9/25/2026 – The 46th edition of the Chess Olympiad is taking place on 16-27 September at the Silk Road EXPO in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. A record 208 teams in the open and 191 in the women's category are fighting for collective and individual medals. | Follow the games live with expert commentary starting at 12.00 CEST (6.00 ET, 15.30 IST) | Pictured: Jan-Kzysztof Duda from Poland by Michal Walusza / FIDE

9/25/2026 – We have seen a lot of great performances at the Olympiad in Samarkand – many great players have lived up to their high standards. But it is especially pleasing to see chess prodigies you have known and looked after since their early teens deliver the goods. Like this batch, who have been surging. One has scored in absolutely record-breaking style. You'll never guess who.

9/25/2026 – In the diagram position, White calmly waited with the discovered check until it lead to checkmate by force. I hope you share his anticipation!

9/25/2026 – After round eight, China lead the women's section outright with 15 out of a possible 16 match points. Kazakhstan, who had previously shared the lead with China, drew with India, while the Chinese team defeated Georgia. Kazakhstan, Armenia and Mongolia are China's closest pursuers. The Netherlands, led by Eline Roebers, lost to hosts Uzbekistan, whose team is headed by Afruza Khamdamova. | Photo: Rafal Oleksiewicz / FIDE

9/25/2026 – Germany ended Uzbekistan's perfect run in round eight of the Chess Olympiad, beating the hosts 2½–1½ to join them on 14/16 match points. Brothers Frederik and Rasmus Svane (pictured) collected wins for Germany on the bottom boards for a second day in a row. Eight teams now sit only one point behind, including China, India, the United States and the Netherlands. With three rounds remaining, the standings have tightened considerably ahead of another set of direct clashes among the leading teams. | Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE

9/24/2026 – Timur Turlov is an entrepreneur, president of the Kazakhstan Chess Federation and a candidate for the FIDE presidency. But how did he get into chess? In a conversation with Johannes Fischer at the Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Turlov talks about how his grandfather taught him the game, how his six children rekindled his enthusiasm for chess, why chess helps him in his work as an entrepreneur, and why he supports the game.

9/24/2026 – Bodhana Sivanandan is only eleven years old, but in Samarkand she is already playing in her second Olympiad. And with considerable success: after seven rounds, she has scored six points on top board for the England women’s team, corresponding to an Elo performance of 2504. But when she spoke to Arne Kähler, chess was not the only passion they discussed.

9/24/2026 – China and Kazakhstan remained tied for first place in the Women's Chess Olympiad after drawing their round-seven direct encounter. The two top seeds, India and Georgia, both closed to within one match point with wins over Germany and Poland. Bulgaria, Armenia and Mongolia also joined the chasing group and all three teams did it by obtaining upset wins over higher-rated opponents. With four rounds remaining, the standings have tightened considerably ahead of two key round-eight matches involving the top four seeds. | Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE

9/24/2026 – Uzbekistan opened a two-point lead in the Chess Olympiad after defeating China 3–1 in round seven, with Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Nodirbek Yakubboev scoring the decisive wins. The hosts remain the only team unbeaten on every individual board. Armenia, India, Germany, the Netherlands and Azerbaijan form the chasing group. On Wednesday, Armenia drew the United States, while the remaining four chasers all won their round-seven encounters. | Photo: Rafal Oleksiewicz / FIDE

9/23/2026 – The ChessBase crew continues its coverage from the Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, moving from the exhibition stand to the playing hall and capturing some of the atmosphere around the event. The latest vlog features reactions to the forthcoming ChessBase for Mac, behind-the-scenes work by the team, new guests in the "Off the Board" interview series and the celebrations that follow a victory by the Uzbek team.

9/23/2026 – The 24-player field for the Total Chess World Championship Tour Pilot in Budapest is now complete, with Levon Aronian, Le Quang Liem, Jorden van Foreest, Abhimanyu Mishra, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Andrew Hong joining the lineup. The FIDE-approved event, scheduled for 10–20 November, will combine Fast Classic, Rapid and Blitz in a single competition and serve as the pilot for the global Total Chess World Championship Tour launching in 2027.

9/23/2026 – Our database program – used by everyone, from the World Champion to lowly club players – will now be available for Mac users. The new version has been developed from the ground up: modern, built for fast access to what matters. The official release is November 2026. Register now to make sure you don’t miss the launch of a new era in chess study.