Last updated: Sunday 12th July 2026 9:06 am

The Week in Chess 1652 of 6th July 2026 by Mark Crowther. 42 stories and 7729 games. Links down the right hand margin for games in PGN or Chessbase format or on the The Week in Chess Download page.

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A compilation of the games can be had for a donation of £30. There have been over 4 million games in TWIC since the first edition on 17th September 1994.

TWIC News Feed

Sergei Tiviakov wins his fourth Netherlands Chess Championship

Netherland Chess Championship 2026 Final

Mark Crowther (Sat Jul 11 12:20:23 2026)

Sergei Tiviakov beat Erwin L'Ami and Eric Van den Doel on the way to the final. There he met 24-year-old Liam Vrolijk who he beat 2-0 in a blitz tie-break after both their classical games were drawn. Machteld Van Foreest won the women's title beating Anna-Maja Kazarian 2-0 in the final.

Surprise victory for Mukhiddin Madaminov in the 3rd UzChess Cup

3rd UzChess Cup 2026 9

Mark Crowther (Tue Jun 16 08:32:29 2026)

19-year-old Mukhiddin Madaminov made a name for himself in winning the 3rd UzChess Cup Masters. He beat Shamsiddin Vokhidov in a blitz tie-break after they tied on 5.5/9. In the final round Madaminov had a long game against Hans Niemann where he was pressing for a win but Niemann also had a late chance to win himself.

Blohberger beats Navara 3.5-2.5 in a match

Navara vs Blohberger Match 2026 3-4

Mark Crowther (Sun Jun 14 07:23:52 2026)

A win in game three proved to be enough for Felix Blohberger to defeat David Navara in a six game classical match. Game four was probably the most exciting.

Faustino Oro earns his final GM norm in Sardinia

Sardinia World Chess Festival 2026 9

Mark Crowther (Mon May 11 04:55:29 2026)

Faustino Oro is now the second youngest player in history to become a GM after a 6/9 result in Sardinia. I suspect he will be more relieved than anything else after chasing this final norm for five months. He is already among only a select few who have earned the Grandmaster title at such a young age.

Magnus Carlsen wins the 31st Sigeman & Co tournament after tie-break win over Erigaisi

31st Tepe Sigeman & Co Chess Tournament 2026 7

Mark Crowther (Thu May 07 15:41:44 2026)

Magnus Carlsen won the tournament after beating Erdogmus in the final round and then beating Erigaisi in a blitz tie-break. Erigaisi had survived a lost position against Woodward to catch Carlsen.

Dossiers and Main Stories

Netherland Championships 2026

Netherland Chess Championship 2026 Games and Results

Mark Crowther (Sat Jul 11 17:59:00 2026)

Women's Final Machteld van Foreest vs Anna-Maja Kazarian. Photo © Frits Agterdenbos. | https://theweekinchess.com

The Netherland Championships took place in Amsterdam Sat 4th to Sat 11th Jul 2026. The event was a KO with both an open and women's event. Sergei Tiviakov won his fourth title defeating Liam Vrolijk in the final after a tie-break. Machteld Van Foreest beat Anna-Maja Kazarian 2-0 in the final. Read more ....

ch-NED 2026 (Amsterdam NED)
Sat 4th Jul 2026 - Sat 11th Jul 2026 - Official Site - Results - Live

ch-NED KO 2026 (16 players 4 Rds KO Indiv TC:90m:30m+30spm(1)) - Games in PGN: Games

ch-NED w 2026 (12 players 4 Rds KO Indiv TC:90m:30m+30spm(1)) - Games in PGN: Games Women

KazChess Masters 2026

KazChess Masters 2026 Games and Results

Mark Crowther (Wed Jul 8 19:38:00 2026)

The KazChess Masters took place Tue 30th Jun to Wed 8th Jul 2026 in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Alexey Sarana edged out Alexander Donchenko on tie-break after both scored 6/9. Igor Kovalenko finished half a point behind. Read more ....

KazChess Masters 2026 (Almaty KAZ)
Tue 30th Jun 2026 - Wed 8th Jul 2026 - Official Site - Results - Live

KazChess Masters 2026 (10 players 9 Rds SRR Indiv TC:90m+30spm(1)) - Games in PGN: Games | Live

GCT Super Rapid & Blitz Croatia 2026

GCT Super Rapid & Blitz Croatia 2026 Games and Results

Mark Crowther (Sun Jul 5 22:55:00 2026)

The GCT Super Rapid & Blitz Croatia took place in Zagreb 1st to 5th July 2026. Players: Vincent Keymer, Alireza Firouzja, Anish Giri, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Jorden Van Foreest, Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Ivan Saric, Bogdan-Daniel Deac and Gukesh Dommaraju.

Alrizeza Firouzja won an Armageddon Tie-break against Nodirbek Abdusattorov after they tied the combined standings and a two game rapid tie-break match. Read more ....

GCT Super Rapid & Blitz Croatia 2026 (Zagreb CRO)
Wed 1st Jul 2026 - Mon 6th Jul 2026 - Official Site - Live

GCT Super Rapid Croatia (10 players 9 Rds SRR Indiv TC:25m+10spm) - Games in PGN: Games Rapid

GCT Super Blitz Croatia (10 players 18 Rds DRR Indiv TC:5m+2spm) - Games in PGN: Games Blitz

GCT Super Rapid CRO TB (2 players 2 Rds Match Indiv TC:8m+3spm) - Games in PGN: Games Rapid TB

GCT Super CRO Arm TB (2 players 1 Rds Match Indiv TC:5vs4Arm) - Games in PGN: Games Arm TB

FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships 2026

FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships 2026 Games and Results

Mark Crowther (Wed Jun 24 14:52:00 2026)

The FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships takes place Wed 17th Jun 2026 Sun 22nd Jun 2026. Three days of rapid followed by three days of blitz in Hong Kong. 48 teams. Players: Magnus Carlsen, Vladislav Artemiev, Arjun Erigaisi, Alireza Firouzja, Levon Aronian, Viswanathan Anand, Wei Yi, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Fabiano Caruana, Wesley So, Javokhir Sindarov, Ding Liren, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Leinier Dominguez Perez, Anish Giri, Nihal Sarin, Dmitry, Andreikin, Jan Krzysztof Duda, Alexander Grischuk etc Read more ....

FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships 2026 (Hong Kong HKG)
Wed 17th Jun 2026 - Sun 21st Jun 2026 - Official Site - Results - Live

FIDE World Rapid Team (12 Rds Swiss Team TC:15m+10spm) - Games in PGN: Games Rapid

FIDE World Bl Team Pool A (13 players 13 Rds League Team TC:3m+2spm) - Games in PGN: Games Blitz Pool A

FIDE World Bl Team Pool B (13 players 13 Rds League Team TC:3m+2spm) - Games in PGN: Games Blitz Pool B

FIDE World Bl Team Pool C (13 players 13 Rds League Team TC:3m+2spm) - Games in PGN: Games Blitz Pool C

FIDE World Bl Team Pool D (13 players 13 Rds League Team TC:3m+2spm) - Games in PGN: Games Blitz Pool D

FIDE World Bl Team Final (4 Rds KO Team TC:3m+2spm) - Games in PGN: Games Blitz Final

FIDE World Bl Team 5-8th (2 Rds KO Team TC:3m+2spm) - Games in PGN: Games Blitz 5th-8th