Newly-crowned world chess champion D Gukesh receives warm reception on his arrival in Chennai; Watch

Newly-crowned world chess champion D Gukesh received a warm reception on his return to India as the teenager landed at the Chennai airport on Monday. Gukesh had beaten China's Ding Liren with a 7.5-6.5 scoreline to clinch the 2024 World Chess Championship title in Singapore last week. By doing so, the Chennai-born player became only the second Indian, after the legendary Viswanathan Anand, to clinch the prestigious title.

VIDEO | "Thank you for all the support. It means a lot... to bring back trophy to India. Thank you for this reception. I hope we will have a great time in the next few days celebrating together," says World chess champion D Gukesh (@DGukesh) as he arrives at Chennai airport from… pic.twitter.com/HtPryuqSzz

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 16, 2024

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— Firstpost (@firstpost) December 16, 2024

Fans in huge numbers turned up at the Chennai International Airport on Monday to welcome the youngster, who was greeted with flowers.

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

“Thank you for all the support. It means a lot to bring back the trophy. Thank you for the reception. I hope we can have a great time in the next few days, celebrating together,” Gukesh said on his arrival in Chennai.

“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..” he added.

Gukesh, 18, also became the youngest-ever world champion, beating Garry Kasparov’s record from 1985, when he had won the title at 22. Gukesh had qualified for the World Chess Championship match against the then defending champion Liren after winning the 2024 Candidates tournament in Toronto earlier this year.

Gukesh had begun his World Chess Championship campaign on a losing note with white pieces, but fought back in the second game tov earn a draw with black pieces. He then went one better with a victory in the third game, and although Ding never really gave up, Gukesh’s positive attitude and fighting spirit stood out as he clinched a historic title.