title: Kerbal Space Program 2

text: "Kerbal Space Program 2" was announced at Gamescom 2019 on August 19, with an initial release date set for early 2020. The game was in development by Star Theory Games, formerly Uber Entertainment, which changed its name in order to display a stronger association with the "Kerbal Space Program" franchise. Development was shifted to Star Theory in part so that Squad could focus on developing further updates for the original game. To ensure that the experience felt "grounded", the team consulted a panel of scientists and experts including Dr. Uri Shumlak, the associate chair of the University of Washington's Aeronautics and Astronautics department, Scott Manley, an astrophysicist and YouTuber that has made videos on "Kerbal Space Program", and Dr. Joel Green, also an astrophysicist. "Kerbal Space Program" received feedback that the game was too overwhelming for new players. Therefore, the team has stated that they aim to make the game more accessible by introducing more tutorials in order to give more guidance to players and ensure they understand the game's various systems.


title: Kerbal Space Program 2

text: For various reasons, the release date was pushed back to Q3 2021. Take-Two established a new unnamed studio under Private Division to continue development of "Kerbal Space Program 2", with some of Star Theory's employees brought into it, leaving it unclear what Star Theory's role remains on the title. Later reporting by Bloomberg revealed that Take-Two was in talks to acquire Star Theory but abruptly changed course, set up a new studio to develop the game (Intercept Games), and then poached a third of Star Theory's developers including the creative director and the lead producer. Star Theory closed its doors three months later. It was announced in August 21 that Squad, the developer of the original "Kerbal Space Program", will also be involved in the sequel's development.


title: Kerbal Space Program 2

text: In November 2020, creative director Nate Simpson announced that the release date was delayed again to 2022. In June 2021, it was announced via the game's official Twitter account that the game would also be launching on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S in 2022. In May 2022, a delay to early 2023 was announced.


title: Kerbal Space Program 2

text: In October 2022, an early access date of February 24, 2023, was announced. Private Division and Intercept Games also published a roadmap detailing future development. Early Access will aim to have all the features and content of the original Kerbal Space Program, but with an improved user experience, new parts, and improved tutorials. Future developments will add science, colonies, interstellar travel, multiplayer, improved exploration and resource gathering.


title: Lukas Walton

text: Lukas Tyler Walton (born September 19, 1986) is an American billionaire heir. He is the grandson of Sam Walton, the founder of Walmart.


title: Lukas Walton

text: Lukas Walton is the only child of John T. Walton (1946–2005) and his wife Christy Walton. He grew up in National City, California, and Jackson Hole, Wyoming. His father, John T. Walton, died in a plane crash in 2005. Following his father's death, he moved with his mother to Jackson, Wyoming.


title: Lukas Walton

text: When he was three years old, Walton was diagnosed with a rare kidney cancer, and his mother attributed his recovery to a plant-based remedy from her garden.


title: Lukas Walton

text: He has a bachelor's degree in environmentally sustainable business from Colorado College, where he graduated in 2010.


title: Lukas Walton

text: Walton works for the Walton Family Foundation. He is the environment program committee chair for the Walton Family Foundation.


title: Lukas Walton

text: He lives in Jackson, Wyoming and Chicago. As of September 2020, he was listed as the richest person in the state of Illinois.


title: Lukas Walton

text: He is married to Samantha Walton, who is listed as the co-president with Lukas Walton in the Builders Initiative, which is a Walton family foundation.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: A'ja Riyadh Wilson (born August 8, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Wilson played for the South Carolina Gamecocks in college, and helped lead the Gamecocks to their first NCAA Women's Basketball Championship in 2017, and won the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player award. In 2018, she won a record 3rd straight SEC Player of the Year award, leading South Carolina to a record 4th straight SEC Tournament Championship, becoming the all-time leading scorer in South Carolina women's basketball history, and was a consensus first-team All-American for the 3rd consecutive season. Wilson swept all National Player of the Year awards (Wade, AP, Honda, USBWA, Wooden, and Naismith) as the best player in Women's College basketball for 2018. In the 2018 WNBA draft, she was drafted first overall by the Aces.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: Wilson won her first WNBA MVP in 2020, as well as her first Olympic Gold medal in the 2020 Summer Olympics. In 2022, Wilson helped lead the Aces to their first title in franchise history.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: Wilson was born to Roscoe Jr. and Eva Wilson. She said on NPR's "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!" that she was named for her father's favorite song, "Aja" by Steely Dan. Her middle name Riyadh came from the Saudi Arabian capital where Aja's maternal aunt was deployed in Operation Desert Storm. Her mother had a court stenographer business while her father played basketball professionally in Europe for 10 seasons. Her older brother Roscoe also played professional basketball overseas. Wilson spent her grade school and high school years as one of the few black students in Heathwood Hall Episcopal School, a southern Columbia private school.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: After graduating from high school in 2014, she attended the University of South Carolina, majoring in Mass Communications. She represented the Gamecocks as a forward in basketball. She completed her Senior year at South Carolina. Wilson is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: In 2019, Wilson played for the "Home" roster during the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina. The roster was made up of celebrities with Carolina roots.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: Wilson started Burnt Wax Candle Company and established the A'ja Wilson Foundation that advocates for preventing bullying and education around dyslexia. She is part of the WNBA's social justice council and hosts a podcast with Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier. Wilson counts Nike and Mountain Dew as sponsors and was named to Forbes' 2021 30 Under 30 list.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: Wilson played a total of 119 games after making the varsity as an eighth-grader. She averaged 24.7 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 4.3 blocks a game throughout her high school career. She was number 22 and played as a forward. After finishing as a runner-up in her junior year, Wilson led Heathwood Hall to the 2014 state championship as a senior. Her 35 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocks per game as a senior made her the National High School player of the year in 2014, was a Parade and McDonald's All-American, and was the #1 rated ESPN HoopGurlz prospect in 2014. Wilson committed to play for Dawn Staley at the University of South Carolina.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: Wilson played in 37 games her freshman year, leading to four single-game freshman records in the SEC and three single-season freshman records in the SEC, and won the SEC Freshman of the year award. In 2016 as a sophomore, Wilson would win her first SEC Player of the year award and was a consensus All-American, Wilson led the Gamecocks to a SEC regular season and Tournament Championship. In 2017, Wilson once again led the Gamecocks to a SEC regular season and Tournament championship, and went on to win the school's first National Championship with a stirring victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the championship game. She was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament. In 2018, Wilson had her best season statistically, and won all of the National player of the year awards. She won a record 3rd straight SEC Player of the Year award, and was also a Consensus All-American for the third straight year. Wilson finished her college career at South Carolina as the all-time leading scorer for the school.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: On January 18, 2021, as part of the university's observance of Martin Luther King Day, a statue of Wilson was dedicated near the main entrance to Carolina's basketball home of Colonial Life Arena. In a Zoom call during the ceremony, Wilson noted:


title: A'ja Wilson

text: In 2018, Wilson was drafted first overall by the Las Vegas Aces. On May 20, 2018, in her career debut, Wilson scored 14 points along with 10 rebounds in a 101–65 loss to the Connecticut Sun. On June 12, 2018, Wilson scored a career-high of 35 points along with 13 rebounds in a 101–92 overtime victory against the Indiana Fever, becoming the second rookie in league history to score 35 points and grab 10 rebounds. Wilson would be voted into the 2018 WNBA All-Star Game. Later on in the season, Wilson would be named the WNBA Rookie of the Year. She was tied for third in scoring. Her season performance almost led the Aces to the playoffs as they finished 9th place with a 14–20 record.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: On June 29, 2019, Wilson scored a new career-high 39 points in a 102–97 overtime victory against the Indiana Fever. In July, Wilson suffered an ankle injury that kept her out for 4 weeks, causing her to miss the 2019 WNBA All-Star Game. She made her return in mid-August. By the end of the season, the Aces finished with a 21–13 record and the number 4 seed, receiving a bye to the second round, helping the franchise get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2014. In the second round elimination game, the Aces defeated the Chicago Sky 93–92 in a thriller game, where teammate Dearica Hamby came up with a steal and nailed the game-winning three from half-court with 4-second left. However, in the semi-finals, the Aces would lose in four games to the Washington Mystics, who would go on to win the 2019 WNBA championship.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: In the 2020 season, the Aces were championship contenders. The season was delayed and shortened to 22 games in a bubble at IMG Academy due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With her all-star teammate Liz Cambage sitting out the season due to health concerns, Wilson carried the team by putting up peak numbers, the Aces finishing the season 18-4 and the number 1 seed, receiving a double bye to the semi-finals. In the semi-finals, the Aces would defeat the Connecticut Sun in a hard-fought five-game series, advancing to the Finals for the second time in franchise history (first since relocating to Las Vegas); however with a shorthanded roster against a fully loaded Seattle Storm team, the Aces would be defeated in a three-game sweep. Wilson would end up winning the MVP award for the 2020 season.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: In 2022, Wilson would win her second MVP and first Defensive Player of the Year award, averaging 19.5 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks while leading the league with 17 double-doubles. Wilson helped propel the Aces to their second finals appearance in three seasons, where they would defeat the Connecticut Sun in four games, giving Wilson her first championship.


