Gülkız Tulay, president of the Turkish Chess Federation (TSF), expressed determination to maintain the success of chess at the Olympics.
In an interview with Anadolu Agency (AA), Tulay stated that they had begun preparations for the 45th World Chess Olympiad, to be held in Budapest, Hungary on Sept. 10-23, with a camp for male athletes in Antalya.
Tulay highlighted the significant support from the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the main sponsor of the sport, Türkiye İş Bankası.
She emphasized that the national men's and women's teams would continue their intensive training through online and face-to-face camps with world-renowned chess coaches leading up to the Olympics.
Tulay mentioned that the Antalya camp included Grandmasters (GM) Mustafa Yılmaz, Vahap Şanal, Emre Can, Mert Yılmazyerli, Cem Kaan Gökerkan, and International Masters (IM) Ediz Gürel and Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş, with the camp being coached by world-famous chess player GM Ivan Cheparinov. She also noted that the camp for the women's national chess team is planned for March.
Emphasizing the aim to "crown" the achievements in Europe and worldwide with an Olympic ranking, Tulay said, "We have prepared a comprehensive program for the Olympics."
Tulay noted that the success of chess players has elevated them to top positions worldwide, indicating that the efforts being made are correct.
Stating that they "continue their work without interruption" with the dynamism of success, Tulay said, "We have prepared a comprehensive and detailed program that we have worked on extensively for the Olympics, the biggest chess event with chess players from nearly 200 countries making moves."
Tulay emphasized that they will continue to organize online and face-to-face training camps for the players with famous coaches as part of their prepared program and will support their participation in important international tournaments.
"Our goal this year is to achieve a ranking at the Olympics, adding another success to our achievements. We are determined to maintain the success graph of Turkish chess at the Olympics," she said.
Tulay recalled that the Turkish Under-16 National Team made history by winning an Olympic championship and a runner-up, saying: "Our young national team brought great pride to our country. We also want our national team to achieve significant success in the Olympics and bring new joy to our country. All our efforts are for this. There are about seven months left until the Olympics. I wish success to all our athletes and coaches who will represent our country at the Olympics."
Türkiye will compete in both men's and women's categories at the World Chess Olympiad, held every two years by the World Chess Federation.
At the World Chess Olympiad held in Baku, Azerbaijan, in 2016, the Men's National Team achieved great success, finishing sixth, tied for fourth place in points.
