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India Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- India Today
Chennai Grand Masters postponed to August 7 after fire at tournament venue
The Chennai Grand Masters chess tournament, which was scheduled to begin on Wednesday, August 6 has been postponed by a day and will now start on Thursday after a fire broke out at the venue of the event. The tournament is set to feature some big names, with India's Arjun Erigaisi leading the fire broke out at the Hyatt Regency hotel on Tuesday night, forcing the tournament to be postponed. Indian GM and the tournament director Srinath Narayanan said that the players are safe and they had been shifted to a nearby hotel after the at Hotel Hyatt Regency last night, the venue of the Chennai GM. All the players are safe and shifted to another hotel nearby. Tournament postponed by a day,' wrote Srinath Narayanan on his X handle. (Credit: Srinath Narayanan X) The players were eventually brought back to the venue, but the tournament will only begin after a fresh round of safety checks."Close to midnight there was an emergency in the Hotel Hyatt Regency in Chennai. Due to an electric fire on the ninth floor, the entire hotel became smoky and everyone had to evacuate the hotel before it became difficult to breathe," ChessBase India Read: India to host Chess World Cup 2025 in October-NovemberThe organisers told PTI that the timings of the tournament will remain the same and the tournament will end on August 15. However, a rest day has been taken away from the schedule."The timings will be the same, and the tournament will end on August 15 itself. There was a rest day in between, and that is no longer part of the schedule," they Chennai Grand Masters carries a prize money of one crore and will feature Erigaisi, alongside Vidit Gujrathi and Anish Giri from the Netherlands. Erigaisi is all set to start his campaign against American Awonder and Gujrathi will take place on August 14 in Round 8. The tournament will see participation from 19 Grandmasters and offer crucial FIDE Circuit points.*With PTI inputs*- Ends
News18
5 days ago
- Sport
- News18
Chennai Grand Masters postponed to Thursday after fire at tournament venue
Agency: PTI Last Updated: Chennai, Aug 6 (PTI) The Chennai Grand Masters chess tournament, featuring some well-established Indian and international names, has been postponed to Thursday after a fire broke out at the event's venue, the Hyatt Regency hotel. The third edition of the competition was scheduled to start on Wednesday. 'Fire at Hotel Hyatt Regency last night, the venue of the Chennai GM. All the players are safe and shifted to another hotel nearby. Tournament postponed by a day," wrote Indian GM and tournament director Srinath Narayanan on his X handle. The players were eventually brought back to the hotel, but the tournament will begin a day later after a fresh round of safety checks. 'Close to midnight there was an emergency in the Hotel Hyatt Regency in Chennai. Due to an electric fire on the ninth floor, the entire hotel became smoky and everyone had to evacuate the hotel before it became difficult to breathe," ChessBase India reported. The organisers informed PTI that the timing of the matches will remain the same, but a rest day has now been removed from the schedule. 'The timings will be the same, and the tournament will end on August 15 itself. There was a rest day in between, and that is no longer part of the schedule," they said. The Chennai Grand Masters, which carries a prize money of Rs one crore, has in its roster an impressive array of players such as India No.1 Arjun Erigaisi, seasoned Vidit Gujrathi and Anish Giri from the Netherlands. World No. 5 Erigaisi will open his campaign against American prodigy Awonder Liang. The highly-anticipated clash between two Indian grandmasters — Erigaisi and Gujrathi — is set for Round 8 on August 14. The tournament, which was played over seven rounds in the previous two editions, will see participation from 19 Grandmasters and offer crucial FIDE Circuit points. The points will be vital for securing a spot in the 2026 Candidates Tournament, a case in point being reigning world champion D Gukesh, who entered the Candidates last year on the back of his strong showing here. PTI UNG PM UNG PM PM view comments First Published: August 06, 2025, 11:15 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Indian Express
5 days ago
- Sport
- Indian Express
Chennai Grand Masters postponed by a day after fire breaks out at tournament venue
The start of the third edition of the Chennai Grand Masters 2025 event was postponed by a day after a fire broke out at the Hyatt Regency hotel, the venue of the tournament, late on Tuesday night. While the players will return to the venue on Wednesday, the tournament will officially begin on Thursday, August 7, with the first round utilising the allotted rest day. The 20-player event will now proceed without the previously scheduled break on August 11. 'Fire at Hotel Hyatt Regency last night, the venue of the Chennai GM. All the players are safe and shifted to another hotel nearby. Tournament postponed by a day,' wrote Indian GM and tournament director Srinath Narayanan on X. 'Close to midnight there was an emergency in Hotel Hyatt Regency in Chennai. Due to an electric fire on the 9th floor, the entire hotel became smoky and everyone had to evacuate the hotel before it became difficult to breathe,' reported ChessBase India. The Chennai Grand Masters sprung into the Indian chess calendar in late 2023 to offer young stars like D Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi a chance to qualify for the Candidates. Chennai boy Gukesh later capitalised on the opportunity to etch his name in the history books as he became the youngest world chess champion, aged 18 in December 2024. 'We hope the Chennai tournament will become a permanent fixture in the calendar, but we are still figuring that part out,' Srinath told the Indian Express. 'It's moving strongly towards being a permanent fixture in the calendar and a traditional annual tournament. The Chennai event will see 20 players competing in its third edition. While the main field comprise GM Arjun Erigaisi, GM Anish Giri, GM Vincent Keymer, GM Vidit Gujrathi, GM Nihal Sarin, GM Karthikeyan Murali, GM Jorden van Foreest, GM Awonder Liang, GM Ray Robson and GM Pranav Venkatesh competing, the Challengers event will see players like GM Abhimanyu Puranik, GM Adhiban Baskaran, GM Harika Dronavalli, GM Vaishali Rameshbabu, GM Pranesh M, GM Leon Luke Mendonca, GM Aryan Chopra, GM Diptayan Ghosh, GM Iniyan P and IM Harshavardhan GB in the fray. The tournament offers a significant prize pool of Rs 1 crore besides providing crucial FIDE Circuit points, vital for qualifying for the 2026 Candidates event.