title: A'ja Wilson

text: In August 2018, Wilson signed with the Shaanxi Red Wolves of the Women's Chinese Basketball Association for the 2018–19 off-season.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chandragupta II, also known by his title Vikramaditya, as well as Chandragupta Vikramaditya, was the third ruler of the Gupta Empire in India, and was one of the most powerful emperors of the Gupta dynasty.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chandragupta continued the expansionist policy of his father Samudragupta, mainly through military conquest. Historical evidence suggests that he defeated the Western Kshatrapas, and extended the Gupta Empire from the Indus River in the west to the Bengal region in the east, and from the Himalayan foothills in the north to the Narmada River in the south. His daughter Prabhavatigupta was a queen of the southern Vakataka kingdom, and he may have had influence in the Vakataka territory during her regency.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The Gupta Empire reached its zenith during the rule of Chandragupta. The Chinese pilgrim Faxian, who visited India during his reign, suggests that he ruled over a peaceful and prosperous kingdom. The legendary figure of Vikramaditya is probably based on Chandragupta II (among other kings), and the noted Sanskrit poet Kalidasa may have been his court poet.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chandragupta II was the second ruler of the dynasty to bear the name "Chandragupta", the first being his grandfather Chandragupta I. He was also simply known as "Chandra", as attested by his coins. The Sanchi inscription of his officer Amrakardava states that he was also known as Deva-raja. The records of his daughter Prabhavatigupta, issued as a Vakataka queen, call him Chandragupta as well as Deva-gupta. Deva-shri (IAST: Devaśri) is another variation of this name. The Delhi iron pillar inscription states that king Chandra was also known as "Dhava": if this king Chandra is identified with Chandragupta (see below), it appears that "Dhava" was another name for the king. Another possibility is that "dhava" is a mistake for a common noun "bhava", although this is unlikely, as the rest of the inscription does not contain any errors.


title: Chandragupta II

text: A passage in the "Vishnu Purana" suggests that major parts of the eastern coast of India - Kosala, Odra, Tamralipta, and Puri - were ruled by the Devarakshitas around the same time as the Guptas. Since it seems unlikely that an obscure dynasty named Devarakshita was powerful enough to control substantial territory during the Gupta period, some scholars, such as Dasharatha Sharma, theorize that "Deva-rakshita" (IAST: Devarakṣita) was another name for Chandragupta II. Others, such as D. K. Ganguly, oppose this theory, arguing that this identification is quite arbitrary, and cannot be explained satisfactorily.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chandragupta assumed the titles "Bhattaraka" and "Maharajadhiraja", and bore the epithet "Apratiratha" ("having no equal or antagonist"). The Supiya stone pillar inscription, issued during the reign of his descendant Skandagupta, also calls him "Vikramaditya".


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chandragupta was a son of Samudragupta and queen Dattadevi, as attested by his own inscriptions. According to the official Gupta genealogy, Chandragupta succeeded his father on the Gupta throne. The Sanskrit play "Devichandraguptam", combined with other evidence suggests that he had an elder brother named Ramagupta, who preceded him on the throne. In the play, Ramagupta decides to surrender his queen Dhruvadevi to a Shaka enemy when besieged, but Chandragupta goes to the enemy camp disguised as the queen and kills the enemy. Sometime later, Chandragupta dethrones Ramagupta, and becomes the new king. The historicity of this narrative is debated among modern historians, with some believing it to be based on true historical events, while others dismissing it as a work of fiction.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The Mathura pillar inscription of Chandragupta II (as well as some other Gupta inscriptions) mention two dates: several historians have assumed that one of these dates denotes the king's regnal year, while the other date denotes the year of the Gupta calendar era. However, Indologist Harry Falk in 2004 has theorized that the date understood to be the regnal year by the earlier scholars is actually a date of the "kālānuvarttamāna" system. According to Falk, the "kālānuvarttamāna" system is a continuation of the Kushana calendar era established by emperor Kanishka, whose coronation Falk dates to 127 AD. The Kushana era restarts counting after a hundred years (e.g. the year after 100 is 1, not 101).


title: Chandragupta II

text: The letters before the words "kālānuvarttamāna-saṃvatsare" are abraded in the inscription, but historian D. R. Bhandarkar (1931–1932) reconstructed them as "gupta", and translated the term "gupta-kālānuvarttamāna-saṃvatsare" as "year following the Gupta era". He translated the entire sentence as:


title: Chandragupta II

text: Historian D. C. Sircar (1942) restored the missing letters as "[paṃ]cāme" ("fifth"), and concluded that the inscription was dated to the Chandragupta's fifth regnal year. The missing letters have alternatively been read as "prathame" ("first"). According to these interpretations, the inscription is thus dated in year 61 of the Gupta era, and either the first or the fifth regnal year of Chandragupta. Assuming that the Gupta era starts around 319–320 AD, the beginning of Chandragupta's reign can be dated to either 376–377 AD or 380–381 AD.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Falk agrees that the missing letters denote a numerical year, but dismisses Sircar's reading as "mere imagination", pointing out that the missing letters are "abraded beyond recovery". In support of his Kushana era theory, Falk presents four Gupta inscriptions (in chronological order) that mention the term "kālānuvarttamāna-saṃvatsare":


title: Chandragupta II

text: Falk notes that the "dynastic year" in the table above appears to be a year of the Gupta era. The "kālānuvarttamāna" year cannot be regnal year, because Chandragupta I is not known to have ruled for as long as 61 years. If we assume "61" of the Mathura pillar inscription denotes a year of the Gupta era (as assumed by Bhandarkar, Sircar and other scholars), we must assume that "15" of the Buddhist image pedestal also denotes a year of the Gupta era: this is obviously incorrect, since Kumaragupta I ruled after Chandragupta II. Scholars K.K. Thaplyal and R.C. Sharma, who studied the Buddhist image pedestal inscription, speculated that the scribe had mistakenly interchanged the years 121 and 15, but Falk calls this assumption unnecessary.


title: Chandragupta II

text: According to Falk, the discrepancy can be explained satisfactorily, if we assume that the "kālānuvarttamāna" era denotes a system that restarts counting after a hundred years. The Yaksha figure inscription is dated to year 112 of the Gupta era (c. 432 AD), which corresponds to the "kālānuvarttamāna" year 5. Thus, the "kālānuvarttamāna" era used during Kumaragupta's time must have started in 432-5 = 427 AD. The years mentioned in the Buddhist image pedestal inscription also suggests that the epoch of this era was c. 426-427 AD. Since the "kālānuvarttamāna" system restarts counting every 100 years, the "kālānuvarttamāna" era used during the reign of Chandragupta II must have started in 327 AD. Thus, the Mathura inscription can be dated to 327+61 = c. 388 AD. While Falk's theory does not change the Gupta chronology significantly, it implies that the date of the Mathura inscription cannot be used to determine the beginning of Chandragupta's reign.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The Sanchi inscription, dated to 412-413 AD (year 93 of the Gupta era), is the last known dated inscription of Chandragupta. His son Kumaragupta was on the throne by the 415-416 AD (year 96 of the Gupta era), so Chandragupta's reign must have ended sometime during 412-415 AD.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The Udayagiri inscription of Chandragupta's foreign minister Virasena suggests that the king had a distinguished military career. It states that he "bought the earth", paying for it with his prowess, and reduced the other kings to the status of slaves. His empire seems to have extended from the mouth of the Indus and northern Pakistan in the west to the Bengal region in the east, and from the Himalayan terai region in the north to the Narmada River in the south.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chandragupta's father Samudragupta and his son Kumaragupta I are known to have performed the Ashvamedha horse sacrifice to proclaim their military prowess. In the 20th century, the discovery of a stone image of a horse found near Varanasi, and the misreading of its inscription as "Chandramgu" (taken to be "Chandragupta"), led to speculation that Chandragupta also performed the Ashvamedha sacrifice. However, there is no actual evidence to support this theory.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Historical and literary evidence suggests that Chandragupta II achieved military successes against the Western Kshatrapas (also known as Shakas), who ruled in west-central India. The Allahabad Pillar inscription of Chandragupta's father Samudragupta names the "Shaka-Murundas" among the kings who tried to appease him. It may be possible that Samudragupta reduced the Shakas to a state of subordinate alliance, and Chandragupta completely subjugated them.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Virasena's Udayagiri inscription describes him as a resident of Pataliputra, and states that he came to Udayagiri in Central India with the king who sought to "conquer the whole world". This indicates that Chandragupta had reached Udayagiri in central India during a military campaign. The theory that Chandragupta led an army to Central India is also corroborated by the c. 412–413 AD (Gupta year 93) Sanchi inscription of Amrakardava, who is said to have "acquired victory and fame in many battles and whose livelihood was secured by serving Chandragupta." A c. 401–402 AD (Gupta year 82) inscription of Chandragupta's feudatory "Maharaja" Sanakanika has also been discovered in Central India. The only important power to have ruled in this region during Chandragupta's period were the Western Kshatrapas, whose rule is attested by their distinct coinage. The coins issued by the Western Kshatrapa rulers abruptly come to end in the last decade of the 4th century. The coins of this type reappear in the second decade of the 5th century, and are dated in the Gupta era, which suggests that Chandragupta subjugated the Western Kshatrapas.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The exact date of Chandragupta's victory is not known, but it can be tentatively dated to sometime between 397 and 409 AD. The last of the 4th century Kshatrapa coins - that of Rudrasimha III - can be dated to the Shaka year 310 or 319 (the coin legend is partially lost), that is 388 AD or 397 AD. Chandragupta's coins, dated to 409, are similar to the Kshtrapa coins, with the Shakas' Buddhist vihara symbol replaced by the Gupta symbol of Garuda.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Literary evidence also corroborates Chandragupta's victory over the Western Kshatrapas. The Sanskrit play "Devichandraguptam", whose historicity is disputed, narrates that Chandragupta's elder brother Ramagupta agreed to surrender his queen Dhruvadevi to a Shaka chief when besieged, but Chandragupta went to the enemy camp disguised as the queen, and killed the Shaka chief. Chandragupta bore the title "Vikramaditya", and several Indian legends talk of king Vikramaditya who defeated the Shakas. Several modern scholars have theorized that these legends may be based on Chandragupta's victory over the Shakas.


