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Abdulla Gadimbayli (Azerbaijani: Abdulla Qədimbəyli; born 2 January 2002) is an Azerbaijanichessgrandmaster (2022) and two-time world champion at youth and junior levels. He is the World Junior Chess Champion (2022) and an Azerbaijan Chess Champion (2018).
Gadimbayli began playing chess when he was four and quickly emerged as one of Azerbaijan’s leading youth players. By the age of eight, he had already achieved international recognition, winning both European and World Youth Championship titles in his age category. Throughout his junior career, he consistently represented Azerbaijan in European and World Youth Championships, as well as international open tournaments. He repeatedly represented Azerbaijan at the European Youth Chess Championships and World Youth Chess Championships in different age groups, where he won three gold medals: in 2009, at the European Youth Chess Championship in the U08 age group, and in 2010, at the European and World Youth Chess Championships in the U08 age group.[1][2] In 2016, he played for Azerbaijan in World Youth U16 Chess Olympiad.[3]
His early successes laid the foundation for a steady progression through FIDE titles and elite-level international competition.
Abdulla Gadimbayli played for Azerbaijan-3 team in the Chess Olympiad. In 2016, at third board in the 42nd Chess Olympiad in Baku (+4, =3, -2).[4] In 2017, he was awarded the FIDE International Master (IM) title.[5]
In 2022, he won the World Junior Chess Championship on tiebreaks, with a score of 8/11 (+5, =6, -0), directly gaining the Grandmaster (GM) title as a result.[6][7][8][9][10]
Gadimbayli achieved numerous titles and podium finishes in youth competitions:
In 2010, he was named Azerbaijan’s “Sportsman of the Year”, reflecting his exceptional international results at a very young age.
In 2018, at the age of 16, Gadimbayli won the Azerbaijan Chess Championship (Men’s), becoming one of the youngest national champions in the country’s history.[11]
In 2022, Gadimbayli won the FIDE World Junior Chess Championship, finishing first with a score of 8/11 and remaining unbeaten throughout the tournament. By virtue of this victory, he was automatically awarded the title of Grandmaster (GM).
Gadimbayli has won or placed highly in numerous international tournaments from childhood through adulthood. Selected results include:
Gadimbayli represented Azerbaijan at the FIDE Chess World Cup 2023, where he defeated Shamsiddin Vokhidov in the first round and eliminated #1(top) Spanish grandmaster David Antón Guijarro in the second round before being knocked out in later stages.[12]
His peak FIDE classical rating is 2524 (November 2022). He has consistently remained around the 2500 rating level in classical chess.
In addition to his chess career, Gadimbayli has completed both his Bachelor’s degree and Master’s degree in Business Management.
Gadimbayli is known for balancing professional chess with academic education. Further details about his private life are not widely publicized.