Everything is set for the start of the 44th Chess Olympiad 2022 in Chennai, India. The event was officially opened today at the glorious ceremony and the first round starts Friday, 15:00 (GMT+5:30).
During the Opening ceremony of the event, the drawing of lots determined the first board colours of each team. The top seeds tomorrow meet with the underdogs. USA faces Angola having black pieces on the top board, India is white against Zimbabwe, and Norway is black against Lebanon.
Indian women’s team will be black against Tajikistan, Ukraine meets South Africa as White and Georgia will play against Iraq in the first round in the Women’s Olympiad 2022. Scroll down for R1 pairings of both sections. Click here for all board pairings
Chess Olympiad 2022 | Women’s section games LIVE / Chess Olympiad 2022 | Open section games LIVE
Team pairings round 1 / Board pairings round 1 (open section) / Board pairings round 1 (women section)
Video: Live commentary with GM Svidler and GM Leko
Read all: Chess Olympiad 2022 news here
Round 1 pairings – Chess Olympiad 2022 Open section:
| No. | Team White | Team Black |
| 1 | India *) | Zimbabwe |
| 2 | Angola | United States of America |
| 3 | Lebanon | Norway |
| 4 | Spain | Wales |
| 5 | Syria | Poland |
| 6 | Azerbaijan | Algeria |
| 7 | Jordan | Netherlands |
| 8 | Ukraine | Thailand |
| 9 | Sudan | Germany |
| 10 | England | Cyprus |
| 11 | United Arab Emirates | India 2 |
| 12 | Armenia | Madagascar |
| 13 | Nicaragua | Iran |
| 14 | Uzbekistan | Nepal |
| 15 | Jamaica | France |
| 16 | India 3 | South Sudan |
| 17 | Ethiopia | Croatia |
| 18 | Czech Republic | Puerto Rico |
| 19 | Sri Lanka | Hungary |
| 20 | Romania | Botswana |
| 21 | Honduras | Turkey |
| 22 | Israel | Netherlands Antilles |
| 23 | Malta | Serbia |
| 24 | Georgia | Malawi |
| 25 | Haiti | Greece |
| 26 | Italy | Suriname |
| 27 | Qatar | Denmark |
| 28 | Brazil | Namibia |
| 29 | Libya | Australia |
| 30 | Argentina | Cape Verde |
| 31 | Barbados | Sweden |
| 32 | Cuba | Myanmar |
| 33 | Liechtenstein | Austria |
| 34 | Slovakia | Mali |
| 35 | Jersey | Lithuania |
| 36 | Switzerland | Mauritania |
| 37 | Bahrain | Peru |
| 38 | Egypt | Saudi Arabia |
| 39 | Afghanistan | Montenegro |
| 40 | Kazakhstan | Chinese Taipei |
| 41 | Somalia | Slovenia |
| 42 | Chile | Kenya |
| 43 | Ghana | Iceland |
| 44 | Canada | Liberia |
| 45 | Sao Tome and Principe | Mongolia |
| 46 | Indonesia | Hong Kong |
| 47 | Palestine | Paraguay |
| 48 | Moldova | Guam |
| 49 | Mozambique | Uruguay |
| 50 | Belgium | Kuwait |
| 51 | Mauritius | Colombia |
| 52 | Philippines | Oman |
| 53 | Aruba | Portugal |
| 54 | Albania | Saint Lucia |
| 55 | Togo | Finland |
| 56 | Singapore | Senegal |
| 57 | Gambia | Estonia |
| 58 | Andorra | Guyana |
| 59 | Maldives | Ireland |
| 60 | Faroe Islands | San Marino |
| 61 | Bermuda | North Macedonia |
| 62 | Mexico | Sierra Leone |
| 63 | Palau | Bulgaria |
| 64 | Latvia | Bahamas |
| 65 | Tanzania | Bangladesh |
| 66 | Ecuador | Nauru |
| 67 | Rwanda | Scotland |
| 68 | South Africa | Cameroon |
| 69 | Timor-Leste | Kyrgyzstan |
| 70 | Bolivia | Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| 71 | Brunei Darussalam | Kosovo |