title: Chandragupta II

text: As a result of his victory over the Western Kshatrapas, Chandragupta must have extended his empire up to the Arabian Sea coast in present-day Gujarat.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The iron pillar of Delhi contains an inscription of a king called "Chandra". Modern scholars generally identify this king with Chandragupta II, although this cannot be said with complete certainty.


title: Chandragupta II

text: While alternative identifications have been proposed, there is strong evidence for identifying Chandra of the iron pillar inscription as Chandragupta II:


title: Chandragupta II

text: If Chandra is identified with Chandragupta, it appears that Chandragupta marched through the Punjab region, and advanced up to the country of the Vahlikas, that is, Balkh in present-day Afghanistan. Some short Sanskrit inscriptions at the Sacred Rock of Hunza (in present-day Pakistan), written in Gupta script, mention the name Chandra. A few of these inscriptions also mention the name Harishena, and one particular inscription mentions Chandra with the epithet "Vikramaditya". Based on the identification of "Chandra" with Chandragupta, and Harishena with the Gupta courtier Harishena, these inscriptions can be considered as further evidence of a Gupta military campaign in the area. However, this identification is not certain, and Chandra of the Hunza inscriptions could have well been a local ruler.


title: Chandragupta II

text: According to Sten Konow, the term "seven faces", mentioned in the iron pillar inscription, refers to the seven mouths of Indus. Historians R. C. Majumdar and K. P. Jayaswal, on the other hand, believe that the term refers to the tributaries of Indus: the five rivers of Punjab (Jhelum, Ravi, Sutlej, Beas, and Chenab), plus possibly the Kabul and the Kunar rivers.


title: Chandragupta II

text: It is quite possible that Chandragupta passed through the Punjab region during this campaign: his political influence in this region is attested to by the use of the Gupta era in an inscription found at Shorkot, and by some coins bearing the name "Chandragupta". However, there is no evidence that Chandragupta annexed Punjab to the Gupta Empire, which suggests that Chandragupta's victory in this region was not a decisive one. There is little evidence of Gupta influence in Punjab after his reign: numismatic evidence suggests that Punjab was ruled by petty chieftains after his death. These chieftains bore Indian names, but issued coins that imitate the Kidarite coinage: they may have been Hinduized foreigners or Indians continuing the usage of foreign-style coinage.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The identification of Chandra with Chandragupta II also suggests Chandragupta achieved victories in the Vanga area in the present-day Bengal region. According to the Allahabad Pillar inscription of his father Samudragupta, the Samatata kingdom of the Bengal region was a Gupta tributary. The Guptas are known to have been ruling Bengal in the early 6th century AD, although there are no surviving records of the Gupta presence in this region for the intervening period.


title: Chandragupta II

text: It is possible that a large part of the Bengal region was annexed to the Gupta empire by Chandragupta, and that this control continued into the 6th century. The Delhi iron pillar inscription suggests that an alliance of semi-independent chiefs of Bengal unsuccessfully resisted Chandragupta's attempts to extend the Gupta influence in this region.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Gupta records mention Dhruvadevi as Chandragupta's queen, and the mother of his successor Kumaragupta I. The Basarh clay seal mentions Dhruva-svamini as a queen of Chandragupta, and the mother of Govindagupta. It is unlikely that Chandragupta had two different queens with similar names: it appears that Dhruvasvamini was most probably another name for Dhruvadevi, and that Govindagupta was a real brother of Kumaragupta.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chandragupta also married Kuvera-naga (alias Kuberanaga), whose name indicates that she was a princess of the Naga dynasty, which held considerable power in central India before Samudragupta subjugated them. This matrimonial alliance may have helped Chandragupta consolidate the Gupta empire, and the Nagas may have helped him in his war against the Western Kshatrapas.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Prabhavati-gupta, the daughter of Chandragupta and Kuvera-naga, married the Vakataka king Rudrasena II, who ruled in the Deccan region to the south of the Gupta empire. After her husband's death in c. 390, Prabhavati-gupta acted as a regent for her minor sons. In the two copper-plate inscriptions issued during her regency, the names of her Gupta ancestors with their imperial titles appear before the name of the Vakataka king with the lesser title "Maharaja". This suggests that the Gupta court may have had influence in the Vakataka administration during her regency. Historians Hermann Kulke and Dietmar Rothermund believe that the Vakataka kingdom was "practically part of the Gupta empire" during her 20-year long regency. The Vakatakas may have supported Chandragupta during his conflict with the Western Kshatrapas.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The Guptas also appear to have entered into a matrimonial alliance with the Kadamba dynasty, the southern neighbours of the Vakatakas. The Talagunda pillar inscription suggests that the daughters of the Kadamba king Kakusthavarman, married into other royal families, including that of the Guptas. While Kakusthavarman was a contemporary of Chandragupta's son Kumaragupta I, it is noteworthy that some medieval chiefs of present-day Karnataka (where the Kadambas ruled) claimed descent from Chandragupta. According to the Vikramaditya legends, emperor Vikramaditya (a character believed to be based on Chandragupta) sent his court poet Kalidasa as an ambassador to the lord of Kuntala. While the Kuntala king referred to in this legend has been identified by some scholars with a Vakataka king, it is more likely that he was a Kadamba king, because the Vakataka king did not rule over Kuntala, and was never called the lord of Kuntala.


title: Chandragupta II

text: "Jyotirvidabharana" (22.10), a treatise attributed to Kalidasa, states that nine famous scholars known as the Navaratnas ("nine gems") attended the court of the legendary Vikramaditya. Besides Kalidasa himself, these included Amarasimha, Dhanvantari, Ghatakarapara, Kshapanaka, Shanku, Varahamihira, Vararuchi, and Vetala Bhatta. However, there is no historical evidence to show that these nine scholars were contemporary figures or proteges of the same king. "Jyotirvidabharana" is considered a literary forgery of a date later than Kalidasa by multiple scholars. There is no mention of such "Navaratnas" in earlier literature, and D. C. Sircar calls this tradition "absolutely worthless for historical purposes".


title: Chandragupta II

text: Nevertheless, multiple scholars believe that one of these Navaratnas – Kalidasa – may have indeed flourished during the reign of Chandragupta II. These scholars include William Jones, A. B. Keith, and Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi among others. It is possible that Kalidasa was a court poet of Chandragupta.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Many gold and silver coins of Chandragupta, as well the inscriptions issued by him and his successors, describe him as a "parama-bhagvata", that is, a devotee of the god Vishnu. One of his gold coins, discovered at Bayana, calls him "chakra-vikramah", literally, "[one who is] powerful [due to his possession of the] discus", and shows him receiving a discus from Vishnu.


title: Chandragupta II

text: An Udayagiri inscription records the construction of a Vaishnava cave temple by Chandragupta's feudatory "Maharaja" Sanakanika, in year 82 of the Gupta era (c. 401-402 AD).


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chandragupta was also tolerant of other faiths. The Udayagiri inscription of Chandragupta's foreign minister Virasena records the construction of a temple dedicated to the god Shambhu (Shiva). An inscription found at Sanchi near Udayagiri records donations to the local Buddhist monastery by his military officer Amrakardava, in year 93 of the Gupta era (c. 412-413 AD).


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chinese pilgrim Faxian visited India during the reign of Chandragupta, and spent around six years in the Gupta kingdom. He was mostly interested in Buddhist religious affairs, and did not bother to record the name of the reigning king. His account presents an idealized picture of the Gupta administration, and not everything he states can be taken at face value. However, his description of the kingdom as a peaceful and prosperous one seems to be generally true, attested by the fact that he did not face any brigandage unlike the later Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Faxian describes Madhya-desha ("Middle Kingdom"), the region to the south-east of Mathura, as a populous region with good climate and happy people. He mentions that the citizens were not required to "register their households or attend to any magistrates and their rules". Faxian mentions that wicked repeated rebels had their right hand cut off by the king's administration, but otherwise, there was no corporal punishment for crimes: the criminals were only fined, lightly or heavily, according to the severity of the crime. According to Faxian, the king's bodyguards and attendants all received salaries.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Faxian mentions that other than the untouchable Chandalas, the people did not consume meat, intoxicating drinks, onions or garlic. The Chandalas lived apart from other people, and struck a piece of wood to announce their presence when they entered a city or a marketplace: this would enable other people to avoid contact with them. Only the Chandalas engaged in the fisheries and hunting, and sold meat. In the general markets, there were no butchers' shops or alcohol dealers, and the people did not keep pigs or fowl. According to historian R. C. Majumdar, Faxian's observations about the people's food habits seem to have been based on his contact with the Buddhist religious community, and may not be applicable to the general public.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Faxian mentions the Pataliputra region as the most prosperous part of the Middle Kingdom, describing its people as benevolent and righteous. He describes an annual Buddhist celebration, which involved a procession of 20 grand carts of Buddhas, the Brahmanas's invitation to the Buddhas to enter the city, and music performances. He mentions that in the cities, the Vaishya chiefs had established centers for dispensing charity and medical help to the destitute. These centres attracted the poor, the orphans, the widowers, the childless, the handicapped, and the sick, who were examined by doctors and given food and medicine until they got better.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Chandragupta continued issuing most of the gold coin types introduced by his father Samudragupta, such as the Sceptre type (rare for Chandragupta II), the Archer type, and the Tiger-Slayer type. However, Chandragupta II also introduced several new types, such as the Horseman type and the Lion-slayer type, both of which were used by his son Kumaragupta I.


