GCL Day 8: Triveni secure finals berth as Alpine closes in on second place
Day eight of the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League belonged to the champions and the teams who refused to give up. The Triveni Continental Kings crushed the Ganges Grandmasters 14–5 to secure their place in the final with a round to spare. It was a great day for the Alpine SG Pipers, who beat both the upGrad Mumbai Masters and the Fyers American Gambits in two tight matches to climb into sole second place. The PBG Alaskan Knights handed Mumbai a third straight defeat, tightening the race for the remaining final spot. Standings after Day 8 After seven days, Triveni were already clear on 18 Match Points, with the upGrad Mumbai Masters and Ganges Grandmasters six points behind. Day eight pushed them even further ahead. The Kings moved to 21 Match Points, removing any doubt about their presence in the final. Behind them, the table is now crowded: the Alpine SG Pipers ended the day on 15 Match Points, with Mumbai, Ganges, and PBG on 12, and the Gambits on 9. With one day of round-robin play left, only second place is still up for grabs. Match 24: Alpine SG Pipers vs upGrad Mumbai Masters (8–7) The day opened with the Alpine SG Pipers facing the upGrad Mumbai Masters. Both teams had suffered setbacks on Day 7 and, having played one match fewer than the rest, saw this as a direct chance to climb back into the fight for the final. In their first meeting, Alpine had beaten Mumbai 9–7 thanks to wins from Hou Yifan and Leon Luke Mendonca, with the remaining boards drawn. The same two boards decided the return match. Four of the six games were drawn, leaving everything in the hands of Hou and Leon once more. On the top women’s board, Hou Yifan faced Humpy Koneru in a Queen’s Indian Defence. Hou seized the initiative early, lost some of her edge, but then capitalised on a later error from Humpy to score a critical win for the Pipers. On the prodigy board, Bardiya Daneshvar hit back for Mumbai. In a French Defence, he outplayed Leon Luke Mendonca to bring home the full point. This narrowed the gap but did not change the match outcome. With Hou’s win and four draws, Alpine reached eight Game Points, while Mumbai finished on seven. The Pipers scored their second win over Mumbai and moved up to 12 Match Points, joining the group chasing Triveni. For Mumbai, this was a second straight missed chance to close the gap on the leaders, further weakening their hopes for the final. Match 25: Ganges Grandmasters vs Triveni Continental Kings (5–14) The second match of the day pitted the Ganges Grandmasters against the leaders, Triveni Continental Kings. In their first head-to-head on Day 4, Triveni had won 11–6. Now Ganges needed to strike back, especially after upGrad had again failed to separate from them in the standings. Both teams approached the match sharply. The first game to finish was between Vincent Keymer and Wei Yi in an English Opening. Neither side managed to unbalance the position, and the players agreed to a draw by threefold repetition. On the prodigy board, Raunak Sadhwani gained the initiative against Marc’Andria Maurizzi in a Giuoco Piano, but that game also ended in a draw. The early score was 2–2, but the real drama was still to come. On board five, Alexandra Kosteniuk scored first for Triveni. In a Caro-Kann, Stavroula Tsolakidou emerged a pawn up but then misplayed, allowing Black to launch a powerful kingside attack that decided the game in Kosteniuk’s favour, giving the champions a vital lead. On the second women’s board, Polina Shuvalova spoiled a winning position against Zhu Jiner, notably missing a checkmate in two. Instead, she walked into a completely lost ending. Another four Game Points went to Triveni, and the match swung heavily in their favour. Ganges scored their only win on board three, where Javokhir Sindarov defeated Vidit Gujrathi, but it was too late. To finish the job, Alireza Firouzja prevailed over Viswanathan Anand in a see-saw game, repeating their earlier