Kazakhstan secured two international medals in Abu Dhabi. Grandmaster Edgar Mamedov won silver and Grandmaster Aldiyar Ansat took bronze in the open blitz tournament at the 32nd Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival in the UAE, DKNews.kz reports.
The young Kazakh players also delivered strong results in the festival’s main Masters tournament, where 109 chess players from 22 countries competed.
Edgar Mamedov wins silver, Aldiyar Ansat takes bronze
Sixteen-year-old Edgar Mamedov finished second in the open blitz tournament after scoring 9.5 points out of a possible 11.
Eighteen-year-old Aldiyar Ansat collected nine points to take third place.
The top three were:
- Alexander Usov — first place, 10 points
- Edgar Mamedov — second place, 9.5 points
- Aldiyar Ansat — third place, 9 points
International Master Alexander Usov won the tournament with a half-point advantage over Mamedov.
17-year-old Daniyal Sapenov finishes sixth in Masters
Kazakhstan’s players also performed strongly in the main Masters tournament.
The competition brought together 109 players from 22 countries, including:
- 17 Grandmasters
- 32 International Masters
- 5 Woman Grandmasters
Kazakhstan’s best result came from 17-year-old International Master Daniyal Sapenov.
He scored 6.5 points after nine rounds and finished sixth.
Sapenov ended the competition with exactly the same number of points as the players who placed second through fifth, with their final positions determined by tiebreak criteria.
Uzbekistan’s Jakhongir Vakhidov wins Masters
Uzbekistan’s Jakhongir Vakhidov won the main tournament with seven points.
Daniil Dubov finished second, while Alexander Rakhmanov took third place.
Sapenov was only half a point behind the tournament winner, underlining how closely contested the top positions were.
Edgar Mamedov also makes Masters top 10
Mamedov added another strong performance after his silver medal in blitz.
The 16-year-old scored six points to finish 10th in the Masters tournament.
Aldiyar Ansat also collected six points but finished 14th after tiebreak criteria were applied.
Kazakhstan’s leading results at the festival were:
- Edgar Mamedov — silver in open blitz
- Aldiyar Ansat — bronze in open blitz
- Daniyal Sapenov — sixth in Masters
- Edgar Mamedov — 10th in Masters
- Aldiyar Ansat — 14th in Masters
Why the Abu Dhabi results matter
The age of Kazakhstan’s leading performers makes the results particularly notable.
Mamedov is 16, Sapenov is 17 and Ansat is 18, yet all three competed successfully in an international field that included dozens of titled players.
Sapenov’s Masters result was especially close: his 6.5 points matched the scores of four players who finished above him, while only half a point separated him from tournament winner Vakhidov.
For Mamedov, the festival produced both a medal and a top-10 result in the main event.
The 32nd Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival was held in the UAE capital from August 15 to 24.
