The final qualifying round of the chess tournament at the esports World Cup (EWC) took place on the evening of 26/7, determining the four players who would advance to the main event: Nihal Sarin, Javokhir Sindarov, Anish Giri, and Levon Aronian. They will join 12 players who previously qualified, including Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura, in the main tournament starting 29/7.

The final EWC qualifier followed a double-elimination format with 16 players. Each game was played with a 10-minute time control and no increment. Niemann, following his runner-up finish at the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam in Las Vegas, began the final EWC qualifier with two victories against Ahmed Adly and Du Uong Y. The 22-year-old was one win away from securing a spot in the main event but fell short. In the qualifying match against Sindarov, Niemann lost in the tie-break.

Moving to the losers' bracket, Niemann played a decisive match against Giri, losing the first game. In the third game, he held a winning advantage in the endgame but lost on time. Immediately afterward, the 22-year-old slammed his hand on the table and walked away.

In another decisive qualifying match, Russian player Andrey Esipenko lost to Aronian but did not display any anger. After the match, Esipenko even conversed with and congratulated his opponent.

Niemann, currently ranked 18th in the world, aims to become world champion. After defeating Carlsen in a classical game at the 2022 Sinquefield Cup, he was accused of cheating by the world number one. Later, the Norwegian grandmaster admitted he lacked sufficient evidence.

The main EWC tournament takes place from 29/7 to 1/8. This is the first time chess has been featured in the EWC, which boasts a prize pool of 1.5 million USD. The champion will receive 250,000 USD, a sum second only to the World Chess Championship prize.

16 players participating in the EWC.

The 16 players will be divided into four groups of four, playing a round-robin format to determine the 8 players advancing to the quarterfinals. From the quarterfinals onwards, the tournament will follow a knockout format.

Xuan Binh