GMAhmed Adly

Ahmed Adly learned chess from his father at six while growing up in Cairo. He also competed in fencing before concentrating on the board. In 2005 he became Egypt's first grandmaster and won the African championship. An admirer of Mikhail Tal, he developed an attacking approach, later broadening his style as his career progressed. One memorable early victory came against Magnus Carlsen at the 2006 Reykjavik Open. He studied business administration at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport, graduating in 2010. He later founded a chess academy in Cairo to give younger players the support he felt would have helped his own development.