44th Chess Olympiad draws record number of registrations from countries and teams

The 44th Chess Olympiad is all set to enter the record books as it has witnessed a greater number of countries and teams registering for this edition than any previous one.

The Chess Olympiad, which will be conducted in India for the first-time ever, is scheduled in Mahabalipuram, Chennai, from July 28 to August 10. The historic event has so far attracted entries of 341 teams (open and women's section taken together) from 187 countries.

A beaming Bharat Singh Chauhan, secretary of the All India Chess Federation (AICF) and the event director, announced:

“We have a record-breaking 187 countries registered with 189 teams in the open section and 154 in the women’s section. This is indeed a proud moment for all of us, especially since it’s the first offline event since the pandemic started.”

Previously, the Batumi Olympiad, held in 2018, had set a record with 184 and 150 teams in the open and women’s sections respectively, from 179 countries.

Reigning World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway to feature in Chess Olympiad in Chennai

The icing on the cake is the confirmed participation of reigning World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway—the highest ever rated player on the planet. India, as the host country, is eligible to field an extra team in both sections and has an opportunity to field a third team in case of an odd number of entries.

AICF president Sanjay Kapoor described the preparations for the big event.

“Right from the time the Olympiad was awarded to us, we have been relentlessly working with a single-minded focus, keeping the Olympic motto 'Swifter, Higher, Stronger' in mind with regards to organizational aspects also.”

Chess has traveled a long way. FIDE, the world chess body that started the first official Olympiad in 1927 in London with 16 countries in the fray, too has reasons to celebrate this success. FIDE is pleased after reposing faith in AICF to pull off this herculean task in just about four months.

After India was awarded the right to host the Chess Olympiad in February this year, things have moved on in whirlwind fashion.

AICF has literally been working round the clock. The national chess body is ensuring not only the smooth conduct of the event but also associating with FIDE to ensure monetary assistance to countries to field their teams.

Efforts are also on to see this Chess Olympiad go down in the history books as one of the best organized ones.