World Championship in Libya – for all participants!

by ChessBase
4/28/2004 – Originally the FIDE knockout world championship was scheduled to be staged in two parts, one in Libya and one in Malta. This was mainly to accommodate Israeli players, who may not enter many Arab countries. Now the main sponsor, Moammar Al Qaddafi, has guaranteed "entry visas to all the 128 qualified participants". Here's the press release...

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FÉDÉRATION INTERNATIONALE DES ÉCHECS

Recognized by the International Olympic Committee
9 Syggrou Ave., 11743 Athens, Greece
Tel.: (+30) 2109212047, Fax: (+30) 2109212859, Email: office@fide.com
www.fide.com

PRESS RELEASE - April 27, 2004

The 2004 World Chess Championship
to be held June 18 until July 13 in Tripoli, the capital of Libya,
under the patronage of the Libyan leader
H.E. Moammar Al Gathafi

The World Chess Federation (FIDE: http://www.fide.com) is pleased to announce that the 2004 World Chess Championship will take place June 18 - July 13 in Tripoli, the capital of Libya, under the patronage of the Libyan leader H.E. Moammar Al Gathafi.

The Libyan Olympic Committee (LOC), the local organizing body of the event, guarantees entry visas to all the 128 qualified participants of the Championship and the invitation to the players is signed by the President of LOC, Eng. Mohammad Moammar Al Gathafi. Consequently, all the games of the championship will be played in Tripoli, Libya and no parallel event will be organized in Malta.

The format of the tournament will be a 128-player knock-out system and the games will be played from June 19 (1st round) until July 13 (tie-breaks and closing ceremony). The total prize fund of this year's World Chess Championship will reach the amount of 1.5 million USD and it will be sponsored in whole by the Libyan government. In addition to the prize money, the new World Chess Champion will also receive a copy of the newly created Gathafi Cup. The original Gathafi Cup will remain in Libya and it will be awarded to the winner of three (3) titles.

The President of FIDE, H.E. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, recently met with the Libyan leader H.E. Moammar Al Gathafi to discuss the details of this upcoming championship. FIDE is positive that the games will be held successfully in Libya and this year's World Chess Championship will remain in history as an important milestone in the development of chess in this geographical region.

The playing venue of the World Chess Championship in Libya will be the 5-star Almahary Hotel in Tripoli. The final list of the 128 qualified players and further details will be announced in the next few days and all information will also be available from FIDE's website at http://www.fide.com

About FIDE

The World Chess Federation (FIDE) is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the supreme body responsible globally for the game of chess and its championships. FIDE is organizing the World Chess Championship as well as all world championships for women, junior and youth categories, the bi-annual Chess Olympiad and it also publishes the official FIDE Rating List (currently No.1 is Gary Kasparov of Russia). FIDE has a membership of 160 national chess federations and it retains offices in Greece and Russia.

For more information contact:
Federation Internationale des Echecs (FIDE) - Tel.: (+30) 2109212047, Fax: (+30) 2109212859, Email: office@fide.com; Mr. Nizar Elhaj - Tel.: (+218) 91 2142562, Fax: (+218) 21 3340637, Email: africanchess@lttnet.net

Press release in PDF


Invitation of the Libyan Olympic Committee


FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov playing against Moammar Al Qaddafi

Announcement of the FIDE Secretariat
in respect of the World Chess Championship 2004

April 26, 2004

Announcement of the FIDE Secretariat

Dear chessfriends,

In accordance with our recent announcement of April 5, we would like to inform you of the official hotel and playing venue for the upcoming World Chess Championship 2004 in Tripoli, Libya. The hotel prices and local contact information of the Organizing Committee are also published.

Playing Venue of WCC 2004:
The ALMAHARY Hotel ***** in Tripoli, which will also be the official hotel of the event.

Hotel Prices:
45 USD in a double room, 65 USD in a single room. Prices are per person per day, breakfast is included.

Contact info:
Mr. Nizar Elhaj for the Organizing Committee WCC 2004
Address: PO Box 3951 - Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: +218 91 2142562
Fax: +218 21 3340637
Email: africanchess@lttnet.net

Athens - April 26, 2004
Released by the FIDE Secretariat

Hotel Reservation Form to be faxed to the Organising Committee: +218 21 3340637

To all participants of the World Chess Championship 2004

For the Libyan Olympic Committee to arrange entry visas for the World Chess Championship 2004, a passport photocopy for each player has to be sent by fax at +218 21 3340637 or by email at africanchess@lttnet.net

Invitations will be sent to Libyan embassies in all the countries and for the countries which have not a Libyan embassy or consulate, entry visas will be provided upon arrival at the Tripoli airport.


