Greetings from Russia!

Chess champ attending 2010 Chess Olympiad in Russia
Posted: September 25, 2010 - 11:02pm

Greetings from Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia!

I arrived at the 2010 Chess Olympiad on Wednesday after traveling for two days. The trip was relatively smooth, just a lot of connecting flights. My route was Lubbock to Dallas to New York to Helsinki to Moscow to Khanty-Mansiysk! I will write more about this event and how it will affect SPICE in future columns.

The question of the week is can I explain a little more about the Chess Olympiad. Is it a part of the IOC (International Olympic Committee) and how big is it?

The 2010 Chess Olympiad has just begun. It is currently taking place in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia (close to the West Siberian Plain).

Nearly 1,500 players, coaches, and captains of 262 men’s and women’s teams from nearly 150 countries are here for two weeks to battle for the individual and team gold, silver and bronze medals. Just to give you an idea how large the Chess Olympiad is, here are the statistics for this international competition:

• 2008 Summer Olympics (Beijing, China): 204 nations.
•2008 Chess Olympiad (Dresden, Germany): 152 nations.
•2006 Winter Olympics (Turin, Italy): 86 nations.

Yes, chess is a part of the IOC. There have been various discussions in recent years to include chess as part of the Summer or Winter Olympics. Nothing has materialized yet. For now the Chess Olympiad enjoys the second position behind the Summer Olympics with approximately 150 countries battling every two years.

You can follow LIVE games and all updated information about the 2010 Chess Olympiad in Khanty-Mansiysk at www.ChessDailyNews.com.

Source: Avalanche Journal