Wikipedia

Speed Chess Championship

The Speed Chess Championships are a family of annual blitz chess tournaments held and hosted by the online chess platform Chess.com.

Magnus Carlsen, five-time speed chess champion.

History

edit

The reigning Speed Chess Champion is Norwegian grandmaster Magnus Carlsen, who has won the main event five times out of seven appearances.[1] American grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, who has played in every single edition to date, has also won the event five times, consecutively from 2018 to 2022.[2] He had also reached every final until 2024, when he was knocked out in the semifinals for the first time.[3]

Since 2019, Chess.com has also held the Women's and Junior Speed Chess Championships.[4][a] Chinese grandmaster Ju Wenjun is the reigning Women's Speed Chess Champion,[5] and Indian grandmaster Gukesh Dommaraju is the reigning Junior Speed Chess Champion.[6] In 2020, the Youth Speed Chess Championship and IM Not A GM Speed Chess Championship were introduced as further spin-off events.[7][8][a]

The 2024 Finals, for the first time, were held live in Paris. The event attracted media attention due to the matchup between Carlsen and American grandmaster Hans Niemann, which was their first live meeting since their 2022 controversy.[9] Although the players were physically present at the venue, the games were played online on on-site computers in an esports-style format, with a live audience present.[1]

In 2025, Chess.com announced that the winner of the Speed Chess Championship thereafter would be awarded the Naroditsky Cup, in tribute to American grandmaster and commentator Daniel Naroditsky, who died on October 19th, 2025.[10][11]

List of winners

edit
Speed Chess Championship finals
No. Year Winner Runner-up Final score Prize fund
1 2016 Norway Magnus Carlsen United States Hikaru Nakamura 14½-10½ $40,000
2 2017 Norway Magnus Carlsen United States Hikaru Nakamura 18-9 $50,000
3 2018 United States Hikaru Nakamura United States Wesley So 15½-12½ $55,000
4 2019 United States Hikaru Nakamura United States Wesley So 19½-14½ $50,000
5 2020 United States Hikaru Nakamura France Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 18½-12½ $100,000
6 2021 United States Hikaru Nakamura United States Wesley So 23-8 $100,000
7 2022 United States Hikaru Nakamura Norway Magnus Carlsen 14½-13½ $100,000
8 2023 Norway Magnus Carlsen United States Hikaru Nakamura 13½-12½ $150,000
9 2024 Norway Magnus Carlsen France Alireza Firouzja 23½-7½ $175,000
10 2025[b] Norway Magnus Carlsen France Alireza Firouzja 15-12 $250,000

In the first eight editions, Nakamura only ever lost three matches in the Speed Chess Championship, all of them in the finals against Carlsen. Carlsen has only lost two matches, to Nakamura and Vachier-Lagrave.

Women's Speed Chess Championship finals
No. Year Winner Runner-up Final score Prize fund
1 2019 Armenia Elina Danielian Russia Valentina Gunina 15-13 $20,000
2 2020 Ukraine Anna Ushenina Russia Alexandra Kosteniuk 14½-13½ $52,000
3 2021 China Hou Yifan India Harika Dronavalli 15-13 $66,000
4 2022 Russia Kateryna Lagno China Hou Yifan 15-13 $70,000
5 2023 China Hou Yifan India Harika Dronavalli 15-11 $75,000
6 2024 China Ju Wenjun FIDE Polina Shuvalova 12½-9½ $75,000
7 2025 China Ju Wenjun China Hou Yifan 11.5-9.5

From 2020 to 2022, the Women's Speed Chess Championship was jointly presented by Chess.com and FIDE.[12][13] The event originally served as a qualifier to the main Speed Chess Championship, just like the Junior Speed Chess Championship, but has since been held as a standalone event.

Events by year

edit

2016

edit

The inaugural event was called the Grandmaster Blitz Battle Championship. Carlsen, Nakamura, Vachier-Lagrave, World Blitz Champion Alexander Grischuk, Levon Aronian, Fabiano Caruana and Pentala Harikrishna were invited by Chess.com, while Tigran L. Petrosian entered through a qualifier event.[14] The format for the matches was 90 minutes of 5 minute games with an increment of 2 seconds, followed by 60 minutes of 3 minute games with an increment of 2 seconds, and finally 30 minutes of 1 minute games with a 1-second increment. The first game of each segment was a Chess960 game.

The final, held on October 27, was Carlsen's last public tournament appearance before the classical World Chess Championship 2016. Carlsen won the first segment by a score of 5½-3½, and extended his lead with a 5-2 win in the next segment. Although Nakamura won the final segment by a score of 5-4, Carlsen still won the match convincingly thanks to his wins in the first two segments.[15]

Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
         
1 Norway Magnus Carlsen 21
8 Armenia Tigran L. Petrosian 4
1 Norway Magnus Carlsen 16
4 Russia Alexander Grischuk 8
4 Russia Alexander Grischuk 11½
5 Armenia Levon Aronian 9½
1 Norway Magnus Carlsen 14½
2 United States Hikaru Nakamura 10½
2 United States Hikaru Nakamura 16
7 India Pentala Harikrishna 9
2 United States Hikaru Nakamura 21½
3 France Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 10½
3 France Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 15½
6 United States Fabiano Caruana 9½

