Qatari Chess Team Loses Against Finnish Counterpart in Fourth Round of the World Olympiad

Chennai (India), August 02 (QNA) - The Qatari chess team lost on Tuesday against its Finnish counterpart, ranked 55th globally, in its second loss in the 44th edition of the World Olympic competitions.
Regarding the participation of the Qatari national team in this Olympiad, Executive Director of the Qatar Chess Association (QCA) Hamad Al Tamimi said in a statement to Qatar News Agency (QNA) that the chess team managed to achieve great gains during its participation in the Olympiad, especially that it faced the most prominent teams ranked at the international level, with 185 teams representing 180 countries.
He pointed out that the team seeks to achieve good results and obtain the maximum amount of points in the upcoming matches that will help raise the rating of players, especially international masters.
Al Tamimi stressed the need to take advantage of this type of participation, considering that it represents an important opportunity to gain many experiences, both for players and referees.
The Qatari national team will face its Iraqi counterpart in the fifth round on Wednesday, after winning their first round against Papua New Guinea with a score of 4-0, then losing in the second round to its Danish counterpart with a score of 3.5-0.5 points, before beating Bolivia on Monday 2.5-1.5 points.
On a related note, the International Chess Federation will hold its General Assembly next Sunday on the sidelines of the Olympic competitions, in addition to the elections that will determine a new board of directors for the next four years. Qatar will be present to contest the elections, especially that Qatari chess has achieved great gains through its presence in the Federation's membership during the past four years. Former Qatari national team star Zhu Chen, an international professor and former world champion, occupies the position of Treasurer at the International Federation, after being elected in the last edition of the Olympics, which took place in 2018 in Batumi, Georgia.
The Qatari national team currently ranks 91st in the overall ranking table, and fifth at the level of Arab national teams. (QNA)