St. Louis, August 7: Indian Grandmaster R. Praggnanandhaa secured the title at the Grand Chess Tour St. Louis Rapid and Blitz tournament with one round to spare.
The final match between Praggnanandhaa and Uzbekistan’s Javokhir Sindarov ended in a draw, confirming the Indian Grandmaster’s victory. The 20-year-old player amassed a total of 23 points out of 35, claiming the championship. Following a commendable performance, Sindarov finished in second place with 22 points, while Wesley So took third with 20.5 points.
Levon Aronian came in fourth with 19 points, and Fabiano Caruana, Linier Dominguez, and Jorden van Foreest shared fifth place with 17 points each. Praggnanandhaa received $50,000 and 13 Grand Chess Tour points for his direct win without any playoffs. This result places him second in the Grand Chess Tour standings ahead of the Sinquefield Cup, although Caruana remains in the overall lead.
Throughout the five-day event, Praggnanandhaa maintained his lead from start to finish. Sindarov posed a tough challenge in the final round but ultimately finished as the runner-up by 1.5 points. In June, Praggnanandhaa made history by becoming the first Indian to win the prestigious Norway Chess title.
The St. Louis Rapid and Blitz tournament featured ten top Grandmasters from July 31 to August 7 at the St. Louis Chess Club. Over five days, players competed in nine rapid rounds and 18 blitz rounds, totaling 135 games, with crucial tour points at stake before the Sinquefield Cup and GCT Grand Final.
The tournament included two fast-paced formats: a nine-round single round-robin rapid tournament (played with a 25-minute time control and a 10-second increment from the first move) and an 18-round double round-robin blitz tournament (played with a 5-minute time control and a 2-second increment from the first move). In the rapid format, players earn 2 points for a win and 1 point for a draw, while in blitz, they receive 1 point for a win and 0.5 points for a draw.
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