Reigning champion Le Quang Liem (Elo 2,736).

The announcement was made by the organising committee at a press briefing held in the capital city on March 8.

Liem is one of the two super grandmasters participating in this year’s competition, alongside the Chinese no. 2 seed, Wang Hao (Elo 2,713).

The six-day event will gather more than 270 chess players representing 21 countries and territories around the world, 125 competitors of whom come from nations with a strong tradition of chess competition and development, such as Russia, Germany, China, India, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

In addition to Le Quang Liem, the host country, Vietnam, will be represented by most of its popular chess faces, namely the 2014 champion Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son, Tran Minh Tuan, Nguyen Anh Dung, Le Tuan Minh, Dao Thien Hai, Nguyen Duc Hoa, Vo Thi Kim Phung, Pham Le Thao Nguyen, and Nguyen Thi Mai Hung.

Le Thanh Trung, Deputy Director General of HDBank, speaking at the press conference. (Photo: VOV).

The participants will battle it out in two sections, including the Masters (for men rated 2,100 or above, and women rated 2,000 or above) and the Challengers category (for those rated below 2,100). The top male scorer in the Masters category will receive a cash prize of US$15,000, while the best female player will get US$5,000.

Addressing the press briefing, Le Thanh Trung, Deputy Director General of HDBank, the tournament's main sponsor, pledged to do his utmost for the success of the 2018 competition, while continuing to champion Vietnamese chess in particular, and Vietnamese sport as a whole, in the time ahead.

Source: NDO