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General news about the BCC and the chess world

23rd Bangkok Chess Club Open 2026

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We are proud to announce the 23rd BCC Open Chess Tournament will be held at the luxurious Sheraton Hua Hin Resort & Spa, Thailand, April 11-19, 2026. This prestigious event welcomes players of all levels, featuring two categories: Masters (Open) section and Challenger section. The tournament will follow a 9-round Swiss format with a time control of 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, 30 minutes added for the rest of the game plus 30 seconds per move.

The 23rd BCC Blitz runs during the tournament, with qualifiers in one evening and a final on the next. There will also be a Thai Chess tournament over two mornings.

Expect fierce competition with Grandmasters, International Masters, and talented players from across the globe, offering opportunities for norm achievements and high-quality games. The scenic Sheraton Hua Hin, nestled along Thailand’s stunning coastline, provides a perfect backdrop for this exciting chess event.

Join us for a week of strategic brilliance, networking, and memorable moments, including a special photo opportunity on the Gulf of Thailand. Full details, including registration, accommodation, and prize information, will be available at bangkokchess.com. Don’t miss your chance to compete in one of Asia’s premier chess tournaments!

Full tournament regulations will be published on November 1st, and registration opened on December 15th. Please follow our website bangkokchess.com and facebook page www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572383257499

Invitation for Japan Open 2025

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The Japan Chess Federation (JCF) invites participation from Grandmasters (GMs), International Masters (IMs), Women Grandmasters (WGMs), and Women International Masters (WIMs), as well as other high-rated players with an active FIDE Standard Rating of above 2000, to participate in the Japan Open 2025. This inaugural event aims to promote quality chess tournaments in Japan with the presence of Grandmasters and International Masters to participate in a 9-round Swiss tournament with a limited field of around 50 players. The tournament will also provide opportunities for local players with opportunities to play high-quality games against reputable, strong players from all over the world, as well as opportunities to earn norms.

Dates/Place/Format

  • Tournament name: Japan Open 2025
  • Dates: 19th-23rd. Sep. 2025
  • Venue: Curian, Tokyo, Japan
  • Format: 9-Round Swiss, 90min+30sec/move
  • Section: Master category (above 2000) and Challenger category (below 2000).

Full details at: https://japanchess.org/en/2025/07/japan–open-2025-2/

BCC Open Round 9: Evgeny Romanov wins outright with 8/9

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The 22nd edition of the Bangkok Chess Club Open concluded with the undisputed victory of Macedonian GM Evgeny Romanov. Facing the young FM Ern Ang from Malaysia with the Black pieces, Romanov quickly obtained a promising position in which his doubled pawns were of little significance in view of the juicy outposts available to his minor pieces. After the game, he praised his opponent for his very tricky style and attributed his victory to the fact that he probably felt more at ease with the unusual pawn structure which resulted from the opening.

Ang, Ern Jie Anderson (2286) – Romanov, Evgeny (2590)

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 Bd6 5.Nf3 O-O 6.O-O Nc6 7.cxd5 exd5 8.Nc3 h6 9.Nb5 Bf5 10.Nxd6 cxd6 11.Bf4 Re8 12.h3 Qd7 13.g4 Be4 14.e3 a5 15.Nd2 Bd3

16.Re1? Nb4 17.Bf1 Bc2 18.Qf3 Ne4 19.Qe2 Bd3 20.Qd1 Rac8 21.Nxe4 dxe4 22.Bxd3 Nxd3 23.Re2 h5 24.Rd2 d5 25.Bg3 Rc6 26.f4 Rec8 27.Kh2 hxg4 28.hxg4 f5 29.Bh4 fxg4 30.Rg2 Rh6 31.Kg3 g5 32.fxg5 Rxh4 33.Kxh4 Kg7 34.Rxg4 Qd6 35.Rg2 Rh8+ 36.Qh5 Rxh5+ 37.Kxh5 Qf8 38.Rg3 Qh8+ 0-1

Romanov precedes Filipino IM Paulo Bersamina by a half point, as the latter managed to convert a winding Rook endgame against 2024 winner GM Bernadskyi.

On 7/9 follows a group of five players: FM Ang, Filipino IM Concio as well as GMs Lalit, Ganguly and Short, who also tops the ranking in the Senior citizen category.

Other prize winners, include IM Prin Laohawirapap as best player under the Thai federation on 6/9, and WGM Julia Ryjanova among ladies with a total of 5.5.

