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Caruana Wins 2023 Sinquefield Cup, Grand Chess Tour

GM Fabiano Caruana capped off a banner year by winning the 2023 Sinquefield Cup outright thanks to a last-round victory over Romanian GM Richard Rapport. In the process, Caruana got his live rating back over 2800 and brought his total Grand Chess Tour earnings for the year over $300,000.

We last checked in on this event with  two rounds to go , when Caruana shared the lead with GM Leinier Dominguez, a half-point ahead of GM Wesley So. With Dominguez drawing his final two games and So drawing his final game before a last-round bye, the stage was set for Caruana to distance himself from his competitors:

On the 2024 FIDE Candidates front, So is in prime position to take the ratings spot. Not only does he hold a 1.2-point lead over Dominguez in the live ratings , but FIDE issued a "clarification"  that Dominguez would have to play a fourth FIDE Circuit  event (and one outside of the U.S., at that). 

This leaves GM Anish Giri in pole position to claim the Circuit spot, although GM Gukesh D still has two chances to overtake Giri with a strong finish either in the London Chess Classic (beginning today) or the Gashimov Memorial later this month. 

Below are three more highlights from the tournament. First, we have So's backfired experiment against Caruana

Then, we have So's own win over Rapport's King's Indian Defense.

Finally, the complications at the end of Caruana's game against Firouzja were out of this world:

Congratulations to Caruana on his third Sinquefield Cup and first Grand Chess Tour win!

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Alireza Firouzja is the Winner of the Grand Chess Tour 2022

With a quick draw against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the last round of the Sinquefield Cup 2022, Alireza Firouzja secured the throne of the overall Grand Chess Tour 2022 standings.

BREAKING: Huge congrats to GM Alireza Firouzja, who has just clinched the 2022 Grand Chess Tour!! ? https://t.co/RN0XwApDQA pic.twitter.com/fXSsBC3IgK — Grand Chess Tour (@GrandChessTour) September 11, 2022

With the 2022 Grand Chess Tour victory, Firouzja pocketed a money prize of 100.000$. Firouzja’s performance at the Grand Chess Tour 2022 started clumsy, as he scored 3.5 points in the Superbet Chess Classic Romania . Alireza was not participating in the Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland , the second event of the tour, but tied for the second place of the Super United Rapid & Blitz Croatia , just behind Magnus Carlsen. The 19-year-old triumphed in the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz 2022 and secured the second place in the Sinquefield Cup 2022 .

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Grand Chess Tour 2024: Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh named full tour participants

Grand Chess Tour 2024 season full tour participants names have been revealed. Out of the nine full tour participants, there are two Indians - R Praggnanandhaa and D Gukesh. The remaining seven are - Fabiano Caruana (USA), GCT 2023 winner, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (FRA), Wesley So (USA), Ian Nepomniachtchi, Alireza Firouzja (FRA), Anish Giri (NED) and Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB). Since the inception of the tour in 2015, after Vishy Anand, Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh are the next two Indians to become a full tour participant. The total prize fund of the season has been increased to US$ 1.5 Million. The prize fund for each of the two Classical tournaments willb e $350000 and $175000 per event for Rapid and Blitz. There is also a bonus prize fund of $275000. The first event of the season is Superbet Rapid and Blitz from 6th to 13th May in Warsaw, Poland. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour

Elite players will compete for $1.5 Million prize fund

Grand Chess Tour (GCT), a leading global circuit of international chess tournaments featuring the world’s best players, announced today the players selected to compete in the full 2024 tour.

* Ratings as of February 2024

2024 Grand Chess Tour (GCT) Details

Full tour player invitations for the 2024 GCT edition were extended to nine players. Three players qualified by finishing 1st through 3rd in the 2022 Grand Chess Tour. The remaining 6 were invited based on a number of factors, including URS rating, FIDE rating, fighting spirit, and sportsmanship.

Tournament Participation

The full tour participants will play in both classical events as well as in two of the three rapid and blitz tournaments. The wildcard participants for the three rapid and blitz events scheduled to take place in Warsaw, Zagreb, and Saint Louis will be announced as they become available.

2024 Tour Schedule

• Superbet Poland Rapid & Blitz: May 6-13 , 2024in Warsaw, Poland

• Superbet Romania Classic: June 24-July 6 , 2024 in Bucharest, Romania

• SuperUnited Croatia Rapid & Blitz: July 8-15 , 2024 in Zagreb, Croatia

• Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz: August 10-17 , 2024 in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA

• Sinquefield Cup: August 17-31 , 2024 in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA

Tour participants will compete for a recently increased prize purse of $1.5 million over the course of the 2024 season. The prize fund for each of the two classical tournaments will be $350,000 and $175,000 per event for rapid and blitz. In addition, a bonus prize fund totaling $275,000 will be awarded.

The prize fund is provided by the 2024 Grand Chess Tour major sponsors Superbet Foundation and The Saint Louis Chess Club , both non-profit organizations that support chess education and the mission to expand the game of chess to a worldwide audience.

For more information, visit grandchesstour.org.

Official site

Tournament regulations

Who won the Grand Chess Tour?

