Qatar Masters kicks off as Carlsen makes winning start

The 3rd Qatar Masters kicked off on Wednesday at iconic Lusail Sports Arena where world No 1 Magnus Carlsen of Norway kicked off his campaign on a winning note.
A brief opening ceremony on Wednesday - attended by HE Salah bin Ghanem al-Ali, Minister of Sports and Youth, and Mohamed al-Mudahka, President of Qatar Chess Association (QCA) - marked the start of the 10-day championship.
Arkady Dvorkovic, President of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and Taryam Matar Taryam, President of the UAE Chess Federation, were also present at the opening ceremony.
QCA president al-Mudahka made the symbolic first move on the board involving Carlsen and IM Srihari L R of India. Carlsen, a five-time world champion and a former Doha winner, on Wednesday easily beat the 18-year-old.
Around 250 players, male and female, representing 45 countries are taking part in the 10-day championship. Players from 16 Arab countries are also in the fray. India has the largest pool of 76 players taking part in the Qatar event where the total prize pool is $108,250, with $25,000 reserved for the winner, $15,000 for second place and $10,000 for third place. Special prizes for women, juniors and Arabic players will also be provided.
Second seed Hikaru Nakamura joined Carlsen in starting with a win, after he beat Vantika Agarwal of India in a close contest. IM Nubairshah Shaikh held India’s No 1 D Gukesh to a draw. Meanwhile, another Indian IM Kushagra Mohan scored an upset win over GM Vladimir Fedoseev of Russia.
Qatari player Hussein Aziz, ranked 141, lost the opening match to Uzbekistan’s Mukhiddin Madaminov, ranked 61st in the tournament. In other results, UAE’s Salem Abdul Rahman, ranked 14, beat IM CRG Krishna, ranked 96, while Iranian GM Parham Maghsoodloo, ranked 7, defeated Saidakbar Saydaliev of Uzbekistan.
Meanwhile, Hamad al-Tamimi, Executive Director of QCA and Director of Qatar Masters, said Doha had captured the chess world’s attention with the start of the Qatar Masters 2023.
“This is the third edition of Qatar Masters. It was previously staged in 2014 and 2015. The Local Organising Committee started its preparation several months ago once the championship date was finalized,” al-Tamimi said.
Al-Tamimi appreciated the support of the Ministry of Sports and Youth in staging the championship. “We are pleased to welcome all participating delegations and we hope that the third edition will be a success story on many fronts. Our goal is to maintain the high reputation the tournament enjoys all over the world.
“The International B tournament will feature a number of young players from Qatar. It is undoubtedly a great experience for our players who get to benefit from the experience of being alongside an elite group of world champions,” al-Tamimi said.
Qatar is participating with players Mohamed Firdaus, Fahd al-Mansouri, Mohamed al-Qasabi, Hamad al-Kuwari, Mohamed al-Khayyat, Turki al-Kuwari, Mohamed al-Subaie, Amer al-Hammadi, Tamim al-Ghanem, Hamad al-Fahd, Ahmed al-Khunji and Ahmed Saif. In the women’s category, Kholoud al-Khulaifi, ranked 56th in the tournament, and Asma al-Hammadi are are representing Qatar in the Doha tournament along with Fatima al-Hammadi and Rawda al-Qasabi.