In the Challenger group, the final round began under similar auspices with two players on 7/8 chased by a trio on 6.5. Following their draw on board 1, Khalid Azzamy and Nguyen Tran are joined on 7.5/9 by John De Guzman, with Azzamy winning on tiebreak.

This concludes this year’s coverage of the Bangkok Chess Club Open and Challenger tournaments. Please follow us on www.bangkokchess.com for announcements regarding the next edition!

BCC Round 8 : draw at the top, GM comebacks and an Easter egg on board 2

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The tournament entered its final stretch and dying hours as this penultimate round will be followed in quick order by the dreaded 9:00 game on Monday morning.

The game on board 1 between the leader Evgeny Romanov and Babu Lalit was wrapped up peacefully after a couple of hours. The position stayed well within drawing parameters and left both opponents undefeated in this tournament, with two and three draws respectively.

On board 2 GM Stephen Gordon was facing the round’s surprise package in the person of Ern Ang. The young FM from Malaysia chalked his sixth successive win after his Mancunian opponent had missed the tactical shot 24… Bg3, which won the exchange and then some.

On the third table, Indian GM Ganguly carefully nursed his advantage – until he didn’t. The complications arising from his Rook sacrifice 35…. Rxf2 resulted in a drawn position, whereas doubling Rooks on the f-file first would instead have given Black a decisive advantage.

Michael Concio outlasted James Morris in a position where White’s Queen and Knight decided against Black’s two extra pawns and lone Queen.

The face-off between untitled Latvian Batashevs Arsens, 2176, and IM Bersamina from the Philippines was in equilibrium until the time scramble, with 34. Rdd3 landing White in a passive position causing the loss of a piece.

Other winners on this round include GMs Bernadskyi, Short and Gustafsson, who called upon a time-honoured mixture of knowledge, experience and guile to move up the ranking table.

BCC round 7: Saturday, bloody Saturday – Evgeny Romanov sole leader with Ang, Gordon and Lalit in pursuit

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In a first this year around, the top three boards had six GMs battling it out today. Battling being the operative word: no grandmasterly draws here, Sir!

On board 1 Evgeny Romanov uncorked a deep and powerful combination to bring down Surya Ganguly following a balanced middle game contest in which the Indian GM declined a draw offer by move 25.

Ganguly, Surya Shekhar (2572) – Romanov, Evgeny (2590)

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bd7 6.Be2 Nge7 7.O-O Nf5 8.dxc5 a5 9.Bd3 Bxc5 10.a4 h6 11.Nbd2 Bb6 12.Nb3 Nh4 13.Nxh4 Qxh4 14.Qe2 O-O 15.Be3 Qd8 16.Bc2 Bxe3 17.Qxe3 f6 18.exf6 Rxf6 19.Nc5 b6 20.Nxd7 Qxd7 21.Rae1 Qd6 22.Qd3 g6 23.Re3 Qc5 24.Rh3 Kg7 25.Qd2 Rh8 26.Rb1 Ne5 27.b4 Qc7 28.bxa5 bxa5 29.Rb5 The start of the decisive manoeuvre, allowing the doubling of the Rooks on the f-file.
29..h5 30.Rg3 Rhf8 31.Qd4 Rxf2 32.Rxg6+

32..Kh7 The crux. Seldom does one see a King go willingly into a vortex of discovered checks, and emerge triumphant.
33.Rg3+ Rxc2 34.Qd1 Kh6 35.h3 Qa7+ 36.Kh2 Qf2 37.h4 Rf4 38.Kh3 Rg4 0-1

At board 2, Stephen Gordon was hanging on in spite of undergoing some time and positional pressure at the hands of Nigel Short. Things then took a turn for the worse for him after the capture of a forbidden pawn on c2, after which it appeared White’s two minor pieces would have dominated Black’s Rook. Instead Black invaded White’s first rank, won White’s Bishop and converted the win after liquidating into a won pawn endgame.

On board 3, Babu Lalit overcame the resistance of Jozsef Horvath with a timely Queenside breakthrough culminating with a triple battery of White’s heavy pieces on the a-file.

They are joined in 2-4 places by junior FM Ern Ang from Malaysia, who managed to defeat IM Hafiz.

Games: https://www.chess.com/events/2025-bangkok-open/games
Open section: https://chess-results.com/tnr1137279.aspx?lan=1
Challenger section: https://chess-results.com/tnr1137307.aspx?lan=1