Russell Dive off to the Olympiad

Russell and Nic from a few years back

One of our duo of International Masters, Russell Dive, has been selected to represent New Zealand at the World Team Championships in Istanbul, and will be heading off at the weekend. He will be on board 1 sitting next to Wellington Chess Club alumnus Nic Croad.

This is Russell's 9th chess Olympiad with his first one being in Thessaloniki, Greece in 1988. 

He writes that his best game result at an Olympiad was beating Grandmaster Ashot Anastasian from Armenia with Black in round 1 of the 2004 Moscow Olympiad. His most memorial moments were getting an IM norm at the 2004 Moscow Olympiad, and playing Board 2 against the Ukraine in round 8 of the 2008 Dresden Olympiad, with Ivanchuk playing Murray Chandler in the board next to him

I have also just learnt that our top female player, Marany Meyer, will be heading to Istanbul too, as Sue Maroroa has had to pull out of the women's team. Marany has previously played Olympiad chess as part of the South African women's team

 We wish Marany, Russell, Nic and the rest of the New Zealand players all the very best as they represent our corner of the chess world on the international stage.