A new logo for Lichess
A major open-source contribution!
The good old Cburnett knight has served us well, but it was not truly our logo. We always wanted something unique and distinctive for Lichess, and we finally found it.
Lichess Official Blog
FIDE: Confidentiality Clauses and Secret Votes
An interview with GM Peter Heine Nielsen
GM Peter Heine Nielsen is a Grandmaster from Denmark who has worked at the very highest level in chess for decades. He played in seven Olympiads for Denmark and won the Danish Championship five times. He may be even better known for his work as a second. He’s worked to help both Viswanathan Anand and Magnus Carlsen prepare for World Championship matches.
Lichess conducted an interview with Peter via email. Lichess questions are in bold italics.
Firouzja keeps the streak going!
The young Iranian tops the TA with another convincing performance
We were treated to an extra long exhibition of chess skill this month, as the Titled Arena was immediately preceded by agadmator's 500k subscriber celebration tournament. The YouTuber's event was so popular that it pushed Lichess's servers to the max and we had to restart the event! Have no fear though, we were back up and running in short order. Congratulations to agadmator for reaching levels of popularity that challenge our servers, and congratulations to the winners of that event, splitting a $2,000 prize pool (GM Daniel Naroditsky (@RebeccaHarris), GM Oleksandr Bortnyk (@Night-King96), GM Alireza Firouzja (@alireza2003), GM Andrew Tang (@penguingim1) and GM Nikolay Chadaev (@N-Chadaev)). The event was open to all, but titled players quickly dominated the standings - it turns out they are quite good at chess.
Titled Arena Announcement
The November Titled Arena is here!
The Lichess Titled Arena is back on Saturday the 23rd November at 19:00 UTC!
We're cancelling the Warmup tournament this time, and suggest you join agadmator's tournament instead (same time as the usual warmup, with a $2000 prize fund)! It's open to all players with a minimum of 40 rated bullet games.
Firouzja on Fire!
The start of a new dynasty?
The Isle of Man International is in full swing (and you can catch the live games and commentary here on Lichess) but the allure of bullet chess is too strong, and during the rest day snuck in another installment of the Titled Arena. Willingly drawn away from their preparations for the next round were GMs Nihal Sarin (@nihalsarin2004), Parham Maghsoodloo (@grizzlybear79) and Eduardo Iturrizaga (@Eduiturri) - no doubt amongst countless others. All told, this is one of the largest Titled Arenas to date - possibly the largest, diligent fact-checkers are more than welcome to review this bold claim.
Titled Arena Announcement
The October Titled Arena is here!
The Lichess Titled Arena is back on Wednesday the 16th October at 19:00 UTC! In addition to the usual prizes, the three top-placing female participants will win additional prizes of $100, $50 and $20.
The event will as usual be preceded by a bullet 1+0 Warm-up Arena, open to all players with a minimum of 20 rated bullet games. Yes, even you.
Announcing the 2019 Horde World Championship
It's finally here!
The first installment of the Horde World Championship is here at last, so get ready for the greatest pawn storm in Lichess history!
The event will kick off on October 13th. If you would like to participate, please make sure to read the rules. Registration closes October 12th and will be conducted through the official Horde World Championship team. If you are only interested in following the tournament, joining the team is a great way to stay tuned as well!
960 Ways to Die in the West
GM Zaven Andriasian takes home the gold!
This September, we were treated to a double-bill of Lichess Titled Arenas, with a 960 variant edition at the unprecedented 3+2 time-control. Players were out in force with 270 participants. GM Andrew Tang (@penguingim1) took an early lead, but it was short lived - protesting on stream that he was only tired and not ill, the penguin was not in his finest form. IM Raunak Sadhwani (@Raunaksadhwani2005) took up the mantle with an impressive start and indeed led the field for over an hour and a half before starting to be pegged back by his opponents.
World Cup Drama in Khanty-Mansiysk – Just What the Doctor Ordered
Round 2 Report from the 2019 World Cup
The foyer of the 2019 World Cup venue, the Ugra Chess Academy just outside the centre of the city in Khanty-Mansiysk, is its own little world.
Chess960 Titled Arena - Back Again
Chess960 Returns!
It's been a little while since the last 960 Titled Arena. For this iteration, the duration will be 3 hours as last time but with a time control of 3+2.
This event will also be preceded by a Chess960 Warm-up Arena, open to all players with a minimum of 10 rated Chess960 games.