From Tsaghkadzor to Grand Final: European Schools Chess Champions crowned amidst cultural celebration
The curtain fell on the World Schools Team Championship Europe 2026. After four days of intense competition, brilliant sacrifices, and unparalleled teamwork, the young chess champions were crowned in Tsaghkadzor, Armenia. Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk (Belarus) established their dominance from the opening round. Starting with back-to-back 4–0 clean sweeps, they held a firm grasp on the number-one spot. Led by Board 1 star Damir Bulgak and Board 4 standout Katrina Yakovleva, the Belarusian squad never let their grip slip, successfully turning away all challengers to finish with a flawless, undefeated record. Their first-place finish officially secures their slot in the prestigious global Grand Final this December. Coming into the event as the top-seeded team by average rating, Riga State Gymnasium No. 1 (Latvia) confidently navigated eight rounds, losing only to the champions and winning all their other encounters. Powered by Daniel Beniosev’s unbeaten run on Board 2, the Latvians easily defended their position down the stretch to lock up the silver medals. LEPL Georgia, Kutaisi Andria Razmadze Physico secured the third position in a tough competition with the local team from Armenia. Final standings Let’s take a look at how the action unfolded on the final day of the competition. Round 7 Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk further consolidated its lead, scoring a hard-fought victory over ZS Wolkerova Bardejov. Meanwhile, in the clash of the teams chasing the leaders, Riga State Gymnasium No. 1 dominated LEPL Georgia, Kutaisi Andria Razmadze Physico by a score of 3-1. Move of the day Matej Viglas – Damir Bulgak Leading up to move 26, Black emerged clearly better, but there was nothing decisive in sight after the correct 26.Ne5 f6 27.Nd3. However, White committed a fatal error with 26. Nd2??, walking right into a devastating tactical strike. The knight sacrifice 26… Nxf2! completely shattered White’s kingside shelter. Accepting the sacrifice leads to a forced checkmate after 27.Kxf2 Qxh2+ 28.Kf1 Re6!, while declining it leaves White completely lost. The rest was smooth sailing for Bulgak. Round 8 Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk finished with a perfect match score after defeating Green Village School of Israel. Riga State Gymnasium No.1 swept Osnovna sola Bojana Ilicha Maribor, while in the crucial match for third place LEPL Georgia, Kutaisi Andria Razmadze Physico prevailed over the local team Yerevan’s basic school N 77. A web of friendships Beyond the intense chess battles on the chessboards of Tsaghkadzor, the World Schools Team Championship 2026 celebrated the power of global connection through a deeply symbolic “Threads that connect” side event. In this heartwarming activity, young chess prodigies from across Europe stood in a large circle, sharing their reflections and tossing colorful balls of yarn across the room while holding onto their piece of the string. As the yarn traveled from hand to hand, it created a magnificent, intricate web, a striking, tangible visualization of international networking and shared community. This playful yet profound exercise beautifully reminded our future grandmasters that just like their strategic choices on the board, their paths, cultures, and newfound friendships are all interconnected in one grand, supportive network. School Champions crowned in Tsaghkadzor amid tears, triumphs, and anthems. The European Stage World Schools Team Championship 2026 concluded with an unforgettable, high-energy closing ceremony hosted at the 88 Hotel & Spa. Bringing together young players, captains, parents, and international chess dignitaries, the event celebrated four days of intense boundary-crossing competition, ultimate triumphs, and cross-cultural camaraderie. The Master of Ceremonies opened the evening by thanking the young players for building friendships across borders, emphasizing that the global chess community is “one big family.” Special recognition was paid to Freedom Group of companies, the event’s main sponsor and General Partner of the International School Chess Federation (ISCF). The MC also expressed deep appreciation to the tournament’s key co-organizers: the Armenian Chess Federation, the Chess Academy of Armenia, the European Chess Union, and the venue host, 88 Hotel & Spa. The official segment of the evening began with the national anthem of Armenia. The audience remained respectfully standing before the proceedings transitioned seamlessly into the official FIDE anthem. Following the protocols, the energy in the hall skyrocketed during the screening of the tournament’s highlight film, titled “How It All Happened.” Young players filled the room with thunderous shouts and laughter, following the MC’s prompt to “make some noise” whenever they spotted themselves on screen. Individual board triumphs Chief Arbiter Vahagn Khachatryan took the stage to announce the individual category medalists, who were presented their awards by an esteemed lineup of academic and chess royalty. Reserve Board awards were presented by Mariam Ispiryan, Pro-rector of the Armenian State Pedagogical University. Lile Svanadze from LEPL Georgia, Kutaisi Andria Razmadze Physico-Mathematical Public School N41 Catalan Julen Arbizu from Ikastola San Fermin Maksymilian Wylezinski from Azymut Szkola Podstawowa Fundacji Sternik Board 4 awards were presented by Grandmaster and Honored Coach of Armenia, Arman Pashikyan. loana-Cristiana Pomirleanu from C.N. Costache Negruzzi Katrina Yakovleva from Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk Adam Ben Avi from Green Village School Board 3 awards were presented by Varduhi Sargsyan, Executive Director of the Chess Academy of Armenia Krisjanis Lazars from Riga State Gymnasium No. 1 Platon Kiritshenko from Tallinna Tonismae Reaalkool Kiryl Babeikin from Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk Board 2 awards were presented by Lilit Mkrtchyan, Rector of the Armenian State Pedagogical University Daniel Beniosev from Riga State Gymnasium No. 1 Mikita Mazanik from Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk Adrian Kornilov from Tallinna Tonismae Reaalkool Board 1 awards were presented by Ion-Serban Dobronauteanu, Director of Youth Chess of the European Chess Union. Damir Bulgak from Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk Tin Biti from OS Spansko Oranice Uros Vuckovic from Mathematical Grammar School Following the individual honors, the Tournament Director of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championships 2026, Nadzeya Krauchuk, delivered a brief address congratulating the field on their tactical excellence. The podium The culmination of the 60-minute ceremony belonged to the three best school teams in Europe, who took their places on the podium to thunderous applause. Smbat Lputian, founder of the Chess Academy of Armenia and Vice President of the Armenian
WSTC Europe Day 3: Competitions, tactical masterclasses and high-altitude adventures in Tsaghkadzor
