FM Faustino Oro defeated IM Levy Rozman in the much-awaited edition of ChessKid Stars vs. Streamers: Fausti vs. GothamChess. On Monday, Oro and Rozman proved to be an extremely close matchup. After many lead changes, the prodigy scored a must-win victory to bring the duel into overtime and then clinched it with a second win in a row.

Fausti vs. GothamChess is a clash of generations.

Representing the Millennials, we have Rozman, the 28-year-old international master known as "the internet's chess teacher." This year, Rozman reached over four million subscribers on YouTube, became an NY Times bestselling author, and earned a place on the Forbes' 30 under 30 list.

Representing Gen Z, we have Oro, the youngest player in history to earn an IM norm. The 10-year-old wunderkind has been breaking world records left and right in his brief career so far. He currently tops his age group by a nearly 200-point margin.

Even when compared to other prodigies that have had meteoric rises like GMs Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, Oro's trajectory stands out.

Oro recently played a blitz tournament at the Chessable Sunway Sitges Festival where his engrossing play gained the attention of even the top seed and world number-eight in live rankings, GM Leinier Dominguez.

Oro scored the first two victories due to his sharp tactical awareness. In game two, he seized the chance to launch a raging king attack out of the blue from a previously slow-paced, strategic position.

In the first of many lead changes, Rozman struck back with two wins in a row. GothamChess often counted on his endgame understanding to win, though he was capable of flipping the script and showing his own tactical prowess as well. In game four, he utilized skills both at once.

In game five, Oro set up a tactical trap to win his opponent's queen, but Rozman was ready with a fork-supported counter-punch.

As the match reached the halfway point, Oro tied up the score and then seized the lead with a three-game winning streak. He thrived when the positions became chaotic, successfully navigating his way through time scrambles and complications.

Yet, Rozman fought back, scoring two victories in a row to close out the blitz segment with a 5-5 tied score.

After all decisive blitz games, the bullet portion started with three back-to-back draws. Two hours into the match, the players were still completely tied at 6.5-6.5.

It was Oro who broke through the deadlock with a tactical strikein a double-edged ending.

Twice, Oro gained the lead. Yet, each time, Rozman matched his opponent's wins, game for game. The match clock ticked under three minutes with the competitors tied once again.

Rozman took the lead in the tenth bullet game, putting Oro in a must-win situation with the match clock running out.

The rising prodigy was up for the challenge, conjuring a king attack to win a bishop and then fighting for 89 moves to win a complex queen ending. Evening the score, Oro triggered a playoff.

In overtime, Oro finished off the match with two tactical bolts, one after another.

The Argentine sensation defeated his more experienced rival with a 11.5-10.5 final score. When asked who else he'd like to face in a match, Oro chose GM Alireza Firouzja.

His answer may have stirred Rozman's greatest fears. When asked where he thought Oro will be in five years, GothamChess shared:

Hopefully still loving chess and working very hard and not putting too much pressure on himself because the last thing that we need is for Fausti to turn 17 and say he's going to be a fashion designer. We already have enough of those.

The last thing that we need is for Fausti to turn 17 and say he's going to be a fashion designer.

Levy Rozman

Rozman shared why the Chesskid Stars vs. Streamers matches appeal to him as a content creator:

I think my fellow content creators are just scared. Theyre just wimps, and Im very brave.

Also, its just good content. Im happy todays match was close. I was very worried that after it was 2-0 that it would be 20-0. Im glad I was able to make it a good fight.

The ChessKid Stars vs. Streamers Showdown is a series of matches in which top young chess players play against some of the strongest titled chess streamers.

Previous coverage

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ChessKid Stars vs. Streamers: Whiz Kid Faustino Oro Beats GothamChess - Chess.com

British chess prodigy WCM Bodhana Sivanandan continues her remarkable chess journey with a sensational result in the European Blitz Championship where she won the prize for the best woman player.

In late October, the eight-year-old prodigy made headlines by becoming England's first world youth champion in 25 years when she achieved the historic triple crown by winning titles in classical, rapid, and blitz. It was a stunning achievement showcasing her exceptional talent and prowess in chess.

Her chess journey extended to the European Rapid & Blitz Championship in Zagreb, Croatia, which concluded on Saturday with gold medals for GM Alexey Sarana and GM David Navara respectively. (More on that later in a separate report.)

Bodhana delivered an outstanding 5/11 result with a 2056 performance in the rapid, but it was her performance in the 13-round blitz tournament that captured the attention of fellow players.

