World Refugee Day: Chess as a tool for empowerment
For the past four years, a project in the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya helps children and the displaced in finding hope and a path in life through chess The 2025 World Refugee Day, initiated by the United Nations in 2001 to recognise the resilience and struggle of refugees in finding sanctuary and a better life, occurs at a time when conflicts across the globe are intensifying, bringing more threats and disasters to people everywhere. The International Chess Federation (FIDE), as well as the global chess community, have always sought to highlight the role chess can play in bringing people together, regardless of backgrounds or differences. This is clearly illustrated by the simple yet powerful motto of FIDE – Gens una Sumus – We are one family. As we mark World Refugee Day, FIDE would like to highlight its ongoing commitment to supporting displaced communities, most notably visible through the Chess for Protection programme in the Kakuma Refugee Camp, in Kenya. The initiative, running since 2021 in partnership with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), has become a gathering space for well over 2,000 participants across 37 schools, and uses chess as a vehicle for education, social interaction and personal development, offering hope and perspective to the participants. It is FIDE’s staunch belief that, for those who have endured conflict and persecution, chess offers much more than simple recreation. “When I play chess, I feel happy because I get to interact with more people. Chess is a game where you exchange ideas and learn more though that exchange… Chess also helps in teaching people about inclusion and gender equality,” noted Akuol Mach, a resident of the Kakuma Refugee Camp and one of the participants in the project. “When people are forced to leave everything behind, even a small sense of structure, focus, or hope can make a real difference, and chess gives exactly that,” said Anastasia Sorokina, the project leader and the Chairwoman of the FIDE Commission for Women’s Chess. “I’ve seen how it helps girls grow stronger, think ahead, and believe in themselves again.” FIDE’s leadership views this as a long-term investment in human potential, with aspirations that extend to the highest levels of the sport. “We hope to see a Refugee Team at the World Chess Olympiad one day,” noted Dana Reizniece, Deputy Chair of the FIDE Management Board. “But what matters most is the progress these girls make every day—learning to think independently, make decisions, and gain confidence both on the board and beyond. This is at the heart of FIDE’s mission: using chess as a tool for education, empowerment, and social inclusion.” The success of the project relies not only on the partnership between FIDE and the UNHCR, but also other partners such as Chess Kenya and its president Benard Wanjala, which have provided unwavering support for the project. Also, corporate and not-for-profit partners have made vital contributions, which includes the donation of 100 chess sets from the Gift of Chess organisation, its Founder and Director Russ Makofsky and its Global Head Susan Namangale, as well as 100 chess clocks from DGT and its CEO Hans Pees. “We’re not just teaching a game; we’re helping to build resilience, confidence, and a sense of community,” Anastasia Sorokina added. “And chess always brings one quiet but powerful message: you are not alone. That matters deeply in circumstances like these.” To this end, FIDE is planning at least two new activities in Kakuma in the near future: Motivational talks and friendly matches (June 28): Phylis Ngigi, Director of Gift of Chess, will visit the camp to deliver a motivational talk to the members of the Girls’ Club, followed by friendly matches with the local players. Mass chess tournament (June 29): A large-scale tournament will be organised for the wider community in Kakuma, with the goal of promoting community spirit through chess. Chess Kenya is kindly providing organisational support for this project. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3qTYmg_oFM Photos: Stev Bonhage
FIDE World Championships 2027 – Call for bids
FIDE Events Commission has announced “Call for Bids FIDE World Championships” and invites FIDE member Federations to participate. The bidding deadline is September 15, 2025, 15:00 CET. There are 9 competitions in the list: 2027 World Cup U8, U10, U12 & 2027 World Chess Championships U8, U10, U12 2027 World Youth U14, U16, U18 Championships 2027 World Youth U16 Olympiad 2027 World Youth Rapid & Blitz Championships 2027 World Senior Individual Championships 50+ and 65+ 2027 World Senior Team Championships 2027 World Amateur Championships 2027 World Junior U20 Championships 2027 World Rapid and Blitz U7, U9, U11, U13, U15, U17 Dear bidders, all details about the new format, useful links and procedure including the Bid Form and Bid Form Annex, Bid and Deposit Fees and Regulations you can find HERE
WR Chess clinch their second FIDE World Team Blitz Championship title
