Inside the Candidates 2026 in Cyprus 🇨🇾 | Behind the Scenes

Day 1

The ChessBase crew sets off from Hamburg to Cyprus, chasing the final, decisive days of the Candidates Tournament, but before a single move is played, the journey already takes a strange turn.

At the luggage claim in Pafos, reality briefly slips into something surreal. Bags circle endlessly, people stare in mild confusion—and somehow, in the middle of it all, a pine cone becomes the center of attention. A quiet, almost absurd “heist” unfolds, while nearby, a conveyor belt seems to develop a personality of its own… swallowing luggage, refusing to give it back, as if testing who’s worthy to enter Cyprus.

Eventually, we escape the chaos and arrive at Cap St. Georges, and suddenly, everything changes. The noise fades. The stress dissolves.

What awaits is not just a tournament venue, but a five-star resort that feels almost unreal. The Mediterranean stretches endlessly into the horizon, the sun dips into golden light, and for a moment, it’s easy to forget that this is one of the most high-pressure events in chess. Here’s the strange truth: even those who won’t win the Candidates… have already won something.

We dive deeper into the heart of the event.
The media center is alive, voices, cameras, keyboards clattering, journalists from all over the world chasing stories, reactions, moments. Everyone senses it: Today could be a decisive day.

Then, the playing hall. Security everywhere. Every piece of tech has to stay outside. This is where dreams either break… or become history.

And finally, it comes down to the last game.

Anish Giri fights. He pushes. He searches for something to keep his chances alive. But Wei Yi holds. A draw.

And with that quiet result, the tension collapses into clarity.

Javokhir Sindarov.
Almost untouchable now.