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The FIDE Candidates tournament, a pinnacle event in the world of chess, is set to capture fans as top players from all over the world meet in Toronto, Canada, from April 3 to April 22. This elite competition is the culmination of a difficult qualification process for the top eight players in both the open and women's divisions, securing a coveted position in this recognised event.
Among the contenders are several Indian players who have made history by reaching this stage for the first time ever. In the open category, prodigies Praggnanandhaa R, Gukesh D, and Vidit Gujrathi will showcase their skills, while in the women's category, Vaishali R and Koneru Humpy will strive to make their mark on the international stage.
The FIDE Candidates tournament is extremely important as the greatest classical chess competition organised by FIDE, rivalling even the World Championship in terms of status. The winner of this gruelling event will have the opportunity to challenge the reigning world champion in their respective category, with Ding Liren and Ju Wenjun currently holding the men's and women's crowns, respectively.
Magnus Carlsen, widely regarded as one of the greatest chess players of all time, has chosen not to compete in this year's competition despite qualifying.
As the world watches the developing drama of the FIDE Candidates tournament, all eyes will be on the participants as they compete on the chessboard for a chance at glory.
FIDE Candidates 2024: Full list of players competing
Open Category:
Ian Nepomniachtchi (Russia) - 2758
Praggnanandhaa R (India) - 2747
Fabiano Caruana (USA) - 2804
Nijat Abasov (Azerbaijan) - 2632
Vidit Gujrathi (India) - 2727
Hikaru Nakamura (USA) - 2789
Alireza Firouzja (France) - 2760
Gukesh D (India) - 2743
Women's category:
Lei Tingjie (China) - 2550
Kateryna Lagno (Russia) - 2542
Aleksandra Goryachkina (Russia) - 2553
Nurgyul Salimova (Bulgaria) - 2426
Anna Muzychuk (Ukraine) - 2520
Vaishali R (India) - 2481
Tan Zhongyi (China) - 2521
Humpy Koneru (India) - 2546
FIDE Candidates 2024: Format
The FIDE Candidates tournaments follow a double round-robin format, where each player faces every other participant twice. With 14 rounds and four rest days, the competition spans an intense schedule. Matches adhere to a time control of 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, with a 30-second increment per move thereafter.
Tiebreakers include rapid chess games, single round-robin matches, and blitz matches if needed, ensuring an exciting and competitive event.
FIDE Candidates 2024: Schedule
Open Category
Round 1 (April 4):
Fabiano Caruana vs Hikaru Nakamura
Nijat Abasov vs Ian Nepomniachtchi
Alireza Firouzja vs R. Pragg
D. Gukesh vs Vidit Gujrathi
Round 2 (April 5):
Hikaru Nakamura vs Vidit Gujrathi
R. Pragg vs D. Gukesh
Ian Nepomniachtchi vs Alireza Firouzja
Fabiano Caruana vs Nijat Abasov
Round 3 (April 6):
Nijat Abasov vs Hikaru Nakamura
Alireza Firouzja vs Fabiano Caruana
D. Gukesh vs Ian Nepomniachtchi
Vidit Gujrathi vs R. Pragg
Round 4 (April 7):
Hikaru Nakamura vs R. Pragg
Ian Nepomniachtchi vs Vidit Gujrathi
Fabiano Caruana vs D. Gukesh
Nijat Abasov vs Alireza Firouzja
Round 5 (April 9):
Alireza Firouzja vs Hikaru Nakamura
D. Gukesh vs Nijat Abasov
Vidit Gujrathi vs Fabiano Caruana
R. Pragg vs Ian Nepomniachtchi
Round 6 (April 10):
D. Gukesh vs Hikaru Nakamura
Vidit Gujrathi vs Alireza Firouzja
R. Pragg vs Nijat Abasov
Ian Nepomniachtchi vs Fabiano Caruana
Round 7 (April 11):
Hikaru Nakamura vs Ian Nepomniachtchi
