The first World Mind Sports Games (WMSG) were held in Beijing, China from October 3 to 18, 2008, about two months after the Olympic Games.[1][2][3] They were sponsored and organised by the International Mind Sports Association with the General Administration of Sport of China and the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sport.[4][5]
Five mind sports participated in the first Games: bridge, chess, draughts (checkers), go (weiqi), and xiangqi (Chinese chess).[6][7] Thirty-five gold medals were contested by 2,763 competitors from 143 countries.[8]
According to the World Bridge Federation, it incorporated the World Team Olympiad (1960–2004) and some established youth events in the Games "as the stepping stone on the path of introducing a third kind of Olympic Games (after the 'regular' Olympics and the Paralympics)".[9]
- ^ First World Mind Sports Games to be held in Beijing. news.xinhuanet.com
- ^ China to host Bridge Games Archived 2008-09-28 at the Wayback Machine The News–International, Pakistan.
- ^ Beijing hosts first 'Mind Games', BBC News, 3 October 2008, by Shirong Chen. Retrieved 2011-05-23.
- ^ A successful first edition of The World Mind Sports Games Archived 2011-03-22 at the Wayback Machine. International Mind Sports Association.
- ^ Introduction of the 2008 World Mind Sports Games Archived 2012-03-20 at the Wayback Machine. British Go Association. No date. Retrieved 2011-05-23.
- ^ The first international mind sports games "IMSA Cup" Archived 2008-04-26 at the Wayback Machine. FIDE (chess).
- ^ China to host 2008 World Mind Sports Games Archived 2012-07-09 at archive.today. latestchess.com
- ^ 2008 WMSG Results. 2008 WMSG. Confirmed 2011-05-25.
- ^ World Bridge Games Archived 2013-12-20 at the Wayback Machine. World Bridge Federation (WBF). Retrieved 2011-05-24.