The draw for the 2021 World Cup has been published, although the new format leaves it looking a little weird. The top 50 players now get seeded into round 2, but they are included in the first round (all paired against Bye). After that it becomes a normal 128 player knockout.
Possibly the changes have encouraged Magnus Carlsen to play this year, although a number of players in the top 20 are missing, although the cause is likely to be connected to travel difficulties. Such difficulties resulted in the top 3 qualifiers from the Oceania Zonal pulling out, and our spot now goes to CM Elmer Prudente from Guam. The short notice has not done him any favours, and he is running a gofundme campaign to help fund his trip.
Australia and New Zealand are also entitled to enter one player each, with Australia being represented by GM Bobby Cheng and NZ by FM Allan Fan. Full details for the event can be found at https://worldcup.fide.com/
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