The third day of the European Continental Stage of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 elevated the competitive intensity to new heights in Tsaghkadzor, Armenia. With the tournament crossing into its critical second half, Rounds 5 and 6 delivered a captivating blend of strategic competition on the top boards and heartfelt camaraderie off them. As the top players continued their unstoppable runs, the race for the Grand Final slots became an absolute thriller. The morning air in Tsaghkadzor was crisp, but inside the playing hall where Rounds 5 and 6 of the 2026 FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship (European Stage), the atmosphere was white-hot as the tournament leaders finally crossed swords. The penultimate day delivered an extraordinary spectacle of junior chess, showcasing immense fighting spirit, sharp tactical vision, and the brutal reality of time-pressure blunders. With crucial qualification points on the line, the round saw uncompromising chess, with an incredibly low draw rate and an abundance of hard-fought games across all boards. Highlights of Rounds 5 and 6 Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk (12 Points) holds the top spot after Round 6. Damir Bulgak (Board 1) and Katrina Yakovleva (Board 4) maintain an incredible, perfect 6/6 match record. Riga State Gymnasium No. 1 (10 Points) is firmly in second place. Daniel Beniosev continues his spectacular run on Board 2, sitting on an unbeaten 5.5/6. LEPL Georgia, Kutaisi Andria Razmadze Physico (9 Points) occupies the third position. Their standout performer is Davit Tatvidze, pulling in a vital win today to push his score to 4.5/6. Leading individual board performers The following players have dominated their respective boards across the first six rounds: Tin Biti (OS Spansko Oranice): An exceptional 5.5/6 showing on Board 1. Ioana-Cristiana Pomirleanu (C.N.”Costache Negruzzi”): Dominating Board 4 with a superb 5.5/6 score. Platon Kiritshenko (Tallinna Tonismae Reaalkool): Putting up an elite 5/6 record on Board 3. Let’s have a look at a couple of fragments illustrating the competitive spirit in the event. A real drama unfolded at one of the top boards, in a thrilling game between Gabriel Gabadadze (2071) and Damir Bulgak (2305). Bulgak seized a huge endgame advantage, only to blunder it away with a natural but erroneous 48… Rd2+??, giving White a precious tempo to advance his king. The correct path was 48…Ra5! (or 48…a3!). As played, the position became equal. However, after 49.Kg3 Rd3+ 50.Kh4 a3 51.g5 Rd2 Gabadadze returned the favor by 52.g6?? (instead of the correct 52.Kg3!) and White was losing again. The opponents traded more errors in subsequent play, but eventually Black’s pawns proved to be faster. Ignacy Krol – Troi Krasniqi At first glance, Black has to retreat with his queen, but Krasniqi uncorked 14… Qxg5! – an unexpected queen sacrifice that completely changed the dynamics of the game. After 15.hgx5 Rxh1+ 16.Kd2 Bd7, Black emerged slightly better. Unsettled, Krol reacted poorly and ended up in a lost position. Luckily for him, Krasniqi failed to capitalize, and after a series of mutual errors, the opponents split the point. Fast & local: FIDE-rated girls’ blitz The tournament hall in Tsaghkadzor shifted to a lightning-fast pace on Thursday evening as the International School Chess Federation (ISCF) hosted an official FIDE-rated Blitz Tournament for the young female players under 14 years of age. They were inspired by Elina Danielian, Armenian chess grandmaster and six-time Armenian women’s champion, who assisted in the organization of this tournament. With a time control of 3 minutes plus a 2-second increment, the event “Smart Moves: Girls Who Lead” featured an all-local lineup, bringing together talented young girl-players from Armenia for an evening of intense, high-speed tactical battles. Every match carried high stakes, forcing players to rely on quick intuition and sharp calculation. The evening concluded with rapid handshakes and shared analysis, highlighting the deep pool of local chess talent driving the sport forward. Rising champions Following yesterday’s tradition of high-level educational seminars, the tournament hall hosted another installment of the popular masterclass series. Under the banner “Rising Champions,” coaches, players, and their parents gathered for a deeply practical, interactive conversation with grandmaster Samvel Ter-Sahakyan, Coach of the Japanese National Chess Team for the 2026 Chess Olympiad. The session moved quickly past basic theory, diving straight into the concrete realities of elite youth development. Ter-Sahakyan shared invaluable personal insights on navigating the transition from talented school player to international competitor, emphasizing the psychological resilience needed to bounce back during grueling team tournaments. Mind games beyond the board: WSTC Kahoot Quiz The chess world is incredibly vast, built upon centuries of brilliant minds, legendary rivalries, and a deeply precious history. Capitalizing on this rich heritage, the young prodigies in Tsaghkadzor took a break from their standard calculations to test their historical wits in a fast-paced, interactive Kahoot quiz. The event gave players a fantastic opportunity to showcase their deep knowledge of the game’s greatest milestones and for the winner – to get a postcard signed by five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand. Captains and parents take the stage: The evening blitz Stepping out from the sidelines and into the competitive arena, team captains and players’ parents had their own opportunity to shine today in a special evening blitz tournament. The friendly yet fiercely contested event gave the adults a taste of the high-pressure environment their children face daily on the top boards. Trading their coaching notes for chess clocks, the participants demonstrated impressive tactical vision and deep passion for the game, proving that the love for chess runs deep across every generation present in Tsaghkadzor. What’s Next? With six rounds down and only two remaining, the European Continental Stage is hurtling toward an epic finale. The team standings are incredibly compressed, and mathematically, nearly a dozen schools are still within striking distance of the podium. Yet, as the kids gathered for dinner, sharing jokes, analyzing games on pocket sets, and teaching each other phrases in different languages, it was beautifully clear that the memories forged in Tsaghkadzor are already
WSTC Europe Day 2: Bright smiles, brilliant moves, and cultural rhythms in Tsaghkadzor
The second day of the European Continental Stage of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 brought an incredible mix of high energy, team spirit, and pure chess magic to Tsaghkadzor, Armenia. Every morning at the championship begins not with a chess clock, but with an energetic morning warm-up! Just like a well-played opening sequence on the board, these fun exercises help our young minds wake up, shake off the sleep, and get their bodies moving. This quick routine delivers a powerful boost of energy and sharp focus that lasts the entire day. By stretching their muscles and sharing a few laughs with friends, our brilliant young players prepare their minds for brilliant tactical combinations and intense endgame battles! Friendly competition With school teams cheering each other on, Rounds 3 and 4 turned into a wonderful celebration of young talent. While the games on the top tables grew increasingly intense, the friendly handshakes at the end of each round remained as warm as ever. The second day of the European Continental Stage of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 brought an incredible mix of