Tajikistan’s Muhammad and Mustafokhouja Husenkhojayev achieved remarkable success at the prestigious 49th Open Internacional d'Escacs Vila de Sitges, held in the Spanish town of Sitges, Barcelona Province.
The tournament concluded on July 30, with International Master (IM) Muhammad Husenkhojayev—also a member of Tajikistan’s national Olympic chess team—claiming third place. He scored 7 out of 9 points, recording six wins, two draws, and a single loss.
Among his most notable results were a victory over Spanish Grandmaster Hipolito Asis and draws against strong opponents such as IM Sault Nurgaliyev (Kazakhstan) and GM Karen Grigoryan (Armenia).
Muhammad posted a performance rating of 2480 Elo, with a gain of +14.9 points. Earlier estimates from the tournament even projected a performance level of 2615 Elo—consistent with Grandmaster standards.
His younger brother, FIDE Master (FM) Mustafokhouja Husenkhojayev also delivered a strong performance, finishing 11th with 6 points. He secured wins against players from Cuba, England, and India, and drew with Armenian Grandmaster Manuel Petrosyan. His only losses came against GM Karen Grigoryan and IM Subhayan Kundu.
Mustafokhouja’s final performance rating was 2401 Elo, gaining 15 rating points—meeting the performance norm for the International Master (IM) title.
The 9-round Swiss-system tournament followed classical time controls (90 minutes plus 30 seconds per move) and featured over 100 participants from various countries, with an average Elo rating of 2165.
The Chess Federation of Tajikistan congratulated the Husenkhojayev brothers on their achievements, highlighting their contributions to the sport’s growth in the country and expressing hopes for their continued success—as both elite players and future coaches.
