your videos keep getting worse

A word to describe Magnus: "Dominance". A word to describe Ding: "Resilience".

Ding's rook move to prevent draw by prepetual check in the last game made me root for him even more, man got titanium balls

The guts it takes to play rg6 in that game declining a draw in a freaking TIEBREAKER that too in a time disadvantage, believing in himself at such crunch moment is what changed his life. The journey was just beyond inspiring and amazing these are the stories that prove trying with every ounce of strength you got is what that matters he fought till the very end and he deserves that title.

The Rg6 move will forever be remembered as the Ding Chilling Gambit

Ding Liren’s story is straight out of a movie, hope to see it composed! It truly is inspiring.

Ding’s journey was so special, but I feel so bad for Ian! I was Team Ding from the beginning but Ian has come so close so many times 😢. Here’s a list of Ian’s close calls… still yet to win a world championship in classical, rapid or blitz: 2nd in World Rapid Championship 2013 2nd in World Blitz Championship 2013 2nd in World Rapid Championship 2015 2nd (Ding first) in REGION Blitz 2016 2nd (top 3 tied for first) World Rapid 2016 3rd in World Rapid 2017 2nd (beat Carlsen) Super Tournament 2017 3rd Tata steel 2019 2nd in World Rapid Championship 2021 2nd World Chess Championship 2021 2nd Fischer Random 2022 2nd World Chess Championship 2023

The sheer mental fortitude Ding showed, especially after The Freeze, is what makes him special. Coming back after that collapse on that stage.. toughest man in chess.

Long story short, Ding accepted the Karjakin Gambit, Non-Magnus Variation, teamed up with the guy who wore Pink Coat, and went on to win against Ian and the World Chess Championship.

its great how ding liren went from zero to hero. what a legend.

Ding's story is so inspiring that it completely transcends the chess community; in the past few days, I've had several friends come up to me and be like "You're into chess, right? Have you heard about Ding Liren?" People that don't even know how the pieces move are absolutely stunned by this story. That's just insane

Also noteworthy is Ding's 100-game unbeaten streak 2017-2018, a record at the time.

there are very few moments where you can feel the emotion off someone in a sporting event, but with Ding, it radiated eminently. there comes a point where the intensive focus he put on the game was so locked in, you realize you're not just witnessing a chess game anymore, you're witnessing the battle of a lifetime. he didnt react at all played Rg6, he didnt need to waste energy doing that. he just had to put every ounce of commitment into the position in front of him and in that rising star's moment, Ian trembled at the courage and sheer willpower Ding Liren had. completely thrown off guard, Ian tried his best but had no clue what to expect as Ding turned the board into his play area, and expertly maneuvered the pieces as a moving army of their own. the flashbacks of his life hit him all at once, building up inside, yet, he still refuses to react, until Ian finally resigns, knowing his efforts would ultimately be futile. Ding then broke down crying. tears of joy. but not just joy. relief. pride. respect. he wasn't just the World Chess Champion in that moment, he was a tired man, who earned the right to rest with a crown on his head

This year's fide championship was really interesting, Ding is actually really brave. Hats off to him.

this is truly inspirational... everytime the situation was like "yeah you can try, but a win doesn't guarantee you anything "... this man said "ok, let's try anyway"

i liked it when ding liren said "it's chilling time" and chilled all over the place.

I've seen hundreds of people say they support Ding, I am one of them- primarily because of his humility and innocence seen in interviews, but I had no idea he had such an insane process in getting into the WCC! What an awesome story 💯💯

I know he didn't win, but a video on the indomitable will of Ian Nepomniachtchi would be pretty cool as well!

I like how some people doubted Ding Liren only for him to do ultimate Ding Chilling move and become a champion

This story deserves a whole 2 hour documentary with all the struggles and emotions and everything

As a person who supports both Ding and Ian. While I congratulate Ding for winning the World Chess Championship, I also feel pity for Ian that he did not win the 2023 World Chess Championship. But can we honor Ding's journey? A lot of people in Gotham are mad that this video was made for Ding instead of Ian. But I don't think it's Gotham's fault, much less Ding's. No one is wrong in the process, it's just - Chess is brutal. As the WWC result only one person can be crowned at WWC 2023 is Ding. Please accept the reality that Ding is the person who actually became the world champion as a respect for his journey. I think that's why he deserves to be made a video for from GothamChess. I believe that if Ian wins the WWC, Gotham will definitely make this video for Ian. No matter who the winner of WWC is, he should be respected!

