46th Chess Olympiad · Samarkand 2026 · Open section

Scotland Open at the 2026 Chess Olympiad

Scotland opened with a 4–0 win and put together three victories in their first four rounds, but defeats to Switzerland and El Salvador have pulled them back to 83rd. Konstantinos Megalios leads the scoring on 3½/5.

Starting seed60
After Round 683
Match points6
Game points14
Match record3W 0D 3L

Squad

Player scores through Round 6

PlayerRatingGWDLScore%
Konstantinos Megalios IM 2373 5 3 1 1 70%
Murad Abdulla FM 2323 5 2 2 1 3 60%
Rishi Vijayakumar FM 2387 5 3 0 2 3 60%
Frederick Waldhausen Gordon IM 2455 4 2 1 1 62.5%
Andrew Greet IM 2416 5 1 2 2 2 40%

Tournament trajectory

Position after each round

RoundRankMPGP
Round 1 43 2 4
Round 2 82 2
Round 3 66 4 8
Round 4 48 6 11½
Round 5 62 6 12½
Round 6 83 6 14

Round 1

Scotland 4–0 Oman

After R1: 43rd

Four boards, four wins. Scotland opened with a 4-0 sweep of Oman.

BoardScotlandOpponentTeam resultGame result
1 Andrew Greet
White · 2416
Salim Al Amri Salim Mohammed
1951
Win 1-0
2 Rishi Vijayakumar
Black · 2387
Mohammed Khalfan Al Saidi
1934
Win 0-1
3 Konstantinos Megalios
White · 2373
Al Ryami Mohammed
1710
Win 1-0
4 Murad Abdulla
Black · 2323
Mana Al Kathiri
1886
Win 0-1
Board 1 Andrew Greet vs Salim Al Amri Salim Mohammed Win

Caro-Kann Defense: Advance Variation, Tal Variation · White · 2416 vs 1951

Andrew Greet already had some pressure, but Salim Al Amri Salim Mohammed's 16...Ne7 turned it into a clear advantage. Qa4 was the tougher defence.

Board 2 Rishi Vijayakumar vs Mohammed Khalfan Al Saidi Win

Rubinstein Opening · Black · 2387 vs 1934

Mohammed Khalfan Al Saidi was under pressure before 21.fxe5; that move made the position much harder and Rishi Vijayakumar took over. dxe5 was the tougher defence.

Board 3 Konstantinos Megalios vs Al Ryami Mohammed Win

King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Positional Defense · White · 2373 vs 1710

Konstantinos Megalios built the win without one obvious collapse from Al Ryami Mohammed. The advantage came in smaller steps and held to the finish.

Board 4 Murad Abdulla vs Mana Al Kathiri Win

Indian Defense: Spielmann-Indian · Black · 2323 vs 1886

Murad Abdulla already had some pressure, but Mana Al Kathiri's 42.d5 with 58 seconds left turned it into a clear advantage. Ne4 was the tougher defence.

Round 2

Scotland ½–3½ Armenia

After R2: 82nd

A rough one for Scotland: Frederick Waldhausen Gordon drew, but Armenia won the other three boards.

BoardScotlandOpponentTeam resultGame result
1 Frederick Waldhausen Gordon
White · 2455
Haik M. Martirosyan
2664
Draw 1/2-1/2
2 Andrew Greet
Black · 2416
Shant Sargsyan
2630
Loss 1-0
3 Rishi Vijayakumar
White · 2387
Gabriel Sargissian
2610
Loss 0-1
4 Konstantinos Megalios
Black · 2373
Manuel Petrosyan
2569
Loss 1-0
Board 1 Frederick Waldhausen Gordon vs Haik M. Martirosyan Draw

King's Indian Attack: Sicilian Variation · White · 2455 vs 2664

Not every draw hides a missed win. Frederick Waldhausen Gordon and Haik M. Martirosyan stayed close throughout, and neither built a sustained advantage.

Board 2 Andrew Greet vs Shant Sargsyan Loss

Horwitz Defense · Black · 2416 vs 2630

The position was still playable until Andrew Greet played 48...Re7. That was the point it tipped decisively towards Shant Sargsyan. Rc7 was the tougher defence.

