When chess meets love: Vidit Gujrathi picks Paris tournament for his honeymoon
New Delhi: Indian chess Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi is set for a whirlwind start to married life, with his honeymoon plans taking an unexpected turn towards the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour in Paris.
Vidit, who will marry Dr. Nidhi Kataria on April 3, has qualified as the 12th and final participant for the tournament’s Paris leg, which runs from April 7 to 14.
Vidit’s decision to jump straight from his wedding celebrations to competitive chess has drawn parallels with Viswanathan Anand, whose wife Aruna once recalled how their own honeymoon coincided with a chess tournament. In a conversation with ChessBase India, Aruna had jokingly advised Vidit: "Never do that to your wife when you get married." However, with history seemingly repeating itself, Vidit quipped after his qualification, "I get married on April 3, and now it seems the honeymoon will be in Paris."
A packed chess lineup in Paris
The Paris leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour, founded by Magnus Carlsen and entrepreneur Jan Henric Buettner, will feature some of the world’s top players, including:
- Magnus Carlsen
- Hikaru Nakamura
- Fabiano Caruana
- Hans Niemann
- Ian Nepomniachtchi
- Alireza Firouzja
- Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
Vidit will also be joined by three other Indian Grandmasters—World Chess Champion D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, and R Praggnanandhaa—making it a significant event for Indian chess.
Vidit’s road to qualification
Vidit secured his spot by winning the Paris Play-in qualification event, defeating Hungarian Grandmaster Richard Rapport 1.5-0.5 in the final. Before that, he overcame M Pranesh in the quarter-finals and Amin Tabatabaei in the semi-finals.
Despite not having trained seriously for four months, Vidit put on a stellar performance, proving his tactical prowess. However, he humorously admitted that his immediate priority might be sorting out logistics: "As soon as I get married, I’ll be flying out. But I will need help with the visa for my fiancée, if anybody’s watching!"
With a wedding, a high-profile tournament, and a race against time for travel preparations, Vidit’s journey to Paris will be as strategic as his next chess moves. Whether his new bride will join him on this unexpected honeymoon remains to be seen, but one thing is certain—history has an uncanny way of repeating itself in the world of chess.