high energy, team spirit, and pure chess magic to Tsaghkadzor, Armenia. Every morning at the championship begins not with a chess clock, but with an energetic morning warm-up! Just like a well-played opening sequence on the board, these fun exercises help our young minds wake up, shake off the sleep, and get their bodies moving. This quick routine delivers a powerful boost of energy and sharp focus that lasts the entire day. By stretching their muscles and sharing a few laughs with friends, our brilliant young players prepare their minds for brilliant tactical combinations and intense endgame battles! Friendly competition With school teams cheering each other on, Rounds 3 and 4 turned into a wonderful celebration of young talent. While the games on the top tables grew increasingly intense, the friendly handshakes at the end of each round remained as warm as ever. Round 3: Team spirit shines bright As the morning games kicked off, the tournament hall was buzzing with excitement. Our young players have quickly adjusted to the rapid tempo, and Round 3 showed just how well these school teams can work together to solve tricky puzzles on the board. Several matchups delivered high-stakes tactical chaos, critical strategic errors, or overwhelming piece pressure. The game of Svanadze vs. Predin saw a brilliant display of standard attacking patterns against a loosely castled king. Black compromised their center early with the careless blunder (15… d4??), which White capitalized on perfectly. Black’s position was beyond repair, but after 18… Re8??, White executed a thematic piece sacrifice wrapping it up. Svanadze – Predin After 19.Qh5! g6 20.Bxg6! hxg6 21. Qxg6+ Kh8 22.Bg5 Black was forced to give up his queen (1-0). Round 4: Tension builds up The most memorable moment of the day happened in the following game: Simonovic – Khachatryan Round 4: Tension builds up The most memorable moment of the day happened in the following game: Simonovic – Khachatryan White built a rock-solid, visually pleasing positional advantage out of the opening (+1.60) but let it slip away, ending up in an equal position. White’s woes did not stop there as he played a disastrous 31. e4?? Black snatched the initiative after 31…fxe4 32. Bxe4 Qe5?! (better was 32…Qd7) and here White blundered again with 33.f3??, handing Black a superior endgame. Black’s conversion was far from perfect, but in the end he scored a full point. Day 2 completely shook up the standings compared to Day 1. It is so exciting to see how much can change in just a couple of games! ● Gymnasium N 50 of Minsk showed incredible determination. On Day 2, they kept their undefeated streak rolling! Katrina Yakovleva went on a total winning spree, scoring a perfect 2/2 on the day to help her team fly solo at the top of the leader board with 8 total match points! ● LEPL Georgia (Kutaisi Andria Razmadze Physico) on the rise! The most joyful leap of the day belongs to this team. They had a brilliant Day 2, leapfrogging the Latvian squad to claim the lone 2nd place spot with 7 points. Gabriel Gabadadze was a superstar on board 1, winning both of his Day 2 games to stay completely perfect at 4/4. ● The “6-point” parking lot! Talk about a crowded finish! Riga State Gymnasium No. 1, Green Village School, C.N. “Costache Negruzzi”, Yerevan’s School N 77, and Tallinna Tonismae Reaalkool all fought like lions on Day 2. They are now locked in a giant tie for 3rd place with 6 points each! ● Endgame Super-Spurts!: A huge high-five goes to “Mkhitar Sebastatsi” Educational Complex and Osnovna sola Bojana Ilicha Maribor! Both teams had a tough Day 1, but they bounced right back on Day 2, scoring great wins to vault themselves up into the top 10! Complete standings after Day 2 A day for joy, learning, and new friends Away from the chess clocks, the championship continued to show that every single day is an adventure and a chance to discover something wonderful together. The afternoon shifted the spotlight to fantastic masterclasses and a fun journey into Armenia’s ancient culture, giving the kids the perfect chance to relax, play, and make friends from different countries. The big highlight of the afternoon was a very special masterclass called “Raising Champions: From Talent To Title,” hosted by GM Zaven Andriasian. This unique session was specially designed for the coaches and parents of our future grandmasters. It put a deeply important focus on the psychological training of young players, exploring how to build mental resilience, maintain emotional balance during tense games, and create a supportive environment that helps children navigate both victories and defeats with confidence. Right after the final round of the day the playing hall was filled with laughter during the thrilling “Simul with a Twist” with GM Manuel Petrosyan. The possibility for all the kids to make
The European Stage begins: WSTC 2026 opens in Tsaghkadzor
The European Continental Stage of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 opened on 29 September in Tsaghkadzor, Armenia. 27 school teams from 25 nations are competing in the final qualifying stage for places in the Grand Final in December. The stage is organised by the International School Chess Federation (ISCF) together with FIDE, the Chess Federation of Armenia, with Freedom as sponsor. Tournament format Each team fields four players and one reserve, boys and girls. The tournament is an eight-round Swiss, played at 45 minutes plus a 10-second increment per move from move one. Riga State Gymnasium No.1 (average rating 1989) tops the starting rankings, followed by Gymnasium No.50 of Minsk, Belarus and Tallinna Tonismae Reaalkool, Estonia. Armenia is represented by 3 schools, led by Yerevan’s basic school N 77. Opening ceremony: Peru sends the message The ceremony opened with a film about the championship and its journey so far, through the stages already held in Asia, Africa and the Americas. The first to welcome the players was Grandmaster Smbat Lputian, founder of the Chess Academy of Armenia and Vice President of the Chess Federation of Armenia. Then, as has become a tradition at every stage of the championship, the floor passed to the children from the previous stage. This time the message came from the winners themselves. On screen, the players of Saco Oliveros de Lince, champions of the American Continental Stage in San José, greeted the teams gathered in Tsaghkadzor. They had also sent postal cards, each carrying one message about chess, and the officials came on stage to read them out, letting the Peruvian players’ words stand in for their own. Break Stereotypes “Don’t be afraid to make an unusual move, even if no one has played it before. Sometimes the most unexpected move changes the whole game!” Read by Nadzeya Krauchuk, Tournament Director of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship Love Chess, No Matter What “Sometimes we lose, sometimes we make mistakes, and sometimes we feel like flipping the board! But every game teaches us something new. A true love of the game does not end with a defeat!” Read by Ion-Serban Dobronauteanu, Director of Youth Chess of the European Chess Union Chess Opens the Door to Friendship “We may speak different languages and live on different continents. But once we sit down at the same chessboard, we understand each other.” Read by Varduhi Sargsyan, Executive Director of the Chess Academy of Armenia You Don’t Have to Be a Champion to