FIDE President Timur Turlov sets goal of bringing chess to the Olympic Games

President of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) Timur Turlov spoke for the first time in his new role on September 27 at the closing of the 46th World Chess Olympiad in Samarkand. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.

In his speech, he named bringing chess into the Olympic Games program as one of the organization's shared goals.

Addressing participants and organizers of the Olympiad, the CEO of Freedom Holding Corp. called the decision of national federations to elect him FIDE President enormous trust and great responsibility.

"It is a great honor for me to close the 46th World Chess Olympiad as FIDE President. I want to thank President Shavkat Mirziyoyev for his enormous support for chess and this historic event, Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov, the government of Uzbekistan, the Chess Federation of Uzbekistan, the organizing committee and the FIDE team. Thank you to everyone who worked to make this Olympiad happen," Timur Turlov said.

According to him, FIDE has a lot of work ahead. Among the tasks, he named taking chess to a new level, strengthening and increasing the openness of the organization, as well as creating new opportunities for national federations.

"We will move toward our shared goal — chess at the Olympic Games. I am sincerely grateful for this support and fully aware of the responsibility placed on me," the elected FIDE President said.

Timur Turlov also noted that holding the Olympiad in Central Asia for the first time is symbolic against the backdrop of growing chess popularity in the region. According to him, the tournament results confirm a "chess boom," and the sporting event will give a new impetus to the development of chess in Uzbekistan and Central Asia.

In conclusion, the head of FIDE thanked the organizers and participants of the competitions and officially declared the 46th World Chess Olympiad closed.

Recall that on August 26, 2026, the President of the Kazakhstan Chess Federation, Timur Turlov, was elected FIDE President in the second round of voting. The elections were held within the framework of the organization's General Assembly.

Earlier, the CEO of Freedom Holding Corp. thanked President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev for supporting Kazakh chess after his election to FIDE.