A total of 555 players participated in the event, among them 48 GMs and 50 IMs. Sivanandan finished in an incredible 73rd place with 8.5 points and scored a rating performance of 2316. The eight-year-old placed ahead of several grandmasters and other established masters. In the 12 rounds she played, Bodhana beat one IM and one FM.

Most of her games from the event are unfortunately not available. However, because her final-round draw against GM Vladislav Nevednichy was broadcast, it can be presented in this report.

Her outstanding result earned her a prize for the best woman player, prompting Romanian IM Irina Bulmaga to express her admiration on X/Twitter. "What a phenomenon she is," she wrote, noting that Bodhana took the woman prize ahead of her.

The English Chess Federation wrote: "Well done Bodhana. A terrific performance."

Bodhana has been making waves in the English chess scene since the age of seven. She remarkably won the 2022 UK Women's Blitz Championship, breaking the age record by more than four years. The feat earned her praise from The Guardian's legendary chess columnist Leonard Barden.

"She has a pragmatic, no-nonsense approach to blitz chess, where her preferred approach is to play the first 20 or so moves fast, establish a lead on the clock and a slight edge on the board, swap queens to favour her endgame skills, and then win on position or time," he wrote.

This week, prominent chess commentator IM Lawrence Trent went even further, describing her as "one of the greatest talents I've witnessed" and sharing his admiration on X/Twitter this way: "Bodhana Sivanandan is one of the greatest talents I've witnessed in recent memory. The maturity of her play, her sublime touch, it's truly breathtaking. I have no doubt she will be England's greatest player and most likely one of the greatest the game has ever seen."

Lawrence Trent

The young girl also captivated thousands of chess fans in the Chess.com-produced video where Sivanandan met with 79-year-old former British Chess Champion FM Peter Lee.

Bodhana is currently the world's third highest-rated player born in 2015 in classical chess and the second highest in blitz. She is an ambassador for ChessKid, along with her compatriot, 14-year-old IM Shreyas Royal, who recently scored his second GM norm.

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8-Year-Old British Sensation Stuns Chess World In Euro Blitz - Chess.com

4 Millburn Middle School Chess Players Win Their 4th National Team Championship Trophy  TAPinto.net

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4 Millburn Middle School Chess Players Win Their 4th National Team Championship Trophy - TAPinto.net

Alireza Firouzja, who wants to qualify for the Candidates Tournament via Elo with three matches scheduled at short notice, won two of these matches 2:0 and took the lead in the third match against Sergey Fedorchuk by winning the first game.

Firouzja's club C'Chartres Echecs is organising the match series with a total of six games from 18 to 22 December 2023 in Chartres. Spectators can watch the matches live on site at the Htellerie Saint-Yves (3, rue des acacias, 28000 Chartres, starting at 15.00 CET).

In the first two matches, Firouzja defeated Alexander Dgebuadze and Andrei Shchekachev both 2-0. A curious incident happened in the first game of the Shchekachev-Firouzja match: In an objectively equal position Shchekachev suddenly resigned, apparently because he overlooked a possible defence.

Firouzja has now overtaken Wesley So in the live rating list and would qualify for the Candidates as the player with the highest rating who did not already qualify for the Candidates by other means. However, Firouzja still needs to win the sixth game of the series. With a draw he would again fall behind So in the live rating list.

However, FIDE has stated that they will look very closely at the matches and then decide whether to rate the results.

There has been much criticism of the way in which these matches against older opponents with an Elo rating over 200 points lower were organised for the sole purpose of giving Firouzja the chance to gain enough rating points to make it to the Candidates. The US Chess Federation complained in an open letter to FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich (see below).

However, the actions of the organisers do not violate the current FIDE rules, though it seems that FIDE needs to come up with a better qualification system for the Candidates.

Games

In an open letter to FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich on 20 December, the US Chess Federation protested against these matches, which were organised on short notice, and demanded that Alireza Firouzja's games in these mini-matches should not be rated and that rules should be drawn up to prevent this kind of distortion of competition.

20 December 2023

Arkady Dvorkovich 1007 Lausanne, Schweiz Avenue de Rhodanie 54

Dear President Dvorkovich,

The United States Chess Federation is concerned about the conduct of the qualification tournaments related to the Candidates tournament. We believe that scheduling last-minute events to assist an individual player gain rating points to qualify for the Candidates tournament is neither sporting nor transparent, and it taints the selection process for FIDE and all of international chess.

