The first event of the Romania GP 2026

The 2026 Romania Grand Prix began in Bucharest with a large rapid tournament held at the Palace of Parliament on 9-10 May. The event was the first of five stages in this year's circuit, which features tournaments in Bucharest, Alba Iulia, Brașov, Arad and Craiova.

Organised with the support of the Romanian Chess Federation and its partners, the Superbet Foundation and One United Properties, the Romania Grand Prix is now in its fifth edition. The 2026 circuit consists of two classical and three rapid open tournaments, with a total prize fund of €150,000. After the five stages, a final overall ranking will be produced.

The Bucharest stage was a 10-round Swiss tournament played at a rapid time control of 15 minutes for the whole game, with 5-second increments from move one. A total of 581 players from 27 countries took part, making it a sizeable opening event for the circuit.

Master Class Vol.20 - Bent Larsen

In this video course experts examine the games of Bent Larsen. Let them show you which openings Larsen chose, where his strength in middlegames were, how he outplayed his opponents in the endgame & you’ll get a glimpse of his tactical abilities!
Bent Larsen (1935–2010) was the greatest chess player in Danish history, and for a time, the second-strongest player in the Western world behind Bobby Fischer. Between 1954 and 1971, he won the Danish Championship six times, and achieved numerous international tournament victories throughout his career. 
Free video sample: Introduction to Bent Larsen by Peter Heine Nielsen
Free video sample: Introduction to the Opening Section

The tournament took place at the majestic Palace of Parliament in Bucharest | Photo: Romanian Chess Federation

The list of top seeds included Spanish grandmaster Jaime Santos Latasa, who entered as the highest-rated player with a 2630 rapid rating. He was followed by Mexican grandmaster Jose Eduardo Martinez, Ukrainian veteran Vasyl Ivanchuk, Chilean grandmaster Cristobal Henriquez and Azerbaijani grandmaster Rauf Mamedov.

Five players finished tied for first place on 8½/10: Martinez, Aydin Suleymanli of Azerbaijan, Henriquez, Radoslav Dimitrov of Bulgaria and Kiril Georgiev, also from Bulgaria. Martinez, Suleymanli and Georgiev went through the event undefeated, while Henriquez and Dimitrov each lost one game.

Under the tournament regulations, a tie for first place was not decided solely by tiebreak scores. Instead, the top two players according to the tiebreak criteria qualified for a single Armageddon game to determine the tournament winner. Martinez and Suleymanli had the highest Buchholz scores among the five co-leaders, and therefore advanced to the decider.

Martinez had the black pieces in the Armageddon game, which meant that a draw would be enough for him to claim first place. The Mexican GM held the position and secured the required half point, thus winning the Bucharest Grand Prix ahead of Suleymanli.

The Armageddon game

Aydin Suleymanli agrees to a draw while playing white in the sudden death decider | Photo: Romanian Chess Federation

Understanding Middlegame Strategy Vol.14 Reversed Colour Systems – Benoni, Blumenfeld and Benko Gambit

You will learn how Black's dynamic piece activity and structural counterplay more than compensate for White's extra tempo in the colour-reversed setups.
The Benoni family of openings has toppled world champions, decided match games under the highest pressure, and rewarded those brave enough to play them with some of the most electrifying chess imaginable. In this Fritztrainer, Grandmaster Ivan Sokolov -  continuing his successful series "Understanding Middlegame Structures" - takes you deep inside the complexities of the Colour-Reversed Benoni, the Colour-Reversed Benko Gambit, and the Colour-Reversed Blumenfeld Gambit.
Free sample video: Introduction
Free sample video: Colour Reversed Banoni - Game 1

It was a strong showing by the 21-year-old grandmaster from Baku, Azerbaijan | Photo: Romanian Chess Federation

Cristobal Henriquez from Chile claimed third place | Photo: Romanian Chess Federation

Two tactical shots by Martinez

In round five, the tournament winner had no trouble punishing 27.Nc5??, a game-losing blunder played by Polish GM Grzegorz Nasuta.

27...Qxb2! gains material at once, since 28.Rxb2 fails to 28...Rd1+. Note that 29.Qf1 would work for White, giving back the queen, if not for the bishop on a6 - 29...Rxf1# would follow.

A crucial win by Martinez was obtained in round nine, when he defeated then co-leader Narayanan S L, who entered the tournament as the seventh seed. Narayanan was already in trouble, but faltered decisively with 21...Qc5?

22.Ng5! prompted Narayanan's resignation, as there is no good defence against the threat of 23.Qh3, with a straightforward attack. Also, 22...f6 fails to both 23.d6+, with a devastating discovered check, or 23.Ne6, gaining material.

The Ultimate Antidote to the London System

In this course, you’ll learn how to take the initiative against the London and prevent White from comfortably playing their usual system by playing 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 Nh5.
The London System has become one of the most popular openings in modern chess from club level all the way up to the elite. Its biggest strength? White can often stick to a familiar setup, largely independent of Black’s choice of defence. This practical and psychological advantage is exactly what makes the London so appealing and so frustrating to face. In this course, you’ll learn how to take the initiative against the London and prevent White from comfortably playing their usual system by playing 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 Nh5. Instead of allowing a smooth “reverse Slav” setup, Black challenges the structure early and steers the game into more dynamic and less familiar territory. By using flexible setups and clever move orders, you will learn how to disrupt White’s plans, avoid passive positions, and transition into structures inspired by openings like the King’s Indian, Caro-Kann, or Scandinavian where Black can play for active counterplay. This course doesn’t just give you lines, it provides a practical and adaptable approach to fighting the London System and taking your opponent out of their comfort zone right from the start.
Free video sample: Introduction

Narayanan S L | Photo: Romanian Chess Federation

Fan favourite Vasyl Ivanchuk scored 8/10 | Photo: Romanian Chess Federation

Final standings

Mega Database 2026

The premiere chess database with over 11.7 million games
The ChessBase Mega Database 2026 is the premiere chess database with over 11.7 million games from 1475 to 2025 in high quality.

...581 players

All available games

Links

• Romania Grand Prix 2026
• Photo album on the Romanian Chess Federation's Facebook page
• Full technical information on Chess-Results