In the final stage of the knockouts at the FIDE World Blitz Team Championship, WR Chess defeated KazChess in both matches with 4:2, securing their second Blitz crown since the competition began in 2023. The FIDE World Blitz Championship concluded today in London after a day of tense final-stage matches. Out of 53 teams playing on the first day, only 16 advanced to the knockout stage that included the round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and the final. In each knockout pairing, teams played at least two matches, alternating colours. If the score was level after two matches, additional games were played until a winner emerged. At the end of the day, rating favourites Team WR Chess came out on top, outplaying the squad of KazChess in a tight final duel. WR won both matches (4:2 each), with Alireza Firouzja, Hikaru Nakamura and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave scoring crucial wins in the final match to secure the crown for WR Chess. This is the second consecutive Blitz title for WR Chess, following their in 2024 in Kazakhstan. In his first reaction to the victory, WR Chess Team owner and one of the initiators of the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Teams, Wadim Rosenstein, said he was very pleased with the victory, adding that the event was a great success “not just for the winners but for chess in general”. Asked how it feels to win first place, Rosenstein – who also played on the non-professional board for WR – briefly responded: “Like always, when you win – it feels great”. In addition to receiving a trophy shaped like a fusion of Big Ben and a chess piece, the winning team was awarded a €75,000 prize. Third place went to the Hexamind Chess Club, who defeated the squad of Uzbekistan in both matches with 3.5:2.5. Meanwhile, the winners of this year’s rapid tournament, MGD1, defeated Freedom in the duel for fifth place. In his address at the closing ceremony, former World Champion and Deputy President of International Chess Federation (FIDE) Viswanathan Anand reflected on the excitement and the intensity of the tournament. He congratulated all 53 teams for participating, particularly the winners. Anand also expressed deep gratitude to Isai Scheinberg for supporting this event. He closed by emphasizing FIDE’s ongoing commitment to growing the game. “A core part of our strategy has always been to forge a strong partnership between chess and the broader community – from the world of sports, business, or culture. Tournaments such as the World Rapid and Blitz Teams, alongside events such as the World Corporate Championship, are a shining example of this vision in action and FIDE will continue to work hard on having more of them”, Anand said. Here is a closer look at how the knockouts unfolded, until the finals: Round of 16 In this stage all of the first-placed teams from the pools won their matches. While WR Chess Team, Freedom and MGD1 Team won both matches, Uzbekistan had one victory and one draw (with Barys.kz). Ashdod moved to the quarter-finals after defeating Theme International Trading in the playoffs with 5:1. KazChess also reached the quarter-finals after the playoffs, defeating Rookies with 5.5:0.5. Quarter-finals The quarter-final stage brought the first big surprises, with some of the favourites being eliminated from the tournament. In the first match, Germany and Friends set up the stage for a huge upset by defeating WR Chess 4:2. All WR’s top boards – Nepomniachtchi, Nakamura and Firouzja lost their games. However, WR appealed the match on the grounds that they were not informed of the exact time when the round was starting, making them late two minutes. While it would have made sense for them to immediately make an appeal before playing the match, WR complained afterwards. As WR Chess Team captain Jan Gustafsson explained in the live broadcast, the teams were given different information about the start of the round compared to when it started. In the end, it was decided that the match will be replayed. Germany and Friends reluctantly accepted. This time, WR Chess won 4.5:1.5 and the return match finishing with a 4:2 victory for WR Chess, sending them to the semi-finals. All other first-matches ended in draws. In the return matches – Hexamind eliminated the Rapid winners MGD1 with 4:2. The duel was decided by Hexamind’s Anish Giri who defeated Pentala Harikrishna in a tense endgame. KazChess outclassed Freedom by winning the second match 3.5:2.5. The team from Kazakhstan defeated all the top three boards of Freedom, to secure a spot in the semi-finals. Uzbekistan won over the team of Ashdod 5:1, securing a place in the semis. The semi-finals WR Chess faced the team of Hexamind. In the first match, WR completely dominated, scoring a crushing victory 5.5:0.5. On Hexamind’s side only Leinier Dominguez drew, splitting a point with Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. In the other semi-final encounter, Uzbekistan and KazChess played a tightly contested match, with Grischuk defeating Abdusattorov on the top board, in a tense endgame where both were in a time scramble. In the return-match, Hexamind pushed hard against WR to get a playoff. Aronian beat Nepomniachtchi on board one, but boards two and three drew. The match was decided on the lower boards, where WR won two games: Maxime Vachier-Lagrave beat Leinier Dominguez, and Wadim Rosenstein defeated David Muradyan. Despite Divya Desmukh prevailing over Hou Yifan on the women’s board, the final result was 3:3, which meant Hexamind were knocked out. In the second return-duel, KazChess defeated Uzbekistan 4:2, thanks to crucial wins on the bottom boards. The match for the fifth place Two of the best performing teams that were eliminated in the semi-finals faced off in a match for fifth place. In the end, MGD1 emerged victorious, after defeating Freedom in both matches with 3.5:2.5. The teams of Ashdod and Germany and Friends tied for 7-8th place. Written by Milan Dinic Photos: Rafal Oleksiewicz Official website: worldrapidblitzteams2025.fide.com/ About the event: The third edition of the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships
WBTC 2025: Favourites deliver as 16 teams move into knockouts
After three days and 12 rounds of Rapid, things got hotter in London as the FIDE World Blitz Team kicked off. Following 13 rounds of fast-paced action, 16 out of 53 teams have advanced to the final playoff stage on Sunday. The blitz competition is split in two stages. On day one, the teams were divided into four equally strong pools, playing in a round-robin format. There were four pools – three had 13 teams, while Pool D had 14. The top four teams in each pool qualified for the knockout playoffs, which are taking place on Sunday, June 15. In Pool A, WR Chess, Ashdod Elit Chess Club, Knight Dance and FIDE Management Board Tram advanced to the knockouts. WR Team won all of their matches, with the closest they came to a struggle being the round six match against The MongolZ squad, which ended with a narrow win, 3.5:2.5. In that match, WR’s Hou Yifan, the world’s top-rated female player, lost to more than 500 points lower-rated Khishigbat Ulziikhishig. WR was significantly strengthened by the late arrival of Ian Nepomniachtchi, who received his UK visa just in time to play in the Blitz. The big hero of the day for WR was Poland’s Jan-Krzysztof Duda who scored 11.5 points out of 12 games on one of the top boards. In a big surprise of the day, 13-year-old IM Ahmad Khagan (2290) from Turkish Airlines stunned GM Hikaru Nakamura (2837) in round five. Visibly upset, Nakamura didn’t even set up his pieces back, as is customary after the game, and just walked out of the playing hall. During the day, Khagan proved his victory was not an accident – he won 9 out of 13 games, facing strong grandmasters. Ashdod dropped just one match – a 1.5:4.5 loss to WR Team – drew another and won the rest to comfortably secure second place, with 21 matchpoints. Their standout performer was Aldiyar Sailaubay on the amateur board, who scored 9.5/12. Knight Dance finished third with 19 matchpoints, despite two losses and a draw. Close behind were the FIDE Management Board Tram, who secured fourth place on 17 matchpoints. Zhu Chen and non-professional standout Stepan Zaiarski played key roles in their qualification. From Pool B, Freedom, Hexamind, Theme International Trading and Malcolm’s Mates moved to the knockout phase. In round 10, Freedom suffered a defeat at the hands of Theme International Trading, but that didn’t endanger their spot in the knockouts. Freedom’s Le Quang Liem and Haik Martirosyan were the best performers, scoring 8.5 points out of the nine games they played. Despite losing a match to Freedom (4.5:1.5), Hexamind stormed through in all other matches to enter the knockouts in shared first place in Pool B. Both Freedom and Hexamind ended the day with 22 matchpoints. Theme International Trading recovered from a stunning 6:0 opening loss to Hexamind to finish third with 19 matchpoints. Fourth place went to the British squad Malcolm’s Mates, with 18 matchpoints which was greatly helped by GM Luke McShane who won 10 out of 12 games. In Pool C, the most consistent performance was delivered by Team Uzbekistan, who entered the final round with two matchpoints ahead of the field. Their star player, Nodirbek Yakubboev, had a great run, scoring 9.5 points out of 12. Germany and Friends, led by Vincent Keymer, came in second place after losing just one match – to Uzbekistan. They finished on 22 matchpoints. Rookies took third place with 20 matchpoints, despite losses to the top two teams. Generation XYZA claimed the final qualifying spot with 17 matchpoints, even after losing to all three teams above them. Notably, XYZA’s Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus topped individual scoring in Pool C with 10/12. Pool D saw the favourites – 2025 World Rapid champions MGD1 – advance alongside KazChess, Hetman GKS Katowice, and Barys.kz. MGD1 made just one draw (with fifth-placed Team Hungary) and won all other matches, ending the day on 23 matchpoints. The Indian team scored five match victories in which they won all six games – the most of all top-placed teams in the Blitz, across all groups. Their top-performing player was board one Arjun Erigaisi, who made 11 points out of 13 games. With 22 matchpoints, KazChess was second. Their non-professional player Islam Aiten made the biggest contribution having won 12 out of 13 games. Hetman GKS Katowice took third place with 20 matchpoints. Their top board, GM David Navara, was instrumental in their success with a score of 11/13. Barys.kz clinched the final knockout spot in Pool D with a commanding 6:0 win over Perfect in the last round, finishing on 17 matchpoints. The knockouts With the pool stages now concluded, the focus shifts to Sunday’s knockout rounds, where the 16 qualifiers will battle for the title of the 2025 FIDE World Blitz Chess Champion. With the stakes rising and a sharper, knockout format – it promises to be an exciting closing to a spectacular week of chess. FIDE World Blitz Team Championship – Knockout pairings Written by Milan Dinic Photos: Rafal Oleksiewicz Official website: worldrapidblitzteams2025.fide.com/ About the event: The third edition of the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships is taking place in London, United Kingdom, between June 10 and 16, 2025. The event is open to teams from all over the world. Teams can be made of club members, members of different federations, or any other chess players. Altogether, 52 teams are taking part in the Rapid World Championship. The total prize fund is €500,000 (£421,000), €310,000 will go to the Rapid tournament, €190,000 is earmarked for the Blitz.
