9-year-old Indian prodigy holds Carlsen to a draw in Early Titled Tuesday
Aarit, the runner-up at the recent Under-9 National Championship, matched the five-time world champion move for move and had Carlsen in a completely lost position.
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First Post
6 hours ago
- First Post
9-year-old Indian chess prodigy shocks Magnus Carlsen with a draw in online tournament
9-year-old Indian chess prodigy Aarit Kapil nearly defeated world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen in a stunning draw during an online blitz game at Titled Tuesday. The Indian played the match online from his hotel room in Georgia while competing in the U-10 World Championship. read more In one of the most stunning moments in chess in recent times, 9-year-old Aarit Kapil from Delhi came very close to defeating current world No. 1 and five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen in an online chess tournament. The match was part of an event called the 'Early Titled Tuesday,' which was hosted on 9-year-old Indian shocks Carlsen Aarit surprised everyone by putting Carlsen in serious trouble in their blitz game. At one point, the Indian prodigy had a completely winning position against the Norwegian legend. However, with only a few seconds left on his clock, Aarit couldn't convert his advantage into a win. The game eventually ended in a draw. What makes this even more impressive is that Aarit was playing the event from a hotel room in Georgia, where he is currently competing in the Under-10 World Chess Championship. He has already won both his games in the first two rounds of the tournament and will play his third game on Wednesday. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Carlsen had recently said that there is no one in the world right now who looks good to succeed him as the next best thing in chess, not even the current world champion D Gukesh. Carlsen's comment came after he won the Norway Chess 2025 against some of the best players in the world, including Gukesh and Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi. During the classical tournament in Norway, Carlsen lost a match against Gukesh despite being ahead for most of the time in the game. However, the 34-year-old made a brilliant comeback from that loss and went on to win the event, finishing ahead of American GM Fabiano Caruana and India's Gukesh. Carlsen will next be seen in action in the Las Vegas leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam tournament, which is set to take place from 16 to 20 July. Las Vegas Freestyle Chess lineup: Magnus Carlsen, Hans Niemann, Hikaru Nakamura, Fabiano Caruana, Arjun Erigaisi, Levon Aronian, Wesley So, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Leinier Dominguez, Parham Maghsoodloo, Vincent Keymer, Ian Nepomniachtchi, R Praggnanandhaa, Javokhir Sindarov, and Vidit Gujrathi.
Indian Express
7 hours ago
- Indian Express
Meet Aarit Kapil, nine-year-old from Delhi's Mayur Vihar, who almost beat Magnus Carlsen in an online blitz game
Magnus Carlsen's Indian tormentors keep getting younger and younger. Weeks after the five-time world champion lost to 19-year-old Gukesh Dommaraju at the Norway Chess tournament, Aarit Kapil, a nine-year-old boy from New Delhi's Mayur Vihar, almost pulled off a win over one of the greatest players in the sport's history before settling for a draw due to time trouble. The Standard V boy from Mayur Vihar's Somerville School — who started playing chess just four years ago — had a winning position in an online blitz game against the current world no.1 in the Early Titled Tuesday competition. The Titled Tuesday tournament is organised twice every Tuesday by and is only open to players with FIDE titles (like Grandmaster, International Master, Candidate Master etc.) This particular Early Titled Tuesday event had elite GMs like Hikaru Nakamura, Fabiano Caruana and former world champion Vladimir Kramnik competing. Aarit, a Candidate Master, was playing in the online event from his hotel room in Batumi, Georgia, where he is currently in the middle of playing an over-the-board FIDE World Cadets Cup (in the under-10 category). For the Delhi boy, the draw with Carlsen is another step in what is turning out to be a fast rise: last December, he became the third-youngest player in the world to defeat a grandmaster in classical time control when he took down 66-year-old Raset Ziatdinov of the United States. 'He was five years old when his elder sister Aarna taught him chess. In one week, he was beating us. Not like I am a serious player – I am the equivalent of a bathroom singer in the sport: a casual player. But we saw his potential, so we got him working with a coach. And in a few days, he won an international online tournament,' Aarit's father Vijay tells The Indian Express. Unlike other Indian players, Aarit does not play too many international events. The family is on the lookout for sponsors to help him take the next steps in the sport. He spends five to six hours on the sport daily and is currently coached by IM Vishal Sareen. Vijay and wife Nisha, who is in Batumi accompanying Aarit, were on a phone call on Tuesday when the boy came shouting 'draw kar diya, Carlsen ko draw kar diya' into the room. That's when the parents realised what their nine-year-old had done. It could have been even better. Until the 46th move, Aarit had a winning position against the Norwegian. But with his time running low, Aarit allowed Carlsen to salvage a draw on the 49th move, which was still commendable for his age and in a format where Carlsen is formidable. What was even more remarkable was that Carlsen was playing with white pieces and had held a better position out of the opening. In Titled Tuesday, each player gets three minutes on the clock at the start and gets an increment of one second per move made. Carlsen's prep for the game was such that he had used up just seven seconds on his clock for his first 14 moves. Despite the stature of the man playing against him, Aarit attacked from early on, throwing both bishops deep