List of Participants (29.4.2004)

1. Ivanchuk, Vassily (UKR)
2. Zvjaginsev, Vadim (RUS)
3. Topalov, Vesselin (BUL)
4. Adams, Michael (ENG)
5. Grischuk, Alexander (RUS)
6. Morozevich, Alexander (RUS)
7. Akopian, Vladimir (ARM)
8. Short, Nigel (ENG)
9. Dreev, Aleksey (RUS)
10. Sokolov, Ivan (NED)
11. Azmaiparashvili, Zurab (GEO)
12. Ye, Jiangchuan (CHN)
13. Almasi, Zoltan (HUN)
14. Aronian, Levon (GER)
15. Macieja, Bartlomiej (POL) - Qualified from Batumi 2002
16. Gurevich, Mikhail (BEL) - Qualified from Batumi 2002
17. Volkov, Sergey (RUS) - Qualified from Batumi 2002
18. Gagunashvili, Merab (GEO) - Qualified from Batumi 2002
19. Sargissian, Gabriel (ARM) - Qualified from Batumi 2002
20. Malakhov, Vladimir (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
21. Graf, Alexander (GER) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
22. Georgiev, Kiril (MKD) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
23. Kharlov, Andrei (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
24. Sakaev, Konstantin (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
25. Iordachescu, Viorel (MDA) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
26. Kobalia, Mukhail (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
27. Sulskis, Sarunas (LTU) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
28. Galkin, Alexander (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
29. Moiseenko, Alexander (UKR) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
30. Van Wely, Loek (NED) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
31. Aleksandrov, Aleksej (BLR) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
32. Dautov, Rustem (GER) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
33. Agrest, Evgenij (SWE) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
34. Nisipeanu, Liviu-Dieter (ROM) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
35. Nielsen, Peter Heine (DEN) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
36. Guseinov, Kadir (AZE) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
37. Kritz, Leonid (GER) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
38. Kotronias, Vasilios (CYP) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
39. Neverov, Valery (UKR) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
40. Tkachiev, Vladislav (FRA) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
41. Mc.Shane, Luke (ENG) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
42. Filippov, Valerij (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
43. Milov, Vadim (SUI) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
44. Rublevsky, Sergei (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
45. Anastasian, Ashot (ARM) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
46. Smirnov, Pavel (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
47. Kozul, Zdenko (CRO) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
48. Kacheishvili, Giorgi (GEO) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
49. Dolmatov, Sergey (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
50. Nicolic, Predrag (BIH) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
51. Lputian, Smbat (ARM) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
52. Lastin, Alexander (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
53. Asrian, Karen (ARM) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
54. Bacrot, Etienne (FRA) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
55. Motylev, Alexander (RUS) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
56. Bartel, Mateusz (POL) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
57. Deltschev, Aleksander (BUL) - Qualified from Silivri 2003
58. Haznedaroglu, Kivanc (TUR) - nominee by Europe Continental President
59. Baadur, Jobava (GEO) - nominee by Europe Continental President
60. Vescovi, Giovanni (BRA) - Americas Qualifier
61. Morovic, Ivan (CHI) - Americas Qualifier
62. Nakamura, Hikaru (USA) - Americas Qualifier
63. Bruzon, Lazaro (CUB) - Americas Qualifier
64. Onischuk, Alex (USA) - Americas Qualifier
65. Shulman, Yuri (USA) - Americas Qualifier
66. Shabalov, Alexander (USA) - Americas Qualifier
67. Gulko, Boris (USA) - Americas Qualifier
68. Stripunsky, Alexander (USA) - Americas Qualifier
69. Charbonneau, Pascal (CAN) - Americas Qualifier
70. Dominguez, Lernier (CUB) - Americas Qualifier
71. Ramirez, Alejandro (CRC) - Americas Qualifier
72. Leitão, Rafael (BRA) - Americas Qualifier
73. Lima, Darcy (BRA) - Americas Qualifier
74. Felgaer, Rueben (ARG) - Americas Qualifier
75. Cámpora, Daniel (ARG) - Americas Qualifier
76. Mahjoob, Morteza (IRI) – Asian qualifier
77. Ganguly, S.S. (IND) – Asian qualifier
78. Dableo, Ronald (PHI) – Asian qualifier
79. Paragua, Mark (PHI) – Asian qualifier
80. Johansen, Darryl (AUS) – Asian qualifier
81. Bu, Xiangzhi (CHN) – Asian qualifier
82. Ni, Hua (CHN) – Asian qualifier
83. Kostur, Pavel (KAZ) – Asian qualifier
84. Sasikiran, Krishnan (IND) – Asian qualifier
85. Ghaem Maghami, Ehsan (IRI) – Asian qualifier
86. Barsov, Alexei (UZB) – Asian qualifier
87. Sadvakasov, Darmen (KAZ) – Asian qualifier
88. Dao, Thien Hai (VIE) – Asian qualifier
89. Al-Modiahki, Mohamad (QAT) – Asian qualifier
90. Kadhi, Hameed Mansour Ali (YEM) – Asian qualifier
91. Adianto, Utut (INA) – Asian qualifier
92. Neelotpal, Das (IND) – Asian qualifier
93. Barua, Dibyendu (IND) – Asian qualifier
94. Vladimirov, Evgeny (KAZ) – Asian qualifier
95. El Gindy, Essam (EGY) – African qualifier
96. Adly, Ahmed (EGY) – African qualifier
97. Simutowe, Amon (ZAM) – African qualifier
98. Solomon, Kenneth (RSA) – African qualifier
99. Adlane, Arab (ALG) – African qualifier
100. Tissir, Mohamed (MAR) – African qualifier
101. Acs, Peter (HUN) – President nominee
102. Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar (AZE) – President’s nominee
103. Radjabov, Teimour (AZE) – President’s nominee
104. Inarkiev, Ernesto (RUS) – President’s nominee
105. Harikrishna, Pentala (IND) – President’s nominee
106. Karjakin, Sergey (UKR) – President’s nominee
107. Bologan, Viktor (MDA) – President’s nominee
108. Mastrovasilis, Dimitrios (GRE) – President’s nominee
109. Carlsen, Magnus (NOR) – President’s nominee
110. Abulhul, Tarik (LBA) – Organisers’ nominee
111. Asabri, Hussien (LBA) – Organisers’ nominee
112. Elarbi, Abobker (LBA) – Organisers’ nominee
113. Hamdouchi, Hichem (MAR) – Organisers’ nominee

