The best sportsman in blitz chess at the Arab Championship was the distinguished international grandmaster Salem Abdulrahman, representing the Sharjah Club. The tournament involved 200 participants from 18 countries, competing in both men's and women's disciplines of rapid chess. Salem Abdulrahman became the absolute champion, achieving 5.5 points in seven rounds and maintaining his victory in the additional matches.
Among other participants, sharing second place, were Algerian Bilal Belhassen, Egyptian Adhem Fawzi, and Syrian Mazen Fendi. Syrian master Joad Romani took first place in the women's category, while the second went to Egyptian Shakhinda and the third to Roudha from the Abu-Dhabi team. In total, the athletes from the UAE won five medals: gold and silver for Salem Abdulrahman, silver and bronze for Roudha, and bronze for Anoud Aisa from the Sharjah Club.
A member of the board and chair of the women's committee of the UAE Chess Federation, Khaloud Zargouni, emphasized that the tournament was an important stage in the development of sports at all levels – from technical and organizational to managerial. Despite the strong competition among participants from various countries, participation of masters with international titles contributed to raising the sporting class of local players and enhancing their rankings.
Khaloud Zargouni noted that alongside sports achievements, important goals such as involving judges in competitions and accumulating their experience in managing international matches were also accomplished.
