Asian Continental Championships 2012

Friday, 04 May 2012 13:46

The 11th Asian Continental/Individual Open and Women’s Chess Championships started today in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Seventy men and 40 women are competing in the 9-round Swiss System tournaments. Visit chess-results.com for pairings and results. Above are dancers at the opening ceremony (photos by Mehrdad Pahlevanzadeh).

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At the opening ceremony were, from right, Asian Chess Federation Deputy President Casto Abundo, Vuong Bich Thang, Chairman of the Vietnam Sports Administration, and Nguyen Huu Luan, President of the Vietnam Chess Federation and Chairman of the tournament's main sponsor, Phuong Trang.

"A wise old man named Stewart Reuben taught me that my most important objective as organizer is that players enjoy themselves," Abundo said. The Chief Arbiter appealed to the players' sense of fair play in the tournament where draw offers are not allowed before 30 moves. Abundo cautioned against shorts draws and warned against pre-arranged games.

The top five in the Open quallify to the World Cup. The Asian Woman's Champion qualifies to the Women's World Championship. A total of $65,000 in cash prizes are at stake in the tournament.

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