FIDE Candidates Chess Tournaments 2024: All The Details

Introduction

Hello everyone! Get ready to enter the exciting world of chess! The FIDE World Candidates Tournament is the biggest event in chess, where the best players show off their amazing strategies and tactics. On April 4, 2024, eight incredible grandmasters from all over the world will compete for the chance to challenge the current World Chess Champion and become the new champion themselves. It's a thrilling competition that everyone is eagerly waiting for!

The FIDE World Candidates Tournament is a really big chess competition that happens every two years. Its where top players show off their skills and try to beat each other to earn a chance to play against Ding Liren, in the World Chess Championship. 

The upcoming tournament will take place in Toronto, Canada. People are really excited and can't wait for the drama and excitement that the world championship brings.

TIP: You can also watch it on April 4th, 2024 on ChessTV

Come with us as we explore the exciting matches of the FIDE World Candidates Tournament, where every move determines the future, and each choice impacts the history of chess!

• For more information, check out the official website for the candidates' here.

Competitors:

The crucial event where players fight to get a chance to play the current Fide World Chess Champion Ding Liren (OPEN) and Ju Wenjun (WOMEN'S) consists of a total of 16 players. They are:-

Open Section

Gukesh D (2743 Standard, of India) qualified as the 2023 FIDE Circuit winner. As Caruana (see down below why) had finished 3rd place in the FIDE World Cup after the Runner-up (see down below), Gukesh took the spot to the Candidates.

• Fabiano Caruana (2803 Standard, of USA) qualified as the third-place finisher at the 2023 World Cup. Since he had already gotten a spot in this tournament, Gukesh had taken the FIDE Circuit's Winner spot. 

• Praggnanandhaa R (2747 Standard, of India) qualified as the 2023 World Cup runner-up. After an amazing performance in the WC, knocking out Hikaru Nakamura (see below) and winning Fabiano Caruana, Pragg took the spot after the winner, Magnus Carlsen.

• Ian Nepomniachtchi  (2758 Standard, of FIDE (Russia Initially) qualified as the previous World Championship match runner-up. After an awful 8-hour lasting match in the Tie-breaks Finals Against WCC Ding Liren, Nepo has come back to take revenge! His talent shall be shown in this once again, and again.

• Hikaru Nakamura (2789 Standard, of USA) qualified as the 2023 Grand Swiss runner-up. Though his tournament in the WC did not stand out much, he came back like fury fire in the Grand Swiss with a swissy performance! 

• Vidit Gujrathi (2727 Standard, of India) qualified as the 2023 Grand Swiss Winner, after Hikaru. With his outstanding tournament performance, he got a position in the Candidates! No words to say - Countless practice!

• Nijat Abasov (2632 Standard, of Azerbaijan) qualified as the fourth-place finisher at the 2023 World Cup after the winner, Magnus Carlsen, refused to participate. Although many think he has a very low chance of winning, with his performance in the WC he might get a chance!

• Alireza Firouzja (2760 Standard, of France) qualified as the best by rating on January 1, 2024. Though he performed poorly last Candidates, he should be able to perform better! Remember - A defeated warrior is more dangerous than a winner!

Women's

• Lei Tingjie (2550 Standard, of China) qualified as the previous World Championship match runner-up. She played fantastic against the WWCC, Ju Wenjun, but lost the chance. But nevertheless, she's back to play again!

• Kateryna Lagno (2542 Standard, of FIDE) (Russia Initially) qualified as the 2022−23 Women’s Grand Prix winner. As they always say, Great Players have Great Chances!

• Aleksandra Goryachkina (2553 Standard, of FIDE) (Russia Initially) qualified as the 2022−23 Women’s Grand Prix runner-up. She had played as great as Kateryna Lagno, and gotten the runner-up title. Surely she has great chances!

• Nurgyul Salimova (2432 Standard, of Bulgaria) qualified as the 2023 Women’s World Cup runner-up. It's surprising a huge drop from 2550 to a 2430 candidates' player, but rating doesn't showcase performances sometimes!

• Anna Muzychuk (2520 Standard, of Ukraine) qualified as the third-place finisher at the 2023 Women’s World Cup. Anna has a lot of chances, as she is an experienced player among many of the candidates' players.

• Vaishali R (2475 Standard, of India) qualified as the 2023 Women’s Grand Swiss winner. Her Brother Praggnanandhaa R too, in the candidates as a duo. This proves about their hardwork!

• Tan Zhongyi (2521 Standard, of China) qualified as the 2023 Women’s Grand Swiss runner-up. She has a good chance of winning, especially with her country teammate Lei Tingjie.

• Humpy Koneru (2546 Standard, of India) qualified as the best by rating on January 1, 2024. The rating spot had reached to her as the original spot belonged to Goryachkina but since she had already qualified through the WGP, she won the spot.

 Schedule, Venue, Prizes and All the Details

Venue

The Tournament will take place in Toronto, Canada at the Great Hall, located in West Queen West, The City's Centre Of Artistic Innovation.

Prizes

                                                                                                       Winner gets to play with Ding Liren, and have a chance to win against him. If he/she wins, they become World Champion.

1st Place gets €48,000, 2nd €36,000 and 3rd €24,000  

Extra: €3,500 for every half point they get per game.

Format

Players will play in a double round-robin. The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 more minutes for the rest of the game. There is a 30 second increment starting on move 41.

Schedule

The first day, and opening ceremony will take place on the evening of April 3. Both tournaments will be set in on April 4 at 14:30 local time with the first round. Here is the full schedule:

Fourteen rounds of the tournament will be played over three weeks, with four rest days. The first rest day, on April 8, will allow the participants and guests to witness the total solar eclipse, which will be visible across Toronto between 2:04 p.m. and 4:31 p.m., with the peak occurring at 3:19 p.m.

Pairings

The pairings, as per the regulations of this prestigious event, were made a month prior to the start. To check more about them, you can click here.

Games for Open

• (I've added the first 3 rounds games, for more information you can check it out here.)

Round 1

Board 1- Fabiano Caruana VS Hikaru Nakamura

Board 2- Nijat Abasov VS Ian Nepomniachtchi

Board 3- Alireza Firouzja VS Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu

Board 4- Gukesh Dommaraju VS Vidit Santosh Gujrathi

Games for Women's

Round 1

Board 1- Aleksandra Goryachkina VS Kateryna Lagno

Board 2- Anna Muzychuk VS Nurgyul Salimova

Board 3- Lei Tingjie VS Tan Zhongyi

Board 4- Vaishali R VS Humpy Koneru

Games for Women's

Round 2

Board 1- Tan Zhongyi VS Vaishali R

Board 2- Kateryna Lagno VS Humpy Koneru

Board 3- Nurgyul Salimova VS Lei Tingjie

Board 4- Aleksandra Goryachkina VS Anna Muzychuk

Games for Open

Round 3

Board 1- Gukesh Dommaraju VS Ian Nepomniachtchi

Board 2- Nijat Abasov VS Hikaru Nakamura

Board 3- Alireza Firouzja VS Fabiano Caruana

Board 4- Vidit Santosh Gujrathi VS Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu

Games for Women's

Round 3

Board 1- Humpy Koneru VS Tan Zhongyi

Board 2- Anna Muzychuk VS Kateryna Lagno

Board 3- Lei Tingjie VS Aleksandra Goryachkina

Board 4- Vaishali R VS Nurgyul Salimova

Results

Standings - Open

Standings - Women's