World’s best eight chess players are participating in the FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022. The winner of this tournament will play against the World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen at the upcoming FIDE World Chess Championship in 2023.
Let’s take a look at who stands where till round 9.
| Rank | Name | Score | Rating |
| 1 | GM Ian Nepomniachtchi | 6.5 | 2766 |
| 2 | GM Fabiano Caruana | 5.5 | 2783 |
| 3 | GM Hikaru Nakamura | 4.5 | 2760 |
| 4 | GM Liren Ding | 4.5 | 2806 |
| 5 | GM Radjabov Teimour | 4 | 2753 |
| 6 | GM Alireza Firouzja | 4 | 2793 |
| 7 | GM Richard Rapport | 4 | 2764 |
| 8 | GM Jan-Krysztof Duda | 3 | 2750 |
FIDE Candidates Tournament: What, Where, and Why
What is the FIDE Candidates Tournament?
The Candidates Tournament is the gateway event to the World Chess Champion. The primary motto of the tournament is to select the existing World Champion’s opponent amongst the best eight chess players in the world.
In other words, the winner of the Candidates Tournament gets the chance to play against the World Champion and stand a chance to win the title.
The Candidates Tournament is organized by FIDE; therefore, it’s called the FIDE Candidates Tournament.
Fun Facts about the FIDE Candidates Tournament:
- GM Ian Nepomniachtchi was the winner of the Candidates Tournament 2020-2021 with a score of 8.5 points.
- The winner receives a cash prize of €48,000.
- The FIDE has been organizing the Candidates Tournament since 1950.
- It’s the second most important chess event after the World Chess Championship.
- The Candidates Tournament has been held every two years since 2013.
- It’s a round-robin tournament, which means a player gets to play with every participant.
Why is the FIDE Candidates Tournament so important?
It’s the most important chess event other than the World Chess Championship because it’s the only opportunity to challenge the World Chess Champion.
If a chess player wins the Candidates Tournament, they get a chance to fight the existing World chess champion for the title.
Where is the FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022 taking place?
The FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022 is taking place at Madrid, Spain. The tournament was last held in Madrid back in 1993.
How to Get Selected in the Candidates Tournament
The tournament takes place between the best eight chess players from around the world. There are several criteria to select the candidates.
A player can get selected by fitting in any of the below criteria:
- The runner-up of the last World Chess Championship.
- The top two players of the Chess World Cup.
- The top two players of the FIDE Grand Swiss Tournament.
- The winner of the FIDE Grand Prix.
- The chess player with the highest average rating in that year.
- And a Wild card player chosen by the organizer.
The FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022
The Lucky Eight Players of 2022
The participants in the Candidates Tournament 2022 are:
| Name | Rating | Selected Criteria |
| GM Liren Ding | 2806 | Highest-rated player in 2022 |
| GM Alireza Firouzja | 2793 | In the top two of the 2021 FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss Tournament |
| GM Fabiano Caruana | 2783 | In the top two of the 2021 FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss Tournament |
| GM Ian Nepomniachtchi | 2766 | The 2021 FIDE World Championship runner-up |
| GM Hikaru Nakamura | 2764 | In the top two of the 2022 FIDE Grand Prix |
| GM Richard Rapport | 2760 | In the top two of the 2022 FIDE Grand Prix |
| GM Radjabov Teimour | 2753 | In the top two players of the Chess World Cup 2021 |
| GM Jan-Krysztof Duda | 2750 | In the top two players of the Chess World Cup 2021 |
Schedule of the Candidates Tournament
The tournament is taking place in 14 rounds, starting on 16th june and ending on 5th July.
The schedule set by FIDE is in the below picture.
Every round is scheduled to start at 19:00 CEST (Central European Summer Time), and go on for 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 50 minutes for the next 20 moves, and another 15 minutes at the end of the game with a 30-second increment per move starting on move one.
Round-by-Round Updates
Round 1
Highlights of the Round 1
- GM Ian Nepomniachtchi and GM Fabiano Caruana started strong with wins.
- The 18-year-old genius, Firouzja, played a sacrificial middlegame against Radjabov, but ended up with a drawn result.
- GM Duda surprised GM Rapport by playing 1.e4, instead of 1.d4 (that he played in the past).
Round 2
Highlights of the Round 2
- Nakamura recovered from the previous round’s defeat by securing a win against Radjabov.
- Nepomniachtchi and Caruana pushed each other in a drawn game.
- Firouzja survived a fatal endgame against Rapport on his birthday.
Round 3
Highlights of the Round 3
- All the four games ended in draws in Round 3.
- The second highest-rated player, Ding, played a tumultuous drawn game against Rapport.
- GM Firouzja challenged Nakamura by playing the latter’s comfort variation-the English Attack in the Najdorf.
Round 4
Highlights of the Round 4
- Rapport and Nakamura played a pensive drawn game. They stood in the same position with 2 points in round 4.
- Nepomniachtchi defeated Firouzja to stand as the leading player of the tournament.
- Duda and Radjabov crushed each other’s hopes for their first win.
Round 5
Highlights of the Round 5
- Four draws disappointed the tournament viewers/fans.
- Nepomniachtchi escaped a fatal end against Nakamura.
- Rapport failed to scare Caruana by playing a rare line of the Taimanov variation of the Sicilian.
Round 6
Highlights of the Round 6
- GM Rapport repeated the Taimanov variation he played the previous day, only to miss another win.
- Nepomniachtchi led in round 4 with 4.5 points, followed by Caruana. With 4 points.
- Firouzja struggled against Caruana despite playing an uncommon line (6.Qd3).
Round 7
Highlights of the Round 7
- GM Ding and GM Firouzja disappointed fans by failing to deliver notable performances.
- Duda recovered from the defeat against Nepomniachtchi by carefully escaping from Nakamura’s fierce play in round 7.
- Caruana spent nine minutes before playing the 3rd move, eventually defeating Radjabov (who was once coached by Caruana’s current coach).
Round 8
Highlights of the Round 8
- GM Nakamura changed the course of the tournament by shockingly defeating GM Caruana.
- Nepomniachtchi became the leading player in the round 8 with Caruana suffering a surprising defeat.
- Rapport recovered from the past defeat with a drawn game against Duda.
Round 9
Highlights of the Round 9
- Nepomniachtchi continued to lead with 6.5 points in round 9.
- Radjabov shocked fans by defeating Nakamura.
- Ding and Firouzja managed to win at last.
To checkout the updates in detail, visit FIDE Chess News.
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