Biel Chess Festival 2025 - Challengers Blitz
6 players participated in this 10-round tournament, held on 20 Jul 2025 in Biel, Switzerland. 6 titled players from 6 federations. Top 10 Elo average was 2580, and top seed was David Navara (🇨🇿 CZE, GM, 2646).
Aram Hakobyan (🇦🇲 ARM, GM, 2557) won with 7.0/10, ahead of Nikolas Theodorou (6.0) and Daniel Dardha (5.0). Hakobyan took the lead from round 6.
The biggest upset came in round 5: Rinat Jumabayev (GM, 2520) beat David Navara (GM, 2646), a +126-point gap.
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How it unfolded
Top 6 · 10 roundsGM Aram Hakobyan led from R6 onwards, the runner-up race stayed tight.
GM Daniel Dardha takes the sole lead (3.0/4).
GM Aram Hakobyan opens a +1.5-point gap over the chasing pack (closest: GM Daniel Dardha); the title is out of reach before R10.
GM Aram Hakobyan 1.0–1.0 against GM Nikolas Theodorou (R5 1-0, R10 0-1) — decisive in 2/2.
Cross-table
| # | Player | Elo | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | Pts | SB | Bh | Δ Elo | Perf |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇦🇲GMHakobyan, Aram | 2557 | * | 01 | 10 | 11 | ½1 | 1½ | 7.0 | 31.50 | 46.0 | +23.6 | 2732 |
| 2 | 🇬🇷GMTheodorou, Nikolas | 2549 | 01 | * | 10 | 10 | ½1 | ½1 | 6.0 | 27.50 | 48.0 | +15.0 | 2657 |
| 3 | 🇧🇪GMDardha, Daniel | 2592 | 10 | 10 | * | ½0 | 01 | 1½ | 5.0 | 24.00 | 50.0 | -1.8 | 2577 |
| 4 | 🇨🇿GMNavara, David | 2646 | 00 | 10 | 1½ | * | 11 | ½0 | 5.0 | 23.00 | 50.0 | -10.8 | 2566 |
| 5 | 🇨🇳GMMa, Qun | 2614 | 0½ | 0½ | 01 | 00 | * | 11 | 4.0 | 17.50 | 52.0 | -15.8 | 2500 |
| 6 | 🇰🇿GMJumabayev, Rinat | 2520 | ½0 | 0½ | ½0 | 1½ | 00 | * | 3.0 | 16.50 | 54.0 | -10.2 | 2441 |
Key insights
Biggest movers and upsets — the story behind the numbers.
- 1Hakobyan, AramGMARM+23.67.0 pts · #1
- 2Theodorou, NikolasGMGRE+15.06.0 pts · #2
- 3Dardha, DanielGMBEL-1.85.0 pts · #3
- 1Ma, QunGMCHN-15.84.0 pts · #5
- 2Navara, DavidGMCZE-10.85.0 pts · #4
- 3Jumabayev, RinatGMKAZ-10.23.0 pts · #6
- R5+126 Elo gap