FIDE has published the new world ranking list. Since hardly any tournaments were played in January and the Tata Steel tournament was not taken into account for the February list, there are virtually no changes at the top. Magnus Carlsen continues to be the world's number one with a huge margin, Alireza Firouzja is in second place and the only other player with a rating of +2800.
The Kvika Reykjavik Open will return to its normal setting in the Harpa music and conference center in 2022 – which has been billed as the best playing venue for an open tournament ever! The dates are from the 6th of April until the 12th of April, with nine rounds in seven days! Many world class players have taken part in then tournament in recent years. The total prize-fund in the 2022 edition will be €15.000, including many special prizes for various age and rating categories, in addition to the traditional top women’s prize.
By John Saunders
One of the ideas behind Gibraltar tournament organiser Brian Callaghan’s forthcoming #GibChess Battle of the Sexes – a Scheveningen-format match-tournament between two teams of ten men and ten women, 23 January - 3 February 2.