Answered by Robert Golston

As a chess enthusiast, I was eagerly following the Grand Chess Tour held in Warsaw, Poland from May 19 to 26, 2023. This prestigious tournament brought together some of the world’s greatest chess players, each vying for the coveted championship title. The tournament comprised both rapid and blitz chess, testing the players’ skills and adaptability in different time controls.

The battle for the championship was intense, with each player displaying their unique style and strategic prowess on the board. Jan-Krzysztof Duda, a talented Polish grandmaster, emerged as the winner of the rapid portion of the tournament. Duda’s exceptional tactical abilities and precise calculations allowed him to outmaneuver his opponents and secure crucial victories. His home advantage and the support of his fellow countrymen surely added to his motivation and determination.

On the other hand, the blitz portion of the tournament witnessed the reigning World Chess Champion, Magnus Carlsen, showcasing his exceptional speed and intuition. Carlsen’s ability to make quick and accurate decisions, even under immense time pressure, sets him apart from his peers. His deep understanding of the game, combined with his relentless fighting spirit, allowed him to outplay his opponents and clinch the blitz championship.

While Duda’s triumph in the rapid portion and Carlsen’s domination in the blitz section were remarkable, the overall winner of the Grand Chess Tour was none other than Magnus Carlsen himself. His consistent performance across both formats, coupled with his undeniable talent and experience, propelled him to the top of the leaderboard. Carlsen’s victory in the tournament not only solidified his reputation as one of the greatest chess players of all time but also showcased his adaptability and versatility in different playing conditions.

The Grand Chess Tour is a true test of a player’s skill, stamina, and mental fortitude. Throughout the tournament, players face numerous challenges, both on and off the board. The pressure to perform at the highest level, the constant analysis and preparation, and the mind games employed by opponents can all take a toll on a player’s psyche. Only those with exceptional resilience and a deep love for the game can emerge victorious.

The Grand Chess Tour held in Warsaw, Poland in 2023 was a thrilling and highly competitive event. Jan-Krzysztof Duda’s triumph in the rapid portion and Magnus Carlsen’s dominance in the blitz section made for an exciting tournament. However, it was Carlsen who emerged as the overall winner, cementing his status as a chess legend. The Grand Chess Tour serves as a reminder of the sheer brilliance and complexity of the game, and I eagerly anticipate future editions of this prestigious event.

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Richest chess tour announced for 2025 as freestyle wins global appeal

Freestyle Chess (also known as Fischer Random and Chess 960) has announced a $1m tournament in each of five continents

Freestyle Chess, which made an impressive debut last month , has firmed up its plans to expand into five continents next year, as well as enlisting the top 25 elite grandmasters into a new club for its competing players. The variant, also known as Fischer Random and Chess 960, has the back rank pieces on both sides on random squares, with Black’s pieces placed equal-and-opposite to their White counterparts.

German promoter Jan Buettner, who heads Freestyle along with the world No 1, Magnus Carlsen, and who made his fortune from AOL Europe, has launched the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour, where the prize fund for each of the five events is projected to rise gradually to $1m.

For comparison, the existing over-the-board Grand Chess Tour, organised from St Louis and culminating in the Sinquefield Cup, offers a total of $1.5m, while the Champions Tour, where four online tournaments are followed by an over-the-board final, has $1.7m.

Top grandmasters are enthusiastic, and no wonder. Freestyle offers a generously rewarded escape from the many hours of drudgery spent before a classical game in preparing openings in detail with the aid of a Stockfish computer, with the real possibility that the mutual research will fizzle out into a drawn ending. It is very different at the level of the average player or even the average master, where you can surprise the opponent with a well prepared opening bomb and where even this is no guarantee of ultimate success.

If Freestyle is to gain traction, Buettner will have to justify his declared ambition of “making it as commercially successful as iconic sports events like the ATP for tennis, PGA for golf, and Formula 1 for motorsport”. The next Slam in India in November, with a $500k prize fund, looks sure to be a success, as Indian chess fans will want to watch their teenage heroes take on Carlsen. February 2025, back in north Germany with $750k, should also go well, but the later events, where the Tour goes into new territory in South America and South Africa with the full $1m, may face logistical problems.

At best, if all goes according to plan, the global chess economy will receive a significant boost, while the benchmark for an elite grandmaster, currently 2700 , will move up to 2725 to match the new pot of gold.

Matthew Wadsworth scored his best international performance yet on Thursday when the Cambridge economics graduate, 23, tied for second with 7/9 in the giant 400-player Reykjavik Open, taking sixth prize on tiebreak. The top seeded Romanian, Bogdan-Daniel Deac, won first prize with 7.5/9.

Wadsworth, who lost only once, played a fine attacking game in the ninth and final round to checkmate the No 4 seed, GM Jules Moussard of France, whose white king was caught in mid-board in a 41-move Italian Game.

Wadsworth’s rating performance narrowly missed achieving his second GM norm, but he will have another chance for that on Saturday, in one of two important tournaments that begin this weekend with opportunities for England’s young talents to win international titles. Both events have support from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s £500k grant for elite chess announced last year.

