{"id":2026,"date":"2026-09-17T08:36:17","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T08:36:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2026\/09\/17\/france-opens-chess-olympiad-with-4-0-win-mvl-not-favourites\/"},"modified":"2026-09-17T08:36:17","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T08:36:17","slug":"france-opens-chess-olympiad-with-4-0-win-mvl-not-favourites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2026\/09\/17\/france-opens-chess-olympiad-with-4-0-win-mvl-not-favourites\/","title":{"rendered":"France opens Chess Olympiad with 4-0 win as MVL warns team are not favourites"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"9fece8afa224fd09e54b043d0febfb58\" data-index=\"1\" style=\"float: none; margin:10px 0 10px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- NR ATF -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8898941184964366\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"4839033563\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p>The 46th Chess Olympiad, staged in Samarkand, kicked off on Wednesday with the French men\u2019s team delivering a flawless 4\u20110 victory over lower\u2011ranked Tunisia. The opening round saw Board\u00a01 Grandmaster Maxime Vachier\u2011Lagrave (commonly known as MVL) rested, a decision the French camp said was intended to give the player a breather after a demanding stint in India\u2019s Global Chess League (GCL).<\/p>\n<h2>France\u2019s line\u2011up and early success<\/h2>\n<p>France entered the competition with a line\u2011up that blends seasoned veterans and emerging talent. Apart from MVL, the roster includes former world champion \u00c9tienne Bacrot, strong grandmaster Maxime Lagarde, rising star Jules Moussard and the youngest member, Marc\u2019Andria Maurizzi. Veteran S\u00e9bastien Mazer serves as team captain. In the opening match, each French board secured a win, completing a clean sweep that set a confident tone for the campaign.<\/p>\n<p>The decisive victories were achieved without MVL on the board, a move the French federation described as a precaution after his recent travel and competition schedule in India. The decision underscored the careful management of player stamina in a tournament that stretches over two weeks and follows a Swiss\u2011system format.<\/p>\n<h2>MVL\u2019s candid assessment of France\u2019s chances<\/h2>\n<p>When asked by Times of India about France\u2019s prospects, MVL gave a straightforward answer that avoided diplomatic platitudes. \u201cWe\u2019re nowhere near favourites,\u201d he said during an exclusive interview. \u201cBut we have a good solid team, and I think everyone\u2019s really motivated. So that\u2019s all I can say, and we\u2019re hoping for the best.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He was quick to identify the teams he believes will dominate the event. \u201cThere are three main favourites, I think. Even four, I would say. USA, India, China and Uzbekistan,\u201d MVL listed, notably omitting France from his shortlist. The French grandmaster\u2019s comments reflected a realistic appraisal rather than pessimism, emphasizing the importance of motivation and preparation over external expectations.<\/p>\n<h2>Reflections on a two\u2011decade career<\/h2>\n<p>Beyond tournament predictions, MVL used the interview to look back on his own journey. He recalled learning the rules of chess at the age of five and gradually falling in love with the game as his early victories mounted. \u201cThe more you win, the more you want to play,\u201d he explained, describing the natural progression from hobby to professional pursuit.<\/p>\n<p>Now 35, MVL noted that he never imagined he would still be playing chess as a profession thirty years later. Yet he expressed optimism about the remaining years of his career, saying, \u201cHopefully I\u2019ve got a few good years remaining.\u201d He also reflected on the decision he made twenty years ago to pursue chess full\u2011time, calling it \u201ca great decision.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When asked about the challenges of a professional chess career, MVL acknowledged moments of doubt but stressed the need to focus on enjoyment and learning. \u201cFor everyone, every sportsman, every chess player, there are moments of doubt, moments where things don\u2019t go so well. It\u2019s just important not to focus on those moments but to learn the lessons that need to be learned and to focus on the moments of enjoyment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>He likened an improvement curve to a line with ups and downs, urging players to keep looking forward for the next rise. \u201cAn improvement curve cannot be a straight line. It has some ups and downs. You just need to always be looking forwards for the ups,\u201d MVL added.<\/p>\n<h2>Recent stint in India and personal habits<\/h2>\n<p>MVL\u2019s recent participation in the Global Chess League saw him representing the Mumba Masters, a team that finished fourth in Season\u00a04 of the competition. While the experience was competitive, he admitted that travel to India left him feeling unusually fatigued. \u201cEvery time I come to India, in the morning I feel very tired, no matter how I slept,\u201d he confessed, noting the impact of long flights and time\u2011zone changes.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the tired mornings, MVL found camaraderie off the board. He spent time playing board games with friends, tried the racquet sport padel, and when alone, he turned to solving sudoku puzzles. These activities, he suggested, provided a mental break from the intense focus required in high\u2011level chess.<\/p>\n<p>Looking ahead to Samarkand, MVL will occupy Board\u00a01 for France, a role that carries both prestige and pressure. While he does not consider his team a favourite, his confidence in the squad\u2019s solidity and motivation suggests he will approach each game with the same disciplined mindset that has kept him at the top of the chess world for nearly two decades.<\/p>\n<p>As the Olympiad progresses, the French contingent will aim to build on their opening sweep, hoping to translate early momentum into a deep run. Whether they can challenge the teams MVL identified as favourites\u2014USA, India, China and Uzbekistan\u2014remains to be seen, but the French players appear ready to fight for every point.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>France&#8217;s men&#8217;s squad began the 46th Chess Olympiad with a clean sweep of Tunisia, while top board Grandmaster Maxime Vachier\u2011Lagrave cautioned that his side are far from favourites.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2027,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[2125,2127,1868,2128,2126],"class_list":["post-2026","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","tag-chess-olympiad","tag-france-chess-team","tag-global-chess-league","tag-international-chess","tag-maxime-vachier-lagrave","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2026","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2026"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2026\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2027"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2026"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2026"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2026"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}