49th World Chess Solving Championship

A total of 99 solvers (plus 6 additional unofficial participants) competed in the WCSC, significantly surpassing the previous record for participants at a world championship (90 solvers in Bern and Vilnius). At the same time, 20 teams were in the competition.
Especially on the first day, the problems selected by Paz Einat were far too easy, resulting in 20 solvers having a perfect score at the halfway point. Four teams, including the German team with by far the best time, have full points. 
On the second day, the problems became significantly more difficult, allowing the best solvers to come out on top in the individual competition. In addition to the S#5, the most difficult problems were an H#3 original by Christopher Jones and a #4 by Samuel Loyd from 1885. In the end, Danila Pavlov (who has been ranked number one in the world for more than three years) was the only competitor to score 90 points, finishing ahead of Piotr Murdzia (86) and Arno Zude (84). As in the previous year, Arno once again made it onto the podium and was crowned Senior World Champion. The team competition was more exciting. The German team (Zude, Voigt, and Tummes), which had fallen behind Poland after the H# round, managed to even the score in the moremover round. The teams entered the final S# round tied on points. Mirko Degenkolbe’s original S#5 move proved decisive. Both teams lost the same number of points, so the German team was able to celebrate the victory on the basis of a better time despite the tie in points. Twenty-four years after their last victory in Portorož in 2002, Germany secured its eighth overall team title at the WCSC. Poland (last year’s champion by a record margin) missed out on the title—just as it did two years ago when the British team won—due to a slower time. Lithuania finished third, ahead of Ukraine, Serbia, and Finland.
Ekaterina Shestakova, 22 (competing under FIDE), secured the Women’s World Championship title, became the first woman to earn the WIM title, and will take the top spot in the women’s section of the new world rankings.  Ural Khasanov (FIDE) became the Junior World Champion, ahead of Shestakova and Taras Rudenko (Ukraine), who earned the IM title with this success. More new title holders are now Tomas Peitl (SVK) and Bilguun Sumiya (MGL) – both GM, Anton Nasyrov, Stamatis Kourkoulos-Arditis (GRE) and Joost Michielsen (NED) – all FM.