GMs Gukesh Dommaraju, Arjun Erigaisi, and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu all won as the Indian men wrapped up victory in the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad with a statement 3.5-0.5 win over Slovenia. They finished a full four points ahead of five teams, with the United States taking silver after a sole win by GM Wesley So took down China, while Uzbekistan had GM Shamsiddin Vokhidov to thank for a win over France and bronze medals. China, Serbia, and Armenia just missed out on the podium.

A much more cynical team than India might have taken quick draws against Slovenia to wrap up Olympiad gold, but India just kept doing what it had been doing and dominated the field. The team crushed Slovenia, while narrow wins for the United States and Uzbekistan brought silver and bronze medals respectively.

Also in the Women’s 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad, it was Team India that clinched gold for the first time after narrowly missing out when playing on home soil in 2022. After convincingly beating Azerbaijan 3.5-0.5, they saw Kazakhstan, on equal match points from the outset, tie their match with the U.S. team.

It was a most successful day for Indian chess as the women’s team clinched a historic first gold as well, not counting the tie for first with Russia at the 2020 Online Olympiad. It was only their second Olympiad team medal after bronze in 2022, and the first time since 2018 that a country snatched both top Olympic prizes (then it was China).

Unlike their male compatriots, who didn’t lose a single match, the Indian women’s team, after winning seven rounds straight, suffered a defeat at the hands of Poland in round eight. There followed a 2-2 tie with the U.S., but then a strong comeback was next with wins against China and Azerbaijan.