FIDE World Senior Championships 2026: Strutinskaya Perfect as Four Titles Take Shape

Tournament Overview

The FIDE World Senior Chess Championships 2026 are underway in Vrnjačka Banja, Serbia, with five rounds completed and six still to play across four championship categories. Early favourites are distinguishing themselves while others have already surrendered ground, setting the stage for a compelling second half of the event.

Women 65+

WGM Galina Strutinskaya has produced the standout performance of the opening rounds, remaining the only player with a flawless record after five victories from five games. She holds a full-point advantage over her closest pursuers.

WGM Irina Chelushkina of Serbia and WIM Larisa Khropova share second place on 4/5. Three players trail a half-point further back on 3.5 points: Elena Krasenkowa from Poland, Bagyashree Sathe Thipsay from India, and Ingrid Lauterbach from Germany.

Chess history graces the event through GM Nona Gaprindashvili of Georgia, the former Women’s World Champion and top seed competing for the special Women 75+ title. She has gathered three points from five games — a modest start by her extraordinary standards — but her competitive experience makes her a player to monitor closely in the remaining rounds.

Women 50+

Spain’s WGM Monica Calzetta Ruiz leads the Women 50+ championship with 4.5 points from five games, edging Swedish GM Pia Cramling by half a point. Cramling, the top seed and one of the most respected figures in women’s chess, remains unbeaten on four points and is well positioned for a title challenge despite the crowded field behind her.

Six players are grouped on 3.5 points: IM Inna Gaponenko of Ukraine, WGM Maritza Arribas Robaina of Cuba, WIM Sopio Tereladze and WGM Inga Khurtsilava of Georgia, GM Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant of Scotland, and Yelena Gaichenya of Kazakhstan.

Open 50+

The Open 50+ championship features one of the strongest fields of the event. GMs Petr Kostenko and Kiril Georgiev had won four consecutive games before sharing the points in their direct encounter during round five, arriving together on 4.5 points. They were joined at the summit when GM Pavel Kotsur drew with GM Ramil Hasangatin.

Georgiev, a former World Junior Champion and one of Bulgaria’s most distinguished grandmasters, remains among the leading title contenders. A strong chasing pack sits half a point adrift, featuring GMs Ramil Hasangatin, Victor Mikhalevski, Hannes Stefansson, Suat Atalik, and Mikheil Kekelidze.

Top seed GM Murtas Kazhgaleyev of Kazakhstan rebounded from an early setback with a fifth-round victory to stand on 3.5 points.

Open 65+

The Open 65+ championship is shaping up as a tightly contested race, with five players sharing the lead on 4.5 points after five rounds.

• Strutinskaya commands the Women 65+ standings with a perfect score
• Calzetta Ruiz leads Women 50+, with top seed Cramling half a point behind
• Three Grandmasters share the Open 50+ lead after Kostenko and Georgiev drew their head-to-head
• Five players are locked at the top of Open 65+
• Six rounds remain in all categories, leaving plenty of chess for the titles to be decided

Source

This report is based on information published by FIDE — International Chess Federation.

Official source: https://www.fide.com/fide-world-senior-championships-2026-six-rounds-left-four-titles-at-stake/