I posted a link where you can review the original Grand Prix structure and how it evolved into what it is today. It will show up just above your post when the moderator aproves it.

“Just seems to me to be a rather exclusive ex-Soviet party by now‚Ķ”

Well, just look at the top of the FIDE rating list.

1 Topalov, Veselin g BUL 2796 8 1975 ex-Eastern block
2 Anand, Viswanathan g IND 2791 11 1969
3 Ivanchuk, Vassily g UKR 2779 19 1969 – ex-Soviet
4 Carlsen, Magnus g NOR 2776 17 1990
5 Morozevich, Alexander g RUS 2771 20 1977 – ex-Soviet
6 Radjabov, Teimour g AZE 2761 27 1987 – ex-Soviet
7 Jakovenko, Dmitry g RUS 2760 40 1983 – ex-Soviet
8 Kramnik, Vladimir g RUS 2759 20 1975 -ex-Soviet
9 Leko, Peter g HUN 2751 23 1979 – ex-Eastern block
10 Movsesian, Sergei g SVK 2751 16 1978 -ex-Soviet
11 Aronian, Levon g ARM 2750 16 1982 – ex-Soviet
12 Shirov, Alexei g ESP 2745 19 1972 -ex-Soviet
13 Wang, Yue g CHN 2739 28 1987
14 Grischuk, Alexander g RUS 2733 28 1983 -ex-Soviet
15 Gelfand, Boris g ISR 2733 17 1968 -ex-Soviet
16 Ponomariov, Ruslan g UKR 2726 9 1983 ex-Soviet
17 Kamsky, Gata g USA 2725 16 1974 – ex-Soviet
18 Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar g AZE 2724 29 1985 – ex-Soviet
19 Gashimov, Vugar g AZE 2723 28 1986 – ex-Soviet
20 Svidler, Peter g RUS 2723 27 1976 -ex-Soviet

It aint getting better if you go down the list
Still wondering?

Read here if you want to know how the participants were chosen and how the Grand Prix was in it’s original form.

http://forums.ubi.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/4221052685/m/6291077936

I still think that FIDE is trying that all replacements will play in 4 GP tournaments. Which means that FIDE breaks their own regulations once more. Because according to regulations, the replacements play in only one tournament and their results don’t count towards GP standings.

By the way, what is the status of these replacements?

Akopian is a “host nominee” by Yerevan – that we know, but what about others?
They were billed as reserves from the rating list, but in my opinion Alekseev has now been “promoted” to a host nominee from Nalchik. These leaves Eljanov and Kasimdzhanov. There were rumors about a GP in Ukraine and FIDE even recomended that in that case their nominee is Eljanov. So if there really will be a GP in Ukraine then Eljanov will be “promoted” to a host nominee and will play in the last GP, meaning that Kasimdzhanov will be that player who will only participate in 3 tournaments. Of course if the last tournament is in Uzbekistan then Kasimdzhanov will be a host nominne and will play in the last GP tournament in December (and Eljanov will be the one with only 3 tournaments).

But what will FIDE do if the last GP won’t be neither in Ukraine or Uzbekistan, but somewhere else?