Chess Olympiad 2026: Indian teams, schedule, format and everything you need to know

Grandmasters D Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa and woman GM R Vaishali pose at the ceremony after India won the gold medal at the 2024 Chess Olympiad in both the open and women’s categories. (PTI Photo) NEW DELHI: The 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad is being held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan from September 15 to 27, with the opening ceremony already underway and the first round on September 16.India enters the tournament as the defending champions in both the open and women’s sections after creating history by winning both the gold medals in Budapest 2024. Around 200 national teams are competing in both the sections.

Format and schedule

The Olympiad is a team competition played over 11 rounds using the Swiss system. Each team has five players, but only four play in a particular round, with the fifth available as a reserve. So the match consists of four separate games.A team win earns two match points, a draw one and a loss none. The team with the most match points after 11 rounds wins the title.The competition is played at the Silk Road International Exhibition Center.Rounds 1 to 6 are scheduled from September 16 to 21, followed by a rest day on September 22.Rounds 7 to 11 will be played from September 23 to 27 with the closing ceremony on September 27. The games start at 15:00 local time or 15:30 IST while the last round starts at 11:00 local time or 11:30 IST.DateRoundIndia time September 16 13.30 September 17.round 23.30 September 18.round 33.30 September 19.round 43.30 September 20.September 20.September 53.30 September 21.round 3.3.22.September 20.September 73:30 September 24 83:30 September 25 Round 25 93:30 September 26 Round 26 103:30 September 27 1111:30

teams of india

India’s Open team is led by R Praggnanandhaa (2761) on board 1, followed by Arjun Erigaisi (2759), Nihal Sarin (2718), world champion D Gukesh (2703) and Vidit Gujrathi (2697). Srinath Narayanan is the captain. India is seeded second in the Open section.The decision to put Gukesh on board 4 after he played on the top board in India’s previous two Olympics is one of the main points of discussion. Praggnanandhaa will face the strongest opposition on Deck 1, while the set-up gives India considerable depth lower down the order.The women’s team consists of Koneru Humpy, Divya Deshmukh, R Vaishali, Vantika Agrawal and Savitha Shri, captained by Swayams Mishra. India are the top seeds in the women’s section.India Open’s biggest rivals include hosts Uzbekistan, USA and China, while Georgia, Kazakhstan, China and USA are among the main challengers in the women’s competition. Uzbekistan, led by Javokhir Sindarov and Nodirbek Abdusattorov, will have the home advantage.

How are pairings decided?

The Olympiad takes place in the Swiss system. First-round pairings are based on team rankings, while other opponents are determined by team results.Teams with similar scores are usually paired against each other, meaning India’s opponents will be tougher if he wins. No two teams may meet more than once. Each team will field four players from their five-man squad for the match.For India, the goal is straightforward but unprecedented: to defend the double crown won two years ago in Budapest.