Machteld van Foreest and Sergey Tiviakov, both residents of Groningen, emerged as the new Dutch champions. Van Foreest successfully defended her title and won her third overall, while for Tiviakov, it was his fourth national crown.
The 2026 Dutch Chess Championships were held from July 4 to July 11 at the Renaissance Amsterdam Schiphol Airport Hotel and featured a spectacular knockout format, with 16-player and 12-player brackets in the Open and Women sections, respectively.
The Open section brought together all top Dutch players except Anish Giri and the defending champion Jorden van Foreest, who opted not to play.
After convincingly winning his first match against Eelke de Boer, Tiviakov faced a tough test in the quarterfinal against second seed Erwin L’Ami. Tiviakov lost the first game but bounced back in the second, forcing a tiebreaker in which he prevailed by 1.5–0.5. His semifinal duel was less challenging, as Tiviakov drew the first game and won the second to advance to the final.
Meanwhile, eleventh seed Liam Vrolijk surprised many by battling past Casper Schoppen, Sipke Ernst, and Max Warmerdam to punch his ticket to the final.
The first game of the final ended in a quiet draw, but in the second, Tiviakov was under considerable pressure. However, Vrolijk did not manage to find the best continuation at the critical moment, and the opponents eventually split a point. Tiviakov dominated the subsequent blitz tiebreaker, winning both games and securing the title.
The Women’s event followed a more predictable script, as the top four seeds advanced to the semifinals. There, FM Anna-Maja Kazarian defeated the rating favourite, Eline Roebers, by 1.5–0.5, while the defending champion, van Foreest, edged past Peng Zhaoqin in an exciting tiebreaker.
The final was all about van Foreest, who won both games in emphatic fashion to claim her third national title.
Complete results Open and Women
The closing ceremony for the Dutch National Chess Championship was held almost immediately after the tiebreaker between Tiviakov and Vrolijk. KNSB Youth Chess Board Member Peter Scheeren thanked the organisers for a “fantastic National Championship” and the federation office for the wonderful theme day held today, parallel to the final round of the championship.
Remco van der Jagt, General Manager within the IHCP Group – of which our host, Hotel Renaissance Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, is a part – presented flowers and trophies to the Women’s champion, Machteld van Foreest, and runner-up, Anna-Maja Kazarian, and to the Open section finalists, Sergey Tiviakov and Liam Vrolijk.
Official website: https://nk.schaken.nl/nk-nieuws/
Photos: KNSB