2/2/2026 – The closing day of the 88th Tata Steel Chess Tournament settled both sections without the need for playoffs. In the Masters, Nodirbek Abdusattorov secured clear first place by defeating Arjun Erigaisi, finishing ahead of compatriot Javokhir Sindarov. Meanwhile, the Challengers title went to Andy Woodward, whose final-round win over Erwin l'Ami earned him a place in next year's Masters, while Vasyl Ivanchuk also won and finished in sole second place. | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes
new: Fritz 20
Your personal chess trainer. Your toughest opponent. Your strongest ally. FRITZ 20 is more than just a chess engine – it is a training revolution for ambitious players and professionals. Whether you are taking your first steps into the world of serious chess training, or already playing at tournament level, FRITZ 20 will help you train more efficiently, intelligently and individually than ever before.
Your personal chess trainer. Your toughest opponent. Your strongest ally. FRITZ 20 is more than just a chess engine – it is a training revolution for ambitious players and professionals. Whether you are taking your first steps into the world of serious chess training, or already playing at tournament level, FRITZ 20 will help you train more efficiently, intelligently and individually than ever before.
The Alapin Variation (1.e4 c5 2.c3) offers a simple yet highly effective solution to all major Sicilian lines, by sidestepping them with 2.c3.
€39.90
Frontrunners Abdusattorov and Sindarov both score wins in final round
The Tata Steel Masters concluded with Nodirbek Abdusattorov taking clear first place. He began the final round as sole leader and confirmed tournament victory by defeating Arjun Erigaisi with the black pieces in an interesting battle arising from the Evans Gambit. This meant there was no need for a blitz playoff, as his closest rival, Javokhir Sindarov, also won but remained half a point behind.
Sindarov beat Thai Dai Van Nguyen with black in the last round, completing a notable 1–2 finish for Uzbekistan. Abdusattorov scored 9/13, while Sindarov finished on 8½/13. Sindarov was the only player in either section to go through the lengthy event undefeated, scoring four wins and nine draws.
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. Grandmaster Harshit Raja, India’s 69th GM, has created a practical and powerful 1.e4 repertoire - perfect for players who want to play aggressively without drowning in opening theory. Whether you’re playing online or over-the-board, this course gives you solid attacking weapons that are easy to learn, fun to play, and difficult for opponents to face.
Free sample video: Introduction
Free sample video: Scandinavian Defence
Three players shared third place on 7½/13, a full point behind Sindarov: Jorden van Foreest, Vincent Keymer and Hans Niemann. According to the tiebreak system, Van Foreest - the 2021 champion - took the official third-place position.
Javokhir Sindarov taking a stroll during the final round of what was yet another exciting event in Wijk aan Zee | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes
Abdusattorov's victory came after several near-misses in the last three editions of the tournament (i.e. all the editions in which he took part).
In 2025 he started the last round a full point behind co-leaders Gukesh Dommaraju and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu; both leaders lost, but Abdusattorov could only draw against Pentala Harikrishna.
His scores in those editions were 8, 8½ and 8 points respectively. Fittingly, this year's 9/13 finally gave him clear first.
The 21-year-old produced a 2862 tournament performance rating, gained 19.5 rating points and climbed to fifth place in the live world rankings, only behind Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Fabiano Caruana and Vincent Keymer. It is a shame that we will not get to see him playing in the forthcoming Candidates Tournament!
Sindarov's event was similarly impressive. His 8½/13 came with a 2833 TPR and a 19.4-point rating gain, lifting him to eleventh in the live list, a strong outcome ahead of the Candidates Tournament in March. After winning the FIDE World Cup last year, the 20-year-old proves once again his ability to perform strongly on the sport's biggest stages.
It was also a successful event for the players who finished on 7½/13.
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. The King’s Indian Defence has been one of the most dynamic and popular responses to 1.d4 for decades. Legends such as Garry Kasparov, Bobby Fischer, and Hikaru Nakamura have employed it at the highest level – and it continues to fascinate today, as it offers Black not only solidity but also rich attacking and counterattacking opportunities. Its special advantage: the King’s Indian is a universal system, equally effective against 1.d4, 1.c4, and 1.Nf3. Grandmaster Felix Blohberger, multiple Austrian Champion and experienced second, presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black. His approach: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
Free video sample: Introduction
Free video sample: London System
Van Foreest gained 14.0 rating points and climbed to 24th in the live rankings.
Niemann gained 9.8 points and moved to 18th.
Keymer, the top seed, neither gained nor lost rating, yet still finished with a plus score despite losing four games, as he also scored six wins (and only three draws). In the final round, he obtained good winning chances against Gukesh, which could have brought him a fourth consecutive victory.
Also finishing with plus scores were Matthias Bluebaum and Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, both on 7/13. Bluebaum briefly crossed the 2700 live-rating mark during the tournament before ending on 2697.5 after a loss to Abdusattorov in round twelve and a final-round draw with Erdogmus. The 14-year-old Erdogmus, meanwhile, showed he can compete on equal terms with established elite players.
Vincent Keymer has a look at the Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu v. Jorden van Foreest game (draw) | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes
In this video course, Grandmaster Ivan Sokolov explores the fascinating world of Dutch and Grünfelkd structures with colours reversed. In this video course, Grandmaster Ivan Sokolov explores one of the most intriguing and under-examined areas of modern chess: reversed opening systems, focusing on the Reversed Grünfeld and the Reversed Dutch. At first glance, these two systems seem unrelated. However, they share a common strategic challenge: the value of tempi, structure, and psychology when familiar openings are played with colours reversed. Drawing on his long professional experience, Sokolov explains why these positions are far more subtle than they appear and why traditional engine evaluations often fail to capture their true complexity.