Board 3 Rishi Vijayakumar vs Gabriel Sargissian Loss

Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation, Main Line · White · 2387 vs 2610

Gabriel Sargissian already had some pressure, but Rishi Vijayakumar's 14.Bf3 turned it into a clear advantage. f3 was the tougher defence.

Board 4 Konstantinos Megalios vs Manuel Petrosyan Loss

Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Modern Bishop's Opening · Black · 2373 vs 2569

Manuel Petrosyan already had some pressure, but Konstantinos Megalios's 32...Qg7 turned it into a clear advantage. Re7 was the tougher defence.

Round 3

Scotland 3½–½ Zimbabwe

After R3: 66th

Scotland gave Zimbabwe very little. Frederick Waldhausen Gordon, Konstantinos Megalios and Murad Abdulla won, and Andrew Greet drew.

BoardScotlandOpponentTeam resultGame result
1 Frederick Waldhausen Gordon
Black · 2455
Roy Mwadzura
2211
Win 0-1
2 Andrew Greet
White · 2416
Tapiwa Jele
2204
Draw 1/2-1/2
3 Konstantinos Megalios
Black · 2373
Emarald Takudzwa Mushore
2139
Win 0-1
4 Murad Abdulla
White · 2323
Vitalis Mapuranga
2058
Win 1-0
Board 1 Frederick Waldhausen Gordon vs Roy Mwadzura Win

Sicilian Defense: Delayed Alapin Variation · Black · 2455 vs 2211

Roy Mwadzura was under pressure before 37.Nc1 with 1:45 left; that move made the position much harder and Frederick Waldhausen Gordon took over. g4 was the tougher defence.

Board 2 Andrew Greet vs Tapiwa Jele Draw

Sicilian Defense: Closed · White · 2416 vs 2204

Andrew Greet had built the stronger position, but 34.Rd1 with 1:33 left cut the advantage sharply. Tapiwa Jele held from there. Bc3 was the better way to keep the pressure on.

Board 3 Konstantinos Megalios vs Emarald Takudzwa Mushore Win

Italian Game: Paris Defense · Black · 2373 vs 2139

Emarald Takudzwa Mushore gave Konstantinos Megalios the opening with 46.Kf4. The game had been close; it was not close afterwards. Ra1 was the tougher defence.

Board 4 Murad Abdulla vs Vitalis Mapuranga Win

French Defense: Chigorin Variation · White · 2323 vs 2058

Vitalis Mapuranga's 17...Qd7 was the break in the game. There had been little in it; after that Murad Abdulla had a clear advantage. Bxf5 was the tougher defence.

Round 4

Scotland 3½–½ Luxembourg

After R4: 48th

Scotland gave Luxembourg very little. Frederick Waldhausen Gordon, Rishi Vijayakumar and Konstantinos Megalios won, and Murad Abdulla drew.

BoardScotlandOpponentTeam resultGame result
1 Frederick Waldhausen Gordon
White · 2455
Nicolas Bourg
2254
Win 1-0
2 Rishi Vijayakumar
Black · 2387
Fred Berend
2231
Win 0-1
3 Konstantinos Megalios
White · 2373
Christian Jeitz
2155
Win 1-0
4 Murad Abdulla
Black · 2323
Marc Mertens
2116
Draw 1/2-1/2
Board 1 Frederick Waldhausen Gordon vs Nicolas Bourg Win

Zukertort Opening: Reversed Grünfeld · White · 2455 vs 2254

Nicolas Bourg was under pressure before 18...Re8; that move made the position much harder and Frederick Waldhausen Gordon took over. Qb6 was the tougher defence.

Board 2 Rishi Vijayakumar vs Fred Berend Win

Catalan Opening: Open Defense · Black · 2387 vs 2231

The position was still playable until Fred Berend played 33.Ndb2 with 2:52 left. That was the point it tipped decisively towards Rishi Vijayakumar. fxe4 was the tougher defence.

Board 3 Konstantinos Megalios vs Christian Jeitz Win

English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Anglo-Grünfeld Variation · White · 2373 vs 2155

Konstantinos Megalios already had some pressure, but Christian Jeitz's 13...f5 turned it into a clear advantage. Qe7 was the tougher defence.

