Abdusattorov wins Masters for the second time, Czech player Václav Finěk wins Challengers
The champion of the eighth edition of the Prague International Chess Festival Masters tournament is Nodirbek Abdusattorov. The Uzbek GM won the tournament for the second time, becoming the first player in history to achieve this. He took a confident step towards the title in the penultimate round, when he defeated Czech Masters representative David Navara. In the final round, Abdusattorov only needed a draw against Hans Niemann to secure his victory. “Prague is one of the nicest and also luckiest places for me. I won two super tournaments here and I really enjoyed the event. Someday I hope to return. Last year I took a break, so maybe next year I will do the same and aim for 2028,” the winner laughed, hinting that instead of a direct title defense he might rely on the same proven recipe.
The final standings were not decided until the last round. The silver medal in the most prestigious category ultimately went to Parham Maghsoodloo, while the bronze was claimed by last year’s defending champion Aravindh Chithambaram. Both players benefited from their games against the previously confident Jorden van Foreest, with the Dutch grandmaster ultimately finishing in an unpopular fourth place. World Champion Gukesh D fell behind expectations, but the final round improved his overall impression of the tournament as he defeated David Anton Guijarro.
| RK. | Name | ELO | FED | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | PTS | DE | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | GM ABDUSATTOROV Nodirbek | 2751 | UZB | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 6 | 0 | 26 | |
| 2. | GM MAGHSOODLOO Parham | 2708 | IRI | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 5 | 1 | 22,25 | |
| 3. | GM ARAVINDH Chithambaram Vr. | 2700 | IND | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 21,75 | |
| 4. | GM VAN FOREEST Jorden | 2705 | NED | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 21,25 | |
| 5. | GM NAVARA David | 2628 | CZE | 0 | 1 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 4,5 | 1 | 19,5 | |
| 6. | GM YAKUBBOEV Nodirbek | 2691 | UZB | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 4,5 | 2 | 19,25 | |
| 7. | GM KEYMER Vincent | 2776 | GER | ½ | 0 | 1 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 4 | 0 | 17,5 | |
| 8. | GM NIEMANN Hans Moke | 2725 | USA | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 4 | 0 | 17,25 | |
| 9. | GM GUKESH D | 2754 | IND | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 3,5 | 1 | 14,5 | |
| 10. | GM ANTON GUIJARRO David | 2666 | ESP | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3,5 | 2 | 17,75 |
(from the left:) prezident of Novy Bor Chess Club and main sponsor PICF Roman Mužík, silver Parham Maghsoodloo, the world champion in beachvolleyball Ondřej Perušič, the winner Nodirbek Abdusattorov, director of the festival Petr Boleslav, bronz Aravindh Chithambaram and founder of SWIFT bank system Bessel Kok
Challengers
Much to the delight of the home crowd, the Challengers tournament has its first Czech winner. Václav Finěk, who previously competed in the youngest Futures category, secured the title. Thanks to this victory, he will join the ranks of local players who have competed among the elite. His promotion to the 2027 Masters also marks a historic milestone. Finěk, who stayed undefeated in Prague, will become the only Czech player in Prague International Chess Festival history to compete in all three closed tournaments, having previously played in the Futures and now the Challengers before advancing to the Masters. “I feel very good, because I played good chess, I think,” said the Czech talent, satisfied not only with the tournament but also with his own play. “I like that I will be able to play against very strong players next year,” he appreciated his promotion among the biggest chess stars.
With five wins in total, Daniil Yuffa secured an excellent second place, and the third spot went to Divya Deshmukh. The bronze medal from Prague moved the Indian GM into the top 10 of the women’s live rating list and tuned her in for the upcoming Women’s Candidates Tournament.
| RK. | Name | ELO | FED | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | PTS | DE | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | IM FINEK Vaclav | 2538 | CZE | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 6,5 | 0 | 28,25 | |
| 2. | GM YUFFA Daniil | 2604 | ESP | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 24,5 | |
| 3. | GM DIVYA Deshmukh | 2497 | IND | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 22,5 | |
| 4. | GM GLEDURA Benjamin | 2652 | HUN | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | 4,5 | 1 | 19,5 | |
| 5. | GM BJERRE Jonas Buhl | 2629 | DEN | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 4,5 | 2 | 18,25 | |
| 6. | IM NEMEC Jachym | 2466 | CZE | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4,5 | 2 | 16,75 | |
| 7. | GM BEERDSEN Thomas | 2525 | NED | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 4 | 1 | 16,25 | |
| 8. | GM GANGULY Surya Shekhar | 2568 | IND | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | 4 | 2 | 17,25 | |
| 9. | IM HRBEK Stepan | 2463 | CZE | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 3,5 | 0 | 14,75 | |
| 10. | GM ZHU Jiner | 2578 | CHN | ½ | 0 | 1 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 2,5 | 0 | 12,5 |
(from left:) director of Czech Chess Federation Martin Petr, silver Daniil Yuffa, the winner Václav Finěk, bronz Divya Deshmukh and viceprezident FIDE Lukasz Turlej
Futures
Apart from the home players, the strongest representation in the Futures tournament came from Poland, and it was one of the popular Rzadkowski sisters, Kaja, who lifted the trophy for first place. With seven points, she recorded the best result across the three closed tournaments. "I was watching my sister’s game and I saw that she had the better position. She helped me win this tournament,” she shared the laurels with Lila Rzadkowska, whose draw against Christina Jordan prevented any potential complications for the Polish winner.
Christina Jordan finished half a point behind the winner, while third place went to Czech player Zuzana Stará, who scored 5/9. This year’s Futures tournament featured only female players. The Prague International Chess Festival plans to continue this tradition next year.
| RK. | Name | ELO | FED | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | PTS | DE | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | WCM RZADKOWSKA Kaja | 1906 | POL | ½ | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 27,75 | |
| 2. | WCM JORDAN Christina | 1889 | SUI | ½ | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 6,5 | 0 | 26,75 | |
| 3. | STARA Zuzana | 1976 | CZE | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 18 | |
| 4. | ALESSI Clio | 1886 | ITA | 1 | 1 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 24,75 | |
| 5. | NGUYEN DOAN Bao Anh Angelina | 1853 | POL | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 5 | 2 | 17,75 | |
| 6. | MARKINA Sofiia | 1867 | CZE | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 4,5 | 0 | 17 | |
| 7. | WCM RZADKOWSKA Lila | 1836 | POL | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 16,75 | |
| 8. | WCM SCHIRMBECK Lilian | 2035 | GER | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 11,5 | |
| 9. | WFM TOLMACEVA Alona | 1876 | LAT | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2,5 | 1 | 9,75 | |
| 10. | WCM HRCKOVA Anna | 2039 | CZE | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2,5 | 2 | 11 |
(from left:) prezident ECU Zurab Azmaiparashvili, silver Christina Jordan, the winner Kaja Rzadkowska, bronz Zuzana Stará and manager of the Futures tournament Petr Pisk.
Open Tournament
The Challengers nomination for the winner of the Karel Janeček Open tournament went to the legendary Krishnan Sasikiran. The fifth Indian grandmaster in history lost a mere point, and thanks to his excellent performance he will compete at the main stage in 2027. Although he slightly regretted missing several promising positions after his successful start in the opening rounds, he later changed the pace and managed to build on that strong beginning. “I played rounds six through eight quite quickly and managed to win all of them. It always feels like a second home for me here,” Sasikiran praised the atmosphere of the tournament, which he will surely enjoy again in next year’s Challengers.
Irina Bulmaga was announced as the best female player of the Open, while the best Czech player, Richard Stalmach, earned a nomination for the Czech Championship. This year’s Open tournament once again set a new record, with 354 players from 51 countries taking part.
| RK. | Name | FED | ELO | PTS | BH | BH2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | GM Sasikiran, Krishnan | IND | 2538 | 8 | 51 | 55 |
| 2. | IM Gloeckler, Christian | GER | 2446 | 7,5 | 50,5 | 55,5 |
| 3. | FM Cnejev, Vladimir-Alexandru | ROU | 2414 | 7,5 | 45 | 48,5 |
| 4. | GM Ioannidis, Evgenios | GRE | 2469 | 7 | 50,5 | 55 |
| 5. | GM Zhao, Jun | CHN | 2533 | 7 | 49,5 | 54 |
| 6. | IM Mayank, Chakraborty | IND | 2473 | 7 | 49,5 | 53,5 |
| 7. | GM Haring, Filip | SVK | 2461 | 7 | 49 | 53,5 |
| 8. | FM Haug, Havard | NOR | 2412 | 7 | 47 | 50 |
| 9. | IM Bulmaga, Irina | ROU | 2395 | 7 | 46 | 50 |
| 10. | IM Gkoumas, Georgios | GRE | 2433 | 7 | 45,5 | 49,5 |
(from left:) director of the Glass factory AJETO David Ševčík and the winner Krishnan Sasikiran
The attention of the crowd in the City of a Hundred Spires was also drawn to young talent Sabartho Mani, who dominated the Blitz tournament and received the Grand Prix trophy. David Navara received the Lubomír Kavalek Prize for his game in the Masters after a brilliant performance. A game that quite literally travelled around the world. The final day traditionally concluded with a Hand & Brain tournament following the closing ceremony. This entertaining variation of the royal game brought the biggest applause for the duo of Thomas Beerdsen and Anna Hrčková.
The Prague International Chess Festival would like to thank all its partners and fans who watched the live stream or visited us in person at the Don Giovanni Hotel. The ninth edition of the Prague International Chess Festival will take place from 23 February to 5 March 2027. We look forward to seeing you!