3/23/2019 – The 1st Hail Rapid Chess Tournament for men and women took place from the 15th to the 18th of March in Hail, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It gathered more than 200 participants from 18 countries. Wang Hao took clear first in the men's tournament while IM IRINA BULMAGA won the women's tournament and sends her reflections. | Photos: KSAchess Twitter

12/26/2018 – The rapid world title fight starts today in St. Petersburg's Manege exhibition hall with the first of three days of rapid chess. The Blitz Championship will follow on Saturday and Sunday. In the Open sections, the reigning champions Viswanathan Anand (Rapid) and Magnus Carlsen (Blitz) are back in action. In the women's rapid tournament, Anna Muzychuk is the top seed followed by World Champion Ju Wenjun. | Photos: Lennart Ootes

12/5/2018 – FIDE has finally announced the venue and regulations for the 2018 World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships. The dates are the same, but the venue, as was widely expected, has changed. It will take place from December 25th (arrival) to 31st (departure) in St. Petersburg, Russia. Magnus Carlsen will play, but it remains to be seen how much of the world elite will join him on short notice. | Pictured: The Old Saint Petersburg Stock Exchange, Rostral Columns from across the frozen Neva river | Stanislav Kondratiev (Unsplash.com)

1/1/2018 – Readers may have noticed the final report on the World Rapid had not been by Alex Yermolinsky, who begged forgiveness as he was very ill. A day later he sent this series of notes he had already prepared, saying it would be a pity for them to go to waste and we could not agree more. Enjoy the chosen moments with his highly instructive annotations. Happy New Year! | Photo: Anastasia Karlovich

12/31/2017 – After a thrilling two days of action, we saw severe turnarounds by the challengers on Day 2. Magnus Carlsen capped a brilliant day with a massive score against the world's best to snatch gold. Sergey Karjakin fought back to win silver, and Vishy Anand concluded his magnificent run with bronze. In the Women's event, Pia Cramling faded as she lost steam, while Nana Dzagnidze took gold. We bring a massive report by Alex Yermolinsky. | Photo: riyadh.fide.com

12/30/2017 – The "King Salman World Blitz & Rapid Championships 2017" in Riyadh from Decemer 26th to 30th. At the half way point of the Blitz Championship, the defending champ Sergey Karjakin leads with 9 / 11. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave is a half point back followed by Peter Svidler and a trio of Chinese: Wang, Ding and Yu on 8 / 11. In the Women's Pia Cramling has a full point lead with 9½ / 11. Watch live with Rounds 11 to 22 from 12:00 Noon CET (6:00 AM EST) on Saturday with commentary by E. Miroshnichenko & WGM K. Tsatsalashvili.

12/30/2017 – The second stage is underway in Riyadh. 138 players are contesting the World Blitz Championship title in a 21-round Swiss, played over two days. At stake is a quarter-million first prize and the title of World Blitz Champion. After 11 rounds of wild action, defending champion, Sergey Karjakin has taken the lead, while the women's section, veteran Pia Cramling stormed to a commanding lead. Report and analysis by Alex Yermolinsky. | Photo: Anastasia Karlovich

12/29/2017 – It would be an understatement to describe the last day of the King Salman Rapid Chess Championship as exciting. Round after round, the balance of power was rocked by big games and big results and every time you though it was now clear, something dramatic took place. In the end, it came down to a playoff between Vishy Anand and Vladimir Fedoseev won by the Indian. In the women’s section, Ju Wenjun completed her domination with gold. Enjoy this large illustrated report. | Photo: riyadh2017.fide.com

12/28/2017 – The second day at the King Salman World Rapid Championship continued its thrilling run with a clash between the leaders Fedoseev and Jobava won by the Russian. He continues as sole leader with 8.0/10. Half a point behind him are Wang Hao, Peter Svidler, and a rejuvenated Vishy Anand, who beat Magnus Carlsen in a big game. In the Women's section, Ju Wenjun leads with 8.0/10. Report and analysis by GM Alex Yermolinsky. | Photo: riyadh2017.fide.com

12/27/2017 – The incredibly rich King Salman World Rapid Championship has started with a record prize fund only rivaled by that of the actual world championship. The tournament started with a bang as Magnus Carlsen lost his first round game to Bu Xiangzhi! The early leaders are Fedoseev and Jobava in the Open section with 4½ / 5 and Ju Wenjun in the Women's with 5/5. We bring a huge report with 11 games chosen and analysed by Alex Yermolinsky | Photo: riyadh2017.fide.com

12/26/2017 – The World Rapid Championship attracted significant international media attention as it began on Tuesday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but the focus was mostly centred around the absence of Women's World Rapid and Blitz Champion Anna Muzychuk, and all players from Israel, who were denied visas to travel to the country. | Photo: riyadh2017.fide.com