India’s Team MGD1 win 2025 FIDE World Rapid Team Chess Championship
The rapid section of the 2025 FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Teams ended with a commanding finish by MGD1, who won all four matches on the final day to claim sole first place. The FIDE World Rapid Teams Chess Championship wrapped up in London today, with the last four of the 12 rounds played. As the competition neared its end, MGD1 and Hexamind distinguished themselves as the prime contenders for the title. In the decisive four rounds of the day, the Indian squad of Team MGD1 won every match, rightfully claiming the championship. Out of 12 matches, MGD1 won in 10, drew one and lost one, finishing with 21 matchpoints. A key factor in MGD1’s sustained success was the consistent performance of their amateur board player, Atharvaa P Tayade, who held a perfect record throughout the three-day-long tournament, only to spoil it in the last round with his only loss. In the final round, MGD1’s Pranav V defeated Ivan Šarić of Malcolm’s Mates, to secure the match – and sole first place for his team. Second place went to Hexamind Chess Team, who sprung to the top on day two and maintained their strong performance until the end, chasing MGD1 all the way through to the final round. They started the day with a draw with Freedom, but then won all three remaining matches, securing sole second place, on 20 matchpoints, just one behind MGD1. Freedom, a team featuring the former world champion Vishy Anand, had a mixed performance on the final day, with three draws. It was only thanks to their dominant 4.5:1.5 final round victory over Knight Dance that they managed to tie for third place, alongside the teams of Uzbekistan and WR Chess, all on 17 matchpoints. Rating favouries of the event, team WR Chess, had a strong performance winning in rounds nine, ten and eleven. But in the final round – in a game full of twists – Alireza Firouzja slipped against Nodirbek Abdusattorov, handing Team Uzbekistan the match and a share of third place. Get ready for the FIDE World Team Blitz Championship On Saturday, June 14, the action shift to the blitz format. With faster time controls, more rounds and a knockout stage on day two – the FIDE World Blitz Team Championship promises even more drama, both on the boards and for the spectators. Adding to the excitement, one of the world’s strongest players – two-time world champion candidate – Ian Nepomniachtchi, will be joining the lineup of WR Chess. The games start on Saturday, June 14, at 2PM. Here follows a closer look at the decisive four rounds of the FIDE World Rapid Team Chess Championship: U.S. Grandmaster Kenneth Rogoff – a renowned Harvard economist and the former Chief Economist of the International Monetary Fund – made the first ceremonial first move at the start of the day. Playing on the top tables, Freedom split two points with Hexamind who had surged to the top after a great run on day two. Sam Sevian defeated Volodar Murzin with the black pieces, giving Freedom the advantage. Despite the promising start for Freedom with a win and good positions, most of the remaining games ended in draws. On the women’s board, Freedom’s Anna Muzychuk was an exchange down against Divya Deshmukh, but miraculously escaped with a draw. David Muradyan, beat Sarbartho Mani on the amateur board and helped Hexamind to save the match – 3:3. Tournament leaders MGD1 defeated KazChess 3.5:2.5 which allowed them to again take the sole lead in the tournament. Arjun Erigaisi beat Richard Rapport on the top board, but MGD1’s Pentala Harikrishna lost on the second. As on several occasions during the tournament, MGD1 were rescued by their amateur board, Atharvaa P Tayade, who maintained a perfect record since round one. Following a very long and complicated game, Vincent Keymer prevailed over Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov to secure victory for Germany and Friends 3.5:2.5. WR Chess edged past Knight Dance, led by Jorden van Foreest, keeping them close to the top. Malcolm’s Mates lost to the Ashdod Elit Chess Club 3.5:2.5, falling lower in the standings. Then came round 10 and Team MGD1 narrowly defeated Ashdod Elit Chess Club with 3.5:2.5. Ashdod’s Andrei Volokitin got into trouble early on against Pranav and ended up