title: Chandragupta II

text: In addition, Chandragupta II was the first Gupta king to issue silver coins. These coins were intended to replace the silver coinage of the Western Kshatrapas after Chandragupta II defeated them, and were modelled on the Kshatrapa coinage. The main difference was to replace the dynastic symbol of the Kshatrapas (the three-arched hill) by the dynastic symbol of the Guptas (the mythic eagle Garuda). The obverse of these coins depicts a bust of the king, with corrupted Greek legend "OOIHU". The reverse features the Brahmi script legend "Chandragupta Vikramaditya, King of Kings, and a devotee of Vishnu", around Garuda, the mythic eagle and dynastic symbol of the Guptas.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The Udayagiri inscription of Virasena describes Chandragupta as a "king of kings" as well as an ascetic "rajadhirajarshi", and declares that his activities were "beyond comprehension".


title: Chandragupta II

text: Vikramaditya is a legendary emperor of ancient India, who is characterised as the ideal king, known for his generosity, courage, and patronage to scholars. A number of historians believe that at least some of the Vikramaditya legends are based on Chandragupta II. These historians include D. R. Bhandarkar, V. V. Mirashi and D. C. Sircar among others.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Based on some coins and the Supia pillar inscription, it is believed that Chandragupta II adopted the title "Vikramaditya". The Cambay and Sangli plates of the Rashtrakuta king Govinda IV use the epithet "Sahasanka" for Chandragupta II. The name "Sahasanka" has also been applied to the legendary Vikramaditya.


title: Chandragupta II

text: The legendary Vikramaditya is said to have defeated the Śaka invaders, and was therefore, known as Śakari ("enemy of the Śakas). Chandragupta II conquered Malwa after defeating the Western Kshatrapas (a branch of Śakas); he also expelled the Kushanas from Mathura. His victory over these foreign tribes was probably transposed on upon a fictional character, resulting in the Vikramaditya legends.


title: Chandragupta II

text: According to most legends, Vikramaditya had his capital at Ujjain, although some legends mention him as the king of Pataliputra. The Guptas had their capital at Pataliputra. According to D. C. Sircar, Chandragupta II may have defeated the Shaka invaders of Ujjain, and placed his son Govindagupta as a viceroy there. As a result, Ujjain might have become a second capital of the Gupta empire, and subsequently, legends about him (as Vikramaditya) might have developed. Guttas of Guttavalal, a minor dynasty based in present-day Karnataka, claimed descent from the imperial Guptas. The Caudadanapura inscription of the Guttas alludes to the legendary Vikramaditya ruling from Ujjayni, and several Gutta royals were named "Vikramaditya". According to Vasundhara Filliozat, their reference to the legendary Vikramaditya is simply because they confused him with Chandragupta II. However, D. C. Sircar sees this as further proof that the legendary Vikramaditya was based on Chandragupta II.


title: Chandragupta II

text: Vikrama Samvat, an Indian calendar era beginning in 57 BC, is associated with the legendary Vikramaditya. However, this association did not exist before 9th century AD. The earlier sources call this era by various names, including "Kṛṭa", "the era of the Malava tribe", or simply, "Samvat". Scholars such as D. C. Sircar and D. R. Bhandarkar believe that the name of the era changed to "Vikram Samvat" after the reign of Chandragupta II, who had adopted the title "Vikramaditya".


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: David Christopher Kelly (14 May 1944 – 17 July 2003) was a Welsh scientist and authority on biological warfare (BW). In July 2003 he had an off-the-record conversation with Andrew Gilligan, a BBC journalist; during their discussion they talked about the 2002 dossier on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, which stated that some of Iraq's chemical and biological weapons were deployable within 45 minutes. When Gilligan reported this on BBC Radio 4's "Today" programme, he stated that the 45 minute claim was included at the insistence of Alastair Campbell, the Downing Street Director of Communications—something Kelly denied. The government complained to the BBC about the claim, but they refused to recant on it; political tumult between Downing Street and the BBC developed. Kelly informed his line managers in the Ministry of Defence that he may have been the source, but did not think he was the only one, as Gilligan had reported points he had not mentioned. Kelly's name became known to the media, and he was called to appear on 15 July before the parliamentary Intelligence and Security and Foreign Affairs Select committees. Two days later Kelly was found dead near his home.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: A former head of the Defence Microbiology Division working at Porton Down, Kelly was part of a joint US-UK team that inspected civilian biotechnology facilities in Russia in the early 1990s and concluded they were running a covert and illegal BW programme. He was appointed to the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) in 1991 as one of its chief weapons inspectors in Iraq and led ten of the organisation's missions between May 1991 and December 1998. He also worked with UNSCOM's successor, the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) and led several of their missions into Iraq. During his time with UNMOVIC he was key in uncovering the anthrax production programme at the Salman Pak facility, and a BW programme run at Al Hakum.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Following Kelly's suicide in 2003 Tony Blair, the Prime Minister, set up a government inquiry under Lord Hutton, a former Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland. The inquiry concluded that Kelly had killed himself by "cutting his left wrist and that his death was hastened by his taking Coproxamol tablets". Hutton also stated that no other parties were involved in Kelly's death.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: There was continued debate over the manner of Kelly's death, and the case was reviewed between 2010 and 2011 by Dominic Grieve, the Attorney General; he concluded that there was "overwhelmingly strong" evidence that Kelly had killed himself. The post-mortem and toxicology reports were released in 2010; both documents supported the conclusion of the Hutton Inquiry. The manner of Kelly's death has been the subject of several documentaries and has been fictionalised on television, on stage and in print. He was appointed as Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in 1994 and might well have been under consideration for a knighthood in May 2003, according to Hutton. His work in Iraq earned him a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: David Christopher Kelly was born in Llwynypia, Glamorgan, South Wales, on 14 May 1944. His parents were Thomas John Kelly and Margaret, " Williams; Thomas was a schoolteacher who was serving in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as a signals officer during the Second World War. Thomas and Margaret divorced in 1951 and she took her young son and moved in with her parents in Pontypridd. From the age of eleven he attended the local grammar school. He was a keen sportsman and musician at school, and represented Wales in the youth cross-country running team; he played double bass in the National Youth Orchestra of Wales and played the saxophone to a high standard.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: In 1963 Kelly was admitted to the University of Leeds to study chemistry, botany and biophysics. His mother died two years later from an overdose of prescription barbiturates. Although the coroner's inquest gave an open verdict, Kelly believed she had killed herself. As a result of the death, Kelly suffered from insomnia and was prescribed sleeping pills; he was also given an extra year to complete his degree. Kelly graduated in 1967 with a BSc in bacteriology; he then obtained an MSc in virology from the University of Birmingham. Between his first and second degrees, on 15 July 1967, he married Janice, " Vawdrey, who was studying at Bingley Teacher Training College.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Kelly joined the Insect Pathology Unit at the University of Oxford in 1968, while a student of Linacre College. In 1971 he received his doctorate in microbiology for his thesis "The Replication of Some Iridescent Viruses in Cell Cultures". In the early 1970s he undertook postdoctoral research at the University of Warwick, before moving back to Oxford in the mid-1970s to work at the Institute of Virology, where he rose to the position of Chief Scientific Officer. Much of his work was in the field of insect viruses.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: In 1984 Kelly joined the Ministry of Defence (MoD) as the head of the Defence Microbiology Division working at Porton Down, Wiltshire. The department had only a small number of microbiologists when he arrived, and most of their work involved the decontamination of Gruinard Island, which had been used during the Second World War for experiments with weaponised anthrax. He increased the scope of his department, obtaining additional funding to undertake research into biodefence. Because of the work undertaken by Kelly and his team, the UK were able to deploy a biodefence capability during the 1990–1991 Gulf War.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: In 1989 Vladimir Pasechnik, the senior Soviet biologist and bioweapons developer, defected to the UK and provided intelligence about the clandestine biological warfare (BW) programme, Biopreparat. The programme was in contravention of the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention which banned the production of chemical and biological weapons. Pasechnik was debriefed by the Defence Intelligence Staff (DIS), who requested technical assistance to process the information on chemical and biological matters; Kelly was seconded to the DIS to assist with his colleagues Brian Jones and Christopher Davis. They debriefed Pasechnik over a period of three years.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Kelly undertook several visits to Russia between 1991 and 1994 as the co-lead of a team from the UK and US who inspected civilian biotechnology facilities in Russia. One of the restrictions placed on the inspectors was that visits could only be to non-military installations, so, for the first visit in January 1991, the team visited the Institute of Engineering Immunology, Lyubuchany; the State Research Centre for Applied Microbiology in Obolensk; the Vector State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology in Koltsovo; and the Institute of Ultrapure Preparations, in what was then called Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg). The team faced obstruction by the Russians, who tried to stop inspection of key areas of the facilities, and who lied about the use to which parts of the installations were put. On one visit to the Vector facility, Kelly had a conversation with a laboratory assistant—one who was too low grade to have been fully briefed by the KGB. Kelly asked the assistant about the work he was doing, and was surprised when the man said he was involved in testing smallpox. Kelly questioned Lev Sandakchiev, the head of Vector, about the use of smallpox, but received no answers. Kelly described the questioning sessions as "a very tense moment".


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: The visits did not go without incident. At Obolensk, access to parts of the main research facility—notably the dynamic aerosol test chambers and the plague research laboratories—was denied on the spurious grounds of quarantine requirements. Skirmishes occurred over access to an explosive aerosol chamber because the officials knew that closer examination would reveal damning evidence of offensive BW activities. At Koltsova access was again difficult and problematic. The most serious incident was when senior officials contradicted an admission by technical staff that research on smallpox was being conducted there. The officials were unable to properly account for the presence of smallpox and for the research being undertaken in a dynamic aerosol test chamber on orthopoxvirus, which was capable of explosive dispersal. At the Institute of Ultrapure Preparations in Leningrad (Pasechnik's former workplace), dynamic and explosive test chambers were passed off as being for agricultural projects, contained milling machines were described as being for the grinding of salt, and studies on plague, especially production of the agent, were misrepresented. Candid and credible accounts of many of the activities at these facilities were not provided.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: The official reports of the visit concluded that Soviets were running a covert and illegal BW programme. Kelly also took part in reciprocal visits to the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick, Maryland, and visits to Porton Down by Russian and American inspectors. Despite their findings, Kelly concluded that the tripartite inspection programme had failed. It was, he said, "too ambitious; its disarmament objective deflected by issues of reciprocity and access to sites outside the territories of the three parties". He went on to add that "Russia's refusal to provide a complete account of its past and current BW activity and the inability of the American–British teams to gain access to Soviet/Russian military industrial facilities were significant contributory factors".


