GM Frederik Svane's win over GM Hans Niemann saw Germany defeat top-seeded U.S.A. 2.5-1.5 in round five of the 46th Chess Olympiad 2026. Germany is joined in the lead on 10/10 match points by Uzbekistan, who crushed Hungary 4-0, and India, who defeated the Netherlands 3-1 after GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu won a rollercoaster game against GM Anish Giri, while World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju pounced on a blunder by GM Erwin l'Ami. China was held to four draws by Armenia.

The top seed also lost in round five of the 2026 FIDE Women's Chess Olympiad, as defending champion India fell to Poland for a second Olympiad in a row. IM Aleksandra Maltsevskaya grabbed the only win of the match, against GM Vaishali Rameshbabu. Poland was joined on a perfect score by China, Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan, while the U.S. team scraped a 2-2 draw after IM Alice Lee rescued the team with a win after WGM Afruza Khamdamova defeated IM Carissa Yip on top board.

Round six, the last before the rest day, is on Monday, September 21, starting at 6:15 a.m. ET / 12:15 CEST / 3:45 p.m. IST.

This is a flash report—come back later for full coverage of round five! 

Open: Germany Beat USA, As Uzbekistan, India March On

We got the first big upset win of the event with Germany defeating the top-seeded USA.

Round 5 Results | Open Top 10

Our Game of the Day is Svane's all-important win over Niemann. GM Rafael Leitao will analyze it below.

Women: Poland Beat India Again As Only 4 Leaders Remain

As GM David Howell commented on the live broadcast, Poland again proved to be India's kryptonite, while the hosts came incredibly close to handing the U.S. team its second defeat of the day. 

Round 5 Results: Women's Top 10