World Team Championships overview

The World Team Championships started yesterday in Lille, France. This is the tournament formerly known as the World Team Olympiad. I am told that the WBF changed the name at the request of the International Olympic Committee. This is my second time in the city -- the world championships were also held here in 1998. This year the tournament is a component of the World Mind Games, so players from four other "mind sports" are here as well: Chess, Chinese Checkers, Draughts, and Go. As for the bridge event, each of the 123 countries in the WBF is entitled to send an Open, Women's, and Senior team. This year only about half have chosen to do so. In the Open event 64 teams (or so) are be divided into four groups of 15 or 16 teams each. Each group plays a complete round robin over five days. The top four teams from each group will qualify for a sixteen team KO which begins on Wednesday 15 August. Conditions of the women's and senior events are similar.