33rd Chess Olympiad

The 33rd Chess Olympiad (33-я Шахматная олимпиада, 33-ya Shakhmatnaya olimpiada; Kalmyk: 33-гче Шатрин олимпиад, 33-gçe Şatrin olimpiad), organized by FIDE and comprising an open^[1] and a women's tournament, took place between September 26 and October 13, 1998, in Elista, Kalmykia, Russia. There were 110 teams in the open event and 72 in the women's event.

The Olympiad was the first international chess event to be held at Chess City. Construction of the complex was not complete by the start of the tournament, and some FIDE members were concerned that the facilities would not be ready in time, including the airport, telephone system, player housing, and the "Chess Palace" to be used as the main playing hall.

Reported human rights abuses by FIDE and Kalmykia president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov led to calls for a boycott from Valery Borshchev, a member of the Duma. The British government did not call for a boycott but confirmed "reliable reports of human rights problems" and suggested that Kalmykian authorities might use publicity from Olympiad participation by foreign teams for its own purposes.^[2] Three nations were signed up but chose to stay away: Denmark, Norway, and Slovakia.

The opening ceremony took place as scheduled, but the Chess Palace was still covered in scaffolding and was missing many windows. The first round was delayed, one free day was eliminated, and the tournament was shortened to 13 rounds from the planned 14. The organizers worked around the clock and playing conditions improved as the tournament progressed, although the main playing hall was not properly heated. Living conditions, food and drink, and telephone service were generally reported to be acceptable.^{[3] [4]}

Both tournament sections were officiated by International Arbiter Geurt Gijssen (Netherlands). Teams were paired across the 13 rounds of competition according to the Swiss system. The open division was played over four boards per round, whilst the women's was played over three. In the event of a draw, the tie-break was decided by 1. the Buchholz system; and 2. match points.

The time control for each game permitted each player 100 minutes to make their first 40 moves, then an additional 50 minutes to make the next 20 moves, and then 10 minutes to finish the game, with an additional 30 seconds devolving on each player after each move, beginning with the first.

In addition to the overall medal winners, the teams were divided into seeding groups, with the top finishers in each group receiving special prizes.

The open division was contested by 110 teams representing 106 nations. Russia, as hosts, fielded an unprecedented four teams (Russia "C" was referred to as "Team Kalmykia" and Russia "D" was a youth team), whilst the International Braille Chess Association provided one squad.

Even without their strongest players, the "Three Ks" (PCA world champion Garry Kasparov, FIDE champion Anatoly Karpov and Vladimir Kramnik), Russia were still favourites, and the team did win their fourth consecutive title. The United States improved another spot from the previous Olympiad and finished second, and Ukraine took the bronze medals, beating Israel on tiebreak.

Open event

#	Country	Players	Average rating	Points	Buchholz
1	Russia	Svidler, Rublevsky, Bareev, Morozevich, Zvjaginsev, Sakaev	2684	351⁄2
2	United States	Yermolinsky, Shabalov, Seirawan, Gulko, De Firmian, Kaidanov	2631	341⁄2
3	Ukraine	Ivanchuk, Onischuk, Romanishin, Malaniuk, Savchenko, Ponomariov	2638	321⁄2	394.0
4	Israel	Alterman, Smirin, Sutovsky, Psakhis, Kosashvili, Avrukh	2593	321⁄2	379.0
5	China	Peng Xiaomin, Ye Jiangchuan, Zhang Zhong, Yu Shaoteng, Wu Wenjin, Wang Rui	2498	311⁄2	389.5
6	Germany	Yusupov, Dautov, Lutz, Hübner, Gabriel, Luther	2610	311⁄2	386.5
7	Georgia	Azmaiparashvili, Giorgadze, Sturua, Bagaturov, Supatashvili, Janjgava	2601	311⁄2	377.5
8	Russia "B"	Dreev, Filippov, Volkov, Kobalia, Yemelin, Shariyazdanov	2594	31	395.5
9	Hungary	Almási, Pintér, C. Horváth, J. Horváth, Varga, Gyimesi	2588	31	375.0
10	Romania	Istrățescu, Marin, Nisipeanu, Ionescu, Nevednichy, Vajda	2548	301⁄2	392.5

