Roman Degtyarev, an 18-year-old Ukrainian chess player from Kharkiv, won the 2026 European Individual Chess Championship after defeating Grandmaster David Anton Gicharro in the final round, according to the European Chess Union (ECU).
“Congratulations to 18-year-old Roman Degtyarev on his victory at the 2026 European Individual Chess Championship!” reads a post on social media.
It is noted that the Ukrainian teenager became the sole winner of the competition, defeating Grandmaster David Anton Gicharro in the final round.
“Ranked 126th on the starting list, Degtyarov caused an absolute sensation at the championship, finishing the tournament with a final score of 9/11 points, suffering only one loss throughout the entire tournament and achieving an incredible rating of 2781!” the post states.
As Ukrainian International Grandmaster Pavlo Eljanov recounted, at the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, he helped Ukrainian families relocate to Europe, but Degtyarev, who was 14 at the time, backed out at the last minute.
“Everything was arranged for the family from Kharkiv—until their 14-year-old son, a talented chess player, refused to go at the last moment. He didn’t want to leave his father. He stayed in one of the most dangerous places in Ukraine. With very limited opportunities to travel and almost no training, he still became the champion of Ukraine,“ Eljanov writes.
According to him, with his victory, Degtyarev ”caused the biggest sensation in the history of the European Championship.”
“Remember this name: Roman Degtyarev! It’s no wonder our city of Kharkiv is called ‘reinforced concrete’!” Eljanov concluded.
