The 46th World Chess Olympiad in Samarkand came to a close on September 27 with a grand closing ceremony at the 'Eternal City' amphitheater in the Silk Road Samarkand complex. The event ended with fireworks and a large-scale drone show.
Uzbekistan-1 men's national team won gold medals and the main prize — the Hamilton Cup. The team included Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Javokhir Sindarov, Nodirbek Yakubboev, Shamsiddin Vokhidov, and Mukhiddin Madaminov. The team captain is Rustam Kasimdzhanov.
Nodirbek Abdusattorov won gold on board one. He scored 8.5 points in 11 games without a single loss. His performance rating was 2869, the best on his board. Javokhir Sindarov won bronze on board two (his participation and preparation are supported by the National Bank of Uzbekistan). He scored 7 points in 10 games with a performance of 2797. Gold on this board went to China's Wei Yi, silver to the Netherlands' Jorden van Foreest. Nodirbek Yakubboev won silver on board three — 7.5 points in 10 games, performance 2774. The winner on this board was Germany's Frederik Svane, bronze went to Armenia's Shant Sargsyan.
The main part of the ceremony began at about 20:30. FIDE President Timur Turlov, along with Viswanathan Anand and President of the Azerbaijan Chess Federation Mahir Mamedov, took the stage to present awards. First, the women's section prize winners were awarded. China won gold and the Vera Menchik Cup, Kazakhstan took silver, and India bronze. Then the Uzbekistan men's team came on stage. They were awarded gold medals and the Hamilton Cup. India took second place, and Germany third. After the award ceremony, the national anthem of Uzbekistan was played.
Uzbekistan secured the championship before the final round ended. The team defeated Ukraine 2.5:1.5, while main rival India drew with Hungary 2:2. This is Uzbekistan's second Olympic gold in four years. The team first won at the 2022 Olympiad in Chennai and took bronze in Budapest in 2024.
Uzbekistan's second national team, starting as No. 30 with an average rating of 2532, finished the Olympiad in 18th place with 15 team points. Uzbekistan-3 started as No. 55 with a rating of 2424 and finished 60th with 13 points. In the women's competition, Uzbekistan's main national team started from 13th place with a rating of 2345 and finished exactly 13th with 15 points. Uzbekistan-2 started 43rd with a rating of 2143 and climbed to 35th with 14 points. The third team started 65th with a rating of 2021 and took 47th place with 13 points.
India also won another main prize — the Gaprindashvili Cup, awarded to the federation with the best combined result of men's and women's teams. India's men's team won silver, and the women's team bronze.
At the beginning of the ceremony, awards were also given to the best teams in five rating categories (A to E). Uzbekistan's second women's team took third place in category 'B'. In the open (men's) section, the USA, Vietnam, Ecuador, Pakistan, and Qatar won. In the women's competition, the USA, Croatia, Sri Lanka, Ghana, and the Maldives were the best.
The organizers also awarded teams for the best costumes in three categories — classic, sport, and original. Among the winners were Hong Kong, Jamaica, South Africa, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Mali. Traditionally, at the end of the ceremony, the flag of the Chess Olympiad was handed over to the organizers of the next tournament — the UAE, which will host the competition in 2028. The flag was received from Alisher Sadullayev, First Vice-President of the Uzbekistan Chess Federation, by Hussein Abdullah Al-Khouri, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Chess Club and Director of the 47th Olympiad, and Abdulrahim Al-Zaruni, representative of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council.
During the ceremony, musicians, dance groups, and opera performers entertained more than 2000 guests. FIDE President Timur Turlov expressed gratitude to Uzbekistan's President Shavkat Mirziyoyev for supporting chess and the Olympiad, as well as to Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov, governments, chess federations, and organizing committees for their contribution to holding the tournament at a high level. Turlov then officially declared the 46th World Chess Olympiad closed. The ceremony ended with fireworks and a large-scale drone show.
Source: www.gazeta.uz