Norway Chess organisers launch Chess World Championship Tour

New Delhi, Oct 15 (PTI) The organisers of Norway Chess on Wednesday announced the launch of the Total Chess World Championship Tour, which will consist of four events each year and crown a combined champion across three disciplines - Fast Classic, Rapid, and Blitz chess.

Norway Chess CEO Kjell Madland told PTI that a long-term agreement has been signed with the International Chess Federation (FIDE) for the tournament, which will be an annual affair and begin in 2027.

"We expect this (Total Chess World Championship Tour), to become one of the most prestigious events in the entire chess Calendar," said Madland.

He said that the World Championships, which is held in the Classical format, and the newly-conceptualised Total Chess World Championship Tour will co-exist as it had been officially approved by FIDE.

"The Total Chess World Championship Tour will crown an overall champion across three disciplines: Fast Classic, Rapid, and Blitz. The winner will be crowned FIDE World Combined Champion," he said.

"The tour will consist of four tournaments per year in various global cities with a minimum USD 2.7 million annual prize pool across the Tour (USD 750k per event for the first three events; USD 450k for the Finals, plus performance bonuses," Madland added.

"A pilot tournament is planned for the fall of 2026, with the first full championship season beginning in 2027," he said.

The status agreement between Norway Chess and FIDE was signed early October.

"The vision of the Total Chess World Championship Tour is to find the player who best masters the disciplines Fast Classic, Rapid and Blitz combined. Fast Classic is an innovation of classical chess, featuring a time limit as short as 45 minutes," he said. PTI AM AM AT AT