2017

edit

2018

edit

2019

edit

2020

edit

2021

edit
Round of 16 Quarterfinals Semifinals Final
            
1 United States Hikaru Nakamura 22
16 Russia Peter Svidler 10
1 United States Hikaru Nakamura 18½
8 Netherlands Anish Giri 10½
8 Netherlands Anish Giri 14
9 Poland Jan-Krzysztof Duda 12
1 United States Hikaru Nakamura 16½
4 China Ding Liren 15½
4 China Ding Liren 14
13 Azerbaijan Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 12
4 China Ding Liren 15
5 United States Levon Aronian 11
5 United States Levon Aronian 15
12 Russia Daniil Dubov 12
1 United States Hikaru Nakamura 23
3 United States Wesley So 8
2 Hungary Richárd Rapport 16½
15 Russia Alexey Sarana 14½
2 Hungary Richárd Rapport 9
10 India Nihal Sarin 18
7 Russia Alexander Grischuk 10½
10 India Nihal Sarin 15½
10 India Nihal Sarin 14
3 United States Wesley So 15
3 United States Wesley So 18
14 United States Jeffery Xiong 14
3 United States Wesley So 17½
11 United States Fabiano Caruana 9½
6 France Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 12½
11 United States Fabiano Caruana 13½

2022

edit

2023

edit

2024

edit

2025

edit

The matches in the first two rounds, being held from October 13 to December 4, consisted of 75 minutes of 5 minute games, 50 minutes of 3 minute games, and 25 minutes of 1 minute games. In the semifinals and finals, which were held live in London on February 7–8, 2026, the segments were 90, 60 and 30 minutes long respectively. All the games had an increment of 1 second. Eight players qualified via Titled Tuesday tournaments, while the rest were invited. The prize fund was $250,000. The top three players qualified for the 2026 Esports World Cup.[16][17]

Round of 16 Quarterfinals Semifinals Final
        
Norway Magnus Carlsen 14½
Mexico Jose Martinez 8½
Norway Magnus Carlsen 14½
United States Fabiano Caruana 7½
United States Fabiano Caruana 11
India R Praggnanandhaa 10
Norway Magnus Carlsen 17
FIDE Denis Lazavik 9
India Arjun Erigaisi 9
FIDE Denis Lazavik 12
FIDE Denis Lazavik 15½
United States Hans Niemann 9½
United States Hans Niemann 18
China Ding Liren 6
Norway Magnus Carlsen 15
France Alireza Firouzja 12
France Alireza Firouzja 16
Vietnam Lê Tuấn Minh 8
France Alireza Firouzja 19
FIDE Ian Nepomniachtchi 9
FIDE Ian Nepomniachtchi 17½
Netherlands Anish Giri 10½
France Alireza Firouzja 15
United States Hikaru Nakamura 13
United States Hikaru Nakamura 13½ Consolation
Vietnam Lê Quang Liêm 11½
United States Hikaru Nakamura 11 FIDE Denis Lazavik 13½
United States Wesley So 10 United States Hikaru Nakamura 12½
United States Wesley So 14
Germany Vincent Keymer 11

Notes

edit
  1. 1 2 The Junior and IM Not a GM events were last held in 2023.
  2. ↑ The semifinals and finals were held in 2026.

References

edit
  1. 1 2 Levin, Anthony (September 8, 2024). "2024 SCC Final: Carlsen Proves He's The Best Again, Wins 4th SCC Title". Chess.com. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  2. ↑ West, Vanessa (December 18, 2022). "Nakamura Wins 5th Speed Chess Championship". Chess.com. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  3. ↑ Colodro, Carlos Alberto (September 7, 2024). "Speed Chess Championship: Carlsen and Firouzja advance to the final". ChessBase. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  4. ↑ "Nakamura Defeats So To Repeat As Speed Chess Champion". Chess.com. March 8, 2019. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  5. ↑ Colodro, Carlos Alberto (September 5, 2024). "Ju Wenjun outscores Shuvalova, wins Women's Speed Chess Championship". ChessBase. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  6. ↑ West, Vanessa (June 19, 2023). "Unbelievable Counterstrikes: Gukesh Wins 2023 JSCC". Chess.com. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  7. ↑ Klein, Mike (March 4, 2020). "ChessKid.com Youth Speed Chess Championship Coming This Summer". Chess.com. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  8. ↑ "Saturday: IM Not A GM Speed Chess Championship Finals". Chess.com. April 14, 2020. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  9. ↑ Morse, Ben (September 7, 2024). "Magnus Carlsen beats Hans Niemann in first match since infamous cheating scandal". CNN. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  10. ↑ Levin, Anthony (October 30, 2025). "Caruana Edges Praggnanandhaa By 1 Point, Advances To Face Carlsen". Chess.com. Retrieved October 30, 2025.
  11. ↑ "Chess.com's Post". Facebook. Chess.com. October 30, 2025. Retrieved October 30, 2025.
  12. ↑ "2021 Women's Speed Chess Championship Presented By FIDE And Chess.com". Chess.com. May 6, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  13. ↑ FIDE (May 7, 2021). "FIDE Chess.com Women's Speed Chess Championship announced". International Chess Federation. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  14. ↑ Pete (January 19, 2016). "The $40,000 GM Blitz Battle Championship". Chess.com. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  15. ↑ Klein, Mike (October 27, 2016). "Carlsen Beats Nakamura To Win GM Blitz Battle Championship". Chess.com. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  16. ↑ "Speed Chess Championship 2025 - All the Information". Chess.com. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  17. ↑ "Chess.com's Official Rulebooks For 2025 Events". Chess.com. January 1, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2025.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Speed_Chess_Championship&oldid=1337965541"