The 4NCL Spring GM Round Robin is a 10-player event where IMs Marcus Harvey, 28, Wadsworth, 23, and Shreyas Royal, 15, all have chances for the GM norm of 6.5/9. Play starts at 3pm on Saturday, with nine rounds in five days.

The eighth Menchik Memorial commemorates the first woman world champion, who was killed by a V1 rocket in 1944. The 10-player event starts on Friday (round one 10am, round two 3pm), and continues until Tuesday, with women’s title norms at stake.

Bodhana Sivanandan, nine, will take part and comes direct from another impressive result at Reykjavik, where she scored 5.5/9 with a TPR of 2069, losing only to a GM and an IM (see the puzzle below). Games from both next week’s events will be shown live on lichess

after newsletter promotion

In the £400k American Cup, with Open and Women’s sections, Levon Aronian beat Wesley So in the open final, while Alice Lee, 14, defeated the holder, Irina Krush, in the women’s final. The favourite, the world No 2, Fabiano Caruana, lost to Aronian and So, sparking concerns about his form before next month’s Candidates in Toronto.

3912 : 1...Re5! 2 Qxc3 Qxh2+! 3 Kxh2 Rh5+ 4 Kg1 Rh1 mate. If 2 g4 Qxg4+! 3 Nxg4 Re1 mate or 3 Kf1 Qh3+ and mates.

3912A: 1 Rc1! g4 2 Rc2! dxc2 3 Bc1! a3 4 Rf4! Kxf4 5 d4 mate.

3912B: 1 Nd5+! Qxd5/Kb5 2 Qa4 mate.

• Leonard Barden on chess

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Full tour participants confirmed for the 2022 grand chess tour and total prize fund increased to $1.4 million across all five tournaments.

Saint Louis, MO, February 16, 2022 – The Grand Chess Tour is pleased to confirm the nine players that will compete as full 2022 tour participants.

The 2022 tour schedule consists of five tournaments as follows: 1.    Superbet Chess Classic Romania: May 3 - May 15, 2022, Bucharest, Romania 2.    Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland: May 17 - May 24, 2022, Warsaw, Poland 3.    SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia: July 18 - July 25, 2021, Zagreb, Croatia 4.    Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz: August 24 - August 31, 2022, Saint Louis, Missouri USA 5.    Sinquefield Cup: August 31 - September 13, 2022 Saint Louis, Missouri USA

The full tour participants will play in both classical events as well as in two of the three rapid and blitz tournaments.

Player invitations for the 2022 edition of the GCT were extended to nine players. Three players qualified by finishing 1st through 3rd in the 2021 Grand Chess Tour. The remaining 6 were invited based on a number of factors, including URS rating, FIDE rating, fighting spirit and sportsmanship.

The major sponsors of the 2022 Grand Chess Tour are the Superbet Foundation and the Saint Louis Chess Club, both non-profit organizations that support chess education and the mission to expand the game of chess to a worldwide audience.

“This year’s tour has been strengthened further thanks to the strategic partnerships with our two major sponsors, the Superbet Foundation and the Saint Louis Chess Club. Their sponsorship and support is integral to the Grand Chess Tour’s mission,” said GCT Executive Director, Michael Khodarkovsky. “We are looking forward to working with our sponsors and organizers as well as continuing the growth and expansion of the Grand Chess Tour to popularize chess around the world.”

This year’s tour total prize fund has increased to $1.4 million for all five GCT events; with each classical tournament prize fund increased from $325,000 to $350,000 and each rapid and blitz event prize fund increased from $150,000 to $175,000, thanks to the GCT major sponsors.

Additionally, International Arbiter David Sedgwick from England has been reappointed as the GCT Chief Arbiter for 2022. The GCT is also happy to welcome International Arbiter Chris Bird from the United States as the Deputy Chief Arbiter for 2022.

Please find the complete list of the full tour participants for the 2022 season. 1.     GM Wesley So , winner of the 2021 Grand Chess Tour and winner of the 2021 Paris Rapid & Blitz. 2.     GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave , runner-up winner of the 2021 Grand Chess Tour, 2021 Sinquefield Cup winner, and 2021 Croatia Grand Chess Tour winner. 3.     GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov , third place winner of the 2021 Grand Chess Tour and 2021 Superbet Chess Classic Romania winner. 4.     GM Alireza Firouzja , first year as a GCT full tour player, ranked number 2 in the world, and among one of the 2022 World Championship Candidates. 5.     GM Fabiano Caruana , ranked number 4 in the world and among one of the 2022 World Championship Candidates. 6.     GM Ian Nepomniachtchi , ranked number 5 in the world, the 2021 World Championship Challenger, and among one of the 2022 World Championship Candidates. 7.     GM Levon Aronian , contender for the 2022 World Championship Candidates. 8.     GM Richard Rapport , contender for the 2022 World Championship Candidates. 9.     GM Leinier Dominguez , first year as a GCT full tour player and contender for the 2022 World Championship Candidates.

The wildcard participants for the three rapid and blitz events scheduled to take place in Warsaw, Zagreb, and Saint Louis will be announced 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 .