 12, 2024
Awards and Honors World Chess Champion Grandmaster International Master FIDE Master


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