Chess stars come to New York for the strongest chess tournament in U.S. history
Most of the world’s top players – including world number one Magnus Carlsen – have confirmed their participation in the World Rapid & Blitz Championship. With a spectacular line-up, a prize fund of nearly $1.5 million, and the electrifying rapid format, this promises to be the most thrilling chess event of the year. One of the most popular and most prestigious chess tournaments held by the International Chess Federation (FIDE), the World Rapid & Blitz will see many of the best players on the planet fight for the world crowns in two popular speed chess formats – Rapid and Blitz. Coming to the U.S. for the first time ever, the event will take place in the heart of Wall Street from December 26 to 31, setting the backdrop for a spectacular showdown in New York. This year’s event introduces a thrilling twist: a knockout stage in the later rounds, making it even more challenging for the players. This new format raises the stakes, ensuring dramatic finishes and keeping players and fans on edge until the final move. Altogether, some 300 players are expected to turn up in New York, with many of the biggest names in chess already confirming their participation, making this event the strongest tournament ever played in the U.S. With its scale and caliber, this tournament is expected to draw significant attention. Fans wishing to experience the event in person, can now purchase tickets, available at https://tickets.fide.com/ Magnus Carlsen leads a star-studded line-up The list of participants is led by Magnus Carlsen, the world’s top-rated player and reigning World Champion in both the Rapid and the Blitz. Carlsen, who has won five Rapid and six Blitz World Championships, will be coming to the Big Apple seeking to set a new world record. Photo: Anastasia Korolkova Joining the lineup is Ian Nepomniachtchi, a two-time World Championship challenger, and two-time World Rapid Championship runner-up, currently ranked eighth in the world. Despite his near misses at the classical crown, Nepomniachtchi remains one of the most dangerous players in rapid and blitz formats. Also looking to make history is 21-year-old Alireza Firouzja. The youngest player ever to break the 2800 ELO barrier, Firouzja was tipped by Carlsen as his most likely successor. In New York, the Iranian-born Frenchman seek to fulfil that promise. Additionally, 2021 World Blitz Champion Maxime Vachier-Lagrave will be representing France and aiming to regain the crown he won in Warsaw three years ago. The U.S. brings out its best World number two Fabiano Caruana headlines the list of home players. The former world championship challenger recently claimed his fourth (!) U.S. championship title, bringing him one step closer to the legendary Bobby Fischer’s record of eight wins. One of the best blitz players ever, Hikaru Nakamura also confirmed his participation. His potential duel with Magnus Carlsen promises to be one of the tournament’s highlights. Another U.S. heavyweight, Wesley So, has confirmed he will be competing. A key member of the U.S. national team and widely respected as a blitz player, So is among the favorites to perform well in both the Rapid and Blitz events. Joining them will be Levon Aronian, one of the most experienced players, known for his creativity and charisma, his fellow team-member Leinier Dominguez Perez and Samuel Sevian – a chess prodigy from New York who won the 2017 American Continental Chess Championship. The world’s strongest women players coming to New York In addition to the Open competitions, there will be separate events for women players. The Women’s World Rapid & Blitz will bring together World Champions, top contenders, and some of the brightest emerging talents in women’s chess. Among the stars competing are former world champions Alexandra Kosteniuk (Switzerland), also known as “The Chess Queen,” and Mariya Muzychuk from Ukraine. Former challengers China’s Lei Tingjie and India’s Humpy Koneru have also confirmed their participation. Other elite women players coming to New York include three-time Women’s World Blitz Champion Kateryna Lagno, two-time Women’s World Blitz Champion Anna Muzychuk, Harika Dronavalli, Vaishali R and Zhu Jiner. A global chess stage Players will be coming from every continent, representing countries all around the world. India, currently holding the World Olympic crown in both the open and women’s categories, is also expected to make a strong showing with several of their top players coming to New York, including world number four Arjun Erigaisi as well as the formidable Praggnanandhaa R. Many other top players have confirmed participation, including China’s Yu Yangyi, Wei Yi, and Bu Xiangzhi, as well as Poland’s Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Anish Giri from the Netherlands. “There is still some time to go before the event, but we are excited that many of the world’s best players have already confirmed they will be coming”, said Emil Sutovsky, CEO of the International Chess Federation (FIDE). “We are preparing a grand chess spectacle at the highest level for the audience. Whether you’re watching in person or online, the action promises to be thrilling from start to finish”. With more top players expected to join in the coming weeks and special events planned for visitors, the 2024 World Rapid & Blitz Championship in New York is set to feature one of the strongest lineups in the event’s history. For the first time ever, there will be a free day between the events, which will be used to host a Conference on Chess and Finance, bringing together chess legends and financial leaders to explore the fascinating intersections between the two worlds. About the event For more information about the event, including tickets, visit the official website: worldrapidandblitz.fide.com/.
