VietNamNet Bridge – Both the men’s and women’s teams of Vietnam had their first win at the 2012 World Chess Olympiad in Turkey.

Pham Le Thao Nguyen.

The event is taking place in Istanbul, from August 28 to September 9. This is the largest ever Olympiad, with competitors coming from 158 countries and territories, with 158 men’s teams and 131 women’s team.

Vietnam competes in both men’s and women’s team events.

The men’s team consists of: Le Quang Liem, Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son, Dao Thien Hai, Nguyen Duc Hoa and Nguyen Van Huy.

The women’s team includes: Pham Le Thao Nguyen, Le Kieu Thien Kim, Nguyen Thi Mai Hung, Pham Bich Ngoc and Hoang Thi Nhu Y.

The coaching board hopes that the women’s team will be successful at the tournament. The men’s team used to rank tenth at the Chess Olympiad 2010.

In the men’s event, the top five teams are Russia (Elo 2769), Ukraine (2730), Armenia (2742), Azerbaijan (2719) and Hungary (2708). Vietnam ranks 28th with Elo 2589.

In the women’s event, the top five consist of China (2531), Russia (2513), Georgia (2490), Ukraine (2471) and the US (2419). Vietnam ranks 27th with 2265.

In the men’s event, Vietnam faced Nicaragua (104th) in the opening game. Four Vietnamese male players held the black chessman and all of them did not lose.

The International Grand Masters, Le Quang Liem and Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son, had their first win. Liem defeated William Bravo while Son trounced Ernesto Fonseca Cabrera, earning one point each.

Meanwhile, International Master Nguyen Van Huy and Nguyen Hoa Doc drew and had 0.5 point each.

Also, all four female players of Vietnam – Thao Nguyen, Nhu Y, Thien Kim and Mai Hung, won in their first game.

After the first round, the men’s team of Vietnam ranks 66th, while the women’s team ranks 18th.

In the second round today, August 30, the men’s team will hold the white chessman and face Bosnia & Herzegovina (the 50th on ranking list) while the women’s team will challenge Hungary, a very strong rival. VietNamNet will report the result of this round tomorrow.
 
The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams from all over the world compete against each other. The event is organized by FIDE, which selects the host nation.

Each FIDE recognized chess association can enter a team into the Olympiad. Each team is made of up to five players, four regular players and one reserve.

The trophy for the winning team in the open section is the Hamilton-Russell Cup, which was offered by the English magnate Frederick Hamilton-Russell as a prize for the 1st Olympiad (London 1927). The cup is kept by the winning team until the next event, when it will be consigned to the next winner. The trophy for the winning women's team is known as the Vera Menchik Cup in honor of the first Women's World Chess Champion.

The 2014 Olympiad is scheduled in Norway.

Compiled by S. Tung