Sports Review 2008: ‘Bronze’ Beijing Spells ‘Golden’ Year for Armenia
By Suren Musayelyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
Published: 26 December, 2008
Chess Triumph Adding Mind to Muscle… The climax of the overall solid performances by Armenian chess masters throughout the year was in Dresden, Germany, where the team of Levon Aronyan, Vladimir Hakobyan, Gabriel Sargsyan, Tigran L. Petrosyan and Artashes Minasyan repeated their heroics of two years ago to bring their nation the second consecutive gold in the 38th World Chess Olympiad.
The winning team received heroes’ welcome at home where they were awarded state medals from President Serzh Sargsyan, who also heads the country’s chess federation, for their great services to the development of chess in Armenia and “upholding the nation’s honor”.
Gabriel Sargsyan, 25, was recognized as the most efficient player of the Olympiad and was also awarded the Best Sportsmen of the Year title at home by a majority vote of leading sport writers.
(Three of Gabi’s teammates, including Aronyan, Hakobyan and Petrosyan, are also among the top ten sportsmen of the year along with three weightlifters, two wrestlers and one boxer, showing the great appreciation of Armenia’s chess win at the Olympiad).
“In 2008 our athletes and chessmen have shown to the world the strength of the Armenian people’s muscle and mind,” Tsarukyan observed at an award ceremony in mid-December.
Source: http://armenianow.com/
Armenia is the best.