European Champion Alexey Sarana got married on 4 October 2026. Serbia's No. 1 announced the news in a joint Instagram post with his wife, Elena Orshonova, who wrote: "Somehow, in this big world, I found my home in you. 04.10.2026". The photos show the couple at a civil ceremony - Sarana in a tuxedo with the ring box, his wife in a white gown with a bouquet - followed by pictures around the city. The chess world was quick to wish them, Anna Cramling among the first with "Congrats!!"
Meet Elena Orshonova
Elena is a chess player - not professional but quite strong with a rating of around 2000 FIDE. Quite strong in blitz! Speaking with ChessBase India Alexey shares, "My wife studied marketing and now she mostly helps me in everything. Partly like my manager. "
Sarana also shared the story behind a popular video of Elena beating Ian Nepomniachtchi. According to him, it was in a chess bar in Paris where many stars had gathered, and she also beat Nemo Zhou and Anna Cramling that day.
About Alexey Sarana
The 26-year-old Grandmaster is world No. 45 with 2671 on the October 2026 FIDE list and Serbia's top player. Born in Moscow, he left Russia in 2022 after speaking out against the invasion of Ukraine and switched to Serbia in 2023, the year he won the European Individual Championship. In 2026 he won Titled Tuesday twice and played the Esports World Cup main stage for Fnatic. The wedding comes weeks after he represented Serbia at the Chess Olympiad in Samarkand.