As you know, we are supportive of the recent changes made to qualification for the cycle. We believe in the power of the biannual cycle to select the best players to compete. Just missing the qualification is no doubt frustrating for the players, but the cycle is intended to provide an open and fair competitive environment for all players. Organizing a last-minute event that is practically non-inclusive goes against the spirit of fair competition.

We continue to believe that when the final selections are made, the players should be those who throughout the cycle are most deserving of the honor of playing in the Candidates tournament. There will also undoubtedly be many great players who will miss out. Because of this, we believe it is imperative that the selection criteria are clear and transparent and have widespread support within the FIDE family.

We urge FIDE to not rate the French event and take steps to require that all FIDE events be registered at least 30 days in advance of their start date. This will reduce the amount of gamesmanship that thwarts the spirt of fair competition during the biannual qualification cycle.

Sincerely,

Randy Bauer US Chess President

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The Way to the Candidates: Firouzja is getting closer - ChessBase

GM Gukesh Dommaraju scored his second consecutive victory by outwitting GM Sanan Sjugirov, with the black pieces and aggressive play, to jump into the sole lead with three and a half points from five rounds in the Chennai Grand Masters 2023. Overnight joint leader GM Pentala Harikrishna and GM Pavel Eljanov shared the second and third places with three points.

It was a day of heavy fighting chess on Tuesday, with pawn sacrifices, tactical skirmishes, and remarkable escapes. A dramatic encounter of the day was between GMs Arjun Erigaisi and Levon Aronian where the latter seemed to be in dire straights; he pulled off a draw when Arjun erred while converting an advantageous rook ending.

The Chennai Grand Masters continues with round six on Wednesday, December 20, at 4:45 a.m. ET/10:45 CET/3:15 p.m. IST.

Chennai Grand Masters Round 5 Results

The competition heats up at Chennai and the tournament enters the crucial phase. With so much at stake for some of the players, the tension is palpable in the tournament hall as the games begin. The crampedness of the tournament hall also highlights the interest of the media in the event, with photographers hurrying to shoot their pictures and videos in the allowed initial ten minutes of the game.

To the delight of spectators, just after two hours of play, there was an electric atmosphere in all the games.

Defending a regular Italian Defense with black pieces, Gukesh uncorked 14...Ne7!? sacrificing the e5-pawn after15.exd5 Nfxd5 16.Nxe5, thus throwing a challenge to his opponent. Sjugirov slowly got into considerable time pressure apart from Black having much more dynamic pieces on the board.

The position looked level, and just when White was expected to continue pragmatically with 20.h4 or 20.Ne4, Harikrishna too decided to sacrifice a pawn with20.Nd6!, to the delight of the spectators.

The consensus among commentators was that Black had decent drawing chances in the endgame, in spite of a considerably weak pawn structure all over the board. However, Arjun found the beautiful24.Re3!here, with the idea of the rook shifting to g3, after which it was clear that White had good practical chances to press for a win.

The position looked level, as the pawn weaknesses on e3 and d5 seemed to cancel out any advantage for either side. But Predke unexpectedly played 20.Kb1!?here, sacrificing the e3-pawn and thus raising the stakes.

No doubt, the Chennai Grand Masters 2023 is proving to be a spectator's delight as it enters the final stretch.

Appearing on the live commentary at the end of the fourth round, Gukesh was asked if the race to the Candidates spot weighs too heavy on him currently. Gukesh confessed that though he tries his best to focus just on the games, achieving a place in the Candidates is very much in the back of his mind.

When one observes Gukesh at the tournament hall, he looks true to his description: someone who tries to be as focused as possible on his target. He hardly makes any conversation while appearing for the games and afterward, and often closes his eyes in a meditative break even during the games. He hardly makes an entry after the games at the Press Center too, preferring to conserve his energy. And, with the second win in a row in the fifth round, his disciplined routines seem to be bearing fruit.

Gukesh's main strength over the chess board is his aggression, enabling him to score with black pieces too in such crucial games. Such aggression was probably the main source that enabled him to sacrifice a pawn in the early middlegame and push ahead for a win in the fifth round.

He confessed later: "I was already looking for more than equality. Also, he was taking a lot of time and I had a huge time advantage. I wanted to make the most out of it." Such a stage of pragmatism enabled him to play wholeheartedly for a win, and this is our Game of the Day, analyzed by GM Rafael Leitao below.