Free sample video: Introduction
Free sample video: Larsen’s b4 Plan vs Reversed Stonewall Setups: Larsen - Spassky
The ever-fighting Arjun Erigaisi played the Evans Gambit against tournament leader - and eventual champion - Nodirbek Abdusattorov | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes
Nguyen 0-1 Sindarov
Javokhir Sindarov | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes
Gukesh ½-½ Keymer
Final standings
All games
Woodward beats L'Ami to clinch Challengers title, Ivanchuk grabs second place
The Challengers section also produced a clear winner. Fifteen-year-old Andy Woodward defeated Erwin l'Ami with the white pieces in the final round to win the event and secure a place in next year's Masters. Woodward had started the day tied for first with Aydin Suleymanli and half a point ahead of Vasyl Ivanchuk.
Suleymanli's risky approach did not succeed against top seed Velimir Ivic, who won in 34 moves and finished on 6/13.
By the time the games had passed the time control, Suleymanli had already lost and Ivanchuk held a clearly superior position against Daniil Yuffa. That situation meant Woodward had to win to take first outright, since a tie with Ivanchuk would have given the Ukrainian victory on the first tiebreak (direct encounter), as there are no playoffs in the Challengers.
Woodward converted his advantage against l'Ami and finished with 10/13, a 2750 TPR and a 23.3-point rating gain, climbing to sixth in the live junior rankings. After losing in round one to Bibisara Assaubayeva, he recovered by scoring five consecutive wins. Notably, he also bounced back from his round-ten loss to Ivanchuk by beating Marc'Andria Maurizzi and l'Ami with white in rounds eleven and thirteen respectively.
This video course includes GM Anish Giri's deep insights and IM Sagar Shah's pertinent questions to the super GM. In Vol.1 all the openings after 1.e4 are covered.
Andy Woodward | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes
Vasyl Ivanchuk won the Masters section in Wijk back in 1996, when the event was still called Hoogovens Chess Tournament | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes
Velimir Ivic defeated Aydin Suleymanli with black | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes
In this video course, experts (Pelletier, Marin, Müller and Reeh) examine the games of Judit Polgar. Let them show you which openings Polgar chose to play, where her strength in middlegames were, or how she outplayed her opponents in the endgame.
Yuffa 0-1 Ivanchuk
Final standings
All games
Tournament schedule
Games start daily at 14:00 CET (7:00 ET, 20:30 IST), except for round 13, which starts two hours earlier than usual.
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. The King’s Indian Defence has been one of the most dynamic and popular responses to 1.d4 for decades. Legends such as Garry Kasparov, Bobby Fischer, and Hikaru Nakamura have employed it at the highest level – and it continues to fascinate today, as it offers Black not only solidity but also rich attacking and counterattacking opportunities. Its special advantage: the King’s Indian is a universal system, equally effective against 1.d4, 1.c4, and 1.Nf3. Grandmaster Felix Blohberger, multiple Austrian Champion and experienced second, presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black. His approach: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
Free video sample: Introduction
Free video sample: London System
Carlos Alberto ColodroCarlos Colodro is a Hispanic Philologist from Bolivia. He works as a freelance translator and writer since 2012. A lot of his work is done in chess-related texts, as the game is one of his biggest interests, along with literature and music.
1/31/2026 – With two rounds left, the race for first place remains closely contested in both sections of the Tata Steel Chess tournament. In the Masters, Javokhir Sindarov caught Nodirbek Abdusattorov in the lead after beating Arjun Erigaisi, while Hans Niemann scored a full point to join Matthias Bluebaum and Jorden van Foreest in the chasing pack. In the Challengers, Andy Woodward won and moved into sole first place after Vasyl Ivanchuk defeated former sole leader Aydin Suleymanli. | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes
1/21/2026 – Round four of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament featured three decisive games in the Masters, with Hans Niemann scoring an impressive win over Aravind Chithambaram, which included a well-timed queen sacrifice. Nodirbek Abdusattorov also won to share the lead, while Javokhir Sindarov defeated Matthias Bluebaim to stay in close contention. In the Challengers, Aydin Suleymanli kept the sole lead after defeating Lu Miaoyi with the white pieces. | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lenart Ootes
King’s Indian fans who choose the Mar del Plata attack (7...Nc6) against White’s classical system (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0) usually aim for a complex position with mutual attacks on open wings, requiring long-term strategic planning and tactical sharpness in critical moments. Computers often do not know how to handle the arising complex strategic positions, which suits players who like to think on their own instead of memorizing long variations. However, the fashionable Bayonet Attack (9.b4) interferes with Black’s ideas. After Black’s main move 9...Nh5 the positions opens, the lines get forced and computer analysis is important again. But this DVD offers an antidote against White’s Bayonet Attack, namely 9...a5! This move leads to sound positions with very few concrete lines, in which the focus is on strategy not on tactics. Objectively chances are equal but if Black knows what to do things might quickly become dangerous for White.
Opening videos: Daniel King presents new ideas against Caro-Kann with 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Nf6 5.Nxf6+. ‘Mikhalchishin's Miniatures’: Najdorf, Petroff and Scotch. ‘Move by Move’ with Robert Ris. ‘Lucky bag’ with 37 analyses by Ganguly, Illingworth et al.
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.
€49.90
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