The World Mind Games are organised in cooperation with SportAccord, the, as they write in their Mission and Values statement on their homepage, "union for both Olympic and non-Olympic international sports, federations as well as organisers of international sporting events." The World Mind Games take place from 11. to 17. December in Beijing, China. Participants compete in five mind sports: Bridge, Draughts, Go, Chinese Chess (Xiangqi), and Chess.
32 top class players - 16 men and 16 women - were invited to take part in the chess competition.
The chessplayers will play rapid, blitz and basque chess (two players play two games simultaneously against each other - one with white, one with black). All in all 24 medals can be won. The first chess tournament is the rapid competition for men and women (Thursday and Friday). After that follows blitz (Saturday to Monday) until the basque chess tournament finally rounds it off (Tuesday and Wednesday).
In the women's tournament Nana Dzagnidze had the best start. After the first day she leads the field with 3.5/4. In the men's tournament Wang Hao, Wang Yue and Alexander Grischuk share the lead with 3.0/4 each.
Games from day 1
Dance and ...
... acrobatics...
...at the opening ceremony
Antoaneta Stefanova
Basque chess: two games simultaneously
Humpy Koneru
Levon Aronian and Sergey Karjakin open with white
Levon Aronian
A visual cover separates the partners at Bridge
The Go-clock
Full board
In Chinese chess you put the pieces on lines not on squares
Xiangqi simul
Alexandra Kosteniuk presents the official T-shirt
Ju Wenjun
Peter Heine Nielsen with officials
Students with grandmaster
Peter Heine Nielsen plays a simultan