GM Parham Maghsoodloo kept his momentum as promised after his win in the previous game, and played an open game against Harikrishna, thus making it clear that he was not in the equalizing-with-black-pieces mode. He was aiming for a fight even with the black pieces and did not mind taking the risk of weakening his position in the process.

And this is when Harikrishna too rose to the occasion, sacrificing a pawn and playing for an advantage with 20.Nd6!?.However, he erred soon after that, and Maghsoodloo took a long 18-minute think on his 25th move and equalized by giving back the pawn and getting out of the tight corner.

Appearing on the live commentary after the game, Gukesh called this game "Aronian's 1001st rook endgame save!" In a nutshell, it summed up the whole encounter.

Aronian's 1001st rook endgame save!

Dommaraju Gukesh

GM Anish Giri, also on the live commentary, was full of praise for Arjun's preparation and play in the game, where the Indian grandmaster virtually made 18 moves in the opening without consuming much of his thinking time.

Preferring a rare variation of the Scotch Opening, Arjun's opening preparation seemed to have had the desired effect when Aronian's play was found not optimal during the middlegame stages, and Arjun got a "juicy endgame" as described by Giri.

Arjun's play with 24.Re3 received great praise from Giri, who noted the accuracy of White's moves, remarking: "In such situations, every inch is important." In the further intense fight in the endgame, Aronian seemed to be gradually slipping in his defense and Arjun achieved a huge advantage. But just when it looked like a foregone conclusion that the game was in his pocket, Arjun committed a blunder in a won rook ending.

Though GM Alexandr Predke showed his ambition by offering a pawn sacrifice in the late middlegame, he seemed to have a difficult day at the office. His decision to give up his important bishop and also weaken the kingside with22.b3seemed to be his undoing.

How to watch the Chennai Grand Masters 2023

You can keep up with all the games and results of the tournament on our live events platform by following this link.

The Chennai Grand Masters 2023 is an eight-player all-play-all tournament in Chennai, India, running December 15-21. The strongest classical invitational tournament ever held in India, it gives Gukesh, Arjun, and Maghsoodloo a chance to qualify for the 2024 Candidates Tournament. The prize fund is $60,000, with $18,000 for first place.

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Gukesh Surges Ahead On Day Of Spectators' Delight - Chess.com

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GothamChess Versus 10-Year-Old Fausti Oro - Chess.com

An eight-year-old British schoolgirl has "entered chess history" after an outstanding performance at a blitz championship in Croatia, where she beat a chess master more than 30 years her senior.

Bodhana Sivanandan, from Harrow, northwest London, put on a "superlative" performance, totalling a "remarkable" 8.5/13 against a field of "highly rated grandmasters, international masters and experts", said the Financial Times.

The blitz tournament, which took place in Zagreb, saw a "mammoth" entry of 555 players, including 48 grandmasters and 50 international masters.

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In the penultimate round of the tournament, Sivanandan beat her first international master, 39-year-old Lorin D'Costa, England's women's chess coach, before drawing with 54-year-old two-time Romanian champion Vladislav Nevednichy in the final round.

It made her the "youngest player to avoid defeat against a grandmaster in a competitive game", said The Times.

Dominic Lawson, president of the English Chess Federation, told the paper that Sivanandan is a "phenomenon".

"It's an extraordinary result for an eight-year-old and something we've certainly never seen in this country," said Lawson. "She has a remarkably mature playing style, it's strategic and patient. She has what you might describe as a long game."

Writing on X, international master Lawrence Tent called Sivanandan "one of the greatest talents I've witnessed in recent memory. The maturity of her play, her sublime touch, it's truly breathtaking."

"I have no doubt she will be England's greatest player and most likely one of the greatest the game has ever seen," he added.

Sivananda began playing chess during lockdown when she was just five years old after she "rescued an old chess board out of a bin bag", said the Daily Mail.

"I got fascinated with the pieces and I started taking them. I kept asking questions so my dad then taught me [how to play] using YouTube," she said.

Sivanandan hopes to become a grandmaster and eventually compete for the women's world championship, currently dominated by Chinese players. These are "high ambitions" said the FT, "but given what she has achieved so far, you would not bet against her".

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Eight-year-old Brit Bodhana Sivanandan makes chess history - The Week

There are three things you can watch forever: fire burning, water falling, and movies with Sir Anthony Hopkins. The psychological thriller "Fracture" was a big blockbuster in 2007. A very smart screenplay coupled with brilliant performances by Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling makes it a must-watch movie. Here is one of my favorite moments:

I really like this quote:

"I found a flaw in every single one of themyou know, thin places in the shell; fine, hairline cracks. You look closely enough, you'll find that everything has a weak spot where it can break, sooner or later."

