Chess · Worth knowing

GM Alireza Firouzja won the Super Rapid & Blitz Croatia 2026, the third stop of the Grand Chess Tour, after defeating wildcard GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov in a historic first-ever Armageddon tiebreak to decide a GCT event. Firouzja had built a commanding three-point lead but nearly lost it when Abdusattorov mounted a stunning comeback on the final day, forcing the tiebreaker which Firouzja won to claim the title and $47,500. The tournament, held in Zagreb from June 29 to July 6, featured ten of the world's elite players including World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju and tour standouts Vincent Keymer, Anish Giri, and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu. With three events complete, Firouzja vaulted into third place in the overall GCT standings behind Fabiano Caruana and Vincent Keymer, as the tour heads to Saint Louis, Missouri for its second half.

Nithin Babu won the 360 One Challengers Below 2400 Chess Tournament 2026 with an unbeaten 8/9 points, with Madhesh Kumar S, Arul Anandh S P K, and Samyak Dharewa finishing in the next places. FM Arun Kataria scored 8.5/9 to win the Baderia Global International Open Fide Rapid Rating Chess Tournament 2026. Rudra Pratap won the 39th National Under-7 Open Chess Championship with 8/9 points, while Liyaa Krishnan of Maharashtra scored a perfect 9/9 to win the Under-7 Girls title. Alireza Firouzja won the Super Chess Rapid and Blitz Croatia 2026, claiming the title in an Armageddon playoff against Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Aswath S became India's 98th Grandmaster by winning on demand with the Black pieces in the final round of the Pune International GM Round Robin 2026. The 59th Biel International Chess Festival is set to take place from July 11-24, 2026, in Switzerland, featuring the signature Triathlon format across Classical, Rapid, and Blitz, with Women's World Championship Challenger R Vaishali participating. India will host the Asian Junior Open & Girls Chess Championships 2026 in Mumbai from August 16-26, 2026.

Uganda's Sr. Miriam Duggan Primary School won the African Continental Stage of the World Schools Team Championship in Stellenbosch, finishing with 14 match points from a possible 16 across eight rounds. Kenya's Moi Nyeri Complex Primary School took silver after drawing their final match against Zimbabwe's Budiriro 4 Primary School, while South Africa's Welgemoed Primary School claimed bronze. The tournament featured teams from across Africa competing for three places at the Grand Final in December, with Uganda's victory driven by a strong performance that included two clean sweeps and the tournament's best individual game score of 24½ points.