Board 4 Murad Abdulla vs Marc Mertens Draw

Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Fianchetto Variation · Black · 2323 vs 2116

Murad Abdulla needed an escape and got one when Marc Mertens played 83.Qa3+. The advantage vanished, and the draw was there from that point. Qe6 was the better way to keep the pressure on.

Round 5

Scotland 1–3 Switzerland

After R5: 62nd

Scotland went down 3-1 to Switzerland, with two draws but no wins.

BoardScotlandOpponentTeam resultGame result
1 Frederick Waldhausen Gordon
Black · 2455
Sebastian Bogner
2547
Loss 1-0
2 Andrew Greet
White · 2416
Nico Georgiadis
2535
Draw 1/2-1/2
3 Rishi Vijayakumar
Black · 2387
Li Min Peng
2568
Loss 1-0
4 Murad Abdulla
White · 2323
Fabian Baenziger
2426
Draw 1/2-1/2
Board 1 Frederick Waldhausen Gordon vs Sebastian Bogner Loss

French Defense: Classical Variation, Burn Variation · Black · 2455 vs 2547

Frederick Waldhausen Gordon was under pressure before 32...Qa5; that move made the position much harder and Sebastian Bogner took over. Qxd4 was the tougher defence.

Board 2 Andrew Greet vs Nico Georgiadis Draw

English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Flexible Line · White · 2416 vs 2535

Very little separated Andrew Greet and Nico Georgiadis. The position stayed within reach for both players and the point was shared.

Board 3 Rishi Vijayakumar vs Li Min Peng Loss

Scotch Game · Black · 2387 vs 2568

Li Min Peng already had some pressure, but Rishi Vijayakumar's 25...Kg7 turned it into a clear advantage. b6 was the tougher defence.

Board 4 Murad Abdulla vs Fabian Baenziger Draw

Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation, Freak Attack · White · 2323 vs 2426

Very little separated Murad Abdulla and Fabian Baenziger. The position stayed within reach for both players and the point was shared.

Round 6

Scotland 1½–2½ El Salvador

After R6: 83rd

Scotland lost 2.5-1.5 to El Salvador. Rishi Vijayakumar won, but defeats for Andrew Greet and Murad Abdulla turned the match.

BoardScotlandOpponentTeam resultGame result
1 Andrew Greet
Black · 2416
Carlos Morales
2244
Loss 1-0
2 Rishi Vijayakumar
White · 2387
Daniel Arias
2227
Win 1-0
3 Konstantinos Megalios
Black · 2373
Santiago Jose Guevara Ruiz
2160
Draw 1/2-1/2
4 Murad Abdulla
White · 2323
Carlos Roberto Ibarra
2283
Loss 0-1
Board 1 Andrew Greet vs Carlos Morales Loss

Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation, Modern Variation · Black · 2416 vs 2244

The position was still playable until Andrew Greet played 53...Ke7 with 44 seconds left. That was the point it tipped decisively towards Carlos Morales. Rc6 was the tougher defence. A 172-point rating upset.

Board 2 Rishi Vijayakumar vs Daniel Arias Win

Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation, Main Line · White · 2387 vs 2227

Daniel Arias was under pressure before 27...Rg8; that move made the position much harder and Rishi Vijayakumar took over. Re3 was the tougher defence.

Board 3 Konstantinos Megalios vs Santiago Jose Guevara Ruiz Draw

Caro-Kann Defense: Advance Variation · Black · 2373 vs 2160

Very little separated Konstantinos Megalios and Santiago Jose Guevara Ruiz. The position stayed within reach for both players and the point was shared.

Board 4 Murad Abdulla vs Carlos Roberto Ibarra Loss

Sicilian Defense: Lasker-Pelikan Variation · White · 2323 vs 2283

Murad Abdulla's 37.Nb4 with 31 seconds left was the break in the game. There had been little in it; after that Carlos Roberto Ibarra had a clear advantage. Ne3 was the tougher defence.

Sources and method. Match scores, pairings, ratings and standings are taken from Chess-Results. Game commentary is based on the supplied Olympiad PGNs and their embedded engine evaluations. Engine labels are used as evidence for the identified turning points; they are not presented as comments made by the players.