ASTANA, May 2. The first ever World Chess Championship among schools will be held in Kazakhstan this summer, the head of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) Arkady Dvorkovich said at a meeting with President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
According to the press service of the head of state, Tokayev received Dvorkovich and participants in the match for the title of world champion in classical chess Ding Liren and Ian Nepomniachtchi in Astana on Tuesday.
“He (Dvorkovich — ed.)… announced plans to hold in Kazakhstan this summer the first ever World School Championship, in which representatives of at least 80 countries are expected to participate,” the press service said.
The head of FIDE thanked Tokaev for the warm welcome.
«»About seven months have passed since our last meeting. During this time in Kazakhstan, with your full support, we have already held five world championships. We see how popular the game of chess is in Kazakhstan. The numbers are impressive, and they will be higher. I am sure of this, because the combination of government support and support from sponsors almost always gives good results,» said the FIDE President.
As Dvorkovich noted, many additional competitions were organized on the sidelines of the World Championship held in Astana, such as the match between the women's team of Kazakhstan against the world team, children's tournaments, master classes and simultaneous games with leading foreign chess players.