Although it is more than a year until the Sel Hotel Mývatn Open chess tournament takes place in Skjólbrekka in the Mývatn region of Iceland, the planning of the tournament has long begun. Sel Hotel will be the main sponsor of the tournament and the tournament is therefore named after it. We are expecting considerably more players than at the Goðinn anniversary tournament and we are currently negotiating with Sel Hotel and the Guesthouse in Skútustaðir about accommodation packages for the prospective players.
One of the important aspects of preparing for such a tournament is getting strong foreign players to participate. There is already a good chance that GM Simon Williams from England (2426), Women’s GM Keti Tsatsalashvili (2305) from Georgia and Łukasz Turlej (2105) from Poland will participate in the tournament.
Formal registration for the tournament has not yet begun, but the tournament has been promoted both abroad and domestically, and it can be said that the response has been very positive.
The tournament will be held in the same manner as the anniversary tournament in March 2025. 6 rounds will be played and two half a point byes will be allowed in the tournament.
The new feature will be that if the number of players exceeds 64, the tournament will be divided into two strength groups, 2000 elo and over and under 2000 elo. This is because it is not recommended to have more players than 64 in a 6-round tournament, and therefore the tournament will be divided into two groups if 65 players or more want to participate in the tournament. However, title holders with 1900 to 1999 elo points will be given the opportunity to choose between groups. The FIDE chess ranking list will be used as of November 1, 2026
The aim is to have all chess matches in all rounds broadcast live online, just like in the Anniversary Tournament.
Preparations are underway to have a bus trip from BSÍ in Reykjavík to Skjólbrekka early on Thursday and then back after the tournament on Sunday, to facilitate the participation of chess players from the Reykjavík capital area.
The organization of the tournament is well underway and it can be expected that registrations will be opened in the spring of 2026.
For further information about the tournament, please contact Hermann Aðalsteinsson at tel. 8213187. You can also send an email to lyngbrekku@simnet.is
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