the Prague international chess festival 2026

The 8th edition of the Prague International Chess Festival 2026 started with many interesting games and some huge upsets. Masters section witnessed 4 decisive results with the white side winning in all 4 games. The only game that ended in a draw was between World Champion D Gukesh and Hans Niemann. In the Challengers section, there were 3 decisive results in which Surya Shekhar Ganguly (IND) lost to Thomas Beerdsen (NED). GM Divya Deshmukh (IND) drew her game against Benjamin Gledura (HUN) to start her campaign. The second round for Masters, Challengers, and Futures, and Round 1 of Open starts today at 3 p.m. local time, 7:30 p.m. IST. Photos: Abhyudaya Ram