I've arrived in Samarkand for the 2023 World Rapid and Blitz, but there has been very little time for me to post an update. I spent around 36 hours traveling (mainly due to long lay overs between connections), before catching a few hours sleep on my arrival. The it was straight into the work of preparing for the tournament, which starts on the 26th.
As with all these events, the first major task is seeing who has/hasn't arrived. With 320+ players across both sections, there is always a chance that some players do not make it. In some cases it is visa issues, while in at least one case, trying to by tickets at the last minute failed due to no seats left on the planes. So while the expected field has been posted, nothing is official until 10am Samarkand time.
If I do my job correctly (as the Pairings Officer for the Open section) play will begin at 3pm local time, which is 9pm Canberra time. The first day will see 5 rounds of the rapid, followed by 4 rounds on each of the next two days. I can tell you that Magnus Carlsen drew the white pieces at the opening ceremony, but who his first round opponent will be won't be known for a number of hours.
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