The following 13 players did not sign their participation and will be replaced by the reserve list:

1. Anand, Viswanathan (IND)
2. Svidler, Peter (RUS)
3. Kramnik, Vladimir (RUS)
4. Leko, Peter (HUN)
5. Bareev, Evgeny (RUS)
6. Shirov, Aleksey (ESP)
7. Gelfand, Boris (ISR)
8. Khalifman, Alexander (RUS)
9. Polgar, Judit (HUN)
10. Karpov, Anatoly (RUS)
11. Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR)
12. Kaidanov, Gregory (USA) – Americas qualifier (Zone 2.1)
13. Benjamin, Joel (USA) – Americas qualifier (Zone 2.1)

Reserve List for the World Chess Championship 2004

1. Smirin, Ilia (ISR)
2. Lautier, Joel (FRA)
3. Vaganian, Rafael (ARM)
4. Kasimdzhanov, Rustam (UZB)
5. Movsesian, Sergey (SVK)
6. Beljavski, Alexander (SLO)
7. Krasenkow, Michal (POL)
8. Piket, Jeroen (NED)
9. F. Vallejo, Pons (ESP)
10. Xu, Jun (CHN)
11. Landa, Konstantin (RUS)
12. Epishin, Vladimir (RUS)
13. Hjartarson, Johann (ISL)
14. Tiviakov, Sergei (NED)
15. Zhang, Zhong (CHN)
16. Huebner, Robert Dr. (GER)
17. Seirawan, Yasser (USA)
18. Sadler, Matthew (ENG)
19. Pigusov, Evgeny (RUS)
20. Hansen, Curt (DEN)
21. Granda Zuniga, Julio E (PER)
22. Dorfman, Josif D (FRA)
23. Khenkin, Igor (GER)
24. Nunn, John D.M. (ENG)
25. Baklan, Vladimir (UKR)
26. Ftacnik, Lubomir (SVK)
27. Timman, Jan H (NED)
28. Shipov, Sergei (RUS)
29. Hodgson, Julian M. (ENG)
30. Istratescu, Andrei (ROM)
31. Fressinet, Laurent (FRA)
32. Tregubov, Pavel V. (RUS)


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