Nineteen-year-old Uzbek prodigy Javokhir Sindarov etched his name into chess immortality on Wednesday, becoming the youngest player ever to win the FIDE World Cup after defeating China’s Wei Yi in a pulsating tiebreak final at the 11th edition hosted in Goa. Starting the tournament as the 16th seed in a field of 206, Sindarov capped a fairytale run that saw him eliminate higher-rated opponents, including a tense all-Uzbek semifinal victory over Nodirbek Yakubboev, to claim the $120,000 top prize from a $2 million purse.

The classical portion of the final ended 1-1 after Tuesday’s Game 1 saw Wei Yi, playing Black, neutralize Sindarov’s aggressive intentions with the Petrov Defence and force a draw in a tricky bishop-and-pawn endgame. With everything on the line in Wednesday’s rapid tiebreaks (15'+10"), Sindarov’s composure proved decisive: after a draw in the first game, he seized control in the second, outplaying Wei with clinical precision to trigger celebrations across Uzbekistan and the global chess community.

Both finalists secured qualification to the 2026 Candidates Tournament, but Sindarov’s triumph carries extra historical weight. At 19 years and 11 months, he surpasses the record previously held by Magnus Carlsen (who won the 2007 World Cup at 20) and marks the third teenager in less than a year—after D. Gukesh’s World Championship crown and Divya Deshmukh’s Women’s Candidates victory—to claim a major global title, heralding a stunning generational shift in the sport.

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The victory also completes a remarkable breakout year for Sindarov, who crossed 2700 Elo earlier in 2025 and now vaults into the world's top 15. From the beaches of Goa, the soft-spoken teenager who once idolized Carlsen has now eclipsed his hero’s record, announcing himself as the newest torchbearer of chess’s golden youth revolution.

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