All posts tagged: FIDE Candidates

FIDE announce major overhauls to Circuit path for Candidates qualification, to merge next two cycles into one

FIDE announce major overhauls to Circuit path for Candidates qualification, to merge next two cycles into one

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FIDE, the International Chess Federation, has announced a comprehensive overhaul of its Circuit Rating system, one of the pathways to the prestigious Candidates Tournament, for the upcoming 2026-27 cycle. The most important update is the merger of the next two years into a single, unified circuit. This replaces the previous annual cycle, which saw Fabiano Caruana and R. Praggnanandhaa secure their Candidates 2026 spots through the 2024 and 2025 circuits, respectively. FIDE’s statement reads, “For the first time, the FIDE Circuit will operate over a two-year cycle. Instead of an annual ranking, results from the 2026 and 2027 seasons will be combined into a single Circuit ranking. A player’s final score will be calculated as the sum of their twelve highest event scores achieved across the two-year period, or all event scores if fewer than twelve are available.” Major Shift 2-YEAR Circuit Cycle Replaces Annual System Change 01 Expanded Results Counting More tournament results now contribute to final Circuit rankings, rewarding consistency Change 02 Open Circuit Sub-Ranking New separate ranking system creates additional pathway through …

Gukesh: ‘Right now just want to be the best, don’t care about youngest ever and other records’ | Chess News

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After India’s D Gukesh become the youngest-ever Candidates winner — which also made him the youngest ever player to qualify for the prestigious World Chess Championship, the 17-year-old said that the tag of being the youngest to do things once mattered to him. But at the moment, his goal is just one: to be the best in the world. In his fledgling career, Gukesh has had many pathbreaking moments already, besides becoming a World Championship Challenger as a teenager (he will be 18 when he plays in November). Gukesh became India’s youngest grandmaster ever at the age of 12 years, seven months, 17 days, missing the tag of the world’s youngest by a mere 17 days. Last year, he overtook five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand as the country’s top ranked player for the first time after 36 years. LISTEN: This week’s Game Time podcast is on Gukesh’s rise While Gukesh was charting his course to the win in Toronto, a video from his younger days popped up. He was 11 at that stage and can …

India eyes hosting World Chess Championship with USD 9.6 Million budget set by FIDE

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The All India Chess Federation (AICF) faces the prospect of investing over Rs 80 crore (USD 9.6 million) should it opt to host the World Championship showdown between Indian sensation D Gukesh and reigning champion Ding Liren of China. FIDE, the international governing body for chess, recently issued a call for tenders from potential hosts for the prestigious event. AICF’s newly-appointed secretary, Dev Patel, has expressed the federation’s keenness to organize the spectacle, particularly given Gukesh’s historic feat of becoming the youngest-ever challenger for the world title by clinching the Candidates Tournament in Toronto. History has been made! We have a new challenger for the World Chess Championship: Congratulations to 17-year-old Gukesh for winning the 2024 #FIDECandidates – the youngest player ever to qualify for the World Championship match! pic.twitter.com/bE9uBFX9ww — lichess.org (@lichess) April 22, 2024 FIDE’s stipulations for potential bidders include a budget of Rs 8.5 million (approximately Rs 71 crore) and a facilitation fee of USD 1.1 million (approximately Rs 9 crore). The tournament is expected to span 25 days, with regulations set …

India to bid for the hosting rights of World Chess Championship

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The All India Chess Federation intends to bid for the hosting rights of upcoming World Chess Championship match between grandmaster D Gukesh and defending champion Ding Liren, the newly elected secretary Dev Patel expressed on Thursday. The game will feature India’s grandmaster D Gukesh and the defending champion Ding Liren of China. Gukesh, at just 17 years old, made history by becoming the youngest ever challenger for the world title after emerging victorious in the Candidates Tournament held in Toronto earlier this week. The championship is slated for the last quarter of the year, specific dates and venue are yet to be finalized. The AICF plans to reach out to FIDE regarding the hosting bid on Friday. Patel mentioned several states under consideration for the event, including Gujarat, which is his home base, as well as Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh, known for their strong chess culture. “We are open to discussions with FIDE, the apex chess body, and we are certain that the best world championship will be held in India,” Dev Patel …

How Gukesh was welcomed at 3 am after Candidates: 80 school kids, posse of cameramen, officials and an emotional mother | Chess News

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Almost each passenger exiting the international terminus at the Chennai International Airport had a quizzical expression as scores of cameramen waited. Those sleepy, tired eyes opened wide at the sight of 80 school students, who formed a guard of honour to welcome one of their own, D Gukesh, who returned to Chennai after winning the Candidates chess tournament in Canada. As the clock struck 3 am on Thursday, Gukesh — with his father Dr Rajinikanth by his side — came out in his blue blazer with a yellow turban sitting perfectly on top of his head. Within moments, he would be swallowed by all the chaos and commotion. For a 17-year-old who took rapid strides on the chess board, it took him more than five minutes to cover a five metre distance, where All India Chess Federation (AICF) officials and Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT) officials welcomed him home. And moments after Gukesh positioned himself to address the media, he would step away from the cameras in a flash at the first sight …

