Saint Louis, MO, March 31, 2020 – The Grand Chess Tour (GCT) regretfully announces the cancellation of its 2020 season. The global pandemic known as COVID-19 is impacting our lives, and all sporting events around the world are being canceled or postponed.
SaintLouis, MO, February 18, 2020 – The Grand Chess Tour (GCT) is pleased to announce that all ten qualified players have confirmed their participation in the 2020 Tour and the event allocations have been finalized. Theten full tour participants will play in both the Superbet Chess Classic Romania in Bucharest in May and in the Sinquefield Cup in Saint Louis in September. In addition, they will each participate in two of the three rapid and blitz events as indicated below.
Saint Louis, MO, January 17, 2020 – The sixth edition of the Grand Chess Tour (GCT) will feature five tournaments with the participation of ten full tour players and ten wildcards. Tour participants will compete for a total prize fund of $1.275 million over the course of the season. The prize money on offer for two classical tournaments will be $325,000 per event while the prize fund for the rapid and blitz events will be $150,000 each. In addition, bonus prize fund totalling $175,000 will be awarded to the top three overall tour finishers.
Saint Louis, MO, October 16, 2019 - The 11th London Chess Classic will run this year from November 29 to December 8 at its traditional home at the Olympia Conference Centre in Kensington, London. The Tour Finals will be played alongside the other festival events which will include the traditional FIDE Rated Open and other graded sections as in previous years.
Saint Louis, MO, August 29, 2019 – This August, 10 of the world’s best chess grandmasters participated in the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz and 12 of the top chess grandmasters competed in the Sinquefield Cup at the Saint Louis Chess Club. The tournaments, with a total $475,000 prize pool, were fourth and fifth in the seven-event regular season on the Grand Chess Tour.
SAINT LOUIS, August 1, 2019 – The fifth edition of the Grand Chess Tour (GCT), a series of eight elite chess tournaments held across the globe, will return to America’s Chess Capital at the Saint Louis Chess Club from August 9-29, 2019. Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz, held August 9-15, will kick off the festivities with 10 of the world’s best chess players competing for $150,000 in prize money. The Sinquefield Cup will follow the conclusion of Rapid & Blitz, running August 15-29. This classical chess tournament will feature 12 top-ranked international players competing for a total prize fund of $325,000.
Saint Louis, MO, June 11, 2019 – The Grand Chess Tour and the Saint Louis Chess Club are pleased to announce the names of the three wildcards that will complete the field for the 2019 Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz tournament. All three wildcards have been impressive with their recent results both internationally and in local events held by the Saint Louis Chess Club. The three wildcards that will complete the field are:
Saint Louis, MO, April 9, 2019– The Cote d’Ivoire Rapid & Blitz is the first leg of the 2019 Grand Chess Tour and is scheduled to be held in Abidjan from May 8 until May 12, 2019. The tournament has special significance as it will be the first GCT tournament to be held on the African continent. It will also mark the official return of World Champion Magnus Carlsen as a full tour participant. The participation of GM Carlsen also represents a significant milestone for the development of chess on the African continent as the event will be the first African tournament in history to include the reigning World Champion amongst its participants.
Saint Louis, MO, March 12, 2019– The Grand Chess Tour (GCT) has opted for a mix of youth and experience in selecting the six wildcards that will participate in the forthcoming rapid and blitz tournaments in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire and Paris, France. The following six players have accepted wildcard invitations and will showcase their talents alongside the seven full tour participants in each event.
Saint Louis, MO, February 19, 2019– The Grand Chess Tour (GCT) is pleased to announce that the 2019 GCT tournament roster has been finalised and the schedule will see both World Champion GM Magnus Carlsen and 2018 GCT Champion Hikaru Nakamura participating in the rapid and blitz events in both Africa and Asia.
