Olympiad: Humpy downs 'Greek Goddess' Tsolakidou; Gukesh back above 2700
Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy defeated Greece's Stavroula Tsolakidou in the 2026 Chess Olympiad. This victory served as a personal redemption for Humpy following several recent losses to Tsolakidou in the Global Chess League.
Why it matters
Showcases the high-stakes nature of international chess rivalries and the performance of top Indian athletes on the global stage.
NEW DELHI: On Friday, the Indian women's team, defending champions and unbeaten so far in the tournament, was paired against Greece in Round 3 of the 2026 Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. On paper, this looked routine. India, the top seeds, were expected to win the tie, and they eventually did. But the top-board clash between Koneru Humpy and Greece's Stavroula Tsolakidou carried a subplot that had been building for a fortnight, and it turned an otherwise straightforward fixture into the day's most closely watched game.Tsolakidou was part of Ganges Grandmasters, the eventual champions of the just-concluded Global Chess League (GCL) Season 4.
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