Prague Festival set

The Prague International Festival, the second big tournament of the European chess circuit, gets underway Feb. 12-22 at the Don Giovanni Hotel in Prague, Czech Republic.

Jan-Krzyst of Duda, Poland’s brightest hope at 21, and defending champion Nikita Vitiugov of Russia, headlines the Category 19, all-play-all annual event. The top-seeded Duda will be seeking to win the top prize for the first time, while  Vitiugov, ranked second, is expected to provide tough competition.

They will be joined by the likes of 16-year-old Alireza Firouzja, a former Iranian prodigy now living in exile in France, local hero David Navara and the Indian tandem of Vidit Santosh Gujarathi and Pentala Harikrishna.

Rounding out the 10-player field  are Spain’s David Anton Guijarro, Samuel Shankland (USA), Markus Ragger (Austria) and Sweden’s Nils Granelius