FIDE surveyed national team players ahead of the 2026 Chess Olympiad. FIDE asked them to name their teams’ main rivals at the event. The responses often briefly mentioned the teams of USA, Uzbekistan, India and China:


🇺🇿 Nodirbek Abdusattorov:

— India, US, China!


🇺🇸 Levon Aronian:

— India, Uzbekistan, China


🇮🇹 Lorenzo Lodici:

— India and China!


🇳🇱 Jorden van Foreest:

— Uzbekistan!


Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Anish Giri offered alternative views:


🇫🇷 MVL:

— Hopefully USA, India, and Uzbekistan, but at the moment England and Netherlands for regional power!


🇳🇱 Anish Giri:

— Belgium and Luxembourg


The Chess Olympiad is a prestigious national team competition. The event is held every two years and organized by FIDE. The 2026 event will take place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from September 15 to 28.

Credit: Lennart Ootes