Enjoy the Game “Not all of us have a champion’s trophy at home. But everyone can enjoy a beautiful game, a clever move, or a small personal victory.” Read by Timur Turlov, President of FIDE and President of ISCF This continues a tradition that runs through the championship: in San José, the ceremony opened with gifts sent by players from the African stage. This time the message came from the Americas and was addressed to Europe. After Timur Turlov, President of FIDE and President of ISCF, took the stage. It was his first tournament opening since his election as FIDE President at the 46th Chess Olympiad in Samarkand. He thanked the Armenian hosts and called Armenia “one of the world’s great chess centres, and the home of many outstanding players.” He pointed to Armenia’s own example. In 2011 it became the first country to make chess a compulsory subject in primary schools, and fifteen years later many countries are learning from that experience. Demand for school chess is growing worldwide, he said, and delegates from many countries raised it with him in Samarkand. It will be one of FIDE’s main priorities during his presidency. Timur Turlov then announced that FIDE plans to allocate $1.000.000 a year to chess in education worldwide under the new FIDE Development Fund. The money will help national federations train teachers and give schools teaching materials and equipment. “Our goal is to give many more children the opportunity to discover chess at school,” he said. He ended with a word to the players: “Play boldly, respect your opponents and support your teammates. I wish you great games, new friendships and unforgettable days in Armenia.” Then he declared the European stage of the World School Team Championship open. Once the championship was declared open, Round 1 began with the ceremonial first move by Timur Turlov, President of FIDE and ISCF Rounds 1 and 2 Round 1: 4 matches ended with result 4-0: British School of Kosova – Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk; Naum Naumovski Borche – Green Village School; Privates Gymnasium Sacre Coeur Wien – ZS Wolkerova Bardejov; Tasen skole – Vesturbaejarskoli. The top-seeded Latvian team opened the European Continental Stage with a convincing 3-1 victory over Armenia’s “Mkhitar Sebastatsi” Educational Complex. Round 2: in Round 2, Riga State Gymnasium No. 1 secured a 3½-½ victory, while Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk won 4-0 and Tallinna Tõnismäe Reaalkool claimed a 3-1 win. After two rounds, Gymnasium No. 50 of Minsk lead with 4 match points. Beyond the board After two rounds of chess, the evening was given over to Armenia. Players took part in an Armenian Carpet Weaving Workshop, an introduction to one of the country’s oldest crafts. Armenian carpets have been woven by hand for centuries, knot by knot, with patterns and symbols passed down from one generation to the next. For players who had spent the day thinking in squares and diagonals, the loom offered a different kind of grid, one built slowly by hand, one knot at a time. The day ended with Movie Time from, a quieter close to a long first day before Round 3. Written by Aruzhan Aldasheva
Saco Oliveros de Lince Takes Gold as San José Closes with Emotion and a Tribute to Mothers
The American Continental Stage of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 closed at the DoubleTree by Hilton Cariari in San José with the team that led it home from Wednesday still in front. Saco Oliveros de Lince of Peru won the title without losing a match all week, finishing on 15 match points from a possible 16. Harvest Park Middle School of the United States took second and Crescent Heights Academy of Canada third, and all three now go through to the Grand Final in December. Round 7 Saco Oliveros began the final day the way they had ended the previous one. Having beaten both of their nearest rivals on Thursday, they opened with a 4-0 sweep of Chile’s Saint Gabriel’s School, and from that point the title was theirs to lose. The tension was further down the hall, where the teams behind them were playing for the two remaining qualifying places. Colegio Madre del Divino Pastor 1½-2½ Harvest Park Middle School The American Continental Stage of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 closed at the DoubleTree by Hilton Cariari in San José with the team that led it home from Wednesday still in front. Saco Oliveros de Lince of Peru won the title without losing a match all week, finishing on 15 match points from a possible 16. Harvest Park Middle School of the United States took second and Crescent Heights Academy of Canada third, and all three now go through to the Grand Final in December. Board one brought two closely rated titled players together, FM Lucas Mason Pin Qian Yao against CM Fernando Cortes Medina, and produced no fireworks at all: a balanced game and a peaceful draw. The fireworks were on board two, where Colegio Celta Internacional’s Sophia Itzayana Mote Amasifuen (pictured above), with White, launched a kingside attack and finished it with a sacrifice. Position of the round 2qbrr2/pp1b1pkp/1np3p1/3pPpNP/3P1B2/2P4R/PP2QPPN/4R1K1 w – – 3 24 White played 24.Nxh7!, drawing the black king onto the h-file, because after 24…Kxh7 25.hxg6+ there is no defence. The game finished 25…Kg8 26.Qh5 fxg6 27.Qh7#. On boards three and four, Aiden Yin and CM Andrew Yin both outplayed their opponents comfortably and took the match for Canada. Round 8 Saco Oliveros de Lince 4-0 Martin Klein Schiller The champions finished as they had started the day, with another clean sweep. Marcos Beltrán Meneses Morales won comfortably on board one. On board two, Dante Iván Vilca Contreras was better for most of the game, simplified into an endgame up in material and converted without difficulty. Board three was the awkward one. WCM Fabiana Jiménez Salas had a shaky opening and found herself in trouble in yet another opposite-side castling game, the shape that has recurred on the top boards all week, with her opponent’s pieces the better placed. What followed was volatile enough that the advantage changed hands with almost every move, and it came down to the oldest rule in chess: the winner is whoever does not make the last mistake. Jiménez Salas broke through and set up a mate that could not be stopped. On board four, Rihanna Irina Rojas Salas was the first player in the hall to finish, and she finished on a perfect score. Crescent Heights Academy 2-2 Colegio Madre del Divino Pastor Second place was still live when this match began, and it was decided here. The two Yins won their games quickly, but board one went the other way. Both players, Yao, Lucas Mason Pin Qian as White, and Castillo Romero, Jasmany Shallom (pictured above) as Black, misplayed the opening, and then White committed a positional error that handed Black a sizeable advantage. An incorrect breakthrough on the queenside produced a passed pawn that Black had no trouble containing, White began dropping pawns, and the position fell apart. The 2-2 draw left Crescent Heights third rather than second. Harvest Park Middle School 3-1 Harrison College School On board one, Zhuoyuan Wu drew with the higher rated AIM Jeremiah Farley, having had chances. On board two, FM Patrick Liu outrated Charis Stuart by 640 points, built an advantage that only grew, and had no trouble converting it. Ethan Sun played a clean positional game on board three; his opponent eventually