Nodirbek Abdusattorov claimed the outright lead at the Prague International Chess Festival Masters 2026 by defeating David Navara in round eight, while prior leader Jorden van Foreest fell to Aravindh Chithambaram. Hans Niemann notched his first win against David Anton amid a tough tournament. With one round left, Abdusattorov leads on 5.5/8, setting up an exciting finale on March 6.
The eighth and penultimate round of the Prague Masters, held at the Don Giovanni Hotel in Prague, produced thrilling results that reshaped the leaderboard ahead of the final round.
Playing white against home favorite David Navara, Uzbekistan's Nodirbek Abdusattorov pressed in a rook and minor piece endgame. Navara's 53.g4? blundered into a pinned bishop on c2, allowing Abdusattorov to win the piece, convert, and cross 2780 on the live ratings list. Abdusattorov now leads solo with 5.5 points.
Dutch GM Jorden van Foreest, previously in the lead, overextended in his middlegame against India's Aravindh Chithambaram, who trapped his uncoordinated pieces for a decisive win (existing details note a move-60 Rf5 endgame blunder winning the knight). Van Foreest sits second on 5 points, with Navara third at 4.5.
US GM Hans Niemann ended a frustrating run—five draws and losses despite strong positions—with a victory over Spain's David Anton. The critical 34.g4 turned the game, which Niemann called a 'turning point.' He described the event as 'probably the worst of my life,' lamenting 'so many missed chances, it’s so ridiculous!'
Other Masters games were drawn: world champion D. Gukesh vs. Vincent Keymer featured an intense Ruy Lopez Marshall where Keymer played ambitious 14...a3!? but held after time pressure, noting, 'You need a file! It’s the typical position that if I had checked it for five minutes I would have made a very easy draw.' Parham Maghsoodloo pressed Nodirbek Yakubboev but couldn't break through. Full standings: Abdusattorov 5.5, van Foreest 5, Navara 4.5, Aravindh/Keymer/Maghsoodloo 4, Yakubboev/Niemann/Anton 3.5, Gukesh 2.5.
In the Challengers, Czech IM Vaclav Finek held his half-point lead at 5.5 despite pressure from Surya Ganguly (a draw). Daniil Yuffa and Benjamin Gledura won to close the gap; Yuffa, snapping a poor streak, said, 'I didn’t expect to win a second consecutive game because I don’t have any faith in myself.'
The final round begins March 6 at 5:15 a.m. ET (11 a.m. local): Abdusattorov (w) vs. Niemann, van Foreest (b) vs. Maghsoodloo, Navara (b) vs. Aravindh.
