Gukesh Dommaraju Name: On December 12, 2024, at the World Sentosa Resort in Singapore, the clock in India ticked 6:29 pm. History awaited the 18-year-old Indian chess prodigy Gukesh Dommaraju. He stood at the precipice as he was fighting against Ding Liren of China in a thrilling contest to wrest the world championship title. With one hour left on the clock for Gukesh, he was controlling the game, but Liren had only 10 minutes more to save his title.
It was on the 55th move when Liren advanced his rook to F2, which he finally became his biggest blunder of the year. Gukesh had a dream since he was 12 years old to witness his dream come through, and he had yet to know that it would come true. India, for the first time in the past 12 long years, got a new chess world champion.
Tears of Joy: Gukesh Dommaraju‘s Emotional Victory
Gukesh was celebrating by crying for the joy that sealed his victory in the match. There could have been very few moments that went as close as this after signing off from the boards; he was hugged first of all by his father followed later by his coach while still communicating with his mother through his bus, but tears flowed for the joy—all over the nation celebrated the winner as messages from PM Narendra Modi came in for cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar as congratulation.
Gukesh’s grandmother also featured on stage to see him receive his chess champion trophy. In an emotional touch, his mother kissed the trophy, reflecting the tremendous sacrifices his parents have had to make to let their son fulfill his dream.
The Meaning of Gukesh: A Name with Deep Roots
Gukesh’s name has much to it. “Dommaraju” is his family name, but “Gukesh” is his given name. The name Gukesh is a composition of two Sanskrit words: “Gu,” which means darkness, and “Kesh,” which refers to hair. Thus, Gukesh means black-haired.
Furthermore, Gukesh is often referred to as “Gukeshwar,” which is the name of Lord Shiva, according to his mother Padma in an interview with ChessBase India. According to her, Gukesh means “Conqueror of the World,” which is a title that certainly resonates with his remarkable achievement in chess. Indeed, Gukesh has proven to be the “Conqueror of the Universe” in the world of chess.
Gukesh is the World Chess Champion 🥹♥️#chess #gukesh #chessbaseindia pic.twitter.com/2LvXuk9K9P
— ChessBase India (@ChessbaseIndia) December 12, 2024
Major Achievements of Gukesh
Before becoming the world champion in 2024, Gukesh had already done much for his chess career. When he was 18 years old, he had an excellent year and two major achievements put India on the world chess map.
In the 45th Chess Olympiad, which was held in Budapest, Hungary, Gukesh was a crucial part of the Indian men’s and women’s teams winning the gold medals. The Indian men’s team won against Slovenia, and the women’s team won against Azerbaijan. Gukesh has also breached the 2800 ELO rating threshold this year, making him one of the world’s top chess players.
At the very tender age of 18, Gukesh became the world chess champion; he broke all the records, that Russia’s Garry Kasparov had broken, who at the age of 22 in 1985 emerged as a champion.
Future of Indian Chess
Having unmatched dedication and passion for the game, Gukesh fulfilled his childhood dream and put India at the forefront of the chess world. It also inspires future chess players from all over the world.
Gukesh, after all, is a genius and also the icon of perseverance and achievement. He marks the world’s new chess king—he is Gukesh, conqueror of the chess universe.
