Qatar Chess National Team Achieves Second Victory in India-hosted Olympiad

Chennai (India), August 02 (QNA) - Qatar chess national team defeated 70th seed Bolivia in the third round of the 44th edition of the Chess Olympiad currently held in Chennai, India. This is Qatar's second victory in the championship following a first-round 4-0 win over Papua New Guinea before they lost to Denmark in the second round by 3.5 points to half a point. Qatar's mission led by Head of Qatar Chess Federation Mohammed Al Madhahka includes international master Hussein Aziz, FIDE Master Ghanim Al Sulaiti, and Youssef Mohamed Al Mutawa along with junior players Abdullah Al Hamid and Rayyan Erfan and international referee Youssef Khalil. Qatar will take on Finland in the fourth round on Tuesday. Al Madhahka said he was joyful with the national team's second victory, expressing hope it will continue victories and raise points during the coming rounds. The national team is making good performances in the World Olympiad, whether in the first win against Papua New Guinea or the second against Bolivia, depending on international master Hussein Aziz, Ghanim Al Sulaiti and Youssef Mohamed Al Mutawa, said Al Madhahka in a statement, adding the Qatari team performed well against the 27th seed Denmark despite the loss. These victories will certainly up the national team's international ranking, and they are a good opportunity to have high-level matches against various teams, particularly with 185 teams representing 180 countries participating in the Olympics, he concluded. Qatar's best-ever achievement in the Olympiad was in Slovenia in 2002 when it came 50th among 170 competing countries, defeating reputable teams including the United States. The national team is currently ranked 85th globally and fifth among Arab countries. The Egyptian team tops Arab rankings internationally in 47th place followed by Tunisia in the 61st and Morocco in 68th and then Iraq in 83rd place. (QNA)