Sindarov victorious in inaugural edition of event honouring Daniel Naroditsky

The Naroditsky Memorial brought together a strong field for a series of fast-paced chess events held in honour of late GM Daniel Naroditsky. Rapid and blitz were natural choices for the programme, given Naroditsky's close association with quick time controls as a player, commentator and teacher.

The event also raised money for the Daniel Naroditsky Memorial Fund, which supports the annual tournament and the Naroditsky Fellowship, a scholarship programme for talented young chess players pursuing excellence at the highest level.

Link to fundraiser webpage

The Bulletproof 1.b3 Repertoire

This compact course is designed specifically for practical play. Instead of overwhelming you with endless theory, it focuses on the critical lines, typical plans, and recurring tactical ideas.
Looking for an opening that gets your opponents thinking on move one? Grandmaster Andy Woodward has relied on 1.b3 for years in blitz and bullet, using it to defeat strong masters and grandmasters who underestimated its hidden venom. While many players dismiss the opening as harmless, they often find themselves caught in unfamiliar positions, tactical traps, and uncomfortable middlegames. This compact course is designed specifically for practical play. Instead of overwhelming you with endless theory, it focuses on the critical lines, typical plans, and recurring tactical ideas that matter most when the clock is ticking.
Free video sample: Introduction
Free video sample: King's Indian Setup

Rapid

The rapid tournament took place on 3 July, with a time control of 10 minutes for the game plus a 5-second increment per move. It was played as a seven-round Swiss. Fabiano Caruana, Javokhir Sindarov, Wesley So and Leinier Dominguez were the top seeds, while Sam Sevian, Ray Robson, Ruslan Ponomariov and Vasyl Ivanchuk were also among the leading contenders.

After six rounds, five players shared first place on 5/6: Sindarov, Aravindh Chithambaram, Andy Woodward, Grigoriy Oparin and Aydin Suleymanli. In the final round, Sindarov beat Suleymanli with the white pieces, while Aravindh also won with white against Oparin. Woodward, meanwhile, could only draw with white against Oleksandr Bortnyk.

Swiercz 0-1 Sindarov

Round 6

Sindarov and Aravindh therefore finished joint first on 6/7. Sindarov's score consisted of six wins and one defeat, his only loss coming against Woodward in round three. Aravindh went unbeaten, with five wins and two draws. Four players shared third place on 5½/7: Woodward, Robson, Ponomariov and Andrew Hong.

A playoff was needed to decide the rapid winner. In the first blitz game, Sindarov won with black after converting a superior queen and knight endgame, simplifying into a pure knight ending before securing the full point.

In the second game, Aravindh, playing black and needing to win, obtained a clear advantage, but could not find a way to make progress while short of time.

Sindarov won again and took the rapid title.

Playoffs

Final standings - Rapid

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

....93 players

All games - Rapid

Blitz

The blitz section began with an 11-round Swiss qualifier, played at a time control of 3 minutes plus a 2-second increment per move. The top 10 finishers advanced to Sunday's Blitz Final. Hikaru Nakamura, who had not played in the rapid event, entered the blitz as the top seed and won the qualifier with an undefeated 8½/11 score.

Seven players finished half a point behind Nakamura on 8/11. A further five players tied for 9^th to 13^th place on 7½/11 points each, which led to a knockout playoff for the final two qualifying spots. Sindarov and Boris Gelfand came through, while the US trio of Dominguez, Robson and Andrew Tang missed out.

Among the qualifiers, the most unexpected name was NM Ethan Sheehan, who currently has a classical FIDE rating of 2348 and a blitz rating of 2416. His qualification came at the expense of several far more established players, as Caruana, Ponomariov and Ivanchuk were among those who failed to reach the final stage.

Final standings - Blitz Qualifier

Improve your pieces - a winning system you need to know

In this course, we will learn how to identify passively placed pieces in any given situation and how to improve their health by bringing them into active squares.

...93 players

All games - Blitz Qualifier

The Blitz Final was a 10-player single round-robin, again played at a time control of 3 minutes plus a 2-second increment. Sindarov completed a successful event by winning the final outright with 7½/9. Wesley So finished in sole second place on 7/9, while Sheehan confirmed his strong run by taking third place with 6½/9.

Sheehan's result included a win over Nakamura, one of five victories he scored in the final. Nakamura finished on 5/9, with four wins, three losses and two draws.

Middlegame Secrets Vol.5 - The Inner Strength of Kings

In this video course, kings will play a role of strong and active pieces. We will explore how Kings can be helpful in defence and prophylaxis, or even in attack!

Crosstable - Blitz Final

All games - Blitz Final

Links

• Official website
• Daniel Naroditsky (9 November 1995 – 19 October 2025)
• Daniel Naroditsky Memorial Fund launched in Charlotte