Vlog from Uzbekistan: ChessBase team makes it to Samarkand!

by ChessBase
9/18/2026 – A ChessBase team travelled to Samarkand. During the journey, Arne Kähler was already interviewing teams on their way to the event. Nigel Short spoke about ambitious plans that had only come about thanks to an earlier interview with Arne. The ChessBase team met Carissa Yip in Istanbul. Yip had just arrived from the Global Chess League in India. In the travel vlog, the team also shares impressions of Samarkand itself, as well as excerpts from the opening ceremony. | Photo: Emine Yanik
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ChessBase in Samarkand!

The team flew from Hamburg to Istanbul one day before the opening ceremony and already encountered the first players there. That was where the Olympiad began for ChessBase! The first assignment: spontaneous interviews with Irina Bulmaga, Nigel Short, Ivan Cheparinov, Carissa Yip and several others.

Jemal Ovezdurdyyeva is very much looking forward to the tournament | Photo: ChessBase

Nigel Short warned that ChessBase might be sued if he were to die in Antarctica. But that was surely only a joke... wasn't it? 

Short: "If I die in Antarctica, ChessBase will be sued" | Photo: ChessBase

After arriving in Samarkand, the team set off to explore the city (and its beautiful sights!) before heading to the press conference. Straight afterwards, Arne Kähler unexpectedly found himself in front of the camera for an Uzbek television station. Then came the grand finale of the day: a spectacular opening ceremony in front of thousands of players, coaches, officials, journalists and chess fans from all over the world. 

Sightseeing with ChessBase | Photo: ChessBase

The opening ceremony | Photo: ChessBase

ChessBase shows what is happening behind the scenes: in the video, the team shares its journey, the spontaneous interviews and how the 2026 Chess Olympiad officially began!

Vlog: ChessBase behind the scenes

Video: ChessBase

On the first day of the tournament, the team also immediately began interviewing players. The vlog and further player interviews are also available on the ChessBase YouTube channel.

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