Divya Deshmukh

{{Infobox chess player

| name = Divya Deshmukh

| image = Divya Deshmukh in 2025.jpg

| caption = Deshmukh in 2025

| country = {{IND}}

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|2005|12|09}}{{cite web|url=https://ratings.fide.com/profile/35006916 |title=Divya Deshmukh FIDE profile|access-date= 8 December 2020}}

| birth_place = Nagpur, India

| title = {{ubl

|International Master (2023)

|Woman Grandmaster (2021)

}}

| peakrating = 2501 (October 2024)

| FideID = 35006916

}}

Divya Deshmukh (born 9 December 2005) is an Indian chess player who holds the title of Woman Grandmaster and International Master.{{cite web |url=https://www.chessbase.in/news/Divya-Deshmukh-becomes-the-22nd-Woman-Grandmaster-of-India |title=Divya Deshmukh becomes the 22nd Woman Grandmaster of India |last=Ahmed |first=Shahid |date=19 October 2021 |publisher=Chessbase India |access-date=27 February 2022 |quote=Divya Deshmukh scored her final WGM-norm in her first tournament in over 17 months at First Saturday GM October 2021.}} She is a three-time gold medalist at the Olympiad. Deshmukh has also won multiple golds at the Asian Championship, the World Junior Championship as well as the World Youth Championship.{{Cite web |last=Raghavan |first=R. Srinivasa |date=2024-06-20 |title=Divya Deshmukh, India's new chess star, looks set to checkmate the world |url=https://thefederal.com/category/sports/divya-deshmukh-indias-new-chess-star-looks-set-to-checkmate-the-world-128488 |access-date=2024-06-20 |website=thefederal.com |language=en}}

Early life

Deshmukh was born in Nagpur in a Marathi family.{{Cite web |title=Meet Divya Deshmukh: All You Need To Know About Indian Chess Player Who Faced Sexism From Fans - In Pics |url=https://zeenews.india.com/photos/sports/meet-divya-deshmukh-all-you-need-to-know-about-indian-chess-player-who-faced-sexism-from-fans-in-pics-2716601 |access-date=2024-06-20 |website=Zee News |language=en}} Her parents, Jitendra Deshmukh and Namratha Deshmukh, are doctors.{{Cite news |date=2024-06-14 |title=Nagpur's queen India's pride: Divya Deshmukh is world junior chess champion |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/chess/nagpurs-queen-indias-pride-divya-deshmukh-is-world-junior-chess-champion/articleshow/110978256.cms |access-date=2024-06-20 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}} She received her early education from Bhavans Bhagwandas Purohit Vidya Mandir.{{Cite web |last=Shekhawat |first=Meemansa |title=Meet Divya Deshmukh, grandmaster who helped India clinch gold medal at Budapest Chess Olympiad at age of... |url=https://www.dnaindia.com/sports/photo-gallery-meet-divya-deshmukh-grandmaster-who-helped-india-clinch-gold-medal-at-budapest-chess-olympiad-at-age-of-18-3109551/achievements-3109554 |access-date=2024-12-24 |website=DNA India |language=en}}

Career

Deshmukh became India's 21st woman chess Grandmaster in 2021. She won the 2022 Women's Indian Chess Championship.{{cite web |url=https://www.chess.com/news/view/arjun-erigaisi-divya-deshmukh-clinch-indian-national-championships |title=Arjun Erigaisi, Divya Deshmukh Clinch Indian National Championships | first=Niranjan | last=Navalgund | publisher=chess.com | date=5 March 2022 | accessdate=10 July 2022}} She also won an individual bronze medal at the 2022 Chess Olympiad. She was also part of the gold medal-winning FIDE Online Chess Olympiad 2020 team.{{cite web |title=India – FIDE Online Olympiad 2020 |url=https://olymp-results.fide.com/team/ind |website=FIDE Online Olympiad 2020 / 24 July - August 30 |access-date=27 February 2022}}{{Cite web |date=2024-06-14 |title=Who is Divya Deshmukh? Nagpur chess prodigy bags World U-20 Chess Championship title - CNBC TV18 |url=https://www.cnbctv18.com/sports/who-is-divya-deshmukh-nagpur-chess-prodigy-bags-world-u-20-chess-championship-title-19428189.htm |access-date=2024-06-20 |website=CNBCTV18 |language=en}} As of December 2024, she is the 2nd ranked woman chess player in India.{{cite web |url=https://ratings.fide.com/top_lists.phtml |title=FIDE Ratings |author= |access-date=2 September 2023}}

In 2023, in Almaty she won the Asian Women's Chess Championship.[https://chess-results.com/tnr767500.aspx?lan=1&art=4&turdet=YES&flag=30 Asian Continental Women Chess Championship 2023] She then finished first in the women's rapid section of the Tata Steel India Chess Tournament, despite being the bottom seed. At the tournament, she defeated Harika Dronavalli, Vantika Agrawal, Koneru Humpy, Savitha Shri B, Irina Krush, and Nino Batsiashvili, drew against Women's World Champion Ju Wenjun and Anna Ushenina, and suffered her only loss to Polina Shuvalova.[https://chess-results.com/tnr812924.aspx?lan=1&art=1&turdet=YES&flag=30 TATA STEEL CHESS INDIA RAPID 2023 (WOMEN)]

In May 2024, Deshmukh was the Sharjah Challengers champion, a large open tournament win that earned her a spot in the Sharjah Masters the following year.{{cite web |last1=Ahmed |first1=Shahid |title=Divya Deshmukh wins Sharjah Challengers 2024 |url=https://www.chessbase.in/news/7th-Sharjah-Masters-2024-Round-9-report |website=ChessBase India |date=23 May 2024 |access-date=23 June 2024}} In June, she became 2024 FIDE World U20 Girls Chess Champion. She became the fourth Indian to win the World Junior Girls' title after Koneru Humpy in 2001, Harika Dronavalli in 2008, and Soumya Swaminathan in 2009. Needing a win in the final round, she defeated Bulgaria’s third seed Beloslava Krasteva in a five-hour marathon battle to secure 10 points out of a possible 11 and won the gold.

In September 2024, she won the team gold as well as the individual gold medals at the 45th Chess Olympiad in 2024.{{Cite web |last=Burtasova |first=Anna |date=2024-09-22 |title=India triumphs at 45th Chess Olympiad, winning both Open and Women's competitions |url=https://www.fide.com/news/3228 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240922173307/https://www.fide.com/news/3228 |archive-date=2024-09-22 |access-date=2024-09-22 |website=www.fide.com |language=en}}