From: "Stouten, Pieter [R&D/0467]" PHARMACIA COM> Date: 4 apr 2003 Subject: Mind Sports Olympiad Moves to Manchester The Mind Sports Olympiad (www.msoworld.com) is moving to a permanent home in Manchester. This annual festival of thinking games and mental skills, which anyone can enter, was inaugurated in London in 1997 and has attracted as many as 5,000 entries. This year's event, the 7th Mind Sports Olympiad, includes tournaments for many different strategy games including: Chess, Bridge, Backgammon, Cribbage, Dominoes, Scrabble, Othello and Go, with Gold, Silver and Bronze medals for the winners as well as cash and other prizes. Junior medals are on offer in each tournament for the best players aged under 16. There are also tournaments for several mental skills including: Creative Thinking, Mental Calculations, Memory Skills, Intelligence and a General Knowledge Quiz. Competitors are expected from more than 60 countries on all five continents. The Conference Centre at UMIST will host this year's event from August 16th-25th. UMIST has signed an agreement with the event's organisers to bring the Mind Sports Olympiad back to Manchester every year, initially for a 5-year period but with the intention of extending the agreement each year. International Chess Master David Levy, who is the event's founder and Chief Organizer, said: "We are delighted that Manchester has offered us a permanent home for the Mind Sports Olympiad. We have been hoping for such an opportunity ever since the first event in 1997. The Greater Manchester area boasts huge numbers of games enthusiasts and Manchester is only an hour or so away from several other major conurbations, so we expect a big entry." Contact information: Public Relations: Suzanne Martin - Tel: 07950 051911, e-mail: pr msoworld com Entries: Tel: 01707 659080, e-mail: entries msoworld com Web site: www.msoworld.com ----- This communication is intended solely for the use of the addressee and may contain information that is legally privileged, confidential or exempt from disclosure. If you are not the intended recipient, please note that any dissemination, distribution, or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. Anyone who receives this message in error should notify the sender immediately and delete it from his or her computer.