AIMAG 2026

2026 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games: Nomination Policy

Background:
The 2026 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (“AIMAG”) will be held from 13 – 21 December 2026 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This Nomination Policy contains key information on the types of chess events to be held, eligibility and application process.

Committee Members:

High Performance Committee:

IM Jason Goh (Chair)
IM Hsu Li Yang

Appeals Committee:

GM Wong Meng Kong (Chair)
IM Terry Toh
Mr. Seow Yongli

Events to be contested (as of 2 February 2025):

Training and Preparation:

For Chess, nominees must be in the National Training Programme (refer to https://singaporechess.org.sg/national-training-squad/)  of the Singapore Chess Federation.

Eligibility: 

a. Citizenship

Nominees must be Singapore Citizens at the time of nomination and should not be holding dual citizenship if they are above 22 years of age.

b. Data points

The results from the following tournaments shall be considered by the SCF High Performance Committee for the internal longlist:

1. Singapore National Chess Championships
2. Official regional events like the South-East Asian Zone Championships or the Asian Continental Championships
3. Other FIDE rated tournaments where relevant
4. FIDE Rating

c. Training Commitment

Selected athletes are expected to commit to minimally 5 days of training sessions a week at the SCF, with a minimum of 3 hours per session. The training schedule shall be discussed and agreed with the SCF Training Committee. Special considerations shall be provided for selected athletes who are unable to commit to this schedule due to extenuating circumstances

d. Conduct

Pursuant to the Olympic Charter (By laws to Rules 27 and 28, paragraph 2.1), “Selection shall be based not only on the sports performance of an athlete but also on his ability to serve as an example to the sporting youth of his country.”

From these tournaments, a player shall be nominated to SNOC for consideration if he/she has demonstrated the potential to finish among the top 6 finishers at the AIMAG or represent high potential. 

Application Process and Tentative Timeline (subject to the organiser’s final confirmation):

1. Interested parties who wish to be nominated shall submit their application via email to hpe@singaporechess.org.sg with the subject header [Application for AIMAG 2026]
2. Contact hpe@singaporechess.org.sg for queries on the selection process and the submission of nominations and the filing of appeals.
3. The email should indicate the event that the players are keen to participate in, recent tournament results that support their nomination and FIDE rating.
4. The email should indicate data points from 1 September 2025 to 1 September 2026.
5. The SCF High Performance Committee shall select the names for longlist and nomination based on the following timeline:

30 Aug  – Long list and Nomination phase begins
7 Sep – Longlist and Nomination Date by SCF
23 Sep – Selection Com Meeting
24-30 Sep – Appeal Period
8 Oct – Appeal Com Meeting
12 Oct – Entry by Name by SCF

Nomination Process:

In the event where the number of athletes nominated by the SCF and subsequently selected by the SNOC Selection/Appeal Committees exceeds the entry limit per event, the HPE Committee will select the final list of athletes at the Entry By Name stage taking into consideration all the data points highlighted above.

Nomination by SCF does not guarantee selection. Nominated athletes remain subject to SNOC’s selection process and must meet SNOC’s prevailing selection criteria.

Appeals:

Players can lodge an appeal by writing to hpe.appeals@singaporechess.org.sg, with the subject header [Appeal – 2026 AIMAG Nomination].  The email should contain relevant recent results that may have taken place after the longlist has been submitted.

Any appeals should be made with 24 hours after the post selection announcement on the SCF Website.

Announcement of Appeals will be made available within 24 hours on the SCF Website. 

The HPE appeals committee will make the final decision on appeals. Please note that the Appeals Committee has a completely different composition from the HPE selection committee.

Conflict of Interest:

Members from the Selection or Appeals Committee who wish to be nominated for the AIMAG shall recuse themselves from the selection or appeals process. The SCF President shall nominate a suitable or temporary replacement for such an event.