dropped a pawn, and with the extra material, the more active position and far more time on the clock, Sun converted. And on board four, Ruyi Hu’s (pictured above) luck turned. Her opponent missed a moment to take a free piece, and the draw was agreed immediately afterwards. Saco Oliveros finished with seven wins and a draw and did not lose a match all week. The only match points they dropped in eight rounds came in round two, against Colombus American School. Three perfect scores Nine players were still unbeaten after four rounds. Three finished the championship having won every game they played: Rihanna Irina Rojas Salas, Saco Oliveros de Lince, Peru, board four Aiden Yin, Crescent Heights Academy, Canada, board three William Nicolás Rodríguez, Colombus American School, Colombia, board one Two of the three are on teams heading to the Grand Final. Rodríguez is not: Colombus American School finished twelfth. He played board one in all eight rounds, against the strongest opposition each team could put in front of him, and won all eight. A fourth player finished on 100 per cent: Sayel Sebastián Vega Portilla of Don Bosco Macas won all six games on the reserve board. The three qualifying teams took a board prize each on boards one to four, and Costa Rica took second and third on the reserve board. A final afternoon for the players Before the closing ceremony, the last afternoon still belonged to the players. A Dance Workshop filled the activity area, before a Kahoot Chess Quiz rounded off the side programme from a lively, competitive finish that kept the energy high right to the end. A farewell to San José The championship ended as it had begun: with players, coaches, parents and officials gathered together. The official closing ceremony
Handmade Boards from Rio, a Simul with a Twist, and a Tightening Race in San José
Day three of the American Continental Stage of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 brought rounds five and six to the DoubleTree by Hilton Cariari in San José, and one team took the day apart. Saco Oliveros de Lince began it level at the top with Harvest Park Middle School and Crescent Heights Academy, and by the evening they had beaten both of them and stood alone two match points clear. Behind them the race for the qualifying places is now the story, with four teams inside a single match point going into the final day. Round 5 Harvest Park Middle School 1-3 Saco Oliveros de Lince The first two teams in the field met on table one, level on 7 match points and level on 13 game points, and Peru won it 3-1. On board one, Marcos Beltrán Meneses Morales (pictured below) from Saco Oliveros de Lince beat Harvest Park Middle School’s Zhuoyuan Wu in a Caro-Kann. White came out of the opening with a small but real advantage, then lost it to an inaccurate move order, and later overextended on the kingside in a way that left weaknesses on both wings. Black took hold of the position, White faltered in defence, and by the time White gave up the queen simply to stay alive the game was already gone. Black was too far ahead in material and White resigned. Board two saw FM Patrick Liu, the highest rated player in the championship, against Dante Iván Vilca Contreras. Neither player made a mistake. Both finished on 99 per cent accuracy and the draw was the natural result of it, the best chess played anywhere in the round. Board three produced the same accuracy figure for both players and rather less drama, a series of trades into a dry endgame that neither side could do anything with, and a threefold repetition ended it. It was also a meeting of two unbeaten records: Ethan Sun and WCM Fabiana Jiménez Salas had both won all four of their games, and each dropped a first half point to the other. On board four, Rihanna Irina Rojas Salas controlled the game from the start, made a passed pawn on the queenside, promoted it, and delivered mate with it. Crescent Heights Academy 2½-1½ Saint Gabriel’s School Canada came through the other top match, and the two lower boards decided it. On board one, FM Lucas Mason Pin Qian Yao from Crescent Heights Academy had a pleasant position out of the opening and then misplayed it, and at the critical moment chose an aggressive plan that looked strong but allowed Black to neutralise into balance. Tobias Passmore Bowman held the endgame from there, defending in time trouble with his opponent fifteen minutes ahead on the clock. On board two, Vicente Muñoz Venegas (pictured below) outplayed Adela Sun, and the game was decided after only 18 moves. That left boards three and four to the two higher rated Canadians, and both delivered. On board four, CM Andrew Yin met an opposite-side castling opening that burned out quickly once the queens came off; White then misplayed into a passive defence, could not shake it in the endgame, and Black converted. Both Yins remain on a full score after five rounds. Position of the round 2r1r1k1/1p2q1p1/pP2ppp1/1bPpP3/3N4/P3Q1P1/5P1P/1RR3K1 b – – 3 28 Board three, another Caro-Kann and a passive one for Black, produced the finish of the round. Felipe Brunstein Hauyon played 28…Bc4 here, trying to hold on to the bishop, and it is the losing move. 28…fxe5 29.Nxb5 axb5 30.Rxb5 Qd7 followed by …e4 keeps everything under control. Instead Aiden Yin, with White, found 29.c6!, and after 29…bxc6? 30.b7! the rook had to go to b8, when 31.Nxc6 forked the queen on e7 and the rook on b8. A piece up with a passed pawn on b7 that the a-pawn later joined, White converted without fuss and took the point that decided the match. Colombus American School beat Creative Kids Learning Academy 3-1 to move into third, William Nicolás Rodríguez winning again on board one to stay perfect. Colegio Madre del Divino Pastor beat Harrison College School 2½-1½, with Jasmany Shallom Castillo Romero beating AIM Jeremiah Farley on the top board and Charis Stuart losing for the first time, which ended the last of the Barbadian full scores. Colegio Celta Internacional beat The Oxford School by the same margin, CM Fernando Cortes Medina winning a fifth game from five. The best result for the hosts came further down the hall, where Colegio Bilingüe San Francisco de Asís swept Escuela Internacional Sampedrana 4-0, the first clean sweep by a Costa Rican school all week. Colegio Humboldt drew 2-2 with Red Bay Primary School and the British School lost 1½-2½ to Martin Klein Schiller. St. Kitts International Academy, who had not won a match since joining the event, beat Projeto Vidançar 2-0. Round 6 That left boards three and four to the two higher rated Canadians, and both delivered. On board four, CM Andrew Yin met an opposite-side castling opening that burned out quickly once the queens came off; White then misplayed into a passive defence, could not shake it in the endgame, and Black converted. Both Yins remain on a full score after five rounds. Position of the round 2r1r1k1/1p2q1p1/pP2ppp1/1bPpP3/3N4/P3Q1P1/5P1P/1RR3K1 b – – 3 28 Board three, another Caro-Kann and a passive one for Black, produced the finish of the round. Felipe Brunstein Hauyon played 28…Bc4 here, trying to hold on to the bishop, and it is the losing move. 28…fxe5 29.Nxb5 axb5 30.Rxb5 Qd7 followed by …e4 keeps everything under control. Instead Aiden Yin, with White, found 29.c6!, and after 29…bxc6? 30.b7! the rook had to go to b8, when 31.Nxc6 forked the queen on e7 and the rook on b8. A piece up with a passed pawn on b7 that the a-pawn later joined, White converted without fuss and took the point that decided the match. Colombus American School beat Creative Kids Learning Academy 3-1
