On May 2, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Zhomart Tokayev met with the participants in the match, which had determined the world chess champion, Ian Nepomniachtchi and Ding Liren and President of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) Arkady Dvorkovich. The Kazakh leader congratulated Liren on his victory and expressed his respect to Nepomniachtchi for his skills, the press office of Akorda reported to CentralAsia.news.
The Kazakh leader noted that Kazakhstan takes measures to promote chess, noting that today over 200,000 citizens of the country play chess. In this regard, he stressed that this number should be more than doubled through the support of the Chess Federation of Kazakhstan and FIDE.
Dvorkovich expressed gratitude to the President for the warm welcome. He informed Tokayev that a match between the Kazakhstan women’s national team and the world team, children’s chess tournaments, master classes and simultaneous exhibitions with top chess players were held within the World Championships. He told the President about the plans to hold the first-ever World School Championships in Kazakhstan this summer, at which chess players from at least 80 states would perform.
In conclusion, the President of Kazakhstan wholeheartedly wished good luck and new heights in their careers to the chess players. He also noted the importance of expanding the interaction with FIDE.
