Following the worldwide coronavirus lockdown, the Croatian Championships were the first national championships to be held as an over-the-board chess tournament again, with all players in the same place and on real boards. The venue was Vinkovci, where Bobby Fischer shone in 1968, winning a tournament with a strong line-up.
Twelve players took part in the championship. The race for the title was close, but in the end Sasa Martinovic was victorious. The 29-year-old was the only player to score 7 points, beating four players into second place by half a point.
The championship was decided in the final round, with Kozul defeating the leading Brkic and Martinovic scoring a victory over Jovanovic.
19...Rac8 Better was 19...f5 20.Neg5 Rf6 21.Nh4 Ne5 22.Nxf5 Qd7 and black can still play on. 20.Neg5 f6 20...Bxf3+ 21.Nxf3 fxg6 22.Qe4. now follows a series of crushing moves. 21.Bxe6+ Kh8 22.Nf7+ Rxf7 23.Qf5 Kg8 24.gxf7+ Kf8 25.Nh4 1–0
Zelcic, Martinovic, Kozul
| Rk. | Name | Rtg | Pts. | TB1 | |
| 1 | GM | Martinović Saša | 2532 | 7,0 | 4,0 |
| 2 | GM | Kožul Zdenko | 2597 | 6,5 | 3,5 |
| 3 | GM | Zelčić Robert | 2527 | 6,5 | 3,0 |
| 4 | GM | Stević Hrvoje | 2575 | 6,5 | 3,0 |
| 5 | GM | Brkić Ante | 2593 | 6,5 | 2,5 |
| 6 | GM | Šarić Ante | 2541 | 6,0 | 2,0 |
| 7 | GM | Jovanić Ognjen | 2524 | 5,5 | 3,0 |
| 8 | GM | Palac Mladen | 2529 | 5,0 | 3,5 |
| 9 | GM | Bosiočić Marin | 2625 | 5,0 | 2,5 |
| 10 | GM | Rogić Davor | 2492 | 5,0 | 1,5 |
| 11 | IM | Plenča Jadranko | 2483 | 3,5 | 2,0 |
| 12 | GM | Kovačević Blažimir | 2410 | 3,0 | 2,0 |
Translation from German: Nick Murphy
