The 196th Internet-based FIDE Arbiters’ Seminar is going to be organized from 10/08/2025 to 14/08/2025 by the Asian Chess Federation, under the auspices of FIDE.
The Lecturer will be IA/IO Abdulrahim, Mahdi (UAE), FIDE Lecturer.
The language of the Seminar will be Arabic.
The Seminar will give norms and titles of FIDE Arbiter, according to the Regulations for the titles of Arbiters.
Schedule:
Sunday 10th August 2025 17:30 to 19:00 Laws of Chess (Standard)
19:15 to 20:45 Laws of Chess (Standard)
21:00 to 22:00 Laws of Chess (Rapid, Blitz)
Monday 11th August 2025 17:30 to 19:50 Laws of Chess (Practice-Case’s)
19:50 to 20:50 Chess Terms in English
21:00 to 22:00 Use of electronic clocks
Tuesday 12th August 2025 17:30 to 19:00 FIDE Competition Rules and standards of chess equipment
19:15 to 20:45 Swiss system and pairing rules
21:00 to 22:00 System of games, tie breaks
Wednesday 13th August 2025 17:30 to 19:00 Rating and over‐the‐board titles
19:15 to 20:45 Regulations for the titles of Arbiters
21:00 to 22:00 Anti‐cheating Guidelines for Arbiters
Thursday 14th August 2025 Examination Test (4 hours) from 17:30 to 21:30 pm Dubai Time.
FIDE, in partnership with Lichess.org, invites chess-lovers from around the world to take part in the largest-ever Social Chess Day tournament — a 24-hour blitz marathon celebrating International Chess Day on July 20!
Event Details:
* Format: 5+3 Blitz (5 minutes + 3 seconds increment)
* Platform: Lichess.org * Start Time: 00:00 CEST (Zurich time) on July 20
* End Time: 00:00 CEST on July 21
* Entry: Open to players of any skill level, from all time zones — join anytime and play as many games as you want!
Amazing Prizes Await!
All participants will be automatically entered into random prize draws, with a chance to win:
Exclusive experiences:
5 winners will get vouchers to attend the Opening Ceremony & Round 1 of the 2026 FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, including 2 nights of hotel stay.
This is more than just a tournament — it’s a global celebration of the game we all love. Whether you play one game or one hundred, you’re part of the movement. Let’s make July 20 a day to remember!
BPK PENABUR under the auspices of the Indonesian Chess Federation (PERCASI) and the Asian Chess Federation (ACF) alongwith the International Chess Federation (FIDE), is honored to invite all National Chess Federations from Zone 3.3 to participate in the BPK PENABUR Asian Zone 3.3 Schools Chess Competition to be organized in Jakarta, Indonesia from 27th August (arrival) to 31st August (departure) 2025.
The goal is to foster students’ achievements in chess so they can progress to a higher level. The tournament is open to FIDE member countries in Asian Zone 3.3.
The venue shall be at the PENABUR Intercultural School Kelapa Gading Jl. Boulevard Bukit Gading Raya Blok A5-A8, Kelapa Gading, Jakarta. https://maps.app.goo.gl/ucJvrCri5pVV6hQn6
Two (2) players from all categories and one (1) head of delegation per country are entitled to free board and lodging starting from 27th August 2025 (after 14.00) to 31st August (before noon) at the El Hotel, Kelapa Gading, Jakarta.
Jing Fong Joash Chan (SGP), Ravi Krishna G, Vijay Rege and Stefanus Kf Phan (SGP) scored 7/9 each at 2nd SMU Chess Classic Rating 2025 held 16th to 21st June 2025 at the Singapore Management University School of Economics in Singapore.
Jing won the tournament due to better tie-breaks. The remaining three were placed second to fourth respectively. Top three remained undefeated. Ravi drew against Jing in Round 8. The total prize fund was Giftano gift cards worth SG$ 2600. The top three prizes were $250, $200 and $180 along with a trophy each. The six-day nine round rating tournament was organized by SMU Intellectual Sports at . Photo: FA Khor Eng Yeow
Top four score 7/9
The second edition of SMU Chess Classic witnessed the total participation of 132 players, 56 in Classical and 76 in Blitz Rating Open.
