Koneru Humpy withdraws from 2026 Candidates citing safety issues: 'Painful but necessary decision'

Veteran Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy on Sunday (March 22) officially announced her decision to pull out of the 2026 Candidates Tournament. She cited safety concerns as the reason behind what she termed was a "difficult decision".

Candidates, the tournament whose winner gets the opportunity to challenge the world champion, takes place from March 28 this year in Cyprus. Although not exactly in the war zone in West Asia, Cyprus also saw a missile strike in the early days of the conflict between Iran and US-Israel.

With the security risks involved, the 39-year-old decided to skip the prestigious event where she was one of the biggest stars in the women's sections.

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Humpy does not feel fully secure

Humpy took to social media platform X to officially announce her withdrawal. She mentioned security as the reason behind her decision.

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"After deep reflection, I have taken the difficult decision to withdraw from the FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament. No event, no matter how important, can come before personal safety and well-being. Despite the assurances provided, I do not feel fully secure under the current circumstances," Humpy wrote in her post on X.

"This is a painful but necessary decision, and I stand by it," she concluded.

Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, one of the favourites to win the open section of the tournament, had also sounded alarm over extended period of power outage in Cyprus ahead of the event.

Humpy's withdrawal still leaves two Indians in the fray of the eight-women tournament. R Vaishali and Divya Deshmukh will now represent India in the event whose winner will challenge Ju Wenjun of China for the women's title.

FIDE announces Humpy's replacement

FIDE, the global chess governing body, confirmed Humpy's withdrawal and announced Anna Muzychuk of Ukraine as the replacement of the Indian Grandmaster.

"Humpy Koneru (India) has officially withdrawn from the FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament 2026, scheduled to take place in Cyprus from March 28 to April 16. In accordance with the tournament regulations, her place was offered to the next highest finisher in the Women’s Events Series 2024–25 who has not yet secured qualification," FIDE stated in its statement.

"As a result, Anna Muzychuk (Ukraine) will join the tournament as her replacement," the body said.