59th Biel Chess Festival 2026: Levon Aronian Wins Masters, Finek Vaclav Triumphs in Generations Challenge

by Devansh Singh - 24/07/2026

The 59th edition of the legendary Biel International Chess Festival in Switzerland has come to a close. Levon Aronian drew his final game against Suleymanli to win the Masters Triathlon. Aydin Suleymanli finished second, ahead of Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus and Le Quang Liem. Finek Vaclav shines in the Generational Challenge; he took the tournament lead on Day 1 in the Rapid phase and never looked back. Xiao Tong and Marco Materia finish in second and third place, respectively. Photo: Biel Chess Festival

GMT-Masters Triathlon: Aronian Holds Firm to Claim Title

Heading into the 7th and final classical round, Aronian held a 4-point lead over his closest pursuer, Aydin Suleymanli. A win with the Black pieces against Aronian would have brought Suleymanli level on points and given him the overall title via the ACCENTUS Chess960 tiebreaker. Suleymanli pressed for active chances, but Aronian demonstrated error-free defensive technique, forcing a draw by repetition of moves to seal overall victory.

Champion!!

Aronian’s Triumph in Numbers:

Rapid: 9 / 10 points
Blitz: 8½ / 10 points
Classical: 8 draws in 8 games (Undefeated)
Total Score: 29½ points

GM Levon Aronian joins Angelika Valkova and GM Arturs Neiksans after being crowned Masters Champion at the 59th Biel International Chess Festival.

A draw against Suleymanli in the final round helped him win the title

Battle for the Podium:

On the adjacent board, Le Quang Liem and 15-year-old Turkish prodigy Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus fought fiercely for second place. However, Erdogmus held his composure under extreme time pressure and forced a draw by repetition.

Le Quang Liem vs. Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus (0.5-0.5)

Tied on overall points, Erdogmus secured 3rd place on the podium over Le courtesy of a superior ACCENTUS Chess960 rating score.

Top 3 finishers (L to R): 2nd Aydin Suleymanli, 1st Levon Aronian and 3rd Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus

Final Standings

Final Round Games

Generations Challenge: 16-Year-Old IM Vaclav Finek Dominates

In the Generations Challenge Triathlon, 16-year-old Czech sensation IM Vaclav Finek completed a start-to-finish victory. Finek took the tournament lead on Day 1 in the Rapid phase and never looked back. Entering the final round, Xiao Tong needed a win against Finek to snatch the title. Xiao pushed hard, but Finek held strong to secure a draw and take the championship.

Champion: Vaclav Finek

Finek’s dominance was underscored by top finishes in both Classical and Rapid chess, while finishing just ½ point behind Xiao in the Blitz section. Currently holding the International Master title, Finek's performance confirmed that his Grandmaster title is only a matter of time.

Vaclav drew against Xiao Tong

Top 3 finishers in Generational Challenge L to R: 2nd Xiao Tong, 1st Vaclav Finek and 3rd Marco Materia

Final Standings

Final Round Game

Masters Open Tournament (MTO)

The Masters Open saw 14-year-old German prodigy IM Christian Glöckler secure first place with a round to spare, earning his maiden Grandmaster norm in the process.

Champion MTO: IM Christian Glöckler (GER)

Top 3 in MTO

IM Christian Glöckler (GER)
IM Cao Qingfeng (CHN)
GM Adam Kozak (HUN)

Amateurs Open Tournament (ATO)

Dimitrios Alexakis (GRE)
WCM Abigail Zhou (USA)
WCM Ena Bangerter (SUI)

Biel Hospital Centre Total Chess (TRI)

Going into the final morning matches, FM Anuar Tureshbayev held a rare, perfect 100% win record across all Rapid, Blitz, and Classical encounters through four rounds, maintaining a 1½-point lead over GM Alexander Cherniaev.

📅 Closing Ceremony

The 59th Biel International Chess Festival officially wraps up today, Friday, July 24, 2026, with the official Award Ceremony at the Biel Congress Centre.

Media & Galleries: High-resolution photos from the event are available on the official Biel Chess Festival Flickr Collection.

Video Gallery: Here

Check out the interview with Gloeckler

Biel 2026 Recap

Live Stream

Masters and Generations Challenge - Final Stage Round 3

The Main Event: Masters Triathlon

The flagship Grandmasters Triathlon features a 6-player field balancing legendary experience with fearless youth.

Lineup

The Generations Challenge

The Challengers group also boasts a very interesting field - they will follow the same format as the Masters triathlon. The only Indian in the GMT this year is none other than the reigning FIDE Women's Candidates Winner and World Championship Challenger, R. Vaishali!

Lineup

Format

The Scoring System

Survival in the Triathlon requires mastering every speed. The points are weighted heavily to reward classical chess fightbacks:

Classical: Win = 4 points | Draw = 1½ points | Loss = 0 points
Rapid: Win = 2 points | Draw = 1 point | Loss = 0 points
Blitz: Win = 1 point | Draw = ½ point | Loss = 0 points

Schedule

Check out the schedule

Venue: Biel Congress Center (Kongresshaus)

Photo: Official Site

A Festival for the Masses

Biel isn't just for the world elite. It remains one of the premier chess holiday destinations because amateurs share the playing hall with Grandmasters.

Masters Open (MTO): A high-stakes, 10-round Swiss event for players rated 1900+ looking for international norms and title norms.
Amateur Open (ATO): A highly competitive 9-round Swiss for players under 2000 Elo, featuring a generous 5,000 CHF total prize fund.
One-Day Tournaments: For visitors looking for quick action, the schedule features the standalone Swiss Rapid Fischer Random (Chess960) Championship, a full-day Rapid Open, an intense Blitz Open, and a Chess Solving Competition.