A chess club in Abu Dhabi is dedicated to cultivating young talent with the aim of producing the UAE's future grandmasters. Established in 1979, the Abu Dhabi Chess Club and Mind Games has been actively promoting the sport in schools and the wider community. "We have drawn over 600 players from diverse nationalities to the club," stated Hussein Abdullah Al Khouri, the club's chairman, during the 30th edition of the Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival. The club is focused on nurturing a new generation of chess players, he added.
Currently, grandmaster Salem Abdulrahman Mohamed Saleh holds the top position among UAE players. "Our goal is to have two to three grandmasters by the time we host the Chess Olympiad in Abu Dhabi in 2028," Al Khouri said. The club's coaches are currently training hundreds of children, resulting in a notable increase in Emirati players and numerous tournament wins. "The game is accessible and affordable, even playable on smartphones. It's the era for the new generation," he noted.
Over the years, the club has launched various initiatives to identify young talent. In 1991, it founded the Abu Dhabi Chess Festival to offer a competitive stage for young players. The festival rapidly gained international recognition, and by 1996, it featured an international masters' tournament. Today, it ranks among the premier chess tournaments in Asia and the Middle East, with a record participation of over 2,200 players from 82 countries competing in 27 tournaments for a prize pool of Dh450,000 in this edition. The tournament categories include international masters, open, junior, blitz, events for people of determination, families, ladies, seniors, academies, communities, government departments, and educational institutions. Several Emirati players are participating across different categories.
Approximately 100 schools are participating in this edition, and for the first time, an online tournament has been introduced. Al Khouri highlighted the ongoing support from the UAE leadership and the Abu Dhabi Sports Council, which has helped elevate the festival on the global chess stage. "Today, the Abu Dhabi chess festival is a significant event on the FIDE calendar. This edition has attracted numerous international players," he said as 60 grandmasters compete for supremacy at the festival, which concludes on Sunday.
This week, Abu Dhabi will also host the FIDE centenary celebrations, with federation president Arkady Dvorkovich in attendance.
