The first stage of the elite chess tournament series Grand Chess Tour 2026 is set to begin in Warsaw. Javokhir Sindarov will participate for the first time. His involvement, preparation for international competitions, and training sessions with coaches are supported by the National Bank of Uzbekistan.
One of the main storylines is his first meeting with world champion Dommaraju Gukesh, who will be his opponent in the upcoming world title match after Sindarov's victory at the Candidates Tournament.
The Super Rapid & Blitz Poland tournament will take place from May 5 to 10, opening the new season of the Grand Chess Tour. After Warsaw, the series continues with a classical tournament in Bucharest (Romania), a rapid stage in Zagreb (Croatia), two tournaments in St. Louis, and a final, also in the USA.
Ten chess players will participate in the Polish stage: Javokhir Sindarov, Fabiano Caruana, Wesley So, Hans Moke Niemann (all three from the USA), Alireza Firouzja, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France), Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Radosław Wojtaszek (Poland), Dommaraju Gukesh (India), and Vladimir Fedoseev (Slovenia).
The prize fund is $200,000. The winner will receive $50,000, with $40,000 and $30,000 for second and third places respectively.
Initially, participants will play a single-round robin rapid tournament: 9 rounds with a time control of 25 minutes per game plus 10 seconds per move. This will be followed by a double-round blitz tournament: 18 rounds with 5 minutes per game plus 2 seconds per move.
In rapid, a win earns 2 points, a draw 1 point; in blitz, a win earns 1 point, a draw 0.5 points. The final ranking is determined by the total points from both parts.
This time control is further from the common online formats of "15+10" and "3+2", but still leaves little time for deep calculation. In such games, most decisions are made on reflexes, with speed of calculation and intuition taking precedence.
Predicting the winner in rapid and blitz is more difficult than in classical chess. Often, not only the player's overall level but also their current form, readiness for quick decisions, and stability in constantly changing positions come to the fore.
Notably, after his Candidates triumph, Sindarov had a lackluster performance in the recent ChessCom Open online tournament: he first lost to Russian Daniil Dubov 0:3, then lost to Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and withdrew. Meanwhile, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, who has rarely shown such results lately, reached the final.
Caruana, Firouzja, Vachier-Lagrave, Fedoseev, and Sindarov can be considered nominal favorites. Fedoseev was the hero of last year's Polish tournament, winning both the rapid and blitz sections.
So and Duda, who have repeatedly posted strong results in fast chess, also retain high chances. Niemann, though yet to reach the podium, has come close to prize places in world championships.
Gukesh and Wojtaszek's chances are rated much lower: the reigning world champion has shown unstable play recently, while the Polish grandmaster lags behind most participants in rating.
For chess fans, the main narrative of the tournament will be the first encounter between Sindarov and Gukesh as challenger and world champion. Since these games are in rapid and blitz, their outcome should not be overemphasized in terms of strength comparison, as their future title match will be in classical chess.
However, the psychological significance remains high: a victory over the future opponent could boost one's confidence and add pressure on the other.
So far, they have played only three games against each other. The Uzbek grandmaster won in 2018 and 2022. In January 2026, at the Tata Steel Chess super tournament, Gukesh was close to revenge, but Sindarov saved a losing position with resourceful defense. The tournament ended with success for Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Javokhir Sindarov, while the Indian player finished 9th.
Sindarov arrives at the tournament after the greatest success of his career — victory at the Candidates Tournament earned him the right to play for the world title. He finished the tournament undefeated, setting records for wins (6) and points (10), and secured first place ahead of schedule. Previously, he became the youngest winner of the World Cup.
Gukesh, on the other hand, has spent the year and a half since winning the title with inconsistent results. His only success was sharing first place at the Tata Steel Chess tournament in January 2025.
Various reasons are cited: from the psychological pressure of the champion's title to fatigue from the many tournaments champions are invited to. Gukesh refused to participate in the grueling classical tournaments of the Grand Chess Tour to rest and gather strength before the match — he only participates in short rapid and blitz events.
This decision opened a spot in the main series for Sindarov. The Grand Chess Tour announced that the Uzbek player is accepted as a full participant instead of Gukesh and will play in Warsaw, Bucharest, and two tournaments in St. Louis. The series final is scheduled for August 21−28 in St. Louis.
Source: www.gazeta.uz