1/2/2019 – Five players tied for first place in the Zurich Christmas Open with 18-year-old Armenian GM Haik Martirosyan (pictured in 2017) having the best tiebreak ahead of fellow GMs Rasmus Svane, Narayanan SL, Dennis Wagner and Andrei Istratescu. Defending champion Christan Bauer finished sixth, a half point back. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / St. Louis Chess Club

4/5/2017 – In honor of the unforgettable chess legend Viktor Kortchnoi, who passed on June 6th, 2015, the Zurich Chess Club is organizing an Easter tournament, from April 13th to 17th 2017, at the Kongresshaus in Zurich, Switzerland a Grandmaster Tournament with the two world champions, Vladimir Kramnik and Viswanathan Anand, and the world class players Hikaru Nakamura, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Peter Svidler. Come and watch – everyone is welcome, entry is free.

11/6/2016 – On June 6th this year one of the all-time greats of chess, Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi, passed away. In his final years, debilitated by a series of strokes and bound to a wheelchair, he attended the Zurich Chess Challenge each year, in fact playing a match himself in 2015. To honor the unforgettable chess legend there will be a special memorial tournament from April 13th to 17th, 2017 in Zurich. Take note of these dates – you can participate as well.

2/17/2016 – The final day of in Zurich saw three games in the regular "new classic" time controls , and once again you can vote for the Game of the Day and win a valuable prize: a ChessBase DVD signed by Anand, Kramnik or Shirov immediately after the end of each round. Our add-on quiz question came in the form of a picture which showed the former Football Association President Sepp Blatter, who paid the event a surprise visit.

2/15/2016 – Six exciting games on the second day of the Zurich Chess Challenge 2016 – as reported in full yesterday evening. Today once again you have the chance to win a ChessBase DVD, signed by players immediately after the end of the round, by voting for the game you liked most. But you mustn't be influenced by super-cute little girls rooting for their papa. The polls will be available for the rest of the week.

2/15/2016 – Twice today he needed to defeat Aronian, in the new classical game to tie for first in that format and the second time to win the whole tournament, and he managed both times! Even though Anand had the same combined score as Nakamura (both players finished on 10.5) it was the American that edged him in tiebreaks due to a relatively unimportant match... or one would have thought!

2/14/2016 – After three draws in round three the changes in the scoreboard happened all in round four. Two games were decisive: Aronian was able to vanquish Shirov from the black side of a Berlin, while Kramnik defeated Giri. Anand still leads with 3.0/4, but Nakamura and Kramnik are only half-a-point behind. Tomorrow, the final round will decide the tournament

2/14/2016 – There were six games in the new classical two-hour format, and a two-game exhibition match on the side. Following our full report from day one of the Zurich Chess Challenge 2016 we ask you to tell us which of the eight games you considered the best. Here's your chance to win a ChessBase DVD signed by the author himself, immediately after the end of the round. Go for it!

2/13/2016 – An explosive start for the Tiger of Madras! He started the day off by annihilating Aronian in 19 moves, and he followed it up by taking advantage of Giri's ambitiousness and he quickly retaliated against a wrongful pawn push from the Dutch. Nakamura is close behind as he drew Giri in the first round and beat Shirov in a strange game in round two. Meanwhile Gelfand beat Morozevich in their exhibition match.

2/12/2016 – With a dashing 3-0 start, there was no doubt that Nakamura was the best blitzer out there in the opening tournament. The event did not count for points, it was held as part of the opening ceremony and to determine who has more whites and who has more blacks in the rapid portion. We bring you a round by round report of an exciting opening in Zurich!

2/11/2016 – With just one day left before the start of the 2016 Zurich Chess Challenge people are asking: who has the best overall chances, who will be the ultimate winners. The event has a "new classic" (one hour per side) format, so one has to delve into many results of the players in different game formats to find an answer. This was done by the organizers in a wonderful collection of statistics.

2/9/2016 – No, they won't be playing in the main event, which features six world-class grandmasters. Boris Gelfand and Alexander Morozevich will play a two-round match on Saturday, February 13th, at the Hotel Savoy Baur en Ville, simultaneously with the first two rounds of the main event. And with the same "new classical" time controls: 40 minutes per game with additional 10 seconds for each move. An interesting experiment.

