Matthew Portelli secures victory in the Candidates Tournament

Current Junior Champion Matthew Portelli achieved another outstanding result by winning the 2025 Candidates Tournament with an unbeaten score of 5.5 points from 7 games, achieving four wins and three draws. This marks Portelli’s second qualification to the Finals and his third tournament victory this year.

The tournament also witnessed impressive results from other competitors. Matthias Gatt delivered an excellent performance, winning five games and defeating four former Maltese champions. His result secured second place and qualification to the Finals for the first time.

Nine-time national champion and top seed Colin Pace confirmed his status among the favourites, finishing in third place with four wins and two draws. Former national champion Jake Darmanin claimed the final qualifying place, recovering from a slow start with four consecutive victories to conclude the tournament on 5 points.

The four qualifiers, Portelli, Gatt, Pace, and Darmanin, will join reigning champion Jack Mizzi and last year’s runner-up Robert Attila Novak in the National Chess Championship Finals, scheduled for September.

Full tournament results are available at: https://s2.chess-results.com/tnr1213251.aspx?lan=1&SNode=S0