Nihal Sarin and Koneru Humpy win individual gold medals at the 2026 European Chess Club Cup

Nihal Sarin and Konera Humpy Indian grandmasters put in impressive performances at the 2026 European Chess Club Cup in Montenegro, with Nihal Sarin and Koneru Humpy winning individual gold medals in the open and women’s competitions.Nihal, playing on Board 2 for the Nový Bor Chess Club, scored five points from six games, recording four wins and two draws.His victories included wins over Jorden van Foreest, Karthikeyan Murali and Maxim Rodshtein, which helped him secure the individual gold medal.However, his Nový Bor team narrowly missed out on the team title, finishing second to Bayegan Pendik Sports Club.Grandmaster Pentala Harikrishna, who also represented Nový Bor, won individual silver on board 3. He scored five points from six games.Meanwhile, Karthikeyan Murali secured an individual bronze medal playing board 2 for Team Electroprivreda, a Montenegrin chess club that finished 11th in the rankings. He scored 4.5 points from six matches, including a remarkable win over Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus.Arjun Erigaisi finished fourth on Board 1, adding to India’s strong performance in the open section.

Humpy leads Monte-Carlo to the women’s team title

In the 2026 Women’s European Chess Club Cup, Grandmaster Koneru Humpy delivered a key performance to help Cercle d’Echecs de Monte-Carlo win the team championship.Humpy won the individual gold medal on Board 2, scoring 4.5 points from six games in the seven-round tournament.Her win over WFM’s Nia Donghvani proved crucial and helped her team secure the title.After Humpy’s triumph, she expressed her happiness at X, writing: “Delighted to win the 2026 Women’s European Chess Club Cup with Cercle d’Echecs de Monte-Carlo!“My association with this amazing club started in 2007 and it has always been special and I am proud to be a part of its journey. A fantastic team effort and an unforgettable win alongside such amazing teammates.”Nihal will next compete at the London Chess Classic, which is scheduled from November 24 to December 7.