The first game day of the FIDE World University Team Chess Championship-2026 concluded at the Farabi Hub in Almaty. After two rounds, the quartet in Group D is topped by Kazakh teams — KazNU and KNUS, reports infohub.kz.
According to the regulations, 16 teams from ten countries, divided into four groups after the draw, play two matches each in a round-robin format.
The team of the Kazakh National University (KazNU) started confidently. In the first round, they defeated Oxford students 3:1, and in the second, they confirmed their superiority by winning 3.5:0.5 against the same opponent. Victories in these matches were secured by FIDE Master Yerlan Tleukhanov, as well as Bekarys Tursunali and Sultan Amanzhol. With two team points, the hosts lead Group D.
Second place with 1.5 points is held by the University of Sports (KNUS), which drew 2:2 with Indonesian students in the second round. The only win for the Astana team in this round came from International Master Meruert Kamalidenova.
Two team points after two rounds are also held by Russia's Ural State Mining University (UGGU), as well as teams from St. Louis and Dallas in the USA, and Athens in Greece.
Tomorrow, rounds 3 and 4 will be played. The round-robin matches will determine the top two teams from each group. Then follow the playoffs: quarterfinals, semifinals, third-place match, and the final.
Games are played on four boards. Each team must have at least one man and at least one woman. Time control is 45 minutes plus 30 seconds per move starting from the first.
The tournament is organized by FIDE together with the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kazakhstan Chess Federation, and the Almaty city akimat. General partners are the Freedom group of companies and the Shapagat corporate fund.
The total prize fund is 50,000 euros. The champions will receive 25,000 euros, the runners-up 15,000 euros, and the third-place team will share 10,000 euros.