2024 FIDE World Championship: Opening press conference
“We are going to give our best and see what happens” This afternoon’s fantastic chess experience in Singapore began with the first official press conference with the World Champion Ding Liren and the challenger Gukesh D, moderated by one of the event’s official commentators and master of ceremonies, GM Maurice Ashley. The panel also featured Arkady Dvorkovich, FIDE President and GM Kevin Goh Wei Ming, CEO of the Singapore Chess Federation. Both Dvorkovich and Goh Wei Ming thanked the media for attending the presser and highlighted FIDE’s partnership with Google for this match. Dvorkovich even suggested that we were going to experience unprecedented social media coverage. “When I heard the news that Google was going to join as a titled partner, I was really excited. We were joined by a global company who has reached the whole world, showing that the game of chess is really something. This partnership brings us a unique visibility, that we haven’t experienced for many years – for that we are very thankful to the Google team. I think during the next three weeks, we shall see something completely unprecedented every day on social media and on the web driven by Google resources.” After introducing the players, Maurice Ashley opened fire with a barrage of discerning questions to both players, followed by several more perceptive ones from the attending journalists. Asked about his state of mind and feelings before the match, Ding Liren opened up to the audience: “I was very nervous in my first world championship match, but this time I feel in peace with a lot of energy. It’s my first time in Singapore, and there are many to visit. It’s a warm country and I received a lot of gifts and a warm welcome from many kids this morning. It’s not so often that I play against a player younger than me. I have more experience than him: he is younger but has already displayed his maturity in many aspects. I hope that both of us can perform our best, but I know that he will not be easy to beat. Yesterday I reviewed my games from recent times and the quality was not so good. I made many short draws, even in better positions. It’s clear I was far from my peak performance. But I intend to review some of my best games, to regain my confidence and fighting spirit to perform better.” Gukesh said that he was very happy to be in Singapore and that he had been looking forward to being here since he started playing chess. “There are certainly some nerves, but I feel good about it. The only thought I have is to give my best and see what happens. It’s an honor and privilege for me to play for India in any kind of event, especially an event like the Olympiad or World Championship. It’s such a huge event to represent my country and carry the hopes of Indians: it’s an honor for me. I take it very seriously. For me, it’s pretty clear who I’m going to face. I’m going to face Ding Liren, who is one of the best players of the world for more than a decade. My job is also pretty clear – just go to every game as the best version of myself and play the best moves in the position and if I do that, if I keep playing good chess […], I’m confident I have all the chances in the world”. When questioned about the extent a chess player can detach themselves from their personal problems in such an important competition, both players did their best to dodge the issue. Ding Liren said, “Normally, I can handle them quite well. When playing chess, I do not consider other things. Maybe last year I didn’t play so well, but I think that when we come to the stage to play chess, we need to forget about other things. We need to just focus on the game itself.” Gukesh was even more pragmatic, “I think, in this case, my age helps me a lot because I don’t have much of a personal life. I mean, my whole life revolves around chess. Everything is taken care of by my parents and my team. My only job is to play chess, so that’s quite nice.” Official website: worldchampionship.fide.com/ Full programme of side-events: https://worldchampionship.fide.com/events Written by IM Michael Rahal (Singapore) Photos: Maria Emelianova About the event Current World Champion Ding Liren, representing China, and challenger Gukesh D, from India, will face each other in a fourteen-game classical chess match. The player who scores 7.5 points or more will win the match, picking up the better part of the $2.5 million total prize fund. The first of the fourteen scheduled games will take place on Monday, November 25 at 5 pm. Gukesh will open with White. The match will be hosted at the luxurious Resorts World Sentosa and will be broadcasted live with expert commentary on the FIDE YouTube Channel.
2024 FIDE World Championship: Gukesh draws White in the first game
The 2024 FIDE World Championship match between Ding Liren and Gukesh D kicked off this afternoon with the opening ceremony. Packed to the brim with more than 400 guests, the magnificent Capitol Theatre, an architectural and lifestyle gem in the heart of Singapore’s civic and cultural district, hosted the festivities. The gala evening included a wonderful musical performance, three motivational opening speeches, the two national anthems, and, most importantly for the players, the drawing of colors for the first game of the match. In an unprecedented technological display in which both players participated actively, the drawing of colors awarded Gukesh D the white pieces in the first of the fourteen games. Three of the many attending guests of honor addressed the audience, highlighting the significance of the event for the Singapore chess community. Mr Teo Chee Hean, Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security, was the first on the stage and was eager to keep in mind the huge impact of the championship on his country. “This year’s World Championship has spread special significance for our part of the world. It is the first ever between two Grandmasters from Asia. Singapore is proud to play host for this historic match,” he said. FIDE President, Mr Arkady Dvorkovich, began his speech by thanking the media for paying so much attention to the match. He also mentioned the many side events organized around the event. In addition, he highlighted the fact that special attention had been given to the younger generation, “The match itself is the most important thing, but today we already had dozens of kids coming to the playing venue. I would like to thank both players for sharing their time with the kids: they will remember this moment for the rest of their lives, and maybe some of them will compete at the highest possible level at some point.” Dvorkovich also directed his attention to the worldwide audience and chess legacy, “Now, for the first time in history, the Indian Tiger faces the Chinese Dragon in the fight for the world crown. We are about to witness a monumental clash as Gukesh, just 18 years old, challenges the reigning World Champion, Ding Liren, one of the strongest players ever to emerge from China. This match will not only shape the history of the game, but also its future, with millions watching worldwide”. Finally, the President of the Singapore Chess Federation, Dr Hsu Li Yang, also an International Master in his own right, was confident that the match would help inspire the new generation of players in Singapore, “My federation and I hope that this match will serve as a powerful catalyst for our thriving chess community, inspiring the next generation of chess players in our country and around the world. Singapore has long valued education, innovation, perseverance and the pursuit of excellence – qualities that are the essence of chess and which both Champion and Challenger possess in spades.” The full video of the opening ceremony can be found here:youtube.com/live/tpAolTm1mTU?si=ElgLxn1L5U29iV2h The official website: worldchampionship.fide.com/ The full programme of side-events: https://worldchampionship.fide.com/events Written by IM Michael Rahal (Singapore) Photos: Eng Chin An and Maria Emelianova About the event Current World Champion Ding Liren, representing China, and challenger Gukesh D, from India, will face each other in a fourteen-game classical chess match. The player who scores 7.5 points or more will win the match, picking up the better part of the $2.5 million total prize fund. The first of the fourteen scheduled games will take place on Monday, November 25 at 5 pm. Gukesh will open with White. The match will be hosted at the luxurious Resorts World Sentosa and will be broadcasted live with expert commentary on the FIDE YouTube Channel.