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Following the end of the Gulf War (August 1990 – February 1991), United Nations Security Council Resolution 687 imposed the articles of Iraq's surrender. The document stated "that Iraq shall unconditionally accept the destruction, removal, or rendering harmless, under international supervision, of ... All chemical and biological weapons". This was to be made possible by "The forming of a special commission which shall carry out immediate on-site inspection of Iraq's biological, chemical and missile capabilities, based on Iraq's declarations and the designation of any additional locations by the special commission itself". The group set up was the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM), and Kelly was appointed to it in 1991 as one of its chief weapons inspectors in Iraq. The Iraqis had provided Rolf Ekéus, the director of UNSCOM, with a list of sites connected with the research and production of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) in the country, about half of which had been bombed during Operation Desert Storm. These sites provided the starting point for the investigations. In August 1991 Kelly led the first group of UN BW investigators into the country. When asked where the inspection teams would visit, he told reporters "We will go to sites which we deem to have characteristics associated with biological activity, but at the moment ... I have an open mind." The first UNSCOM missions finished with no evidence found of an Iraqi biological or chemical programme, although they did establish that some sites suspected by US intelligence services of involvement in biological or chemical warfare research were legitimate. These included a bakery, a pharmaceutical research business in Samarra, a dairy and a slaughterhouse.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: UNSCOM undertook 261 inspection missions to Iraq between May 1991 and December 1998, 74 of which were for biological weapons. Kelly led ten of the missions involved in BW inspections. In 1998 and 1999 Iraq refused to deal with UNSCOM or the inspectors; the country's President, Saddam Hussein, singled out Kelly by name for expulsion from the country. During an inspection mission to Iraq in 1998, Kelly worked alongside an American translator and US Air Force officer, Mai Pederson, who introduced him to the Baháʼí Faith. Kelly remained a member of the faith for the rest of his life, attending spiritual meetings near his home of Southmoor, Oxfordshire. He was, for a time, the treasurer of his local branch, based in Abingdon, Oxfordshire. His time in Iraq left him with a deep affection for the country, its people and culture, although he abhorred Saddam's regime.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: In 2000 UNSCOM was replaced by the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC), whose mission was similar to that of UNSCOM, and was to:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: "continue with ... [UNSCOM's] mandate to disarm Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction ... and to operate a system of ongoing monitoring and verification to check Iraq's compliance with its obligations not to reacquire the same weapons prohibited to it by the Security Council.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Kelly returned to work as a government advisor with the MoD on biological warfare, but also worked with UNMOVIC and continued to visit Iraq. He was involved in at least 36 missions to Iraq as part of UNSCOM and UNMOVIC, and, despite interference and obstruction tactics by the Iraqis, was instrumental in making the breakthrough to discover Iraq's BW facilities: the anthrax production programme at the Salman Pak facility and a BW programme run at Al Hakum.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: In his 2002 State of the Union address, George W. Bush, the President of the United States, discussed the use of WMD by the Iraqi regime and claimed that, along with Iran and North Korea, Iraq was part of an "axis of evil, arming to threaten the peace of the world". Later that year he reaffirmed that "the stated policy of the United States is regime change". As part of the British government's arguments for war on Saddam, Tony Blair, the British Prime Minister, published a dossier on Iraqi WMD on 24 September 2002. The dossier, which was "based, in large part, on the work of the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC)", included the statement that the Iraqi government had:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Before its publication, Kelly had been shown a draft copy of the dossier and took part in a meeting at the DIS to review it. Four pages of comments were made regarding the information in the report, of which Kelly contributed twelve individual statements. The observations from the DIS were passed up to the Joint Intelligence Organisation; none of them referred to the 45-minute claim.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: On 8 November 2002 the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1441, "a final opportunity to comply with its disarmament obligations under relevant resolutions of the Council; and accordingly decides to set up an enhanced inspection regime with the aim of bringing to full and verified completion the disarmament process". The resolution stated that the Iraqi government needed to provide full details of its WMD programme within 30 days. As a result of the increasing pressure on the Iraqi government, UNSCOM inspectors were readmitted to the country and information was provided on the Iraqi WMD programme. According to Kelly, despite the steps taken, Saddam "refuse[d] to acknowledge the extent of his chemical and biological weapons and associated military and industrial support organisations", and there was still a concern about "8,500 litres of anthrax VX, 2,160 kilograms of bacterial growth media, 360 tonnes of bulk chemical warfare agent, 6,500 chemical bombs and 30,000 munitions capable of delivering chemical and biological warfare agents [which] remained unaccounted for from activities up to 1991".


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: In February 2003 Colin Powell, the US Secretary of State, addressed the United Nations Security Council to discuss Iraq's WMD. He included information on mobile weapons laboratories, which he described as "trucks and train cars ... easily moved and ... designed to evade detection by inspectors. In a matter of months, they can produce a quantity of biological poison equal to the entire amount that Iraq claimed to have produced in the years prior to the Gulf War." Following his examination of the vehicles in question, Kelly spoke, off the record, to journalists from "The Observer". In their article in the newspaper on 15 June 2003 they described him as "a British scientist and biological weapons expert", and quoted him as saying:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: They are not mobile germ warfare laboratories. You could not use them for making biological weapons. They do not even look like them. They are exactly what the Iraqis said they were – facilities for the production of hydrogen gas to fill balloons.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: One of the journalists who wrote the story, Peter Beaumont, confirmed to the Hutton Inquiry that Kelly was the source of this quote. Kelly was often approached by the press and would either clear the discussion with the press office of the FCO, or used his judgement before doing so; it was within his remit to liaise with the media. Shortly before the 2003 invasion of Iraq (20 March – 1 May 2003) Kelly anonymously wrote an article on the threat from Saddam which was never published. He outlined his thoughts on the build up to war:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Iraq has spent the past 30 years building up an arsenal of weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Although the current threat presented by Iraq militarily is modest, both in terms of conventional and unconventional weapons, it has never given up its intent to develop and stockpile such weapons for both military and terrorist use.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: He continued that "The long-term threat, however, remains Iraq's development to military maturity of weapons of mass destruction – something that only regime change will avert." On 20 March 2003 British and American troops entered Iraq to bring about the regime change. Most of the country was occupied and the Saddam regime was overthrown within four weeks; Bush stated that war was over on 1 May 2003.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: On 7 May 2003 Kelly was telephoned by Susan Watts, the science editor of the BBC's Newsnight programme; the call lasted 15 to 20 minutes. They discussed various matters relating to Iraq including, towards the end of the conversation, the matter of the 45-minute claim. Watts's handwritten shorthand notes showed Kelly stated the claim was "a mistake to put in. Alastair Campbell seeing something in there, single source but not corroborated, sounded good." The pair also had a subsequent call on 12 May.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Kelly flew to Kuwait on 19 May as part of a military team. He hoped to meet members of the Iraq Survey Group to see how the organisation worked. When he arrived in Kuwait he found that no visa had been arranged for him, so he returned home.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: On 22 May 2003 Kelly met Andrew Gilligan, the Defence and Diplomatic Correspondent for BBC Radio 4's "Today" programme, at the Charing Cross Hotel, London. It was the third time the pair had met. The meeting, initiated by Gilligan, was for the journalist to ask why Kelly thought WMDs had not been discovered in Iraq by the British and American troops. According to Gilligan, after 30 minutes the conversation focussed on the September Dossier and how key areas of the document were altered to give greater impact to the public. Gilligan took notes on an electric organiser; he said these read as


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Transformed week before publication to make it sexier. The classic was the 45 minutes. Most things in dossier were double source but that was single source. One source said it took 4 [that should be 45] minutes to set up a missile assembly, that was misinterpreted. Most people in intelligence weren't happy with it because it didn't reflect the considered view they were putting forward. Campbell: real information but unreliable, included against our wishes. Not in original draft -- dull, he asked if anything else could go in.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Soon after the meeting, Gilligan claimed, he wrote a full script of the interview, based on his memory and notes. Between the completion of the document and the start of the Hutton Inquiry in August, Gilligan says he lost that script. Kelly was in New York on 29 May 2003, attending the final commissioners meeting of UNMOVIC under the leadership of Hans Blix. At 6.07 that morning, on the "Today" programme, Gilligan explained to the programme's host, John Humphrys, what he would be discussing later in the programme:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: what we've been told by one of the senior officials in charge of drawing up that dossier was that, actually the government probably erm, knew that that forty five minute figure was wrong, even before it decided to put it in. What this person says, is that a week before the publication date of the dossier, it was actually rather erm, a bland production. It didn't, the, the draft prepared for Mr Blair by the Intelligence Agencies actually didn't say very much more than was public knowledge already and erm, Downing Street, our source says, ordered a week before publication, ordered it to be sexed up, to be made more exciting and ordered more facts to be er, to be discovered.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Gilligan had not been able to get confirmation from any other sources about the veracity of the claim. The producer of "Today", Kevin Marsh, writes that Gilligan went off his pre-prepared script. With news based on an anonymous single source, the reports "have to be reported word perfectly" to be precise about the meaning; according to Marsh, "Gilligan had lost control of that precision". Downing Street had not been forewarned of the story, or been contacted to ask for a statement. At 7:32 am the government press office issued a statement to refute the story in the statement: "Not one word of the dossier was not entirely the work of the intelligence agencies". Gilligan then broadcast a report for the BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast programme in which he repeated the claim that the government had inserted the 45-minute claim into the dossier. Kelly did not recognise himself from Gilligan's description of a "senior official in charge of drawing up the document"; Kelly had taken no part in drafting the document and had only been asked for comments on the contents.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: The following day Watts telephoned Kelly at home to discuss the quotes on the "Today" programme; she recorded the call. When she asked him if he was being questioned about the identity of the source, Kelly replied "I mean they wouldn't think it was me, I don't think. Maybe they would, maybe they wouldn't. I don't know". Their conversation also included the possible involvement of Campbell in the inclusion of the 45-minute claim in the dossier:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: SW OK just back momentarily on the 45 minute issue I'm feeling like I ought to just explore that a little bit more with you the um err. So would it be accurate then, as you did that earlier conversation, to say that it was Alastair Campbell himself who...<br>


