Vietnam beat the reigning Chess Olympiad champion

For the second time in history, Vietnam has won all four rounds of the Chess Olympiad Open Group, after 2010. Compared to when they defeated Estonia in the fourth round 14 years ago, this time the men's team's victory was much more impressive when their opponent was Uzbekistan. Compared to when they won the last championship in 2022, Uzbekistan still kept the same lineup, and was also the fourth seed this time.

The major credit for the men's team's surprising victory goes to Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son (Elo 2,633) and Le Tuan Minh (2,564), as they defeated higher-rated opponents Javokhir Sindarov (2,677) and Nodirbek Yakubboev (2,666), respectively.

The first game of the match was won by Le Tuan Minh, when he saw a beautiful knight-sacrificing combination for White to threaten checkmate. Yakubboev immediately lost, because he could not avoid losing his bishop or checkmate.

Truong Son's victory was equally impressive, as he dominated the mid-game despite holding the black pieces. After the game was balanced, Sindarov made the mistake of taking too many risks in his pursuit of victory, overlooking the risk of checkmate. Sindarov was only 19 years old, but had an Elo rating of over 2,700.

In the remaining two games, Le Quang Liem (Elo 2,741) and Tran Tuan Minh (2,434) drew with Nodirbek Abdusattorov (2,766) and Jakhongir Vakhidov (2,571) respectively. In the end, Vietnam beat Uzbekistan 3-1, maintaining their winning streak.

There was another surprise in the fourth round of the Open Group, when Ukraine beat the number one seed, the US, 2.5-1.5. At the end of this round, only eight teams remained with all-winners, with Vietnam in fourth place, behind India, Spain and China.

In the fourth round of the Women's Group, Vietnam suffered their first defeat, 1-3 against a stronger opponent, Armenia. Pham Le Thao Nguyen (2.380) and Vo Thi Kim Phung (2.320) both drew with Lilit Mkrtchian (2.366) and Mariam Mkrtchyan (2.328) in the first two tables. But in the remaining two tables, Luong Phuong Hanh (2.225) and Le Thanh Tu (2.092) lost to Elina Danielian (2.393) and Anna Sargsyan (2.364).

After round four, only seven women's teams remain unbeaten, with China, India and the United States topping the rankings. Vietnam is in 16th place, with three wins and one loss.

In the fifth round starting at 8pm on Sunday, September 15, Hanoi time, the men's team will meet Poland, while the women's team will play Montenegro.

The 2024 Chess Olympiad will take place in Budapest, Hungary from September 10 to September 23, marking the 100th anniversary of the tournament. The Open Division will have 196 teams participating, while the Women's Division will have 183 teams. The tournament is considered the Olympics of chess, gathering most of the world's top players.