New Delhi, August 16 (HS): Indian Grandmaster D. Gukesh secured a joint sixth-place finish at the St. Louis Rapid & Blitz 2025, part of the prestigious Grand Chess Tour, while Levon Aronian emerged as the overall champion.
The reigning Classical World Chess Champion, Gukesh, made a powerful start on the final day of the blitz segment, winning three of his first four games and drawing one. However, he struggled to maintain momentum in the closing rounds, ending with two losses and three draws. This brought his final tally to 18 points, placing him level with Vietnam’s Le Quang Liem in sixth place.
At the top, Levon Aronian (24.5 points) outclassed the field to claim victory, followed by Fabiano Caruana (21.5), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (21), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (20.5), and Wesley So (19) rounding out the top five.
Tournament Format
The ten-player event in St. Louis featured a single round-robin rapid section, awarding 2 points for a win and 1 for a draw, followed by a double round-robin blitz with the traditional 1 point for a win and 0.5 for a draw.
The St. Louis Rapid & Blitz marked the fourth leg of the 2025 Grand Chess Tour and the final rapid-and-blitz event of the season, offering spectators a thrilling mix of speed, precision, and high-stakes drama at the board.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
