Uzbek chess legend Rustam Kasimdzhanov named FIDE Honorary President

Following the election of the President of the International Chess Federation and a meeting of the FIDE General Assembly in Samarkand, the organization’s governing board for 2026-2030 was approved.

By the General Assembly’s decision, Uzbekistan’s Rustam Kasimdzhanov, a former world champion and head coach of the national chess team, was named among FIDE’s honorary presidents.

The other honorary presidents are Javier Ochoa, who heads the Spanish Chess Federation, Fouad Fahmi Darwish of the United Arab Emirates, and Michael Stöttinger, who heads the Austrian Chess Federation.

The approved composition of the FIDE governing board includes President Timur Turlov of Kazakhstan, First Vice President Viswanathan Anand of India, and Vice Presidents Xu Yuhua of China, Mikhail Khodorkovsky of the United States, Pavel Kolobkov of Russia, and Yassin Souleiman Hassan of Djibouti.

Representatives of Italy, Morocco, Azerbaijan and Ukraine, as well as heads of continental chess federations, were also elected to the organization’s leadership.

T. Ruziyev, UzA