Chess History in a Nutshell 110 – Young Star: Nodirbek Abdusattorov
Nodirbek Abdusattorov (born September 18, 2004) is an Uzbek chess grandmaster. A child prodigy, he earned the grandmaster title at just 13 years old. Today, he ranks among the world’s top chess players.
Abdusattorov won the 2021 World Rapid Chess Championship, becoming, at 17 years and 3 months, the youngest world rapid champion ever and the youngest open world chess champion at any time control. He broke Magnus Carlsen’s record, who was 18 when he won the 2009 World Blitz Chess Championship. Abdusattorov defeated Ian Nepomniachtchi in a tiebreak to claim the 2021 title.
In 2022, Nodirbek played on board 1 for Uzbekistan at the 44th Chess Olympiad, where his team won gold, and he secured an individual silver medal for his performance on the top board. He won several tournaments that significantly boosted his rating.
Perhaps his most remarkable achievement came in December 2021 at the FIDE World Rapid Championship, where he scored 9½/13, tying for first place after defeating, among others, reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen and world number two Fabiano Caruana. He then beat Ian Nepomniachtchi, the two-time world championship challenger, with 1½ out of 2 in the tiebreaks, making Abdusattorov the youngest Rapid World Champion in history.
Abdusattorov also excelled in the 2023 Tata Steel Tournament in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands. He led going into the final round but was ultimately overtaken by Dutchman Anish Giri, who won the tournament. A year later, at the same event, Nodirbek shared first place with Giri, Gukesh D., and Wei Yi, but in the tiebreak, Wei Yi emerged as the winner.
In 2024, at the TePe Sigeman Tournament in Malmö, Sweden, Abdusattorov again finished in shared first place, this time with Arjun Erigaisi and Peter Svidler. However, he triumphed in the tiebreaks, securing the tournament victory.
In one particularly chaotic game, with both white and black pieces seemingly lacking coordination, Nodirbek—playing Black—managed to find an incredible move that turned the tables after he had been in a lost position for some time. Can you spot the brilliant move found by Abdusattorov?
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