result with the colours reversed on the scoreboard. The final result was 14–5 in favour of Triveni. The champions moved to 21 Match Points, now nine points clear of the field. No one could catch them: their place in the Tech Mahindra GCL final was confirmed. Match 26: Fyers American Gambits vs Alpine SG Pipers (7–8) Next, the Pipers returned to the stage to face the Fyers American Gambits, coming in encouraged by their win over Mumbai earlier in the day. Within twenty minutes of the start, Alpine had the initiative in three of the six games and were at least equal in the others. For the second time that day, Hou Yifan was the first to score for her team. She defeated Bibisara Assaubayeva after a miscalculated piece exchange left White in a lost rook endgame. Hou converted without difficulty and gave the Pipers an early lead. Things soon improved for the Gambits when Nino Batsiashvili overlooked a piece in her game against Teodora Injac. Despite that, Injac, in serious time trouble, did not manage to finish the job. She reached an endgame with an extra knight and two pawns against three pawns – a completely winning position – but misplayed it, allowing Black to advance a pawn so far that White’s only way to avoid defeat was to repeat moves. Injac was visibly shocked after the game, staring at the board for a long time. It was a lucky half-point for Alpine, who were gradually pushing the match in their favour. On the Icon board, Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana drew, bringing Alpine another small step closer to victory. On board three, R Praggnanandhaa gained a completely winning position against Richard Rapport. In a knight-versus-bishop endgame, virtually every move would have won for Black, but Pragg chose the only line that led straight into a draw, granting a second lucky save to the Gambits. The last game
FIDE U9–U17 Rapid & Blitz Championships crown champions in Antalya
The FIDE U9-U17 Rapid & Blitz Chess Championship concluded on December 21 in Antalya, following nine thrilling rounds of Blitz competition. The two-day blitz segment of the championships attracted over 300 players from 31 countries, showcasing the rising global interest in youth chess. Below are the newly crowned Blitz Champions in both Open and Girls categories across all five age groups: Under 9 Open 🥇 Marc Barcelo Melnyk (ESP) 🥈 Nurali Nurshin (KAZ) 🥉 Oleksandr Savchuk (UKR) Under 9 Girls 🥇 Varvara Volkova (RUS) 🥈 Azaliya Balakanova (KAZ) 🥉 Elif Eren (TUR) Under 11 Open 🥇 Marc Llari (FRA) 🥈 Akhmediyar Sugraliyev (KAZ) 🥉 Ali Poyraz Uzdemir (TUR) Under 11 Girls 🥇 Alisa Genrietta Yunker (RUS) 🥈 Zhansaya Sholpanbek (KAZ) 🥉 Husnoraorkhon Khusnutdinova (UZB) Under 13 Open 🥇 Ramtin Kakavand (IRI) 🥈 Suleyman Akhmet (KAZ) 🥉 Makar Berdashkevich (RUS) Under 13 Girls 🥇 Lazizabonu Komiljonova (UZB) 🥈 Kristina Zavivaeva (RUS) 🥉 Mokhinur Xikmathonova (UZB) Under 15 Open 🥇 Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus (TUR) 🥈 Nam Kiet Nguyen (VIE) 🥉 Khumoyun Begmuratov (UZB) Under 15 Girls 🥇 Rosha Akbari (IRI) 🥈 Asiya Assylkhan (KAZ) 🥉 Anja Beber (SLO) Under 17 Open 🥇 Ediz Gurel (TUR) 🥈 Filip Magold (ROU) 🥉 Abkarali Abduhakimov (UZB) Under 17 Girls 🥇 Madinabonu Khalilova (UZB) 🥈 Binh Vy Nguyen (VIE) 🥉 Evgeniia Stanovskaia (RUS) Complete final standings Trophies were awarded to the top three federations based on combined results from both the Rapid and Blitz segments. Russia, Uzbekistan, and Türkiye were the most successful nations in the blitz competition, while Uzbekistan, Türkiye, and Russia led in the rapid standings. The closing ceremony took place at the Aska Lara Hotel and was attended by FIDE Events Commission Honorary Chair and Chief Inspection Officer Özgür Solakoğlu, President of the Turkish Chess Federation Fethi Apaydın, Ministry of Youth Sports Antalya Provincial officers, federation board members, players, parents and trainers. Official website: youthrapidblitz2025.tsf.org.tr/ Photo gallery: photos.app.goo.gl/8haNV29TMiGgSNvm8 Written by Kübra Ceylan Photos: Ozan Koşar