Ivan Skitsko Triumphs at the SET Freestyle Cup

In the world of Freestyle Chess, the lack of opening theory turns the board into a psychological battlefield from move one. At the recent SET Freestyle Cup 2026 in Moldova, Grandmaster Ivan Skitsko proved that while you can't memorize the moves, you can certainly master the principles.

Skitsko dominated the field to finish with an impressive 7.5/9, leaving his nearest rival, FIDE Master Dmitry Gubin, 1.5 points behind. The podium was rounded out by GM Vladimir Khamitsevich, who finished in third place. GM Viktor Bologan, the only player to win a game against Skitsko in the tournament, came fourth.

Organized by the SET Real Estate Agency with the support of the Moldovan Chess Federation, the tournament featured freestyle positions #323, #946, #718, #928, #726, #170, #916, #278 and #159.

A new face in the Freestyle arena

While Skitsko is the youngest Grandmaster in Moldovan history, and notably the first Moldovan to ever hold Magnus Carlsen to a draw, this event marked his first official foray into over-the-board Freestyle Chess. Having previously only dabbled in the format online, Skitsko's transition to the physical board was seamless.

The tournament used a 15+10 time control, with a unique Freestyle twist: players were granted 15 minutes of analysis time immediately after the positions were drawn.

In a show of camaraderie and strategic synergy, Skitsko chose to spend these crucial minutes sharing analysis with fellow GM Vladimir Khamitsevich. The pair worked to decode the randomized starting positions before the clocks started ticking — a collaborative approach that clearly paid dividends for both.

The secret to success: "rules of thumb"

While many participants relied on their raw calculation skills or a cursory glance at engine-led games, Skitsko arrived with a secret weapon: three weeks of intensive, structured preparation. Interestingly, this prep wasn't just for himself, it was built while coaching one of his students on the nuances of Freestyle (Chess 960) for three weeks.

"We analyzed a lot of 960 positions. We created some rules of thumb, to see what kind of tactics exist there, what principles from regular chess apply and so on. And I think we came up with some really good rules. And basically, well, this gave me a huge head start to the rest of the field in this tournament."

"Some players had focused on analysing games with the engine but I think no one had such an extensive preparation as I did. That definitely contributed to the result."

— GM Ivan Skitsko, in an interview with FreestyleChess.AI after the tournament

In the video below, Grandmaster Ivan Skitsko reviews some of the games from the SET Freestyle Cup on his own YouTube channel.

Breaking the theory barrier

The SET Freestyle Cup confirms a growing trend in the chess world: the "Freestyle Revolution" is moving beyond elite invitationals and into the heart of the global chess community.

Skitsko's victory highlights that Freestyle Chess isn't just chaos, it is a discipline that rewards deep conceptual understanding and the ability to formulate "rules of thumb" where traditional theory fails. By treating the randomized start not as a hurdle but as a puzzle to be solved through rigorous study, Skitsko has set a new blueprint for how to prepare for the future of the game.

Final standings — SET Freestyle Cup 2026