International Chess Federation, or FIDE, president Arkady Dvorkovich on Monday called India a ‘modern powerhouse’ in the sport, saying the upcoming 2025 World Cup was being organized in Goa because the country was a ‘central pillar’ of the sport’s global structure.
206 top chess exponents from 80 countries will be in the coastal town for the tournament from October 30 to November 27. This is the first time since 2002 — when the legendary Viswanathan Anand beat Rustam Kasimdzhanov in the two-game final held in Hyderabad — that the World Cup is coming to India.
“India is not just the ancient home of chess; it is a global modern powerhouse. This World Cup (in Goa) is being held here because India is now a central pillar in the global structure of our
sport. For the next four weeks, Goa will not just be a coastal paradise; it will be the Colosseum of Chess. This is where legends are forged and broken, and new champions born – a process that has been dramatically enriched by the incredible new generation of Indian stars.”
This time, India’s hopes will be led by the reigning World Chess Champion, D Gukesh. But the hosts’ contingent is quite strong too, including Women’s World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh, the only female participant. Arjun Erigaisi, R. Praggnanandhaa, and Nihal Sarin, among others, will also be in action.
“I’m really excited to play in the World Cup. Anywhere in India is great, of course, but I have some nice memories of Goa as I played some junior events there,” Gukesh said, who is seeded straight into round two.
One of his major challengers would be the Netherlands’ Anish Giri.
“I’m looking forward to playing the World Cup. It’s a great event and a lot of fun. I’ve played a lot of them, and I was actually very near to qualifying once,” he said.
The top 50 seeds get byes into round two, while 156 others start on November 1. The eight-round knockout World Cup would feature two classical games per match, with rapid and blitz tie-breaks on the third day if scores are level.
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