The Cadets and Youth Rapid cycle enters its ultimate stage with the Super Final event starting on Tornelo on Saturday, December 18.

In 2020, reacting to pandemic restrictions and the impossibility of holding the over-the-board events, FIDE and Georgian Chess Federation organized the inaugural edition of this tournaments' cycle for young players. This year, we are witnessing its second edition and will hopefully celebrate many more in the coming years as a pleasant addition to over-the-board events.

More than 3,000 participants from 160 federations took part in this year's competition. The qualifying stage of the event included three tournaments, World Cup and two Grand Prix, all in five different age groups (under 10, 12, 14, 16, 18) and in two sections, open and girls. The best in each category—three players from the World Cup, two from the Grand Prix Series and one by rating—qualified for the 6-player round-robin Super Final.

Despite the young age, some players are well-known to the chess audience. The youngest-ever grandmaster, Mishra Abhimanyu from the USA, is the favourite in the Open U12 category. The #1 seed in Open U10 is Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus from Turkey, the top-rated 10-year-old in the world. With 2276, he is more than 150 points ahead of #2 on the global list. Two top-seeded girls U10, Kolagatla Alana Meenakshi from India and Megan Althea Paragua from the USA, are the world's top-rated players in this category. The same status applies to Alice Lee from the USA, Girls U12, and Hungarian WIM Zsoka Gaal, Girls U14.

The all-play-all event will have two games per day, from December 18 to 22 (or 23, if tie-break is necessary), and during the closing ceremony on December 24, after the Fair Play checks, we will learn the names of the new world champions. Apart from gaining titles and bragging rights, the winners will split the prize fund of 30,000 euros. 

In his opening address, FIDE Vice President Akaki Iashvili wished the participants to showcase their skill on the chessboards and not forget about the FIDE Fair Play regulations. 

The whole event will be broadcast live on our YouTube channel, with the commentary by GM Farrukh Amonatov. Tune in every day at 16:00 CET. You can find the results, regulations, and other information on the official website.

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The FIDE Online Cadets & Youth Rapid Super Final is held with the support of Gazprom.