# Leon Luke Mendonca

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{{short description|Indian chess grandmaster (born 2006)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2021}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2021}}
{{Infobox chess player
|name = Leon Luke Mendonca
|image = Leon Luke Mendonca in 2025 (cropped).jpg
|caption = Mendonca in 2025
|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|2006|3|13|df=y}}
|birth_place = [Goa](/source/Goa), India
|country = India
|title =[Grandmaster](/source/Grandmaster_(chess)) (2021)
|peakrating = 2643 (March 2025)
|peakranking = No. 85 (April 2025)
|FideID = 35028561
}}

'''Leon Luke Mendonca''' (born 13 March 2006) is an Indian [chess grandmaster](/source/Grandmaster_(chess)). He is the sixty-seventh Indian to qualify for the title of Grandmaster, which [FIDE](/source/FIDE) awarded him in January 2021.

==Chess career==
Mendonca became an [International Master](/source/International_Master) (IM) in 2019 at the age of 12 years, 11 months and 3 days.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Pinto |first1=Basil Sylvester |title=I want to be a GM as soon as possible: Leon Luke Mendonca |url=https://www.chessbase.in/news/I-want-to-be-a-GM-as-soon-as-possible-Leon-Luke-Mendonca |access-date=28 January 2021 |work=ChessBase India |date=2 July 2019}}</ref> He was stranded in Eastern Europe due to [COVID lockdowns](/source/COVID_lockdowns) in March 2020. He attained his first [Grandmaster norm](/source/Grandmaster_norm) at the Rigochess Grandmaster tournament in [Hungary](/source/Hungary) in October 2020. Within a span of 21 days, he won another Grandmaster tournament at [Budapest](/source/Budapest) earning him the second Grandmaster norm.<ref>{{cite news |title=Leon Mendonca wins in Hungary, earns second GM norm in space of 21 days |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/sports/chess/young-indian-player-leon-mendonca-wins-in-hungary-earns-second-gm-norm-7056331/ |access-date=28 January 2021 |work=The Indian Express |agency=Press Trust of India |date=18 November 2020}}</ref> Mendonca achieved his third and final norm in December 2020 by finishing second at the Vergani Cup in [Bassano del Grappa](/source/Bassano_del_Grappa), Italy. He became the second grandmaster from the state of Goa after [Anurag Mhamal](/source/Anurag_Mhamal) achieving the feat at 14 years, 9 months and 17 days.<ref>{{cite news |title=Goa's 14-year-old Leon Mendonca becomes India's 67th Grandmaster |url=https://sportstar.thehindu.com/chess/indian-chess-news-goas-14-year-old-leon-mendonca-becomes-indias-67th-grandmaster/article33461829.ece |access-date=28 January 2021 |work=Sportstar |agency=Press Trust of India |date=31 December 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Prasad |first1=RS |title=Leon becomes India's 67th Grandmaster |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/chess/leon-becomes-indias-67th-grandmaster/articleshow/80041148.cms |access-date=28 January 2021 |work=The Times of India |date=31 December 2020}}</ref> He was officially awarded the title of grandmaster (GM) in January 2021.<ref>{{cite web |title=Title Application |url=https://ratings.fide.com/crt/main228910.pdf |website=fide.com |publisher=FIDE |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|date=December 2024}}

In January 2024, Mendonca won the Challengers' section of the [Tata Steel Chess Tournament](/source/Tata_Steel_Chess_Tournament_2024), qualifying him for the Masters section in 2025.

==See also==
* [List of Indian chess players § Grandmasters](/source/List_of_Indian_chess_players)
* [Chess in India](/source/Chess_in_India)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{fide|35028561|Leon Luke Mendonca}}
* {{Chessgames player|156237|Leon Mendonca}}
* {{365Chess.com player|Leon_Luke_Mendonca}}

{{Indian grandmasters}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mendonca, Leon Luke}}
Category:2006 births
Category:Living people
Category:Chess Grandmasters
Category:Sportspeople from Goa
Category:21st-century Indian chess players

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Leon Luke Mendonca](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_Luke_Mendonca) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_Luke_Mendonca?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.