In the 134-year history of the World chess championship, there have been only 16 undisputed champions. Wilhelm Steinitz of Austria was the first: he reigned from 1886 to 1894.
May 17 marks his 184th birth anniversary. On the occasion, FIDE, in association with chess24.com , will organise a star-studded online tournament in his memory.
The 10-player round-robin blitz tournament — the FIDE Online Steinitz Memorial — will be held from May 14 to 17 and carry a prize fund of €30,000.
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Current World champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway, three-time World blitz champion Alexander Grischuk of Russia, 2013 World blitz champion Le Quang Liem of China, World No. 11 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan and World No. 24 Peter Svidler of Russia are in the fray.
In the women's section, Kateryna Lagno of Russia, a former World rapid and blitz champion, and former World champions Alexandra Kosteniuk of Russia, Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria and Tan Zhongyi of China are among the main stars.
“Steinitz was a revolutionary and his historic 25-game winning streak, or his 32 years undefeated in match-play speaks of his calibre,” said FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich.
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Meanwhile, reigning women's World rapid champion Koneru Humpy told The Hindu, “I haven't received an invitation yet.”