Sindorov loses to Gukesh: Uzbek chess player misses consecutive opportunities at major tournament in Poland
The 11th season of the prestigious Grand Chess Tour, featuring the world's top grandmasters, has kicked off. As per tradition, the new season began with rapid and blitz matches hosted in Warsaw.
This major tournament features reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju and one of the main contenders for the title, Javohir Sindorov from Uzbekistan. According to the regulations, the two grandmasters will face each other three times — once in rapid and twice in blitz.
On the first day of the competition, participants played three rounds in the rapid format. Javohir Sindorov drew with American Hans Niemann playing with black pieces in the first round. In the second round, he agreed to a draw against local representative Jan-Krzysztof Duda while playing with white. In the third round, despite playing with black, the Uzbek chess player managed to defeat another Polish grandmaster, Radosław Wojtaszek.
However, the second day was unsuccessful for Javohir. He could not capitalize on his opportunities in any of the three rounds played. In the fourth round, he lost to American Wesley So, and in the fifth, reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju overcame the Uzbek player. In the final match of the day, French representative Maxime Vachier-Lagrave defeated Sindorov.
According to tournament rules, 2 points are awarded for each win and 1 point for a draw. After the sixth round, Hans Niemann leads with 9 points based on tie-breakers. Wesley So has accumulated the same number of points. Reigning champion Vladimir Fedoseev is in the top three with 8 points. Gukesh is fifth with 6 points, and Sindorov is in 9th place with 4 points.
Full list of tournament participants:
Javohir Sindorov (Uzbekistan)
Gukesh Dommaraju (India)
Alireza Firouzja
Hans Niemann (USA)
Fabiano Caruana
Vladimir Fedoseev (Slovenia)
Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France)
Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Poland)
Radosław Wojtaszek (Poland)
Wesley So (USA)
The tournament, which runs from May 3 to May 10, has a total prize pool of $200,000. During the event, fans will witness 135 intense games over 7 days.
Tournament format:
- Rapid — 9 rounds
- Blitz — 18-round double round-robin
The tournament features 5 permanent Grand Chess Tour participants and 5 invited grandmasters. Javohir Sindorov was invited to this competition via a wildcard.
New season rules and grand final
The 2026 GCT season is notable not only for its strong lineup but also for its updated regulations. 9 main participants are selected throughout the season. Each player is required to participate in two classical tournaments and two out of three rapid-blitz events. The top four players with the most points at the end of the regular season advance to the grand final in December. The prize pool for the final is $450,000.
Points are distributed as follows:
- 1st place — 12 points (13 points if won without tie-breaks)
- 2nd place — 10 points
- 10th place — 1 point
Strict regulations
Offering a draw is prohibited in the competition. A draw can only be recorded with the arbiter's permission, based on the three-fold repetition or the 50-move rule.
A technical defeat is recorded for participants who are more than 10 minutes late for classical games, and more than 3 minutes late for rapid and blitz games.
Careless handling of pieces will also not go unpunished. If a chess player knocks over pieces during the game and does not correct them in time, the arbiter will issue a warning. If this happens for the third time, the participant is declared the loser.
Prize pool:
- Each rapid/blitz tournament — $200,000
- Each classical tournament — $350,000
- Grand final — $450,000
The top prize for winners is $200,000.
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