Champion – Jing Fong Joash Chan (SGP) 7/9 | Photo: FA Khor Eng Yeow
Runner-up – Ravi Krishna G 7/9 | Photo: FA Khor Eng Yeow
Second Runner-up – Vijay Rege (SGP) 7/9 | Photo: FA Khor Eng Yeow
Players in action | Photo: FA Khor Eng Yeow
Trophies for the prize winners | Photo: FA Khor Eng Yeow
A total of 56 players took part from Brazil, China, India, Malaysia and Singapore. The six-day nine round rating tournament was organized by SMU Intellectual Sports at Singapore Management University School of Economics in Singapore from 16th to 21st June 2025. The time control of the event was 90 minutes + 30 seconds increment per move.
Kazakhstan Chess Federation invites you to Almaty Region Open 2025 – Qonaev Cup. The tournament has three sections – Masters (> 2400), Challengers (>1900) and Open (<1900). The total prize fund is – US$ 100000, $78000 for Masters, $15000 for Challengers and $7000 for Open. The top three prizes are US$ 18000, 14000 and 10000. Entry is FREE for 2600+ in Masters, GM, IM, WGM, WIM in Challengers and Open. Conditions are offered to 2600+ players. GM Aditya Mittal won two tournaments in Kazakhstan in 2023. Kumar Gaurav won Oskemen Open 2024 last year. GM Aryan Chopra secured second place at the recently concluded Aktobe Open 2025 last month. You could be the next one. Check out the article for more information. All tournament info photos are from tournament circular.
Almaty Region Open 2025 – Qonaev Cup will take place from 3rd to 12th August 2025 | Photo: Kazakhstan Chess Federation
Venue, Schedule, Entry fee and Eligibility
The tournament will take place in Almaty, Kazakhstan from 3rd to 12th August 2025. Exact venue will be notified later by KazChess. There is only one round each day for Masters, Challengers and Open tournament. Check out the images below for schedule, entry fee and eligibility details. Participation limit in each event is 100.
Schedule
Eligibility and entry fee details
Prizes
The total prize fund is US$ 100000, $78000 for Masters. The top three prizes in the Masters (>2400) tournament are US$ 18000, $14000 and $10000. There are 16 prizes, top 15 and best scorer among women. Challengers (>1900) tournament has a prize fund of US$15000. The top three prizes in Challengers are US$ 4000, $3000 and $2000. The total prize fund for Open (<1900) tournament is US$ 7000. The top three prizes are $2000, $1500 and $1000. Please check the images below for complete prize details.
Masters, Challengers and Open tournament prize details
Conditions
Check the image below for information about conditions for the invited players rated above 2600.
One of the world’s most prestigious chess festivals is back with its 31st edition! The crown jewel of the festival, Abu Dhabi Masters, is all set to take place from 15th to 24th August 2025 in Abu Dhabi. With a total prize fund of USD 55,500, the event promises to be a great thrill for players as well as fans. The festival will feature 17 different exciting tournaments to offer an opportunity for players of all levels. Like every year, the stakes are high, with USD 15,000 reserved for the winner of the Masters event! Scroll down to explore what’s in store at this chess festival! Photo: Abu Dhabi Chess Festival
The 1st edition of the Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival took place back in 1991. Emirati International Master Saeed Ahmed Saeed (2435) was the Champion of the first edition! 30 more editions of this prestigious tournament have taken place since then.
A total of 17 different chess events will take place as part of the Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival 2025, scheduled from 15th to 24th August. The major attraction, as always, is the Masters tournament, because of its incredibly strong field. Many players from around the world have already confirmed their participation in this year’s event. In the Master’s section, Parham Maghsoodloo is currently the highest-rated player on the list.
Venue
The official hotel for the festival will be Radisson Blu Abu Dhabi Corniche Hotel. All tournament games will take place within the hotel itself, so the players don’t need to travel between the accommodation and the playing venue. Participants also have the option to stay at The St. Regis Abu Dhabi, where rooms will be available at discounted rates
The World Champion, D Gukesh topped SuperUnited Rapid 2025. Despite starting the tournament with a loss, he scored 14/16 in his next eight games. On the final day of Rapid, he started with a draw against Anish Giri (NED). Then he salvaged a draw versus Ivan Saric (CRO) who could have pushed for more. Gukesh finished the Rapid portion with a win over Wesley So (USA). He is at the top of standings. Jan-Krzysztof Duda (POL) scored 11/16 to finish second. He is the only player to remain undefeated. The World no.1, Magnus Carlsen (NOR) is at third place 10/18, followed by Fabiano Caruana (USA) and R Praggnanandhaa at 9/18 each. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour
D Gukesh started the Blitz event with a four point lead over the rest. He passed the Rapid test with flying colors as he convincingly finished at the top. The next 18 games of Blitz span over two days.
