3/11/2026 – Chess tournaments have a way of running so smoothly that spectators rarely stop to think about why. That seamless experience is no accident, it's the result of dedicated people working tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure everything goes according to plan. At the Prague International Chess Festival, organizer Petr Boleslav leads a close-knit team of helpers, many of whom he has known for years and who themselves come from a chess background. ChessBase sat down with several of them to offer a glimpse into the world behind the tournament.

3/11/2026 – Last Sunday, on 8 March, Serbian grandmaster Slavoljub Marjanovic passed away. In the 1980s he was one of Yugoslavia’s strongest players and won a team bronze medal at the 1980 Chess Olympiad. After the end of his professional career, he made a name for himself as a coach. | Photo: ECU

3/11/2026 – Ashwin Subramanian is a technology evangelist: a software engineering manager at Intel, but also a brilliant photographer, who fortunately for us is very enthusiastic about chess. Ashwin uses his free time visiting major tournaments and sends us marvellous pictures that capture the atmosphere at the events. We will share them with you...

3/11/2026 – The Grand Finals of the American Cup began with the first classical games in Saint Louis. In the open section, Wesley So defeated Levon Aronian to take the lead in the match after a convincing performance with the white pieces. Meanwhile, the women's Grand Final between Carissa Yip and Alice Lee ended in a draw, with both players obtaining promising chances at different stages of the game. | Photo: Saint Louis Chess Club / Lennart Ootes

3/10/2026 – Success in world-class chess is built long before the game begins. With the "Federation Package", developed specifically for national federations, players and coaches gain access to the complete professional ChessBase software, the world's largest chess database, and powerful cloud analysis – at a price that provides up to five times more computing power than individual solutions! A long-term investment that will measurably enhance the performance of the entire team.

3/10/2026 – In his latest column, Jon Speelman reflects on the career and personality of Dutch GM Jan Timman following the news of his passing. Speelman recalls their encounters over the board, including games from their 1989 Candidates' match in London. "Away from the board, Jan was always excellent company and I always thought that he was one of the very nicest of the generation just a few years older than me". | Pictured: Jan Timman at the 1996 Hoogovens Tournament in Wijk aan Zee | Photo: Fotopersbureau De Boer / Noord-Hollands Archief

3/7/2026 – A final round with all gamed ending decisively concluded an exciting edition of the Challengers at the Prague International Chess Festival. Sixteen-year-old Vaclav Finek secured first place by defeating Thomas Beerdsen with black, finishing the tournament undefeated on 6½/9 and earning a place in the 2027 Masters. Daniil Yuffa kept the pressure on until the end, while Divya Deshmukh completed the podium after winning her final-round game. | Photo: Nils Rohde / ChessBase

3/6/2026 – Day three of the American Cup in Saint Louis featured the first classical games of the Championship Bracket semifinals and rapid elimination matches in the lower bracket. In the open section, both semifinal games ended drawn, while Leinier Dominguez and Levon Aronian eliminated their younger opponents. In the women's event, Carissa Yip and Alice Lee won their semifinal games in the Championship Bracket, while Rachel Li and Anna Sargsyan (pictured) survived tense elimination matches. | Photo: Saint Louis Chess Club / Lennart Ootes

3/6/2026 – This week's show features two top grandmaster games in which Black quickly collapsed against the Italian Opening. In the first game, Yakubboev came up with a spectacular theoretical innovation in his game with Anton. The Uzbek GM surprised his opponent with a nicely prepared exchange sacrifice which enabled him to develop a powerful attack. Some days later at the American Cup, Sevian repeated the same variation against Dominguez, who deviated on move 11. There followed a position with major pieces and opposite-coloured bishops in which should be doing fine. However, it turned out that Black's problems were difficult to solve OTB and White again managed to win in spectacular style.

3/6/2026 – Black's first power move from the diagram position is 23...Qh4! - and you'll prove why that's so strong, okay?

3/6/2026 – From 25 February to 6 March 2026, the eighth Prague International Chess Festival is taking place at the Don Giovanni Hotel, bringing together elite competition and a wide programme of side events. Going into the final round, Nodirbek Abdusattorov is the sole leader in the Masters section and stands a half point ahead of Jorden van Foreest. Abdusattorov plays white against Hans Niemann, while Van Foreest plays black against Parham Maghsoodloo. | Follow the action live starting at 15.00 CET (9.00 ET, 19.30 IST) | Pictured: Divya Deshmukh | Photo: Petr Vrabec / Prague Chess Festival

3/6/2026 – Drama at the Prague Masters. Many had already resigned themselves to two draws and an unchanged situation at the top of the table. But then Jorden van Foreest lost the long-balanced game against Aravindh Chithambaram, surrendering his lead in the standings to Nodirbek Abdusattorov. The Uzbek GM was able to capitalise on a blunder by the previously in-form David Navara to secure the win. The duel between world champion Gukesh Dommaraju and Vincent Keymer ended in a draw after a long battle, as did the game between Nodirbek Yakubboev and Parham Maghsoodloo. Hans Niemann managed to score his first victory in his game against David Anton. The final round begins four hours earlier than usual, at 11 a.m. | Photo: Nils Rohde / ChessBase