| 72 | Venezuela | Eswatini |
| 73 | Papua New Guinea | Zambia |
| 74 | Morocco | Gabon |
| 75 | Guernsey | Dominican Republic |
| 76 | Costa Rica | Fiji |
| 77 | Cayman Islands | Tunisia |
| 78 | Nigeria | Burundi |
| 79 | Eritrea | Luxembourg |
| 80 | Malaysia | US Virgin Islands |
| 81 | Djibouti | Japan |
| 82 | Yemen | Central African Republic |
| 83 | Seychelles | Guatemala |
| 84 | Panama | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
| 85 | Dominica | Iraq |
| 86 | Tajikistan | British Virgin Islands |
| 87 | Laos | South Korea |
| 88 | El Salvador | Bhutan |
| 89 | Comoros | Monaco |
| 90 | Uganda | Equatorial Guinea |
| 91 | Niger | Trinidad & Tobago |
| 92 | New Zealand | Saint Kitts and Nevis |
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Round 1 pairings – Chess Olympiad 2022 Women’s section:
| No. | Team | Team |
| 1 | Tajikistan | India *) |
| 2 | Ukraine | South Africa |
| 3 | Iraq | Georgia |
| 4 | Poland | Syria |
| 5 | Monaco | France |
| 6 | Azerbaijan | United Arab Emirates |
| 7 | Puerto Rico | United States of America |
| 8 | Germany | Zambia |
| 9 | Botswana | Armenia |
| 10 | Kazakhstan | Guatemala |
| 11 | Wales | India 2 |
| 12 | Hungary | Panama |
| 13 | Japan | Spain |
| 14 | Cuba | Uganda |
| 15 | Zimbabwe | Bulgaria |
| 16 | India 3 | Hong Kong |
| 17 | Jamaica | Netherlands |
| 18 | Serbia | Sri Lanka |
| 19 | South Korea | Israel |
| 20 | Romania | Kenya |
| 21 | Libya | England |
| 22 | Slovakia | Nepal |
| 23 | Andorra | Czech Republic |
| 24 | Vietnam | Thailand |
| 25 | Suriname | Italy |
| 26 | Slovenia | Haiti |
| 27 | Malta | Greece |
| 28 | Mongolia | Oman |
| 29 | Mozambique | Switzerland |
| 30 | Estonia | Palestine |
| 31 | Barbados | Peru |
| 32 | Indonesia | Honduras |
| 33 | Ethiopia | Colombia |
| 34 | Sweden | Fiji |
| 35 | Timor-Leste | Australia |
| 36 | Brazil | Tunisia |
| 37 | Trinidad & Tobago | Austria |
| 38 | Iran | Kosovo |
| 39 | Guam | Philippines |
| 40 | Argentina | Malawi |
| 41 | Sudan | Turkey |
| 42 | Lithuania | Namibia |
| 43 | Chinese Taipei | Croatia |
| 44 | Egypt | Cyprus |
| 45 | Cape Verde | Finland |
| 46 | Uzbekistan | Ghana |
| 47 | Aruba | Denmark |
| 48 | Norway | Senegal |
| 49 | Palau | Belgium |
| 50 | Latvia | Kuwait |
| 51 | Myanmar | Ireland |
| 52 | Malaysia | Eswatini |
| 53 | Mauritius | Moldova |
| 54 | Mexico | Guyana |
| 55 | Eritrea | Singapore |
| 56 | Canada | Togo |
| 57 | Bahamas | Chile |
| 58 | Venezuela | Cameroon |
| 59 | Maldives | Portugal |
| 60 | Bolivia | Jersey |
| 61 | Bahrain | Iceland |
| 62 | Algeria | Liberia |
| 63 | Sao Tome and Principe | Costa Rica |
| 64 | Bangladesh | Tanzania |
| 65 | Sierra Leone | Ecuador |
| 66 | Montenegro | Bhutan |
| 67 | Burundi | Paraguay |
| 68 | Nigeria | Central African Republic |
| 69 | Comoros | Angola |
| 70 | Albania | Djibouti |
| 71 | Gabon | North Macedonia |
| 72 | Scotland | Gambia |
| 73 | Laos | Lebanon |
| 74 | New Zealand | Mali |
| 75 | Rwanda | Dominican Republic |
| 76 | El Salvador | Saudi Arabia |
| 77 | Seychelles | Uruguay |
| 78 | Nicaragua | Somalia |
| 79 | South Sudan | Kyrgyzstan |
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