3/24/2020 – IM Lawrence Trent has been rounding-up the Candidates day by day, but today he tackles a game he has yet to present. | Puzzle time: In the diagram, suggest the best way for White to continue? | Lawrence is live this week from 17:00 UTC (18:00 CET, 1pm EDT) and free for a limited time, or forever on-demand with a ChessBase Basic Account. You can always register a free 90-day account to watch.

3/23/2020 – Ian Nepomniachtchi goes into the second rest day of the Candidates Tournament leading by a full point after beating Ding Liren with White on Monday. The only other player with a plus score is Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, who held Wang Hao to a draw. Anish Giri defeated Kirill Alekseenko in a game that lasted over seven hours, while Alexander Grischuk had to be precise to split the point with Fabiano Caruana. Expert analysis by GM SAM SHANKLAND and IM LAWRENCE TRENT. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / FIDE

3/23/2020 – The Candidates Tournament is one of the most anticipated events of 2020, and GM Simon Williams is watching it attentively. Today, a look at the highlights of the first six rounds. | Watch for free live and on-demand (for a limited time, or forever with a ChessBase Premium account) starting as soon as Round 6 of the Candidates concludes. (Normally 17:00 UTC (18:00 CET / 12 Noon EST).

3/23/2020 – "It is difficult to make predictions, especially about the future." This well-known witticism has been ascribed to Mark Twain, Albert Einstein, Yogi Berra, and others, and applies, of course, also to the Candidates. However, after five of 14 rounds it is tempting to take stock and to look at the past to predict the future. | Photo: Ian Nepomniachtchi | Photo: Lennart Ootes

3/22/2020 – The 2020 Candidates Tournament has a sole leader for the first time, as Ian Nepomniachtchi defeated Wang Hao with the white pieces in round five. The three other games finished drawn. Kirill Alekseenko and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave entered a sharp Najdorf which ended in a repetition, while Anish Giri could not make the most of the very promising position he got against Fabiano Caruana. Expert analysis by GM ELSHAN MORADIABADI and IM LAWRENCE TRENT. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / FIDE

3/21/2020 – All games of round four at the Candidates Tournament in Yekaterinburg finished peacefully, which means Wang Hao, Ian Nepomniachtchi and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave are still sharing the lead on 2½ out of 4. Caruana pushed his h-pawn against Nepomniachtchi's Grünfeld but could not convert his slight advantage, while Grischuk entered his usual excessive time trouble while defending a complicated position against Vachier-Lagrave — in the end, he managed to hold the balance. Expert analysis by GM DANIEL FERNANDEZ and IM LAWRENCE TRENT. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / FIDE

3/20/2020 – Grandmaster Daniel King was supposed to be in Yekaterinburg now, but will instead take a look at the Candidates from home in London. Power Play is live most Fridays at 17:00 UTC (18:00 CET, Noon EST) on playchess.com. You can watch the episode live for free! All the usual puzzles, games and instruction will be on offer. Puzzle and the live video...

3/19/2020 – The battle between pre-tournament favourites Ding Liren and Fabiano Caruana ended up favouring the Chinese, who responded convincingly to Caruana's provocative play in the opening to get his first win of the tournament after back-to-back losses in the first two rounds. The remaining games finished drawn, which means Wang Hao, Ian Nepomniachtchi and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave are sharing the lead on 2 out of 3. Expert analysis by GMs STEPHEN GORDON and DANIEL KING. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / FIDE

3/18/2020 – The second round of the Candidates Tournament sees top seed Fabiano Caruana defeating Kirill Alekseenko in 34 moves, while Maxime Vachier-Lagrave defeated second seed Ding Liren in 37. Anish Giri was in deep trouble against Wang Hao, but managed to miraculously save a draw in the end. Four players are now sharing the lead, as the tournament goes into the last round before the first scheduled rest day. Expert (and thorough) analysis by GMs STEPHEN GORDON and SIMON WILLIAMS. | Photo: Maria Emelianova / FIDE

3/18/2020 – The biggest sports show on earth at the minute may be the FIDE Candidates Tournament, and it also is the focus of IM Merijn van Delft's attention. | The live show is free to watch, and available on-demand for ChessBase Premium account holders (but FREE for a limited time!). Merijn is live this week starting at 19:00 UTC (20:00 CET / 4 PM EST).

3/18/2020 – The first round of the Candidates Tournament was very exciting: the audience saw four complex games and two of them ended with a win – for Black. Malcolm Pein took a close look. | Photo: FIDE

3/17/2020 – The long-anticipated Candidates Tournament kicked off with two surprising results, as both Ding Liren and Anish Giri lost with the white pieces, against Wang Hao and Ian Nepomniachtchi respectively. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave v Fabiano Caruana and Alexander Grischuk v Kirill Alekseenko were hard-fought games that finished drawn, with Grischuk going into his usual extreme time trouble. Video round-up by GM SIMON WILLIAMS and GM BORIS GELFAND analysed the all-Russian clash. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / FIDE

3/17/2020 – IM Lawrence Trent checks on the recent World Senior Team Championship and offers his thoughts on the Candidates tournament. | Puzzle time: In the diagram, Did Black miss a shot here? | Lawrence is on-demand his week from 17:00 UTC (18:00 CET, 12 Noon EST) and free for a limited time, or forever on-demand with a ChessBase Basic Account. You can always register a free 90-day account to watch.

