The Kings Indian Gambit
On the morning of 16 July 2022, Mr. Murli was driving via the Napier Bridge of Chennai and saw that the whole bridge was painted like a game of chess. The cars felt like rooks and queens gliding over the chessboard.
The city was ready to welcome chess delegates from all over the world for the Chess Olympiad 2022, one of the biggest international chess events. Over 160 countries were to be a part of this prestigious tournament.
Russia was a country that was going to host the Chess Olympiad but the war changed the whole scenario. FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich started looking forward to a new country that could organize the Olympiad with 3 months' notice. Bharat Singh Chauhan, president of the All-India Chess Federation saw an opportunity and reached Dvorkovich. “24 hours is what you have, tell me if you can or not.” There was no sign of any financial backing or sponsors for the hosting of the event.
Working overnight and using all his experience Bharat Singh said Yes for hosting the Olympiad and 3 cities were decided- Delhi, Ahmedabad, and Chennai. Chennai won the hosting rights to organize the 44th edition of The Chess Olympiad. Bharat Singh, with his years of expertise, accepted the challenge of hosting the Olympiad despite working through the night.
The city of Mamallapuram,50 km from Chennai with its beautiful east coast and luxurious hotels was all set to welcome the chess delegates. Bharat Singh in one interview said that he felt like Amitabh Bachchan from one movie “I don’t have a penny in my pocket but I want to deal in crores.”
The event backed by the Central Government and State government got funding of 100 crore rupees and officials wasted no time in clearing VISAs of all 160 plus countries.
The inspiring story of India organizing the Chess Olympiad in just 3 months which takes years for other countries sparked a love for chess all around the country. The delegates of Hungary, the country which is going to host the Chess Olympiad 2024 were shocked to see the organizers sprinting their way to make this event big. Despite the tight deadline of just three months, the organizers managed to accomplish a remarkable feat, effectively handling the accreditation process, tent placement, venue and hotel arrangements, transportation logistics, system finalizing the safety and cloakroom arrangements, and even the online registration.
In the end India managed to pull out rabbit from the hat and India managed to organise a great and successful event.
About the author,
Jainil
A person who enjoys exploring and has a great fondness for philosophy. This guy can’t stop comparing himself with the character of a film he recently watched or the book he just red. A Marketing and Operations enthusiast guy looking for more blues in life.
