On May 28, 2016, the Alexander Mantashev Educational Cultural Youth Center in Batumi at the Armenian Diocese in Georgia hosted the Chess Tournament dedicated to Armenia First Republic Day and Georgia Independence Day. Players of different ages and sexes from the Armenian community and Armenia, as well as Ukrainians, Georgians, Byelorussian (from Minsk) came to play in the tournament.

Eventually, after an intense struggle, Alexander Ponasenko became the winner of the first prize, Smbat Topbashyan, Vazgen Madoyan and Sergey Misoyan won the second, third and fourth prizes respectively. Felix Melkonyan, a grandmaster and a teacher of chess at Chess School in Batumi, was the Chief Judge of the tournament. The championship was held through the efforts of the Alexander Mantashev Cultural Center and Garik Ghukasyan, the Parish council member.

Following the tournament, the Award Ceremony took place. Rev. Father Ararat Gumbalyan, Pastor of Armenian community in Ajara, Guria and Imereti of the Armenian Diocese in Georgia, gave a welcoming speech, and congratulated everyone on the occasion of the Armenia First Republic Day and Georgia Independence Day, a dream which spans the centuries and which is the result of the patriotic and national struggle of Armenians and Georgians. Words of appreciation were addressed to the event organizers. Rev. Fr. Ararat also announced that the championship would become traditional and annual.

Master of sports in tennis, Avetis Khumroyan, the Director of the Cultural Center, Sona Hovhannisyan, Eugenia Popova, Garik Ghukasyan and the Rev. Father handed out prizes and congratulated the winners. The winners received medals and cups, while all the participants received certificates of honor and souvenirs.

The tournament was covered by Ajara TV and the Armenian Community Press service.