Alpari and Segey Karyakin Extend Strategic Partnership

Dear Clients,

Leading financial brand Alpari and outstanding Russian grandmaster Sergey Karyakin have extended their partnership. The new agreement gives provisions for financial support to the chess player until 31^st December, 2016. This sponsorship will be key in Sergey’s preparations for the ultimate global chess event: the match for the world title against the current champion, Magnus Carlsen.

Alpari first took note of little known grandmaster Sergey Karyakin’s promise in 2012, supporting Russia in its aim of bringing the chess crown home. Over the course of the longstanding partnership, the young sportsman has proved the faith placed in him, managing to achieve some rather impressive results: getting into the top ten chess players in the world and closing in on the world title in 2014 by coming in second place at the Candidates Tournament in 2014.

2015 was an especially successful year for Sergey Karyakin: he took gold in the world team championships with his compatriots representing Russia, practically outfoxing the Chinese team on his own; he then won the Chess World Cup in Baku; and won a ticket to the 2016 Candidates Tournament. On 28^th March, Sergey Karyakin was efficiently and convincingly victorious over seven of the world’s best chess players and, in doing so, won the right to challenge the current world champion: Norwegian, Magnus Carlsen.

The battle for the chess crown will take place in New York (USA) this year between 10^th and 30^th November. Russia has waited some long years for this revenge match and now, for the first time in eight years, there is a real chance to see the title of most intelligent country return to Russian soil. The chance is more than realistic since Carlsen and Karyakin – the two of them: proclaimed 26 year old chess geniuses – have matched up before, with Karyakin already twice having took victory over three-year-long world champion Carlsen in his home country Norway (in Stavanger).

“We believed in Sergey Karyakin and his dream to become world champion in 2012 when he was just taking his first steps in his international sporting career, so now our decision to extend the partnership as main sponsor is a logical and reasoned one. Now we are within reach of one of the most important events not only in Sergey’s life, but the fate of sporting chess,” noted Alpari CEO, Boris Shilov.

Russian minister for sport, Vitaly Mutko, recently met with Segey Karyakin, congratulating him and expressing his thanks to sponsors, in particular to Alpari; a company which has aided the grandmaster develop professionally and acquire experience at prestigious world championships for four years now.

Following his striking victory at the Candidates Tournament 2016 – outmanoeuvring well-known grandmasters such as Fabio Caruana (USA),Viswanathan Anand (India), Hikaru Nakamura (USA), Peter Svidler (Russia), Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria), Levon Aronian (Armenia) and Aneesh Giri (Netherlands) – Sergey Karyakin received acknowledgement and support at the highest state level.

“I am delighted that chess has once again become a priority in Russian sport. Now, in receiving all round support from the government and private business, I am more than assured that my life-long dream – to have the title of world chess champion – is more realistic than ever. I will do everything possible in order to not disappoint my millions of supporters,” remarked grandmaster Sergey Karyakin.

During the past decade, the world has seen a chess boom. The ancient intellectual game has seen a significant rise in popularity, with Norway, the US, China, the Netherlands and India becoming preparation centres for the strongest chess sportsmen. Russia, the main chess empire of the 20th century, has in the meanwhile had to withstand terrible misfortune. However, Sergey Karyakin has the means to set Russian chess on course for triumph in the 21st century.

Best Regards,
Alpari