2/20/2020 – Easter is still a bit less than two months away, but it is already clear that the Easter holidays will be a boon for chess fans. From April 9th to 13th the GRENKE Chess Open, the largest open tournament in Europe, takes place in Karlsruhe, Germany. And on Easter Saturday, April 11th, the GRENKE Chess Classic begins — with Carlsen and Caruana leading the field. To get in the mood for the tournament, the organizers have prepared a small video with the highlights of the past years.
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Press release
The largest open chess tournament in Europe opens its doors again over Easter. The GRENKE Chess Open takes place from April 9th to 13th in the Karlsruhe Congress Center. Almost 2000 participants created a fantastic atmosphere in 2019 and in 2020 everything points to another event full of highlights.
Almost three months before the start, over 500 participants have already registered for the three open tournaments. The centrepiece is the A-Open with a prize fund of €70,000 euros. A whopping €20,000 euros awaits the winner alone not to mention a starting place at the GRENKE Chess Classic next year. The ranking list is currently headed by Le Quang Liem. The Vietnamese Grand Master who is the No. 32 in the world rankings with an Elo rating of 2713. Andrey Esipenko is also among the top registered grandmasters. The 17-year-old Russian is the best players born in 2002 worldwide with an Elo rating of 2654. Over the next few weeks, numerous other well-known grand masters will join the starting list.
GRENKE Chess Classic
Of course the cast of characters is even more impressive in the GRENKE Chess Classic, which traditionally begins on Easter Saturday when the open tournaments have already completed three rounds. None other than World Champion Magnus Carlsen leads the field. The four-time world champion is looking to defend his 2019 title and will once again meet Fabiano Caruana, fresh off his participation in the FIDE Candidates tournament.
In addition to these two players, fans can look forward to a return by Vincent Keymer. The 15-year-old shooting star of the German chess scene took last place in his 2019 elite debut with just 2 points, but he received the loudest applause alongside Carlsen.
There remain a few spots left to be determined, so stay tuned!
Until then, the GRENKE video team has put together a trailer with numerous highlights from the past year.
Be there when the best players in the world and the greatest young talent in Germany take the stage in the Karlsruhe Congress Center!
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