losing. However, on the women’s board, MGD1’s Stavroula Tsolakidou, lost (recording her third defeat in a row), leveling the score for Ashdod. With the other top boards ending in a draw, it came down to the non-professional player, Atharvaa P Tayade who – once again – saved the day for MGD1, winning the game and securing a victory for his team. While MGD1 struggled but gritted out a victory, team Hexamind cruised through round 10, clearing Germany and Friends with 4.5:1.5. Save for Keymer and Svane who drew their games, the other top player of Germany and Friends – Bluebaum, Donchenko and Wagner all lost, while the non-professional player Bohdan Lobkin drew. WR delivered a dominating performance against Tema Hungary, defeating them 5.5:0.5. On the other hand, Freedom had another draw – splitting two points with the team of Uzbekistan, with all six games ending in draws. Round eleven brought another win for Team MGD1: they played Team International Trading, defeating them with 4.5:1.5. Having faced all the best performing and top-rated teams in the tournament, MGD1 was paired against squads which were slightly lower on the scoreboard at the finish, making things somewhat easier. Atharvaa P Tayade won his ninth game in a row. Hexamind continued chasing MGD1, as they also won – defeating Barys.kz 3.5:2.5. Leinier Dominguez Perez was the only Hexamind player to stumble, losing to nearly 200 points lower-rated Denis Makhnev. WR Chess scored their third victory in the day – overpowering Germany and Friends 4:2, winning on all three top boards. Freedom, on the other hand, suffered a setback against the squad of the Ashdod Elit Chess Club. Rauf Mamedov blundered a pawn and lost to Nihal Sarin. Freedom also dropped
FIDE World Youth U16 Chess Olympiad 2025: Registration deadline extended
FIDE and the Colombian Chess Federation (FECODAZ) have announced that the registration deadline for participants in the World Youth U16 Chess Olympiad has been extended to July 1, 2025. World Youth U16 Chess Olympiad will take place in Barranquilla, Colombia, from August 16 to August 23, 2025. All FIDE member federations have the right to send one team as the invited team. Each team must consist of four players—with representation of both boys and girls—and one team captain. The tournament will be a 9-round Swiss system, but if fewer than 40 teams register, only 7 rounds will be played.Each team match will be played on four boards. Pairings, scoring, and tiebreak rules will follow the FIDE Pairing Rules for the Chess Olympiad. The time control is 45 minutes plus a 10-second increment per move, starting from move one. Official website: youtholympiad2025.fide.com E-mail: youtholympiad@fide.com Invitation letter, regulations, schedule (PDF)
Mongolian Chess Federation President appointed as nation’s Prime Minister
His Excellency Zandanshatar Gombojav, the acting President of the Mongolian Chess Federation, was approved as the Prime Minister of Mongolia by the State Great Khural (Parliament) at its plenary session on June 12. Apart from being the President of the Mongolian Chess Federation, from 2019 to 2024 Zandanshatar Gombojav served as the Chairman of the Parliament of Mongolia. He has worked in the fields of academic research, economics, and foreign affairs, as well as at the state legislative and executive levels since 1992. FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich extended his congratulations to Mr Gombojav on his appointment. “Your elevation to the highest executive office in Mongolia comes at a time when your vision, experience, and political wisdom are most needed,” Dvorkovich stated. The FIDE President further highlighted that, as the head of the Mongolian Chess Federation, Gombojav has been a steadfast advocate for the growth and promotion of chess, both as a competitive sport and an educational tool. “Under your leadership, Mongolia has made remarkable progress in developing its chess culture and nurturing young talents. FIDE deeply appreciates your efforts in integrating chess into national programs and international cooperation. We are confident that your new role will offer further opportunities to advance the values of strategic thinking, education, and international collaboration – principles that chess embodies and promotes globally”.
