Gukesh Dommaruja emerged victorious from the Toronto thriller. The young Indian, who had taken the lead in the 13th round, held his nerve in the 14th and final round, when there were still four players in a position to win. The 2024 Tournament kept its promise of suspense right to the end.
This 14th round, in which the four leaders -Nakamura versus Gukesh and Caruana versus Nepomniachtchi- faced each other, offered an incredible final scenario and tested the nerves of all involved. With a half-point lead at the start, Gukesh, for whom a win was synonymous with a tournament win, had decided to go for it against Nakamura despite the blacks. Offensively, he gained a favorable position, but the American didn’t flinch and resisted. The Indian then resigned himself to sharing the point with a very long draw.
Nepo remains unbeaten
From then on, if a winner emerged in the other duel between Caruana and Nepo, it would be a tie-breaker. Fabiano Caruana thought he had. Twice, he seemed close to clinching the title, but he broke down mentally and was unable to follow through against Nepoe, who was determined not to give up. Failing to win the Candidates for the third time in a row, the Russian can be satisfied with being the only unbeaten player in the tournament. His resilience earned Gukesh victory and, at 17, he becomes the youngest winner of the Candidates.
“I was in the perfect frame of mind throughout the tournament. From start to finish, I had the right attitude, the motivation to win. I was focused on chess and tried to play at my best, but it was my mental attitude that was really good in this tournament. “commented the young man.
Having become the second-youngest international grandmaster in January 2019 at the age of 12 years, 7 months and 17 days, five years later he earned the right to challenge Ding Liren to become the youngest world champion in history.
