The 4th World Team Championship 50+ & 65+ was opened with a short and spirited ceremony. The packed tournament hall with 107 teams from 23 nations at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Radebeul was greeted by tournament director Dr. Dirk Jordan.
The marching-in of the participating nations was once again carried out representative by our “Fahnenkinder”, this time from the elementary school “Niederlößnitz” in Radebeul. To the music of Jeremiah Clarke each child carried one of the 23 national flags into the tournament hall. Afterwards, the lord mayor of Radebeul, Bert Wendsche, the lord mayor of the sister city Obuchiw, Alexander Levchenko, as well as the District Administrator of the district Meißen, Arndt Steinbach, greeted all guests and participants.
After the short welcoming speeches the children carrying the flags were sent off with thunderous applause. Then the young performers of the Saxon Artist School Association showed their incredible skills. Jugglers, rope artists and acrobats in fantastic costumes thrilled the guests with a rapid short program. Following the “Magic at the Arena” performance, FIDE Vice President Herbert Bastian opened the world championship.
We would like to thank all contributors and wish all players a fair and successful tournament.
You can find this article in German here.