Chess  

Organisers hold a press conference announcing the first KPNest Chess Tournament on November 1 in HCM City. Photo thanhnien.vn

HCM CITY — As many as 1,000 masters are expected to take part in the first KPNest Chess Tournament. vying for a massive VNĐ2 billion prize pool for medal winners.

The large-scale tournament, jointly organised by the HCM City Chess Federation and KPNest Joint Stock Company, is set to take place on December 1 in HCM City.

The tournament will feature blitz chess competition across 12 groups, categorized by age and gender, ranging from U8 to Open.

The winner of each group will receive a substantial VNĐ50 million prize. The second and third place finishers will take home VNĐ20 million and VNĐ10 million respectively.

To date, many national top players have registered to take part in the event. Among them are Grandmasters Nguyễn Ngọc Trường Sơn and Lê Tuấn Minh in the men's side, and Women's Grandmasters Phạm Lê Thảo Nguyên, Võ Thị Kim Phụng and Lương Phương Hạnh in the women's class along with many young talented players.

Especially, world No 16 and former world blitz champion Lê Quang Liêm will fly home from the US to take part in his first competition in Việt Nam after 10 years.

Masters can register for the event until November 20 at https://giaicovua.kpnest.com.vn.

"The KPNest chess tournament is an opportunity not only for athletes to show off their talent, technique and intelligence, but also a place for chess fans nationwide to follow and enjoy games," said Nguyễn Trà Giang, vice president of the Việt Nam Chess Federation.

"KPNest's companionship and support is great encouragement, encouraging our players to reach the pinnacle of their country's chess achievements in the international arena."

Super Grandmaster Lê Quang Liêm will checkmate at the first KPNest tournament on December 1. VNS Photo Quỳnh Mai

Organisers and Super GM Liêm will have a meeting with chess lovers on November 30.

"I love sports, and as a sponsor, I wholeheartedly support many sports such as football, sailing, tennis and chess. I hope that I can bring more joy and help people improve their health through sports," said KPNest General Director Phan Thị Thanh Truyền.

"I am lucky to have two kids who also love chess. I have followed them to many domestic and international tournaments. From these experience I saw passion for chess of Vietnamese children but they didn't have opportunities to join international competitions. I dreamed of organising such an international-scaled in Việt Nam for them. It is a key reason for the KPNest event today."

Nguyễn Phước Trung, vice president of HCM City Chess Federation, said the KPNest event was a large event in the national chess community in 2024 which would definitely lure huge attention of chess people and he expected it would become an annual tournament in the city. VNS