{"id":14502,"date":"2026-01-06T12:57:48","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T12:57:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/?p=14502"},"modified":"2026-01-21T09:36:34","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T09:36:34","slug":"sixteen-players-earn-the-right-to-compete-in-total-chess-pilot-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/2026\/01\/06\/sixteen-players-earn-the-right-to-compete-in-total-chess-pilot-event\/","title":{"rendered":"Sixteen players earn the right to compete in Total Chess pilot event"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">PRESS RELEASE \/ ANNOUNCEMENT<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">FIDE &amp; Norway Chess<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">Oslo \/ Lausanne, Tuesday, 6 January 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Sixteen players earn the right to compete in 2026 Total Chess pilot event<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">FIDE and Norway Chess are pleased to announce the first 16 players who have\u00a0earned the right to receive an invitation\u00a0to the\u00a02026 Total Chess World Championship Tour pilot tournament\u00a0(\u201cTotal Chess 2026 Pilot\u201d), the new combined competition across Fast Classic, Rapid, and Blitz.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The\u00a02026 event is officially a pilot, testing the full concept, format, and regulations of the Total Chess World Championship Tour. The\u00a0inaugural full Tour season, with the official crowning of the first\u00a0Total Chess World Champion, will start in\u00a02027.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The\u00a0pilot tournament is scheduled to take place from 3\u201315 October 2026. The\u00a0host destinations\/locations will be announced at a later date.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Formal invitations to the qualified players\u00a0will be sent out in the coming days and within the next week.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Based on the qualification criteria approved by FIDE, the group already includes\u00a0the top 13 players in the January classical rating list, the\u00a0Women\u2019s World Champion, plus additional elite qualifiers from the World Rapid and World Blitz Championships, a more than respectable lineup for the 2026 pilot.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Players who have earned the right to receive an invitation<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>1\u2013<\/strong><strong>2. World Champions<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Gukesh Dommaraju<\/strong>\u2013 World Champion<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Ju Wenjun<\/strong>\u2013 Women\u2019s World Champion<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>3\u2013<\/strong><strong>5. World Rapid Championship 2025 (<\/strong>three places)<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The three medalists of the 2025 World Rapid Championship have earned the right to be invited:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Magnus Carlsen<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Vladislav Artemiev<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Arjun Erigaisi<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>6\u2013<\/strong><strong>7. World Blitz Championship 2025<\/strong> (two places)<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The two qualifiers from the 2025 World Blitz Championship are:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave<\/strong>(qualified via the lowest average sum of placements)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>8\u2013<\/strong><strong>16. Top-9 Rated Players (January 2026 list, with replacements)<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Based on the classical rating list as of 1 January 2026, and applying the agreed replacement rules (to account for players already qualified via World Championships and World Rapid\/Blitz), the following players have earned the right to receive an invitation via rating:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Hikaru Nakamura<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Fabiano Caruana<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Vincent Keymer<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Anish Giri<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Alireza Firouzja<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Wei Yi<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Two further places are filled according to the replacement criteria:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Wesley So<\/strong>\u2013\u00a0<em>first replacement<\/em>\u00a0(lowest average sum of placements)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Viswanathan Anand<\/strong>\u2013\u00a0<em>first replacement according to rating<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>A Star-Studded Field and the Road Ahead<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">In summary, the right to receive an invitation to the\u00a02026 Total Chess pilot tournament\u00a0has currently been granted to\u00a016 chess players, comprising:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>The <\/strong><strong>top 13 players<\/strong><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><strong>in the January classical rating list,<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Vladislav Artemiev,<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, and<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>The<\/strong><strong>Women<\/strong><strong>\u2019<\/strong><strong>s World Champion, GM Ju Wenjun.<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The\u00a0next two players\u00a0who will earn the right to receive invitations will become known in\u00a0April 2026, following the conclusion of the\u00a0FIDE Candidates Tournament\u00a0and the\u00a0FIDE Women\u2019s Candidates Tournament, whose winners will also qualify for the Tour.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The\u00a02026 pilot tournament\u00a0will be held\u00a03\u201315 October 2026, with\u00a0destinations\/locations to be announced later. The\u00a0inaugural full Total Chess World Championship Tour season\u00a0will then launch in\u00a02027.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Regulations of the Total Chess World Championship Tour<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">FIDE and Norway Chess are also announcing that the\u00a0official Regulations of the Total Chess World Championship Tour\u00a0have now been published. They define in detail:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The full qualification system<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Event structure and scoring system across Fast Classic, Rapid, and Blitz<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Tie-break and replacement rules<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Prize fund distribution and tour standings<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The regulations can be found <a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/regulations-4\/\"><strong>here.<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-14507 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/TOTAL-CHESS-WORLD-CHAMPIONSHIP-TOUR-2026-3-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" srcset=\"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/TOTAL-CHESS-WORLD-CHAMPIONSHIP-TOUR-2026-3-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/TOTAL-CHESS-WORLD-CHAMPIONSHIP-TOUR-2026-3-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/TOTAL-CHESS-WORLD-CHAMPIONSHIP-TOUR-2026-3-150x84.png 150w, https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/TOTAL-CHESS-WORLD-CHAMPIONSHIP-TOUR-2026-3-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/TOTAL-CHESS-WORLD-CHAMPIONSHIP-TOUR-2026-3-317x178.png 317w, https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/TOTAL-CHESS-WORLD-CHAMPIONSHIP-TOUR-2026-3.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>For more information, please contact:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Kjell Madland, CEO<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">Norway Chess \/ Total Chess World Championship Tour<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a href=\"mailto:kjell@norwaychess.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">kjell@norwaychess.com<\/a> | +47 911 67 695<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.norwaychess.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.norwaychess.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Benedicte Westre Skog, COO<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\">Norway Chess \/ Total Chess World Championship Tour<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a href=\"mailto:benedicte@norwaychess.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">benedicte@norwaychess.com<\/a> | +47 913 52 085<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.norwaychess.com\/\">www.norwaychess.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Arkady Dvorkovich<br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\">FIDE President<br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\">E-mail: <a href=\"mailto:fidepresident@fide.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">fidepresident@fide.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Anna Volkova<br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\">FIDE Head of PR<br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\">E-mail: <\/span><a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"mailto:anna.volkova@fide.com\">anna.volkova@fide.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.fide.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.fide.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>PRESS RELEASE \/ ANNOUNCEMENT FIDE &amp; Norway Chess Oslo \/ Lausanne, Tuesday, 6 January 2026 Sixteen players earn the right to compete in 2026 Total Chess pilot event FIDE and Norway Chess are pleased to announce the first 16 players who have\u00a0earned the right to receive an invitation\u00a0to the\u00a02026 Total Chess World Championship Tour pilot [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":14503,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14502","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14502","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14502"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14502\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14699,"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14502\/revisions\/14699"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14503"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14502"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/norwaychess.no\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}