WSTC Americas Day 2: A Tightening Race in San José
Day two of the American Continental Stage of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 brought rounds three and four to the DoubleTree by Hilton Cariari in San José, and ended with three teams sharing the lead and nobody able to break clear. Round 3 The two matches at the top decided the shape of the day. Harvest Park Middle School beat Saint Gabriel’s School of Chile 3-1, losing only on the bottom board, where Martín Muñoz Venegas beat Ruyi Hu in a meeting of players rated identically at 1501. Canada’s Crescent Heights Academy took the other 3-1, over Harrison College School of Barbados, with FM Lucas Mason Pin Qian Yao beating AIM Jeremiah Farley on board one. Both winners now had three from three, and Harvest Park lead on game points, 11 to 9. Behind them, Saco Oliveros de Lince answered their Round 2 draw with a 4-0 sweep of Panama’s The Oxford School, and Colegio Madre del Divino Pastor of El Salvador beat Colombus American School 2½-1½, although William Nicolás Rodríguez won again on the top board, this time against Jasmany Shallom Castillo Romero. Queen’s College, who had beaten Mexico in the opening round, lost 1-3 to Cuba’s Martin Klein Schiller. It was a much better day for the hosts. Colegio Humboldt recorded a second consecutive 4-0, this time against Uruguay’s Colegio y Liceo Nuestra Señora del Verdún, and the British School beat Honduras’s Escuela Internacional Sampedrana 3-1. Only Colegio Bilingüe San Francisco de Asís lost, 1½-2½ to Mexico’s Colegio Celta Internacional. The field also grew. Projeto Vidançar of Brazil joined the championship as the 29th team and lost 0-4 to Academia Inter Metro of Puerto Rico, while St. Kitts International Academy took the bye. Position of the round 2r1r1k1/1p3ppp/p5q1/2b1P3/2NBn3/1P1Q4/P3RPPP/R5K1 b – – 2 22 The biggest individual upset of the round came on the top board of match nine, where Aimar María Murillo Mathiew, rated 1450, beat Juan Esquibel, rated 1792, as Colegio Humboldt swept Nuestra Señora del Verdún 4-0. The game had been anything but smooth, with the advantage changing hands repeatedly. In this position Black tried something clever with 22…Nxf2, and the idea behind it is worth seeing. After 23.Qxg6 Black has 23…Nh3+ in reserve, and if White takes with 24.gxh3 then 24…Bxd4+ arrives with check, after which Black recaptures the queen on g6 and comes out level. But 24.gxh3 was never forced. White simply stepped aside with 24.Kf1, and the whole construction collapsed: Black now has a knight on h3 and a bishop on c5 both hanging, no checks to fall back on, and still has to spend a move taking the queen. A piece down, Black resigned a few moves later. A cool sidestep in a position where neither player had much time left. Round 4 The two unbeaten teams met at the top and could not be separated. Harvest Park Middle School and Crescent Heights Academy drew 2-2, the Americans taking the top two boards and the Canadians the bottom two, where Aiden Yin and CM Andrew Yin both won. Board one was the meeting the draw had been building towards: FM Patrick Liu, at 2292 the highest rated player in the championship, against FM Lucas Mason Pin Qian Yao, the second highest at 1969. It was the sharpest game of the round, with the two players castling on opposite sides and sending their pawns at each other’s kings, and Liu came through it. That draw let Saco Oliveros de Lince join them. Peru’s top seeds beat Colegio Madre del Divino Pastor 3-1, although Marcos Beltrán Meneses Morales lost on board one to Jasmany Shallom Castillo Romero. Standings after four rounds Three teams share the lead on 7 match points: Nine players on a full score Nine players have won all four of their games, and the three teams at the top of the table supply two apiece. For Harvest Park Middle School they are FM Patrick Liu, the highest rated player in the championship, and Ethan Sun. For Crescent Heights Academy, Aiden Yin and CM Andrew Yin. Saco Oliveros de Lince are carried by two girls, WCM Fabiana Jiménez Salas and Rihanna Irina Rojas Salas, who between them have taken eight points from eight while the Peruvian top boards have dropped three games. The other three are CM Fernando Cortes Medina of Colegio Celta Internacional, Charis Stuart of Harrison College School, and William Nicolás Rodríguez of Colombus American School, whose four wins have come against the strongest opposition of any of them: Meneses Morales, Castillo Romero and Chaz Reifer-Belle in the last three rounds alone. A day for the side programme The competitive programme ran alongside a full afternoon of side events. For Harvest Park Middle School they are FM Patrick Liu, the highest rat The day’s headline activity was “Smart Moves: Girls Who Lead”, a girls’ chess event organised by the International School Chess Federation and the Confederation of Chess for the Americas within the framework of the championship. It paired a seven-round Swiss blitz, at 3 minutes plus a 2-second increment for girls aged 16 and under, with a masterclass by WIM María Elena Rodríguez, a member of the Costa Rican Women’s National Team, who spoke about her own path in chess and about confidence, perseverance and success on and off the board. Twenty players took part, and one of them did not drop a half point. WCM Larissa Mayorga Araya won with a perfect 7 out of 7, ahead of Alana Patricia Castro Campos on 6 and Keilym Francinnie Durán Araya on 5. Every girl who played went home with a gift to mark the occasion ed player in the championship, and Ethan Sun. For Crescent Heights Academy, Aiden Yin and CM Andrew Yin. Saco Oliveros de Lince are carried by two girls, WCM Fabiana Jiménez Salas and Rihanna Irina Rojas Salas, who between them have taken eight points from eight while the Peruvian top boards have dropped three games. The other three are CM Fernando
Smart Moves Americas: Governments That Think Ahead
While the first moves were being made at the World Schools Team Championship, a second conversation was taking place a short distance away. At the Cariari Country Club in Heredia, ministers of education and sport, government officials, federation presidents and school leaders from across the Americas gathered for “Smart Moves Americas: Governments That Think Ahead”, the ISCF and CCA conference on chess as public policy. Costa Rica was a natural place to hold the conversation. In 2022 the country passed Law No. 10187, establishing chess instruction in public schools as a matter of national significance, and the current Chess in Education 2026 initiative has taken that statute into practice with a pilot programme in ten government schools, supported by FIDE, the CCA and the Ministry of Public Education. From Vision to National Action The programme opened with a high-level panel on turning educational policy into practice: – Timur Turlov, President of the ISCF and CEO of Freedom Holding – José Antonio Carrillo Pujol, President, FIDE Americas (CCA) – Mendy Aráuz Silva, Minister of Education of the Republic of Nicaragua – Dalila Beatriz Beltrán de Menjívar, National Director of School Coexistence, MINEDUCYT, El Salvador Mendy Aráuz Silva described how Nicaragua has built chess into public education as a pedagogical tool rather than an extracurricular one. In 2026 the country