Asian Individual Championships Starts in Iran

The 10th Asian Continental Individual Championship and First Asian Individual Blitz Championship (Open and Women's) are scheduled to take place from 1st to 11th May at the Samen Hotel in Mashhad, Iran. Members of all FIDE Affiliated Chess Federations in Asia, Zones 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6 and 3.7 are eligible to take participation. Women's World Champion Hou Yifan of China (left) drawing colors from Krishnan Sasikiran of India at the players' meeting of the Asian Individual Championship in Mashad, Iran. Looking on are Iran Chess Federation President Mohammad Jafar Kamnbouzia (seated), Iran Secretary General Hadi Karimi (right) and Arbiter Dr. Mousa Ali Alireza of Iran. Harika Dronavalli (2524) from India and former World Champion Rustam Kasimdzhanov (2687) from Uzbekistan are top rated among the currently registered players. Mashhad is the second largest city in Iran and one of the holiest cities in the Shia Muslim world. It is located 850 kilometers (530 mi) east of Tehran, close to the borders of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. Its population was 2,427,316 at the 2006 population census. Tournament website / Regulations Greetings To the participants of the 10th Asian Individual Chess Championships Dear friends! I am pleased to warmly welcome you to the 10th Asian Individual Chess Championships, which will be held in Mashhad, the holy, historic and touristic city in the North-East of Iran. It is very important that such a great continental chess event is returning to Iran, the country which is known as the chess cradle and I am confident that Mashhad will be a good host for the Grand Masters and chess players from all over the Asia and Oceania. This year we will organize the first Asian Individual Blitz Championships beside the main tournaments and we hope it would help in developing and popularizing of our beloved game. I wish all the participants a nice stay in Mashhad, success in achieving great results and the best of luck. Mohammad Jafar Kambouzia Vice-president of FIDE & President of the Iran Chess Federation