GM Daniel Dardha emerged victorious in the 2024 Belgian Championship, capturing his fourth national title.

The 2024 Belgian Championship, which included an invitational 10-player round-robin (expert tournament) and an open tournament, took place in the large refectory of the Sint-Gummarus College in Liege from July 06-13.

The 18-year-old Dardha confirmed his status as a pre-tournament favorite to win the expert event, but it was a very close race with IM Stefan Beukema that came down to the wire.

Going into the final round, Dardha and Beukema shared the lead with 6.5/8 each. Stefan made a quick draw with IM Steven Geirnaert, while Daniel jumped on this opportunity and defeated IM Alexander Alienkin with black pieces to clinch the title. The champion and the runner-up became the only unbeaten players in the event.

Mher Hovhannisyan and Sim Maerevoet scored 5.5/9 and tied for third place, with the former completing the podium thanks to better tiebreak.  

Final standings:

1	GM	Dardha, Daniel	2629	7½
2	IM	Beukema, Stefan	2411	7
3	GM	Hovhannisyan, Mher	2405	5½
4	IM	Maerevoet, Sim	2436	5½
5	IM	Alienkin, Aleksander	2331	5
6	IM	Geirnaert, Steven	2438	4
7	GM	Dgebuadze, Alexandre	2442	4
8	FM	De Waele, Warre	2365	3
9		Ruzhansky, Elias	2242	2
10	FM	Dreelinck, Jacob	2310	1½

Photos: official website

Official website: bk.schaakliga-antwerpen.be/en/main-event/

Max Warmerdam and Maaike Keetman are the new Dutch chess champions.

The Dutch Chess Championships took place from July 6-13, 2024, at the Galgewaard football stadium in Utrecht. Both the open and women’s sections were 16-player knockout tournaments running simultaneously.

Each match consisted of two classical games, with 90 minutes for 40 moves, then 30 minutes to the end of the game, with a 30-second increment from move 1, followed by a tiebreak in cases of a tie.

Unfortunately, the defending champion Anish Giri and the last year runner-up Jorden van Foreest opted not to participate in the open event. Still the field was a good mix of young and experienced players featuring Jan Timman, Erwin L’Ami, Ivan Sokolov, Sergei Tiviakov and Max Warmerdam.

Varmerdam advanced steadily into the final, convincingly defeating Liam Vrolijk, Leandro Slagboom and Benjamin Bok.

Sergei Tiviakov’s path to the match for the national title was a hard-fought one, overcoming Erwin L’Ami and Ivan Sokolov in tiebreaks during the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively.

The first game of the final was the decisive one. Warmerdam prevailed on the black side of the Sicilian Defense and took the lead. The second game became a formality – a short draw was agreed securing the second national title for Max Warmerdam.

Without the defending champion and Dutch #1 woman Eline Roebers, five-time national women’s champion WGM Anne Haast and WFM Maaike Keetman cruised through the bracket to the final, needing no tiebreak.

In a surprising turn of events, the final was a one-side battle, with the lower-rated Maaike Keetman winning both classical games to capture her maiden title.

Photos: Harry Gielen

Official website: nk.schaken.nl/

GM Vitaly Sivuk won the Swedish Championship 2024 defending his national champion title.

Like last year, the Swedish Chess Championship 2024 featured several categories, from a youth tournament to the Sverigemästarklassen, a round-robin tournament with classical time control for Sweden’s top chess players. in Växjö’s spacious Fortnox Arena from June 28 to July 7.

From L-R: Östlund, Hector, Seo, Lokander, Pantzar, Hillarp, Blomqvist, Galperin, Sivuk

The defending champion took an early lead with four straight victories. Surprisingly, Vitaly then drew all remaining games, but it was enough to secure the title with 6.5/9 points. The 2022 champion Jonny Hector finished a half point behind and took silver, while Erik Blomqvist captured bronze thanks in no small part to his spectacular penultimate-round victory over Tiger Hillarp.

