The 42nd Chess Olympiad (; also known as the Baku Chess Olympiad), organised by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) and comprising an openAlthough sometimes referred to as the "men's division", this section is open to all players. and women's tournaments, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, was an international team chess event held in Baku, Azerbaijan, from 1 to 14 September 2016. It was the first time that the Chess Olympiad had been hosted in Azerbaijan, the birthplace of former world champion Garry Kasparov; however, Azerbaijan had previously hosted strong tournaments, including the annual Shamkir Chess super-tournament in memory of Vugar Gashimov (1986–2014) and the Chess World Cup 2015.
The total number of participants was 1,587, with 894 in the Open and 693 in the Women's event. The number of registered teams was 180 from 175 countries in the Open section and 142 from 138 countries in the Women's section. Both sections set team participation records. Eritrea, Kosovo, and South Sudan competed in the tournament for the first time. The venue of the Chess Olympiad was the Baku Crystal Hall. The Chief Arbiter of the event was Azerbaijan's International Arbiter Faiq Hasanov.
The United States won the gold medal in the Open event for the first time since 1976 and for the sixth time overall, while China won their fifth gold medal in the Women's event and the first since 1994 after winning the silver medal in the last three Olympiads. Ukrainian player Andrei Volokitin, who played as a reserve player, was the best individual player in the Open event with 8½ out of 9 points (eight wins and one draw), with a performance rating of 2992. Russian Valentina Gunina, playing on board two, was the best individual player in the Women's event with 8 out of 10 points (seven wins, two draws and one loss), with a performance rating of 2643.
Bidding process The bidding procedure for the 42nd Chess Olympiad and the FIDE Congress in connection with a possible bid for the Chess World Cup 2015 was opened in December 2011. Each city interested to host the event had to submit their bid to FIDE by 31 May 2012. The bids were to guarantee that all necessary provisions in accordance with the Olympiad Regulations of the FIDE Handbook would be covered by the organiser, including articles 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 pertaining to the organising committee, finances, and provision of amenities and stipends, respectively. Three cities submitted bids to host the event: Albena, Tallinn and Baku.
The final decision was made at the 83rd FIDE Congress in September 2012 in Istanbul. Out of the three bidding cities, the applications of Albena and Tallinn were not accepted as they both failed to make presentations before the voting. Thereafter, discussions started about Baku's nomination and two concerns were raised. The first was the protest by the Armenian representatives against holding the Olympiad in Azerbaijan, who stated that the Armenian chess players would find it difficult to play in Baku, since the two nations were in armed conflict. The second concern was related to the difficulties that the participants may have in obtaining a visa to enter the country. In his speech during the congress, Azerbaijani Minister of Youth and Sports Azad Rahimov said that Armenian sportsmen had already visited Azerbaijan and participated in competitions, where they were provided with security guarantees that had been met, and no incident was ever recorded. He also mentioned the victory of Russian Armenian boxer Misha Aloyan in the 2011 AIBA World Boxing Championships held in Baku as an example that Armenians can not only participate but also win. With regard to the visa issue, Rahimov mentioned the positive experience with the Eurovision Song Contest 2012, where all participants received their visas on arrival at the airport without any problem. He also added that the Armenian sportsmen will also get visas easily. The next speaker was FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, who suggested that the 42nd Chess Olympiad should take place in Baku and mentioned that there are four years for the Azerbaijani-Armenian conflict to be resolved before the event.
His proposal was supported by the delegates and the FIDE Congress awarded the Chess Olympiad 2016 to Baku, and the Chess World Cup 2015 for the year before.
Preparations The organising committee of the Chess Olympiad consisted of fourteen prominent Azerbaijani dignitaries. Head of the committee was the First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Yaqub Eyyubov, while the other members include the Minister of Youth and Sport Azad Rahimov, the Minister of Culture and Tourism Abulfas Garayev, the Minister of Healthcare Ogtay Shiraliyev, the Governor of the Central Bank Azerbaijan and President of the Azerbaijan Chess Federation Elman Rustamov, the Mayor of Baku Hajibala Abutalybov, the CEO of SOCAR Rovnag Abdullayev, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Elmar Mammadyarov, the Minister of Internal Affairs Ramil Usubov, the Minister of Finance Samir Sharifov, the Chairman of the State Customs Committee Aydin Aliyev, the Chief of the State Migration Service Firudin Nabiyev, the Vice-President of the Azerbaijan Chess Federation Mahir Mammadov, and the Vice-President of the Azerbaijan Chess Federation and Chief Arbiter of the 42nd Chess Olympiad Faiq Hasanov. In addition to the organising committee, there was an operating committee of six members in charge of the preparations whose director was Mahir Mammadov.
In May 2016, the operating committee named three Azerbaijani artists as "Celebrity Ambassadors": the theatre producer Mushivq Abbasov, and the theatre actors Joshgun Rahimov and Rafael Isgandarov. In July 2016, the Olympic gold medal-winning wrestler Farid Mansurov became the fourth celebrity ambassador.
