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Team China poses during the awarding ceremony of the 43rd Chess Olympiad in Batumi, Georgia, on Oct. 5, 2018. China swept both Open and Women champion at the 43rd Chess Olympiad in Batumi, Georgia, on Friday, making the tournament's first double-gold history in 32 years. (Xinhua/Tamuna Kulumbegashvili)
BEIJING, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- China swept both Open and Women champion on 43rd Chess Olympiad at Batumi, Georgia on Friday, making the tournament's first double-gold history in 32 years.
China battled out four draws against reigning champion USA in the closing round of the Open section. China, USA and Russia shared the first place with 18 points each, but China edged off the others by the tie-break to claim the gold. USA pocketed silver, while Russia took the bronze after a strong finish.
Ladies from China retained their title in a tough manner. After a 96-move long fight, World Champion Ju Wenjun snatched one point back from Russian former Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk. The victory helped China tie with Russia and managed 18 points equal with Ukraine. Again, China won the gold by the tie-break. The host Georgia claimed the bronze medal.
"This is the best present for all those friends who helped Chinese chess team I think," said the chief coach of the Chinese National Teams Ye Jiangchuan.
China first attended Chess Olympiad in 1978, but achieved more champions in the women's section. China won their first Open section gold in 2014, breaking the title monopoly of the tournament by teams from the Europe and the Americas.
