Zurab Azmaiparashvili (born March 16, 1960) is a chess Grandmaster from Georgia. In the January 2007 FIDE list, he has an Elo rating of 2632, making him tied for the rankings of 81st to 83rd in the world and Georgia's number three. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (76th in leap years). ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... Chess is a recreational and competitive game for two players. ... The title Grandmaster is awarded to world-class chess masters by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain. ... The Fédération Internationale des Échecs or World Chess Federation is an international organization that connects the various national chess federations around the world. ... The ELO rating system is a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in two-player games such as chess and Go. ...

He became a Grandmaster in 1988. Among his great achievements are a 2810 performance rating at the 1998 Chess Olympiad and first place finishes at Pavlodar 1982, Moscow 1986, Albena 1986, Tbilisi 1986, London (Lloyds Bank Open) 1989, and in the 2003 European Individual Championship in Istanbul. In 2003 he played a match of rapid and blitz games against Garry Kasparov, losing 0.5-5.5. The Chess Olympiad is a chess event which has been officially organised by FIDE since 1927 and takes place in even years. ... The Grand mosque of Pavlodar Pavlodar (Павлода́р) is a city in northeastern Kazakhstan, 350km northeast of the country capital Astana, and 350km southeast of Russias Omsk along the Irtysh River. ... Location Position of Moscow in Europe Government Country District Subdivision Russia Central Federal District Federal City Mayor Yuriy Luzhkov Geographical characteristics Area  - City 1,081 km² Population  - City (2007)    - Density 10,469,000   9684. ... Albena is a popular Black Sea resort in northeastern Bulgaria, situated 12 km from Balchik and 30 km from Varna. ... Coordinates:  - Governing Mayor Giorgi Gigi Ugulava Area    - City 372 km²  (143. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... The European Individual Chess Championship is a chess tournament organized by the European Chess Union. ... Istanbul (Turkish: , Greek: , historically Byzantium and later Constantinople; see other names) is Turkeys most populous city, and its cultural and financial center. ... Kasparov, Chess Classics, 1999 in Frankfurt am Main Garry Kimovich Kasparov (Russian: ; IPA: ) (born April 13, 1963, in Baku, Azerbaijan) is a chess grandmaster and former World Chess Champion. ...

Azmaiparashvili is also active in chess politics, being President of the Georgian chess federation, a board member of the European Chess Union and a vice-president of international chess federation FIDE. The Fédération Internationale des Échecs or World Chess Federation is an international organization that connects the various national chess federations around the world. ...

Azmaiparashvili made chess news in 2004 when, at the closing ceremony of the 36th Chess Olympiad in Calviá, he was arrested by local police and subsequently held in custody for several days. The attitude of the event's organizers towards Azmaiparashvili had apparently been soured when, upon his arrival in Spain, he had attempted to secure himself two hotel rooms, claiming he was entitled to one in his capacity as a FIDE vice-president, and another as a player at the event. This sour mood seems to have brought him extra attention at the closing ceremony when he approached the stage, apparently in an attempt to inform FIDE officials that the organizers had neglected to award a prize named in honour of Georgian former Women's World Champion Nona Gaprindashvili. He came into conflict with security officials, and a scuffle broke out resulting in injuries both to Azmaiparashvili and a security agent. There are conflicting claims about the exact nature of said scuffle: a press release from the Olympiad organizers placed the blame squarely on Azmaiparashvili's shoulders, saying that after he had tried to gain admittance to the stage on several occasions he "without any previous provocation, assaulted the agent with a head butt to his mouth" [1]. FIDE, on the other hand, blamed over-zealous policing, saying in their press release that "Despite his clear VIP identification, he was severely beaten up by several security guards" [2]. Azmaiparashvili was due to appear in court on July 22, 2005, but all charges were dropped shortly beforehand.[3] The 36th Chess Olympiad took place from October 14th to 31st, 2004, in Calvia (Majorca, Spain). ... Calvià is a municipality on the island of Mallorca, which adjoins the suburbs of Palma, the capital of the Spanish autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. ... Nona Gaprindashvili Nona Gaprindashvili (born May 3, 1941) is a Georgian chess player, and the sixth womens world chess champion (1962-1978). ... July 22 is the 203rd day (204th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 162 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Azmaiparashvili had been criticized earlier in 2004 over arrangements for the 2004 Women's World Chess Championship when female Georgian players Lela Javakhishvili and Ana Matnadze accused him of behaving "in a hostile and intimidating manner, using inappropriate and vulgar language and bringing to tears our mothers". Current World Champion, Vladimir Kramnik. ...

External links

• Report on Azmaiparashvili's 2004 arrest from Chessbase
• Chessbase report on controversy over the 2004 Women's World Championship
• Interview with Azmaiparashvili by Geoffrey Borg
• Statistics at ChessWorld.net
• FIDE rating card for Zurab Azmaiparashvili
• Zurab Azmaiparashvili at ChessGames.com