The 23rd Chess Olympiad (Spanish: La 23a Olimpíada de ajedrez), organized by FIDE and comprising an open[1] and a women's tournament, as well as several other events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between October 25 and November 12, 1978, in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
After the boycott two years earlier, the Eastern Bloc countries were back, including the Soviet team who, as usual, were huge favourites——but in the end they had to settle for the silver medal. Hungary, led by Lajos Portisch, caused quite an upset by taking the gold medals by a full point. The United States took the bronze.
This tournament also witnessed the debut of China, which placed 20th with six untitled players, and later became a chess power and won the Chess Olympiad in 2014 and 2018.
- ^ Although commonly referred to as the men's division, this section is open to both male and female players.