1. General Outline

 The European Rapid Chess Championship will be held from November 28 to November 30, 2004, in Yerevan, Armenia.
 The Championship is dedicated to the 75th Anniversary of 9th World Champion Tigran Petrosian and is held within the frame of his memorial. Prior to the championship, from November 18 to 27, 2004, the Petrosian Open Tournament will be held in Yerevan, Armenia, with a prize fund of US$ 35.000.

 2. Participation

 The number of players is unlimited. The entry fees, however, are based on the quality of the participants: 

•  The current medalists of the European Rapid Championship shall pay no entry fee.

• Players with a FIDE-rating above 2600 shall pay no entry fee.

•  All other players pay 20 Euro entry fee.

 Not European participants of the Petrosian Open Tournament can participate in the European Rapid Chess Championship. However, they will not be entitled to Champion Title nor Gold, Silver or Bronze medals.

3. Regulations

The championship will be held by Swiss system, 11 rounds.

Rate of Play: 15 minutes + 10 seconds before each move per player per game.

4. Titles and Prizes

The winner of the championship will receive European Rapid Champion title.
Gold, Silver and Bronze medals will be awarded to players taking the first three places in the championship.
The Prize Fund of the championship is 10.000 Euro.

  1^st  Place                    2.000
  2^nd Place                    1.500
  3^rd Place                     1.000
  4^th Place                       800
  5^th Place                       700
  6^th Place                       600
  7^th Place                       400
  8^th Place                       400
  9^th Place                       300
10^th Place                       300
11^th Place                       300
12^th Place                       300
13^th Place                       200
14^th Place                       200
15^th Place                       200
16^th Place                       200
17^th Place                       150
18^th Place                       150
19^th Place                       150
20^th Place                       150
___________________________
Total                          10.000 Euro

5. Board and Lodging

The participants will be offered to stay at the Erebuni Hotel.
Erebuni Hotel charge per day:

The participants can also choose the Congress Hotel for accommodation.
Congress Hotel charge per day:
Double room     US$ 53 (with breakfast)
Single room       US$ 77 (with breakfast)

6. Application for Participation

Chess players are requested to kindly confirm their participation by fax or email not later than November 8, 2004.
The hotel and type of room preferred must be stated in the application.

7. Entry Visa

In case of necessity the participants will get their Armenia entry visa upon arrival at the Yerevan airport. US$ 30 are due for the visa.
For receiving an invitation letter necessary for the visa the participants must contact the Organizing Committee in advance and not later than November 8, 2004.

8. Local Transportation

Each participant will be charged US$ 10 for the transportation from the airport to the hotel and back.
Please note that when departing from the Yerevan airport, each passenger must pay an air tax of 10.000 Armenian drams (equivalent to approximately US$ 18 by the exchange rate of May 5, 2004).

9. Payments

All payments must be paid before the commence of the championship.

10. Organizing Committee

The Chairman of the Governmental Organizing Committee of Tigran Petrosian Memorial events is Mr. Serzh Sargsian, President of Armenian Chess Federation, Minister of Defense of Republic of Armenia.
The Secretary of the Governmental Organizing Committee is Mr. Gaguik Oganessian, General Secretary of Armenian Chess Federation, President of FIDE European Zone 1.5.

Tel.: (374)1-554923, (374)1-570758
Fax: (374)1-570758, (374)1-272418
E-mail: armchess@arminco.com, armchess@armpac.com
Website: www.armchess.am

© Chess in Armenia Magazine, 2004