God damn, definitely worth the entire watch. The last moments of the final match, for the uninitiated, don't do justice to how much grit and fight Ding had to go through to win the World Championship. Also, Tania Sachdev's commentary about Ding winning, while accurate, her word's can only be understood to a certain extent. Great summary of the grit and fortitude that this guy had to go through. Definitely movie worthy.

I am so happy that Ding is world champion, and I think he really deserves it!

the indomitable human spirit of ding liren

Ding liren is straight up an anime protagonist. He had a 1 in a million shot to become world champion and he clutched up with ice in his veins during that rapid game. What a guy.

Always hoped ding would win but it was still heartbreaking to see nepo in that state when he lost but congrats to ding on his jojrney

Crazy that hikaru also hadn't played much classical but nearly got that seconds spot. Would've been interesting to see him play in the world championship.

Levy, Pin this story: TLDR: As they say, "Fortune favors the brave", and opportunities can only be seized by those with the skills to do so. Quick summary of feats Ding needed to pull off to earn this title: 1. 100 classical game streak without a loss (to gain 2nd highest rating) 2. Net positive in 30 classical games in a month (to become active again) 3. Win 4 rounds in Candidates against the Strongest players in the world (To qualify as a challenger to Nepo) 4. Win 3 games in the world chess championship against the mighty Nepo to equalize the match 5. Crush Nepo in tiebreaks, aiming for a win when Nepo was ready to settle for a draw ------ Ding's story actually began in 2018, where most of the world was still recovering from Magnus vs Caruana world championship, where Magnus beat Caruana in tiebreaks. The world had thought there would be no one who can ever overthrow Magnus as no one can beat him in either classical, or tie breaks (even if they managed to get there). Then, comes along Ding Liren, who skyrocketed in his ELO due to completing 100 classical games against grandmasters without a single loss. He goes on to defeating Magnus carlsen in the Sinquefield cup (which was a classical tournament) in tiebreaks. The world at the time was shocked, here comes a future champion candidate who had the potential for overthrowing Magnus himself. Magnus in an interview, pointed to Ding Liren as the opponent that confuses him the most. Then, the pandemic hit, right when Ding was at an all time peak (2nd highest rated in the world after Magnus, who is the world champion). Forcing him to be unable to participate in any over the board competitions for 2 whole years. The problem is, that means he misses out on any of the tournaments required to win in order to qualify for the Candidates tournament, which determines who can face the world chess champion. So the only way for Ding to qualify was via Rating, where he needed to be both active and the highest rated. During this time, Nepo plays in the 2021 World chess Championship, and got crushed by Magnus. Prior to 2022, the Candidates tournament, always had a qualification spot for the highest rated ACTIVE player (other than the champion). They removed this qualification milestone in 2022. All hope seemed lost once again for Ding as he now has no way to qualify. Luckily, Karjakin who qualified as one of the 8 was disqualified due to his political comments on social media, opening up the rating qualification once more. Ding Liren goes on to play 30 classical games in a month while netting a positive ELO gain in order to remain as an active rated player in order to qualify based on the highest rating rule. Then, during the candidates, and potentially jet lag, Ding Liren loses the first round to Yan Nepomniachtchi who is out for blood after losing in 2021 to Magnus, in his comeback story for revenge. (Nepo also goes on to winning the Candidates tournament). Coming from a terrible first game, the rest of the first half of the games were all ties. Hope was all but lost for Ding Liren to win the candidates as he was in 2nd to last place. Suddenly, during the second half of the candidates, Ding wins 2 games in a row, loses 1, and wins a third. Putting him and Hikaru as potential 2nd ranked in the tournament if Hikaru can draw or win, OR if Ding can win. Facing each other, Ding won on demand, earning him 2nd place. However, 2nd place is not good enough to play the championship. He needed first. That is when mother fortune finally smiled upon Ding, and Magnus decided to not defend his title. And suddenly, we get a championship between two challengers, Nepo and Ding. Ding understood that he had not been active in the last couple of years and his chess has become rusty. His playstyle had peaked. He needed to reinvigorate his chess in order to compete with someone as experienced as Nepo. So he plays in Wijk Aan Zee, a classical tournament of one of the highest calibers a few months before the championship. There, he faces Richard Rapport, the artist of chess, who is a top 10 chess player with innovative ideas for openings and a unique playstyle. He goes on to recruit Rapport after that tournament to create his small team of seconds to face Nepo in the championship. Then, during the world chess championship, Ding, due from nervousness, a small team of seconds compared to Nepo, and inexperience, loses the 2nd game in the match. The world watching had lost all hope that Ding can turn this around as Chess is a highly drawish game. Meaning it is possible for Nepo to maintain this lead until victory. But Ding said No. Ding chilled himself and went on to fight back for a win in game 4 with a reinvigorated playstyle thanks to Rapport, leading to an exciting blow for blow, win for win against Nepo in games 4-7, where Nepo again regains a 1 point lead. That is when things went terribly wrong. Someone had found Ding's preparation online. This prep leak meant that Ding's chances of coming back were nigh as Nepo and his large team can just study all of Ding's planned openings for the championship. But Ding once again, said No. He chilled himself and went on to win the 12th game, equalizing the match once more. The classical portion of the match ends in a draw by the 14th game. During Tie breaks, in the 4th game, Nepo essentially offers Ding a draw through a potential 3-fold repitition, hoping to get into blitz tiebreaks where he has an advantage. Ding once again, said No. In a chilling moment, Ding goes on to Pin his own Rook to his King, and essentially said that he is still in this to win this, no matter the outcome. He goes on to crushing Nepo in that game and winning on demand. That is how Ding Liren, for the first time in the match, got to one up Nepo, winning the game, which wins the entire tournament on the spot. That is the story of how Ding Liren, against all odds, became our 17th (and chillest) World Chess Champion.

