Team South Africa Makes Perfect Start at Chess Olympiad

Photo Credit: Chess South Africa (Facebook)

Both the Open and Women’s teams recorded 4-0 victories in Round 1 at the 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand.

Samarkand, Uzbekistan (17 September 2026) – Team South Africa has wasted no time making its presence felt at the 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

Both the Open and Women’s teams got their campaigns off to a flying start, recording 4-0 victories in their opening-round matches.

The teams are led by captains Kenny Solomon and Henry Steel, with Dr Shaun Levitan serving as Head of Delegation as South Africa takes on one of the biggest events on the international chess calendar.

But the South African presence at the Olympiad extends beyond the players sitting behind the boards.

Gunther van den Bergh is serving as Deputy Chief Arbiter, while Ronald King is a Match Arbiter, giving South Africa representation among the officials responsible for ensuring the competition runs fairly and smoothly.

Their roles require plenty of experience and an extremely sharp eye for detail, with every move, decision and match needing to be handled according to the rules.

And while the players are busy calculating their next moves, the officials are making sure everything around them is just as precise.

For the South African teams, however, the focus now shifts to building on that perfect opening round as the Olympiad continues.

A 4-0 start for both the Open and Women’s teams is certainly one way to introduce yourself to the tournament and Team South Africa will be hoping there are plenty more wins to come.