19. 3. 2010
Rijeka’s Championship in quotes and numbers
Yesterday, March 18th the 11th European Individual Men and Women’s Chess Championship ended in Rijeka. As you already know, the gold was won by the 20-year old Russian Grandmaster Ian Nepomniachtchi and by Swedish Pia Cramling.
The Championship achieved various records, and here are some of the numbers. Total of 566 chess players from 41 European countries participated in Rijeka. 440 players with a chess title, 196 of them Grandmasters, as well as 158 players female chess players, 134 of them with a chess title.
Now, here are some of the details about matches played in Rijeka: total of 3.078 matches were played and 2.088 or 68% of them ended by win or loss situation. Only 32% of the matches resulted with a draw. A total of 41 norms for titles of man and women Grandmasters and International masters were won at both tournaments. A total of 8 male and 1 female player have won a norm for the title of a Grandmaster. 23 male chess players qualified for the World Cup and 14 female players qualified for the World Championships.
This Championship will be remembered by the large number of visitors who watched 75 broadcast matches every day. Up to now, our web site was visited more than two million times. March 11th, was a record day, when there was more than 200.000 visitors. Some 1.500 visitors passed through the sport’s hall of the Centre Zamet.
Here are some of the quotes about this Championship:
Anatolij Karpov, ex World Champion: “I was at Croatia 30 years ago, and the organization of this Championship in Rijeka delighted me. The organizers provided ideal conditions for a large number of players and so I congratulate them for the excellent organization”.
Georgios Makropoulos, FIDE Deputy President: “This is the best organized European Individual Chess Championship, because excellent accommodation and playing conditions are provided for all players.”
Boris Kutin, ECU President: “No championship has ever received as many compliments as this one in Rijeka. This is surely the best one.”
Zoltan Almasi, GM: “This is the strongest European Championship ever and the best organized championship for sure. Opatija is a very nice place and I feel excellent here”.
Ian Nepomniachtchi, GM: “I love this country and I must admit that I was warmly welcomed in Croatia. This is a country full of friendly individuals. Conditions for the game are also great.”
Pia Cramling, GM: “This is my first time in Croatia and I really enjoy spending time here. Everything is nice here and it is my great pleasure to play in Rijeka. It is very important for men and women to play together so that’s why this sports hall is ideal for this tournament.
Victoria Cmilyte, WGM: “I think that this is the best competition ever. Opatija is a beautiful place, and the hall is ideal for playing chess. All this has made this championship very special and unique.”
This is a beautiful city. Great tournament.