Legends of the New Era: Vidit Gujrathi

One of the finest Chess players India has seen recently, Vidit Gujrathi, says that playing the sport came as an accident. He wanted to play cricket, as most youngsters aspire to do. According to him, he was very mischievous as a child, and his parents wanted him to engage in some activity. 

Born in Nashik, Vidit did his schooling at Fravashi Academy. Early in his age, he wanted to become a cricketer, and his father took him to a club where Cricket was played with a season ball, and he advised the future Chess star to wait for a year and play another sport. That’s how Vidit started Chess. His motivation to continue was that he wanted to beat his father at the game.

Starting his Chess career in 2006, Vidit finished second in the Asian Youth Championships and won the title of FIDE Master. It was in 2008 when he became the first Indian to win the World Youth Chess Championship in the U-14 category and became an International Master. Vidit reached the 2500 rating in 2010, thus making the first step towards becoming a Grandmaster. 

Vidit acquired his first GM norm in 2011 after he finished with 8 points out of 11 in the World Junior Chess Championship in Chennai. His second GM Norm came in the Nagpur International Open in 2011, and he achieved his final GM Norm at the age of just 18 in the eighth round og the Rose Valley Kolkata Open Grandmasters’ Chess tournament in 2012. 

Vidit finished third in the 2013 World Junior Championships and then passed the 2600 rating in January 2014. Vidit had a great 2018, winning the Challenger event of the TATA Steel Chess tournament and qualifying for the Masters Tournament in 2019, where he defeated Vladimir Kramnik, the former World Champion. Vidit’s star power was growing as he went on to win the Biel Chess Festival as well in 2019. 

2020 was another shining year for him as he was the captain of the Indian Team, which won the Online Chess Olympiad in 2020. In 2023, Vidit Gujrathi qualified for his first-ever Candidates tournament, which he did by winning the FIDE Grand Swiss. He qualified for the Candidates tournament in 2024 as well by finishing second in the FIDE Grand Swiss.

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