12/3/2025 – Tomorrow (4 December) marks the official start of the Freestyle Finals in South Africa. The opening press conference at The Silo Hotel in Cape Town will be followed by a diving chess competition. From 8 December, the Grand Slam Finals will begin at Grootbos Private Nature Reserve, featuring Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, Vincent Keymer and Javokhir Sindarov, among others. | Photos: Freestyle Chess
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Press release
From Diving Chess to Waterfront Public Viewing
Freestyle Chess Brings the Grand Slam Finals to South Africa
Free Public Viewing at the V&A Waterfront / Kick-off Press Conference in Cape Town
The Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Finals opens its South African chapter on December 4, beginning with the debut of Diving Chess at The Silo Hotel, while public viewing at the V&A Waterfront will start on December 8 and continue throughout the tournament. Before the finalists travel to the Grootbos tournament venue, the opening days in Cape Town offer opportunities for media and local players to connect with the world’s leading grandmasters.
Press Conference
The week begins at 11:00 a.m. on December 4 with the press conference at The Silo Hotel, hosted by Norwegian TV presenter Sverre Krogh Sundbø. Freestyle Chess co-founders Magnus Carlsen and Jan Henric Buettner will be present, making this the only scheduled opportunity for direct questions before the competition moves to Grootbos. Media can register with a brief e-mail to media@freestyle-chess.com.
Diving Chess
Following the press conference, the opening program continues at The Silo Hotel with Diving Chess, the underwater chess variant developed by Etan Ilfeld. World Diving Chess Champion Michal Mazurkiewicz will be on site to support and advise the players. Although this is not a formal media event, limited coverage from designated positions may be possible.
Local Chess Clubs and Welcome Reception
In the hours after the press conference, and in parallel with Diving Chess, several finalists plan to visit the University of the Western Cape where they will meet players from local chess clubs in the Cape Town area. The visit is not part of a structured media program, but selected coverage can be arranged on request through the Freestyle Chess media team. On December 5, a Welcome Reception for students and regional representatives will take place in Stanford. Media coverage is possible and will be coordinated individually after registration.
Public Viewing at the Waterfront
From December 8 to 11, the V&A Waterfront becomes the public hub of the Grand Slam Finals. Starting at 12:30 p.m. each day, the official Freestyle Chess broadcast from Grootbos will be shown live on-site, hosted by South African presenters Cato Louw and Adrian Endly, joined by grandmaster Vidit Santosh Gujarathi from India and several special guests from the South African chess community.
They will guide fans through every round of the tournament. The Waterfront public viewing is free of charge. It offers the main opportunity for audiences in Cape Town to experience the event as it unfolds.
Freestyle Chess emphasizes that there is no ticketing or public access to the tournament venue in Grootbos or to Diving Chess at The Silo Hotel. The V&A Waterfront serves as the central public meeting point for audiences throughout the final week.
Throughout Final Week, Freestyle Chess will distribute same-day Flash News updates during the Diving Chess competition and the Grand Slam Finals, along with current photos for editorial use. Full reports will be published on freestyle-chess.com after each tournament day.
10/24/2025 – The Freestyle Chess Grand Slam 2025 will conclude in South Africa with a final event from 8 to 11 December. At the Grootbos Private Nature Reserve in the Western Cape Province, eight of the world's best players, including Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana, will compete both for the tournament victory and the series title. | Photo: Freestyle Chess/ Grootbos
7/15/2025 – Golden State Warriors forward Quinten Post has claimed the title of first-ever NBA Chess Champion, winning the blitz tournament at the inaugural Chesstival, a unique crossover event co-hosted by Derrick Rose and Freestyle Chess at the Wynn Las Vegas. Post scored an impressive 4.5 out of 5, defeating several top basketball personalities in five fast-paced rounds. | Photo: Tania Sachdev and Quentin Post playing "Head and Hand" | Photo: Lennart Ootes/Freestyle Chess
This entry into the 60 minutes series concentrates on the Modern variation of the Italian game where White opens the centre early : 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bc4 Nf6 4 d4 exd4 5 e5!. This line can be reached by various move orders, most frequently from the Scotch 3 d4 exd4 4 Bc4. It's a sharp variation and Grandmasters such as Evgeny Sveshnikov have used it frequently,with very good results. It's a perfect line for club players to adopt which is relatively easy to learn and which contains many traps. All the main responses are covered here, including 5...d5, 5...Ng4 and 5...Ne4 and the conclusion is that is is difficult for Black to equalize in a straightforward way. Problems are being posed, which over the board might prove tough to solve.
Instead of forcing you to memorise endless lines, Raja focuses on clear plans, typical ideas, and attacking motifs that you can apply in your own games without delay. A short, focused, and practical repertoire.
FIDE World Cup 2025 with analyses by Adams, Bluebaum, Donchenko, Shankland, Wei Yi and many more. Opening videos by Blohberger, King and Marin. 11 exciting opening articles with new repertoire ideas and much more.
GM Blohberger presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
GM Blohberger presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
GM Blohberger presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
Opening videos: Sipke Ernst brings the Ulvestad Variation up to date + Part II of ‘Mikhalchishin's Miniatures’. Special: Jan Werle shows highlights from the FIDE Grand Swiss 2025 in the video. ‘Lucky bag’ with 40 analyses by Ganguly, Illingworth et al.
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