FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and international grandmaster Alexander Motylev play against children with disabilities

By Polina Torochkova

On May 19th in Moscow Central Telegraph building within the framework of the second leg of FIDE Grand Prix Series FIDE President Mr. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and international grandmaster, the champion of Russia (2001), the European champion (2014), the Russian men's national team coach Alexander Motylev played a 24-boards simultaneous game against children with disabilities.

The charity event "Chess without borders" was initiated by Polina Torochkova, the member of the FIDE Commission for the Disabled, with the support of the World Chess by Agon Limited. The main purpose of the event was to draw public and mass media attention to the problem of the social adaptation of disabled children, show the importance of paying special attention to the intellectual potential of such children, develop their mental skills that will help their future self-actualization.

The group picture taken after a tour of the main venue of the tournament, where the world great grandmasters are playing, was conducted for the young chess players.

FIDE President Mr. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov made a welcoming speech in which he stressed that more than 600 million people on the planet play chess and children who are partaken with this ancient intellectual game will be able to change the world through chess and make it much smarter.

Kirsan Ilyumzhinov played with youthful enthusiasm against the young guys

It's sometime nice to take a break from all the stressful work and just indulge in a game of chess!

International grandmaster Alexander Motylev showed remarkable sensitivity in communicating with the children 

He also analyzed the games with the participants after it was over

Chess has the power to make you forget your problems and focus entirely on the game!

At the festive closing ceremony all young chess players were awarded certificates of honor, books from the Russian Chess House and tournament souvenirs provided by World Chess. One of the highlights of the event was an autograph session with the participants of the FIDE World Chess Moscow Grand Prix 2017. The leading Russian grandmaster Ian Nepomniachtchi, fascinating Hou Yifan and the tournament leader Ding Liren were not afraid to expend their mental powers before the game to communicate with the guys.

Top players spending time with the kids before their crucial games is truly an amazing gesture. In the picture you can see one of the top players of the World Ian Nepomniachtchi

On behalf of the FIDE Commission for the Disabled Torochkova Polina noted in conclusion: "Chess is the territory of equal opportunities! By providing a unique opportunity for young chess players to join the most interesting event of the chess world, we want to give them hope for the future, a desire for life despite difficult circumstances! I believe that the meeting with the world top chess players will leave an indelible impression in their hearts."

About the author

Polina Torochkova was born in Moscow. In 2012, she graduated with honors from Russian State University for the Humanities (World Politics and International Relations Department). In 2015, she completed the post-graduate course of World Politics and International Relations Department. She is the co-founder of Russian Charity Foundation "Country of Talents." (Photo by Amruta Mokal)

Watch the video where Polina speaks about the "Melody of Game" and "Country of Talents" and
how chess is helping disabled kids. The interview was taken at the Candidates 2016 in Moscow.

Related article:

Developing chess for disabled children in Russia