8/11/2022 – The 2017 World Rapid and Blitz Championship took place on December 26-30 in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh. The rapid tournament, which included 134 participants, saw Vishy Anand beating Vladimir Fedoseev in a blitz tiebreak after tying for first place with 10½/15 points. Anand, at 48, outscored his younger opponents, including world champion and rapid-play specialist Magnus Carlsen. | Photo: Official website

8/9/2022 – The record-breaking 2022 Chess Olympiad came to an end in Chennai, India. After a fighting eleventh round, Uzbekistan and Ukraine were crowned champions in the open and women’s sections respectively. Armenia and India 2 got silver and bronze medals in the open, while Georgia and India completed the podium in the women’s tournament. It was a unique competition, which saw how much of a difference an enthusiastic, diligent organization can actually make! | Photo: Lennart Ootes

8/9/2022 – Uzbekistan and Armenia are sharing the lead going into the final round of the Chess Olympiad’s open tournament. India 2 was inches away from replacing Uzbekistan as co-leader, as Gukesh could have given his team match victory had he not blundered a piece against Nodirbek Abdusattorov in a drawn position. In the women’s section, meanwhile, India retook the sole lead after convincingly beating Kazakhstan. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

8/8/2022 – Uzbekistan defeated the former leaders from Armenia to take the sole lead in the open section of the Olympiad in Chennai. The Uzbek team, led by Nodirbek Abdusattorov, will face India 2 on Monday, with Abdusattorov facing Gukesh in a much-anticipated battle of rising stars. Meanwhile, in the women’s section, Poland inflicted India’s first loss of the event, as Oliwia Kiolbasa scored her ninth victory in a row! | Photo: Stev Bonhage

8/7/2022 – With three rounds to go at the Chess Olympiad, Armenia continues to lead the standings in the open section with an undefeated match score. On Saturday, they beat India thanks to a second win in a row for Gabriel Sargissian. The other marquee confrontation of the round saw India 2 shock the US with wins by Gukesh and Raunak. Gukesh defeated Fabiano Caruana to collect his eighth consecutive full point — the 16-year-old is heading for the stars! In the women’s event, India conceded its first draw of the event, and now has a 1-point lead over Georgia. | Photo: Stev Bonhage

8/4/2022 – Going into the rest day at the Chess Olympiad, we have sole leaders in both categories for the first time in the event. Armenia beat India 2 to grab the lead in the open, while India defeated Georgia to keep its perfect score in the women’s tournament. Remarkably, Gukesh, playing for India 2, scored a sixth consecutive victory in Chennai. | Pictured: All eyes on Gabriel Sargissian and Gukesh. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

8/3/2022 – India 2 and Armenia are the only teams that have won all their matches in the open section of the Chess Olympiad. The second squad presented by the locals has four players aged 18 or younger, including Gukesh, who has a perfect 5/5 score after beating Alexei Shirov on Tuesday. In the women’s section, India, Georgia and Romania are sharing the lead on 10/10 match points. The Romanian ladies stunned Poland in the fifth round. | Photo: David Llada

8/2/2022 – The big rating favourites in the open section of the Chennai Olympiad were held to a draw in Monday’s fourth round: Uzbekistan drew the United States thanks to a remarkable victory by Nodirbek Abdusattorov over Fabiano Caruana on top board. Meanwhile, five teams scored a fourth consecutive victory and are now sharing the lead — the most surprising member of this group is Israel, which beat the Netherlands on Monday. In the women’s section, eight teams are sharing the lead on 8 out 8 match points. | Photo: Stev Bonhage

8/1/2022 – It is getting more and more difficult for the top teams to beat their lower-rated opponents at the Chess Olympiad in Chennai. In round 3, Norway and Germany, seeded third and ninth in the open section, were defeated by Italy and Austria respectively, while the eighth seeds from Ukraine could only get a draw against Cuba. In the women’s section, Mongolia beat the United States and Estonia took down Armenia. | Pictured: Daniele Vocaturo (Italy) | Photo: Lennart Ootes

7/31/2022 – Most games favoured the favourites in round 2 of the Chess Olympiad, with a few exceptions. In the open section, Zambia and Bulgaria upset Denmark and Croatia respectively, while among the women, Ecuador got the better of Slovenia. World champion Magnus Carlsen made his debut, and outplayed Georg Meier in a balanced endgame to help Norway get a 4-0 win over Uruguay. | Pictured: Mohamed Emli Ramla (Dijibouti) | Photo: Mark Livshitz

7/29/2022 – The much-anticipated Olympiad finally kicked off in Chennai. Lopsided matches were once again the rule in the first round of the massive event. Nonetheless, a couple of strong grandmasters escaped with draws from losing positions, as their opponents were happy to split the points when given the chance. Indian fans could not have asked for a better start, as all six Indian teams scored 4-0 victories on opening day! | Photo: Stev Bonhage

7/28/2022 – 2022 has so far been an earth-shattering year for the chess world. And things continue to unfold in remarkable fashion, as the biggest-ever Olympiad is about to start in Chennai. In sporting terms, the absence of Russian and Chinese teams are a massive loss, but that is more than made up for by the excitement and commitment shown by the host country. Given the excellent reviews shared by participants and organizers alike, we can safely anticipate this will be a memorable event. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

7/21/2022 – The SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz tournament, the third event in this year’s Grand Chess Tour, kicked off Wednesday in Zagreb. Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi, the contenders of the last World Championship match, were paired up against each other in the first round and drew their game. Once the day’s action was over, Alireza Firouzja emerged as the sole leader with 5 out of 6 points (wins are worth 2 points in the rapid section). | Photo: Lennart Ootes

7/18/2022 – Levon Aronian beat Wei Yi in the finals of the FTX Road to Miami online tournament. By reaching the finals, both Aronian and Wei gained a ticket to the upcoming FTX Crypto Cup in Miami, where the players will meet in-person but will play their games online from individual computers.

7/16/2022 – Wei Yi and Levon Aronian will play the 2-set final match of the FTX Road to Miami online tournament on Saturday and Sunday. Wei knocked out Richard Rapport, while Aronian got the better of Jan-Krzysztof Duda in semis. Both finalists have already secured a spot in the coming FTX Crypto Cup, which will be played in Miami next month.

7/15/2022 – Rating favourites prevailed in the quarterfinals of the FTX Road to Miami online tournament. Levon Aronian and Jan-Krzysztof Duda secured victory ‘in regulation’, after four rapid games, while Richard Rapport and Wei Yi only won in the blitz tiebreakers. In semis, Wei is paired up against Rapport, while Duda is set to face Aronian.

7/14/2022 – Sam Sevian won the preliminary stage of the FTX Road to Miami online tournament. The US grandmaster collected 32 points in the 15 rounds which took place from Sunday to Wednesday. Arjun Erigaisi and Jan-Krzysztof finished in second and third place respectively, while top grandmasters Anish Giri and Levon Aronian made the cut after a slow start. On the other hand, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov was eliminated after losing his last three games of the single round-robin. | Photo: Austin Fuller / Saint Louis Chess Club

7/13/2022 – Sam Sevian is still the sole leader at the FTX Road to Miami online tournament after the third day of action. Two points behind him stands Arjun Erigaisi, who was the top scorer on Tuesday, as he won three games and lost one to collect nine points in rounds 9-12. With three rounds to go in the preliminaries, the likes of Anish Giri, Levon Aronian and Leinier Dominguez are in danger of not finishing above the cut-off line.