Change of dates The Chess Olympiad was initially planned to take place from 17 to 30 September 2016. Nevertheless, the organisers have wished to change the dates of the Olympiad because of the school holidays and the availability of hotels. On February 16, FIDE announced that the dates for the Olympiad have been moved to 1–14 September, while the dates for the 87th FIDE Congress to 4–14 September 2016. FIDE have also approached the organisers of the World Youth Chess Championship in Khanty Mansiysk, who were able to change their dates to 20 September–4 October 2016, in order to avoid clash of dates. On 18 February, the organisers of the Sinquefield Cup 2016 announced that the dates for their tournament had been moved to 4–16 August because of the rescheduling of the Olympiad.
Venue
The venue of the Chess Olympiad was the Baku Crystal Hall. It was built in order to host the Eurovision Song Contest from 22 to 26 May 2012. In late 2012, Jennifer Lopez, Shakira and Rihanna also performed concerts there. In March 2014, the final four tournament of the 2013–14 CEV Women's Champions League took place in the hall. In June 2015, it hosted the boxing, karate, taekwondo, fencing and volleyball events during the inaugural 2015 European Games.
The total area of the complex is 30,958 m2, while the area of the arena is 10,964 m2. Its height in the middle is 24 m. The arena is lit by 12,000 LED light points with a lighting rate of 850 lux at 1 m height. The corridor around the arena is divided into two symmetrical parts with 15 entrances on each side, including 30 outside entrances. Each sector has 2 transport access points (1 on each side), 10 arena entrances (5 on each side) and 16 tribune access points (8 on each side). Along the corridor, there are 10 beverage facilities (5 in each sector), 18 catering facilities (9 in each sector), 2 first aid points (1 in each sector), 36 toilets (6 for men, 6 for women and 6 for persons with physical disabilities in each sector). The hall has 12,000 seats but can accommodate 27,000 people.
The building has a crystalline shape and illuminated façade with numerous LED lights. Its shape and façade are response to Azerbaijan's special request for the creation of a widely visible and visually effective landmark as a bridge between Asia and Europe that will be noticed in an international context. The LED lights were upgraded to allow different dynamic lighting scenarios to appear in order to highlight the membrane façade and create moods appropriate for the different stages of the events.
Financing The budget for the Olympiad was 13.3 million euros. Some 6.8 million euros were set aside for the first-class accommodation for the players and delegates, while another 1 million euros went to the FIDE Commission for World Championships & Olympiads and intellectual rights.
The event
Opening ceremony
The opening ceremony was held on 1 September in the National Gymnastics Arena. The central area of the stage was slightly elevated and turned into a chessboard by lights from above. The ceremony began with a performance presenting the theme "the sea: the source of life", which was followed by the anthems of Azerbaijan and FIDE. Thereafter, the Head of the organising committee and the First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Yaqub Eyyubov gave a speech. Eyyubov spoke in Azeri and noted that the Chess Olympiad is the third-largest competition in the world. He mentioned the great contribution of the president Ilham Aliyev and his father Heydar Aliyev to the sport successes of the host country, and then pointed out the great efforts that were done during the preparations for the Chess Olympiad. Finally, Eyyubov confidently stated that everything was ready for a well-organised and enjoyable Olympiad that he promised to be one of the most memorable in chess history. The next to speak was FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhnov, who welcomed all participants from the record-number of countries and extolled the great preparatory work of the organising committee. He also expressed his belief in the success of the Chess Olympiad on the basis of Azerbaijan's experience in hosting important chess events combined with its remarkable infrastructure and beauty. After their speeches, the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev declared the 42nd Chess Olympiad open.
The ceremony continued with a welcoming video that featured famous chess players from around the world addressing the participants. Then, there was a performance focusing of the connection between people and chess players, which included a waltz choreography as the centrepiece of the show. It was followed by a graphical show at the elevated chessboard that combined folk and modern dance, and was supported by video art projected on the area around and behind the stage. The show featured traditional carpet patterns and designs, embracing a dance group replaying the game of chaturanga. The next part of the ceremony was the parade of nations with the presentation of flags. Each appearance of a new flag on the screen was accompanied by a percussionist who showed up on the stage playing on nagara with the same flag as his drumhead. The percussionists left the stage under the sound of an adaption of the song "We Are the World".
The final part of the ceremony was marked with the drawing of lots. It was assisted by Vladimir Kramnik and Hou Yifan as the highest-rated players of the highest-ranked teams in the open and women's event, respectively, who joined the Chief Arbiter Faiq Hasanov for the drawing of colours. The draw resulted in Hou picking the White pieces, meaning that all players in the women's section with odd board numbers (1 or 3) will be White in the first round; and Kramnik picking the Black pieces, meaning that all players in the open section with odd board numbers (1 or 3) will have the Black pieces in the opening round.
The opening ceremony ended with a song that was specially composed for the Chess Olympiad and was performed by popular Azerbaijani singers.
Participating teams