D Gukesh’s victory in the FIDE World Chess Championship brought out strong emotions. Gukesh won the 14th game against Ding Liren on Thursday to become the youngest-ever World Chess Champion. Gukesh’s father appeared nervous as he waited for the match result. When he found out his son had won, he tried to keep his emotions under control. The most emotional moment came after the match. Gukesh ran to his father and hugged him in a moment of pure emotion and joy. An emotional video capturing this moment went viral.
Gukesh later spoke about the sacrifices his parents made to support his journey. His father, Dr Rajnikanth, is an ENT surgeon. His mother, Dr Padma, is a microbiologist. Both parents chose to step back from their careers to support Gukesh’s participation in various tournaments across India and internationally.
“I just exchanged a few words with my father. My mother is not here but she will be flying in tomorrow. They have made a lot of sacrifices and I would like to thank them,” Gukesh said about his conversation with his father.
Gukesh expressed his gratitude for his parents’ unwavering support. “This was a dream I had more than 10 years ago. It has been the single most important thing in my life so far. Doing this for myself, for my loved ones, and my country, there’s probably nothing better than this,” Gukesh said.
He also reflected on his early ambition. “I mean it probably meant a lot to that 8-year-old then. Right now, I don’t pay too much attention to numbers or records. But there is a famous video from 2017-2018 where I said I wanted to be the youngest World Champion. Now that it is a reality, it feels very cool.”
Gukesh secured the title with 7.5 points against Ding’s 6.5 points after the final classical time control game. The match seemed likely to end in a draw for most of its duration but was ultimately decided after 58 moves over four hours. As the new World Chess Champion, Gukesh will receive a prize of USD 1.3 million (approximately Rs 11.03 crore) from the USD 2.5 million prize pool.
Gukesh is only the second Indian to win the World Chess Championship title after Anand. Before Gukesh’s victory, Garry Kasparov held the record as the youngest world champion. Kasparov won the title at 22 by beating Anatoly Karpov in 1985. Gukesh earned his place in the championship after winning this year’s Candidates Tournament. With his victory over Ding Liren, he became the 18th world chess champion in history.