At 40 years old, Peter Leko is the youngest of the legends in the chess24 Legends of Chess, but the Hungarian began his chess career early and rose fast. At 14 he set a new record as the youngest grandmaster in history, and by the age of 20 he’d reached the Top 10, where he would stay for a decade. The defining moment of his career came in 2004 at the age of 25, when he was within one draw of claiming the World Championship. Instead Vladimir Kramnik won, tied the match 7:7 and held onto his title.

Peter Leko grew up in Szeged, Hungary, where his father taught him the moves at the age of 7. The youngster took to the game fast and recently credited none other than 8th World Champion Mikhail Tal for fuelling his enthusiasm for chess still further: