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Chess

Turkmenistan’s Allayar Shirliev Wins Abu Dhabi Chess Tournament

Allayar Shirliev was a conscripted soldier when he became Turkmenistan’s national chess champion in 2024 and has said he wants to break the world record for playing the most games simultaneously while blindfolded. The 22-year-old Turkmen player has now won a chess tournament in the United Arab Emirates, the Turkmenportal platform and other media reported. Shirliev won the Open A tournament at the 32nd International Chess Festival in Abu Dhabi, which was held from August 15 to August 24. The Open A category is for players with a rating of 2299 and below under the rules of FIDE, the international governing body of chess. The top ten players in the world all have ratings above 2750. Shirliev, whose chess title is candidate master, entered the Abu Dhabi tournament with a classical chess rating of 2184, and his victory is expected to raise his rating by about 40 points when FIDE publishes new figures. He won eight out of a possible nine points in the competition, drawing with two players who have the more advanced international master title, Bashir Eiti of Syria and Richilieu III Salcedo of the Philippines. In a separate category, Uzbek grandmaster Jakhongir Vakhidov won the masters tournament for players with a rating of 2,300 and above in Abu Dhabi. Next month, Uzbekistan will host the FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, fielding a team led by Javokhir Sindarov, winner of the FIDE Candidates Tournament in April. Born in Ashgabat, Shirliev is eager to push his limits. In April 2021, he played 25 games simultaneously while blindfolded and was planning another 30-game event, state media in Turkmenistan reported. Then, in July of that year, he played 40 games blindfolded, according to the InAshgabat news site. The world record for simultaneous games while blindfolded is held by Uzbek-born Timur Gareyev, according to Guinness World Records. He played 48 games at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas in 2016. He won 35 games, drew seven, and lost six. Hungarian grandmaster János Flesch played 52 opponents simultaneously while blindfolded in Budapest in 1960. But the performance wasn’t recognized as a world record.

Chess

Will Host Uzbekistan Be the “Most Dangerous Team” at the Chess Olympiad?

Some 400 teams have been confirmed for the FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, next month, an increase of 20 teams over the previous record number that competed at the Olympiad in Budapest, Hungary two years ago. In the open section, the United States is the top seed with Fabiano Caruana leading the five-player team, while India will aim to defend its 2024 title with Arjun Erigaisi at the head of its lineup, according to FIDE, the international governing body of chess. “The host nation might be the most dangerous team in Samarkand,” FIDE said this week. Uzbekistan’s Javokhir Sindarov, winner of the prestigious Candidates Tournament in April, leads the team, ahead of Nodirbek Abdusattorov, another of the world’s top players. Nodirbek Yakubboev, Shamsiddin Vokhidov, Madaminov will also play for Uzbekistan, which won the Chess Olympiad in Chennai, India in 2022 and took bronze in Budapest. China is also fielding a strong team in the open section, while Germany is seeded fifth. The gender-neutral category is called open because women have occasionally participated in male-dominated chess events. In the women’s competition in Samarkand, India is the top seed with Humpy Koneru at the head of the team, followed by Georgia, China, Kazakhstan and the U.S., according to FIDE. Kazakhstan’s female chess players have been progressing strongly in recent years, finishing fifth at the Chess Olympiad in Chennai, India in 2022, and second in Budapest in 2024. Bibisara Asaubayeva, who was second at the women’s Candidates tournament this year, leads her squad, followed by Alua Nurman, Meruert Kamalidenova, Elnaz Kaliakhmet and Zarina Nurgaliyeva. Host Uzbekistan is seeded 13th on the women’s side in Samarkand. The Chess Olympiad will feature 11 rounds of classical chess from September 16 to 27.

Chess

Kyrgyzstan Chess Development a Priority Says Japarov

Kyrgyzstan chess development is a priority of state social policy, according to a decree signed by the country's president, Sadyr Japarov. Through measures such as after school clubs and training a new generation of teachers, Kyrgyzstan to the sport known as the "Game of Kings". The decree, titled “On Urgent Measures for the Development and Popularization of Chess in the Kyrgyz Republic for 2026-2030,” calls for creating conditions to broaden access to chess and strengthen the country’s system for training players and coaches. Under the decree, the Cabinet of Ministers and the Kyrgyz Chess Union have been tasked with drafting a National Program for the Development and Popularization of Chess by September 1, 2026. A Chess Development Fund is also envisaged to provide financial backing for the sport. One of the centerpiece projects is “Chess in Schools,” a pilot program that will introduce after-school chess clubs at 500 schools across the country for students in Grades 3-5 . The decree also establishes annual presidential awards for the country’s best chess player and best chess coach, with nominees to be proposed by the Kyrgyz Chess Union. The initiative has been welcomed by Aida Salyanova, the newly elected president of the Kyrgyz Chess Union and a former prosecutor general of Kyrgyzstan. Salyanova said government support creates an opportunity to turn chess into one of Kyrgyzstan’s intellectual brands and a tool for developing strategic thinking, discipline, and decision-making skills amongst young people. In a statement published after her election on May 23, she described state support for chess as an investment in human capital rather than merely support for a sport. “Chess should become part of the country’s modern educational, digital, and intellectual environment,” Salyanova said, adding that the long-term goal is to create a sustainable system extending from school chess programs to international competitive success. Kyrgyzstan has an active chess scene, though it remains a modest player internationally. At the 2025 national championship, the open title was won by International Master Eldiyar Orozbaev, while Woman FIDE Master Begimai Zairbek Kyzy won the women’s event. Five of the top 10 finishers in the open tournament were under 20, suggesting the country already has a young competitive base on which the new program can build. The decree comes as chess is attracting wider attention across Central Asia. Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov won the elite Tata Steel Chess Tournament in the Netherlands in early 2026 and later rose to fourth in the live world rankings after victory at the Prague Chess Festival Masters. Kazakhstan has also been investing in chess education, including through KazChessLab, a program designed to train chess teachers for secondary schools.

Chess

Chess: Sindarov Wins Candidates Contest, Will Face World Champion

Javokhir Sindarov of Uzbekistan has won the eight-player FIDE Candidates Tournament, earning the opportunity to challenge world chess champion Gukesh Dommaraju of India later this year. Sindarov drew a game against Anish Giri at the tournament venue in Cyprus on Tuesday, “and with one round remaining, Sindarov holds a commanding two-point lead over the rest of the field,” said FIDE, the international governing body of chess. On the women’s side, Bibisara Asaubayeva of Kazakhstan defeated Ukrainian Anna Muzychuk on Tuesday to move into a tie for first place with India’s R. Vaishali. The women’s final round on Wednesday “will determine whether there will be an outright winner or a tiebreak will be required,” FIDE said. “Up to six of the eight players still have a theoretical chance to win the event.” Sindarov, who won the 2025 World Cup in Goa, India, was one of Uzbekistan’s youngest national champions in history, achieving that goal at the age of 13. He is now 20 years old. Magnus Carlsen of Norway currently doesn’t play in the candidates tournament format even though he is the top-ranked classical chess player in the world.

Chess

Sindarov and Asaubayeva: Two Top Chess Players from Central Asia Form Friendship

He’s from Uzbekistan, and she’s from Kazakhstan. They’re elite chess players and good friends accustomed to the high-pressure environment of international tournaments. They went horse-riding together during downtime in South Africa and, on another occasion, played a game in which they had to guess each other’s character quirks. Both are competing right now in Cyprus, where Uzbekistani Javokhir Sindarov is the frontrunner in the eight-player FIDE Candidates Tournament that will determine who challenges the world champion later this year. On the women’s side, Kazakhstani Bibisara Asaubayeva was tied for first place in the early stages of the event but has since slipped further down in the field. Sindarov, 20, became a grandmaster at the age of 12, won the 2025 World Cup in Goa, India, and has impressed the chess community with his commanding performance in Cyprus so far. Asaubayeva, 22, won the Women’s World Blitz Championship in 2021, 2022, and 2025, and achieved grandmaster status last year as well. Sindarov and Asaubayeva talk with each other about chess, and the player from Kazakhstan said her friend from Uzbekistan wrote to her when he won last year’s World Cup, which led to his qualification for this year’s candidates tournament. In an interview with the TimesofIndia.com, Asaubayeva said she was delighted when her “closest friend” won in Goa. FIDE, the international governing body of chess, described the pair as “2 Happy Winners!” after they won their round three games in Cyprus and left the venue together. In December, Sindarov and Asaubayeva took a horse-riding break together during the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Finals, which was held at the Grootbos Private Nature Reserve near Cape Town in South Africa. They took a selfie together. Predictably, the friendship has led to social media chatter about whether there is a romance, as well as speculation about whether chess might one day have a “king” and “queen” if they become world champions or eventually reach the top of the rankings. One thing seems sure: They don’t mind poking fun at each other and themselves. A Freestyle Chess video short shows them answering questions, including “Who is more likely to blunder the queen in time trouble?” and “Who gets angry more quickly?” and “Who has the better haircut?” and “Who would survive longer in a zombie apocalypse?” The answer to the last one: Asaubayeva thinks she would do better against the zombies, but Sindarov believes he’d last longer.

Chess

Big Names in Chess Praise Sindarov, Now Candidates Frontrunner

The chess world knew Javokhir Sindarov was dangerous heading into the FIDE Candidates Tournament this year, even though he was making his debut at the prestigious event and, at 20 years old, is the youngest of the eight elite contenders. But few people expected the Uzbekistani phenomenon to tear through the field in the first week of the event, racking up five wins and two draws so far in the 14-round tournament. Sindarov has six points out of a possible total of seven, and a 1.5 point lead over second-placed Fabiano Caruana of the United States. He is the strong frontrunner to win the event and earn the right to challenge the current world champion, India’s Gukesh Dommaraju, later this year. Monday was a rest day and there are still seven games to go at the candidates tournament being played this year in Cyprus. But some of the biggest names in chess are in awe over Sindarov’s aggressive, resourceful performance. “Incredible result so far!” former world champion Garry Kasparov said on X on April 3 after Sindarov’s wins over second-ranked Caruana and third-ranked Hikaru Nakamura. “Do not underestimate the boost that confidence plays after a strong start. You trust your instincts more, a positive cycle of intuition and performance. Meanwhile, your opponents doubt themselves against you.” Judit Polgár, often described as the best female chess player of all time, said that Sindarov will be at the top of the game for many years regardless of what happens at this year’s candidates tournament. “He is 20 years old, a fearless player, a genius in management,” said Polgár, who is the subject of a Netflix documentary titled Queen of Chess. “Can he keep calm and stay focused until the very end of the tournament? Will he be able to handle the pressure of being so close to becoming the next World Championship challenger?” Nigel Short of Britain, who rose to third in the world in the late 1980s and is currently FIDE director of chess development, compared Sindarov to a young Boris Spassky, the former world champion from Russia who died in 2025. Sindarov, Short said on Facebook, is “a classical player with an excellent feeling for the initiative, who stays calm and trusts his own judgement in dynamic positions.” Sindarov, who won the 2025 World Cup in Goa, India, was one of Uzbekistan’s youngest national champions in history, achieving that goal at the age of 13. Still, right now, compatriot Nodirbek Abdusattorov is the higher-ranked player. Abdusattorov didn’t qualify for this year’s candidates tournament, though he recently won several consecutive tournaments. Magnus Carlsen of Norway currently doesn’t play in the candidates tournament format even though he is the top-ranked classical chess player in the world. But he is also keeping an eye on Sindarov, saying “nobody” expected such a strong start to the event.