GothamChess, Oro, Cramling, Rosen: Creators Battle For Norms In First Madrid Chess Festival
A major new international chess event is coming to Spain next month featuring some of the most popular content creators in the game competing for title norms.
The first Madrid Chess Festival will play host to three classical tournaments and a blitz event running between June 10 and 15. According to the organizers, it is part of a new drive to bring big tournaments back to the Spanish capital.
On the bill are IM Levy Rozman, aka GothamChess, and GM Pepe Cuenca, co-organizers of the festival with “El Divis” IM David Martinez, plus the popular streamers IM Eric Rosen, and WFM Anna Cramling. Together, the line-up has more than 10 million followers on YouTube.
Fans will also be treated to a glimpse of the Argentine wonderkid FM Faustino Oro, the fast-rising 10-year-old who beat world number-one GM Magnus Carlsen in Chess.com's Bullet Brawl in March.
Así fue la reacción de Faustino Oro al ganarle una partida de ajedrez a Magnus Carlsen, el N°1 del ranking y campeón del mundo en ajedrez.pic.twitter.com/RDWYznH935
— VarskySports (@VarskySports) March 25, 2024
“Fausti,” as he is known, will be going for a grandmaster norm in one of two ten-player closed events along with Rosen. Cuenca and Rozman will compete in the other.
The closed groups are packed with players from Spanish-speaking countries, with 10 Spanish players, two Cubans, two Argentinians, and two Venezuelans. Four American players, including Rozman and Rosen, complete the line-up.
The open tournament will feature 50 players including another well-known content creator, Swedish WFM Anna Cramling. The 22-year-old is one of the most popular chess influencers and recently joined YouTube's exclusive One Million Subscribers' Club.
The festival will finish with a blitz tournament featuring the mysterious man-in-the-mask Rey Enigma, who has more than five million followers.
IM Martinez said: “Despite hosting the FIDE Candidates in 2022, Madrid has been slowly losing its prominence in the world of chess, with the disappearance of the major open tournaments that used to be regularly held.
“We hope that this first edition of the Madrid Chess Festival will mark a turning point, bringing Madrid back to the forefront of Spanish and international chess.”
The Madrid Chess Festival will take place at the city’s Ajedrez con Cabeza and Canal Isabel II starting on June 10 at 11:00 a.m. ET / 17:00 CEST / 8.30 p.m. IST.
You can catch all the action of the 2024 Madrid Chess Festival on Chess.com/TV or on Chess24's Twitch and YouTube channels.
