Delhi leg of Freestyle Chess Tour canceled: Here's why
What's the story
The Freestyle Chess Tour's fifth edition, scheduled to be held in Delhi from September 17-25, has been canceled. The decision comes as a result of insufficient sponsorship interest. Jan Henric Buettner, the co-founder of the tournament, confirmed this development to Chess.com. The cancelation comes after months of speculation about the fate of the Delhi leg and its removal from the official website.
Upcoming events
Buettner hints at alternative event
Despite the cancelation of the Delhi leg, Buettner hinted at a possible alternative event in September. He said, "We will do something special for the September leg of the tour instead. This will be announced after Las Vegas." The next stop on the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour is Las Vegas from July 16-20. Buettner also revealed his plans to step down as CEO on July 1, with Thomas Harsch taking over his position.
Player participation
Upcoming events for Indian chess players
The cancelation of the Delhi leg means that the next major event for Indian chess stars will be the Chennai Grand Masters, starting August 6. The tournament will feature a 10-man round-robin format with GMs like Arjun Erigaisi, Nihal Sarin, Anish Giri and Vincent Keymer among others. Meanwhile, three Indian players—Arjun Erigaisi, R Praggnanandhaa and Vidit Gujrathi—are set to compete in Las Vegas despite reigning world champion D Gukesh's absence from this US event.
Feat
Do you know?
In December last year, Gukesh ousted Chinese GM Ding Liren in the FIDE World Championship final. He became the youngest world champion in chess history. With his monumental win, Gukesh also became just the 18th GM. He also became the second Indian Grandmaster after the legendary Viswanthan Anand to win this prestigious title. Earlier this year, Gukesh achieved a career-best Number 3 ranking in the FIDE classical ratings.