New Delhi: Argentina’s 12-year-old chess sensation Faustino Oro emerged victorious in the Prodigy U21 category while GM Jose Martinez and WGM Mai Narva were crowned the men’s and women’s champions respectively at the GCL Contenders Knockout Challengers Round in Mumbai on Wednesday.
All the three chess players will now serve as the official ambassadors during the third season of the Global Chess League (GCL) which will commence in the financial capital of India from December 13 t0 24. The much-awaited GCL happens to be joint venture between the Tech Mahindra and FIDE.
Messi of Chess defeats Indian GM
Oro, who is nicknamed ‘Messi of Chess’, beat Indian GM Pranav Anand in a thrilling finale while GM Jose Martinez defeated blitz specialist IM Andrew Tang. Meanwhile, Estonia’s Narva clinched the women’s crown with a victory over Ukraine’s WGM Yuliia Osmak.
The victory by the three players marks the end of an intense 60-day long journey that witnessed over 11500 players competing across the male, female and prodigy (U21) division. Oro’s meteoric rise has been in the headlines across the chess world after he beat world number one Magnus Carlsen in an online blitz game to becoming the youngest player ever to cross the 2500 Elo mark earlier this year.
Meanwhile, all the matches were played in the rapid format on Chess.com and also streamed live on GCL’s official YouTube channel to ensure transparency throughout.
Commenting on winning the prodigy category, Oro said that: ‘Playing in the Global Chess League Contenders was a challenging and unique experience, every match pushed me to think faster and adapt better.’
GM Martinez and GM Narva also praised the GCL Contenders Knockout calling it a very unique and special experience which tested their consistency and speed. GCL Commissioner Gourav Rakshit said that they were thrilled to witness all three emerge as the winners.
‘We’re thrilled to see Faustino, Jose, and Mai emerge as the winners of the GCL Contenders 2025. Their performances capture the global and inclusive essence of what the Global Chess League stands for, uniting players across generations and geographies on one platform,’ said Rakshit.