Mumbai Hosts Asian Junior Chess Championships 2026

Mumbai is set to host the Asian Junior Chess Championships 2026 from August 16 to 26, featuring a strong field of 157 players from 10 countries.

The tournament, organized by the Maharashtra Chess Association, will include six International Masters and 24 FIDE Masters and Women FIDE Masters.

The championship will have seven rounds each of rapid and blitz chess, besides nine rounds in the classical Swiss format.

The event will be played at ITC Maratha in Mumbai under the auspices of the All India Chess Federation, Asian Chess Federation, and FIDE.

Past winners of the championship include notable players such as Viswanathan Anand, Abhijit Kunte, and Tejas Bakre in the open category, and Tania Sachdev, Koneru Humpy, and Ivana Furtado in the women's category.

Winners of the event who are International Masters will be granted a Grandmaster norm, while non-International Master winners will earn an International Master norm.

The open section has an average Elo rating of 2,054, while the junior women's section has an average of 1,885.

India's IM Mayank Chakraborty, rated 2,500, leads the open field, followed by Russia's IM Artem Pingin at 2,477 and India's IM Apoorv Kamble at 2,441.

The junior women's field is headed by India's WFM Pratitee Bordoloi, rated 2,252, followed by Kazakhstan's WFA Mariya Kholyavko at 2,217 and Turkmenistan's WFM Lala Shohradova at 2,159.

Other Indian players to watch include Vignesh Advaith Vemula, Aaditya Dhingra, and Akshay Borgaonkar.

In the women's field, WFMs Swara Lakshmi Nair and Mrittika Mallick, along with Saranya Devi Narahari, are also expected to put up a strong showing.

The Asian Junior Chess Championships 2026 promises to be an exciting event, showcasing the best of Asia's Under-20 chess talent.

The tournament will provide a platform for young players to compete against the best in the continent and potentially earn norms for higher titles.

For Mumbai, hosting the event is a significant opportunity to promote chess and provide a world-class platform for young players to showcase their skills.