Chess Olympiad Countdown Begins as Sindarov Receives Ceremonial Torch

The official countdown to the 46th Chess Olympiad began with the ceremonial handover of the Olympiad torch to Uzbekistan’s top player Javokhir Sindarov, as the chess world prepares for the prestigious team competition in Samarkand.

FIDE Interim President Viswanathan Anand and All India Chess Federation (AICF) president Nitin Narang handed the torch bearing the Olympiad flame to Sindarov in Bengaluru on Monday. The Uzbek Grandmaster will carry the torch to his home country ahead of the tournament, which gets underway in Samarkand on September 15 and runs through September 27.

The event is expected to be one of the largest Chess Olympiads, with 208 teams in the open section and 191 teams in the women’s event. Host Uzbekistan, defending champions India, China and the United States are among the leading contenders in the open competition, while India and Georgia are among the top seeds in the women’s section.

The Chess Olympiad Torch Ceremony was introduced by FIDE in 2022, following the tradition of the Olympic flame. It is intended to symbolise chess’s ability to connect nations and generations and to highlight the sport’s global reach.

Narang said the tradition was particularly meaningful as the flame travelled from India, regarded as the birthplace of chess, to Uzbekistan, a country with a rapidly growing chess culture.

The torch ceremony also comes at an important stage in Sindarov’s career. The 2026 Candidates winner is set to challenge Indian world champion D Gukesh for the world title later this year, adding further significance to his role in carrying the Olympiad flame to Samarkand.

India enters the Olympiad as the defending champion in both the open and women’s categories and will look to retain both titles against strong international opposition.