Τheodoros Tsorbatzoglou

Secretary General European Chess Union - Master of Engineering

[European Chess Union @ECUonline]

A special birthday surprise in the live studio of the European Women’s Chess Championship 2026 for our wonderful host, WIM Sandra Djukic! 🥳

Dear Sandra, thank you for bringing such great energy to the championship. We wish you a very happy birthday and many happy returns! 🎂🎉

[ECU 2030 @ecu2030]

The Montenegro Chess Federation has officially signed its Statement of Support for the ECU 2030 team and ECU President Zurab Azmaiparashvili.

Signed today in Podgorica by Jovan Milovic, President of the Montenegro Chess Federation, the statement reflects the trust built through years of genuine partnership — joint initiatives, educational outreach, and the proud inclusion of Montenegrin players and officials in European chess events.

"A united, inclusive, and forward-looking European chess community is not just an ambition — it is already being built, federation by federation, player by player." — Montenegro Chess Federation

Federation by federation. The movement grows.
#ECU2030 #MontenegroChess #EuropeanChess #SupportECU2030

[European Chess Union @ECUonline]

IM Sabrina Vega Gutierrez 🇪🇸 wins against IM Meri Arabidze 🇬🇪 and emerges as the sole leader of the European Women’s Chess Championship 2026! #chess #ewcc2026 ♟️

Sabrina Vega scores impressive 7/8 points and now holds a half-point lead over IM Eline Roebers 🇳🇱 and WFM Anastasiia Hnatyshyn 🇺🇦, who are on 6.5/8 points (each).

[European Chess Union @ECUonline]

European Senior Chess Championship 2026 starts today in Acqui Terme, Italy!♟️🏆 #chess #escc2026 @federscacchi

The event is played in two age categories: 50+ and 65+, Open and Women’s sections separately, gathering nearly 250 players coming from 34 European federations, including some of the sport’s most legendary names!

The technical meeting of the event took place today with the ECU Vice President Jean-Michel Rapaire, Chief Arbiter Takis Nikolopoulos, Tournament Director Pernici Rigo Cristina, organisation committee representative Cordara Michele, Deputy Chief Arbiter Cimina Andra, addressing the distinguished guests and players, introducing the tournament rules and system of play.

♟️Pairings for the first round have been published and can be found here: https://t.co/Ts0X9AHxkW
🔗Tournament preview: https://t.co/8CVMiWrZiX

[European Chess Union @ECUonline]

After seven played rounds at the European Women's Chess Championship 2026, three players tie for the top with the score of 6/7 points each: IM Meri Arabidze 🇬🇪, IM Sabrina Vega Gutierrez 🇪🇸, and WFM Anastasiia Hnatyshyn 🇺🇦! #chess #ewcc2026

The 8th round starts in about two hours and brings interesting encounters on the top boards! The top board pairings are:
♟️IM Sabrina Vega Gutierrez 🇪🇸 Vs. IM Meri Arabidze 🇬🇪
♟️WFM Anastasiia Hnatyshyn 🇺🇦 Vs. IM Olga Badelka 🇦🇹
♟️GM Anna Ushenina 🇺🇦 Vs. IM Laura Unuk 🇸🇮
♟️IM Eline Roebers 🇳🇱 Vs. FM Alexandra Zherebtsova 🇲🇪
♟️GM Monika Socko 🇵🇱 Vs. IM Ulviyya Fataliyeva 🇦🇿

🔗All pairings, rankings and results can be found here: https://t.co/Yt7y8eeB2u

📽️Live video broadcast of the games with commentaries by GM Valerian Gaprindashvili and WIM Sandra Djukic can be followed through the ECU YouTube channel: https://t.co/F3a1EvNiXu

[European Chess Union @ECUonline]

IM Meri Arabidze 🇬🇪 defeats 15-year-old WFM Anastasiia Hnatyshyn 🇺🇦 to stop the Ukrainian rising star's perfect run at the European Women's Chess Championship 2026! ♟️ #chess #ewcc2026

With today's Round 7 victory, 2023 European Champion IM Meri Arabidze caught Hnatyshyn at the top. The race for the crown remains open as we head into the next round with three co-leaders tied on 6/7 points each: Meri Arabidze 🇬🇪, Sabrina Vega Gutierrez 🇪🇸, and Anastasiia Hnatyshyn 🇺🇦!

[ECU 2030 @ecu2030]

Happy New Month! Wishing you a June full of new opportunities and good news!

Zurab Azmaiparashvili, joined by the ECU 2030 team members Lasse Ostebo Lovik and Prabitha Urwiler, visited Norway Chess – one of the world’s most prestigious and elite chess tournaments.

The main items in the meetings agenda were the cooperation between European elite tournaments, the European Super League, and expanding social and educational chess initiatives across Europe.
Read more: https://t.co/N8k0EXPEKf

Photos @ Norway Chess/ Michal Walusza & Prabitha Urwiler

[ECU 2030 @ecu2030]

Zurab and team in @NorwayChess

[Τheodoros Tsorbatzoglou @teotsorb]

Today's example from a Greek sports newspaper features two main front-page articles related to chess: one about the Champions League final and another about the Greek Prime Minister and an Olympiacos gift. Chess is gaining an audience among the most popular sports, and we are ready for the next step. With the support of the Super Foundation, which has many key contacts in this field, we will develop a special programme to reposition and enhance chess in the sports market. Stay tuned...

[European Chess Union @ECUonline]

High Stakes, Focus, Tensions & Great Chess ♟️ | EWCC 2026 – Round 5 Highlights #chess #ewcc2026

📹 https://t.co/u0v4Lc5tVk

[ECU 2030 @ecu2030]

ECU 2030 — Seniors Chess Strategy (2026–2030):

Today we published our Seniors Chess program, focused on recognition, prestige, and inclusion—with clear commitments and measurable outcomes.

Key points:

✅€16,000 additional prize fund secured for the European Senior Individual & Team Championships from 2026.

✅ New flagship event: European Senior Rapid & Blitz Championship 2027 (Monaco) with a €30,000+ prize fund already secured through new agreed sponsorship. Stronger partnerships dedicated to senior chess, with deliverables that directly improve prize funds and event quality.

🔵 More inclusion through social chess, including family & intergenerational formats. Support for healthy ageing & wellbeing initiatives linked to chess.

Read more here:
https://t.co/HDjkmyW0T2

[chess24 @chess24com]

We had a shock 17-year-old Ukrainian winner of the European Championship — now 15-year-old Anastasiia Hnatyshyn from Ukraine is the only player to reach a perfect 5/5 in the European Women's Championship! https://t.co/kOCgNKjbh1

[David Llada ♞ @davidllada]

Gukesh turns 20 today. What an incredible career he has had so far. To think that the best part is probably still ahead!

Happy birthday, young man! @DGukesh 🎂

[Τheodoros Tsorbatzoglou @teotsorb]

The promotion of #chess in Greece continues at the highest level. Euroleague's 2026 champions, #Olympiacos, visited the Prime Minister's Office today.
The gifts presented to Kyriakos Mitsotakis by Olympiacos were a ball signed by players, the club's flag, and, of course, a chess set.

Time to assist all the #Chess Olympiad to return to #Thessaloniki and let Bartzokas and Giannis Adetokunbo (also chess fan) make the first move!
@FIDE_chess @ChessTopics @chessdom @ChessBase

[NEWS 24/7 @News247gr]

🏀 Στο Μέγαρο Μαξίμου οι πρωταθλητές Ευρώπης

#Ολυμπιακος #Euroleague

[European Chess Union @ECUonline]

The fourth round of the European Women’s Chess Championship 2026 was played today in Batumi, Georgia, leaving only two players with a perfect score of 4/4 points! ♟️ #chess #ewcc2026

WGM Elmira Mirzoeva 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿(2265), the 53rd seed, and 15-year-old WFM Anastasiia Hnatyshyn 🇺🇦 (2207), the 76th seed, emerged as the tournament’s surprising co-leaders.

✨15-year-old WFM Anastasiia Hnatyshyn 🇺🇦 (2207) today scored her third huge upset in a row, defeating IM Mai Narva 🇪🇪 (2426), to keep a perfect 4/4 score!

✨WGM Elmira Mirzoeva 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿(2265) scored against FM Anna-Maja Kazarian 🇳🇱 (2317) after a complex game filled with turnovers, joining Hnatyshyn at the top.

The leading duo is closely followed by four players who score 3.5/4 points each: IM Oliwia Kiolbasa 🇵🇱 (2397), WIM Gulenay Aydin 🇹🇷 (2204), IM Nurgyul Salimova 🇧🇬 (2404) and IM Gunay Mammadzada 🇦🇿 (2374).

🔗Round 4 recap: https://t.co/hjjqrY0C1N

[gazzetta.gr @gazzetta_gr]

🔴♟️ Οι φίλαθλοι των ερυθρόλευκων ζουν τη ευκαιρία να παίξουν… σκάκι στην Fun Fan Zone του ΣΕΦ ενόψει της αναμέτρησης με την ΑΕΚ!

#OlympiacosBC

[Τheodoros Tsorbatzoglou @teotsorb]

𝑶𝒍𝒚𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒂𝒄𝒐𝒔 𝑩.𝑪. 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑮𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒌 𝑪𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒇𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒊𝒏𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚 𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒔..

The winners of the Euroleague 2026, #Olympiacos, in their first post-match after the Euroleague final, the Greek Basketball League semi-final against AEK BC, invite all their fans to play chess in the pre-match fun zone. This is a joint initiative with the Greek Chess Federation and Piraeus chess clubs.

[Olympiacos B.C. @Olympiacos_BC]

Η Fun Fan Zone του ΣΕΦ υποδέχεται το σκάκι πριν το ΟΛΥΜΠΙΑΚΟΣ – AEK.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες ⬇️

#OlympiacosBC #WeAreOlympiacos #TogetherWeFight
https://t.co/GK18tvjWzo

[2700chess @2700chess]

Back in the Top 10! 🇫🇷 Alireza Firouzja is showing incredible form at Norway Chess 2026. Shaking off his struggles in Romania, he secured his second win in a row by defeating Praggnanandhaa, solidifying his position as the sole leader https://t.co/MKO2dzWJ6k

📸 Michal Walusza / @NorwayChess

[European Chess Union @ECUonline]

FM Anna-Maja Kazarian 🇳🇱 joins us in the studio at the European Women’s Chess Championship 2026! #chess #ewcc2026

The well-known streamer and commentator is taking on the role of a player this time! And it’s been a very strong start for Anna-Maja @AMKazarian , who today defeated WGM Michalina Rudzinska and scores perfect 3/3 points! 👏

➡️ Tune into the ECU YouTube channel and follow the interview live: https://t.co/4jmmy4jXpW

[ECU 2030 @ecu2030]

What we have added already in women competitions:

A stable flagship: the European Women’s Rapid & Blitz Championship (annual in Monte Carlo), strengthening visibility and top-level competition with 45.000+ Prize fund.

What we are adding in 2028:
A new elite pathway: developing the European Women’s Chess Super League, creating an additional high-standard competition with a strong prize fund and minimum 300,000 euros budget.