The 2024 Chess Olympiad got off to a pretty good start, especially in terms of the pairings. For the first time in my memory, there were no forfeited matches in either event (although there were a few no shows in individual games). The PNG team was the beneficiary of one of those no shows, with Tom McCoy scoring an early (forfeit) win on board 2. Unfortunately the rest of the Bolivian team did show up, resulting in a 3-1 win to them.
Across both events all matches went according to seeding, with one small exception. Vanuatu were originally given the bye in the Open, but the late arrival of the team from the Democratic Republic of Congo meant we could pair these teams. Although DRC was nominally the favourite on rating (in that Vanuatu players did not have ratings), the debutantes defeated the DRC 2.5-1.5.
Another great result occurred in the Fiji v Ireland match. Although Fiji lost 0.5-3.5, CM Rudr Prasad drew with GM Alexander Baburin on board 2. A real confidence booster for young champion.
2024 Chess Olympiad, Round 1, 2024
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