India retain Nona Gaprindashvili Trophy at Chess Olympiad

India defended the prestigious Nona Gaprindashvili Trophy at the 46th Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, finishing as the best overall nation after picking up a silver in the Open section and a bronze in the Women’s event. The Indian men played out a draw with Hungary and settled for the silver medal on a tie-break, while the women drew with Georgia to bring home the bronze in the Chess Olympiad that concluded Sunday.This marks the third straight edition where India have won the trophy, having claimed it on home turf in 2022, during their historic double-gold campaign in Budapest in 2024, including the latest in Samarkand. Five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand presented the trophy to India for the best combined result across the Open and Women’s sections.

India win the Nona Gaprindashvili Trophy!

Five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand presented the trophy to India for the best combined result across the Open and Women’s sections. #ChessOlympiad pic.twitter.com/MGvZQB83lz

— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) September 27, 2026

The Indian men ended up with 18 points and were tied for the second spot with Germany that defeated Holland. However, thanks to a better tie-break score, the Indian team ended with silver, while Germany had to be content with the bronze. In the women’s section, China annexed the gold with another fine performance against Vietnam, winning by a 3-1 margin. The Chinese team also ended with 20 points in all, a couple of points more than second-placed Kazakhstan.

The Alchemy of Indian Chess…

In chemistry, Silver is a true noble metal, and Bronze is an alloy forged by bringing elements together.

Honestly, what a fitting metaphor for how our teams played.

Open Team - Silver
Women’s Team - Bronze

Backing up a double-gold performance… pic.twitter.com/XP8A88iBWj

— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) September 27, 2026

The Uzbekistan team regained the gold medal in the open section after winning the final round game against Ukraine by a 2,5-1.5 points. The Uzbeks ended with 20 points out of a possible 22, winning as many as 10 rounds and losing a lone match against Germany.