ChessBase

• Freestyle Chess South Africa - Live!

  After the round-robin stage, in which none of the eight participants in the Grand Slam Finals could be eliminated, the Freestyle Finals in South Africa now move into the quarterfinals — where things get serious. Anyone who wants to win the tournament must first win their quarterfinal match. Each mini-match consists of two games with a 30+15 time control. Javokhir Sindarov, the winner of the round-robin, will face Parham Maghsoodloo, Magnus Carlsen plays Fabiano Caruana, and Levon Aronian takes on Hans Niemann. Vincent Keymer will need to overcome Arjun Erigaisi. Follow the games live with commentary. | The matches start at 12.00 CET (6.00 ET, 16.30 IST)

• Answers: Korchnoi-Karpov 1978

  Now that we have examined all the individual trees in this game between Viktor Kortschnoj and Anatoly Karpov from 1978, what is our view of the forest? Move after move, Kortschnoj made optimal choices, never lessening the tension. Most decisive endings are won after a gross blunder, but it took 46 years to find where Black finally stumbled. As GM Alex Fishbein noted, Kortschnoj "made many nonstandard decisions, made no mistakes and played brilliantly – one of the best endings ever played."

• Freestyle Chess South Africa: Sindarov wins round-robin ahead of Aronian

  The opening stage of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Finals in South Africa consisted of a single round-robin tournament with a 10+5 time control. Although no players were eliminated, the results were of clear importance: they decide the quarterfinal pairings. Javokhir Sindarov, fresh from his victory at the FIDE World Cup, was the top scorer, as he obtained 5½/7 points, with wins over Magnus Carlsen, Parham Maghsoodloo, Fabiano Caruana and Hans Niemann. The Uzbek star achieved this feat on his 20th birthday. | Photo: Freestyle Chess / Lennart Ootes

• Prodigy or hype? A three-year-old with a FIDE rating

  In recent days, an unusual face has been circulating on sports pages and social media: Sarwagya Singh Kushwaha, a boy from the Sagar district in Madhya Pradesh, India, has been registered as a FIDE-rated chess player at just three years, seven months and 13 days old — making him the youngest player in history to obtain an official FIDE rating. His FIDE entry shows a rapid rating of 1572; his FIDE ID is 558059504. | Photo: ChessBase India

• Dorian Rogozenco: How a GM uses the new ChessBase 26 opening report

  Grandmaster Dorian Rogozenco highlights how ChessBase 26’s Opening Report quickly reveals statistical trends and practical insights for specific opening lines, demonstrating it with a rare surprise weapon for Black in the French Advance, with the moves f6 and also f5, and showing that Black’s results, especially at lower levels, look promising enough to merit investigation. He emphasizes that the tool not only shows performance data and history, but also warns which sidelines you must know, making it a powerful way to get a fast, informed first impression before more in-depth analysis.

• President Cup: Nihal, Vokhidov and Madaminov share the lead

  After four rounds of the President Cup in Tashkent, three players share the lead on 3/4: Nihal Sarin, Shamsiddin Vokhidov and Mukhiddin Madaminov. Their identical paths, combined with a striking trend of all decisive games favouring white, have given the event a notably symmetrical start. With Shant Sargsyan and Bardiya Daneshvar close behind and key pairings scheduled for round five, the tournament is entering an important early phase. | Photo: Uzbek Chess Federation

• Casto Abundo (1950-2025)

  FIDE has announced the passing of Casto Abundo, Executive Director of the Asian Chess Federation, whose five decades of service left a lasting mark on the global chess community. A respected arbiter and organiser, he played key roles in major international events and helped strengthen the institutional framework for chess across Asia. His leadership, dedication and ability to unite federations are widely recognised, and his legacy will continue to guide future generations.

• Bundesliga: Baden-Baden win despite leaving top board vacant

  Fabiano Caruana is unavailable to play for Baden-Baden due to his commitment at the Freestyle Chess Finals in South Africa, and the same applies to Germany's number one, Vincent Keymer. Baden-Baden thus left Caruana's board vacant and still managed to beat Deggendorf – even though Rustam Kasimdzhanov (Baden-Baden) also lost his game. The former serial champions are now only 2½ board points behind the victorious Viernheim. After three rounds, they are the only two teams in the league not to have lost any match points. | Pictured: Matthias Bluebaum (Schachfreunde Deizisau) commentating his game | Photos: Hans-Joachim Vitz, Anna-Blume Giede, Jan Werner, Stefan Spiegel

• London Chess Classic: Five draws in round nine, Firouzja grabs second place

  All five games in the final round of the London Chess Classic ended drawn, leaving the standings unchanged following Nodirbek Abdusattorov's clear tournament victory with a round to spare. The Uzbek grandmaster finished with an outstanding 7½/9 and a 2932 performance rating, while Alireza Firouzja (pictured) secured second place despite missing a late winning chance against Nikolas Theodorou. Nikita Vitiugov completed the podium after a steady event that included two wins following an early setback. | Photo: John Saunders

• The inspiring story of Alojzije Jankovic, enthusiastic chess promoter

  On the rest day of the FIDE World Cup, on 20 November, I decided to interview GM Alojzije Jankovic. Every time I have met him, I have always been amazed by his warmth and infectious enthusiasm. A man who has worn many hats in the chess world, Jankovic carries the rare combination of passion, humility and purpose. A strong GM who once reached a 2593 rating, Jankovic is also a long-time television presenter in Croatia, Vice President of the European Chess Union, author, theoretician, trainer, commentator and researcher. Let's dive into his multi-faceted life.