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Candidates Tournament 2024 facts for kids

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Candidates Tournament 2024
Gukesh in 2024 (cropped).jpg
Gukesh Dommaraju, the winner of the tournament, advanced to the World Chess Championship 2024 match.
Venue The Great Hall
Location Toronto, Canada
Dates 3–22 April 2024
Competitors 8 from 5 nations
Winning score 9 points of 14
Champion
India Gukesh Dommaraju
← 2022
2026 →

The 2024 Candidates Tournament was a big chess competition. Eight top players battled it out to decide who would challenge the current World Chess Champion, Ding Liren. This exciting event happened in Toronto, Canada, from April 3 to April 22, 2024.

It was held at The Great Hall and took place at the same time as the Women's Candidates Tournament 2024. The winner was Gukesh Dommaraju from India. He made history by becoming the youngest ever winner of a Candidates Tournament. This also made him the youngest player to ever challenge for the World Chess Championship title!

Like other Candidates tournaments since 2013, this one was a double round-robin. This means each player played against every other player twice. Once they played with the white pieces, and once with the black pieces. The player who scored the most points won the tournament.

Who Qualified for the Tournament?

To play in the Candidates Tournament, chess players had to qualify through different major events. Here's how the eight players earned their spots:

Qualification method Player Age Rating World
ranking
2023 World Championship runner-up FIDE Ian Nepomniachtchi 33 2758 7
The top three finishers in the Chess World Cup 2023 India R Praggnanandhaa (runner-up) 18 2747 14
United States Fabiano Caruana (third place) 31 2803 2
Azerbaijan Nijat Abasov (fourth place, replaced Carlsen) 28 2632 114
The top two finishers in the FIDE Grand Swiss Tournament 2023 India Vidit Gujrathi (winner) 29 2727 25
United States Hikaru Nakamura (runner-up) 36 2789 3
Highest place in the 2023 FIDE Circuit India Gukesh Dommaraju 17 2743 16
Highest rating for January 2024 France Alireza Firouzja 20 2760 6

Why Magnus Carlsen Didn't Play

Magnus Carlsen, a former World Champion, won the Chess World Cup 2023. This meant he qualified for the Candidates Tournament. However, he decided not to play in Toronto. He had said before that he didn't enjoy the Candidates format.

In January 2024, Carlsen officially confirmed he wouldn't play. He simply stated, "I would say the main reason is that I don't enjoy it." Because Carlsen didn't play, Nijat Abasov, who finished fourth in the World Cup, took his place in the tournament.

How the Rating Spot Was Decided

One spot in the Candidates Tournament went to the player with the highest rating in January 2024. This was for players who hadn't qualified yet and had played in at least four FIDE chess events.

This spot became a bit of a race! Alireza Firouzja was a top contender. After some games, he lost rating points. To get his rating back up, he played some special matches in France. These matches were called "Alireza Firouzja's Race to Candidates." He needed to win many games to qualify.

There was some discussion about these last-minute games. Other players and chess organizations wondered if it was fair. However, Firouzja kept playing. He eventually won another tournament, the Open de Rouen, which gave him enough rating points. So, he officially qualified for the Candidates Tournament by rating.

How the Tournament Was Organized

The tournament was a double round-robin, meaning each of the eight players played every other player twice. They played one game with the white pieces and one with the black pieces. The winner earned the chance to play for the World Championship title against Ding Liren.

To make sure everything was fair, players from the same country had to play each other early in the tournament. For example, the Indian players (R Praggnanandhaa, Vidit Gujrathi, and Gukesh Dommaraju) played each other in the first few rounds. The same rule applied to the American players (Fabiano Caruana and Hikaru Nakamura).

The main referee for the event was Aris Marghetis from Canada.

Tournament Rules

The games had a specific time limit. Players had 120 minutes for their first 40 moves. After that, they got an extra 30 minutes for the rest of the game. From move 41, they also got an extra 30 seconds for each move.

  • A win gave a player 1 point.
  • A draw gave ½ point.
  • A loss gave 0 points.

What if There Was a Tie?

If players ended up with the same score for first place, they would play special tie-break games:

  • Rapid Chess: They would first play two faster games (15 minutes plus 10 seconds per move).
  • Blitz Chess: If still tied, they would play even faster games (3 minutes plus 2 seconds per move).
  • Knock-out: If still tied, they would play quick knock-out games until someone won.

For other tied places, different rules like the Sonneborn–Berger score or total wins would decide the ranking.

Prize Money

The total prize money for the tournament was €500,000 (about $530,000 USD).

  • First place received €48,000.
  • Second place received €36,000.
  • Third place received €24,000.

Players also got €3,500 for every half-point they scored.

Tournament Schedule

All games started at 2:30 PM local time in Toronto.

