Cultural Village Foundation - Katara, in cooperation  with the Qatar Chess Association, organizes Katara International Chess Tournament 2021
Online "Bullet" Tournamen

20 & 23 June 2021

Total Prize Fund: 12,800$

Tournament Schedule

*Qualifying Stage – 90’ Arena sessions

- The qualifying stage consists in two independent Arena Bullet qualifying sessions of 90 min each.
- Top 7 players from each qualifying session qualify for the Katara Bullet Finals.
- Players are free to join one or two Katara Arenas (A, B) to qualify for the Finals.
- Players may play in both Katara Arenas (A & B) if they wish so.
- In case a player reaches the top 7 in 2 qualifying sessions, the session where he reached the highest final ranking will be kept and his other results will be disregarded.
- To register to any of the qualifying sessions, a participant must have played at least 30 rated games on lichess.
- Every participant in any Arena must fill up the following online form: Click here

- Bullet Arena "A" link: https://lichess.org/tournament/Ngmvodax
- Bullet Arena "B" link: https://lichess.org/tournament/7ZgLcxdF

*Katara Online Bullet Finals
- The Katara Online Bullet Finals consist in a 16-player knock out session.
- Every one-to-one Match shall be played in 12 games of Bullet Chess.
- The Match is won once a player scores 6.5 points. In case of a draw score 6-6, players shall play up to the first win.

NOTE:

Prizes shall be received via Bank-Transfer after one month of Winners-List announcement due to Covid-19 less office-hours + Banks long & slow procedures.

Rules & Regulations:
Dates:
- Katara qualifying stage: 20th June 2021
- Katara finals: 23rd June 2021

Admission: Open for all + No entry fee.
Online playing platform: lichess.org
If you are new to Lichess, we suggest you become familiar with the Arena format.
Read Lichess’s Arena FAQ here: https://lichess.org/tournament/help?system=arena
Time Control: (Bullet) 1min per game without increment for each player.
Tournament Duration:
- Each Katara Arena qualifying session lasts 90min.
- The Katara Online Bullet Finals will be in 4 rounds, qualifying the winner of each match to the next round.
Fair Play:
Qatar Chess Association has taken several measures to ensure clean and fair play system for all participants. QCA reserves the right to BAN x-player from taking part in any future tournament hosted by QCA and declare his name in public if x-player turn out to be cheating or using any external assistance like chess engines during the tournament.
If your lichess account is further convicted of fair-play violations, your account will be closed, and you will be subjected to lichess private proceedings. You can find more information about this on: lichess.org/faq

FAIR PLAY – DISCLAIMER for Final Knockout and Qualification

By signing in the tournament every participant confirms to have read and accepted these regulations and especially the following:
General
- All participants agree to abide by all rules and site policies stated at lichess.org.
- The anti-cheating measures are based on Lichess.org resources.
- Throughout the Katara International Chess Open 2020, Lichess.org dedicated team of fair play professionals, computer scientists and statisticians will be working in coordination with their proprietary fair play detection technology to ensure that fair results are made for each game.
- All participants shall comply and co-operate with Lichess.org Fair Play and Anti-cheating detection team. Players maybe removed from the Event at any time by final decision of the Chief Arbiter or the Organizers Team based on the consultation of fair play evaluation of Lichess.org.
- The final list of players qualified for the finals will be published after fair play review.
- Participants winning a prize will be additionally post-checked by the Arbiters Team and can be disqualified after once the tournament is concluded.
- Participants have no right to appeal for pairings made during the Event.
- Organizers or lichess.org have no responsibility to technical problems arising to players during the games.
- Players are not allowed to change their “nickname” in lichess.org after being registered in the tournament.
- Players that will change nickname after their registration could be disqualified from the tournament no matter the round or the stage.
- Organizers have the right to change the schedule, update the regulations or decide for any matter that is not mentioned in the current regulations.

FAIR PLAY – DISCLAIMER for Final Knockout and Qualification

By signing in the tournament every participant confirms to have read and accepted these regulations and especially the following:
Final Knockout
- Players that will qualify for the final stage (16 players) will be requested to provide their email address for detailed playing instructions by the chief arbiter.
- Players shall play under supervision in Zoom Environment (download at: https://zoom.us/download)
- Players have to be present in the Zoom call for a technical meeting 30 minutes before the start of the tournament and remain connected following the instructions given by the arbiters.
- Players shall share their webcam (in Zoom)
- Players shall agree to turn on the „Share my Screen” function (in Zoom)
- In case of disconnect during a game, the game will continue until play resumes of a flag falls.
- In case of disconnect during a match (between games), the missing player will have 2 minutes to reconnect, unless the arbiter decides otherwise. Repeated disconnects may lead to sanctions.
- For Social Media and archiving purpose, all participants are requested to provide a picture of themselves while playing in the knockouts day and share it with the organizers.

Players Technical Requirements for the Finals

1. Computer:
a. A computer which you have comfortably used for video calls.
b. If you are unsure, please test this by playing some games while in a video call.
2. Internet connection:
Internet connectivity is the player’s responsibility. Please ensure you have a reliable connection which you trust.
3. Webcam:
a. A functioning webcam is mandatory so arbiters can comfortably see you and your surroundings.
b. Most modern webcams (purchased within the last 3 years) are at least 720p resolution and are more than adequate for our purposes. Please test it to be sure it is working as expected.
4. Lighting:
Adequate and even lighting is required, including on the players’ faces. Please ensure that you and your surroundings will be visible on camera at all times.
5. Microphone:
a. A working microphone is a requirement. The microphone may be built-in to the computer.
b. This will help ensure communications in both directions are understood and clear for all parties.
c. Most modern computers and webcams come with built-in microphones. If you have had web calls before, then you have a microphone.
6. Speakers:
a. Functioning speakers are mandatory. You must be able to hear arbiters.
b. Please make sure speakers are turned on before the start of competition so arbiters can communicate with you. The arbiter may request that you turn up your sound in order to observe noise originating from your call. Players must comply with this request. During play, headphones will not be permitted. You may use them before or after games.
7. Playing Area:
a. Your playing area should be clear of all electronic devices except your playing computer.
b. Cell phones and other handheld devices should be out of sight and out of reach.

Registration Steps in the qualifying stage:

1- Create an account on lichess if you don’t have one.
2- Fill up the following online form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeNfcL5htZ7V6UHxu_K4lNlwNwnl0DDBvspUCBbuvWwsRXN1g/viewform
3- Open the link of your preferred Arena Tournament:
Bullet Arena "A" link: https://lichess.org/tournament/Ngmvodax
Bullet Arena "B" link: https://lichess.org/tournament/7ZgLcxdF
4- Click “ Join ”

Arbiters Team:
Chief Arbiter – IA Freyd, Laurent (FRA)
IA Baralic, Nebojsa (SRB)
IA Srebrnic, Ana (SLO)

Organizer:
QATAR CHESS ASSOCIATION
Tournament Director: +974 30006260