Smashes, rallies, and checkmates: Padel hits the Candidates
Padel is a fast-growing racket sport, particularly popular in Spain and increasingly gaining traction worldwide. Played in doubles on an enclosed court where the walls are part of the game, it combines elements of both tennis and squash. The sport emphasizes quick reflexes, agility, positioning, and team coordination. It is highly social and generally easier to pick up than tennis, making it accessible to newcomers. While padel keeps your body sharp, chess sharpens the mind, together offering a perfect balance, as one enhances reaction speed and coordination, while the other strengthens decision-making and focus. For the second rest day, the organizing team arranged a padel tournament, which quickly captured the interest of players, their seconds, commentators, the media team, and even friends and family. It provided a great opportunity to socialize while engaging in light physical activity. For many participants, it was their first time on a padel court, and judging by their enthusiasm, it would not be surprising to see them playing more often during the second half of the event. A total of sixteen teams (32 players) took part, including Candidates Fabiano Caruana and Andrey Esipenko, who teamed up with their seconds Cristian Chirila and David Paravyan. Anna Muzychuk joined Ivan Cheparinov to form another strong “chess-heavy” pair. FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich also made a brief appearance in the opening round before attending to other responsibilities. The teams were divided into two groups in the initial stage, with the top performers advancing to the quarterfinals, semi-finals, and ultimately the final. After more than two hours of intense competition, the duo of Pavel Tregubov and Konstantin Kiselev emerged victorious, defeating Peter Svidler and Michael Rahal in the final. Watch participants, officials and journalists navigate the popular sport of padel, sharing their experiences and reactions to the fun activity. https://youtu.be/o9ixjj96fvQ?is=tmzQov4HvBwJNbCg Written by IM Michael A. Rahal (Cyprus) Photos: Yoav Nis (Eugene Nisenbaum)
Vincent Keymer wins Freestyle Chess Open, secures spot in FIDE Freestyle Chess World Championship 2027
Vincent Keymer has won the Freestyle Chess Open A at the grenke Chess Festival in Karlsruhe. The German grandmaster finished tied on points with Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France) but secured first place on tiebreak after a short draw in their direct encounter in Round 9. Both players ended ahead of a chasing group led by world number one Magnus Carlsen. The Norwegian remained within reach throughout the final day but did not manage to overtake the leaders. With this result, Keymer qualifies for the FIDE Freestyle Chess World Championship 2027 and earns €60,000 in prize money. He joins world champion Magnus Carlsen, Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan), and Fabiano Caruana (USA), who had already secured their spots through the 2026 World Championship. In the women’s race, Harika Dronavalli of India, Alua Nurman of Kazakhstan (pictured above), and Dinara Wagner of Germany claimed the three qualification spots for the FIDE Freestyle Chess Women’s World Championship 2027. All three finished on 6.0 points, ahead of a tightly packed group of eight players on 5.5, undescoring how close the race remained until the final round. A full report will be available in the news section of Freestyle Chess website. Photos: Freestyle Chess Official website: https://www.freestyle-chess.com/
Danish Championship 2026: Bjorn Moller Ochsner claims second title
GM Bjorn Moller Ochsner is the newly crowned Danish chess champion. The 31-year-old native of Aarhus claimed his second national crown after edging out IM Filip Boe Olsen in a rapid tiebreaker for the title. The Danish Championship 2026 took place from March 28 to April 6 in Svendborg, a small town that has hosted the last ten editions. The event was held in eight different sections, with the national title at stake in the Landskampklasse, a 10-player round-robin with classical time control. Svendborg Mayor Bo Hansen making the first ceremonial move Although several top Danish players (including the 2025 champion Jesper Thybo) opted not to participate, it was a fiercely contested tournament with the champion decided only on tiebreak. Ochsner seized an early lead but suffered two defeats and was overtaken by IM Filip Boe Olsen, who headed into the final round a half-point ahead of IM Viktor Haarmark Nielsen and a full point in front of Ochsner. As tournament fate would have it, Ochsner and Olsen faced each other in the final showdown, while Nielsen took on FM Casper Liu. In a dramatic turn of events, Ochsner scored a crucial victory over Olsen to catch up with him on points, while Nielsen lost his game and finished joint third with GM Boris Chatalbashev. To determine the champion, a two-game rapid tiebreaker was played. After winning the first game with Black, Ochsner achieved an overwhelming position in the second but let his opponent off the hook, allowing a draw that secured him the title. Final standings Photos: Thomas Vestergård Official website: https://nyheder.skak.dk/