World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju suffered a shock defeat to Dutch Grandmaster Jorden van Foreest in Round 3 of the Prague Chess Festival on Saturday.
The loss saw Gukesh slip into a four-way tie for last place, while van Foreest climbed into a share of the lead alongside Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Nodirbek Yakubboev, and David Navara after all other games ended in draws. With six rounds still to be played, however, the tournament remains wide open.
Van Foreest’s victory was particularly significant as it marked his first-ever win over a reigning world champion and his first against Gukesh.
“Of course I’m super-happy,” he said after the game. “Even before he was world champion, I played him a couple of times, but I never won and he beat me several times.”
The Dutchman admitted he had doubts during the game.
“He was looking rather calm, and I was thinking, am I missing something? I didn’t see it, so I thought I had to go for it.” As Gukesh spent more time at the board, van Foreest’s confidence increased. Being a pawn up with minimal risk allowed him to press comfortably, eventually converting his advantage.
The win also helped van Foreest recover the rating points he had dropped in the previous round after losing to David Anton. Meanwhile, Gukesh dropped to world No. 13 in the live rankings, level with Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, after having finished Wijk aan Zee inside the top 10.
In other games, Aravindh Chithambaram drew with Parham Maghsoodloo in a 30-move repetition. Navara and Anton also shared the points quickly.
The more fighting games saw Abdusattorov pressing against Vincent Keymer after the German compromised his pawn structure to trade queens, while Yakubboev had chances against Hans Niemann. However, both contests ultimately ended in draws.
With only three rounds completed, the Masters event is still in its early stages, and Gukesh will have opportunities to bounce back in the coming days.