Il torneo dei Candidati assegnato alla Russia!

• la decisione presa nonostante le precedenti minacce di ritiro di Topalov
• update la reazione del Manager di Topalov
  

Il Presidential Board della FIDE, riunito in Tromso, ha assegnato alla città di Kazan (Russia) il Torneo dei Candidati che determinerà lo sfidante del Campione del Mondo Anand e che si dovrebbe disputare in un periodo compreso tra il 1 Marzo e il 31 Maggio 2011. La notizia, pubblicata dal sito chessdom.com, ha sorpreso l'intera comunità scacchistica. Tutti davano, infatti, per certo che almeno una parte della manifestazione sarebbe stata ospitata dall'Azerbajan, la cui federazione aveva già provveduto a versare un acconto di 150.000  euro. La Federazione Internazionale, sempre secondo Chessdom, ha però cambiato idea facendo comunque  salva la nomina dell'azerbajano Mamedyarov quale giocatore invitato dagli organizzatori.  Con la scelta di una sede russa viene dunque superata definitivamente la questione Aronian che, a causa delle tensioni esistenti tra Armenia e Arzebajan, avrebbe avuto serie difficoltà a disputare il torneo in Azerbajan. Proprio per questo motivo sembrava, infatti, ormai certo che quarti e semifinali del Torneo dei Candidati si sarebbero disputati in due sedi diverse.

E tutti vissero felici e contenti? Macchè! Pochi giorni prima Veselin Topalov, seguendo il solco della tradizione degli scacchisti che amano complicare la vita a chi deve gestire questo sport, aveva fatto sapere, tramite una lettera aperta, che per lui sarebbe stata inaccettabile una seconda sede  russa. Secondo Veselin, infatti, il trattamento riservato a lui ed al suo team durante il Match Mondiale, perso contro Kramnik in Elista (Russia) nel 2006, era stato decisamente "unpleasant." Questa situazione, con una evidente forzatura, era stata paragonata proprio alla questione Aronian. Ma la decisone presa dalla FIDE ha comunque superato questa possibile obiezione. E', poi, per certi versi paradossale che la dichiarazione di non voler giocare contro un russo in Russia sia stata rilasciata proprio da chi ha da poco giocato, nella propria patria, un match valevole per il Titolo Mondiale contro il Campione in carica. La FIDE non ha, comunque,  tenuto in alcuna considerazione la lettera del bulgaro ed ha assegnato alla città di Kazan  addirittura tutta la manifestazione! Come reagirà l'ex Campione del Mondo FIDE? Nel caso in cui si dovesse davvero ritirare dalla manifestazione, Topalov sarebbe sostituito dal russo Grischuk (3° classificato del Grand Prix FIDE) ma è difficile immaginare che il bulgaro rinunci effettivamente alla possibilità di riconquistare il Titolo.

update 30 luglio La reazione di Danailov, Manager di Topalov e Candidato alla presidenza ECU

Come era ampiamente prevedibile, arriva l'immediata (mezza) marcia in dietro di Silvio Danailov. Il Manger di Topalov, intervistato dal sito russo sport-express.ru, parla diffusamente del Match Mondiale perso contro Anand e successivamente si sofferma sulla lettera aperta di Topalov precisando che Veselin non intendeva affermare che non avrebbe disputato un Torneo dei Candidati in Russia, ma che non avrebbe sfidato un giocatore russo in Russia! L'unica riserva posta da Danailov prima di confermare la presenza dell'ex Campione del Mondo FIDE in Kazan riguarda, e su questo non si nutrivano dubbi, i termini del contratto ed il montepremi.  E se la Finale dovesse essere  tra Topalov e Kramnik? la risposta di Danailov è stata: "Veselein si è espresso chiaramente nella sua lettera".

la lettera aperta di Topalov

Alexander Grischuk spera ...




... ma c'e' da scommetere che Topalov non rinuncerà!?




Nel frattempo l'invito di Mamedyarov è salvo!




mentre Anand, al riparo da ogni polemica, attende sereno lo sfidante




Il cremlino di Kazan




Kazan, sede del Torneo dei Candidati nel 2011

Partecipanti al Torneo dei Candidati ordinati in base all'elo della lista del 1° gennaio 2010, con Topalov numero 1 in quanto perdente del match mondiale di Sofia.

1. Topalov 2805, perdente del Mondiale 2010
2. Carlsen 2810, rating (media lista elo luglio 2009 - gennaio 2010)
3. Kramnik 2788, 2° giocatore con il rating più alto
4. