CHESS ELEVATION SERIES 2026 (Level 3)
Open SwissStandard
13 players participated in this 5-round tournament, held from 23 Jan 2026 to 24 Jan 2026 in Cape Town, South Africa. Top 10 Elo average was 291, and top seed was Brian Shelton (🇿🇦 RSA, 1470).
Sphamandla Thal Siwela (🇿🇦 RSA, 0) won with 4.5/5, ahead of Brian Shelton (4.0). Siwela clinched sole first place in the final round.
Location
🇿🇦Cape Town, South Africa
Dates
23 Jan 2026 → 24 Jan 2026
Time control
Standard: All Moves in 60 Min. Incr. 10 Sec. / /
System
Swiss · 5 rounds
Federations · 1 represented
🇿🇦South Africa×6
Top 3
- 🥇
- 🥈
- 🥉
How it unfolded
Top 6 · 5 roundsSphamandla Thal Siwela led from R5; +0.5-point edge over the runner-up.
Co-leaders
10
5
1
1
1
R5 · LEADER CHANGE24 Jan
Sphamandla Thal Siwela takes the sole lead (4.5/5).
WIN STREAKS · 2 top finishers
FIDE 534011773 4 wins (R1–R5)Brian Shelton 4 wins (R1–R4)
Key matchups · top 4
Head-to-head between the four finishers| Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sphamandla Thal Siwela | * | — | 1 | ½ |
| 2FIDE 534011773 | — | * | — | — |
| 3Brian Shelton | 0 | — | * | 1 |
| 4Asanda Vengeni | ½ | — | 0 | * |
Grille américaine
| # | Player | Elo | Fed | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | Pts | Bu C1 | Bu | SB | Perf | Δ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Siwela, Sphamandla Thal | 0 | RSA | +?B | +?N | =4B | +6N | +2N | 4.5 | 10.5 | 10.5 | 8.75 | 1490 | 0.0 |
| 2 | Shelton, Brian | 1470 | RSA | +12B | +7N | +6B | +4N | −1B | 4.0 | 14.0 | 14.5 | 10.00 | 2239 | +18.4 |
| 3 | FIDE 534011773 | 0 | — | +10N | F | +?B | +?N | +8B | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.00 | 1458 | 0.0 |
| 4 | Vengeni, Asanda | 0 | RSA | +?B | +12N | =1N | −2B | +?N | 3.5 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 2.75 | 1454 | 0.0 |
| 5 | FIDE 534034048 | 0 | — | +?N | −6B | +?B | =7N | +?B | 3.5 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 1.50 | 1439 | 0.0 |
| 6 | Smit, Rikis | 0 | RSA | +?B | +5N | −2N | −1B | +11B | 3.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | 4.50 | 670 | 0.0 |
| 7 | Woolf, Jessika | 1438 | RSA | +13N | −2B | +11N | =5B | =9N | 3.0 | 11.5 | 11.5 | 4.25 | 670 | -18.4 |
| 8 | Muller, Helgard | 0 | RSA | +?B | +?N | −?B | +?N | −3N | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 0.00 | 638 | 0.0 |
| 9 | FIDE 123105454 | 0 | — | −?B | +?N | =?B | +?N | =7B | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 1.50 | 1439 | 0.0 |
| 10 | FIDE 534040102 | 0 | — | −3B | −?N | +12B | +13N | −?B | 2.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 0.50 | 638 | 0.0 |
| 11 | FIDE 14393174 | 0 | — | −?N | F | −7B | +?B | −6N | 1.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 0.00 | 639 | 0.0 |
| 12 | FIDE 534040072 | 0 | — | −2N | −4B | −10N | =?B | −?B | 0.5 | 9.5 | 9.5 | 0.00 | 670 | 0.0 |
| 13 | FIDE 534040056 | 0 | — | −7B | −?N | −?B | −10B | F | 0.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 0.00 | 639 | 0.0 |
Key insights
Biggest movers and upsets — the story behind the numbers.
Top rating gainers
- 1Shelton, BrianRSA+18.44.0 pts · #2
- 2FIDE 143931740.01.0 pts · #7
- 3Muller, HelgardRSA0.03.0 pts · #9
Top rating losers
- 1Woolf, JessikaRSA-18.43.0 pts · #8
- 2FIDE 143931740.01.0 pts · #7
- 3Muller, HelgardRSA0.03.0 pts · #9