In a remarkable display of skill and strategy, the Azerbaijan men's national team has secured a place in the Top 10 at the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad held in Budapest, Hungary.
This achievement marks the fifth time in the history of our team that they have reached such heights, showcasing the talent and dedication of our players on the international stage, as reported by Idman.biz.
Fourth in History
Our talented chess players have finished in 8th place at the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest. Although this is a slight drop from their 7th place finish two years ago, it marks the 4th best performance in the team’s history.
The national record stands at 5th place, achieved in 2014, while the team also secured 6th place six years ago. With this latest achievement, our chess players continue to demonstrate their strength on the global stage, maintaining their presence in the Top 10 for the fourth time, including a 10th place finish in 2012.
1994 – 36th place
1998 – 43rd place
2000 – 46th place
2002 – 30th place
2004 – 22nd place
2006 – 24th place
2008 – 6th place
2010 – 12th place
2012 – 10th place
2014 – 5th place
2016 – 12th place
2018 – 15th place
2022 – 7th place
2024 – 8th place
Record Repeated
Our national team including Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Rauf Mammadov, Nijat Abasov, Aydin Suleymanli, and Muhammad Muradli won 7 victories in 11 rounds. Azerbaijan finished the Olympics with 16 points, drawing two of the other matches. Our chess players lost only 2 times. He repeated the record of national history by winning 7 victories in one race. Our team completed the 5th Olympiad in a row with 7 victories. This series started in 2014. With 7 victories in 2014, 2016, 2018, 2022 and 2024, our team had the same number of successes in the debut Olympics in 1994, as well as in 2004, 2006, 2008. But there were 14 rounds in 1994 and 2004, and 13 rounds in 2006. 7 victories were won for the 6th time in the 11-match Olympics, 5 in a row.
Immutable Result
Our team scored 16 points again, like two years ago. This is a repeat of the second-best result for the 11-round event. Only in 2014, more - 17 points were achieved. The team, which had only one defeat, scored 7 wins and 3 draws. In 2008, there were 7 wins and 2 draws. In the debut Olympics, which consisted of 14 rounds, it was possible to collect more - 18 points.
Weakest Team of the last 16 Years
The average rating of the Azerbaijani chess players who went to Budapest was 2657. This is the lowest figure in the last 8 Olympics. The last time in 2006, the team's average rating was lower. At that time, the last Olympiad of 13 rounds was held. In short, the lowest rated team was in Budapest during the period when 11 rounds were applied. It is interesting that all the competitions in which our team entered the "Top-10" coincided with these years. In other words, our lowest ranked team in the top ten stood out in Hungary.
1994 – 2188
1998 – 2474
2000 – 2456
2002 – 2575
2004 – 2615
2006 – 2643
2008 – 2709
2010 – 2694
2012 – 2693
2014 – 2694
2016 – 2717
2 018 – 2748
2022– 2680
2024 – 2657
92 wins
Out of 14 Olympics, our team participated in 11 rounds in eight, 13 in two, and 14 rounds in four. In total, our men's national team played 171 matches. The team with 92 wins had 34 draws and lost 44 times. Team members won 268, drew 281 and lost 131 times in 680 games.
Again without a medal
Azerbaijan national team, which did not rise above the 5th place in its history, could not increase the number of medals won on its personal account. Our chess players, who did not win prizes as a team, received 6 individual medals in previous years. But for the second time in a row, such success was not possible. The last awards were two bronzes in 2018. In total, one gold, one silver and four bronze medals are awarded to our chess players. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov got the best result this time. He took the 6th place. Rauf Mammadov also entered the top 10. He ranked 9th.
The championship in the men's competition was won by the Indian national team.
Vugar Kheyrullayev
Idman.biz
