Dubai Chess marks 34th anniversary

18 May 2015
The club was officially recognised as the chess governing body of Dubai on May 16, 1981.

The club was officially recognised as the chess governing body of Dubai on May 16, 1981, responsible for promoting the sport in the emirate and for training and developing Dubai’s top chess talents and official representatives to national and international competitions.

Dubai Chess and Culture Club ignited a nationwide frenzy in chess in the early 1980s following the unprecedented exploits of International Master (IM) Saeed Saeed Ahmed, who became the first and only UAE player to win a world championship.

Dubbed by the media as the ‘Arab computer’ because of his ground-breaking achievements in the global chess arena, Ahmed won the Under-14 title in the 1981 World Youth Championship in Xalapa, Mexico, and subsequently became the first Emirati player to earn the IM title. Dubai also holds the distinction of producing the UAE’s first chess grandmaster, Taleb Moussa, who like Ahmed reigned as Arab and Asian Zonal champion.

The club has also nurtured some of the top achievers in women’s chess competitions, including by Woman International Master (WIM) Amna Nouman, the champion of Arab girls under 20 years.

Dubai Chess and Culture Club has produced 96 podium finishes, including 30 gold medals, in various Arab, Asian, World and Olympic individual and team chess championships.

GM Taleb Moussa and FM Saeed Ishaq hold the distinction of having won the most number of medals while representing the UAE in international competitions.

Some of the most significant contributions of the club to the chess world include the introduction of the rapid system by the club’s former chairman and former UAE Chess Federation head Mohamed Ghobash while he was Fide vice-president.