Rustam Kasimdzhanov is an Uzbek Grandmaster of chess and a former FIDE World Champion. He was born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in 1979. Having achieved the title of Grandmaster in 1997, Kasimdzhanov successfully claimed the World Champion title in the 2004 FIDE World Chess Championship. His victory in this tournament was considered an upset, with him notably defeating grandmasters Veselin Topalov & Michael Adams in the finals.
Kasimdzhanov has represented Uzbekistan in seven Chess Olympiads from 1996 to 2006, as well as played in the FIDE World Chess Championship in 2005 and 2008. While he did not perform as successfully as during his 2004 championship, he continued to be a strong competitor in these tournaments.
His career also includes coaching various renowned players including Fabiano Caruana whom he started coaching in 2015 and helped him reach the rank of World No. 2 the following year. He has also coached the German national team and assisted World Champion Viswanathan Anand in multiple World Championship matches from 2008-2010.