3/16/2020 – The Candidates Tournament is one of the most anticipated events of 2020, particularly now as major events are being cancelled left and right! Simon gives you his take on the players and their chances. | Watch for free live and on-demand (for a limited time, or forever with a ChessBase Premium account) starting at the usual hour: 17:00 UTC (18:00 CET / 12 Noon EST).

3/16/2020 – The candidate tournament in Yekaterinburg is a major highlight in the eventful chess year 2020 and one of the few current events that has (so far) not been heavily affected by the Coronavirus epidemic. The opening is on Monday and the first of fourteen rounds follows on Tuesday. The winner will play Magnus Carlsen for the World Championship at the end of the year. | Photos: FIDE

3/15/2020 – In his last "Preview on the Candidates 2020" Daniel King takes a look at the chances of Fabiano Caruana to win the Candidates and to challenge Magnus Carlsen again. Currently, Caruana is the world's number two but that is not the only reason why he is a favourite to win in Yekaterinburg. | Photo: Niki Riga / World Chess

3/13/2020 – Daniel King takes a close look at all players of the "candidates tournament 2020" in his preview on YouTube. Only two players are left to analyze, after he has reviewed the six other grandmasters already. All of these players have the same goal, which is to fight for a chance to challenge Magnus Carlsen at end of the year. In King's latest instalment, it is time to reaffirm the qualities of Ding Liren. | Photo: Niki Riga / World Chess

3/11/2020 – In his candidates preview on YouTube, Daniel King takes a close look at all eight candidates who are fighting for a chance to challenge Magnus Carlsen in December. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave wasn't even supposed to play in the "Candidates Tournament 2020" in Yekaterinburg, but he jumped in for Teimour Radjabov who surprisingly withdrew from the tournament a few days ago. | Photo: Niki Riga / World Chess

3/9/2020 – The Candidates tournament starts on March 17th, where eight players will battle it out who will challenge Magnus Carlsen for the World Championship in December. In his Candidates Preview on YouTube, Daniel King takes a close look at all the candidates. In the most recent episode, King reviews Grandmaster Alexander Grischuk, one of the few players who once reached an Elo rating of over 2800 just five years ago. The Russian, who is currently ranked number 4 in the world, is thus among the favourites to win in Yekaterinburg. | Photo: Niki Riga / World Chess

3/6/2020 – The general sense of uncertainty in the world due to the Coronavirus outbreak has reached the chess world, with plenty of open tournaments announcing they will not take place or have been postponed. It is not known whether it is specifically due to the virus but FIDE has cited Teimour Radjabov withdrew from the Candidates Tournament 'for personal reasons'. Radjabov denies the characterization and instead expressed a desire for the tournament to be postponed. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave will be his replacement in Yekaterinburg. | Photo: FIDE

3/5/2020 – In less than two weeks the Candidates Tournament 2020 will begin in Yekaterinburg, Russia. Eight of the world's best players fight for the right to challenge Magnus Carlsen in December and in his Candidates Preview on YouTube Daniel King takes a close look at all eight candidates. In his most recent episode he wonders how Russian Grandmaster Ian Nepomniachtchi, who is unpredictable but knows how to put pressure on his opponents, might fare in Yekaterinburg. | Photo: Niki Riga / World Chess

3/3/2020 – The Candidates Tournament 2020 will begin on March 17th and surely is one of the highlights of the chess year 2020. Until April 3rd, eight of the best players in the world will fight for the right to challenge Magnus Carlsen for the world title. To get into the mood for the tournament which will take place in Yekaterinburg, the fourth-largest city in Russia, Daniel King introduces all eight participants in his Power Play Show on YouTube. So far King has made portraits of four candidates, four more will follow, each with an introduction to the player and typical and beautiful games.

2/14/2020 – The Candidates Tournament 2020 is just over a month away and today FIDE announced the results of a ceremony to determine the pairing numbers for the eight players in this highly anticipated double round-robin. Radjabov, Ding, Giri, and Grischuk will start with the white pieces on March 17th in Yekaterinburg. Read the press release... | Photo: Eteri Kublashvili (CFR)

12/23/2019 – In an open letter to the Russian Chess Federation on Monday, the manager of French GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, who narrowly missed out on multiple avenues to qualify for the 2020 Candidates tournament in Yekaterinburg next March, calls for a qualification match against Kirill Alekseenko. The RCF has already nominated Alekseenko. | Photo: Nadja Wittmann