The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi launched the historic torch relay for the 44th Chess Olympiad on June 19 at Indira Gandhi Stadium, New Delhi.
- FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich handed over the torch to the Prime Minister, who in turn handed it over to Grandmaster Vishwanathan Anand.
- This torch will be taken to 75 cities in a span of 40 days before the final culmination at Mahabalipuram near Chennai.
- This year, for the very first time, the International Chess Body, FIDE, has instituted the Chess Olympiad Torch that is part of Olympic tradition, but was never done in the Chess Olympiad.
- India will be the first-ever country to have the Chess Olympiad Torch Relay.
- Notably, taking the Indian roots of Chess to a greater height, this tradition of Torch Relay for the Chess Olympiad will henceforth always begin in India and travel across all continents before reaching the host country.
- The 44th Chess Olympiad will be held in Chennai from July 28 to August 10, 2022.
- The prestigious competition, which has been organised since 1927, is being hosted in India for the first time and in Asia after 30 years.
- With 189 countries participating, this will be the largest participation in any Chess Olympiad.
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