Overview

• The 11-round qualifier starts September 4 with two Candidates berths per section, prize funds of $625,000 (Open) and $230,000 (Women’s), and live coverage on FIDE’s YouTube channel.
• World champion D Gukesh, who does not need to qualify, said he is using the event to "prove" himself and adapt to the Swiss format.
• R Praggnanandhaa is reported to hold a commanding performance-category lead that leaves him close to sealing a Candidates place.
• Women’s World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh accepted a wildcard into the Open and drew Abhimanyu Puranik—her recent second—for round one.
• A record Indian contingent leads a field missing Magnus Carlsen, Ding Liren, Viswanathan Anand, Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana, as local star Nodirbek Abdusattorov’s remark that "Gukesh will lose his title" drew online debate.