FIDE WRBTC 2025: Hexamind level with MGD1 at the top after three key wins
Day two of the FIDE World Teams Rapid Championship brought unexpected turns, as underdogs broke through and favourites faltered. With six match victories, one draw and one loss each, Hexamind and team MGD1 share first place with 13 matchpoints. Freedom and Uzbekistan follow closely behind, on 12, with Germany and Friends joining them after a standout performance. Tournament favourites WR Chess are in sixth place, with their title hopes dented by back-to-back losses. More intensity and pressure The stakes went up, and the matches became tougher as the FIDE World Rapid moved to its second day, with four more rounds taking place. The ceremonial first move was made by Lord Dafydd Wigley, a prominent Welsh and British politician between 1980 and 2000 and Vice Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on chess in the British parliament. Team MGD1 continued their strong performance, maintaining the lead through the day, winning two matches and drawing one. A key factor in MGD1’s success so far has been their amateur board player, Atharvaa P Tayade (rated 1952; pictured below), who has won all eight of his games. After a draw with Freedom in round five, the Indian-led team overcame top seeds WR Chess in round six with 4:2. In round seven, following a tough match, MGD1 scored a narrow 3.5:2.5 victory over Germany and Friends (which moved up the scoreboard, stunning Freedom in round six and finishing the day with a confident 4.5:1.5 victory over Malcolm’s Mates). However, in the final-eight round of the day, MGD1 was facing Hexamind. The team led by Levon Aronian had a great run on day two, drawing with Freedom and defeating WR and Turkish Airlines with 4:2, to reach second place before the final round. Rating favourites WR had a bruising day. They started well with a victory over Malcolm’s Mates, but then had two back-to-back defeats in rounds six and seven, to MGD1 and Hexamind. A 4.5:1.5. victory in round eight against Barys from Kazakhstan helped salvage some ground. In the final match of the day, Hexamind (with Volodar Murzin on board one instead of Levon Aronian) came out as winners, delivering a crushing 4:2 blow to MGD1, tying for first place. Here follows a closer look at the developments in rounds five to eight in the FIDE World Rapid Teams Championship: In round five, playing on the top tables, day one leaders Team MGD1 faced Freedom. Former World Champion Vishy Anand secured Freedom an early lead after dismantling world number three player, Arjun Erigaisi with black pieces. The match finished 3:3, with all other games ending in a draw, and Freedom’s non-professional player Sarbartho Mani succumbed to Atharvaa Tayade of MGD1. The British squad Malcolm’s Mates put up a fierce fight against the tournament favourites WR Chess. WR’s top player Alireza Firouzja found himself with seconds on the clock in a very sharp position against Gawain Jones, but still managed to win. Hikaru Nakamura defeated England’s Michael Adams after playing better in time trouble. WR’s team owner and player on the non-professional board, Wadim Rosenstein – lost on the last board, but his team still won: 3.5:2.5, securing two matchpoints. With this victory, WR tied with MGD1 for first place. KazChess dropped a win against Rishon LeZion Chess Club. The team from Kazakhstan were in the narrow lead as the last game of the match was played between former world champion candidate Boris Gelfand and world-class player Richard Rapport. Gelfand was pushing to swing the result in his team’s favour and, eventually, under time pressure, Rapport made a slip and lost. Hexamind Chess Team drew with the squad of Uzbekistan, with Levon Aronian losing to Uzbek superstar Nodirbek Abdusattorov. In other notable results from the round, Vincent Keymer lost to Alan Pichot despite playing with the white pieces. Nihal Sarin lost to the rising Argentinian prodigy Faustino Oro in a tense game. The 2702-rated super-GM Alexei Shirov lost as white to more than 200 points lower-rated Ameet K Ghasi. Round six started with a minute of silence for the tragedy in India which happened on Thursday morning, after a London-bound Air India plane carrying 242 people crashed shortly after take-off in Ahmedabad, Western India. After a draw with Freedom, Team MGD1 was playing WR Chess. The Indian team was pressed hard by WR as they created promising positions on most of the boards. However, as the round progressed, WR got only four draws and MGD1 scored a victory on board three, where David Anton outplayed Duda. The last game of the round to finish was between WR’s Wadim Rosenstein and Atharvaa P Tayade of MGD1. Rosenstein found himself in a difficult position, but there was also a complaint from the opposing team relating to touch and play. The game ended with Rosenstein losing, securing a 4:2 victory for MGD1. The round’s biggest upset came as Germany and Friends stunned Freedom, 3.5:2.5. Germany’s top player Vincent Keymer led his black pieces to victory against Freedom’s Rauf Mamedov on board one. After starting the day with a loss, Malcolm’s Mates came back with a crushing 5.5:0.5 victory over Team Hungary. One of the most exciting games of the day was played in the match between Hexamind and the Turkish Airlines Sports Club. On board one, 11-year-old Argentine prodigy Faustino Oro put up stiff resistance against the experienced heavyweight Levon Aronian. In a sharp endgame, Aronian (playing as Black) emerged with an extra pawn. Under extreme time pressure, both played very precise moves, but Oro ultimately blundered. The final moves of the game saw Oro playing with a queen and a knight against two queens, with no pawns on the board. Despite the pressure, Aronian kept his nerves and scored a victory. Hexamind won the match 4:2. In round seven, MGD1 continued their strong form in round seven, defeating Germany and Friends 3.5:2.5, though it was not without its challenges. Their top board, Arjun Erigaisi, lost to Vincent Keymer after blundering in an even endgame. On board
