-- World's top players will compete for a prize fund of more
than a million dollars
ST. LOUIS, April 24, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- There is a new,
gold standard for international chess competition, providing more
opportunities for the world's best chess players to compete on a
grand stage.
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150424/201581
The world's most prestigious, international chess events are
combining efforts to establish a gold standard for the inaugural
Grand Chess Tour, an annual competitive circuit for ten of
the world's top grandmasters. The announcement was made today at a
press conference held at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of
Saint Louis.
The Grand Chess Tour is an affiliation between the Chess Club
and Scholastic Center of Saint
Louis (Sinquefield Cup), Tower AS (Norway Chess) and Chess
Promotions Ltd. (London Chess Classic), combining the
organizational efforts of three elite events into one unified
competitive structure. The partnership aims to raise worldwide
awareness for each prestigious tournament, as well as for the
tour.
The inaugural 2015 Tour will kick off in June as a three-event
cycle, beginning with Norway Chess 2015, followed by the
Sinquefield Cup in August/September, and finishing with the
London Chess Classic in December.
2015 Grand Chess
Tour
|
Location
|
Date
|
Norway Chess
2015
|
Stavanger,
Norway
|
June 15 – June 26,
2015
|
Sinquefield
Cup
|
Saint Louis,
USA
|
August 21 – September
3, 2015
|
London Chess
Classic
|
London,
England
|
December 3 – December
14, 2015
|
Based on FIDE's January 2015
rating list, the Grand Chess Tour invited the world's top-ten
international grandmasters, eight of whom agreed to appear in all
three international events. A ninth grandmaster, who will also play
the entire tour, will be added at a later date. The tenth and final
grandmaster will be selected as a wildcard by each organizing
host.
Each of the three 2015 Grand Chess Tour events will award
individual prize funds of $300,000,
with competitors also tallying points toward a tour prize fund of
$150,000; the overall tour champion
will receive an additional $75,000.
The total prize fund for the circuit is $1,050,000.
The participating players are:
- World Chess Champion Magnus
Carlsen, Norway
- Fabiano Caruana, Italy
- Alexander Grischuk, Russia
- Veselin Topalov, Bulgaria
- Viswanathan Anand, India
- Levon Aronian, Armenia
- Anish Giri, Netherlands
- Hikaru Nakamura, USA
"The Grand Chess Tour was created with just one goal in mind:
Demonstrating the highest level of organization for the world's
best players," said Tony Rich,
Executive Director of the CCSCSL. "Featuring the world's strongest
chess professionals fighting for massive prize funds, along with a
full spectator experience led by world-class commentary, this
circuit sets forth an internationally coordinated effort that casts
a shining spotlight on global chess competition."
"It's an honor to be among the giants of chess organizers," said
Joran Aulin-Jansson with Tower AS
(Norway Chess). "Having the world's best chess players in one
circuit is a great way to fuel excitement for the future of
chess."
"The London Chess Classic is delighted to be part of this new
venture which we feel sure will greatly add to the public interest
in top flight chess," said Malcom
Pein, Director London Chess Classic. "We look forward to the
Grand Chess Tour climaxing in London and to further tournaments joining the
GCT in coming years."
Participating tournaments are identified as the gold standard
for international event organization, setting the model for player
conditions, prize funds and spectator experience. Each of the
events will cater to live audiences, as well as offer streaming
broadcasts complete with grandmaster commentary.
For more information, visit www.grandchesstour.com.
About The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis:
The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis is a non-profit, 501(c)(3)
educational organization that is committed to making chess an
important part of our community. In addition to providing a forum
for the community to play tournaments and casual games, the club
also offers chess improvement classes, beginner lessons, special
lectures and plays host to the top chess tournaments in the
nation.
Recognizing the cognitive and behavioral benefits of chess, the
Chess Club and Scholastic Center is committed to supporting those
chess programs that already exist in area schools while encouraging
the development of new in-school and after-school programs. For
more information, visit www.saintlouischessclub.org.