In early 1983, Ulf Andersson and former world champion Mikhail Tal met in Malmö to decide who would act as reserve for that cycle’s Candidates matches. Their playoff followed the Moscow Interzonal, where a 19-year-old Garry Kasparov and Aleksandr Beliavsky had taken the two qualifying spots, leaving Tal and Andersson tied for third. The six-game […]
Monthly Archives: August 2025
Fiona Steil-Antoni is a well-known and popular figure in the chess world. In an interview with ChessBase, she explains how she moved from being a competitive player to becoming an interviewer, commentator, and host — a transition that happened almost by accident. She talks about her love for events like Tata Steel, her recent involvement […]
Wesley So left his best until last at the Sinquefield Cup, turning a quiet start into a tournament victory on the final day in Saint Louis. After outplaying Nodirbek Abdusattorov in round nine, he joined Fabiano Caruana and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu in a three-way tie for first. A tense blitz playoff followed, where So defeated Pragg […]
Round four of the Fujairah Global Chess Championship’s Superstars tournament concluded with nine players sharing the lead on 3 points. Wins by Amin Tabatabaei, Gleb Dudin and Zhu Jiner with the white pieces allowed them to join the players who entered the round as co-leaders. Zhu, the only female participant and lowest seed, defeated Alexander […]
The Fujairah Global Chess Championship made its debut in the United Arab Emirates with over 530 players from more than 70 countries competing across three sections. The main event is the Superstars tournament, a nine-round Swiss open which is part of the 2025 FIDE Circuit. The tournament began with notable surprises, including Pranav Venkatesh’s (pictured) […]
In the penultimate round of the Sinquefield Cup, Nodirbek Abdusattorov finally found success after a difficult event, defeating Alireza Firouzja to claim his first win. The result confirmed Firouzja’s elimination from the Grand Chess Tour Finals race, ending his hopes after two consecutive losses. Elsewhere, Fabiano Caruana and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu both drew and remain joint […]
The Abu Dhabi Masters, the flagship event of the 31st Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival, concluded with a five-way tie at the top of the standings. After nine rounds, Denis Lazavik, Arkadij Naiditsch, Zeng Chongsheng, Aleksey Grebnev and Maksim Tsaruk all finished on 7/9. Lazavik was declared the winner on tiebreaks. The open attracted over […]
Round seven of the Sinquefield Cup in Saint Louis brought three decisive games, the most in a single day so far. Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu defeated Alireza Firouzja with black in a Rossolimo Sicilian, his first classical win against the French grandmaster, and joined Fabiano Caruana in the lead on 4½ points. Wesley So overcame world champion […]
The French Chess Championships concluded in Vichy, with Marc’Andria Maurizzi and Yosha Iglesias crowned as the new national champions. Maurizzi defeated Laurent Fressinet in rapid tiebreaks, while Etienne Bacrot claimed third place ahead of Sebastien Maze. In the women’s final, Iglesias overcame Mitra Hejazipour, with Anastasia Savina securing bronze after a tiebreak win against Deimante […]
Can a woman ever become the best chess player in the world? To find out, chess streamers Emily Higgins and Dina Belenkaya asked the woman who has come closest to winning the world title: Judit Polgar. The only woman to have made it into the world’s top ten, she was the undisputed number one in […]