Leça da Palmeira, Portugal — 2 August 2026. IM David Gorodetzky (Israel) ran out a clear winner of the Leça Chess Blitz on Sunday, scoring 8.5 points from nine rounds to top a 61-player field in the FIDE-rated event.

Played over nine Swiss rounds at a 3+2 time control, the blitz packed a full tournament into a single morning, with relentless time pressure and quick, decisive swings that made it a lively counterpoint to the classical games of the main Leça Chess Open.

FM Lennert Lenaerts (Belgium) and IM German Quirhuayo Chumbe (Peru) both finished on 7 points, with tie-breaks deciding second and third. CM Rohan Rajaram (United States) took fourth, while home player IM André Sousa (Portugal) completed the top five on 6.5.

Quick Track Agency covered the event throughout the morning, documenting the concentration, intensity and raw emotion of one of the fastest formats in competitive chess.

First held in 2022, the Leça Chess Open has grown into one of Portugal’s leading summer chess festivals. The blitz, added a year later, has become a fixture of the week — drawing a strong international field alongside the main open, which runs from 31 July to 6 August.