FIDE World Cup 2025 Goa: 12-Year-Old Faustino Oro Shines in Dramatic Tiebreaks

Chessbrainz Nov 04,2025 - 09:50

174

The FIDE World Cup 2025 in Goa delivered its first major storyline as 12-year-old IM Faustino Oro from Argentina became the youngest player ever to advance to Round 2 of a World Cup.

Oro defeated experienced Croatian GM Ante Brkic 5–3 after a tense match that went all the way to blitz. The young prodigy, already famous for online wins against Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura, showed incredible composure under pressure, turning a must-win situation into a career-defining triumph.

"It was really tough," Oro said after the match. I missed a tactic in one of the rapid games, but in blitz I just trusted my instincts.

The tiebreaks were packed with intensity, a perfect mix of rapid calculation, nerves, and pure fighting spirit. Rapid games often test balance between accuracy and speed, but when the action shifted to blitz, instinct took over.

Out of 20 matches, 14 were decided in the 15+10 rapid games, while six went into the faster 10+10 or 5+3 formats. Among the early qualifiers were

• GM S.L. Narayanan (India) dominated with a 2–0 win over IM Steven Rojas of Peru.

• GM Jorge Cori (Peru) and GM Diptayan Ghosh (India) both advanced with strong 2–0 sweeps.

• IM Aronyak Ghosh (India) – scored a clean 2–0 win in the 10+10 stage to eliminate GM Mateusz Bartel (Poland).

• GM Max Warmerdam (Netherlands) bounced back after losing his first game to win both blitz deciders.

• GM Ahmed Adly (Egypt) and GM Kazybek Nogerbek (Kazakhstan) – survived marathon matches to qualify.

Several young stars impressed despite elimination. FM Kavin Mohan (Malaysia, age 14) held GM Robert Hovhannisyan to two classical draws before narrowly losing in rapid, a result that earned wide praise for his fighting spirit.

With all 50 top seeds entering in Round 2, tomorrow’s matchups promise world-class battles, featuring players like Gukesh D, Vidit Gujrathi, and Arjun Erigaisi taking on the emerging challengers.