KHANTY-MANSIYSK, Russia, Nov. 03, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — One month after gold medals were awarded to World Under-20 Chess Championships, the city of Khanty-Mansiysk, a Siberian city that hosted this prestigious chess event this year, passed the baton to the Indian city of Bhubaneswar, and is hard at work at putting to use the tournament that took place in the Siberian ‘chess capital’.

Khanty-Mansiysk became the first Siberian city to host the tournament in over 60 years of the event’s history. The annual tournament was first staged in 1951 in England. Young chess players who win the Championship usually go on to become national and world chess champions. This year winners of Boys’ and Girls’ tournament are: Mikhail Antipov of Russia and Nataliya Buksa of Ukraine.

Natalia Komarova, governor of Yugra region, said: “The chess sport positively affects the lives of 1.5 million people of Yugra, and we are excited to become the true chess capital of Russia. Hosting international youth tournaments helps us raise our profile on the global level. We are also happy to invest in the children’s future and are proud to support this exciting and important event, which is an experience of a lifetime for young players.”

During the 2-week tournament all guests of the capital of Yugra got a chance to see the rich Siberian culture, with many cultural events set up for visiting chess players from all over the world. Players enjoyed warm September weather to stroll around the city park getting ready for the next rounds of play. For many of them it was the first visit to Russia, and it left a memorable mark. But mostly players were focused on playing excellent chess.

Prior to hosting U-20 World Chess Championships, Khanty-Mansiysk became famous in the world of chess by hosting the World Chess Olympiad, Final round of Grand Prix, as well as the World Champion’s Candidates Tournament.

Vassily Filippenko, mayor of Khanty-Mansiysk, said: “Players, trainers, and FIDE members praised the way this year’s Championship was arranged. Our city is truly the city of chess: we host a wide array of chess events, from kids’ tournaments to Chess Grand Prix. And we are thrilled to have children sign up to chess classes, as a result of having these great events.”

Former winners of the tournament include World Chess Champions: Boris Spassky, Anatoly Karpov, Garry Kasparov, and Viswanathan Anand. Current top-rated chess players: Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France), Levon Aronian (Armenia), Yu Yangyi (China) and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (Azerbaijan) are among former winners of the Boys’ tournament.

In 2016 the World U-20 Chess Championship will be hosted by the Indian city Bhubaneswar, a town with the 3,000 year history, located in Eastern India.

CONTACT: Contact: 
World Chess 
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Masha Kunica
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