FIDE has provided a comment in response to criticism directed at Hikaru Nakamura about the validity of rating calculations for the Maritime Chess Open. FIDE notes that the tournament organizers could not have known in advance whether a 2700+ player would participate in the event.

FIDE

FIDE

International Chess Federation

“The Maritime Chess Open is a traditional tournament. No player with a rating of 2700+ had ever participated in it previously. The organizer submitted the entry within the established deadline, and at the time of registration, there was no information indicating the participation of any player with a 2700+ rating.

Therefore, there was no reason not to include this tournament, and its results were added to the calculations in the usual order.”

Vladimir Kramnik stated that one of the qualifying tournaments played by Hikaru does not meet the 30-day registration rule. Kramnik noted that Nakamura lacks enough games to qualify for the Candidates, and the spot should go to Nodirbek Abdusattorov.

The 2025 Maritime Open Chess Championship, a major over-the-board tournament held in Canada, was won by Hikaru. The FIDE Candidates Tournament 2026 will take place from March 28 to April 16, at the Cap St Georges Hotel and Resort in Pegeia, Cyprus. Magnus Carlsen voluntarily declined participation in the Candidates, which allowed Hikaru Nakamura (2810) to qualify for the event via second-place position on the FIDE rating list.

Credit: Lennart Ootes