Le Quang Liem beat "chess king" Ding Liren on Tuesday, marking the first time a Vietnamese player defeated the reigning world champion in standard chess, and helping Vietnam tie China 2-2 at Chess Olympiad.

Liren, 31, is the highest rated chess player of all time and won the world crown in May last year after defeating Russian GM Ian Nepomniachtchi. The Chinese took a break from the game after that owing to his battle with depression and returned to action earlier this year at the Tata Steel Chess Tournament, finishing ninth in the event.

With Le Quang Liem's victory, the Vietnamese chess team have achieved a 2-2 draw against championship contender China, continuing their unbeaten streak after the sixth round of the 2024 Chess Olympiad in Hungary.

Ding Liren, the defending champion, concedes that his Indian opponent D Gukesh is favored to win their global chess title match this November. Both are currently participating in the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest.

World Champion Ding Liren says his challenger D Gukesh can be considered as favourite to win the world chess title to be played in November.