AICF praises Tamil Nadu government in helping bag Olympiad hosting rights

The Indian team for the Olympiad, AICF said, will be announced in May. As a host, India can host two teams in Open and two in women.

Published : Mar 16, 2022 18:41 IST , CHENNAI

REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE: The venue for the 44th Chess Olympiad will be Convention Centre at the Four Points by Sheraton in Mahabalipuram.
REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE: The venue for the 44th Chess Olympiad will be Convention Centre at the Four Points by Sheraton in Mahabalipuram.
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REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE: The venue for the 44th Chess Olympiad will be Convention Centre at the Four Points by Sheraton in Mahabalipuram.

The All-India Chess Federation (AICF) was all praise for the Government of Tamil Nadu for its swift response and support it provided to the National Federation in hosting the 44th Chess Olympiad to be held in the city from July 26 to August 8. The venue will be a resort--Convention Centre at the Four Points by Sheraton in Mahabalipuram.

Speaking at the launch, Bharat Singh Chauhan, AICF secretary, praised the Tamil Nadu bureaucracy, which he believed was very positive. “We met the Chief Minister Mr. M.K. Stalin and within five minutes he agreed. This is the best bureaucracy I’ve seen. The letter of confirmation [from the CM’s Office] came within few hours after we met Stalin. We travelled to East Coast Road along with five-six IAS Officers, fixed the venue and by the evening 1200 rooms were booked. Things are moving very quickly,” said Bharat.

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AICF president Sanjay Kapoor said the way in which Tamil Nadu Government moved to support the bid showed there was no red-tapism in the State. “When red-tapism has blunted the country, under the able administrators here, I think we are in safe hands,” he said.

Sanjay further said once it bid for the event, there was very little chance it being overlooked. “Once we threw our hat in the ring to host the Olympiad in 2022, our bid just couldn’t be overlooked because of many reasons. First, we have the best of the talents in India today. I am confident that we will do a great job to take chess to greater heights.”

According to Irai Anbu, Chief Secretary, Government of Tamil Nadu, it took great effort from the Tamil Nadu Government to win the bid when at the last minute Russia was stripped of hosting the Olympiad after its invasion of Ukraine. “Within a period of exactly 10 days from the announcement of FIDE looking for a new host, the AICF coordinated with the TN Government to have various approvals within hours of it approaching the CM’s Office, with the request to bid as the host.”

The Indian team for the Olympiad, AICF said, will be announced in May. As a host, India can host two teams in Open and two in women. It has emerged that teams from Russia and Belarus will not be able to participate in the Olympiad as the FIDE Council has suspended them based on recommendations of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

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