The World Champion – D Gukesh topped the Rapid 14/18 | Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour
SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz had three rounds per day in the Rapid portion from 2nd to 4th July. The Blitz event took place on 5th and 6th July. It was a double round-robin event for the Blitz i.e. nine rounds played on each day. It was a 10-player Round Robin event. Time control for Rapid was 25 minutes + 10 seconds increment. For Blitz, it was 5 minutes + 2 seconds increment.
The total prize fund for each of the Rapid and Blitz event was US$ 175.000. The top three prizes were $40,000, $30,000 and $25,000.
L to R: 2nd Ryo Noda (JPN) 4/5, 1st IM Shinya Kojima (JPN) 5/5 and 3rd Teruomi Higashishiba (JPN) 4/5
by Sheldon Donaldson – 08/07/2025
IM Shinya Kojima, top seed of the tournament and Japan no.5won the tournament which took place in Nagoya, Japan scoring a perfect 5/5. Ryo Noda (JPN) and Teruomi Higashishiba (JPN) scored 4/5 each. They secured second and third place according to tie-breaks. Visit chess-results.com for round by round results and standings.
Photos: Sheldon Donaldson
L to R: Under 1750 winner – Tetsushi Sawamura (JPN) 3.5/5. Under 1850 winner – Ryo Noda (JPN) 4/5
The 192nd Internet Based FIDE Arbiters’ Seminar was held from 27th to 29th June 2025. It was organized by the Asian Chess Federation, under the auspices of FIDE.
The Lecturer was IA/IO Abundo, Casto (UAE) and the Assistant Lecturer was IA/IO Pahlevanzadeh, Mehrdad (IRI), FIDE Lecturer.
The Language of the Seminar was English.
Twenty (20) arbiters from eleven (11) national chess federations (AUS, BAN, CAN, CHN, IND, MRI, RSA, SRI, TUR, VIE, and ZIM) participated in the Seminar, and all of them participated in the examination test, held after the end of the lectures.
The following succeeded in the test and they will be awarded a norm for the title of the FIDE Arbiter, after the approval of the next FIDE Council:
GM Xiao Tong and WGM Li Xueyi won the Open and Women’s sections of the 2025 Chinese National Championships, respectively, securing their first national titles.
The 2025 edition of the Chinese Championship—held for the 17th consecutive year in Hou Yifan’s hometown of Xinghua, Jiangsu, from June 26 to July 3—adopted an 11-round Swiss system format, replacing the traditional round-robin structure. The total prize fund amounted to 500,000 RMB, with 120,000 RMB awarded to the Open champion and 80,000 RMB to the Women’s tournament winner. The Open section featured 60 players, while the Women’s section attracted 34 participants. Notably, top national players such as Ding Liren, Wei Yi, Yu Yangyi, Ju Wenjun, Zhu Jiner, and Tan Zhongyi were absent from the event.
In the Open section, GM Xiao Tong (pictured above) delivered an excellent performance, scoring 8/11 (5 wins, 6 draws) to capture the title—continuing his strong form after winning the China New Stars tournament two months earlier.
Four players—Kong Xiangrui, Zhang Di, Liu Yan, and Chen Yuan—tied for second place with 7.5 points, with Kong and Zhang claiming silver and bronze, respectively, on tiebreaks. Five additional players, including GM Dai Changren, finished with 7 points to round out the top 11.
The Women’s section saw WGM Li Xueyi score a crucial final-round victory over WIM Zhang Xiao, securing the title with an impressive 8.5/11 (6 wins, 5 draws). WGM Ni Shiqun and 15-year-old Jiang Tianyu finished just half a point behind the champion, sharing second place. Ni earned silver and Jiang claimed bronze on tiebreaks. WIM Yan Tianqi and Gao Muziyan, both with 7.5 points, placed fourth and fifth, respectively.