reopened 2,503 primary school and 825 secondary school chess clubs, involving 41,688 students. It distributed 10,000 methodological guides and 1,700 chess kits, and now trains teachers, advisers and instructors nationwide. The case she made for it was not competitive but cognitive and social: logical thinking, concentration, discipline and respectful coexistence. Dalila Beatriz Beltrán de Menjívar took a similar line from El Salvador, presenting chess as a tool that goes well beyond competition. In her account it belongs in the school as a way of strengthening coexistence and the values that hold a classroom together, among them respect, self-control, empathy and the peaceful resolution of conflict, with plans to widen the programme to more schools and communities across the country. “Chess in Education” School Awards The panel was followed by the “Chess in Education” School Awards, recognising schools leading the way in chess education. The honours went to GSD International School Costa Rica in La Guácima, Alajuela, to Escuela Lepanto in the Peninsular regional education directorate, and to Escuela Las Lagunas in Pérez Zeledón. They were presented by Luis Eduardo The conference also saw the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding among the participating ministries, FIDE, the ISCF and the CCA, setting out a shared roadmap for chess in education across the region. Playing the Long Game The dialogue continued with a round table on what it takes for a programme to last beyond a single administration: – Mauricio Arias Santana, moderator – Robert McLellan, Interim Executive Director, National Scholastic Chess Foundation – Andrea Marshall-Harris, International Director, Barbados Chess Federation – Milagros Ibáñez, General Director of Complementary Education, Municipality of Vicente López, Argentina – Dilda Nauryzbayeva, Director of Educational Projects, International School Chess Federation One Board. Millions of Classrooms. The programme closed with a panel on scaling chess as an educational tool: – Dr. Amelia Hernández, moderator – Natalia Lobo, President of the Education Commission, Costa Rican Chess Federation – Marta Amigó Vilalta, Coordinator of the “Chess in School” project, Catalonia – Mery Lizbeth Del Carmen Ceballos Rodríguez, Co-founder, Chess Logistic Speaking at the conference, ISCF President Timur Turlov tied the championship’s purpose to Costa Rica’s own history: “Almost 80 years ago, Costa Rica did something unthinkable: it abolished its army and sent that money to schools and hospitals. This country bet on something stronger than any weapon, on an educated person. Today we continue that same conversation, with a sharper question: what exactly should a school teach so that a child grows up thinking? Our answer is right here, at these boards.” The organisers set out the aim of the day as a shared roadmap for expanding chess in education across the Americas, supported by new partnerships, practical priorities and coordinated regional action. The American continental stage of the World Schools Team Championship continues at the DoubleTree by Hilton Cariari, where the teams these policies are written for were spending the day at the boards.
San José Opens the Board: The WSTC American Continental Stage Kicks Off
The American Continental Stage of the FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 began today at the DoubleTree by Hilton Cariari in San José, the first time the championship has come to Central America. 29 school teams have travelled here from 25 countries, from Canada to Argentina and across the Caribbean, each of them playing for a place in the Grand Final later this year. The stage falls within the Year of Chess in Education and is supported by Freedom Holding Corp. and the Costa Rican Institute of Sport and Recreation (ICODER). Format Each team fields four main players and one reserve, with both boys and girls represented. The tournament follows an eight-round Swiss system, with a time control of 45 minutes plus a 10-second increment per move from move one. Competitive play begins in the coming days; the opening day was given over to ceremony, dialogue and getting to know one another. At the top of the starting rankings is Peru’s Saco Oliveros de Lince (average rating 1889), followed by the USA’s Harvest Park Middle School and Canada’s Crescent Heights Academy. The host country, Costa Rica, is represented by three schools, led by Colegio Bilingüe San Francisco de Asís. Here is a closer look at the day’s activities. A Special Opening Ceremony The championship opened at 10:00 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Cariari. Following the guests’ registration, the Costa Rican national anthem and the FIDE anthem, three officials took to the stage, but not to deliver speeches. Instead, José Antonio Carrillo Pujol (President, FIDE Americas, CCA), Timur Turlov (President of the ISCF and CEO of Freedom Holding) and Luis Eduardo Quirós Rojas (President of the Costa Rican Chess Federation) opened a message from the young players of the African Continental Stage, part of a growing tradition in which the children of one stage pass the chess relay on to the next. This time the African players sent not ordinary letters but a “package”, unwrapped on screen item by item. Inside were several small symbolic gifts, each carrying a wish, a piece of advice and a dose of humour: a chess compass, a flashlight, a magnet, an AA battery, a salt shaker of “lightness”, and an extra, empty suitcase. As each official opened a gift, the children’s words set a warm and personal tone for the week ahead. Opening the “compass,” Timur Turlov read: “We are sending you a chess compass. It does not point north or south. It points in the direction of your next good move… We wish everyone to find their own direction at this championship and make at least one move that takes you where you truly want to go.” Opening the “flashlight,” José Antonio Carrillo Pujol read: “Sometimes the position seems dark and unclear, and all the moves are like in a fog. Then take the flashlight and look at the board from a different angle… Sometimes the best move is visible only in semi-darkness, when your eyes have adjusted and are not distracted by flickering.” Unwrapping the “magnet,” Luis Eduardo Quirós Rojas read: “The magnet doesn’t work from fear. If you are nervous and fidgety, it repels everything good. But if you breathe evenly and trust your calculation, it pulls the right moments toward you… The main thing — don’t bring the magnet near your rating. It doesn’t attract that. Only your mood and attention.” The final card left the young players with a thought to carry through the week: “You are not just participants. You are part of a great chess story that began long before you and will continue after you. Happy playing, champions!” The ceremony closed with the symbolic first move, made by Timur Turlov (President of the ISCF and CEO of Freedom Holding) and José Antonio Carrillo Pujol (President, FIDE Americas – CCA), officially declaring the American Continental Stage open. Round 1 The opening round saw a stable start. Seven of the thirteen matches finished 4-0, which is common enough on the first day of a schools team event, where the seeding gap between the top and the bottom of the field is at its widest. Top seed Saco Oliveros de Lince swept Costa Rica’s Colegio Bilingüe San Francisco de Asís, and Harvest Park Middle School