Javokhir Sindarov

Javokhir Sindarov was born on 8 December 2005 in Tashkent. He became an International Master in October 2017 and a Grandmaster in March 2019, at 12 years, 10 months and 8 days the second-youngest grandmaster in history at the time.

He won two Chess Olympiad golds with Uzbekistan (the 44th and 46th Olympiads). At the Asian Games in October 2023 he took individual rapid bronze and team bronze on board two (6/8). At the 2023 FIDE Grand Swiss he finished eighth with 7/11. At the 2021 World Cup he beat Alireza Firouzja in tiebreaks in round two before losing in round four, and in 2023 he beat Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and lost to Arjun Erigaisi.

In 2025 he won the World Cup as the 16th seed, beating Wei Yi in the final tiebreak and becoming the youngest World Cup winner at 19 and the first from Uzbekistan. In 2026 he won the Candidates Tournament with 10/14, a round early and the highest score in the current double round-robin format, qualifying for the World Championship match against reigning champion Gukesh Dommaraju. In 2026 he tied for 3rd–4th at the Super Chess Classic Romania (5/9) and in July won both the rapid and blitz sections of the Naroditsky Memorial.

In April 2026, after his Candidates win, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev awarded him the Order «Mehnat shuhrati» (Labour Glory) and presented it in person. His FIDE rating was 2782 in October 2026 — a personal best — and fourth in the world.