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: DK No I can't. All I can say is the Number Ten press office. I've never met Alastair Campbell so I can't ... But I think Alastair Campbell is synonymous with that press office because he's responsible for it.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Despite the denial from the government, on 1 June—the day after Kelly and Watts had spoken on the telephone—Gilligan wrote an article for "The Mail on Sunday" in which he specifically named Campbell; it was titled: "I asked my intelligence source why Blair misled us all over Saddam's weapons. His reply? One word ... CAMPBELL". According to the journalist Miles Goslett, the report on the "Today" programme "caused little more than a ripple" of interest; the newspaper article "was of major international significance. It was career-threatening for all concerned if substantiated".


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: As political tumult between Downing Street and the BBC developed, Kelly alerted his line manager at the MoD, Bryan Wells, that he had met Gilligan and discussed, among other points, the 45-minute claim. In a detailed letter of 30 June, Kelly stated that any mention of Campbell had been raised by Gilligan, not himself, and that this was an aside. Kelly stated that "I did not even consider that I was the 'source' of Gilligan's information"; he only became aware of the possibility after Gilligan had appeared at the Foreign Affairs Select Committee on 19 June. Kelly said of Gilligan's evidence that "The description of that meeting in small part matches my interaction with him especially my personal evaluation of Iraq's capability but the overall character is quite different". In closing, he reiterated that "With hindsight I of course deeply regret talking to Andrew Gilligan even though I am convinced that I am not his primary source of information."


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Kelly was interviewed twice by his employers—on 3 and 7 July; they concluded that he may have been Gilligan's source, but that Gilligan may have exaggerated what Kelly said. A decision was taken that no official action was to be taken against Kelly. He was also advised that, with journalists pressing for further information, it was possible his name would emerge in press reports. Reports in "The Times" by the journalist Tom Baldwin on 5 and 8 July gave significant hints on the identity of Gilligan's source. At a meeting chaired by Blair on 8 July it was agreed that a statement should be released that stated a member of the MoD had come forward to say that he was the source. It was also agreed that Kelly's name would not be released to journalists, but if someone guessed who it was, they were allowed to confirm it. Kevin Tebbit, the permanent secretary at the MoD—Kelly's ultimate superior at the department—arrived at the end of the meeting and was unable to provide any input. At 5:54 pm on 8 July the government statement was released. Without naming Kelly, it said a member of the MoD had come forward to admit that he had met Gilligan at an unauthorised meeting a week before Gilligan's broadcast. The statement said that this MoD employee was not in a position to comment on Campbell's role in the 45 minute issue as he had not helped draw up the intelligence report and had not seen it. At 5:50 pm the following day a journalist from "The Financial Times" guessed Kelly's name correctly; a journalist from "The Times" did so soon afterwards after nineteen failed guesses.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: On the evening of 8 July Nick Rufford, a journalist with "The Sunday Times" who had known Kelly for five years, visited him at home in Southmoor. Rufford told him that his name would be published in the papers the following day. He advised Kelly to leave his home that night to avoid the media, and said the newspaper would put Kelly and his wife up at a hotel. Soon after Rufford left he contacted the MoD and asked if Kelly could write a piece for the paper putting forward his version of events; the MoD press office said this was unlikely. Soon afterwards the MoD phoned Kelly and advised him to find somewhere else to stay the night as the media would likely arrive at their house. According to Mrs Kelly, the couple left the house within 15 minutes and drove to Cornwall, breaking the journey overnight in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, where they arrived by 9:45 pm. Although the trip to Cornwall was described by Mrs Kelly at the Hutton Inquiry, Baker considers that there are "problems with the version of events we are asked to accept"; Goslett writes that Kelly played cribbage with a pub team in Kingston Bagpuize that night and was there until at least 10:30 pm. None of those on Kelly's cribbage team were asked to give evidence to the Hutton Inquiry.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: While in Cornwall, on the morning of 11 July, Kelly had a telephone call from Bryan Wells to tell him that he would have to appear in front of the Intelligence and Security and Foreign Affairs Select committees. He was told that the latter of these would be televised, something that upset him greatly, according to his wife. That afternoon, still unhappy with the news from the earlier phone call, he spoke to Wells again nine times. They agreed to meet on Monday 14 July to prepare for the interviews. Kelly returned from Cornwall on 13 July and stayed in Oxford at his daughter Rachel's house.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: The appearance of Kelly before the Foreign Affairs Select Committee was against the advice of Tebbit, the most senior civil servant at the MoD. He had been overruled by Geoff Hoon, the Secretary of State for Defence. Kelly appeared in front of the committee on 15 July in a session that lasted over an hour. He spoke so softly the fans in the room were turned off so the committee members could hear him reply; according to Baker, "Every word [from Kelly] was weighed carefully and some painful circumlocutions resulted". Kelly told the committee that he had met Gilligan but, as the journalist Tom Mangold, in Kelly's biography in the "Dictionary of National Biography" writes, "denied that he had said the things Gilligan reported his source as having said".


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Kelly was questioned by the Liberal Democrat MP David Chidgey about conversations with Susan Watts. It was the first time her name had been connected with Kelly in public, and it was later established that Gilligan had not only sent Chidgey excerpts from a recorded conversation, but also gave Chidgey questions to ask Kelly. The quote included Kelly's opinion on the 45 minute claim. Chidgey asked Kelly if the quotes came from the meeting he had with Watts in November 2002—the only time the pair had met face-to-face; Kelly replied that "I cannot believe that on that occasion I made that statement". According to Goslett, this was a truthful statement, as Kelly had not made the statement in November 2002, but on 30 May that year. Mangold notes that Kelly appeared to be under stress during the interview, and that some of the questioning was overtly hostile. One MP, Andrew MacKinlay, questioned Kelly towards the end of the session:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Andrew MacKinlay: I reckon you are chaff; you have been thrown up to divert our probing. Have you ever felt like a fall-guy? You have been set up, have you not?


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: On the following day, 16 July 2003, Kelly gave evidence to the Intelligence and Security Committee. He appeared more relaxed than he did in front of the Foreign Affairs Committee, according to Baker. When asked, Kelly described the September dossier as "an accurate document, I think it is a fair reflection of the intelligence that was available and it's presented in a very sober and factual way."


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: On the morning of 17 July Kelly worked from his home in Southmoor, answering written parliamentary questions from two MPs—MacKinlay on the identity of the journalists Kelly had spoken to, and the Conservative MP Bernard Jenkin on Kelly's discussions with Gilligan and whether he would be disciplined for it; Kelly had to provide the information to the MoD to forward on. He had a telephone call with Wing Commander John Clark, a friend and colleague during which they discussed the general situation Kelly was in, as well as a trip to Iraq on which Kelly was due to go in the following week. Clark reported that Kelly seemed to be "very tired, but in good spirits". He had received several emails from well-wishers, including from "The New York Times" journalist Judith Miller, to which he replied "I will wait until the end of the week before judging – many dark actors playing games. Thanks for your support."


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: During the course of the day Kelly received a phone call that changed his mood. Mangold states that "most likely explanation is that he learned from a well-meaning friend at the Ministry of Defence that the BBC had tape-recorded evidence which, when published, would show that he had indeed said the things to Susan Watts that he had formally denied saying". Mrs Kelly was ill that day and spent some time lying down in the couple's bedroom, but she got up at 3:00 pm to find Kelly speaking on the phone, before she returned to her bedroom to sleep. Goslett thinks this phone call is likely to have been with Clark, in a discussion about one of the answers to the parliamentary questions. Kelly left for a walk between 3:00 and 3:20 pm and was last seen by Ruth Absalom, a neighbour, with whom he stopped to have a chat. She was the last person known to have seen him alive. Clark tried to contact Kelly at home—where Mrs Kelly told him that her husband had gone for a walk—and then on Kelly's mobile, which was switched off; Clark stated he was surprised it was off as Kelly was normally easily contactable.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: As far as it is known, Kelly walked a mile (1.6 km) from his house to Harrowdown Hill. It appears he ingested up to 29 tablets of co-proxamol, an analgesic drug, then cut his left wrist, severing his ulnar artery, with a pruning knife he had owned since his youth. It was subsequently established that neither the knife nor the blister packs showed Kelly's fingerprints on their surfaces.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Rachel Kelly spoke to her mother in the late afternoon, then drove round to her parents' house at around 6:00 pm. As her father had not returned, Rachel walked a route along a footpath her father was known to use regularly to try and find him; she returned to the house at around 6:30 pm, then drove round to see if she could find him. Sian, the Kellys' eldest daughter, also came to the house that night, and at 11:40 pm they phoned the police. Three officers from the local station in Abingdon arrived within 15 minutes; they searched the house and garden straight away. By 1:00 am a search helicopter, fitted with thermal imaging equipment, from RAF Benson, had been requested; teams of search dogs were also provided and a 26-metre (85 ft) communications mast was erected, as the Kellys' home was in a mobile communications black spot.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Volunteer search teams were also used by the police, and it was one of these that found Kelly's body on Harrowdown Hill at about 9:20 am on 18 July. The two-person team differed in their description of the position of the body: one stated Kelly was "at the base of the tree with almost his head and his shoulders just slumped back against the tree"; the other stated Kelly was "sitting with his back up against a tree". The police and paramedics differed from both the searchers. DC Coe, one of the first policemen at the scene, stated the body "was laying on its back – the body was laying on its back by a large tree, the head towards the trunk of the tree"; the pathologist called to the scene, Nicholas Hunt, recalled that: "his head was quite close to branches and so forth, but not actually over the tree."


