FIDE World Senior Team Championships Kick Off in North Macedonia

The 2023 FIDE World Senior Team Championships begun today in Struga, North Macedonia, with both a 50-and-over (50+) section and a 65-and-over (65+) section. 

The tournament format is a nine-round swiss, with each round consisting of four-player matches played at a classical time control of 40 moves in 90 minutes with an additional 30 minutes on move 40 and a 30-second increment beginning on move one. 48 teams are competing overall, with 22 in the 50+ and 26 in the 65+.

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Players gather at the opening ceremony (courtesy Mark Livshitz/FIDE)

In the 50+ section, the American team boasts the highest average rating (2514) and features five (most teams have an alternate player) strong grandmasters: Alexander Shabalov, Gregory Kaidanov, Jaan Ehlvest, Igor Novikov, and Alex Yermolinsky. Four other teams enter with average ratings over 2400, including a formidable England team with a few recognizable names (GMs Michael Adams, John Emms, Glenn Flear, Keith Arkell, and Nigel Davies). The full list of teams is available here. Games begin daily at 8:00 a.m. CDT and can be followed live on Chess.com.

There is no American team in the 65+ section, where Germany, England, and Slovakia are the only teams with average ratings over 2300. Of particular note is the top board for England 1: legendary grandmaster John Nunn. The full list of teams is available here, and games begin at the same time and can be followed live as well on Chess.com.