FIDE Deputy President Georgios Makropoulos was invited to attend the meeting of the Arab Chess Federation and the 23rd International Blitz/Rapid Championship in the UAE. The meeting took place in the Sharjah Cultural and Chess Club with the presence of honorable President of the Arab Chess Federation (ACF) Sheikh Saud Bin Abdulaziz Al Mualla and other distinguished members of the ACF board on 26th of May.

113 players took part in the 23rd Sharjah Rapid international chess championship 2018. Efstratios Grivas from Greece became the winner, while Walter Arencibia Rodriguez from Cuba took silver and Nodirbek Yakubboev from Uzbekistan won bronze medal.

Final Results of Rapid 

Gabriel Sargissian from Armenia won the 23rd Sharjah Blitz international chess championship 2018. Viktor Moskalenko came second and Salem A.R. Saleh from the UAE is on the third place. 131 players took part in the blitz tournament.

Final Results of Blitz 

From left to right: Sami Khader (Jordan), Fayes al Shammari (Kuwait), Khalid ez Aldeen (Palestine), Dhafer Madhloom (Iraq) and Husan Turdialiev (Uzbekistan) and Brahim bin Jalool (Algeria) and Georgios Makropoulos (Greece) and Sheikh Saud Bin Abdulaziz Al Mualla (UAE), Kholood Al Zarouni (UAE), Anastasia Sorokina (Belarus), Husain Al Shamsi (UAE), Sultan Al Taher (UAE), AL Shadily Al Rahamani (Tunisia), Mohammed Al Husseini (Egypt) and Rajai Al Susi (Palestine).