So much respect for Ding, he never gave up

This man deserves to have a film made about him🏅

I was supporting ding but when I saw the way Ian looked at the trophy and the pieces falling off his side of the board I genuinely felt sad it was completely heartbreaking

I'm so happy for ding, I was rooting for him since I heard Rapport was his 2nd, He helped Ding create some creative masterpieces, legends

Truly a movie-like journey. Incredible fight from Ding to stay in it no matter what happened. From the brink of defeat, multiple times, to World Champion. Pretty incredible stuff

Witnessing Ding's story was like living in a story, that was incredbile

Ding deserves everything thus far, as a result of his hard work

Ding is awesome. Levy is such a prize for the chess community, the excitement is infectious. Amazing job Levy keep em coming

Think this was my favorite video yet, amazing storytelling, thank you for making videos like this :)

Levy, all respect to you for digging this out for us. Great work. Best chess reporter on the planet!

Ding story to be the world Chess champion we all can related in life. Never give up and keep fighting even in a slightest of hope everything will turn around. Hardtime never define a true character of a man but fought through the hardtime against all odd is a mark of a champion. Never give up hope fittingly crowned Ding LiRen champion in World Chess championship.

The stars literally aligned for Ding that’s incredible

Ding is such a legend, glad to see more content about him!

I was already excited when he made it to the candidates. What an incredible series of events.

I was rooting for ding but nepo's sad face made me emotional

We need a big budget movie version of this, now

Thank you so much for this story! I didn't know that it was such a inspirational journey from Ding liren, and it is wonderfully told!

This is why reality is more impressive than any fiction… And you are Levy such a great storyteller that it give me goosebumps !

Ding Liren is a legend.

Really enjoyed that. I think this could be a thing. Famous players and their greatest games narrated by Levy

you crushed my soul with that eye contact

I love how everybody calls ding Lauren a underdog when his peak rating is 67 points higher then Ian nepo.

Damn that Qa2 was when Ian was breaking down. I get chills every time I think about it

ding is the perfect example of the "last goal wins"😂

Ngl, I was hoping for a documentary about Ding, wanted to suggest you to do one but didn't, I'm so glad you explained his journey through

We're all just pawns in a Ding Liren chess game. Not many have it in them to comeback from such difficulties but he did. Now he really is chilling.

Insane Story! would be epic if you showed ding's immortal game in 2017

First video of Gotham that I watched till the end and IT IS AMAZING

Beautiful story - and a fantastic summary, Levy!

I remember this candidates second place game, when we all heard Magnus might not compete, but we all were questioning what he'd really do, and whether Ding's win would matter, and then to have it turn out this way is amazing.

I knew that story and craved a deep dive in video format. Thank you for delivering.

I feel like Nepo had fully anticipated that ding would take the draw and when ding played the Rg6 move ian was just shook and panicked

The story was crazy! Ding Chilling to Ding Winning 🏆

Watching this gives me another reason to never give up on my dreams.. A true Champion Ding Liren 👑

Levy is the kind of guy to see a snack and ask ‘Is anyone gonna eat that?’ and not wait for an answer

Excellent summary... Love your passion for the game.

