Chess: England target first Olympiad medal this century in Chennai

England hope to medal for the first time this century, but will probably have to settle for around their seeded position of 10th, when the 187-nation Olympiad starts at Chennai, India, on 28 July. Long ago in the vintage years between 1984 and 1988, England won three silvers behind the Soviet kings led by Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov.

The current group is ageing now, but England’s recent performances have been very respectable: fifth in the 2018 Olympiad, the last before the pandemic, and second to Russia in the 2019 world teams. At Chennai, Russia are banned and China will not compete due to Covid-19, leaving the US as strong favourites with two young Indian teams the likely challengers. Ukraine, who will be highly motivated, could surprise.

There will be huge support for the home squads. Chess is a major participation sport in India, and Chennai is its epicentre. For the first time there is an Olympiad torch relay, lit by the prime minister, Narendra Modi, handed to the former world champion Visny Anand, and touring 75 cities. India has four teenagers among the world top 11 juniors, led by Dommaraju Gukesh, 16, and including Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, 16, who this year has twice defeated Magnus Carlsen in the online Tour.

England’s quintet of Michael Adams, Luke McShane, Gawain Jones, David Howell and Ravi Haria have an average age of 35, so could be more affected by Chennai’s hot August climate than younger rivals. Some of them have been searching for form in the German Bundesliga and the French team championship, two of Europe’s strongest leagues.

Adams is a regular for Germany’s dominant club Baden-Baden, which has won the Bundesliga every year bar one since 2006. B-B has the world title candidates Fabiano