Early surprises at the start of FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships
After four rounds in the Rapid segment, India’s MGD1 stands as the sole leader, having secured victories in all four matches. Three teams share second place – the favourites WR Chess and Freedom, as well as the newcomers to the competition, the British team Malcolm’s Mates. The global chess spotlight converged on the British capital on Wednesday for the start of the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships, drawing many strong players and amateurs for a week of intense, fast-paced competition. The opening ceremony, held at the London’s Novotel Hotel in Hammersmith (close to where the world championship match between Kramnik and Kasparov took place in 2000), underscored the sport’s expanding international footprint and the power of chess in bringing people together. Dominic Lawson, the president of the English Chess Federation, noted that the World Teams is the first major FIDE event since the Candidates in 2013. He spoke about London’s rich chess history, particularly referencing the great Vera Menchik, the world’s first woman chess champion, who was killed in the German bombardment of London in 1944, noting how war – then and today – has impacted chess. The President of the International Chess Federation (FIDE), Arkady Dvorkovich, stressed the importance of events such as the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Teams in bringing people together. “From Dusseldorf in 2023, to Astana in 2024 and now London – the event has grown in scale, passion and energy. I am sure this event will also be a great success story,” the FIDE President said. Dvorkovich also thanked the Scheinberg Family for their generous support for this event and for chess over the years. Nobel Prize-winning biologist and former Royal Society President Venkatraman Ramakrishnan had the honour of making the first ceremonial move. Originally from India, he took up chess at 19 after moving to the US and briefly played for Ohio University. “I played so much my studies suffered, so I stopped,” he recalled. In an interview, Ramakrishnan pointed out that “AI has revolutionised chess as much as it has revolutionised science”, citing the influence of Demis Hassabis – a prominent chess player and AI pioneer. The FIDE World Rapid Teams – first four rounds The first event underway is the World Team Rapid Championship, featuring 52 participating teams. While rating favourites generally performed strongly, the Rapid opening day saw notable upsets, with several super-Grandmasters dropping points to significantly lower-rated opponents. The top-performing team of the day is MGD1 from India, led by Arjun Erigaisi, which has won all four matches, securing eight match points (each match victory brings two points, each draw one point, and a loss – zero points). They started with a 5:1 victory against MongolZ and continued in the same fashion in round two, against Barys.kz. Round three saw them pitted against Rishon LeZion Chess Club, led by the former world champion candidate, Boris Gelfand. The score in this match was 4.5:1.5 for MGD1. Then, in the final round of the day, the Indian squad narrowly defeated the strong team of Uzbekistan, 3.5:2.5, finishing the day in sole first place. Second and third place are shared by two top contenders from previous editions – WR Chess and Freedom. Both teams won their first three matches but drew against each other in the fourth round and are on seven match points. The big surprise of the day is the distinctly named team Malcolm’s Mates (after the ECF chess official and organiser Malcolm Pein), which emerged in shared second to fourth place with WR Chess and Freedom. They drew their second match – against Global Ramblers, led by GM Alexei Shirov – but then went on to win in the next two rounds, to clinch one of the top spots. Here follows a closer look at developments in the first four rounds: The first round brought the first surprises! Despite all the favourite teams winning their matches, there were some notable upsets among the top guns. Gawain Jones – one of the strongest British GMs – completely misplayed against a 200-points lower-rated Sumiya Bilguun from the Mongolia-B team and ended up losing. The five-time Kazakh chess champion, 2587-rated Darmen Sadvakasov, lost in time trouble to 2240-rated Lu Miaoyi of the Turkish Airlines Sports Club team. The Indian Team MGD1 made up of world-class players defeated The MongolZ team from Mongolia, but, had two draws on the top three boards: Harikrishna conceded a draw against FM Sumiya Chinguun, as did Leon Mendonca against Khuyagtsogt Itgelt. As early as round two, the favourites started to have problems. WR Chess defeated Generation XYZA with 4:2, but Maxime Vachier-Lagrave – the former world blitz champion and a top class player – lost to 16-year-old Turkish star Ediz Gürel. After creating two runners on the queenside as White, Vachier-Lagrave blundered, having to give up his queen. Also in that match, WR’s Hikaru Nakamura (rated 2734) had a speedy draw with 300-points lower rated Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus. KazChess pulled off a narrow victory against a significantly weaker team of Duobeniajan Costa Calida ESJ (3.5 vs 2.5), with Grischuk drawing as Black and Esipenko losing with the white pieces. Global Ramblers – which features the 2702-rated Alexei Shirov as the only super-strong player – held the team of Malcolm’s Mates to a draw thanks to the successes on the lower boards. The other favourites – Uzbekistan, Freedom and MGD1 – continued strong, steamrolling their opponents. As the World Rapid Team Championship moved into the third round, the stakes escalated, transforming the matches into full hard-fought battles. The Hexamind Chess Team led by Levon Aronian and 18-year-old Volodar Murzin delivered a major upset, defeating the second-seed KazChess. With Richard Rapport losing to Aronian on board one, and Giri defeating Ansat on board three, the final score was 3.5:2.5. WR Chess was held to a draw by the Ashdod Elit Chess Club on the lower three boards, but managed to swing the match thanks to Duda’s dominant performance against Benjamin Gledura and Firouzja’s managing to eke
