Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The Silk Road Samarkand tourist center has become a center of attraction for representatives of the world chess elite, where the opening ceremony of the World Rapid and Blitz Championship took place. The participants are already ready to perform at the long-awaited World Rapid and Blitz Championship, which takes place from 26 to 30 December at the Silk Road Samarkand Congress Center.

The tournament features a line-up of famous players, both current and former champions. The open part of the tournament features the current world champion in rapid and blitz, ranked first in the world ranking, Magnus Carlsen, former world champion contenders, leading players Ian Nepomniachtchi and Fabiano Caruana, as well as Levon Aronian and many others. The current world champion Ju Wenjun, as well as former world champions Alexandra Kosteniuk, Maria Muzychuk, Tan Zhongyi, Antoaneta Stefanova and others will perform in the women’s part of the competition.

With a total prize fund of US$1 million at stake, of which US$700,000 is for the open tournament and US$300,000 for the women’s tournament, this championship is one of the biggest events in the chess world.

The first competition will be the rapid championship, which will take place over three days from 26 to 28 December. This will be followed by a two-day world blitz tournament on 29 and 30 December.

With an exceptional line-up of participants and an impressive prize fund, the 2023 World Rapid and Blitz Championship promises exciting emotions and intense competition among the best grandmasters from around the world.