If you are wondering what this has to do with chess, pay attention to the most relevant part: everything has a weak spot where it can break, sooner or later... including your opponent's position! Therefore, your goal as a chess player is to find such cracks.

A natural question then would be how to find fractures in your opponent's position. This is what we are going to discuss in this article.

There is no need to discuss the obvious fact that solving Chess.com puzzles would improve your tactical skills. What should be discussed though is how to maximize the benefits from solving these puzzles. Let's take the following one as an example:

Hopefully, you have easily solved this puzzle. But after you finish it, don't rush for the next one; instead, try to figure out the mechanism of the combination that made it work.

It is easy to see that in the initial position, the two pawns guarding the king were protected only by the king himself. Meanwhile, each of them was attacked once by the rook on b7 and the queen on f5, and therefore we have the equilibrium where attack and defense are balanced.

But such a delicate balance can be easily broken, and so we have fine, hairline cracks as discussed above by Ted Crawford (played by Anthony Hopkins). Let's change the position a bit and the combination is not going to work anymore:

As you can see, the h7-pawn was protected twice and attacked only once, so it was not a potential crack anymore, and therefore White's combination failed. Therefore, our goal is to constantly look for the squares around the opponent's king that are attacked at least the same number of times as they are defended. While such squares don't guarantee a combination, they are the cracks that can potentially lead to serious fractures.

Here is a very recent example from a game between GMs Hans Niemann and Ivan Cheparinov:

You can read detailed annotations to the game, as well as the controversy around the tournament, in this article. Is it difficult for a young and upcoming 2600+ grandmaster to calculate such a sacrifice? I don't think so. Besides, many experienced players would make such a sacrifice based purely on intuition, because "it's just gotta work!" Also, don't forget that since Niemann modestly compared himself to GM Bobby Fischer, he had to know this iconic game of the American genius:

Some of our readers will probably ask how it is possible to talk about attacks and sacrifices in chess without mentioning games by "The Magician." Yes, you are absolutely correct, it is impossible. When GM Mikhail Tal played the following game he was just 14 years old. By the way, notice the same mechanics as in Niemann's game: the Qb6 and a knight going to e3 (in this game from the d5 square, in Niemann's game from the g4 square) cooperate very well after the sacrifice on f2:

Here is a little test for our readers. Play through the following famous game of the first world champion and find a moment where he could have played much stronger using cracks in Black's position:

I am sure that it was a piece of cake for you after you saw Tal's game above. So, this is how Steinitz could have decided the game as early as move 9!

I hope you got the main point of this article: everything has a weak spot where it can break, sooner or later. So, look for the cracks!

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Find A Fracture In Your Opponent's Position - Chess.com

The 2023 FIDE Open World Rapid & Blitz Championships kick off Dec. 25 and run through Dec. 31 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. First up is the rapid tournament, and Norwegian chess legend Magnus Carlsen will compete.

The format is 15 minutes plus 10 seconds increment per move, starting from the first move. The 13-round tournament will use the Swiss system. The prize fund is $350,000.

More than 200 players will compete, with most of the games top grandmasters registered.

There will be a five-minute broadcast delay for the rapid tournament as an anti-cheating measure.

Carlsen, the worlds best chess player since 2010, is the betting favorite in every tournament he plays. Below are the current and opening odds for each participant with a line.

Source: Bwin Sportsbook. Current as of Dec. 22. Subject to change.

Carlsen won the event four of the last 10 times it was held, including two of the last three, in addition to a runner-up performance (2012) and two third places (2016 and 2021).

His opening +175 odds carried an implied probability of 36.4%, a fair price considering he took first in 40% of the last 10 runnings. His current odds of +100 are far less appealing but still probably the best moneyline bet available.

Carlsens 2023 in classical chess (longer time controls) has been the weakest of his career since becoming the worlds highest-rated player in 2010. Carlsen often says hes less interested in classical chess. He vacated his world championship title earlier this year.

Of course, this is a rapid event. Carlsen won a rapid tournament in Toronto earlier this month.

Carlsens top rivals, Americans Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana, were not yet confirmed as entrants when opening odds were posted. Caruana decided to play, while Nakamura skipped the World Rapid Championship.

