‘One of the worst blunders in chess history’ makes the 18-year-old the youngest ever world champion (Would YOU have noticed the smoke-ie mistake?)

By William On Dec 13, 2024

An 18-year-old has become the youngest world chess champion in history after his opponent made a dramatic blunder in the final game of the prestigious tournament.

Gukesh Dommaraju dethroned reigning champion Ding Liren in a stunning win during their best-of-14-games showdown in Singapore, all thanks to a fatal mistake made by his opponent.

The Indian player scored 7.5 points against his rival’s 6.5 to complete a surprise win in a match expected to be a draw and end with tie-breaks.

Title holder Ding, who was expected to have the advantage in the deciding round, blew it all up with a single reckless move: he moved his rook from f4 to f2 and trapped his bishop.

Rarely, if ever, are championship matches decided by one-move blunders, but when the catastrophic mistake became apparent to the spectators, Gukesh stared at the board in disbelief.

Gukesh had one hour and six minutes on the clock compared to his opponent’s nine minutes and 43 seconds, and calmly gulped down his water as he took it all in.

Commentators, who had been discussing how confident Ding would feel in a tie-break, gasped when they realized what had happened.

The room erupted with cheers and Gukesh burst into tears, realizing that with his final move he would achieve his dream of becoming the youngest ever champion.

The 18-year-old raised his arms in triumph after becoming the youngest ever champion

India’s grandmaster Gukesh Dommaraju reacts after his victory over Chinese grandmaster Ding Liren

Ding Liren held his head in his hands as he realized that he had surrendered the crown in one movement

The audience erupted in applause when it became clear that Gukesh would take the crown

Title holder Ding, who was expected to have the advantage in the deciding round, blew the whole thing up with a single reckless move

By moving his rook from f4 to f2, Ding trapped his bishop. Gukesh then realized he had a path to victory

The teenager, known in the chess world as Gukesh D, has long been considered a rising star in the chess world, becoming the third youngest grandmaster in history at the age of 12 years and seven months.

He has now broken the record for youngest world champion, previously held by Garry Kasparov, who was 22 when he defeated Anatoly Karpov in 1985.

Gukesh had entered the match as the youngest ever challenger for the world title after winning the Candidates tournament earlier this year.

After securing the win, Gukesh broke down in tears and raised his arms in celebration.

‘I’ve been dreaming of this moment for the past ten years. I am happy that I realized (and realized) the dream,” he told reporters after his victory.

Gukesh is now the second Indian to win the title after five-time world chess champion Viswanathan Anand.

“It’s a proud moment for chess, a proud moment for India… and a very personal moment of pride for me,” Anand, who has been a mentor to Gukesh, said on X.

Gukesh had entered the match as the youngest ever challenger to the world title after winning the Candidates tournament earlier this year

Indian students congratulate the world’s youngest chess champion Gukesh Dommaraju on December 13, 2024 in Chennai

The smoke-it error explained

Ding Liren’s reckless rook move – 55.Rf2 – in the final of the world championships surprised the chess world and his opponent.

By moving his rook from f4 to f2, Gukesh was able to take it with his own rook, which was placed on b2.

Ding was then able to recapture Gukesh’s piece with his king.

However, his bishop remained exposed and stood alone in a corner on a8.

With the rooks off the board, Gukesh simply had to place his bishop on a diagonal where Ding had no choice but to trade the bishops as well, with the only path to do so going through the Indian player’s bishop.

When the bishops were off the board, Ding was left with only one pawn and the king.

Meanwhile, Gukesh had two pawns and the king, once escorted to the back line, could be promoted to queens.

So checkmate was inevitable.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the 18-year-old on his “remarkable achievement”, calling it “the result of his unparalleled talent, hard work and unwavering determination.”

“His triumph not only etched his name in the annals of chess history but also inspired millions of young minds to dream big and pursue excellence,” Modi said in a post on X.

“When I realized it, it was probably the best moment of my life,” Gukesh said afterwards.

In addition to winning the prestigious title, the teenager has collected £1.06 million from the prize money of $2.5 million.

“I was in total shock when I realized I had made a blunder,” Ding said. ‘His facial expression showed that he was very happy and excited and I realized I had made a blunder. It took some time to realize it.”

“I probably got so emotional because I didn’t really expect to win from that position,” Gukesh said.

“I wanted to press it as long as I could, but I was like, ‘It’s okay. We’re going to play for five, six hours. It ends in a draw, and let’s focus on the tiebreaks.”

‘But then suddenly, after Rf2, I saw that (the game) was actually over.

“I was already preparing myself to get through that huge tiebreaker fight and suddenly it was all over and I had achieved my dream.

“I’m not one to show a lot of emotion, but I think this one can be forgiven.”

Chinese grandmaster Ding had fought through every round and finally conceded that the better player had won in the end.

‘It wasn’t such a dead draw as yesterday. He had a bishop on the board. He also had a tower, so it was trickier.

‘I could have done better, but given my lucky escape in yesterday’s match it’s fair that I lost in the end. I don’t regret it.’