The 2026 Chinese National Individual Chess Championship took place in Xinghua, Jiangsu from 7-18 May, featuring separate Open and Women’s sections. After 11 rounds of Swiss play, GM Xu Xiangyu and WIM Yan Tianqi emerged victorious to claim their first national titles and secure spots on the Chinese team for the upcoming 46th Chess Olympiad.
Xinghua is no stranger to chess fans – it’s the hometown of long-time world No. 1 women’s player and four-time women’s world champion Hou Yifan. This year marked the 18th consecutive edition hosted by the city since 2009, and the second year the event has used an 11-round Swiss format instead of the traditional round-robin. The total prize fund amounted to 500,000 RMB (approximately 73,500 USD), with the men’s champion receiving 120,000 RMB and the women’s champion 80,000 RMB.
Open event
The open section featured 66 players, including nine Grandmasters. The competition was tightly contested, with a sole leader – 17-year-old IM Kong Xiangrui – emerging only after Round 8. Top seed GM Xu Xiangyu caught up with him in Round 9, and the pair entered the final round tied on 7.5 points. Xu defeated GM Li Di while Kong had to work hard in a difficult position to salvage a draw against IM Lou Yiping.
Xu Xiangyu scored 8.5 points (6 wins, 5 draws) and secured the title – his fist national crown after finishing second in 2023 and third in both 2022 and 2024. This victory also earns him a debut on China’s Olympiad team later this year.
Kong Xiangrui and GM Xu Yinglun tied for second place on 8 points. Kong took silver for the second year in a row on tie-break, while Xu Yinglun completed the podium.
With a performance rating of 2604, Kong earned his first GM norm. Another teenager, 15-year-old Xie Jiaxiang, secured an IM norm.
Final Standing – Open: https://chess-results.com/tnr1389458.aspx
Women’s event
In the women’s section, 24-year-old WIM Yan Tianqi totaled 8.5 points (7 wins, 3 draws, 1 loss) to win her first national title. Like Xu Xiangyu, she earned a berth on the Chinese Olympiad team – also her first. Yan Tianqi entered the event with two WGM norms and delivered a performance rating of 2416, but fell short of her last WGM due to insufficient games against WGMs.
17-year-old WIM Chen Yining claimed silver with 8 points, while 15-year-old WIM Wang Qinxuanyi took bronze with 7.5 points. Top seed WGM Xiao Yiyi also scored 7.5 but finished fourth on tie-breaks.
Chen Yining earned a 9-game WGM norm, Bai Xue got an 11-game WIM norm, and both Jiang Tianyu and Wang Xiaoyan completed 10-game WIM norms.
Final Standing – Women: https://chess-results.com/tnr1389459.aspx
Text and photos: Liang Ziming