Armenia Names Squads for the 2026 Chess Olympiad in Samarkand

The opening ceremony of the 46th Chess Olympiad will take place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on September 15, with the competitive program beginning a day later, on September 16. The tournament will run until September 27 and will consist of 11 rounds.

Armenia will be represented by teams in both the Open and Women’s sections. The Armenian team is 10th seeded among 208 teams in the Open section, while the women’s team is 16th among 191 teams based on average rating.

Armenia squad in the Open section

• Haik Martirosyan — 2664
• Robert Hovhannisyan — 2642
• Shant Sargsyan — 2630
• Gabriel Sargissian — 2610
• Manuel Petrosyan — 2569

The team has an average rating of 2637, with Arman Pashikian serving as captain.

Armenia Women’s team

• Elina Danielian — 2382
• Mariam Mkrtchyan — 2374
• Lilit Mkrtchian — 2353
• Susanna Gaboyan — 2179
• Anahit Mkrtchyan — 2106

The women’s team has an average rating of 2322, with Zaven Andriasian serving as captain.

The first round of the Olympiad will take place on September 16. Armenia will begin its campaign in the Open section against Zimbabwe, while the women’s team will face Hong Kong in its opening match.

The Armenian teams head into the tournament following strong performances at the previous Chess Olympiad, held in Budapest in 2024.

Armenia’s Open team collected 17 match points and finished sixth. The United States, Uzbekistan, China and Serbia, who finished from second to fifth respectively, also had 17 points, with the final standings decided by tiebreak criteria.

Armenia’s women’s team also scored 17 points and finished fifth. The United States, Spain and Georgia recorded the same number of match points and finished third, fourth and sixth respectively.

Thus, both Armenian teams once again enter the world’s largest team chess competition among the sides capable of challenging for high positions.