School children play chess on the roof of London’s O2 Arena
From the classroom to the sky: Chess in the curriculum School children have taken chess to extraordinary new heights (quite literally), going head-to-head in a game of chess, 52 meters above London on top of the O2 Arena, to promote the ancient strategy game’s benefits in education and for the launch of a new chess club initiative! Under sunny skies, Pointers’ students played on top of the London landmark, but the real achievement lies not in the altitude but in promoting the many cognitive benefits that come with playing the game. The high-stakes game marks the launch of The Pointer School’s commitment to making chess more widely available in the community, by opening their doors to an after-school chess club for other pupils in Greenwich and South East London areas, free of charge. Open to passionate chess players of primary school age, the chess club aims to give young people who otherwise would not have access to structured chess coaching an opportunity to master this universal game of strategy. The Pointer School, a leading prep school in South London that forms part of the Dukes Education group, celebrates their 75th anniversary this year. The school has a proud history and record when it comes to chess, with former student, Shreyas Royal having become England’s youngest ever chess grandmaster – aged just 15 years old. Pointers student, Kushal Jakhria, is competing in this year’s FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championships in London this June. As well as the full team making it to the finals of English Primary School Chess Association (EPSCA) National Primary Schools’ Championships 2025, further demonstrating the prep school’s chess success. The Pointer School offers world-class guidance and instructions for budding chess players, both within the curriculum and through extracurricular activities. As well as helping Shreyas Royal to hone his skills, the school has a proven track record of success in chess, with former pupils going on to excel at regional, national, and even international levels. Studies have shown that playing chess can deepen your focus, improve your memory and enhance critical thinking, which can translate into everyday life, as well as the game of chess itself. Charlotte Crookes, Headteacher at The Pointer School, said: “Our chess club is about much more than the game itself, it’s part of our panoramic curriculum, giving every child a chance to discover their interests and thrive intellectually, socially and emotionally; and celebrating what’s possible when communities come together. “Chess offers a number of cognitive benefits that can translate to greater performance in other elements of education, be it concentration, problem-solving or boosting creativity, as well as valuable life skills around critical thinking, planning and logical reasoning. “What better way to launch our chess club than to play a game at the top of one of London’s most recognized landmarks? The Pointer School has taken chess to new heights, but you wouldn’t catch me going up there!” Selection for the chess club, which began with the symbolic O2 Arena showdown, will be based on passion, potential, and above all else, curiosity in the game of chess! Children from across the Greenwich and South East London area are invited to join the after-school club, and they will be given access to expert coaching, as well as opportunities for competitive play. Jerzy Dybowski, chess tutor at The Pointer School, said: “Chess builds confident learners and thoughtful decision-makers. We’re proud of our heritage, but even more proud to be part of something bigger, something that reaches beyond our school walls.” Spaces for the chess club are limited but available for all primary school age pupils, and anyone who is interested in registering their interest for this initiative can visit The Pointer School website: pointers.school/about/chess-club Website: pointers.school/Instagram: @pointerschoolFacebook: facebook.com/ThePointerSchool/ LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/the-pointer-school/?viewAsMember=true About The Pointer School Founded in 1950, The Pointer School is an independent co-educational school in Blackheath, Greenwich, South East London. It is known for its strong academic record, panoramic educational approach, and thriving arts and sports programmes. In 2025, it celebrates 75 years of nurturing curious minds and fostering a spirit of opportunity for all. The Pointer School is part of the Dukes Education family, the largest premium education group in the UK and one of the fastest-growing families of schools in Europe. Dukes Education was founded by Aatif Hassan in 2015 to give young people an outstanding start in life. The Group now has 62 education brands and over 80 settings, across nine countries, supporting more than 21,000 pupils and 5,000 staff. Dukes also operates a number of leading summer short courses, university and medical school consultancies, immersive career experience providers, and one-to-one student support offerings, creating a cradle-to-career suite of services.