Lai Ly Huynh surpasses Chinese prodigy to enter the finals of the world chess tournament

Thanks to a better goal difference than Chinese chess prodigy Meng Fanrui, Vietnam's number 1 chess player Lai Ly Huynh won the right to enter the final round of the world chess championship taking place in Shanghai.

The opportunity opened up for chess players Lai Ly Huynh, Nguyen Thanh Bao and the Vietnamese chess team in this year's world championship when a series of Chinese chess masters such as Vuong Thien Nhat, Trinh Duy Dong, Trieu Ham Ham, Tu Sieu, and Tuong Xuyen were banned from competing because of their involvement in match-fixing scandals that shocked the Chinese and world chess world. Although the host country China sent two young players, Manh Phan Due (17 years old) and Doan Thang (20 years old), to participate in the tournament, it still showed the strength of the world chess cradle.

Lai Ly Huynh (right) excelled in the finals of the 2025 World Chess Championship

PHOTO: NMT

The events in the men's individual standard chess event were exciting and dramatic. Vietnam's number 1 player Lai Ly Huynh was undefeated after 8 games (5 wins, 3 draws), scoring 13 points. The two home players, Doan Thang and Manh Phon Due, also had the same 13 points as Lai Ly Huynh. This result forced the referee to compare the score difference between the three players to choose two athletes to enter the finals to compete for the gold medal.

Doan Thang had the best sub-index (85 points) so he won the first ticket to the final. The remaining ticket was named Lai Ly Huynh when he was 1 point ahead of Chinese chess prodigy Manh Phan Due in the sub-index. This result made Vietnamese chess fans burst into tears because they were previously disappointed when they heard that Lai Ly Huynh missed the ticket to the final because he lost to 2 Chinese players in the sub-index.

Lai Ly Huynh has the opportunity to make history for Vietnamese chess.

PHOTO: NMT

This is the second time in his career that Lai Ly Huynh has qualified for the finals of the World Chess Championship. The first time was in 2023 when the tournament took place in the US and he lost to Manh Than (China) so he received a silver medal. This time, Lai Ly Huynh is expected to make history for Vietnamese chess when he faces Doan Thang in the finals taking place tomorrow (September 27).

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/lai-ly-huynh-vuot-than-dong-trung-quoc-vao-chung-ket-giai-co-tuong-the-gioi-18525092605511551.htm