GMXiangyu Xu

Xu Xiangyu was born in Taiyuan in 1999 and became a grandmaster in 2017. At the 2019 World Cup he defeated Bu Xiangzhi and Ernesto Inarkiev before losing to Alexander Grischuk in the third round. His work away from his own games included serving as a second to Tan Zhongyi for her world-championship match against Ju Wenjun. He captained China's contingent at the 2025 World Cup. A close friend of Wei Yi, he stayed in India to support him during his run to the final. Xu explained that he oversaw the whole delegation, rather than acting as Wei's personal second. He also described a circle of friends including Bai Jinshi, Peng Xiongjian and Li Di who discussed games and ideas together. In early 2026 he won the Rilton Cup unbeaten with eight points from nine games, a full point ahead of the field. That May he became Chinese champion, again unbeaten, with eight and a half points from eleven games.