Chess · Worth knowing

The group stage of the inaugural FIDE World University Team Championship Finals concluded in Almaty, Kazakhstan, with eight quarterfinalists confirmed after three days of competition. The eight advancing teams are Ural State Mining University and Harvard University from Pool A, Saint Louis University and Universidad de Chile from Pool B, The University of Texas at Dallas and National Technical University of Athens from Pool C, and Kazakh National University of Sports and Universitas Gunadarma from Pool D. The quarterfinal matchups pit Ural State Mining against Universitas Gunadarma, Harvard against KNUS, Saint Louis against National Technical University of Athens, and Universidad de Chile against University of Texas at Dallas. FIDE General Secretary Łukasz Turlej underscored the championship's significance for chess in education, noting growing recognition of chess as a tool for developing student skills and pointing to rising university scholarship opportunities for strong chess players. Players from competing universities—including Peking University, University of Melbourne, University of Pretoria, Oxford, and Cambridge—reflected on the value of international competition and how chess develops resilience and mental discipline applicable to academic pursuits.

Sirimalla Srivatsa won the Level Up 2026 tournament held on August 1, 2026 in Tokyo, securing first place in Class A with a perfect 4.5/5 score in the 5-round Swiss rapid format. The tournament drew 94 players across four classes; Akiyama Kairi topped Class B (4.5/5), Murata Den won Class C (4.0/5), and Yao Yoichiro finished undefeated in Class D (5.0/5).