Grand Chess Tour returns in 2021
World’s Elite Grandmasters Will Compete In Five Over The Board Events From June to August 2021 Saint Louis, MO, December 10, 2020 – The Grand Chess Tour (GCT) is scheduled to return in 2021 and will feature the same five tournaments and format that was originally planned for the 2020 edition of the tour. Tour participants will compete for a total prize fund of $1.275 million over the course of the 2021 season. The prize money for the two classical tournaments will be $325,000 per event while the prize fund for the rapid and blitz events will be $150,000 each. In addition, a bonus prize fund totaling $175,000 will be awarded to the top three overall tour finishers. Following the success of the 2019 Superbet Rapid and Blitz tournament in Bucharest, the Romanian capital will host the first classical event of the 2021 season in June. The 2021 Sinquefield Cup will be in August and will conclude the final leg of the tour. Between the two classical events are three rapid and blitz events, Paris, France, Zagreb, Croatia, and Saint Louis, USA. There will not be a “GCT Finals” tournament in 2021; the final tour standings will be decided based on the GCT points each tour player accumulates over the course of the five tournaments. Event dates have been coordinated with FIDE to ensure that there will be no clashes with FIDE’s major events including the conclusion of the Candidates tournament, the World Championship Match, and the expanded FIDE World Cup. The major sponsors of the 2021 Grand Chess Tour are the Superbet Foundation, Vivendi SA, Colliers International, and the Saint Louis Chess Club. The full tour participants will play in both classical events as well as in two of the three rapid and blitz events. Ten wildcards will be extended to selected players to participate in the rapid and blitz events. The full schedule for the 2021 GCT season (including arrival and departure days) is as follows: 1. Superbet Chess Classic Romania: June 3 – 15, 2021, Bucharest, Romania2. Paris Rapid & Blitz: June 16 – 23, 2021, Paris, France3. Croatia Rapid & Blitz: July 5 – 12, 2021, Zagreb, Croatia4. St Louis Rapid & Blitz: August 9 – 16, 2021, St. Louis, Missouri USA5. Sinquefield Cup: August 16 – 28, 2021, St. Louis, Missouri USA Tour invitations have been extended to the selected participants and further announcements regarding the final composition of the 2021 field and season will be made as they become available. About the Grand Chess Tour™ The Grand Chess Tour is a circuit of international events, each demonstrating the highest level of organization for the world’s best players. The legendary Garry Kasparov, one of the world’s greatest ambassadors for chess, inspired the Grand Chess Tour and helped solidify the partnership between the organizers. All Grand Chess Tour 2021 events will comply with local and regional COVID-19 restrictions. For more information about the tour, visit grandchesstour.org.
Tata Steel Chess 2021 lineup announced
The World Champion Magnus Carlsen will once again be one of the participants of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in January 2021. Since the outbreak of COVID-19 this event is only the second international classical chess tournament to be held and the organization is very pleased with the permission that has been granted to organize this tournament in a COVID- safe manner in Wijk aan Zee. The Norwegian world champion is perfectly at ease in Wijk aan Zee. He will participate for the 17th time in January. Apart from Carlsen four other top 10 players will participate: Fabiano Caruana (this year’s winner and number two in the world), Ian Nepomniachtchi (4), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (5) and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (8). The best Dutch chess player, Anish Giri (11) will also participate, of course. Super talent Alireza Firouzja (18) will also be taking part in ’the Wimbledon of Chess’. The Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2021 will take place in De Moriaan in Wijk aan Zee from 15 January – 31 January 2021 and chess fans have the opportunity to watch the live stream via our website. Unfortunately, no spectators are allowed to watch the games in De Moriaan itself unless the COVID-19 measures will allow it in January. All the games will be broadcasted online. Tournament director Jeroen van den Berg: “the flood of congratulations and positive reactions I have received from people all over the world after the announcement is proof of how special it is that the Tata Steel Chess Tournament will really be played in Wijk aan Zee in these times. People show tremendous respect for the fact that Tata Steel, the municipality of Beverwijk and the other authorities have gone to such great lengths to make sure that the world’s most prominent chess tournament can go ahead. Chess aficionados have had to do without big international classical chess tournaments for almost a year. The Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2021 is seen as a beacon of hope. People all over the world are craving for it.” Tata Steel Chess 2021 line-up: Name Country Rating World Ranking Magnus Carlsen Norway 2862 1 Fabiano Caruana U.S.A. 2823 2 Ian Nepomniachtchi Russia 2784 4 Maxime Vachier-Lagrave France 2784 5 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov Azerbaijan 2770 8 Anish Giri Netherlands 2764 11 Alireza Firouzja FIDE 2749 18 Jan-Krzysztof Duda Poland 2743 19 Daniil Dubov Russia 2702 37 Andrey Esipenko Russia 2686 49 David Anton Guijarro Spain 2675 60 Jorden van Foreest Netherlands 2671 66 Nodirbek Abdusattorov Uzbekistan 2627 152 Aryan Tari Norway 2618 184 Text and photo: Official website Official website: tatasteelchess.com