#	Country	Average rating	Points	Buchholz	MP
11	England	2661	301⁄2	390.5
12	Netherlands	2605	301⁄2	380.5
13	Belarus	2555	301⁄2	378.5
14	Latvia	2533	301⁄2	369.5
15	Poland	2564	301⁄2	361.5
16	Armenia	2630	30	397.5
17	Bulgaria	2626	30	393.0
18	Yugoslavia	2563	30	367.5
19	Kazakhstan	2519	30	359.5
=20	Sweden	2546	291⁄2	372.0	16
=20	Czech Republic	2565	291⁄2	372.0	16
22	Lithuania	2539	291⁄2	368.0
23	Slovenia	2515	291⁄2	357.5
24	Cuba	2519	29	379.5
25	Croatia	2559	29	363.0
26	France	2585	281⁄2	383.5
27	Uzbekistan	2525	281⁄2	373.5
28	Argentina	2545	281⁄2	372.0
29	Spain	2601	281⁄2	370.5
30	Bosnia and Herzegovina	2590	281⁄2	368.0
31	Switzerland	2509	281⁄2	364.5
32	Russia "C"	2470	281⁄2	357.5
33	India	2491	281⁄2	353.0
34	Mexico	2464	281⁄2	343.0
35	Philippines	2443	28	368.5
36	Greece	2531	28	366.5
37	Moldova	2511	28	364.5
38	Egypt	2371	28	338.5
39	Kyrgyzstan	2495	271⁄2	373.5
40	Estonia	2580	271⁄2	370.5
41	Italy	2488	271⁄2	360.0
42	Canada	2466	271⁄2	358.5
43	Azerbaijan	2474	271⁄2	356.0
44	Albania	2418	271⁄2	354.0	14
45	Finland	2420	271⁄2	354.0	12
46	North Macedonia	2499	271⁄2	352.5
47	Tajikistan	2376	271⁄2	348.5
48	Brazil	2485	271⁄2	348.0
49	Mongolia	2370	271⁄2	341.5
50	Austria	2390	27	360.0
51	Iceland	2489	27	355.0
52	IBCA	2263	27	339.5
53	Bangladesh	2384	261⁄2	353.5
54	Belgium	2335	261⁄2	351.0
55	Vietnam	2464	261⁄2	348.5
56	New Zealand	2286	261⁄2	323.0
57	Colombia	2445	26	356.0
58	Ireland	2349	26	343.5
59	Iran	2374	26	339.0
60	Luxembourg	2339	26	333.0
61	Chile	2415	26	331.0
62	Angola	2229	26	313.5
63	Australia	2405	251⁄2	342.0
64	Peru	2398	251⁄2	337.5
65	Venezuela	2314	251⁄2	334.5
66	Scotland	2348	251⁄2	334.0
67	Portugal	2418	251⁄2	333.5
68	Wales	2275	251⁄2	320.0
69	Nigeria	2256	251⁄2	318.5
70	Turkey	2444	25
71	Turkmenistan	2431	241⁄2	352.5
72	Faroe Islands	2233	241⁄2	341.5
73	Iraq	2301	241⁄2	329.0
74	Malaysia	2075	24	321.0
75	United Arab Emirates	2223	24	316.5
76	Puerto Rico	2238	24	313.5
77	Andorra	2276	24	308.5
78	Jamaica	2066	24	307.5
79	Ecuador	2254	231⁄2	330.0
80	South Africa	2318	231⁄2	326.0
81	Zimbabwe	2184	231⁄2	316.0
82	Russia "D"	2215	231⁄2	315.5
83	Kenya	2035	231⁄2	302.0
84	Yemen	2246	23	328.5
85	Bolivia	2148	23	315.0
86	Libya	2000	23	301.0
87	Cyprus	2243	23	299.0
88	Singapore	2129	23	294.5
89	Qatar	2276	221⁄2	317.5
90	Trinidad and Tobago	2118	221⁄2	312.0
91	El Salvador	2076	221⁄2	305.5
92	Japan	2191	221⁄2	303.5
93	Uganda	2045	221⁄2	296.0
94	Lebanon	2191	22	323.0
95	Palestine	2184	22	288.5
96	San Marino	2149	22	276.0
97	Honduras	2078	22	270.0
98	Nicaragua	2151	211⁄2	296.5
99	Barbados	2054	211⁄2	272.0
100	Macau	2148	211⁄2	268.0
101	Botswana	2045	21
102	Malta	2134	201⁄2	293.0
103	Namibia	2060	201⁄2	273.0
104	Mali	2049	201⁄2	261.5
105	Jersey	2081	20	265.5
106	Afghanistan	2000	20	260.0
107	Netherlands Antilles	2043	19
108	Guernsey	2090	181⁄2
109	Seychelles	2060	18
110	United States Virgin Islands	2000	3

• Performance rating: Georgia (country) Zurab Azmaiparashvili 2804
• Board 1: Qatar Mohamad Al-Modiahki 71⁄2 / 8 = 93.8%
• Board 2: Nigeria Odion Aikhoje 61⁄2 / 8 = 81.3%
• Board 3: Cuba Reynaldo Vera González 7 / 9 = 77.8%
• Board 4: Yemen Hamaid Gadhi 61⁄2 / 8 = 81.3%
• 1st reserve: Scotland Andrew Muir 6 / 7 = 85.7%
• 2nd reserve: Israel Boris Avrukh 8 / 10 = 80.0%

The women's division was contested by 72 teams representing 69 nations. Russia, as hosts, fielded three teams, whilst the International Braille Chess Association entered one squad.

China finally broke the Eastern European dominance by winning the title, led by former (and future) world champion Xie Jun and future champion Zhu Chen. Russia took the silver, whilst defending quadruple champions Georgia had to settle for bronze.

