Batumi gearing up to host thousands for 2018 Chess Olympiad
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Around 4,000 players from over 180 countries will flock to Georgia's Black Sea city Batumi this fall to compete for honours in the 2018 World Chess Federation (FIDE) Chess Olympiad.
Scheduled to run from September 23-October 6, the 43rd edition of the event will run along with a FIDE Congress and elections for the international body’s presidency.
The opening ceremony of the olympiad will be held at the Black Sea Arena venue in the nearby Shekvetili seaside resort.
A view of the interior of the sports venue. Photo: Chess Olympiad Batumi 2018.
Matches of the olympiad itself will be hosted at the brand-new Batumi Sports Palace, which is being built in the coastline city.
A high-profile FIDE delegation was on visit to Georgia this week, inspecting the construction of the sports venue and holding meetings with the Minister of Sport and Culture of Georgia Mikheil Giorgadze and government officials.
Heading the visiting delegation, FIDE Deputy President Georgios Makropoulos commented about the prospects of the tournament to reporters.
The development in Batumi has impressed me greatly. I believe those visiting the city [for the olympiad] will enjoy the city [...] We will be back in March to learn about further preparations,” the FIDE official said.
Georgia’s winning bid for the 2018 Chess Olympiad was confirmed at the 2014 FIDE General Assembly in Tromso, Norway, where the Batumi nomination received 93 votes to 53 for Cape Town, South Africa.
Georgian female chess player Nana Dzagnidze has won the World Blitz Chess Championship in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Georgian Sport Ministry said, in total the Georgian sportsmen have gathered 885 prizes this year, which is the record number in the Georgian sport history.
Armenia's world no. 2 ranked Levon Aronian triumphed in World Chess Cup 2017 tournament after defeating China's Ding Liren in the final played in Georgia's capital Tbilisi on Wednesday.
Georgia's capital Tbilisi is gearing up to host over 120 top chess players from around the world in this year's Chess World Cup, with the current world champion taking part in the high-profile competition for the first time in history.
Georgia’s Black Sea coastal city Batumi has won naming rights to host the world’s largest chess sporting event – the World Chess Olympiad in 2018.
Georgia’s Black Sea city of Batumi has become the first municipality in the country to receive the title of European City of Sport, giving the location more international exposure ahead of the international competitions it is set to host next year.
Georgia’s Black Sea resort city of Batumi is about to turn into a central location for international chess for two weeks, with thousands of participants travelling for this year’s international Chess Olympiad opening on Monday.
The Georgian women’s team has won the bronze medal at the 43rd World Chess Olympiad hosted at Batumi Sport Palace from 24 September to 5 October.