Four tournaments across two age groups

The 2026 FIDE World Senior Chess Championships are taking place in Vrnjačka Banja, Serbia, from 3 to 14 November. A total of 385 players representing 65 national federations have gathered at the Hotel Zepter, with four world titles up for grabs. The field includes 44 grandmasters and eight women's grandmasters.

The championships are divided into two age groups, 50+ and 65+, each featuring an open and a women's section. All four tournaments follow an 11-round Swiss system, with a time control of 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by an additional 30 minutes, and a 30-second increment from move one.

Master Class Vol.14 - Vasily Smyslov

Smyslov cultivated a clear positional style and even in sharp tactical positions often relied more on his intuition than on concrete calculation of variations. Let our authors introduce you into the world of Vasily Smyslov.

The first round was played on Tuesday 3 November, and the competition will continue with one round per day until Saturday 14 November, except for a rest day on Sunday 8 November. Games begin at 15.00 local time, with the final round starting an hour earlier. The total prize fund amounts to €50,000, including special prizes for players aged 75 and over.

Among the participants are several familiar names from international chess, including Pia Cramling from Sweden, Kiril Georgiev from Bulgaria, Zurab Sturua from Georgia and former women's world champion Nona Gaprindashvili, also from Georgia.

Round two in progress | Photo: Official website

Round three at the Hotel Zepter in Vrnjačka Banja | Photo: Official website

Open 50+

Kazakhstan's Murtas Kazhgaleyev is the highest-rated player in the section, followed by Bulgarian grandmaster Kiril Georgiev. Five grandmasters from five different federations occupy the leading positions in the starting list.

1. Murtas Kazhgaleyev (Kazakhstan) – 2532
2. Kiril Georgiev (Bulgaria) – 2512
3. Jean-Marc Degraeve (France) – 2485
4. Pavel Kotsur (Kazakhstan) – 2484
5. Henrik Danielsen (Iceland) – 2472

Standings after round 3

...124 players

All available games

Women 50+

Sweden's Pia Cramling heads the women's 50+ competition, with a 60-point rating advantage over second seed Inna Gaponenko of Ukraine. Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant, representing Scotland, is another well-known grandmaster in the field.

1. Pia Cramling (Sweden) – 2374
2. Inna Gaponenko (Ukraine) – 2314
3. Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant (Scotland) – 2249
4. Maritza Arribas Robaina (Cuba) – 2247
5. Inga Khurtsilava (Georgia) – 2172

Standings after round 3

Practical Tips for the Tournament Player Vol.1: Fundamentals of Practical Chess

How grandmasters win without fireworks: GM Jan Markos shows you 11 very practical tips from "How to play in a lost position" to "Be patient like Carlsen" that will improve your tournament chess.
Most chess books teach you what to think about. This series teaches you what to actually do when the clock is running and the result is on the line. Compiled from GM Jan Markos's acclaimed "Practical Tips for the Tournament Player" column in ChessBase Magazine, Volume 1 covers the decisions every tournament player faces before the position ever gets complicated: how you use your time, how you handle pressure, and how you think when the stakes are real.
Free Video Sample: How to use your time effectively

...27 players

All available games

Open 65+

Georgian grandmaster Zurab Sturua is the top seed in the open 65+ category. His closest rivals by rating include Igor Glek, representing Belgium, and Silvio Danailov, who is competing under the FIDE flag. German grandmaster Klaus Bischoff is seeded fourth.

1. Zurab Sturua (Georgia) – 2488
2. Igor Glek (Belgium) – 2433
3. Silvio Danailov (FIDE) – 2425
4. Klaus Bischoff (Germany) – 2419
5. Alexander Mikhalevski (Israel) – 2411

Standings after round 3

...205 players

All available games

Women 65+

Former women's world champion Nona Gaprindashvili is the highest-rated participant in the women's 65+ section. The Georgian grandmaster, who held the world title from 1962 to 1978, is followed closely in the starting list by Marina Aseeva, reperesenting FIDE. The top five are separated by just 90 rating points.

1. Nona Gaprindashvili (Georgia) – 2168
2. Marina Aseeva (FIDE) – 2155
3. Irina Chelushkina (Serbia) – 2120
4. Ligia-Letitia Jicman (Romania) – 2083
5. Marina Makropoulou (Greece) – 2078

Standings after round 3

10 Chess Principles That Actually Matter

Keep it simple. Stay objective. Watch the clock. Sometimes take the risk. GM Loek van Wely explains the ten principles that decide real games. They aren’t about theory. They’re about what you do at the board when it counts.
Opening theory gets all the attention. But according to GM Loek van Wely, a player who has played in 14 Olympiads, is eight-time Dutch champion, and has decades of experience against Karpov, Kasparov, Anand, and Carlsen, most of what separates strong players from the rest has nothing to do with memorised lines.
Free sample video: Introduction
Free sample video: Don't Bluff the Donkey

...29 players

All available games

Links

• Official website
• Technical info on Chess-Results: Open 50+ | Women 50+ | Open 65+ | Women 65+
• A strong duo: An interview with Pia and Anna Cramling