#	Country	Players	Average rating	Points	Buchholz
1	China	Xie Jun, Zhu Chen, Wang Pin, Wang Lei	2480	29
2	Russia	Matveeva, Kovalevskaya, Shumiakina, Stepovaya-Dianchenko	2438	27	295.0
3	Georgia	Chiburdanidze, Ioseliani, Arakhamia-Grant, Khurtsidze	2480	27	289.5
4	Netherlands	Peng Zhaoqin, Sziva, Bosboom-Lanchava, Jap Tjoen San	2325	231⁄2	290.0
5	Bulgaria	Stefanova, Voiska, Velcheva, Aleksieva	2387	231⁄2	277.0
6	Romania	Peptan, Foișor, Cosma, Olărașu	2398	23	299.0
7	Yugoslavia	Marić, Bojković, Vuksanović, Manakova	2422	23	293.5
8	Hungary	Lakos, Mádl, Grábics, Medvegy	2383	23	279.5
9	Russia "C"	Demina, Kosteniuk, Kharashkina, Gelashvili	2205	23	275.0
10	United States	Belakovskaia, Krush, Epstein, Donaldson-Akhmilovskaya	2355	23	271.5

#	Country	Average rating	Points	Buchholz	MP
11	Poland	2428	221⁄2	300.5
12	Ukraine	2430	221⁄2	289.0
13	Latvia	2183	221⁄2	282.5
14	Vietnam	2258	221⁄2	281.0
15	India	2252	221⁄2	266.5
16	Germany	2345	22	283.0
17	Estonia	2292	22	281.5
18	Israel	2322	22	281.0	14
19	Greece	2247	22	281.0	13
20	England	2323	22	269.0
21	Armenia	2288	211⁄2	277.0
22	Moldova	2322	211⁄2	274.5
23	Kazakhstan	2258	211⁄2	272.5
24	Czech Republic	2262	21	281.0
25	Uzbekistan	2203	21	280.0
26	Russia "B"	2358	21	271.5
27	France	2237	21	251.0
28	Cuba	2298	201⁄2	284.0
29	Croatia	2263	201⁄2	272.0
30	Azerbaijan	2052	201⁄2	265.5
31	Argentina	2188	201⁄2	256.0
32	Belarus	2253	20	269.0
33	Finland	2157	20	267.0
34	North Macedonia	2110	20	257.0
35	Sweden	2120	20	256.5
36	Slovenia	2223	20	256.0
37	Lithuania	2198	191⁄2	280.5
38	Spain	2222	191⁄2	269.5
39	Slovakia	2227	191⁄2	267.5
40	Bosnia and Herzegovina	2240	191⁄2	265.5
41	Bangladesh	2097	191⁄2	254.0
42	Turkmenistan	2227	191⁄2	251.5
43	Turkey	2022	191⁄2	233.0
44	Austria	2098	19	257.5
45	Mongolia	2192	19	247.5
46	Mexico	2098	19	244.0
47	Australia	2080	181⁄2	253.5
48	Philippines	2000	181⁄2	247.5
49	IBCA	2080	181⁄2	241.5
50	United Arab Emirates	2000	181⁄2	208.0
51	Ireland	2000	181⁄2	190.5
52	Switzerland	2127	18	245.0	11
53	Brazil	2080	18	245.0	10
54	Venezuela	2133	18	244.5	13
55	Portugal	2068	18	244.5	9
56	Iran	2008	18	222.0
57	Iraq	2063	18	219.5
58	Colombia	2025	171⁄2	232.5
59	El Salvador	2000	171⁄2	202.0
60	Scotland	2017	17	246.0
61	Italy	2045	17	239.0
62	South Africa	2000	17	217.5
63	Nigeria	2000	17	213.5
64	Wales	2037	161⁄2	224.5
65	Puerto Rico	2000	161⁄2	192.0
66	New Zealand	2023	151⁄2
67	Botswana	2000	15
68	Angola	2000	13
69	Japan	2017	12
70	United States Virgin Islands	2000	91⁄2
71	Lebanon	2000	81⁄2
72	Macau	2000	21⁄2

• Performance rating: China Wang Lei 2618
• Board 1: Turkmenistan Mähri Ovezova 101⁄2 / 13 = 80.8%
• Board 2: Iraq Eman Hassane Al-Rufei 8 / 9 = 88.9%
• Board 3: Russia Tatiana Shumiakina 61⁄2 / 8 = 81.3%
• Reserve: Russia Tatiana Stepovaya-Dianchenko and China Wang Lei 8 / 9 = 88.9%

The Nona Gaprindashvili Trophy is awarded to the nation that has the best average rank in the open and women's divisions. Where two or more teams are tied, they are ordered by best single finish in either division and then by total number of points scored.

The trophy, named after the former women's world champion (1961–78), was created by FIDE in 1997 and awarded for the first time in Elista.

• Justin Corfield, The History of Kalmykia: From Ancient Times to Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and Aleksey Orlov, 2015. The Olympiad is covered in p. 163-170. ISBN 978-1-876586-29-4.
• Carol Jarecki, "Reports from the 33rd Olympiad, Elista, Kalmyk Republic", Chess Life Online

• Chess Olympiads
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• Chess in Russia
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