Israel is going to host world chess championship in its chess capital Be'er Sheva, local newspaper Haaretz reported Sunday.

The best chess teams in the world, including Ukraine, Russia, Armenia, the United States, Cuba, the Republic of Georgia, China (with men's and women's teams) and Israel will compete in the tournament, which starts on Tuesday.

Egypt, the African representative in the competition, cancelled its participation. The Israel Chess Federation called the cancellation political.

Each national team comprises six players and a captain. The competition involves nine rounds in which four players from each team compete. The winner is declared world champion.

The Israeli national team, which recently won two consecutive second-place titles in European championship competitions, is currently ranked fifth in the world.

Chess is a source of great pride in Be'er Sheva. The city has two teams in the premier league and Be'er Sheva A is the almost undisputed champion. Other Be'er Sheva teams dominate the minor leagues.

Be'er Sheva also has the most grandmasters relative to its size, with eight grandmasters from the southern Israeli city. Two of them will play on the Israeli national team this week.

Source: Xinhua