1/5/2016 – With a rating of 2698 Arkadij Naiditsch was the favorite to win the traditional Chrismas Open in Zurich that took place from 26th to 30th December. Naiditsch lived up to his role and won the tournament with 6.0/7. Half a point behind followed five players of whom Vitaly Kunin and Christian Bauer had the best tie-break. They finished second and third.

11/2/2015 – For the Zurich Chess Challenge, in February with world class players, the organisation has implemented a new time control: 40 minutes per game with additional ten seconds for each move, and two games per day. "We think that in the future classical chess needs to become faster." Winning gets you two points, a draw one point, while the blitz round is traditionally scored. Press release.

2/19/2015 – What an interesting rapid! It was incredibly cutthroat, with advantages being wasted and counterattacks sprouting out of nowhere. Anand kept is advantage until the decisive game against Nakamura in the fourth round leaving them tied. A late change in rules left the title to be decided by Armageddon, which Nakamura took to win the 2015 Zurich Challenge. Pictures, analysis and results!

2/18/2015 – A peaceful day in Zurich as the three games were drawn, and not in the most exciting of ways. The White players did not risk much and were not rewarded with any winning chances. Anand wins the Classical portion of the tournament by half a point under normal scoring systems; in Zurich this means he has a full point lead going into the defining phase: tomorrow's rapid portion.

2/18/2015 – Three years ago, one could easily speak to Viktor Korchnoi face to face, but today this interview would have been impossible without assistance: the legendary grandmaster has difficulty with his speech. It's thanks to Genna Sosonko that Korchnoi's thoughts were conveyed. One thing is clear though, Korchnoi's sharp tongue and wit have not lost their edge.

2/17/2015 – Viswanathan Anand is here to show that he can still win tournaments! After a very bad Baden-Baden he is now leading the Zurich Chess Challenge with half a point over Hikaru Nakamura, who he defeated today in the same variation he used to beat Magnus Carlsen in last year's World Championship Match. With two draws on the other boards the Indian is comfortably in first place.

2/16/2015 – It was only yesterday that the World saw its ninth 2800 as Giri crossed that magical barrier, but already Nakamura makes it old news by becoming the first player from the Americas to be 2800 by beating Karjakin. A gamble paid off handsomely as the Russian was unable to remember his opening preparation in a massively complicated position. The American wins, and leads!

2/15/2015 – There is nothing more unpleasant to face during a chess game than an unexpected move. Anand came up with an improvement of his game against Carlsen from the World Championship, sacrificing a piece and creating great complications over the board. Aronian calculated deeply, using an hour for three moves, but was unable to find the correct path. Anand joins Nakamura in the lead.

2/14/2015 – The Italian was putting pressure on his rival, controlling his opponent's initiative and creating some positional threats. It seemed as if Caruana had good chances to at least make Nakamura uncomfortable, when out of nowhere the American came up with a mating attack! Caruana underestimated the threats against his f2 pawn and everything collapsed. Round One Report.

2/13/2015 – Perhaps a difficult blitz tournament to predict! Karjakin and Nakamura, known for being great blitz players, finished easily on the bottom half of the table. Caruana, not known for his blitz skills, comfortably clinched at least third before the final round while Aronian and Anand were the ones duking it out for clear first! We bring you impressions and highlights from the blitz.

2/12/2015 – The super tournaments keep rolling this year. The Zurich Chess Challenge begins tomorrow, repeating its format of last year with six players and three different events. The blitz section, which is tomorrow, will determine the pairings while the classical and rapid parts determine the winner (with the former counting for double). We bring you a preview of a must-see event.

3/7/2014 – Good news: after the resounding success of the Category 23 tournament in February this year the sponsor Oleg Skvortsov, on his 45th birthday, has announced that a new Category 22 or 23 super-tournament will take place in mid-February 2015 in the same location. Oleg is not just a successful business man who loves chess, but a seriously strong player. Birthday portrait.