did the same to Paraguay’s Colegio Cristo Rey. The result of the round came on board five, where Queen’s College of Barbados, seeded 18th, beat Mexico’s Colegio Celta Internacional 3-1. Mexico took the top board through CM Fernando Cortes Medina, but Queen’s College won the other three, with Jaeda Herbert and Nathan Simmons-Patterson both beating higher rated opponents. It was a difficult start for the hosts. None of the three Costa Rican schools won. San Francisco de Asís was swept by Peru, Colegio Humboldt lost 1-3 to Saint Gabriel’s School of Chile with only Nicolás Ramírez Quirós scoring, and the British School took the day’s only drawn match, holding Colegio Madre del Divino Pastor of El Salvador 2-2. Position of the round R1b2r2/1p3pkp/nbp1pN2/5p2/1qBP4/5N1P/1BQ2PP1/5RK1 w – – 2 20 Board one of the top match produced the finish of the round. Marcos Beltrán Meneses Morales of Saco Oliveros de Lince, playing White, helped his team to their 4-0 sweep with a game he had taken control of in the opening. White is winning here and has more than one good continuation, but the young Peruvian found the most attractive. 20.d5! opens the b2 bishop’s diagonal towards the black king on g7, setting up a discovered check the moment the knight on f6 moves. In such overwhelming positions it is easy to rush; instead White brought another piece into the attack. The game continued 20…cxd5 21.Nxd5+ Kh6, and White finished with 22.Qc1+ Kg6 23.Qg5#, the queen protected by the knight on f3 and every escape square covered. Round 2 Round 2 produced the upset the opening round had not. Top seed Saco Oliveros de Lince was held to 2-2 by Colombus American School of Colombia, who won both of the top boards: William Nicolás Rodríguez
Costa Rica Takes Center Stage for School Chess in the Americas
San José, Costa Rica — August 11, 2026 Chess doesn’t usually make morning sports radio. This week it did. Ahead of the American Continental Stage of the World Schools Team Championship (WSTC), three of the people behind the event sat down with Teletica Deporte Radio’s “Tren Deportivo” — and a 15-minute slot turned into a 36-minute conversation. That tells you something about how much there is to say. The tournament From August 11 to 16, the DoubleTree Hilton Cariari becomes home to the best school chess on the continent: 29 school teams from across the Americas, competing for a place in a global grand final against the other continents. The tournament is organized by FIDE and the International School Chess Federation (ISCF), together with the Costa Rican Chess Federation and the Chess Confederation for the Americas (CCA), with the backing of the Costa Rican Institute of Sport and Recreation (ICODER). It runs under the banner of the 2026 Year of Chess in Education, an initiative supported by Freedom Holding Corp. Andrei Vodianov, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the ISCF, explained where the federation came from. It was founded barely two years ago on an idea from its president, Timur Turlov, a father of six who wanted to promote school chess worldwide the way it’s done in Kazakhstan. FIDE’s General Assembly approved it in 2024. Last year the ISCF ran its first WSTC in Washington, D.C. – a single global championship. This year the format changed. Instead of bringing the whole world to one place, the championship splits into four continental stages, opening the door to far more countries. Africa’s stage was held in Cape Town last month. Costa Rica is the American stage. Each host nation gets three teams. Costa Rica’s spots go to Colegio Humboldt, San Francisco de Asís (from Guápiles) and Colegio Británico — the top three from a national stage that drew more than thirty schools, played for the first time in a new team format: four players per school, with at least one boy and at least one girl on every team. Accreditation opens August 11. The opening ceremony and Round 1 follow on Wednesday, August 12, with rounds running through August 15 — Mother’s Day in Costa Rica — and the closing ceremony that Saturday. Continental champions advance to a grand final in December, staged alongside the FIDE World Blitz and Rapid Championship, where players like Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura compete. The conference The competition is only half of it. On August 12, the ISCF hosts the Smart Moves Americas Summit — a conference of panels with world-class experts on chess as an educational tool, including a roundtable, “Playing the Long Game,” and a session pointedly titled “One Board, Millions of Classrooms.” It’s the kind of event that normally costs at least $100 to attend. Here it’s free and open to anyone who wants to come. “They’re covering everything,” said Mauricio Arias Santana, who chairs the Education Commission of the Chess Confederation for the Americas. “So the impact reaches everyone.” Registration links are on the Costa Rican Chess Federation’s social channels – the link. Why it matters Behind the boards and the panels is a bigger idea and that’s really what the three guests came to talk about. For Luis Quirós Rojas, president of the Costa Rican Chess Federation, the headline is simple: chess is the fastest-growing sport in the country’s schools, according to official statistics. But the pitch to educators isn’t about adding to their plate. “We’re not telling teachers, ‘I want you to do more’ — they already do a great deal,” Quirós said. “We’re telling them: here’s a tool to make your job easier.” He pushed back on the old playground wisdom that chess makes kids smart. “Is a child fast because he runs? No — he’s fast because he built the ability by running,” he said. “In the same way, we want every child who goes to school in Costa Rica to build abilities by playing. And the Ministry of Education is telling us: yes, come in, there’s room.” Arias, an international master before he turned to promoting the game, spoke about it in personal terms. “I have a good life. For me and my family, none of it would have been possible without chess,” he said. “I don’t know what hole I’d be in — but we certainly wouldn’t be having this conversation.” He also captured why so many countries are watching Costa Rica right now. “A few years ago we had to go to countries and convince them this was worth doing,” he said. “Today they’re not asking whether it works. They’re asking how to implement it — what’s the method.” Costa Rica, he added, is “putting itself at the head of the continent” on chess in education: curricula are being written, and a pilot is about to launch in several schools. For Vodianov, the reason to keep going is more personal. At the Asian stage, a team of four girls from a very rural region of India played the first time any of them had ever left their city. “Situations like that give us the drive to keep going,” he said. (The story is on the ISCF’s Instagram.) Arias left the radio audience with the line that summed it up best. “Everything we’re talking about here is an investment in talent,” he said. “And to be clear — not chess talent. Talent as a country.” The World Schools Team Championship — American Continental Stage runs August 11–16, 2026, at the DoubleTree Hilton Cariari, Costa Rica. Organized by FIDE and the International School Chess Federation with the Costa Rican Chess Federation and the Chess Confederation for the Americas, endorsed by ICODER, under the 2026 Year of Chess in Education supported by Freedom Holding Corp.