Fabiano Caruana vs Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu
Nijat Abasov vs Vidit Santosh Gujrathi
Alireza Firouzja vs D. Gukesh
Round 8 (April 13):
Hikaru Nakamura vs Fabiano Caruana
Ian Nepomniachtchi vs Nijat Abasov
R. Pragg vs Alireza Firouzja
Vidit Gujrathi vs D. Gukesh
Round 9 (April 14):
Vidit Gujrathi vs Hikaru Nakamura
D. Gukesh vs R. Pragg
Alireza Firouzja vs Ian Nepomniachtchi
Nijat Abasov vs Fabiano Caruana
Round 10 (April 15):
Hikaru Nakamura vs Nijat Abasov
Fabiano Caruana vs Alireza Firouzja
Ian Nepomniachtchi vs D. Gukesh
R. Pragg vs Vidit Gujrathi
Round 11 (April 17):
R. Pragg vs Hikaru Nakamura
Vidit Gujrathi vs Ian Nepomniachtchi
D. Gukesh vs Fabiano Caruana
Alireza Firouzja vs Nijat Abasov
Round 12 (April 18):
Hikaru Nakamura vs Alireza Firouzja
Nijat Abasov vs D. Gukesh
Fabiano Caruana vs Vidit Gujrathi
Ian Nepomniachtchi vs R. Pragg
Round 13 (April 20):
Ian Nepomniachtchi vs Hikaru Nakamura
R. Pragg vs Fabiano Caruana
Vidit Gujrathi vs Nijat Abasov
D. Gukesh vs Alireza Firouzja
Round 14 (April 21):
Hikaru Nakamura vs D. Gukesh
Alireza Firouzja vs Vidit Gujrathi
Nijat Abasov vs R. Pragg
Fabiano Caruana vs Ian Nepomniachtchi
Women' Category
Round 1 (April 4):
Aleksandra Goryachkina vs Kateryna Lagno
Anna Muzychuk vs Nurgyul Salimova
Lei Tingjie vs Tan Zhongyi
R. Vaishali vs Humpy Koneru
Round 2 (April 5):
Kateryna Lagno vs Humpy Koneru
Tan Zhongyi vs R. Vaishali
Nurgyul Salimova vs Lei Tingjie
Aleksandra Goryachkina vs Anna Muzychuk
Round 3 (April 6):
Anna Muzychuk vs Kateryna Lagno
Lei Tingjie vs Aleksandra Goryachkina
R. Vaishali vs Nurgyul Salimova
Humpy Koneru vs Tan Zhongyi
Round 4 (April 7):
Kateryna Lagno vs Tan Zhongyi
Nurgyul Salimova vs Humpy Koneru
Aleksandra Goryachkina vs R. Vaishali
Anna Muzychuk vs Lei Tingjie
Round 5 (April 9):
Lei Tingjie vs Kateryna Lagno
R. Vaishali vs Anna Muzychuk
Humpy Koneru vs Aleksandra Goryachkina
Tan Zhongyi vs Nurgyul Salimova
Round 6 (April 10):
R. Vaishali vs Kateryna Lagno
Humpy Koneru vs Lei Tingjie
Tan Zhongyi vs Anna Muzychuk
Nurgyul Salimova vs Aleksandra Goryachkina
Round 7 (April 11):
Kateryna Lagno vs Nurgyul Salimova
Aleksandra Goryachkina vs Tan Zhongyi
Anna Muzychuk vs Humpy Koneru
Lei Tingjie vs R. Vaishali
Round 8 (April 13):
Kateryna Lagno vs Aleksandra Goryachkina
Nurgyul Salimova vs Anna Muzychuk
Tan Zhongyi vs Lei Tingjie
Humpy Koneru vs R. Vaishali
Round 9 (April 14):
Humpy Koneru vs Kateryna Lagno
R. Vaishali vs Tan Zhongyi
Lei Tingjie vs Nurgyul Salimova
Anna Muzychuk vs Aleksandra Goryachkina
Round 10 (April 15):
Kateryna Lagno vs Anna Muzychuk
Aleksandra Goryachkina vs Lei Tingjie
Nurgyul Salimova vs R. Vaishali
Tan Zhongyi vs Humpy Koneru
Round 11 (April 17):
Tan Zhongyi vs Kateryna Lagno
Humpy Koneru vs Nurgyul Salimova
R. Vaishali vs Aleksandra Goryachkina
Lei Tingjie vs Anna Muzychuk
Round 12 (April 18):
Kateryna Lagno vs Lei Tingjie
Anna Muzychuk vs R. Vaishali
Aleksandra Goryachkina vs Humpy Koneru
Nurgyul Salimova vs Tan Zhongyi
Round 13 (April 20):
Nurgyul Salimova vs Kateryna Lagno
Tan Zhongyi vs Aleksandra Goryachkina
Humpy Koneru vs Anna Muzychuk
R. Vaishali vs Lei Tingjie
Round 14 (April 21):
Kateryna Lagno vs R. Vaishali
Lei Tingjie vs Humpy Koneru
Anna Muzychuk vs Tan Zhongyi
Aleksandra Goryachkina vs Nurgyul Salimova
FIDE Candidates 2024: Live-streaming details
Viewers can watch the FIDE Candidates 2024 event live on the FIDE YouTube channel. While there has been no formal announcement regarding transmission in India, the matches will begin at 14:30 local time on April 4th.
