
The Armenian president was the honorary guest at the event – an acknowledgment for Armenia’s contribution to the development and outreach of chess.
President Sargsyan delivered remarks at the inauguration of the chess tournament, the President’s Office said.
Ullrich Krause, president of Germany’s Chess Federation and FIDE Vice President Georgios Makropoulous also delivered opening remarks.
World Chess President Ilya Merenzon and Vice President of the Russian Chess Federation Andrei Guryev – the organizers of the event – delivered speeches as well.
At the end of the opening ceremony the 8 renowned chess players who will compete at the tournament were introduced.
ARMENPRESS presents the full transcript of the president’s remarks:
“Dear Mr. Makropoulous,
Dear participants of the tournament,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Today is a major event for global chess – the Candidates Tournament is beginning, which is highly anticipated by millions of fans around the world.
I believe this is a unique destination for the chess giants present here today, who only hours later will kick off this giant tournament for the right to challenge world champion Magnus Carlsen.
I am proud and also grateful to the organizers for having the chance to make the first symbolic move at this tournament, as the best appreciation for the contribution which our country has had for the development and outreach of chess. Although Armenia is not a big country by size and population many believe it to be a chess superpower, because in the past several years the national chess team of Armenia, which also includes the current candidate Levon Aronian, has captured three Olympic titles and one world champion title.
Chess is a unique game which has been tested by time. It is very much similar to life where the final result greatly depends on the moves which you’ve done, while after the game all pieces – be it a King or an ordinary pawn, are stored in the same box. Perhaps this is the reason that for many centuries mankind loves to play chess, is discovering its new and hidden sides, is trying to uncover the endless secrets and depth of this wise game.
Chess is a game, but also an art and science. It teaches the culture of accurate calculation and thinking, creativity and honest competition. It forces to deeply respect your opponent. Realizing the positive impact of chess on children’s reasoning, flexibility and development of creative mind and other features, Armenia became the first country in the world to include chess in its national curriculum.
I can happily state that our society accepted this with great excitement and the positive results can already be felt. Certainly, we are happy that t...
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