Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort hosts the prestigious FIDE Candidates Tournament 2026

In a historical moment, Cyprus becomes the epicenter of the planetary chess assemblage by hosting, for the archetypal time, the astir prestigious and demanding qualifying tourney for the World Chess Championship. The FIDE Candidates Tournament 2026 is taking spot astatine Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort, bringing unneurotic 8 of the world’s apical antheral players and 8 of the starring pistillate players, each competing for the coveted presumption of authoritative challenger for the satellite title.

This lawsuit follows the 2024 tourney held successful Toronto, Canada, reaffirming the continued maturation and planetary entreaty of chess. The competition, which concludes connected April 16, features immoderate of the astir salient personalities successful the chess world, combining elite-level gameplay with an exceptional hospitality acquisition connected the occidental Mediterranean seashore of Cyprus.

The authoritative opening ceremonial was held astatine Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort successful the beingness of the Deputy Minister of Tourism of Cyprus, Mr. Kostas Koumis, representing the President of the Republic, Mr. Nikos Christodoulides. Among the distinguished attendees were the Ambassador of Kazakhstan, Mr. Nikolay Zhumakanov, Ambassador of Qatar Mr. Yousef Laram, the Ambassador of China, Mr. Zhou Yunliang, the High Commissioner of India Mr. Manish, the typical of the United States Embassy Mr. Dylan Mahon, and the Head of Public Diplomacy of the U.S. Embassy Ms. Elaine Paplos, highlighting the planetary value of the event.

Mr. Koumis described hosting this world-class tourney arsenic a large grant for Cyprus, emphasizing the country’s increasing estimation arsenic a destination for high-level sporting events. The President of the International Chess Federation (FIDE), Mr. Arkady Dvorkovich, expressed his gratitude to the Government of Cyprus, section authorities, partners of the event, Freedom Group, the Scheinberg family, and Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort for their publication to successfully hosting the tourney and ensuring fantabulous conditions for participants.

The opening ceremonial concluded with a unsocial philharmonic show by Thomais Apergi, offering an exceptional blend of jazz, soul, and swing.

The President of the Cyprus Chess Federation, Mr. Kriton Tornaritis, highlighted the important improvement of chess successful Cyprus, noting that the authorities supports talented young players done peculiar awards. Mr. Timur Turlov, CEO of Freedom Holding Corp, shared however chess has helped him physique meaningful relationships crossed assorted nonrecreational fields, emphasizing that it remains 1 of the astir respected and globally beloved games.

Mr. Konstantinos Malaou, Business Development Director of Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort, delivered an inspiring message, describing the tourney arsenic a solemnisation of excellence astatine the highest level—where each determination matters, each determination carries weight, and each infinitesimal reflects discipline, preparation, and vision.

Finally, Mr. George Ioannou, CEO of Korantina Homes, stated:

“At Korantina Homes and Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort, we judge successful vision, thoughtful planning, beardown foundations, and the assurance to interruption caller ground. We judge successful purposeful creation, disciplined action, and the continuous pursuit of excellence. In this sense, the tone of chess finds its location here.”

From a competitory standpoint, the men’s tourney features starring names successful planetary chess, including Javokhir Sindarov, Matthias Bluebaum, R. Praggnanandhaa, Fabiano Caruana, Andrey Esipenko, Wei Yi, Anish Giri, and Hikaru Nakamura, competing successful a demanding 14-round format that promises top-tier action.

Simultaneously, the women’s tourney gathers immoderate of the world’s strongest players, including Divya Deshmukh, Vaishali Rameshbabu, Aleksandra Goryachkina, Zhu Jiner, Anna Muzychuk, Bibisara Assaubayeva, Kateryna Lagno, and Tan Zhongyi, further enhancing the prestige and competitiveness of the event.

All matches are broadcast unrecorded done the authoritative integer channels of the tournament, allowing a planetary assemblage to travel each captious game.

Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort, a luxurious five-star destination with planetary recognition, was selected arsenic the perfect venue acknowledgment to its world-class facilities and exceptional services. Through this landmark event, Cyprus further strengthens its presumption connected the planetary sports and taste map, attracting planetary attraction and reaffirming its dynamic relation arsenic a big of premier events.