Uzbekistan Finishes Eighth at World Rapid Championship in Hong Kong

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — The Uzbekistan national chess team concluded its performance in the rapid program of the FIDE World Team Championship in Hong Kong, finishing in eighth place.

Over a total of 12 rounds played under the Swiss system from 17 June to 19 June 2026, the Uzbek chess players accumulated 15 points, recording 7 wins, 1 draw, and 4 defeats. Compared to the previous world championship in London, where the team finished just outside the podium in fourth place, the national team dropped four positions.

One of the central events of the final stretch of the tournament was a sensational victory by Grandmaster Javokhir Sindarov over the Norwegian former world champion, Magnus Carlsen. Their head-to-head confrontation on board one took place in the ninth round during a match against the tournament favorites, team WR Chess. In a complex game, Carlsen escalated the position and sacrificed his queen to maintain his ground, but Sindarov technically converted his material advantage to secure the win. The grandmaster's participation in the championship and his preparation are supported by the National Bank of Uzbekistan.

The match between the Uzbekistan national team and WR Chess ended in a 3-3 draw. In addition to Sindarov, points for the national team were secured by Mukhiddin Madaminov, Afruza Khamdamova, and Akzhol Rakhmatullaev, while Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Nodirbek Yakubboev lost to Wesley So and Fabiano Caruana, respectively.

In the individual standings, the best points total in the Uzbek team was achieved by Nodirbek Yakubboev, who scored 7.5 points in 11 games with a performance rating of 2620. Meanwhile, Javokhir Sindarov, who scored 6.5 points in 10 games, recorded the highest performance rating on the team at 2708, allowing him to place among the strongest players on board one. Team leader Nodirbek Abdusattorov finished the rapid section with 6 points in 11 rounds.

The contributions of the remaining participants were as follows: Shamsiddin Vokhidov scored 4 points, Mukhiddin Madaminov scored 5 points, and Akzhol Rakhmatullaev scored 6 points. On the women's boards, Afruza Khamdamova scored 5 points in 7 matches, while Umida Omonova scored 3 points in 5 games.

The total prize fund of the competition in Hong Kong is 500,000 euros, of which 310,000 euros are allocated based on the results of the rapid section, while 190,000 euros are set aside for the blitz tournament. The winner of the rapid section will receive a check for 110,000 euros. The championship games will continue on 20 June 2026 with the blitz competitions, where 3 minutes are allocated per game with an increment of 2 seconds per move.

Following the group stage, the top 16 teams will advance to the knockout phase. The quarter-finals and final matches of the blitz tournament will take place on 21 June 2026.

At the previous world championship in this discipline, the victory was claimed by the WR Chess club, while the Uzbekistan national team finished in fourth place.