Šolak learnt chess from a very young age and started participating in tournaments before he turned four years of age.[1] In 2002 he tied for 1st–3rd with Vladimir Tukmakov and Andrei Sokolov in the Hilton Open in Basel[2] and tied for 3rd–4th with Ketino Kachiani-Gersinska in the Casino Open in Interlaken.[3] In 2011 he tied for 3rd–7th with Sergey Volkov, Ioannis Nikolaidis, Konstantine Shanava and Fernando Peralta in the 1st Isthmia International Tournament.[4]
He played for the Yugoslav (later Serbian) national team in the Chess Olympiads of 2000, 2004, 2008[5] and in the European Team Chess Championships of 1999, 2005, 2009 and 2011.[6]
In December 2011 he transferred to the Turkish Chess Federation.[7] Šolak represented Turkey at the Chess Olympiads of 2012, 2014, 2016[5] and at the European Team Championship of 2013.[6] He won the Turkish Chess Championship in 2012 and 2013.
Šolak finished equal second (fourth on tiebreak) at the 2014 European Individual Chess Championship, scoring 8/11, and qualifying for the 2015 Chess World Cup.[8]
In 2015, he won the Dubai Open, edging out other five grandmasters on tiebreak, after all finished on 7/9 points.[9] At the Chess World Cup 2015 he was eliminated in the first round by Anton Korobov.
His handle on the Internet Chess Club is "RuznaMamuna".[10]
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