Here are the top 20 strongest chess players participating in the FIDE World Team Rapid Chess Championship 2026, ranked by their ELO ratings:

1. Magnus Carlsen – 2832 (WR Chess)
2. Vladislav Artemiev – 2742 (Mr Birdie and friends)
3. Arjun Erigaisi – 2741 (Team MGD1)
4. Alireza Firouzja – 2732 (Hexamind Chess Team)
5. Levon Aronian – 2730 (Hexamind Chess Team)
6. Viswanathan Anand – 2729 (Chess United)
7. Wei Yi – 2726 (Dragon Chilling)
8. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave – 2725 (WR Chess)
9. Fabiano Caruana – 2723 (WR Chess)
10. Wesley So – 2719 (WR Chess)
11. Javokhir Sindarov – 2718 (Uzbekistan)
12. Ding Liren – 2716 (Dragon Chilling)
13. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov – 2707 (Kazchess)
14. Nodirbek Abdusattorov – 2703 (Uzbekistan)
15. Leinier Dominguez Perez – 2696 (Endgame.AI)
16. Nihal Sarin – 2689 (Team MGD1)
17. Anish Giri – 2689 (Hexamind Chess Team)
18. Dmitry Andreikin – 2686 (Barys)
19. Jan-Krzysztof Duda – 2685 (WR Chess)
20. Alexander Grischuk – 2682 (Kazchess)

Insights from the Top 20 Rankings: The competition at the championship is exceptionally high, with all top 20 players holding an ELO rating of 2682 or above. WR Chess stands out as a major powerhouse by bringing together five of the top 20 players in the tournament (Carlsen, Vachier-Lagrave, Caruana, So, and Duda), which significantly contributes to their formidable team rating average.

Other elite rosters include the Hexamind Chess Team, boasting three top-tier players with Firouzja, Aronian, and Giri. Additionally, Nihal Sarin and Anish Giri are statistically tied for the 16th and 17th spots, sharing an identical ELO rating of 2689.

What is this event about?

This is the 2026 FIDE World Team Rapid Chess Championship. This international tournament takes place at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Hong Kong and is organized by the local federation alongside FIDE. It is a twelve-round Swiss-system format and a rapid time control of fifteen minutes plus a ten-second increment.

Malaysians taking part 

♟️ MALAYSIA CHESS HUB
🇲🇾 Powered by experience and talent!

🔹 GM Yeoh, Li Tian – 2421
🔹 FM Kavin, Mohan – 2266
🔹 IM Mas, Hafizulhelmi – 2198
🔹 IM Tan, Jun Ying – 2145
🔹 CM Chow, Yi Chen – 1878
🔹 WFM Mohd Afif, Ainul Mardhiah – 1796
🔹 Jafri Malim, Mohd Adam Hafiz – 1786 (also serving as Team Captain)
🔹 Mohd Kamal, Eldin Hakimi – 1783

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⚡ TEAM QUADCORE+

🔸 FM Genkeswaran, Genivan – 1975

🔸 Mohd Nurul Izani, Kaseh Irsya Dania – 1691

Malaysians acting as arbiters there

👤 IA Madhavan, Collin
👤 IA Madhavan, Olivia

 

NATIONAL SCHOLASTIC CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP 2026

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Meet “Chin” – Thailand’s 10-Year-Old Chess Sensation!
You’ve heard of the 1st ASEAN E-Sports Chess Cup (June 13, 2026, Bangkok) – but here’s the story everyone missed including me. Would not have known about it if not for one obscure post in Facebook by Thailand’s Red Knight club.(I shared this somewhere in my FB page - fb.com/gilachess)
His real name is Pakornnarong Liukasemsarn, a young chess prodigy from Thailand, born in 2015 – making him just 10 or 11 years old during the tournament.
How the tournament worked
Fast-paced esports rapid format: 10 minutes per player, no increment
22 players split into 4 groups
Magnus Carlsen (eventual winner) was in Group A
Chin was drawn into Group D – so no early showdown with Magnus
The MASSIVE upset no one saw coming
Despite entering with an ELO of ~1845, Chin pulled off an incredible shocker –
He defeated Russian Grandmaster Andrey Esipenko (rated 2684) in their Group D match.
That’s an ~840-point rating gap!
Why this is a big deal

GM Episenko- credits: Chessbase India

Esipenko is a super-GM, a Candidates Tournament participant, and one of the few players to have beaten Magnus Carlsen in classical chess.

This is eSport style meaning no physical chess set and clock. But not totally online either. Lim Zhuo Ren and Magnus Carlsen is in the same playing hall using computer playing each other.

What is the eSport about:

The 2026 ASEAN E-Sports Chess Cup (also known as the ASEAN Plus Chess Esports Championship) is a major international rapid chess tournament taking place today, June 13, 2026, in Bangkok, Thailand.

Organized by WR Chess in partnership with the Thailand Chess Association, the event is designed as a broadcast-friendly, fast-paced competition that brings together 22 players — representing the 11 ASEAN nations alongside world-class international invitees.

Here is a breakdown of the event:

Tournament Structure

• Format: Rapid chess. Each player has 10 minutes for the entire game with no increment, meaning games last a maximum of 20 minutes.

• Progression: The 22 players are split into four round-robin groups. The top two players from each group advance to an 8-player Championship knockout bracket. The remaining players compete in parallel classification matches so every participant gets a final ranking.

• Venue: Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok at Chao Phraya River.

The Field

The tournament features a mix of regional talent and elite global heavyweights, including:

• Magnus Carlsen (World No. 1, Norway)

• Fabiano Caruana (World No. 2, USA)

• Le Quang Liem (Vietnam)

• Tin Jingyao (Singapore)

• Andrey Esipenko (FIDE)

• José Martínez Alcántara (Spain)

• and others including Lim Zhuo Ren of Malaysia

Significance and Goals

The event has strong backing from the Thai government as part of an initiative to promote the country's "soft power" and digital economy. Officials view the tournament as a way to position Thailand as a regional hub for digital sports while encouraging youth participation in chess to develop skills like analytical thinking, concentration, and strategic planning.