"You can't stop an avalanche with a horse" - Levi 2023

Just imagine going from barely playing classical for a couple of years and then instantly getting catapulted to the world championship and WINNING IT. Ding Chilling for the win🍦❄️

Just a fantastic story! One of the greatest in chess history…. Congrats to Ding.

So appreciative you covered this arc. This is why I was rooting for him during the FIDE world championship. He did not disappoint. Best high stakes chess match I have ever witnessed.

Liren deserves heaps of praise for his journey and achievement!!

This is the most epic story in chess history, at least that I know.

No amount of motivation ever helped me. I'm currently applying for scholarship and have faced a lot of rejection but the lengths Ding went to, just renewed my self motivation!

Bro made himself speechles at the end there

Hey Levi you forgot to mention that Dings prep got leaked and Nempo made a comment about it after game 10. Even more impressive that Ding had to call an audible for the rest of the championship.

When I started to watch the Recaps, I just randomly chose a side and the Side I chose happen to be Ding's Side, I'm so glad that my random guess would be this amazing

This story really deserves an Oscar. I'm speachless

There need a movie with this Ding.

"He had to be brave and run" -Levy Rozman 2023

Mad respect to Ding Liren and huge congratulations! All chess players of this day and age have something to learn from this man, in chess or in life. Truly inspiring resilience and humble personality.

Everyone keep saying poor nepo and pities the man, but not many talks about the struggles and achievement of my man Ding, the challanges he's endured and his tremendous efforts to win the world title. Absolutely deserved. Congrats Ding!

Bro straight up just lived through a movie 😭

Maybe adding Sinqufield cup Ding vs Nepo would be interesting

I dreamt of Ding becoming a title contender and even becoming the new world chess champion ever since his Sinquefield Cup win against Magnus in 2019. Can't believe it has already been 4 years, and can't believe that after ups and downs, Ding pulled it through and won the WCC tiebreaks. An absolutely amazing journey.

today stare was historical. he Locked my soul into a cage.

Oscar Award 2024: Best Documentary: My Journey (Ding Liren) by Levy Rozman

Loads of persistence and perseverance.

Ding Liren has always been the second best player in the world after Magnus. Covid and the travel restrictions made us forget about him. So, it makes total sense Ding gets the title after Magnus relinquishes it. Had Ding been active, we would have never seen Caruana or Ian in the world stage with Magnus. That's just the truth. In the end, the best player won once he was given the opportunity. Just rate the endgame of these players, Magnus and Ding endgame plays are superior to the others. The other players may get the best prep, memorizing stockfish lines, good tactics, when it comes to the endgame they will never beat Magnus or Ding Liren. In game 14, in a totally winning position, Ian could not convert because Ding played the last 45 moves the computer would have played to draw the game. Ian could not do the same in the last game of the playoff when a draw was possible.

Feels like Magnus just wanted to give Ding a chance by not defending. And if Ding wins Magnus can enjoy arrogant Ian’s loss.

I heard Nepo got rid of every bell, doorbell, and even the microwave so he'd never have to hear his name again. DING!

Ding is CHILLING

what an absolute legend. The fact he believed in himself until the very end is what got him to where he is now. That was just an awesome and inspiring thing to behold. Beautiful

Honestly, I still don't know how Ian walked willingly into a discovered attack in game 12. But yeah Ding needs a tv show I guess

Ding Chilling his way to the top.

Simply the greatest comeback someone can talk about. I felt even more satisfied with his victory when I remember that, in another yt video regarding Ding's trouble during the match, I commented something like "I'm still confident he can win". Ppl started arguing about how it'd be from tough to impossible for that to happen, talking about ELO difference, pressure, experience and this and that. With his victory proving those people wrong, Ding Liren's world championship journey became an inspiration story for me I never thought I'd witness, specially during the time when I've never been more interested in the game ever.

King Li Win 👑

"greatest comeback in sports" 😂

The first second of the video is always the best. Levy just staring at us.

I don't think Chess world will ever witness another back story of another World Chess campion travel similar road in the same fashion as Ding. Ding had a toughest road to the world Chess champion.

I still don't wanna let go of Magnus but it's impossible to deny how awesome Dings story has been.

You are a master storyteller, sir. I hope you never leave this job!!

Honestly this is the best vi you’ve uploaded this week