Tournament Results

How Players Scored Each Round

This table shows how many more wins than losses each player had after each round. A green background means the player was leading. A red background means they could no longer win the tournament.

Rank Player Rounds
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
1  Gukesh Dommaraju (IND) = +1 +1 +1 +2 +2 +1 +2 +2 +2 +2 +3 +4 +4
2  Hikaru Nakamura (USA) = −1 −1 −1 = = = +1 = +1 +2 +3 +3 +3
3  Ian Nepomniachtchi (FIDE) = +1 +1 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +3 +3 +3 +3
4  Fabiano Caruana (USA) = +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 = = +1 +1 +2 +3 +3
5  R Praggnanandhaa (IND) = −1 = = = +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 = = −1 =
6  Vidit Gujrathi (IND) = +1 = −1 −1 = = −1 = = −1 −2 −2 −2
7  Alireza Firouzja (FRA) = −1 −1 −1 −2 −3 −2 −2 −2 −3 −2 −3 −4 −4
8  Nijat Abasov (AZE) = −1 −1 −1 −2 −3 −3 −3 −3 −4 −5 −6 −6 −7

Tournament Highlights

Before the tournament, many chess experts thought Fabiano Caruana or Hikaru Nakamura would win.

The first round had all draws, but things got exciting in round 2. Vidit Gujrathi beat Nakamura, and Gukesh Dommaraju won against R Praggnanandhaa. Fabiano Caruana also won, and Ian Nepomniachtchi defeated Alireza Firouzja.

In round 3, Praggnanandhaa won the only game, beating Vidit. By round 4, Nepomniachtchi took the lead by winning against Vidit. In round 5, Gukesh joined Nepomniachtchi in the lead after winning his game.

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In round 6, Firouzja made a big mistake and lost quickly. Some thought he might be playing too emotionally. In round 7, Firouzja managed to beat Gukesh, which was a surprise. At the halfway point, Nepomniachtchi was still in the lead.

The second half of the tournament started with a big change! In round 8, Gukesh beat Vidit, which put him tied for first place with Nepomniachtchi. Nakamura also won against Caruana.

In round 9, Vidit bounced back and beat Nakamura. The game between Firouzja and Nepomniachtchi was very close, but it ended in a draw. Nakamura and Caruana both won their games in round 10. The game between Gukesh and Nepomniachtchi was a draw, keeping them tied for the lead.

In round 11, Nakamura beat Praggnanandhaa, and Nepomniachtchi won against Vidit. Gukesh and Caruana drew their game. This meant Nepomniachtchi was back in the sole lead.

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Round 12 was very important. Nepomniachtchi drew, but Nakamura, Gukesh, and Caruana all won their games. This created a three-way tie for first place between Nepomniachtchi, Nakamura, and Gukesh. Caruana was just half a point behind.

The second-to-last round (round 13) was critical. Gukesh defeated Firouzja, and Caruana beat Praggnanandhaa. Nepomniachtchi and Nakamura drew their game. This gave Gukesh a half-point lead going into the final round!

The final round was full of tension. Nakamura played Gukesh, and Caruana played Nepomniachtchi. Nakamura, Caruana, and Nepomniachtchi all needed to win to catch Gukesh. Gukesh and Nakamura's game ended in a draw. This meant Gukesh had secured at least a tie for first.

The game between Caruana and Nepomniachtchi was very dramatic. Caruana played brilliantly and got a winning position. But Nepomniachtchi defended incredibly well. In the end, Caruana made a small mistake, and Nepomniachtchi managed to get a draw.

With this draw, Gukesh Dommaraju won the tournament! He earned the right to play for the World Chess Championship title against Ding Liren later in 2024.

Images for kids

  • Nijat Abasov - Ian Nepomniachtchi, Candidates Tournament 2024 04

    Abasov vs. Nepomniachtchi (Round 1)

  • Hikaru Nakamura - Fabiano Caruana, Candidates Tournament 2024 03

    Nakamura vs. Caruana (Round 1)

  • Alireza Firouzja - R Praggnanandhaa, Candidates Tournament 2024 05

    Firouzja vs. Praggnanandhaa (Round 1)

  • Alireza Firouzja - Gukesh D, Candidates Tournament 2024 01

    Firouzja vs. Gukesh (Round 7)

  • Fabiano Caruana - R Praggnanandhaa, Candidates Tournament 2024 01

    Caruana vs. Praggnanandhaa (Round 7)

  • Hikaru Nakamura - Ian Nepomniachtchi, Candidates Tournament 2024

    Nakamura vs. Nepomniachtchi (Round 7)

  • Nijat Abasov - Vidit Gujrathi, Candidates Tournament 2024 07

    Abasov vs. Vidit (Round 7)

See also

  • Women's Candidates Tournament 2024
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