Turkmen Chess Players Off to a Strong Start at the 46th World Olympiad in Samarkand
The first-round matches of the 46th World Chess Olympiad—the premier global team championship held under the auspices of FIDE from September 16 to 27—took place at the Silk Road Samarkand International Exhibition Center. Both Turkmen national teams demonstrated exceptional focus, securing decisive, clean-sweep victories over their opponents.
Ranked 65th, the Turkmenistan men's team easily defeated the Timor-Leste squad with a score of 4–0. Grandmaster Saparmurat Atabayev, FIDE Master Amanmuhammet Hommadov, Shakhrukh Turaev, and Vepaly Khalynyazov all won their matches convincingly, while Grandmaster Meylis Annaberdiev sat out as a reserve. The squad, led by the country's Honored Coach Serdar Annaberdiev, maintained complete control of the matches across all four boards.
The women's team, led by Mergen Kakabayev, also opened their tournament campaign with a resounding 4–0 victory. In the match against Liechtenstein, points were secured for the national team by Candidate Master Leyla Shokhradova, FIDE Master Jakhan Rejepova, Makhri Agamuradova, and Ogulsuray Bayrambayeva. The women's team leader, Lala Shokhradova, sat out the opening round, taking a scheduled rest ahead of key upcoming matches.
This successful start reflects a systematic approach to preparation: the Turkmen players completed their final training camps under the guidance of International Grandmaster Alexander Rakhmanov as part of the "Freedom Asian Chess Initiatives" joint program with the Kazakhstan Chess Federation.
The Turkmen delegation aims not only to replicate the historic success of the previous Olympiad in Budapest—where both the men's and women's teams topped their respective rating categories—but also to improve individual ratings and achieve International Master norms. Major challenges await the national teams as early as the second round against tournament favorites: the men's team will face Serbia, while the women's team will take on players from Poland.
