The 20th International Solving Contest 2024 brought together 669 solvers from 46 countries. Although located in more than 40 different cities around the world, participants ranging in age from 5 to 84 competed simultaneously with each other while solving the same problems and endgames. 

It was the 20th anniversary of the competition established to promote chess art and unite people from faraway countries. Under the supervision of the World Federation for Chess Composition, the ISC couldn’t have happened without without the unwavering dedication of numerous volunteers, from the main organizing team up to all the local controllers across different cities. 

ISC in Cluj-Napoca, Romania

The project based on dedication of many volunteers

The ISC project was conceived and created by the late Grandmaster of Chess Composition, Uri Avner (1941-2014). Among all the volunteers who have contributed over the last 20 years, Axel Steinbrink from Germany deserved the most recognition for the ISC's success. Most often, he served as ISC Central controller, involved in the selection of compositions for participants to solve. He communicated with local controllers before and after the competition, checked the solving sheets, compiled final reports, and handled other essential tasks. One of the most challenging responsibilities is supervising thousands of solving sheets in different languages.

When Axel stepped down from these duties last year, a whole new team of volunteers emerged to help the ISC. Arvydas Mockus (pictured below) from Lithuania assumed the most demanding role of ISC Central Controller; Bohumil Moravčik (Slovakia) accepted to be the main selector of compositions, while Luc Palmans and Andy Ooms (Belgium) checked the solving sheets from the 1st and the 2nd Category. 

As in the previous ten editions, Borislav Gadjanski (Serbia) diligently created and administrated the daily presentation of results on the Mat Plus website.

Those are the devotees who deserved the most applause for the ISC 2024. The Solving Contest produced some surprises, the biggest ones sprang by the "old guard". The 1st category event, designed for the most experienced solvers, ended in victory for former World Champion Andrey Selivanov (56), ahead of the current World Champion Danila Pavlov (22). The 3rd place went to another former World Champion, John Nunn (69), and the 4th went to another senior, Valery Kopyl (67). The 15-year-old prodigy Anna Shukhman proved her dominance among women.

ISC 2024 in  Le Vesinet, France

Category 1 winners

Category 2 (solving rating below 2000) saw another kind of surprizing domination, with female solvers taking 3 out of the top 5 places. The winner is Nadezhda Ilchenko, ahead of Dejan Omorjan and Alexandru-Vasile David, followed by two young girls, Anastasiya Chekina and Viktoriya Merkulova.

Category 2 winners

The 3rd Category was for juniors born in 2011 and younger. Unlike the first two categories, with 12 problems to solve in 4 hours, youngsters had only 6 problems for 2 hours, and the level of difficulty was adjusted to their age. So, it wasn’t unusual to have 11 participants with a maximum of 30 points, and the shortest time for solving (27 minutes) brought victory to Matvey Dubovkin. Yaroslav Kengurov and Taras Rudenko, who shared the 2nd place, spent just three more minutes than the champion. The best girl was Blanka Eysimont.

Category 3 winners

Fujairah - the new home of chess composition

The Solving Contest in Fujairah (UAE), a part of the FIDE 100th anniversary, gathered the strongest ISC field, this time with the six best from the World Chess Solving Championship 2023, including the best female solver, among 114 participants. It was expected, since Fujairah became the new home of chess composition, wholeheartedly supported by H.H. Sheikh Mohamed bin Hamad Al Sharqi. Later this year, when the luxurious new building of the Fujairah Chess & Culture Club is set to open, it will become the residence of the WFCC main office. 

The solving hall in Fujairah

The fruitful cooperation of chess and chess composition in Fujairah began in 2017, when Dr Abdulla Ali Aal Barket, the current WFCC Vice-President, introduced a “biathlon” competition for domestic players, combining solving and blitz tourneys. That was the 1st Fujairah Endurance Championship, and the 5th edition of it had the 20th ISC as the most important part, with a generous prize fund of USD 35,500. 

In a tough competition for popularity among better-known UAE chess organizers from Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi, Fujairah has built its brand with this lucky combination of fight and art, offering a broader program to different types of chess lovers.

GM Eltaj Safarli won the Blitz tournament in the rating category above 2000

The Fujairah Blitz tourney 2024 had a strong field, too, with 312 participants split into three categories. Out of sixteen GMs in the highest category, twelve were in a close race for high prizes. In the end, Eltaj Safarli (2653) came out on top with 7.5/9 games and a better tiebreak over the 1st seed Raunak Sadhwani (2667). Farukh Amonatov was alone in the 3rd place on 6.5 points, and six other GMs - Erdogdu, Guseinov, Bologan, Naiditsch, Tukhaev and Iordachescu - finished a half point behind him. Rowelin Acedo won the B category (rating below 2000), and Ramtin Kakavand confirmed his status as the main favourite among juniors born in 2011 and younger. 

The vibrant chess activity attracted honourable guests to Fujairah. The closing ceremony was attended by Sheikh Khalid bin Humaid Al Qasimi, the President of the Arab Chess Federation, and a special guest, FIDE Executive Director Victor Bologan, who was rewarded by Sheikh Saif bin Hamad bin Saif Al Sharqi, Chairman of the Fujairah Free Zone Authority.

FIDE Executive Director Victor Bologan was a guest of honour

Victor Bologan had a lot on his plate in Fujairah. FIDE Executive Director successfully played the blitz tourney, visited the club construction site, planned to host several hundreds of players, and discussed future cooperation with the WFCC president Marjan Kovačević. The first planned step is to organize FIDE-solving events. The positive effects of chess composition on the overall chess community are visible. What follows is finding the right organizing models in the context of the FIDE events.

Text: Marjan Kovačević, WFCC President

Photos: WFCC & Fujairah Chess & Culture Club

Official website: WFCC – World Federation for Chess Composition