Chess season 2010 is coming to an end. This season was the best for Salome Melia, a 23-year-old Georgian international grand master, member of Georgian national team and women's chess club "Samaia".
Salome started this season with winning Georgian national championship. After this she had guaranteed place in the national team.
Melia won 2 medals at Khanty-Mansiysk Chess Olympiad - besides team bronze medal, Salome won silver medal on the third board.
"Samaia" which competed in Plovdiv (Poland) Chess Club Cup collected 9 points, like Armenian "MIKA", Russian “Giprorechtrans” and Russian AVS. But according to the additional data, "Samaia" was behind these teams and took the 6th place. Melia made us happy again. She played on the 3rd board and won bronze medal.
Salome Melia had debut at Chess Olympiad and played for "Samaia" for the second time (her debut was not so bad and she won bronze medal with her teammates).
According to the abovementioned, "World Sport" had many reasons to contact Salome Melia.
Salome Melia: I was born in 1987 in Batumi. I am a lawyer and unmarried.
- How can you manage to combine jurisprudence with chess?
- It is very difficult to combine jurisprudence with chess. I had to choose and I preferred chess.
- After leaving active sport, are you going to return to your profession?
- I am not going to return to jurisprudence but I want to master a new profession. Yet, I do not want to name this profession.
- How long have you been playing chess?
- I was 4-5 years old when I studied moves and I have been playing chess since then. My father and grandfather were chess players. My father Genadi Melia taught me chess. He was my first coach.
- Who is your coach now?
- I do not have a private coach. I am preparing individually.
- Do not you want to have a private coach?
- Of course, I want. But I need money to hire a coach.
- Which from gained titles 2010 was important for you?
- All medals which I won this year are first medals in my collection. But most of all, medals gained at Olympiad are important for me. I respect Georgian national and European Club Championships but Olympiad is still quite another.
- Our women's team was current champion of Khanty-Mansiysk Chess Olympiad but the team won bronze medal this time. How can you summarize Olympiad?
- If we take into consideration that it is really very difficult to keep title of champion, I summarize our competition at Olympiad positively. Unlike us, Ukraine and the USA could not keep their places among prize winners. These teams won silver and bronze medals at Dresden Chess Olympiad 2008.
- What can you say about European Chess Club Cup where "Samaia" could not win a medal?
- There were many factors why we were left without a medal. "Samaia" was the only team where national players (of the country which they represented) played. We beat future champion "Monte Carlo" (Monaco).
- What do you do in your free time?
- I play the piano and guitar with my friends.
- What can you say about your future plans?
- I am having a rest now. I got an invitation from some international tournaments which will be held in December 2010. I have not decided yet but I will participate in one of them.



Roland Labuchidze