2012 Chess Olympiad
| 40th Chess Olympiad | |
|---|---|
 Logo of the 40th Chess Olympiad |
|
| Dates run | 27 August – 10 September 2012 |
| Competitors | 1,407 |
| Teams | 157 (Open) 127 (Women) |
| Nations | 152 (Open) 122 (Women) |
| Venue | Istanbul Expo Center |
| Location | Yeşilköy, Istanbul, Turkey |
| Open |
  Armenia  Russia  Ukraine
|
| Women |
Russia  China Ukraine
|
| Open | |
| Women |
Nadezhda Kosintseva
|
The 40th Chess Olympiad, organised by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place in Istanbul, Turkey, from 27 August to 10 September 2012. The city also hosted the event in 2000.
More than 1,700 players and team captains participated, including 157 teams in the open and 127 teams in the women's section. The main competitive events were held at the Istanbul Expo Center. The Chief Arbiter of the event was Greece's International Arbiter Panagiotis Nikolopoulos.
Istanbul's hosting the 34th Chess Olympiad in 2000 sparked a "Chess boom" in the country. Turkey has since hosted more than 100 international chess tournaments, including European Championships, World Youth Championships, and Youth Chess Olympiads. Membership in the Turkish Chess Federation has risen from 3,000 to about 250,000 in only eight years. Ali Nihat Yazıcı, President of the Turkish Chess Federation, is credited with triggering most of the activities towards this intensive chess development in the country. He was later elected a Vice-President of FIDE.
Istanbul won the right to host the 40th Chess Olympiad in November 2008, during the 78th Congress of FIDE at the 38th Chess Olympiad in Dresden. Istanbul's bid was approved by a vote of 95–40 over Budva.
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