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Blair was on an aeroplane from Washington to Tokyo when the body was found. He was contacted while en route and informed of the news, although Kelly had not been formally identified at that stage. He decided to order a judicial inquiry to examine the circumstances, which was to be headed by Lord Hutton, a former Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland. His terms of reference were "urgently to conduct an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Dr Kelly".


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Hunt undertook the post-mortem examination on 19 July in the presence of eight police officers and two members of the coroner's office. Hunt concluded that the cause of death was a haemorrhage caused by a self-inflicted injury from "incised wounds to the left wrist", with the contributory factors of "co-proxamol ingestion and coronary artery atherosclerosis". On 20 July 2003, the day after the post-mortem, the BBC confirmed that Kelly was their only source. Nicholas Gardner, the coroner, opened and adjourned his inquest on 21 July, noting that the pathologist was still awaiting the toxicology report. With the establishment of the inquiry under Hutton, the Lord Chancellor's Department contacted Nicholas Gardner, the coroner, to advise him that under section 17A of the Coroners Act 1988, the coroner's inquest should only be resumed if there were exceptional circumstances to do so.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: On 6 August 2003, five days after the preliminary session of the Hutton Inquiry, Kelly was buried at St Mary's Church, Longworth.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: From 11 August to 4 September 2003 witnesses to the inquiry were called in the order of the chronology of events. The second stage of the inquiry took place between 15 and 25 September 2003; Hutton explained that he "would ask persons, who had already given evidence and whose conduct might possibly be the subject of criticism in my report, to come back to be examined further". There was one additional day used, 13 October 2003, to hear from one witness who had been ill on their scheduled day. As well as members of the Kelly family, evidence was taken from BBC employees (including Gilligan, Watts and Richard Sambrook, the BBC's Director of News) members of the government and its advisors (including Blair, Campbell, Hoon and McKinley) and civil servants, including John Scarlett, chairman of the JIC and Richard Dearlove, head of the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6).


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: One of the witnesses who gave evidence to Hutton was David Broucher, the UK's permanent representative to the Conference on Disarmament. In 2002 or 2003 he had asked Kelly what would happen if Iraq were invaded; Kelly had replied "I will probably be found dead in the woods". Over the 24 days evidence was taken, the inquiry questioned 74 witnesses and received over 10,000 pages of evidence; most of the documents, along with transcripts of the questioning, were published online by the inquiry team. Hutton reported on 28 January 2004 and wrote:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: I am satisfied that Dr Kelly took his own life by cutting his left wrist and that his death was hastened by his taking Coproxamol tablets. I am further satisfied that there was no involvement by a third person in Dr Kelly's death.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Hutton also concluded that the September dossier had not been "sexed up" by the government, or by Campbell, but was the work of the JIC. He cleared the government and its ministers of any wrongdoing and reserved his criticism for the BBC and Gilligan. According to George Jones, the political correspondent for "The Daily Telegraph", Hutton's judgement on the BBC was "damning and shocked its journalists with its ferocity. He said the corporation had a "defective" editorial system that allowed Gilligan to make "unfounded" claims questioning the Government's integrity".


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Despite the conclusion of the Hutton report that Kelly killed himself, there was continued debate over the manner of his death. Several doctors questioned the conclusion on medical grounds, although their position has been doubted by pathologists. The former leader of the Conservative Party, Michael Howard, and the former Liberal Democrat MP, Norman Baker, both think Kelly was murdered. In 2007 Baker published "The Strange Death of David Kelly" in which he argued that Kelly did not commit suicide. Kelly's family expressed their displeasure at the publication; his sister-in-law said: "It is just raking over old bones. I can't speak for the whole family, but I've read it all [Baker's theories], every word, and I don't believe it."


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: In March 2004 the Oxfordshire coroner, Nicholas Gardiner, convened a hearing to decide whether there were the "exceptional circumstances" needed to resume the inquest; he concluded that such circumstances did not exist and that an inquest was not required.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: In December 2009 six doctors applied to the Oxford coroner's office to reopen the inquest, claiming that there was insufficient evidence for Hutton's conclusion of suicide. Their request was turned down on legal advice, and they were informed that evidence relating to Kelly's death was to be kept secret for 70 years. Hutton stated that he did so "solely in order to protect Dr Kelly's widow and daughters for the remainder of their lives (the daughters being in their twenties at that time) from the distress which they would suffer from further discussion of the details of Dr Kelly's death in the media".


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: The Attorney General, Dominic Grieve, reviewed the case between 2010 and 2011. He spoke to both Hutton and Gardner before he concluded that there was no benefit in opening a new inquest into the matter; he stated that there was "overwhelmingly strong" evidence that Kelly killed himself. Prior to Grieve's decision, the government released the post-mortem and toxicology reports that Hutton had said should be sealed for 70 years. Both documents supported the conclusion of the Hutton Inquiry. The pathologist wrote in the post-mortem:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: It is my opinion that the main factor involved in bringing about the death of David Kelly is the bleeding from the incised wounds to his left wrist. Had this not occurred he may well not have died at this time. Furthermore, on the balance of probabilities, it is likely that the ingestion of an excess number of co-proxamol tablets coupled with apparently clinically silent coronary artery disease would both have played a part in bringing about death more certainly and more rapidly than would have otherwise been the case. Therefore I give as the cause of death:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Kelly's grave was a focal point for the campaign group "Justice for Kelly", who left placards demanding an inquest and undertook vigils at the graveside. Following complaints by his widow and a request by her to the Diocese of Oxford, Kelly's remains were exhumed in June 2017.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Kelly's death and the preceding events have served as an inspiration for artistic tributes and dramatisations, including the 2006 song "Harrowdown Hill" by Thom Yorke; a 2008 painting, "Death of David Kelly", by Dexter Dalwood; Jonathan Coe's 2015 novel "Number 11"; and a poem, "Hand-Washing Technique – Government Guidelines" (subtitled "i.m. Dr David Kelly"), by Simon Armitage. Kelly was the subject of a 2005 television drama, "The Government Inspector", starring Mark Rylance, and "Justifying War: Scenes from the Hutton Inquiry" a radio play by the Tricycle Theatre. Kelly's last moments are featured in the centre monologue of the stage play "Palace of the End" by Judith Thompson. There have also been documentaries on British television and radio about Kelly.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: In the 1996 Birthday Honours Kelly was appointed as Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG); the citation reads:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: He devised the scientific basis for the enhanced biological warfare defence programme and led strong research groups in many key areas. Following the Gulf War he led the first biological warfare inspection in Iraq and has spent most of his time since either in Iraq or at various sites in the former Soviet Union helping to shed light on past biological warfare related activities and assisting the UK/US RUS trilateral confidence building process. He has pursued this work tirelessly and with good humour despite the significant hardship, hostility and personal risk encountered during extended periods of service in both countries. ... His efforts in his specialist field have had consequences of international significance.


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: Lord Hutton, in the report to his inquiry, suggested that Kelly might well have been under consideration for a knighthood in May 2003. Kelly's work in Iraq earned him a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize; his biographer, the former MP Norman Baker, wrote of Kelly:


title: David Kelly (weapons expert)

text: It is no exaggeration to say that between 1990 and his death in 2003, Dr Kelly probably did more to make the world a more secure place than anyone on the planet. Even among the elite group of international weapons inspectors, he was regarded with some awe, as the inspectors' inspector.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The 44th Chess Olympiad (also known as the Indian Chess Olympiad), organised by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) and consisted of open and women's tournaments, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, was held in Chennai, the state capital of Tamil Nadu, India from 28 July to 9 August 2022.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The event was initially supposed to take place in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, along with the Chess World Cup 2019, but was later moved to Moscow and scheduled for the period from 5 to 17 August 2020. However, it was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and then relocated to Chennai following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This was the first Chess Olympiad to take place in India.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The event was hosted and managed in India by the AICF (All India Chess Federation). The current AICF President, Sanjay Kapoor was the President of the Organising Committee for the 44th Chess Olympiad, and AICF Secretary, Bharat Singh Chauhan was the Tournament Director.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The total number of participants was 1,737, with 937 in the Open and 800 in the Women's event. The number of registered teams was 188 from 186 nations in the Open section and 162 from 160 nations in the Women's section. Both sections set team participation records. The main venue of the Chess Olympiad was the convention centre at the Four Points by Sheraton, while the opening and closing ceremonies were held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. The Chief Arbiter of the event was France's International Arbiter Laurent Freyd.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: Uzbekistan won the gold medal in the Open event, which was their first overall medal in the Chess Olympiads, while Ukraine claimed their second gold in the Women's event (having previously won in 2006). English player David Howell had the highest performance for an individual player in the Open event with a performance rating of 2898 (he scored 7½ out of a possible 8 points). Polish player Oliwia Kiołbasa had the highest individual performance in the Women's event with a performance rating of 2565 (she scored 9½ of a possible 11 points).