A playable long-shot bet is Nodirbek Abdusattorov of Uzbekistan (+2000). The 19-year-old won the event in 2021, defeating Carlen en route to his stunning underdog victory. The tournament is in his home country, so he might benefit from a lack of long-distance travel. Abdusattorov has had a steady but unspectacular 2023 in terms of classical rating.

Daniil Dubov, the 2018 champion, could also be worth a long-shot play at +5000.

You could bet Carlsen and hedge with a smaller wager on a long shot who has demonstrated the ability to win the World Rapid Championship.

Vincent Keymer, the 19-year-old German who was last years runner-up to Carlsen, doesnt have odds. Betting on him would come with the any player not listed option. The +600 odds are interesting, considering youd also get super talented young players like Parham Maghsoodloo, Javokhir Sindarov and Hans Niemann, who have all been on fire in recent months. Recent performances by Abdusattorov, Dubov, Keymer and Alireza Firouzja perhaps show that younger players have better chances in this event than older ones.

Still, its Carlsens event to lose.

Photo by Waleed Zein/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Excerpt from:

Magnus Carlsen Has 50% Chance to Win Rapid Chess Championship, Per Sportsbook - Forbes

FIDE could be on the verge of scrapping its presidential term limit and allowing Russian incumbent Arkady Dvorkovich to run for four more years in office.

The world chess federation's current rulesbrought in as an election promise by Dvorkovichare contained in the FIDE Charter and state the president has to step down after two four-year terms in power.

But a controversial amendment, to be discussed when FIDE meets for its annual general assembly on Sunday, seeks to remove that clause. The motion was tabled by the federations representing 21 mostly small chess nations and has been listed on the agenda under "administrative matters."

Sunday's proposal, first uncovered by the site Chess-News, was highlighted by FIDE watchers on X, the platform formally known as Twitter. It drew immediate criticism.

GM Peter Heine Nielsen, a frequent commentator on FIDE matters, said:

Replies on his feed were quick to draw comparisons with Russian president Vladimir Putin, who circumvented constitutional term limits. Putin has held continuous positions as president or prime minister since 1999 and, due to an amendment to the constitution in 2020, is now exempt from presidential term limits until 2036.

Dvorkovich served as deputy prime minister under Putin from 2012 to 2018, and it has been suggested he is adopting the same methods:

GM Jacob Aagaard also noted that Dvorkovich went back on his key election promise to stop terms of office like the 23-year reign of his predecessor Kirsan Ilyumzhinov from happening again. Aagaard said:

Before he was elected in 2018, Dvorkovich told the media: "The FIDE President must serve the chess community, and regardless of the results of his work, a maximum of two presidential terms must be established."

During that election campaign, Dvorkovich received support from, among others, the influential Association of Chess Professionals.

In a pre-election endorsement posted on its website, the ACP stated: "ACP strongly supports the view that no President should be serving for more than two consecutive terms. This is vital to democracy in every major organization and FIDE is no exception."

The reaction in Russia to Dvorkovich winning was positive with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov telling the RIA news agency: "The election of the head of FIDE is very important, it's a global event, and, of course, we were rooting for Dvorkovich, a Russian citizen."

Announcing Dvorkovich's re-election in 2022 at the general assembly in Chennai, India, FIDE's own website stated:"Dvorkovich's second term will also be the last, as one of the first tasks that he undertook shortly after being elected in 2018 was to renew the FIDE Charter, introduce term limits, and other democratic reforms."

If approved, the change would allow the 51-year-old to extend his term as one of the few Russians still in charge of international sporting organizations since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The other main outlier is the International Judo Federation (IJF), under the leadership of its President Marius Vizer, reportedly a long-time close friend of Putin.

Since his election in a bruising contest back in 2018, Dvorkovich has faced constant criticism for his links to the Russian governmentparticularly since Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine.

On becoming FIDE president, Dvorkovich moved swiftly to deliver on his election promise and introduced Article 18.12 of the FIDE Charter which states: "A person cannot serve as FIDE President for more than two terms of four years. Terms may be consecutive or non-consecutive."

In his letter to FIDE, the president of the Andorra Chess Federation, Francesc Rechi Prez, argues the time is right for the change.

He said: "The 2023 GA is an appropriate moment to reverse/make the respective amendments to the Charter while this is the least politicized period in between elections, and there are no direct beneficiaries from adoption of the change in regulations."

Prior to the meeting, FIDE's Constitutional Commission confirmed the South African Chess Federation and the Bulgarian Chess Federation have no right to vote in the 2023 meeting.

See the original post here:

Could FIDE's Russian President Get A Third Term In Office? - Chess.com