Julius Baer – Play The Worlds Grandmasters

Exclusive Opportunity: Play Against World-Class Grandmasters in Zurich

Thanks to Julius Baer, we have the privilege of offering a few exclusive spots for the upcoming “Chess Experience in Zurich – Play The World’s Grandmasters” event. This event, taking place on the 13th of November between 5pm and 9pm, will bring together some of the most renowned figures in chess, giving participants a unique chance to engage with:

  • Judit Polgár – Widely regarded as the greatest female chess player in history.
  • Anish Giri – Dutch Grandmaster, who earned his title at the age of 14, and currently ranked among the top players worldwide.
  • Shreyas Royal – A rising star in the chess world, who recently became the youngest English Grandmaster at just 15 years old.
  • David Howell – Three-time British chess champion and respected chess commentator.

The event will feature a podium discussion, a blindfold chess exhibition, and a simul against Judit Polgár herself. After the chess activities, there will be a social apéro, offering an opportunity to meet the grandmasters in a more relaxed setting.

Julius Baer has generously offered three spots to play in the simul and two additional spots to attend the event without playing. More spots may become available closer to the date.

To decide who will fill these positions, we will host a special tournament on October 29th at 18:30 in HG E41, replacing our usual casual chess evening. The tournament will follow a seven-round format with a 5+3 time control. Registration opens on Saturday, October 26th at 6pm on our registration page.

Here are the rules for qualifying:

Qualification for the Simul Against Judit Polgár:

  • You must be either employed at or studying at ETH or UZH (proof required).
  • You need to provide a valid and active chess.com or lichess.org account, with regular gameplay. The ETH Chess Club committee will review this for activity.
    • Your chess.com blitz rating must be below 1800.
    • Your lichess.org blitz rating must be below 2000.
    • To prove the account is yours, we will send a message to the account if you qualified for the event.
  • The two highest-ranked players who meet these criteria, along with the highest-ranked female player, will be invited to play in the simul.

Note: You may not intentionally lose rating points before the tournament to meet these limits. The ETH Chess Club committee will determine whether any rating drops seem suspicious.

Qualification to Attend (Not Playing in the Simul):

  • You must be employed at or studying at ETH or UZH (proof required).
  • The two highest-ranked players who meet these criteria will be invited to attend the event, with more spots potentially available.