I am proud to welcome Zurab Azmaiparashvili, President of the European Chess Union, to our team. Zurab is one of the most experienced and respected leaders in international chess - a Grandmaster, former European Champion and FIDE Vice President. As ECU President, he has played a major role in developing and strengthening chess across Europe. His decision to join us sends a powerful message: experienced chess leaders believe in our vision for a professional, transparent and federation-focused FIDE. Welcome to the team, Zurab. Together, everything is possible!

Thank you, Romania! 🇷🇴

I am delighted to announce that H.E. Zandanshatar Gombojav will be joining our WR 2026 team. As the former Prime Minister of Mongolia and President of the Mongolian Chess Federation, @Zandanshatar brings outstanding leadership experience and a deep understanding of international relations. He is also a passionate supporter of chess and firmly believes in its power to educate, inspire, and connect people across cultures. His expertise and global perspective will help us take chess to another level, strengthen international cooperation, and further expand the impact of our sport around the world. Welcome to the team!

There is only one ticket in the race that would actively work towards bringing the world’s best players including @MagnusCarlsen, @VincentKeymer04 , you, @Vachier_Lagrave , @jordenvforeest, @rjrapport, @GM_JKDuda and @AlirezaFirouzja - to the European Individual Championship and giving the event the prestige it deserves. Everyone knows that I have the ability, relationships and commitment to make this happen.

Dear Members of the FIDE Council, As a delegate of the German Chess Federation, I would like to respectfully request that @FIDE_chess extend the bidding deadline for the 2030 FIDE Chess Olympiad until 1 November 2026. The Chess Olympiad is the most important team event in the international chess calendar and represents a long-term commitment for any host city, government, sponsor, and organizing committee. The FIDE Presidential Elections will take place during the 2026 FIDE Congress in Samarkand. Following these elections, there may be significant changes in the leadership and management structure of FIDE. It would therefore be beneficial for both FIDE and potential organizers if the future administration has the opportunity to participate directly in discussions and negotiations concerning the organization of the 2030 Chess Olympiad. An extension of the deadline would provide greater certainty for bidders, allow more comprehensive negotiations regarding commercial, operational, and promotional aspects of the event, and ensure that any future host city can work closely with the FIDE administration that will ultimately oversee the Olympiad cycle leading up to 2030. Such a step would strengthen transparency, improve long-term planning, and potentially encourage additional high-quality bids from governments, cities, and commercial partners interested in hosting one of the world’s largest sporting events. FIDE has already demonstrated flexibility by extending the current bidding deadline. A further extension until 1 November 2026 would ensure that the final decision is taken under conditions of maximum clarity and with the full involvement of the administration responsible for delivering the event. (FIDE) I respectfully ask the Council to consider this proposal in the best interests of FIDE, the bidding cities, and the global chess community. Yours sincerely, Wadim Rosenstein Delegate of Germany

In my previous post, I shared my story and what shaped me as a person. That experience directly affects how I make decisions and how I build my business. Today, I work across more than 70 countries. Over the years, I’ve lived and worked in places like Germany, Switzerland, the UAE, the USA, and Singapore. It changes the way you see the world. You stop thinking in terms of one country and start looking at people, opportunities, and responsibility. My career started in 2009 at @thyssenkrupp in Germany. From the beginning, I worked in international logistics, including projects connected to Ukraine and Russia. For many years, both were part of my work. We built partnerships, worked with international clients, and developed operations on the ground. After 2022, the way we operate changed. All projects connected to Ukraine were stopped. We also stopped taking on any new projects related to Russia. Because of the sanctions, key functions, including IT systems, data exchange, and operational control, cannot be managed from Europe. As a result, these operations are handled locally, independently and under responsibility of the local management — this is how the majority of international companies operate in the current environment. I’m not involved in managing these operations. Under the existing regulatory framework, selling or liquidating such entities is not straightforward and requires approvals that are difficult to obtain in practice. I work within international rules, I follow the law, and I make decisions based on the reality we’re in. But my approach to business hasn’t been shaped by work alone. Chess has had a big influence on it. Chess teaches you to think a few steps ahead, to make decisions under pressure, and to take responsibility for them. It’s simple: every move has consequences. That mindset is something I brought into my business. I don’t build my business around countries or nationalities. I build it around people. What matters to me is people who can think, take responsibility, and deliver results. Where someone comes from doesn’t matter. What matters is what they can do and how they work. I invest where I see real potential and long-term value, not quick wins. For me, chess is not just a game - it’s a tool for thinking, learning, and development. That’s why I believe chess should be part of the school system, not as an optional activity, but as something built into education. Because chess is not about pieces on a board - it’s about how a child learns to think, understand consequences, make decisions, and take responsibility for them. These are basic skills that shape how people live and work later on, and the earlier a child is exposed to this, the stronger that foundation becomes. There are a lot of assumptions about my background and my involvement in chess. Let me be clear: everything I do in chess is based on my own ideas and long-term projects. It has nothing to do with replacing any previous sponsors. As for identity, I have one citizenship - German. That’s how I define myself. At the same time, my experience comes from living and working in different countries, with different people and different systems. That’s why, for me, one thing matters: respect and opportunity shouldn’t depend on nationality. Chess is one of the clearest examples of how people from different countries can interact and grow on equal terms, and I believe this should apply not only in sport, but also in business. The world is complicated right now. There are a lot of conflicts and contradictions, but there are things that shouldn’t change: - Respect for people, - Responsibility for your decisions, - Keeping your word, no matter the circumstances. That’s my position. And that’s how I make decisions, both in business and in chess.