Uzbek Chess Stars Nominated for Top FIDE Awards Alongside Carlsen
The International Chess Federation (FIDE) has nominated grandmasters Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Javokhir Sindarov for the Best Player title at the inaugural FIDE Excellence Awards. The Uzbek duo will compete against world number one Magnus Carlsen and a shortlist of top global contenders.
The highly competitive category also features Fabiano Caruana, Arjun Erigaisi, Alireza Firouzja, Anish Giri, Gukesh Dommaraju, Vincent Keymer and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu.
Sindarov secured a second individual nomination in the Breakthrough of the Year category. His competitors include emerging talents such as Dommaraju, Keymer, Volodar Murzin, Divya Deshmukh, Faustino Oro, Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, Anastasia Hnatyshyn, Andy Woodward and Zhu Jiner.
Uzbekistan’s recent dominance in the sport extends across multiple categories. The national squad is shortlisted for Best Team while the Uzbekistan Chess Federation is a finalist for Best Federation. Furthermore, the UzChess Cup earned a nomination for Best Round-Robin Tournament, placing it alongside elite global events like Norway Chess, the Tata Steel Chess Tournament and the Sinquefield Cup.
FIDE launched the biennial Excellence Awards in 2026 to recognise achievements spanning from September 2024 to August 2026. A special commission will select the winners. The awards ceremony will take place this September in Samarkand, coinciding with the city hosting the 46th Chess Olympiad.
Both Uzbek players currently boast impressive international standings. In the June FIDE ratings, Sindarov and Abdusattorov ranked fourth and fifth respectively. Each holds 2777 points, trailing Carlsen who leads the table with 2841 points.
The national team recently demonstrated its strength by claiming bronze at the FIDE World Blitz Team Championship in June. They defeated the Hexamind Chess Team in the third-place playoff to secure a 30,000-euro prize.
