World Cup U8, U10, U12: Last call for wild cards
The first-ever FIDE World Cup for youngsters will take place from June 22 to July 3, 2024, in Batumi, Georgia. The tournament will be held in three age groups, U8, U10, and U12, and in two categories, Open and Girls, with 48 participants in each. Altogether, 288 strongest young players from around the globe will participate. The competition consists of two stages, starting with a 7-round Swiss System with two groups of 24 players each. In the next stage, the players in the same position from each group will face off against one another. The top three players in each category will receive awards, including cups, medals, diplomas, and special prizes such as MacBook Air 2022, iPhone 15, or an iPad. Moreover, the first three winners of each age category and gender will receive free full-board accommodation for the World Cadets Championships 2024. There is a unique opportunity to become a part of the World Cup for strongest chess players U8, U10 and U12. Fourteen (14) spots are available upon request from FIDE member federations. Please contact the EVE Commission and World Cup Organizing Committee before April 1, 2024. Contacts: fideevents@fide.com and wcc@fide.com. More information about the event: wcc2024.fide.com/uploads/Invitation.pdf wcc2024.fide.com/uploads/prizes1.pdf Photo: Mark Livshitz http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecE8bjwmpl8
AICF elections: Shri Nitin Narang and Shri Dev A Patel take charge
New Delhi (12 Mar 2024): Following the National Sports Code, the AICF General Body unanimously elected the new set of office bearers for the term 2024-27 headed by Shri Nitin Narang of Haryana as President and Shri Dev A Patel of Gujarat as Secretary. International Arbiter Shri Dharmendra Kumar of Bihar is the new Treasurer for the Federation. The returning officers, Hon’ble Justice Rang Nath Pandey and Hon’ble Justice G S Sistani, declared the results in the General Body meeting held at the Leela Ambience Convention Hotel here on Sunday, and all the office bearers were elected unopposed. The General Body also elected six vice presidents: Shri Anil Kumar Raizada of Uttar Pradesh, Grandmaster Dibyendu Barua of West Bengal, Shri Raghvendra Singhania of Chhattisgarh, Shri D P Anantha of Karnataka, Shri Mahaveer Ranka of Rajasthan, Shri Repo Ronya of Arunachal Pradesh and six joint secretaries, namely Shri Kandarpa Kalita of Assam, Shri Prasanta Kundu of Tripura, Shri Soibam Mangijao Singh of Manipur, Shri H Lalthlamuana of Mizoram, Shri Sanjeev Thakur of Himachal Pradesh and Shri Manish Kumar of Jharkhand. All India Chess Federation official website: aicf.in/
13th African Games: Egypt rules supreme
The third and final day of the 13th African Games chess programme featured individual blitz championships (open and women) and a mixed team blitz event. It was another great day for team Egypt, which claimed two out of three gold medals awarded on March 11. In total, Bassem Amin and Shahenda Wafa collected five golds at the 13th African Games. The day started with individual blitz competitions open and women sections, 9-round Swiss events with 5 min + 3 sec time control. Bassem Amin, the only GM in the field, put in a very strong performance and won his third gold with an impressive 8/9. The second seed, IM Fy Antenaina Rakotomaharo of Madagascar, gave the champion a good run for his money and also scored 8/9 but had to settle for silver after losing the direct encounter. FM Banele Mhango of South Africa pulled off a crucial final-round victory over IM Adlane Arab from Algeria and took bronze. Final standings Blitz Open Just like day before, the women’s blitz competition was a close race between WGM Shahenda Wafa (Egypt) and Lina Nassr (Algeria; pictured below, left) who came to the final round neck-to-neck on 7/8. Shahenda had a great chance for her third gold (as the winner of the direct encounter) but this time around fortune smiled on the Algerian. Wafa completely misplayed a superior position against Constance Mbatha of Zambia and lost, while Nassr achieved overwhelming advantage vs Jesse Nikki February of South Africa but offered a draw to secure the title. The 11th seed, Natalie Katlo Banda, produced a minor sensation and took bronze, netting 6/9. Final standings Women Blitz The mixed blitz tournament was the final chess competition of the 13th African Games. FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich visited the event and made the first ceremonial move in the game Shahenda Wafa – Linda Dalitso Shaba. Given Egypt’s previous results in the 13th African Games, the Pharaohs entered the final event as the main favorites and delivered. The Egyptians started out of the gate, winning four straight matches, but in Round 5, they fell to Algeria. The Pharaohs bounced back by beating Angola and Ivory Coast but then dropped another point after drawing with Madagascar in the penultimate round. Algeria had a modest start, drawing three out of four matches, but after defeating the rating favorites in Round 5, they picked up steam and caught up with Egypt going to the final round. Both teams confidently won their matches and tied for first place with 15/18, but Egypt earned gold thanks to a greater number of game points. The same tiebreaker favored Nigeria, which shared third place with Angola but took bronze. Final standings Mixed Team Blitz Over a short closing ceremony, the FIDE President thanked the host country, organizers, arbiters and players, congratulated team Egypt and expressed his satisfaction with the competition: “Our joint efforts brought chess to better visibility and opened better prospects in the future…. The tournament was very intense, with so many games played over just a few days. The competition was amazing. In almost every category, it was not clear who would occupy the podium until the end of the last round. As many as seven teams won medals in this competition, which is great for chess development in Africa.” Official website: accra2023.fide.com/ Official sponsor: Riyadh Season Riyadh Season is an official partner of FIDE at the 13th African Games in Accra. Riyadh Season is one of the world’s largest annual winter entertainment festivals located in Saudi Arabia, it welcomes millions of visitors every year who get to experience a variety of exciting surprises, events, and music concerts. Additionally, it hosts international activities and events that draw in world-renowned stars in sports such as boxing, tennis, and football. The festivities capture the essence of Saudi heritage and hospitality and it showcases its present-day vibranism. For more information about Riyadh season, visit: riyadhseason.com