British Grandmaster Heads to Antarctica — One Win Away From a Unique Record

^{Nigel Short, English chess grandmaster and former World Championship challenger (1993)}

British grandmaster Nigel Short will attempt an unusual feat at the age of 61 — becoming the first chess player to win tournaments on all seven continents, The Guardian reports.

In January 2027, Short will travel to Antarctica for the first FIDE-rated chess tournament ever held on the continent.

The final games are scheduled to take place at the geographic South Pole. Six players will compete, with one representative from each inhabited continent. No Russian players are among the participants.

Short has already won tournaments on six continents, leaving Antarctica as the only one where he has yet to claim a victory.

The Briton currently serves as FIDE’s Director for Chess Development. He has a rating of 2594 in the federation’s September rankings.

Getting to the tournament will be an expedition in itself. The players will first travel from Cape Town, South Africa, to the Antarctic interior before flying to the South Pole aboard a small aircraft designed for polar expeditions.

The event is being funded by private sponsors whose names have not been disclosed. It has already faced criticism over the number of long-distance flights involved and the resulting carbon emissions. Critics have also argued that the field is too weak for Short, suggesting he could beat the other participants even in a simultaneous exhibition.