Daijiworld Media Network - Cyprus
Cyprus, Feb 20: The pairings for the FIDE Candidates Tournament 2026 and the FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament 2026 have been officially determined following the Drawing of Lots ceremony at the Cap St George’s Hotel & Resort, which will host both events from 28 March to 16 April 2026.
Organised under the auspices of FIDE, the tournaments will decide the challengers for the World Championship and Women’s World Championship titles. With the schedule now confirmed, players can begin finalising opening preparation and match strategies tailored to their specific opponents.
The Drawing of Lots ceremony brought together senior FIDE officials, representatives of the Cyprus Chess Federation, government authorities and invited guests, marking the formal commencement of the decisive stage of the World Championship cycle.
FIDE Vice President Georgios Makropoulos highlighted the importance of staging both events in Cyprus, expressing confidence that the players would enjoy competing in Paphos while contributing to the country’s rapidly developing chess scene.
Cyprus Chess Federation President Criton Tornaritis described the tournament as one of the biggest events ever hosted in the country, adding that such competitions serve as inspiration for young players and support the federation’s efforts to expand chess in schools.
Constantinos Malaou, Business Development Director of the host venue, emphasised that FIDE’s decision reflects international confidence in Cyprus’ organisational standards and places the country firmly on the global chess map at a pivotal moment in the race for the crown.
The drawing procedure was conducted by Chief Arbiter Takis Nikolopoulos, who explained the double round-robin format and the use of Berger tables to determine the schedule. As per regulations, players from the same federation were required to meet in the early rounds.
With two American participants, Fabiano Caruana and Hikaru Nakamura were paired to face each other in Round 1, immediately producing one of the headline encounters of the tournament.
Other key first-round matchups include:
• Praggnanandhaa R vs Anish Giri
• Javokhir Sindarov vs Andrey Esipenko
• Matthias Bluebaum vs Wei Yi
The tournament will be played over 14 rounds, with each participant facing every opponent twice, once with each colour. The same pairings from Round 1 will be repeated with colours reversed in Round 8, while several potentially decisive encounters are scheduled in the closing rounds.
The Women’s draw required additional adjustments due to federation representation, with three players from India, two from China and two competing under the FIDE flag. Regulations ensured that players from the same federation would meet in the early rounds.
Round 1 of the Women’s Candidates features several high-profile clashes:
• Zhu Jiner vs Tan Zhongyi
• Aleksandra Goryachkina vs Kateryna Lagno
• Vaishali R vs Bibisara Assaubayeva
• Divya Deshmukh vs Humpy Koneru
As in the Open section, the Women’s tournament will follow a double round-robin format across 14 rounds.
With the draw completed, the competitive framework for both tournaments is firmly in place. From late March, global attention will turn to Paphos as sixteen of the world’s strongest players compete for the right to challenge for the highest titles in chess.
The announcement of pairings marks a decisive shift in preparation, with months of targeted analysis, opening refinement and rest-day planning now structured around the confirmed sequence of opponents in what remains the most demanding format in elite chess.