Javokhir Sindarov: “I will try to win the World Championship match.”
After winning the FIDE Candidates 2026, Javokhir Sindarov gave an in-depth interview to Charlyze van Zyle, in which he shared his ambitions and long-term goals. The Uzbek GM reflects on his path to victory, discusses his preparation, and reveals key insights into his work with his coach. Below you will find both text and video versions of this interview. Charlize van Zyl: I am here with Javokhir Sindarov, FIDE Candidates 2026 winner. You’ve had some time for this result to settle in. Congratulations once again. Take me back to the night, after round thirteen, what happened? Who was the first person you spoke to? How did the celebrations go? Javokhir Sindarov: It was a fantastic day for me and for our country. Everyone started celebrating after the result. I received millions of messages from my friends, my parents and my family, and also from our federation and government. It’s a huge victory for our country, and everyone was very happy. The next day, our president even called me to congratulate me, which really surprised me. I’m very happy to have won this tournament. Charlize van Zyl: Is that something you’re starting to get used to, getting congratulations from the president? Javokhir Sindarov: No, of course not. You need to achieve big victories to get a call like that. I’m very happy. I already won the World Cup, now the FIDE Candidates, and hopefully by the end of the year I will try to win the World Championship match as well. It gives me a lot of motivation. Charlize van Zyl: Let’s talk about the event. You mentioned earlier in one of the press conferences that your coach hoped for +1 at the midpoint, but you finished +6 (10/14), which is incredible. Did you ever lose confidence that that would happen? What was your goal at halfway? Javokhir Sindarov: Actually, my coach told me that if I finished the first half with +1, I would have good chances to win the tournament. But I finished +5. At the same time, I knew the second half would be much harder, especially with important games where I had Black. These games take a lot of energy and good preparation. Probably, the key moment of the tournament was my draw against Fabi. After that, I started to feel like I could win. I was also a bit lucky; Caruana was always very close to me, he won some games in the first half, but he lost a few in the second half. Then he lost to Anish, who had good chances too. But after beating Pragg, I was ahead of Anish by two points with four rounds left. I realized that anything could still happen, but I felt 90% sure I would win. I’m very happy that I played very well with Black and I didn’t lose any games. It was a very good streak, and I’m very happy with my results. Charlize van Zyl: Many players say they take it game by game, but you seemed very conscious of the standings. Did that add more stress to you? Javokhir Sindarov: Not really. I always try to prepare very well. With White, I’m ready to fight, but in the second half after the draw with FabiI thought I had to play with White also some forced solid drawish lines. I didn’t need long, complicated games; I wanted to save energy for the critical ones with Black. But if my opponent chose sharp lines, such as the King’s Indian or Benko, I was ready to fight. On the other hand, if they played solidly, I was fine with a draw. I think this strategy worked perfectly. Against Anish I played really well, it was a nice game: maybe if he had defeated Wei Yi the tournament situation would have changed a little bit but after he drew I thought I had a 99% chance to win the tournament. Therefore, I made two quick draws in the last two games, everyone would have done the same. Remember that Nepo in 2022 did the same, although he did have some trouble with Black in two games, whereas I had problems here only against Fabi and in the first game. I played very well, I was also lucky, of course, and I took advantage of my opponent’s mistakes, which is very important. Charlize van Zyl: Your game against Anish was your favourite one? Which victory are you most proud of? Javokhir Sindarov: I really loved my game against Fabi with White. It was a very clean game; I found the best moves, the best tactics, and managed time pressure. A fantastic game in which I showed another level, which I am capable of demonstrating. Charlize van Zyl: Since our pre-event interviews, you have been very confident about your winning chances, but you mentioned last week was the most difficult of your life, sleeping, eating, and handling pressure. How did you manage that? Javokhir Sindarov: It’s always hard when you’re leading a tournament. You start thinking about the outcome. The last week was very hard for me, but after my draw against Fabi, I felt much better. The three games previous to that one went easy for me, with hardly any stress. I was well-prepared, had more than an hour on the clock, and I played positions in my style. But with Fabi the position did not suit my style, and it’s hard for me to play these types of positions. That game was very long and took a lot of energy, but after surviving, I felt like I would win the tournament. After that, I slept better and didn’t feel as much stress. Charlize van Zyl: Let’s talk about your preparation. It’s been a big talking point. You seemed to out-prepare your opponents. How does your team work? Who takes what responsibilities, and what do you do before the games? Javokhir Sindarov: Before the tournament, we worked very hard. Everyone in my team did their job at
Teenage triumph: Roman Dehtiarov stuns field to win European Championship 2026
