Dragon Chilling, Team MGD1 and Hexamind all finish on 18/24 match points

Dragon Chilling won the 2026 World Rapid Team Championship in Hong Kong after a tense final day, finishing level on match points with Team MGD1 and Hexamind but taking gold on tiebreaks. The all-Chinese squad, led by former world champion Ding Liren, had been in front for much of the rapid event and secured the title after a 5-1 win over Interstellar Club in a tension-packed final round.

Dragon Chilling, Team MGD1 and Hexamind finished tied on 18 points after 12 rounds. The tiebreak system, which considered both the margin of match victories and the strength of the teams faced, favoured Dragon Chilling. Team MGD1, the 2025 champions and led by Arjun Erigaisi, took silver, while Hexamind, headed by Alireza Firouzja, claimed bronze.

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Team leaders Wei Yi and Ding Liren at the start of the third day of rapid action in Hong Kong | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

Arjun Erigaisi (Team MGD1) shakes the hand of Alireza Firouzja (Hexamind) in what turned out to be a crucial round-nine encounter - Hexamind obtained a 3½-2½ victory to start their comeback, as they reached the podium despite struggling on days one and two | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

Dragon Chilling began the final day with a one-point lead and appeared to be in control after round nine. While Team MGD1 were beaten 3½-2½ by Hexamind, with wins for Levon Aronian and Volodar Murzin, Dragon Chilling defeated third-placed Barys 5-1. That result gave the Chinese team a three-point cushion over a five-team chasing group.

Yu Yangyi contributed to the sense that the leaders were finding their way through difficult positions, as he won against Denis Makhnev despite having been in serious trouble.

Barys lost 5-1 to Dragon Chilling and finished the tournament in ninth place - they were also ranked ninth at the outset | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

The situation changed sharply in round ten. Dragon Chilling suffered their first match defeat of the tournament against Hexamind. Murzin continued his strong run by turning around a complicated position for what turned out to be his sixth consecutive win (he scored an impressive 10/12 in the end), while Aronian defeated Wei Yi after the Chinese ace failed to foresee a tactical shot.

Dragon Chilling's advantage was reduced to a single point.

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Hexamind's Levon Aronian (8/11) and Divya Deshmukh (4½/7) sharing a laugh | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

Anish Giri (5½/11) and Volodar Murzin (10/12) also helped Hexamind reach the podium | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

The leaders were then caught in round eleven, when they lost a second consecutive match, this time to Mr Birdie and Friends. Even so, the damage could have been worse. Hexamind drew with Barys, while Team MGD1 could only get a draw with Endgame.AI.

Those results meant that Dragon Chilling still entered the last round with a clear chance to win the title. Having already faced their closest rivals, they were paired against the lower-rated Interstellar Club and won 5-1, with Ding scoring on the top board. Team MGD1 matched that result by beating Barys 5-1, but their title hopes depended on the outcome of the top match between Mr Birdie and Friends and Hexamind.

Mr Birdie and Friends had gone into the final round as sole leaders and would have won the tournament with a match victory. They came very close, but Hexamind prevailed by the narrowest of margins. Firouzja's obtained a key win over Vladislav Artemiev, with the Russian's time-trouble addiction caught up with him - he, in fact, lost on time.

Carissa Yip congratulates Awonder Liang after his win with the black pieces over Dragon Chilling's Bai Jinshi - Mr Birdie and Friends defeated the eventual tournament winners 3½-2½, and Liang was the top scorer for the squad, as he finished the event with a remarkable 10/12 | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

Carissa Yip later explained that "Mr Birdie" was her best friend's pet bird, who died exactly a year ago | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

That result lifted Hexamind to 18 points, level with Dragon Chilling and Team MGD1. Mr Birdie and Friends finished on 17 points, missing both the title and the podium, and were joined on that score by Chessgurukul.

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For Dragon Chilling, the title capped a tournament in which they had led for most of the rapid section. The team’s earlier consistency, including large winning margins, proved decisive once tiebreaks were applied.

Carlsen loses four games in a row

The final day also confirmed a disappointing event for WR Chess. The pre-tournament favourites, whose squad included Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana and Wesley So, lost five matches overall and finished 17^th with 13/24 match points. Their final-day results were particularly difficult, as Carlsen lost both games he played, thus ending the rapid section with four consecutive over-the-board defeats (he also lost his final two games on Thursday).

Carlsen's first game of the day came against World Championship challenger Javokhir Sindarov. The Norwegian chose a line that required a queen sacrifice, but although he had compensation, the position remained difficult to handle. After further inaccuracies, Sindarov converted the advantage.

Carlsen then lost to Aydin Suleymanli, after employing the Dutch Defence and quickly coming under heavy pressure.

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After that second loss, Carlsen did not play again in the rapid event. Despite the setbacks, he remains above the 2800 mark on the rapid live rating list - and still has a 50+ lead over second-placed Firouzja. WR Chess, however, were left far from the medal places.

Magnus Carlsen resigns, Aydin Suleymanli celebrates | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

Aydin Suleymanli is congratulated by Rauf Mamedov, Odlar Yurdu's coach - the Azerbaijani team finished in 11^th place | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

Full regulations | Team composition, pairings and results

Final standings

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Links

• Official website
• Hong Kong takes centre stage
• Chess superstars headline World Team Rapid and Blitz Championships in Hong Kong