3 days Ago By Firstpost
The upcoming Paris leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour 2025 is set to feature a strong Indian presence, with D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, and R Praggnanandhaa officially confirmed to participate in the prestigious event. This tournament, scheduled for April, marks the second leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour after the recent Weissenhaus leg. Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa, and Erigaisi confirm participation at the Paris Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour Arjun Erigaisi’s participation had already been confirmed through an official social media post by Freestyle Chess.
However, there had been no prior official announcement regarding D Gukesh and R Praggnanandhaa’s involvement. Speaking to Hindustan Times , Freestyle Chess has now confirmed that India’s top three Grandmasters will be competing in the Paris leg. Gukesh, who participated in the first leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam at Weissenhaus, Germany, had a difficult outing, finishing eighth out of 10 players courtesy of zero wins.
The Weissenhaus event was won by German GM Vincent Keymer, who defeated Fabiano Caruana in the final. Meanwhile, Magnus Carlsen , who was the favourite to win the title, fell to Keymer in the semi-finals and had to settle for third place. Following the Paris Grand Slam, the Freestyle Chess Tour will continue with three more events in New York (17-24 July), New Delhi (17-24 September), and Cape Town (5-12 December).
With India hosting one of the upcoming legs, the participation of Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa, and Erigaisi in Paris could serve as valuable preparation for their home tournament later in the year..
