8-year-old chess prodigy defeats 37-year-old grandmaster in new world record
An eight-year-old chess prodigy bested a 37-year-old, setting a new world record of being the youngest player ever to defeat a grandmaster.
Chess.com—which hosts online gameplay while also serving as a news and social networking website of the sport—reported that Ashwath Kaushik of Singapore defeated Jacek Stopa of Poland during the fourth round of a classic tournament game at the Burgdorfer Stadthaus Open in Switzerland.
The previous record-holder was Leonid Ivanovic of Serbia, who is about five months older than Ashwath.
Ashwath told Chess.com that he felt “really exciting and amazing.”
“I felt proud of my game and how I played, especially since I was worse at one point but managed to come back from that,” he said.
The previous record was set in January by then eight-year-old Leonid Ivanovic. Ashwath, however, was five months younger than his opponent when he achieved his feat.
His father Sriram, meanwhile, said it was a surprise to see him become a talented chess player, especially since “there isn’t any sports tradition in our families.”
He noted that Ashwath practices around seven hours a day.
“Every day is a new discovery, and we sometimes stumble in search of the right pathway for him,” Sriram said.
Ashwath was born in India in 2015. He has won several youth tournaments worldwide, notably becoming the World Under-8 Rapid champion in 2022.
He finished 12th in the Switzerland tournament. He’s poised to compete—and defeat—more opponents with more years or decades of experience.