Father speaks of “pride and honor”
Three-year-old sets chess record
12/04/2025 – 12:04 p.mReading time: 1 min.
At his age, others can just speak. However, Sarwagya Singh Kushwaha set a record in chess at the age of three.
A three-year-old made history: Sarwagya Singh Kushwaha from India became the youngest player in history to achieve an official rating from the World Chess Federation FIDE. At the time of the record, the boy from the state of Madhya Pradesh was exactly three years, seven months and 20 days old.
In doing so, he beat the previous record of his compatriot Anish Sarkar, who was listed for the first time in November 2024 – at the time at the age of three years, eight months and 19 days. The rating numbers are used to evaluate the playing strength.
Kushwaha is still in preschool and already has a rapid chess score of 1,572 points. In order to receive such a FIDE number, at least one opponent with an existing rating must be defeated.
The prodigy’s father, Siddharth Singh, spoke to Indian media of “a matter of great pride and honor” and added: “We want him to become a grandmaster.”
Kushwaha beat three ranked players in tournaments in his homeland and other regions of India. For comparison: World champion Magnus Carlsen leads the rapid chess world rankings with a rating of 2,824.
India has been considered a chess hotbed for years and has produced numerous top players, including current world champion Gukesh Dommaraju and five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand.