John Nunn, at the age of 70, claimed victory in the 2026 Winton British Chess Solving Championship held at Harrow School. He edged out defending champion David Hodge by a slim margin in the six-round event featuring various chess problems. The win adds to Nunn's extensive record in chess solving.
The Winton British Chess Solving Championship took place on February 21, 2026, at Harrow School. This annual competition challenges participants with six rounds of diverse chess problems, including two-movers, three-movers, more-movers, helpmates, selfmates, and endgame studies. Solvers must determine the correct moves and record their answers, earning points based on the completeness of their solutions.
John Nunn secured the title with a narrow lead over David Hodge, who had won the event in 2023, 2024, and 2025. Hodge came close to catching up on the final problem but ran out of time while finalizing his answer. Nunn's triumph at age 70 highlights his enduring skill in the field. He previously held the World Chess Solving Champion title in 2004, 2007, and 2010, alongside numerous over-the-board and solving achievements.
An Open event ran concurrently, with participants tackling the same problems; Joost Michielsen from the Netherlands took first place there. The Minor event offered slightly easier puzzles and included separate prizes for British and overseas solvers. The British Minor category went to Maksym Kryshtafor, the youngest competitor across all events and a junior solver.
Winton, a quantitative investment management firm, sponsored the competitions. Full results and problems for the Championship are available at https://solving.wfcc.ch/wsc/2025-2026/info.html, while Minor event details are at https://solving.wfcc.ch/tourneys/2026/other-rst-2026.html. For more information, contact Ian Watson at ian@irwatson.uk.