Gukesh wins Candidates: 17-year-old and trainer Grzegorz Gajewski reveal what makes him a mentality monster | Chess News

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What goes on inside the mind of a 17-year-old athlete playing in the biggest event of his career yet, where only finishing first matters? Two days after D Gukesh claimed the Candidates title, thus becoming the youngest player to secure a spot at the World Chess Championship, he and his trainer, Grzegorz Gajewski, offered an insight into the mentality that makes the 17-year-old different. “Even though the game hasn’t started yet, in his mind, he’s already playing it. The preparations are part of the game. He’s fully focussed: analysing different scenarios, not just in terms of openings but also different situations that might occur during the game,” says Polish grandmaster Gajewski, who has also helped other Indian youngsters through the Westbridge Anand Chess Academy and was Viswanathan Anand’s second during his World Championship battles. “Apart from chess preparations, for Gukesh it’s all about staying in the zone. He has a few routines that help him to get into the zone, to focus before a game. In the previous months, we had to introduce a few …

D Gukesh interview: ‘Casual chat with Magnus Carlsen proved useful… came to Toronto to win Candidates’ | Chess News

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When D Gukesh left India to travel to Canada for the Candidates chess tournament, not too many experts had ranked him high on their tier-lists. Magnus Carslen famously said: “I cannot imagine Gukesh winning the Candidates. I think he will certainly win at least a couple of games, but will have some fairly bad losses as well. I don’t think he will do poorly, but I don’t think he will do too well either. He’s not quite ready yet to make the leap. It’s more likely that he has a bad event.” Carlsen’s predictions were certainly understandable, even if harsh. After all, there was a talented line-up of contenders this year who were all hungry for the top spot, the only position at this particular high-stakes event which matters. This included two-time World Championship contender Ian Nepomniachtchi, the World No 2 Fabiano Caruana, who was playing in his fifth Candidates event, having won it once, and World No 3 Hikaru Nakamura, competing in his third Candidates event. But for Gukesh, factors like experience, reputations and …

D Gukesh, the teenage history maker, enlightens chess world with calm and composed play

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Indian teenage chess prodigy, Gukesh Dommaraju, popularly known as D Gukesh, left the chess world shell-shocked with his FIDE Candidates title-winning performance in the elitest field of the sport. He became the youngest-ever champion of this prestigious tournament at 17. He rewrote all the records of chess history and quashed the pre-tournament predictions by some of the top grandmasters from across the world after emerging victorious in one of the most exciting editions of the FIDE Candidates in recent times. Gukesh ended the tournament with nine points out of the maximum 14, including five wins, eight draws and one loss, finishing half a point ahead of shrewd grandmasters like Hikaru Nakamura, Ian Nepomniachtchi, and Fabiano Caruana. What made his win more special is that three out of his five wins have come out with the black pieces. His road to the qualification for the Candidates wasn’t easy, as he was one of the two final names to secure entry into the eight-member event. He somehow sneaked past the higher-ranked Anish Giri of the Netherlands on …

D Gukesh to take on Ding Liren in World Championship in November-December

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FIDE Candidates champion D Gukesh will face off against world champion Ding Liren of China in the World Championship in November-December this year, revealed Emil Sutovsky, the CEO at FIDE, the global governing body for chess. The venue for the World Championship has not been announced yet. Emil’s revelation came after the 17-year-old Indian grandmaster won the Candidates after holding America’s Hikaru Nakamura to a draw in the 14th and final round. With Ian Nepomniachtchi also playing out a draw against Fabiano Caruana, Gukesh won. Gukesh, competing at the prestigious eight-player Candidates for the first time, put up a brave show with his calm and composed style of play in a field with big names like Nakamura, Nepomniachtchi and Caruana. Gukesh won nine of the maximum 14 points, while Nakamura finished with 8.5 points. He is only the second Indian player after Viswanathan Anand in 2014 to win the FIDE Candidates tournament. Throughout his final round game against Nakamura, Gukesh was also busy following the outcome of the crazy game between Caruana and Nepomniachtchi, who …

Gukesh’s Candidates victory a testament to India’s growing stature in world chess | Chess News

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“What is the most unstable thing in the world at the moment? Number 1 chess player of India.” Tweet from Azerbaijani grandmaster Teimour Radjabov in January this year pointing out how volatile the position of India’s top-ranked players can be. In the four months of 2024, the position of India’s top ranked chess player in the live ratings has switched constantly between five players — Viswanathan Anand, Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi and Vidit Gujrathi. It’s a far cry from the previous 36 years when Viswanathan Anand was ensconced as India’s top-ranked chess player, mostly unchallenged. Radjabov’s tweet, in fact, had come right after Vidit had been dethroned as India No.1 in the live ratings after a 24-hour stint there. It was in little signs like these that India’s growth on the 64 squares was starting to reflect. Then came the recently-concluded Candidates tournament, an elite eight-player field — both in the open category and for women — that has proven ridiculously tough to crack for Indians. That was, of course, before a group of five …