New Delhi: India’s new sporting icon, D Gukesh who has taken the world by surprise has finally arrived in his hometown of Chennai from Singapore. The Indian chess grandmaster had his ‘eureka!’ moment 7 years after he saw the dream back in 2017 to become the youngest World Chess Champion defeating the Chinese chess grandmaster Ding Liren.
#WATCH | Chennai, Tamil Nadu: World Chess Champion #GukeshD says, “I am very glad to be here. I could see the support that and what it means to India…You guys are amazing. You gave me so much energy…” pic.twitter.com/iuFXDiLcjx
— ANI (@ANI) December 16, 2024
The relatively calm and silent 18-year-old D Gukesh defeated China’s Ding Liren 7.5-6.5 in Singapore last week to become the youngest-ever world champion, overhauling the long-standing mark of Russia’s Gary Kasparov. The 18-year-old received a rousing reception upon his arrival. Gukesh was overwhelmed with the reception that he received and thanked everyone for supporting him.
Champion Ki Gharvapasi🎉
India's🇮🇳 youngest World #Chess Champion, @DGukesh, receives a hero's welcome at Chennai Airport after clinching the prestigious #FIDE World Championship.
Take a bow, Gukesh, you have made India proud!👏🏻#Chess #IndianChess #Sports #IndianSports pic.twitter.com/YNWHgRGjgT
— SAI Media (@Media_SAI) December 16, 2024
In a media conversation, the Indian chess grandmaster expressed his gratitude for the city and its people as he remarked:
It’s amazing. Your support gave me a lot of energy. It’s a great feeling to win the world championship…
Interestingly, Gukesh is only the second Indian after the great Viswanathan Anand to claim the world title. Anand played a pivotal role in shaping the teenager at his academy here.
How much has the World Chess Championship accrued monetarily to D Gukesh?
The 2024 World Chess Championship has a total prize money pool of $2.5 million. As per FIDE’s rules, a player will be awarded $200,000 (Rs 1.68 crore approximately) for every win and the remaining prize money will be split equally.
Gukesh won three games (Games 3, 11, and 14), earning $600,000 (Rs 5.04 crore approximately) just from the victories while Ding earned $400,000 (Rs 3.36 crore) after winning Games 1 and 12.
