The tournament will run from January 30 to February 7 with the participation of over 1,000 chess players at 6 venues.

Liem ranked among the strongest players entering the tournament. With an Elo rating of 2,647, he has become one of the top 100 players in the world.

When the tournament ends, Liem will remain in Russia with several other Vietnamese chess players including Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son, Nguyen Anh Dung, and Nguyen Van Huy, to participate in the Aeroflot Open 2010 from February 8-19.