Final standings:

1	GM Vitaly Sivuk	2569	6½
2	GM Jonny Hector	2410	6
3	GM Erik Blomqvist	2527	5½
4	IM Martin Lokander	2474	5
5	GM Platon Galperin	2551	5
6	IM Jung Min Seo	2442	5
7	GM Tiger Hillarp	2455	4½
8	IM Milton Pantzar	2480	3
9	GM Daniel Semcesen	2451	2½
10	FM Joar Östlund	2334	2

Complete results in all categories

Official website: schack.se/ 

Photos: Lars OA Hedlund

Aleksandar Indjic and Irina Chelushkina emerged victorious at the 2024 Serbian Championship. Aleksandar successfully defended his title and won his fifth overall, while Irina lifted the trophy for the second time.

The 18th Serbian Championship 2024 took place from June 17–25 in the Fantastico Exclusive Hotel in Senta. The open and women’s tournaments ran concurrently. Both competitions were 10-player round robins with classical time control.

In the open competition, Aleksandar Indjic seized the lead after Round 4 and maintained his top position to the very end. Facing top seed Alexey Sarana with black pieces in the final round, he displayed exceptional defensive skills, securing a draw and the championship title with an excellent 7/9 score.

Robert Markus and Alexey Sarana finished on 6/9 and tied for second place. Just like a year ago, Robert Markus took silver (this time, thanks to a better tiebreak). The rating-favorite Alexey Sarana had to settle for bronze.

The champion and the runner-up became the only unbeaten players in the tournament.

Final standings Open:

1	GM	Indjic, Aleksandar	2602	7
2	GM	Markus, Robert	2587	6
3	GM	Sarana, Alexey	2712	6
4	GM	Popovic, Dusan	2486	5
5	GM	Ivanisevic, Ivan	2536	5
6	GM	Perunovic, Milos	2531	4½
7	GM	Atalik, Suat	2450	4
8	GM	Kovacevic, Aleksandar	2482	3½
9	IM	Radovanovic, Nikola	2441	3
10	GM	Muratovic, Alija	2513	1

The women’s section witnessed Irina Chelushkina’s dominance. Conceding only two draws, she finished a clear 1.5 points ahead of the runner-up, WIM Adela Velikic. WIM Jovana Srdanovic earned the bronze medal with 6/9 points.

Final standings Women:

1	WGM	Chelushkina, Irina	2134	8
2	WIM	Velikic, Adela	2290	6½
3	WIM	Srdanovic, Jovana	2134	6
4	WGM	Mandura, Tijana	2224	5
5	WIM	Djukic, Sandra	2118	5
6	WGM	Eric, Jovana	2184	5
7	WFM	Vujovic, Vera	2154	4½
8	WFM	Bukhteeva, Viktoria	2070	3
9		Stankovic, Andrea	1990	2
10		Radenkovic, Mila	1870	0

The chief arbiter IA Vladica Andrejic and the deputy chief arbiter, Zoltan Helenji, officiated the competition, while IO, IA Nebojša Baralić, acted as the championship director.

At the closing ceremony, the president of the Chess Federation of Serbia, Dragan Lazić, and the owner of the “Fantastico Exclusive” hotel, Šandor Lerinc, presented cups and medals to the top finishers. All the participants received gifts from the host and the Serbian Chess Federation (ŠSS).

Official website: serbiachess.org/

Photos: Šahovski savez Srbije

Gawain Jones and Elmira Mirzoeva are the new English Chess Champions, emerging victorious after thrilling tiebreaker battles.

The 2024 English Championship took place in Kenilworth from June 20-23. Both the Open and Women’s competitions were 7-round Swiss tournaments with classical time control.

The open event became a tense race between defending champion Michael Adams, Peter Wells, and Gawain Jones. Although Adams held a half-point lead entering the final round (5.5/6), a draw against Ameet Ghasi opened the door for his competitors. Jones pulled off a crucial victory over Wells on the black side of Ruy Lopez and tied for first place.

According to the tournament regulations, a rapid tiebreaker was played to determine a champion. After winning the first game with black pieces, Jones drew the second one and captured the title.

Final standings Open

The women’s tournament followed a similar script, with Elmira Mirzoeva winning on-demand her final round game to catch up with the defending champion, top seed Katarzyna Toma.

The women’s tiebreaker was a very close affair. Mirzoeva won the first rapid game, but Toma bounced back in the second one, forcing the blitz playoff. There, Elmira prevailed in the first blitz encounter with black pieces and secured the title after drawing the second one.

Final standings Women

Photos: Lennart Ootes and Etery Kublashvili

The 62nd Mongolian Championship and 54th Mongolian Women’s Championship concluded recently in the ceremony hall of Choibalsan Hotel, central Dornod province. Both tournaments, 13-player round-robins with classical time control, were qualifiers for the national teams to represent Mongolia at the 45th Chess Olympiad.

In the open event, IM Ganzorig Amartuvshin quickly pulled away with five straight victories and, despite losing to IM Munkhdalai Amilal in Round 9, finished clear first with an excellent score of 9.5/12, a half-point ahead of FM Sumiya Chinguun. FM Erdene Baasansuren and Munkhdalai Amilal netted 8/12 and tied for third place, with the former claiming bronze thanks to the last-round victory in their direct encounter.

Final standings Open

The women’s section saw the domination of WGM Turmunkh Munkhzul who secured impressive 9.5/12 and finished 1.5 points ahead of the runner-up WGM Batkhuyag Munguntuul. WGM Davaademberel Nomin-Erdene and Erdenebayar Khuslen both scored 7.5/12 and shared third place. The bronze medal goes to Davaademberel, who won their direct encounter.

Final standings Women

The top five players from each section will represent Mongolia at the 45th Chess Olympiad in Hungary in September 2024. Notably, both Mongolian teams are primarily composed of young players this year.

The Mongolian Chess Federation extends its gratitude to all sponsors and supporters for organizing the championship: Chief Organizer Batjargal Dorjsuren (journalist and producer of the MNB Sports channel), General Sponsor “Choibalsan Group” LLC, State Committee for Physical Culture and Sports regulatory agency of Government of Mongolia, Local Governance of Dornod province, Local council in Ulaanbaatar of Bulgan sum and “Step Gold” LLC.

Photos: Mongolian Chess Federation Facebook

Rajan Subedi and Sindira Joshi emerged as the winners of the Nepal Championship 2024 (open and women’s sections, respectively).

The Nepal Chess Championships 2024 took place from June 1-6, 2024, in Kathmandu, Nepal. Both tournaments were 12-player round robins with classical time control.

The open tournament was a fierce battle (neither player completed the event unbeaten), with Rajan Subedi, Shushrut Dahal and Kshitij Bhandari fighting for the top spot most of the way. Going into the final round a half-point ahead of his closest rivals, Rajan defeated Prem Krishna Maharjan to clinch the title.  

Shushrut and Kshitij also won their games and finished a half point behind the champion, tying for second place. Silver goes to Shushrut Dahal thanks to a superior Sonneborn-Berger.

Final standings open:

1		Subedi, Rajan	1959	8
2	AIM	Dahal, Sushrut	1961	7½
3	FM	Bhandari, Kshitiz	2085	7½
4		Nepal, Prakash Chandra	1951	6½
5		Silwal, Purushottam	2112	6
6	FM	Jaiswal, Rupesh	2055	6
7		Maharjan, Suroj	1917	5
8	CM	Lama, Milan	2038	4½
9		Chaudhary, Sushil	1895	4½
10	CM	Shrestha, Keshav	1970	3½
11		Maharjan, Prem Krishna	1923	3½
12		Karki, Rajiv	1813	3½

The women’s tournament was dominated by Sindira Joshi who scored impressive 9/11 and captured the title with a round to spare, despite losing two games. Kritisara Adhikari pulled off a crucial victory over the champion in the final round and finished just a half-point behind, taking silver.

Pooja Bhandari and Shanti Dhimal both netted 8/11 and tied for third place, with the former winning bronze thanks to the victory in their direct encounter.

Final standings women:

1	Joshi, Sindira	1685	9
2	Adhikari, Kritisara	1746	8½
3	Bhandari, Pooja	1683	8
4	Dhimal, Shanti	1672	8
5	Shrestha, Riya	1629	7½
6	Kapali, Binita	1651	7½
7	Gurung, Sushila	1611	4½
8	Prasain, Punam	1558	4½
9	Prajapati, Anshu Dil		3½
10	Guja, Sabina		2½
11	Kibanayo, Prashna		2½
12	Duwal, Shresha		0

The Nepal Championships 2024 served as qualifiers for the national teams for the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest. Vivek Thing, Rupesh Jaiswal, Rajan Subedi, Shushrut Dahal and Kshitij Bhandari have been selected for men’s team. The women’s team will consist of Sujana Lohani, Sindira Joshi, Kritisara Adhikari, Pooja Bhandari and Shanti Dhimal.

Photo: Raju Tamrakar

Radosław Wojtaszek and Alina Kashlinskaya are the new Polish Champions. A rare feat by a married couple! Radosław won his sixth title and is now just one victory short of Wlodzimierz Schmidt’s record (7 titles). Alina claimed her maiden gold in this prestigious event.  In addition to the titles, the new Polish champions will receive cash prizes – 25,000 PLN (approximately USD 6,350) each.

The PGNiG TERMIKA Individual Polish Chess Championship and Dr Irena Eris Cosmetics Individual Polish Women’s Chess Championship took place from May 22 to 30 in Rzeszow, the largest city in southeastern Poland. Unlike the last three editions, the tournaments were played in the same format: a 10-player round-robin.

In the open event, Radosław Wojtaszek confirmed his status as pre-tournament favorite. The top seed turned in an excellent performance, scoring 7/9 and finishing with three straight victories.

Jacek Tomczak and Mateusz Bartel netted 5.5/9 and tied for second place, with the former claiming silver thanks to superior tiebreaks. Wojtaszek and Tomczak became the only unbeaten participants in the event. 

Final standings open:

1.	Wojtaszek, Radosław	2671 +9	7
2.	Tomczak, Jacek	2584 +6	5½
3.	Bartel, Mateusz	2645 -2	5½
4.	Moranda, Wojciech	2554 +4	5
5.	Soćko, Bartosz	2556 -1	4½
6.	Piorun, Kacper	2611 -8	4½
7.	Gumularz, Szymon	2593 -6	4½
8.	Kosakowski, Jakub	2476 +5	4
9.	Psyk, Radosław	2478 -6	3
10.	Koziorowicz, Michał	2324 -5	1½

The women’s competition was a much closer affair that came down to the wire. Alexandra Maltsevskaya led most of the tournament but stumbled in the penultimate round, allowing Alina Kashlinskaya to catch up. Both leaders won their last-round games to finish on 7/9 and share first place. The second seed, Monica Socko, finished third with 6.5 points. 

A rapid tie-breaker was played to determine the champion. After drawing the first game, Alina won the second one with the white pieces and captured the title. 

Final standings women:

1.	Kashlinskaya, Alina	2468  +6	7
2.	Maltsevskaya, Aleksandra	2392  +15	7
3.	Soćko, Monika	2431  +5	6½
4.	Kiolbasa, Oliwia	2387  +1	5½
5.	Antolak, Julia	2309  +12	5
6.	Śliwicka, Alicja	2329  -13	4
7.	Siekańska, Maria	2181  +8	3
8.	Jarocka, Liwia	2234  -9	3
9.	Rudzińska, Michalina	2315  -40	2½
10.	Barwińska, Ewa	2106-19 ​	1½

Photo: Michal Walusza

Official website: mp2024.pzszach.pl/

Photos: Polski Związek Szachowy Facebook

The Open and Women’s Kyrgyzstan Championships 2024 organized by the Kyrgyz Chess Union took place from May 1 to May 11 in the conference hall of the Kyrgyz Chess Union’s office. Both tournaments, 12-player round-robins with classical time control, were held under the supervision of International Arbiter Nurdin uulu Sardarbek.

IM Nikita Khoroshev, with his exceptional performance, clinched the title in the open event. He scored an impressive 8.5 out of 11, including crucial victories over his main rivals, securing his top spot in the final standings. IM Asylbek Abdyzhapar and FM Eldiiar Orozbaev gave the champion a good run for his money, finishing a half-point behind him and tying for second place. Abdyzhapar claimed the silver due to a better Sonneborn-Berger, while Orozbaev settled for the bronze.  

Final standings Open

1	IM	Khoroshev, Nikita	2352	8½
2	IM	Abdyzhapar, Asylbek	2353	8
3	FM	Orozbaev, Eldiar	2379	8
4	IM	Markov, Mikhail	2283	7½
5	FM	Zhakshylykov, Erzhan	2242	7
6	IM	Tologon Tegin, Semetei	2347	6½
7	FM	Sezdbekov, Ruslan	2283	5
8	FM	Maznitsin, Andrei	2164	4½
9	NM	Umarbekov, Aziz	2095	3½
10	CM	Sharshenbekov, Emir	2020	3½
11		Kurbanbaev, Zalkar	1885	3
12	NM	Esenbek Uulu, Ilimbek	2007	1

WFM Alexandra Samaganova (pictured below) dominated the women’s section, scoring 8.5/11 and finishing a full point ahead of WCM Begimay Zhanybekova and Asel Lesbekova. It is her fifth national title.  Zhanybekova and Lesbekova tied for second place, netting 7.5/11, with the former taking silver as the winner of their direct encounter.

Final standings Women

1	WFM	Samaganova, Aleksandra	1915	8½
2	WCM	Zhanybekova, Begimay	1902	7½
3	WCM	Lesbekova, Assel	1880	7½
4	WCM	Sezdbekova, Aizhan	1869	7½
5	WCM	Abaeva, Aiana	1800	6½
6	WMK	Zhunusbekova, Aimonchok	1788	6
7	WFM	Sovetbekova, Nurai	1961	5
8		Tursunalieva, Nurelina	1743	4
9	WMK	Bekbasarova, Nurnisa	1720	4
10	WNM	Omurbekova, Diana	1810	3½
11	WFM	Zairbek Kyzy, Begimai	1916	3½
12		Sabyrbekova, Aizhan	1622	2½

Photos: Kyrgyz Chess Union

III Cape Verdean Women’s Championship took place from May 2-5 at the Grémio Desportivo Amarante hall in S. Vicente.

The round robin, with classical time control, stretched over four days and brought together eight players from five islands (Sal, Santiago Sul, Santo Antão, S. Nicolau and S. Vicente). 

It was a highly competitive tournament with the fate of the championship decided in the very end.

As the final round approached, the defending champion and rating favorite Célia Rodriguez (pictured below) was only a half-point ahead of Deise Pereira. Deise, showing her mettle, won her game and put additional pressure on the tournament leader. However, Célia rose to the challenge, defeating Erika Perez with the black pieces and securing her third national title.

Deise Pereira, who debuted in an official chess competition, took silver (6/7) and earned the Women’s National Master’s norm. Jacira Almeida netted 4/7, winning bronze. 

Notably, as many as four participants didn’t have a FIDE rating, with three scoring against players with an international rating. With more games against rated players in the future, they will get a FIDE rating. This is great news, given that the Cape Verdean Federation has only nine female players with FIDE Elo.

Final standings:

1	WCM	Rodriguez, Celia	1869	6½
2		Pereira, Deise		6
3		Almeida, Jacira Laura	1606	4
4		Spinola, Divania	1575	3½
5		Moreno, Akiane	1594	3
6		Oliveira, Mirian Nataly		2
7		Gomes, Samara		2
8		Pérez, Erika		1

Text and photos: Cape Verdean Chess Federation