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The 93rd FIDE Congress also took place during the Olympiad, at which Arkady Dvorkovich was re-elected as FIDE President and Viswanathan Anand was elected as FIDE Deputy President.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: Bidding for the 44th Chess Olympiad and the simultaneous FIDE Congress opened in December 2015; bids could be made in connection with those for the Chess World Cup 2019. Each city bid had to be submitted to FIDE by 31 March 2016, including details of the organising committee, finances, provision of amenities and stipends. Only one bid was submitted, from Khanty-Mansiysk (Russia), although the national federations of Argentina and Slovakia had previously expressed interest in bidding. The bid was approved at the 87th FIDE Congress in September 2016.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: In November 2019, in the opening ceremony of the FIDE Grand Prix in Hamburg, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich announced that the Chess Olympiad would be relocated from Khanty-Mansiysk to Moscow. The president of the Russian Chess Federation Andrey Filatov had stated earlier the same day that the two cities would likely co-host the event. Khanty-Mansiysk was to host the opening ceremony and the inaugural Chess Paralympics, for people with disabilities in teams representing blind, deaf and physically disabled players.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: In February 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, FIDE decided to move the Chess Olympiad, FIDE Congress and Chess Paralympics away from Russia. Shortly after this announcement, the All India Chess Federation expressed interest in hosting the events, in either Delhi, Gujarat or Tamil Nadu. Politicians in Tamil Nadu agreed to host the Chess Olympiad and provided around . On 15 March 2022, FIDE announced that Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, would be the new host of the event.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The total budget for the 44th Chess Olympiad was . The coordinating committee was headed by the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. K. Stalin, and included A. Raja, Udhayanidhi Stalin, three representatives of the All India Chess Federation, the President of the Tamil Nadu State Chess Association and other representatives of the local authorities.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The venue was the convention centre at the Four Points by Sheraton in Mahabalipuram near Chennai. This consisted of an existing banquet hall (Hall 1) and a newly constructed hall (Hall 2), which cost . Hall 1 had a usable area of , while Hall 2 was double the size at . Hall 1 hosted games played on the top 28 boards in the open section and the top board in the women's section, with other games played in Hall 2. Exhibition space was also provided.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The opening and closing ceremonies were held at the Nehru Indoor Stadium, part of the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium complex. This was built in 1995 at a cost of ₹20 crore (then about €3.25 million) and has a capacity of 8,000 spectators.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: Around 125 buses, 100 SUVs and six luxury cars were used to transport players and dignitaries during the event. The road between Chennai International Airport and Mahabalipuram was widened and reconstructed to improve traffic flow, with one lane of the highway reserved for Olympiad traffic during the event.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: A torch relay was held prior to the event, the first for a Chess Olympiad. It started on 19 July at the Indira Gandhi Arena in New Delhi, where FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich handed the torch to the Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, who passed it to former World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand. The torch was then taken to 75 cities in 40 days, finishing in Chennai where it passed through Shore Temple. Related events involved the Indian sport mallakhamba. The torch arrived at the venue in Mahabalipuram on the morning of 27 July.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The Tamil Nadu Police deployed 4,000 police officers to provide security during the Olympiad, on special duty from 25 July to 10 August. The Greater Chennai Police deployed an additional 22,000 police officers during prime minister Narendra Modi's visit to the city on 28 July. Flying of drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles was banned in the city limits in the period 28–29 July.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: Because the event was held during the COVID-19 pandemic in India, the Tamil Nadu Health Department deployed medical teams and 30 ambulances to perform COVID-19 screening at airports, hotels and venues. Nearly 1,000 doctors and other health personnel were engaged for the Olympiad. Thirteen hospitals in and around Old Mahabalipuram Road and East Coast Road were utilised. The Government of Tamil Nadu issued health insurance cards to all players, covering medical expenses up to per player.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: COVID-19 PCR testing was performed on a randomly selected two per cent of all arriving flight passengers at the airport, including players, coaches, support staff and visitors. All passengers had to present a vaccine passport certifying they had received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, or a certificate of a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours before arrival. Thermal screening was applied to all players on a daily basis, with symptomatic cases being isolated, tested and treated. Due to the 2022 monkeypox outbreak, players from outside India were required to also be tested for monkeypox.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: Food safety officials inspected food served every day in all hotels accommodating players. Due to the elevated risk of malaria and dengue fever, continuous fogging and spraying measures were deployed to prevent mosquito breeding. Additional hygiene training and inspection was arranged. Around 100 staff from other districts were used to monitor food safety measures in all hotels.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The price of a full-day ticket for Hall 1 was for domestic visitors and for foreigners, while students under 19 years of age, women and Tamil Nadu government staff could get a two-hour ticket at discounted price of . A full-day ticket for Hall 2 was for domestic visitors and for foreigners, while the concession categories received a two-hour ticket for . To prevent cheating using chess engines, all electronic devices (including mobile phones) had to be deposited at a counter outside the halls.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The opening ceremony was held on 28 July at 16:00 IST () at the Nehru Indoor Stadium with an audience of more than 20,000 players, coaches and spectators. The opening address was given by Tamil Nadu Minister for Youth Welfare and Sport Development Meyyanathan Siva V. A musical show was performed, with Kamal Haasan narrating the history of Tamil Nadu, directed by Vignesh Shivan. Singers Dhee and Kidakuzhi Mariyammal performed the song "Enjoy Enjaami". A dance song, "Vanakkam Chennai, Vanakkam Chess". was also played. A flag parade was held with one player from each team. Pianist Lydian Nadhaswaram played classical and modern tunes, including a blindfold exhibition.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The event was formally opened by Indian prime minister Narendra Modi. In his speech, Modi discussed chess venues in Tamil Nadu and the Chathuranga Vallabhanathar Temple in Tiruvarur, where myth states God played chess with a princess. Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu M. K. Stalin also spoke, praising the organisation of the event in less than four months. He noted that the Olympiad would be held near the coastal town Sadurangapattinam, thought to be the home of chaturanga, a predecessor game to chess. FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich also welcomed participants.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The five-time World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand passed the Olympic LED illuminated torch to Modi, who passed it to Indian chess players R Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh D who "lit" the virtual Olympic cauldron.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The event was contested by a total of 188 teams, representing 186 national federations, both records for a Chess Olympiad. India, as host country, was permitted to field three teams. The women's tournament featured 162 teams, also a record, representing 160 federations. Russia and Belarus were banned from taking part by FIDE as a result of the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine. China declined to send a team. Pakistan boycotted the event and a team from Rwanda were prevented from attending by their own government. A team representing the Netherlands Antilles was permitted to compete, despite having dissolved itself in 2010, because the Curaçao Chess Federation remains officially registered as representing the country.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The tournament was played in a Swiss system format. The time control for all games was 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, after which an additional 30 minutes were granted and increment of 30 seconds per move was applied. Players were permitted to offer a draw at any time. A total of 11 rounds were played, with all teams playing in every round.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: In each round, four players from each team faced four players from another team; teams were permitted one reserve player who could be substituted between rounds. The four games were played simultaneously on four boards, scoring 1 game point for a win and ½ game point for a draw. The scores from each game were summed together to determine which team won the round. Winning a round was worth two match points, regardless of the game point margin, while drawing a round was worth 1 match point. Teams were ranked in a table based on match points. Tie-breakers for the table were i) the Sonneborn-Berger system; ii) total game points scored; iii) the sum of the match points of the opponents, excluding the lowest one.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: Tournament rounds started on 29 July and ended with the final round on 9 August. All rounds began at 15:00 IST (UTC+5:30), except for the final round which began at 10:00 IST (UTC+5:30). There was one rest day at the tournament, on 4 August, after the sixth round.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: The open tournament featured five out of the top ten players from the FIDE rating list published in July 2022. World Champion Magnus Carlsen played for Norway. Former World Champion Viswanathan Anand decided not to play for India, acting as team mentor instead. Ian Nepomniachtchi and Ding Liren, who will contest the World Chess Championship 2023, both missed the tournament due to Russia's suspension and China's withdrawal, respectively. Other top players who skipped the Olympiad include France's Alireza Firouzja and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, with the latter citing the unfavourable weather conditions, Teimour Radjabov withdrew from playing for Azerbaijan shortly before the start of the tournament, due to suffering after-effects of a COVID-19 infection that he contracted following the Candidates Tournament 2022. Lê Quang Liêm also did not play, because Vietnam only entered the women's event. Richard Rapport could not compete, as he was in the process of switching federation from Hungary to Romania. Fabiano Caruana, Levon Aronian and Wesley So, all top ten in the FIDE rankings, played for the United States.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: In the absence of Russia and China, the United States were regarded as favourites due to their average rating of 2771, higher than any other team. Viswanathan Anand described the team as "breathtaking", and Anish Giri said that the US team "not dominating the Olympiad would be a shocker". The host nation India had the second strongest team with an average pre-tournament rating of 2696, while Norway had the third highest average rating of 2692. Other pre-tournament favourites included Spain and Poland. The young squads of Germany, Uzbekistan and India's second team were also expected to be competitive.


title: 44th Chess Olympiad

text: Uzbekistan won the gold medal in the open event, with a total of 19 match points. Their eight wins and three draws made them the only undefeated team in the tournament. Silver medallists Armenia also scored 19 points, but lost the tie-break largely due to their loss to the Uzbek team in the ninth round. The second Indian team won the bronze medal following a strong performance by 16-year-old Gukesh D, who won eight consecutive games in the first eight rounds but blundered a loss to Nodirbek Abdusattorov in their match with the Uzbek team, which proved decisive. Three teams scored 17 match points (seven wins, three draws and one loss each): the first Indian team came fourth, the United States fifth, and Moldova sixth. The heavily favoured US team failed to win a medal due to lacklustre performances from Fabiano Caruana, who suffered three losses, and Levon Aronian, who won only one game in the tournament.