FIDE president to confer cup at HDBank 2019 chess tournament

FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich

The seventh FIDE president is fairly well-known in the political platform as he has just finished his term as the Russian Federation’s deputy prime minister and successfully performed as chairman of the FIFA World Cup 2018 Organising Committee.

Dvorkovich is on a trip around Asia to promote chess as part of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France.

He will stay in Ho Chi Minh City for five hours before leaving to attend the awards ceremony of the World Team Championship held in Kazakhstan on March 14.

The FIDE president’s short stay in Vietnam amidst his busy agenda is regarded as a stimulus to Vietnam’s chess development. The recent resounding successes of Vietnamese chess have definitely played a part in the FIDE president’s decision to visit Vietnam.

While not as energetic as Vietnamese football, which is now listed in the top 100 on the FIFA World Rankings after its continuous successes in 2018, Vietnamese chess players have recently been breaking records.

The Vietnamese chess team finished seventh at the 2018 Olympiad, with player Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son winning the gold medal.

Several Vietnamese players were triumphant at international competitions. For instance, Vietnamese chess grandmaster Le Quang Liem was rated in the global top 20 and master Vo Thi Kim Phung won the gold medal at the Asian Continental Chess Championship in 2017, among others.

Over the past decade, HDBank International Chess Tournament has acted as an important platform to help Vietnamese chess talents reach the global arena. The largest international event of Vietnamese chess has become an intriguing platform attracting the world’s top players to Vietnam.

FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich’s personally honouring the champion of HDBank 2019 Chess Tournament serves as great stimulus to the players.

Female chess master Pham Le Thao Nguyen said, “The FIDE president visiting Vietnam is a great honour to Vietnamese chess. I am very excited at the chance to receive the cup from the president as there are not many such opportunities in an athlete’s life. I will try my best in the rest of the tournament for the best possible results.”