Chess: British players win Isle of Wight Masters as Scots achieve rare double

"Last weekend GM Matthew Wadsworth emerged first on tie-break ahead of IM Tobias Koelle (Germany) and GM Matthew Turner (Scotland) after the trio all scored 7/9. Wadsworth also won in 2025. Round seven proved a decisive moment as Wadsworth defeated GM Thomas Beerdsen (Netherlands) in a picturesque finale of queens, rooks, and a promoted pawn, Koelle won against England's youngest GM, Shreyas Royal, while Turner upset the top seed, GM Gawain Jones."

"Can the good form of Wadsworth and Royal, who won the elite Zagreb tournament in November, earn either or both of them selection for the five-man England team for the Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, in September? England's current team is ageing. Michael Adams is in his 50s, Luke McShane in his 40s, David Howell and Jones in their middle or late 30s, although Howell did win the individual gold in 2022."

"Freddy Waldhausen Gordon, 15, probably Scotland's best ever junior talent, completed his qualification for the IM title by scoring 6/9 in the Graz Open. He even had a chance for his first GM norm in the final round, but lost to Poland's GM Bartosz Socko. One of Waldhausen Gordon's previous IM norms was achieved in the 2025 European Team Championship, where he scored 50% as No 1 and five times prevented Scotland from being whitewashed."

The Isle of Wight Masters at Ryde school has rapidly established itself as a premier British chess tournament, attracting strong international competition through its scenic location and excellent organization. GM Matthew Wadsworth won the recent event on tie-break with a 7/9 score, alongside IM Tobias Koelle and GM Matthew Turner. Round seven proved decisive, with Wadsworth defeating GM Thomas Beerdsen, Koelle beating Shreyas Royal, and Turner upsetting top seed GM Gawain Jones. Wadsworth's victory raises questions about England's Olympiad team selection for Samarkand, given the aging composition of the current squad. Additionally, 15-year-old Scottish prodigy Freddy Waldhausen Gordon completed his IM qualification with a 6/9 score in Austria, demonstrating exceptional junior talent.

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