India eyes hosting Chess Olympiad after tournament gets moved out of Moscow

Chennai: The All India Chess Federation (AICF) on Saturday said it will be bidding to host the 44th Chess Olympiad later this year after the prestigious event was moved out of Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.

The Chess Olympiad is a biennial event in which teams from some 190 countries compete over a two-week period.

The 2022 edition was supposed to take place in Moscow from 26 July to 8 August.

“Yeah, we are bidding for the chess Olympiad this year. The budget for the event would be USD 10 million (about Rs 75 crore),” AICF secretary Bharat Singh Chauhan told PTI.

On Friday, FIDE (the International Chess Federation) decided to move the Chess Olympiad and all other official competitions planned in Russia in the wake of the country’s invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.

The other events that were moved away from Russia are the first chess Olympiad for people with disabilities and the 93rd FIDE Congress.

FIDE is said to be already working on finding alternative dates and locations for these events.

“…the rapidly deteriorating geopolitical situation has forced the FIDE Council to make this difficult move. During its extraordinary meeting, held today, Friday, February 25, it was decided that all official competitions planned would be moved from Russia,” FIDE had stated.

If India gets the nod to host the Olympiad, it would be the second major world event to be held in the country after the World Championship match in 2013 between Viswanathan Anand and Magnus Carlsen, the current world No.1.

The invasion of Ukraine has led to a slew of sporting cancellations in Russia with Formula One suspending the Russian Grand Prix, UEFA moving the Champions League final out of St Petersburg and Poland refusing to play the country in a World Cup qualifier.

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