For five minutes after his exit from Gate A5 of the Anna International Airport on Monday, D Gukesh experienced what Mikhail Tal would have felt when he landed at Riga in 1960 after winning the World Chess Championship as a 23-year-old.
While in April, the 18-year-old had received a one-of-a-kind welcome after winning the Candidates that put him in the World Chess Championship showdown with Ding Liren, on Monday his return was chaotic and beyond anyone’s control.
There were multiple posters that reminded who he is – ‘the new world chess champion D Gukesh’. Around 50 students from his alma mater, Velammal School, lined up to form a guard of honour, with everyone holding a placard in their hand that read: ‘Congratulations Gukesh’.
Watching the buzz that was building up, one of the bouquet shop vendors moved his stall close to the gate. Around 10 police personnel tried their best to control the chaos even as the airport security started putting up barricades to ensure the newly-crowned chess king marched into the waiting car. Capturing all of it were nearly 100 lensmen, who had arrived nearly two hours before his arrival.
The moment they were waiting for arrived when Gukesh, wearing the winners medal, walked out with the trophy in one hand. Within a moment, schoolkids mobbed him, as chants of “Gukesh, Gukesh” echoed around. And in no time, the situation spiralled out of control. Gukesh, who was unmoved on the 64 squares, was shoved and pushed around even as the barricades were dragged along. Microphones popping from all directions, flashlights blinding the eyes accompanied by the noise of camera shutters – it is safe to say Gukesh struggled in the commotion.
#Gukesh arrives at Chennai airport after becoming the youngest world champion in #chess history.
🎥 by @venkatatweets#WorldChessChampionship | #DingGukesh https://t.co/fDMRvjQfpq pic.twitter.com/9XBCsk5vgQ
— Express Sports (@IExpressSports) December 16, 2024
The original plan to address the media would be ditched quickly as now the armed personnel were more concerned about Gukesh safety. Eventually, he managed to get into the car amidst petals thrown in his general direction.
Inside the SUV, Gukesh would gasp for breath. Even as his parents struggled to open the door, a couple of newsmen came knocking at the window pane for a quick comment, which Gukesh would oblige. And in the next minute or two, the vehicle sped away, prompting a chase for the trailing media vehicles on the 18km ride to his school.
Watching all of it was J Meghanatha Reddy, member secretary of SDAT (Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu), which had played an important role that couldn’t be overlooked. In December 2023, when Chennai was recovering from Cyclone Michaung, they received a unique request. With all doors closing on Gukesh to qualify for the Candidates, the SDAT would organise the Chennai Grandmasters event to give him one last shot.
“We had less than a week to put the event in place. We had to identify a venue and though it overshot the budget by Rs 40 lakh, the SDAT and the Tamil Nadu Government did everything to make the event happen,” Reddy recollected. Gukesh would go on to win the tournament and hasn’t looked back since.
Level-headed champ
On Monday, once Gukesh reached a spacious hall to address the media, he was garlanded by MVM Velmohan, the correspondent of Velammal Institutions. By now, Gukesh seemed settled in the company of known faces, which included his proud teachers and Velavan Subbiah, who as the chess coordinator, accompanied the Indian GM to events overseas.
(LEFT) Gukesh felicitated at his school with his parents; (RIGHT) Gukesh gets mobbed by cameramen and fans as he tries to leave the Chennai Airport. (PHOTOS: Venkata Krishna B)
“My dream was to become the youngest world champion. I am very happy to achieve this goal and come home,” Gukesh said. “I am very happy to see how proud our country is. I want to thank everyone who supported me. I hope I can enjoy my time here. It is a very emotional moment for me.”
However, Gukesh comes across as a very down-to-earth young man, who knows there is still a lot left to achieve.
“There are a lot of strong players. I still have a lot of improvement to do. Players like (five-time world chess champion) Magnus (Carlsen) keep motivating me to work harder. Although this is a big achievement, and I know it comes at a very young age, I think there is still a very long way to go. Hopefully one day, I get to become the best player in the world,” the 18-year-old said.
He also credited mind trainer Paddy Upton for his contribution.
“In the World Championship, it’s not only about chess. There’s a lot of other things as well. Paddy has had experience in high-level sports and high-level performance in different sports. For me, the conversations that we had and the suggestions that he has given me for this match and for me as a person to develop myself, has been very important.”
As questions came from all corners, Gukesh, sitting alongside his mother Padmakumari, would sport a look that showed that the humble family from Chennai was still getting used to a World Champion at home. As Gukesh kept answering one query after the other, she would break into a smile every now and then, refusing to take her eyes off her son. As chaos returned once again when Gukesh got off the dais to head home, sans police personnel and bouncers, his father Rajinikanth would come to the rescue, fending away the lensmen and reporters.
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