Praggnanandhaa clinches Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz title with a round to spare
Indian Grandmaster R. Praggnanandhaa clinched the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz in St. Louis on Friday (August 7, 2026), sealing the championship with a round to spare and finishing on 23.5 points.
The 20-year-old secured his first Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz crown and did not lose any games on the final day of the Grand Chess Tour event, a performance that propelled him up the overall GCT standings to second place and, the report said, almost guarantees him a slot in the season-ending grand finale.
Praggnanandhaa captured the rapid portion with a marginal one-point lead over Javokhir Sindarov, then lost only a single game in the blitz, compiling 11.5 points from a possible 18 in that phase to reach his tournament total.
Javokhir Sindarov finished second on 22 points after trailing Praggnanandhaa by a full point following the rapid section; Wesley So placed third. The published final standing listed the players and points as follows: Final standing: 1. R Praggnanandhaa (Ind, 23.5); 2. Javokhir Sindarov (Uzb, 22); 3. Wesley So (USA, 20.5); 4: Levon Aronian (USA, 19) 5-7. Fabiano Caruana (USA); Lenier Dominguez Perez (USA), Jorden Van Foreest (Ned) 17 each; 8. Anish Giri (Ned, 15.5); 9. Vincent Keymer (Ger, 14.5) 10. Awonder Leong (USA, 14).
Following the victory Praggnanandhaa posted on 'X': "I am super happy with the result (winning the St Louis Rapid & Blitz) and overall about the game quality. This is the first major rapid and blitz victory, so I'm really happy about it," said Praggnanandhaa on 'X' after the triumph in the elite 10-man field. He also added, "I want to thank my whole team and family for their amazing support. Next I'll play in the Sinquefield Cup, which will start in three days. So, there is not much time to rest and it's also the event before the GCT final. It's going to be really exciting," the young Grandmaster added.
The report noted that Alireza Firouzja of France withdrew from the Grand Chess Tour, citing scheduling issues ahead of the last two events, and that his entire points earned thus far were removed as per the pre-agreement, a development described as having positively impacted Praggnanandhaa's standing on the tour.
The coverage also observed that if Praggnanandhaa finishes in the top three at the upcoming Classical event, it would add to his list of results following his Norway Chess title earlier this year, which he won ahead of Magnus Carlsen.
Praggnanandhaa is scheduled to play the Sinquefield Cup, the final classical tournament of the Grand Chess Tour season, which will be held from August 10 to 19 and serves as the event immediately before the GCT final.
