Chennai has been gripped by Chess fever lately with just 4 days remaining for the 44th Chess Olympiad. Before the mega event kicks in, the chess extravaganza has continued. The city on Sunday held a curtain raiser to assess the preparations ahead of the tournament which is expected to grab many eyeballs.
Also, a few thousand people took part in an Olympiad special run organized in the city today ahead of the prestigious tournament. State Ministers including MA Subramanian, TM Anbarasan, and PK Sekar Babu among others were present at the event.
As many as 1,414 players took part in the test tournament held in various age categories.
The curtain raiser tournament was conducted in the same hall today that will host the 44th Chess Olympiad, creating a world record by becoming the largest Open ever where all the games were played on electronic boards. The Tamil Nadu government is leaving no stone unturned in the efforts to make the Olympiad a huge success. GM Vishnu Prasanna of Tamil Nadu was the highest-rated player in the fray and justified the top billing by notching nine wins from as many games in this Swiss League event which carried a prize purse of Rs 500000.
AICF president Dr. Sanjay Kapoor was pleased with the proceedings and said, "We appear to be hitting the record books with a regularity, which is far more than what we expected. Our hard work is reaping dividend, first with a world record with 187 countries registering, the highest ever in the history of the Olympiad and today this".
The chess Olympiad is being held in India for the first time and the tournament will be held at nearby Mamallapuram. Players from over 180 countries will be participating in the Olympiad with three Indian teams each in the Open and women's sections.
'Thambi', the mascot of the marquee event, can be seen at various places in the city while the iconic Napier Bridge has been painted in black and white colors to resemble a chess board. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the event at the Nehru Indoor Stadium here on July 28 in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin while the matches will begin from July 29 and go on till August 10.
Chief Minister Stalin himself has been at the forefront, supervising the arrangements and visiting the venue to inspect the preparations.
(Inputs from PTI)
