Report
Ninety players began the Rodos Palace International Open Chess Tournament 2026. The two sections originally announced for the event were ultimately combined into one Swiss tournament, with prizes to be awarded according to each player's original entry category.
The opening round produced 40 decisive results from 45 games, with only five draws.
Both grandmasters started with a win. GM Zeng Chongsheng defeated Konstantinos Kastanis after a 43-move battle, while GM Wan Yunguo beat Marianna Lamprianou with Black. FM Rodolfos Stamatiou, FM Milan Kolesar, WIM Kesaria Mgeladze, WIM Yunqing Zhao and Aikaterini Argyro Gkoutzouki also opened their campaigns with victories.
The most striking attack of the round came from Rodolfos Stamatiou. The Greek FM quickly brought his pieces towards the black king and finished with checkmate on move 26. Yunqing Zhao also stood out, driving a powerful passed pawn all the way to promotion.
After the first round, 40 players share the lead on one point. Round 2 brings together the opening-day winners and should begin to give the top of the standings a clearer shape.
Stamatiou Rodolfos Kechagioglou Athanasios 1-0
The game began in the Hromádka System of the Benoni Defense. Stamatiou made his intentions clear early with f5, Rf3-Rh3 and Nh5, directing almost all his forces towards the black king.
The critical position arose after 16.Qg4. Black could still organise the defence with 16...Qd8. Instead, 16...f6? permanently weakened the dark squares. The king's escape routes narrowed and the defence began to fall apart.
Stamatiou continued with Qh4, Nf4 and Ne6. The move 20.Nxg7! opened the lines around the king and, after 21...Rgg8?, the game ended in a forced mating sequence:
22.Bf8 Rg7 23.Bxg7+ Kxg7 24.Qxh7+ Kf8 25.Qh8+ Kf7 26.Rh7#
It was a model attacking game, built around a clear plan and finished with precision.
Zhao Yunqing Kiourtzis Alkiviadis Tsampikos 1-0
WIM Yunqing Zhao faced the Marshall Variation of the Scandinavian Defense and gained space in the centre. The balance shifted several times before 19...Rd7? allowed the strong 20.d5. From that point, White's central pawns began to advance with real force.
Zhao won material with 23.Rxd7 and 24.Qxb7. The c-pawn then moved from c5 to c6, reached d7 and completed its journey with promotion:
28.Qd6+ Qe7 29.cxd7 Qxd6? 30.dxc8=Q+
The promotion gave White a second queen and decided a game shaped by one unstoppable passed pawn.
Other games that stood out
- Zeng Chongsheng – Kastanis Konstantinos 1-0: Kastanis remained competitive until
25...Kf6?. The reply26.Rxd6+left Zeng material ahead in a winning endgame. - Lamprianou Marianna – Wan Yunguo 0-1: In the Sicilian Four Knights,
16.Na2?left White facing serious tactical problems. Wan immediately opened the centre with16...d5and gave his opponent no time to recover. - Akkaya Seyyid Mansur – Gkoutzouki Aikaterini Argyro 0-1: Gkoutzouki took control early. The move
32...R1e3?briefly gave White counterplay, but she regained the initiative and delivered checkmate on move 58. - Chasapis Dimitrios K. – Nikitakis Ioannis 0-1: The move
13.g4?left the white king exposed. Nikitakis reacted at once and carried the attack through to a forced checkmate. - Spyrou Antonios – Cheiropoulos Alexandros 1-0: The move
14...Nxf6?opened lines towards the black king. Spyrou brought his queen and pieces into the attack and won in 31 moves.