A Phenomenal Victory in the World of Chess...Gukesh Dommaraju

A victory that gave us a lot to think about. Tweens at the Young Writers' Club Jr. program, contemplated about what winning and losing means to them.

Very few in the group had heard about the news. Who is Gukesh Dommaraju?

Gukesh Dommaraju, all of 18 years old, bagged the World Chess Champion title recently at the World Chess Championship that was conducted in Singapore. He represented India at the Championship and played against Ding Liren, a 32 year old grandmaster, representing China. They played 14 incredibly tough matches over a fortnight.

The ending moments of the final match were nail biting moments especially for those who managed to catch it live. For those of us who could only watch the recording, we could still feel the tension even though we knew the result. Dommaraju’s reactions took different forms soon after he noticed that Liren’s move could actually lead him to victory. Liren appeared to have realized a little too late. The move was done, there was no going back. Dommaraju took time to compose himself. Any stupid, miscalculated move from his side in a bout of excitement could be deadly. A few seconds of meditation and then the next move. A couple of moves more and there it was- the finish line with the shiny reward waiting for him. This was a dream come true for Gukesh Dommaraju, who said he was dreaming about this moment for 10 years! Calling that moment as a surreal moment can hardly describe what could have been going on his mind. A mixture of joy and disbelief pushing him to first smile and then break down. It must have felt like an herculean task to climb all the way to the top. Anything could happen at the nth moment and there it is - victory!

Does winning meaning everything or is there something far more important than winning?

Dommaraju’s journey to the top has been long and hard. Nothing comes easy. Perseverance and determination to work hard, take the failures that come in one’s way in one’s stride and finding ways to go to the next level and much more, are the crucial ingredients in his journey to the top. Above all, the recognition that he is always a student, learning to pace himself, recognizing the fact that competing with the big leagues involves a lot of a calm and strategy, are difficult traits to acquire. At the end of it all, victory when it chooses to come, is definitely sweet!

But is winning everything?

There was this recognition amongst many of the tweens that it was so easy to look up to the winner, celebrate the win in all its glory. While the world surrounded the winner, what was happening with Liren, the grandmaster who lost to the 18 year old? The chess world called his move in the last few moments of the game, a blunder.

“It must have felt terrible to lose.”

“Winning a tough game isn’t easy. The winner must enjoy the glory today for who knows tomorrow he may no longer hold the title. Liren held the title last year but this year he doesn’t!”

“The desire to win is common amongst all of us as it is a confirmation that we are good at something.”

“Losing doesn’t mean that we aren’t good, but someone is better. There is room to learn and grow.”

The discussion ended on that note. However it is certain that Gukesh Dommaraju's journey to success is bound to inspire many of the young whether they are fans of chess or not. When you want to be good at something, you have to work hard consistently, handle failure on the way and above all have the patience to wait until your efforts pay off. When you manage to do all of this, whenever victory chooses to come, it feels sweet!

Previously published on Talking Circles & Tween Tribune (Talking Circles' Publication featuring all the amazing work of the Tweens at the Young Writers' Club (Jr.).