GM Ivan Ivanisevic and IM Sofia Pogorelskikh are the new champions of Serbia. Ivanisevic claimed his fifth national crown, while Pogorelskikh earned her first.
The open and women’s events—both round-robins with classical time control—were held simultaneously from May 31 to June 6, but in different cities: Pirot and Palic, respectively.
Second seed Ivanisevic delivered a solid performance, pulling away after scoring three consecutive victories in Rounds 5–7. Heading into the final round half a point ahead of GM Suat Atalik (whom he had defeated in their direct encounter), he drew with GM Misa Pap to finish with 6.5/9.
Meanwhile, Atalik defeated Andrei Gaivoronkii in the last round to catch up with the leader. Ivanisevic and Atalik tied for first place, but Ivanisevic secured the title thanks to a superior tiebreak (Koya system). Notably, he was the only unbeaten player in the tournament. Top seed Robert Marcus completed the podium, taking bronze.
The women’s event was a fiercely contested competition. Suffice it to say, even the champion, Sofia Pogorelskikh, lost two games. To her credit, she compensated with five victories and finished clear first, half a point ahead of 2024 champion WGM Irina Chelushkina and 2023 champion WGM Marina Gajcin, who tied for second place.
The Koya system favored Chelushkina, who took silver, while Gajcin settled for bronze.
