Javokhir Sindarov

Javokhir Sindarov (born 8 December 2005) is an Uzbek chess grandmaster. A chess prodigy, he became a grandmaster in 2018 at the age of 12 years, 10 months, and 8 days—the second-youngest in history at the time. Representing Uzbekistan, he was a member of the team that won gold at the 44th Chess Olympiad.

Sindarov won the 2025 Chess World Cup after defeating Wei Yi in the finals, becoming its youngest and first Uzbek winner and qualifying for the 2026 Candidates Tournament. He went on to win the event, earning the right to play the 2026 World Chess Championship against reigning champion Gukesh Dommaraju.

Early life Sindarov was born in Tashkent on 8 December 2005. His father is a businessman, and his mother is a schoolteacher. His paternal grandfather, Komil Sindarov, taught him to play chess when he was four and a half years old. Komil is the vice president of the Chess Federation of Uzbekistan and the author of a number of detective novels.

Javokhir has three younger brothers, one of whom, Islombek, is also a chess player. He achieved his first grandmaster norm at the Alekhine Memorial in June 2018. His second-place finish at the World Junior Chess Championship in September brought his rating to 2500. In October 2018, he scored his third GM norm at the First Saturday tournament to become the second-youngest grandmaster in history at the time.

2023 In the Chess World Cup 2023, Sindarov again caused a major upset, defeating the tournament's 10th seed Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the third round, before being eliminated by Arjun Erigaisi.

In October 2023, Sindarov played in the Asian Games. He won bronze in the individual (rapid) event, and played on board two for Uzbekistan in the team event, scoring 6/8 while his team earned a bronze medal behind India and Iran; after that, he took fourth place in the Qatar Masters Open tournament with an undefeated 6.5/9 score.

In November, Sindarov entered the FIDE Grand Swiss Tournament and finished eighth with 7/11. He was among the leaders until round 7, when he was defeated by Vidit Gujrathi, the eventual winner, in his only loss of the tournament. Nonetheless, he managed to win four games, including one against former world number two Levon Aronian.

2024 After the Grand Swiss, Sindarov crossed the 2700 Elo mark for the first time in his career. In June 2024, he played in the UzChess Cup Masters and finished fifth overall, defeating higher-rated fellow Uzbek grandmaster Nodirbek Abdusattorov (2766) in their individual game.

2025 In January 2025, Sindarov began working with the chess coach Roman Vidonyak.

As the sixteenth seed in the 2025 World Cup, Sindarov defeated players including adjacent seed Yu Yangyi, Frederik Svane, and José Martínez Alcántara to reach the semifinals against fellow countryman Nodirbek Yakubboev. After winning in the tiebreaks, Sindarov advanced to the finals against Wei Yi and qualified for the 2026 Candidates Tournament. He then drew the first two classical games, as well the first game of the tiebreak, before defeating Wei Yi in the second tiebreak game to become both the first Uzbek and the youngest World Cup winner ever at 19 years, 11 months, and 18 days.

2026

In April, Sindarov won the Candidates Tournament 2026 with a score of 10/14. This qualified him to challenge Gukesh Dommaraju for the title of World Chess Champion in late 2026. He joined Anand (2014) and Nepomniachtchi (2022) as one of three players to have secured his victory in this Candidates format with a round to spare.

After his Candidates win, the president of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, presented Sindarov with the Order of “Mehnat Shuhrati” (Labour Glory) award.

In May, his 53-game unbeaten streak in classical chess was ended by R Praggnanandhaa in round two of the 2026 Super Chess Classic Romania. He finished the tournament tied 3rd-4th with a score of 5/9 (+2-1=6).

In July, he won both the rapid and blitz portions of the Naroditsky Memorial 2026, and overtook compatriot Nodirbek Abdusattorov's lead in the 2026–2027 FIDE Circuit.

Playing style Sindarov is known for his aggressive, dynamic playing style and ability to maintain constant pressure on opponents.

Sindarov has said, "If I get a dynamic position with any colour, I will be very happy."

Personal life Sindarov is in a relationship with Kazakhstani grandmaster Bibisara Assaubayeva, a three-time Women's World Blitz Champion. Both competed in their respective Candidates Tournaments in Cyprus in April 2026, with Assaubayeva finishing second in the Women's Candidates.

Sindarov vs Abdusattorov, UzChess Cup 2024, 1–0 – Victory over higher-rated compatriot (rated 2766 at the tournament) in round 4

Sindarov vs Caruana, Candidates 2026, 1–0 – Dominant performance against the pre-tournament favorite in round 4

Wei Yi vs Sindarov, Candidates 2026, 0–1 – Key victory in round 6 to establish a commanding 1.5-point lead

Giri vs Sindarov, Candidates 2026, ½–½ – Clinching draw in round 13 to secure tournament victory with a round to spare