"The annual chess Wimbledon at Tata Steel Wijk aan Zee in the Netherlands is unusually interesting this year. Its 14-player field matches the reigning world champion, India's Dommaraju Gukesh, against a range of rivals who include four of the eight Candidates who will meet in March to decide his 2026 challenger, another three grandmasters from the world top 10, the controversial US star Hans Niemann, plus a 14-year-old Turk who is breaking age records."
"Turkey's Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, 14, is already famous for his Turkish Immortal in the Fide Grand Swiss and has broken several world age records. He is the youngest ever to reach a 2600 rating. His fellow prodigy, Argentina's Faustino Oro, 12, is competing in the Wijk Challengers with a chance of achieving his third and final GM norm and so breaking Abhimanyu Mishra's record as the youngest ever grandmaster."
Tata Steel Wijk aan Zee features a 14-player elite field centered on world champion Dommaraju Gukesh facing multiple top rivals, including four Candidates, three other top-10 grandmasters and Hans Niemann. Gukesh's recent form has been unimpressive, giving world Nos 5 and 8, Arjun Erigaisi and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, an opportunity to finish ahead. Vincent Keymer and Anish Giri present additional strong challenges. Young talents include 14-year-old Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, the youngest to reach a 2600 rating, and 12-year-old Faustino Oro pursuing a final GM norm. Round one starts Saturday at 13:00 GMT, with several rest days and free live broadcasts.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]