DOHA: The World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships Qatar 2025 will get underway on Friday at Qatar University’s Sports and Events Complex, with the tournament running until December 30 and drawing a record field of more than 400 players and 130 women competitors.
The championships were officially launched at a press conference held on Wednesday at the Rosewood Hotel in Lusail, attended by Mohammed Al Mudahka, President of the Qatar Chess Federation and Vice President of the Arab Chess Federation, alongside FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich.
Also present were reigning classical world champion Gukesh Dommaraju of India and China’s Ju Wenjun, the defending women’s champion and world number one.
Norwegian world champion Magnus Carlsen headlines the open field and will be aiming to defend his blitz title after winning gold at the previous edition in New York. The five-time world champion is joined by an elite lineup that includes Ian Nepomniachtchi, the 2024 world blitz champion, Fabiano Caruana, Anish Giri, Wesley So, Levon Aronian, Vincent Keymer, Arjun Erigaisi, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Praggnanandhaa R, Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus and Ediz Gurel.
Veteran players Alexander Grischuk and Ukraine’s Vasyl Ivanchuk, who won the world rapid title in Doha in 2016, are also among the contenders.
Strong women’s field
In the women’s competition, five-time world champion Ju Wenjun leads a field of 130 players. The Chinese star, rated 2530 in rapid chess, won the women’s world blitz title in New York in 2024.
Former world champions Tan Zhongyi and Anna Muzychuk are among the leading contenders, alongside Alexandra Goryachkina of Russia and Kazakhstan’s Bibisara Assaubayeva, the two-time world blitz champion in 2021 and 2022.
Also competing are Maria Muzychuk and Russian blitz specialist Kateryna Lagno, a multiple-time world champion in both rapid and blitz formats.
Former world champion and Qatar national team player Ju Chen is also set to compete, continuing her appearances at the global championships.