into Carlsen's territory, offering them up as trades. Aarit had one less pawn on the board after move 14. But by the 18th move, with some devil-may-care attacking chess, both of his knights were deep in Carlsen's territory threatening his king. By the 25th move, the Indian boy held an advantage on the board. But on the clock, he was down to just 31 seconds while Carlsen had a minute and 25 seconds. By the 29th move, when both queens were traded, Aarit held a significant advantage on the board. But his time was down to 16 seconds, a challenge under any circumstances, but even more so against a player like Carlsen who relishes piling pressure on opponents to see them crack before defeating them. In this case though, Carlsen was the one in trouble on the board, despite having more than a minute to work his way out of jail. By move 31, when Aarit's pawns on e and f files were primed to make a run to get promoted, with both of his rooks guarding them from behind, the engine showed that the Indian boy had a winning position. Aarit held this advantage till the 46th move, when he was down to just seven seconds on the clock. But he had made Carlsen think, leaving the latter with just 20 seconds himself. Eventually, both players agreed to a draw after 49 moves. It must be noted that Carlsen is currently on a vacation with wife Ella, but just how seriously he takes the Titled Tuesday event can be gauged by the fact that he ended third at the event, which featured 664 players. Vijay, who works as a mutual fund distributor in the national capital, is hoping that the draw and the headlines it creates will lead to more sponsors showing an interest in his son's career. 'Sometimes when he has a bad tournament, we jokingly tell him 'tera chess rukwadenge' (We'll stop your chess). He says, 'jo marzi karlo, chess nahi chhodunga' (Do whatever you can, I won't stop playing chess),' laughs Vijay. Ask Vijay what other interests the boy has and the father replies: 'Bas chess hi karta hai. Aur kuch nahi karta. (only chess, nothing else).' Amit Kamath is Assistant Editor at The Indian Express and is based in Mumbai. ... Read More
News18
7 hours ago
- News18
Asian U-17 Women's Wrestling Championships: Indian Grapplers Top Table In Vietnam
Last Updated: India finished the event with 5 gold, 3 silver and 2 bronze medals to clinch the overall title with 215 points to their name. The Indian contingent emerged victorious at the Asian U17 Wrestling Championships as the representatives of the tricolour registered a table-topping haul of 10 medals in Vang Tua, Vietnam on Wednesday. India finished the event with 5 gold, 3 silver and 2 bronze medals to clinch the overall title with 215 points to their name. Following the triumph of the Under-23 Women's Wrestling Team at the Under-23 Senior Asian Wrestling Championship in Vietnam, the Under-17 women wrestlers showcased exceptional grit, determination, and skill to continue India's winning momentum. ALSO READ| La Liga Champions Barcelona To Return To Camp Nou On August 10 'The Wrestling Federation of India congratulates all athletes, coaches, and support staff for their commendable efforts and historic performance at the championship. The President also appreciated the commendable support from the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports Authority of India, due to which the Indian Wrestlers are shining abroad," WFI President Sanjay Kumar Singh said in a statement following the triumph. The Indian Women's Team dominated across weight categories, winning a total of 10 medals – 5 gold, 3 silver, and 2 bronze, thus securing the Champion Trophy with 215 points. China came second with 151 points, while Japan secured third position with 149 points. Rachna, competing in the 43 kg category, delivered a dominant performance by defeating a strong Japanese opponent with a decisive 9-0 victory to clinch the gold medal. In the 46 kg category, Rutuja had an impressive run, starting with a win over a Japanese wrestler in the qualification round. She carried the momentum into the final, where she overwhelmed her Uzbek opponent with a 10-0 score to secure the gold medal. Moni, wrestling in the 57 kg division, showcased resilience and skill. She overpowered a Japanese wrestler 10-2 in the semifinal and edged out a Kazakh opponent in the final with a 1-1 score, winning on criteria to earn the gold medal. Tina Punia, competing in the 61 kg category, displayed technical brilliance by defeating a Japanese opponent 10-0 in the quarterfinal. In the final, she faced a tough challenge from a Kazakh wrestler and, despite a strong effort, lost 3-3 on criteria, settling for the silver medal. In the 65 kg category, Ashwani Vishnoi put up a solid performance, defeating a Chinese wrestler 2-0 in the final to secure the gold medal for India. Manisha, wrestling in the 69 kg category, delivered a commanding performance in the final, winning by fall against her Chinese opponent and claiming another gold medal for India. The Indian team's resounding success reflects the depth of talent and preparation among the upcoming generation of women wrestlers. In addition to the women's success, Hardeep in the 110 kg category of the Greco-Roman Style added to India's medal tally by clinching a gold medal, showcasing India's strength across wrestling disciplines. List Of Medals: Gold Medals Rachna – 43 Kg. Rutuja – 46 Kg. Moni – 57 Kg. Ashvini Vishnoi – 65 Kg. Manisha – 69 Kg. Silver Medals Chesta – 40 Kg. Tina Punia – 61 kg. Kajal – 73 Kg. Bronze Medals Anjali – 49 Kg. Saarika – 53 Kg. Greco-Roman Style Gold Medal – Hardeep – 100 Kg. Silver Medal – Aditya Dileep Jadhav -48 Kg. Bronze Medal – Ritesh – 60 Kg. Bronze Medal – Sachin Kumar – 80 Kg. Bronze Medal – Nitin Kumar – 92 Kg. (With Inputs From IANS) News18 Sports brings you the latest updates, live commentary, and highlights from cricket, football, tennis, badmintion, wwe and more. Catch breaking news, live scores, and in-depth coverage. Also Download the News18 App to stay updated! tags : India wrestling Location : Vietnam First Published: June 25, 2025, 21:47 IST
