Ding Liren was born at a time when chess in China became a part of national policy, and he absorbed all the best that the system could offer. His immense natural talent and colossal dedication to self-improvement made him the first world champion from China.

The future champion was born on October 24, 1992, in Wenzhou. He discovered chess at the age of four thanks to his mother, who remained a guardian angel for him throughout his life. It happened entirely by chance: Ding had come to learn xiangqi, but the teacher did not show up, and he started playing another game. His love for chess was fostered by a family friend, Chen Lixing, who had previously coached world champion Zhu Chen. It took the boy just a few years to defeat everyone in his city, then his country, and eventually break onto the international stage, finishing second in the World Youth Championships Under 10 and later in the Under 12.

Ding Liren caught the attention of officials in the capital and was included in a talent support program, personally overseen by Ye Jiangchuan. Ye quickly recognised the boy's abilities, first including him in the Chinese Team Championship when he was 11, and then in the Individual Championship at age 12, where Ding caused a sensation by scoring 50%! Three years later, at age 15, Ding finished the tournament in 6th place, and just a year later, he became the champion. In 2009, he was the only non-grandmaster in the competition, his rating was below 2500, yet he went undefeated and scored six full wins – 8.5/11.

Over the next four years, Ding Liren won the national championship three more times in 2011, 2012 and 2014. Despite rarely traveling abroad, he managed to lift his rating to 2700 – nearly every performance was a success. In 2014, still relatively unknown outside China, he brought his country Olympic gold, scoring 7.5/10 on the second board (Wei Yi played on the first). This achievement earned him invitations to prestigious tournaments, and his very first Wijk aan Zee in 2015 became a true sensation – Ding finished just half a point behind the winner, Carlsen, with 7 wins and a total score of 8.5/13. Throughout the year, the Chinese player maintained his high level of results, finishing in the top four at the Bilbao Masters Final, where he competed on equal footing. Due to these successes, he raised his rating to 2782 and entered the top 10.

In 2015, now leading the Chinese team, Ding made them World Team Chess Champions, repeating this success in 2017. In 2018, he led China to another Olympic gold. This marked the peak period in the history of Chinese chess: their men's and women's teams dominated most tournaments, with Ding Liren as their undeniable leader. The women's crown had long and securely been in China's hands – the only goal remaining was to capture the men's title.

Thanks to his natural modesty, the 25-year-old Chinese player slowly and almost reluctantly stepped into the spotlight. He seemed embarrassed by each of his victories – whether at Shenzhen Masters, Moscow FIDE Grand Prix or the 2017 World Cup, where he reached the final and only lost to Aronian. By this point, Ding Liren had practically forgotten how to lose, achieving an unprecedented classical streak of 100 games without defeat over a year and a half (a record later surpassed by Carlsen, who extended it to 125 games!). This streak helped Ding join the "2800 club," and by the end of 2018, he reached his peak rating of 2816, the 10th highest in chess history.

The "idea of not losing" played a cruel trick on Ding Liren during the 2018 Candidates Tournament. He became the only player to go undefeated but was too restrained, and a single victory wasn't enough to earn a match against Carlsen. However, he didn't despair, and 2019 turned out to be the most successful year of his career. Following a third-place finish in Wijk aan Zee and second in Shamkir, he shared victories with Carlsen in Stavanger and Saint Louis – making it clear to everyone that the next World Championship match would likely feature these two. Ding secured his spot in the 2019 Candidates through the World Cup, once again reaching the final. Yet, the well-earned victory was snatched away by Radjabov.

Then, everything was upended by COVID-19. Ding Liren was considered a top favorite, but instead of preparing for the Candidates Tournament, he spent a month in quarantine, undergoing daily testing. Though allowed to play, he was completely out of form and disastrously performed in the first half of the tournament. The second half, held more than a year later, found him rebounding, winning that stage, but the chance to face Carlsen had already gone to Nepomniachtchi.

In 2021, Ding Liren didn't play a single game, stuck in China and missing all qualification events for the next Candidates Tournament. He wouldn't have participated at all if not for Karjakin's disqualification, which opened the door for him to qualify by rating – though it required him to play 30 games within a month! Having boarded the departing train at the last moment, Ding wasn't fully prepared. He lost his very first game and trailed Nepomniachtchi by 2.5 points by the end of the first half.

Then, the situation shifted again: Carlsen announced he might not defend his title, meaning that second place in the tournament would also lead to the championship match. Ding Liren launched an impressive comeback, winning three consecutive games. Before the final round, only a victory against Nakamura stood between him and success. The game seemed headed for a draw, but suddenly, Nakamura declined a repetition, and Ding emerged victorious, securing second place.

This extraordinary chain of events culminated in Ding Liren's victory over Nepomniachtchi! Despite being less prepared, often finding himself in worse positions, and teetering on the edge of a nervous breakdown during the early games – nearly forfeiting the match – he managed to steady his nerves. Both players made numerous errors; Nepomniachtchi took the lead three times, but Ding equalized on each occasion. The classical portion ended in a 7-7 tie, and the tiebreak proved decisive.

In November and December 2024, Ding met Indian prodigy Gukesh in the World Championship match played in Singapore, and relinquished the title to his younger opponent by 7.5-6.5 (+2 -3 =9) in the classical portion of the match, losing the 14th and final game of the match.

SUMMARY

17th undisputed Champion of the World: Ding Liren qualified as a World Championship Challenger against fellow World Championship Challenger Ian Nepomniachtchi for the 2023 World Championship match after Magnus Carlsen announced his retirement from the World Championship cycle. Nepomniachtchi and Ding had qualified for the match by placing first and second in the Candidates tournament of 2021-2022.

The World Championship match was held in April 2023 in Astana, Kazakhstan and was won by Ding Liren in the fourth and final game of the rapid game tiebreaker after the classical portion of the match had been drawn 7-7 (+3-3=8). His unsuccessful defence of his title occurred on 12 December 2024.

World Champion 2023-2024.

Champion of China 2009, 2011 & 2012.

World Cup 2011 & 2015.

Represented China at:

- the Olympiads of 2012 and 2014, in the latter winning individual bronze for board two and team gold.

- the World Team Championships in 2011 (winning team silver), 2013 (team silver, individual bronze board two) & 2015 (team gold, individual silver board two)

- Asian Team Championships of 2012 (team gold, individual silver board four) & 2014 (team gold and individual gold board one) and

- Summit Matches vs Russia 2009 & 2012 (team was second in both), vs India 2015 (won), and in the Russia-China Challenge Match 2015 (team was second).

Ding Liren's best tournament win was Danzhou (2013), and he was equal first at Danzhou (2014). He was equal second at Tata 2015.

In the world's top 100 ranked players since May 2011.