Turning 18 this year, IM Roman Dehtiarov caused a major sensation by winning the European Individual Chess Championship 2026. The Ukrainian teenager, seeded 126th, captured the title after defeating GM David Anton Guijarro in a thrilling final-round encounter. Dehtiarov finished with an impressive score of 9/11, achieving a remarkable 2781 rating performance and achieving a GM title. The 2026 edition of the European Individual Championship took place in Katowice, Poland, from 6 to 19 April, bringing together 501 players in a fiercely contested battle that went down to the wire. Heading into the final round, as many as five players shared the lead with 8/10: Dehtiarov, GMs David Anton Guijarro from Spain, who was in the lead for most of the tournament; Aydin Suleymanli, Mahammad Muradli, and Nijat Abasov (all three from Azerbaijan). To make things even more exciting, Dehtiarov faced Anton, while Suleymanli took on Muradli. Roman Dehtiarov (pictured above, right) scored what may be the most important victory in his career, defeating David Anton to claim the title while all his main rivals drew his games. Abasov, Suleymanli, and Muradli tied for second place on 8.5/11, with Abasov taking silver and Suleymanli bronze based on tiebreaks. Six female players finished the championship with 6.5 points each, tying for the prizes for the best-ranked Women players in the tournament. With the best tiebreak criteria, IM Teodora Injac (SRB, 2410) won the top prize, IM Stavroula Tsolakidou (GRE, 2452) was second; IM Nurgyul Salimova (BUL, 2399) came third, while IM Mai Narva (EST, 2411), IM Aleksandra Maltsevskaya (POL, 2393), and WGM Mariam Mkrtchyan (ARM, 2368) did not climb the podium. GM Vasyl Ivanchuk (UKR, 2621) was the best-ranked senior player in the tournament with the score of 7.5/11, GM Hannes Stefansson (ISL, 2414) was second with 6.5/11, and legendary GM Oleg Romanishin (UKR, 2255) won third prize with the score of 5.5/11. The closing ceremony of the event took place in the playing venue. The ceremony was attended by Vice President of the City of Katowice Maciej Stachura, ECU Vice Presidents Alojzije Jankovic and Gunnar Bjornsson, President of the Polish Chess Federation Radoslaw Jedynak, FIDE Secretary General Lukasz Turlej, President of the Silesian Chess Federation Mr. Michal Pazdziora, Ambassador of Georgia to Poland Diana Zhgenti, Director of the Arena Katowice Pawel Cebula, Director of the Department of Sports in the city of Katowice Dawid Kaminski, the Head of Commission of Sport in Katowice Adam Szymczyk, and other distinguished guests. Final standings Photos: European Chess Union Official website: https://eicc2026.eu/
Invitation: 46th Chess Olympiad, 3rd FIDE Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities & FIDE Congress 2026
Dear chess Friends from across the globe, On behalf of FIDE and the Organising Committee of the Uzbekistan Chess Federation, it is our distinct honour and pleasure to invite you to the 46th Chess Olympiad and the 3rd FIDE Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities, the world’s strongest and most important team chess competitions. Alongside these events, FIDE will hold its Congress and elections. The Open and the Women’s Olympiad The Chess Olympiads will take place in the ancient Silk Road city of Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from 15 till 27 September 2026. The 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest set a record for the number of participating teams – 193 in the Open and 181 in the Women’s competition. The 46th Chess Olympiad is expected to surpass that number and bring together thousands of players and fans from across the world. The Olympiad will consist of two sections, Open and Women. Both events will be played over 11 rounds, using the Swiss system, with teams of four players plus one reserve. More information about tournament regulations can be found here: https://handbook.fide.com/files/handbook/Olympiad2026MainCompetition.pdf Three trophies There will be three trophies: The Hamilton-Russell Cup for the winners of the Open section The Vera Menchik Cup for the winners of the Women section The Nona Gaprindashvili Trophy for the best combined federation performance across the Open and Women sections Schedule The Opening Ceremony will take place on 15 September, while the first round will be played on 16 September. After round six, there will be a day off on 22 September. Round 11 and Closing Ceremony will take place on 27 September. Team Registration and further information: The registration for the FIDE Chess Olympiad starts on 20 April 2026. Participating teams in the Open and Women’s sections are invited to register following the credentials they shall receive to their official federation’s e-mail address. More information about the FIDE Chess Olympiad can be found here: https://chessolympiad2026.fide.com/. The 3rd FIDE Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities Alongside the 46th Chess Olympiad, the 3rd FIDE Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities will take place from 10 to 18 September. The international team competition is promoted by the FIDE Players with Disabilities Commission and aims to promote inclusivity and accessibility in chess. More information about the FIDE Chess Olympiad for People With Disabilities, including the schedule, can be found here: https://dis-olympiad2026.fide.com/. The FIDE Congress FIDE will also hold its Congress during the Chess Olympiad. The Congress will take place from 20 to 27 September. Bringing together the member federations at General Assembly, FIDE Council, Zonal Council, and FIDE Commissions, the Congress will include the FIDE Election on 26 September. Delegates will choose the leadership of FIDE for the following four years. The General Assembly will also decide the hosts of the 2030 Chess Olympiad. Honouring the FIDE Year of Chess in Education, an Educational Summit will be hosted during the Congress. The program and details about the Congress are available here: https://congress.fide.com/. We look forward to seeing you all in Samarkand for another important step forward for chess. The invitation and event guide booklet for the Chess Olympiad, Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities and Congress is available here: https://doc.fide.com/docs/2026_Olympiad/Invitation_Olympiad_Congress_2026.pdf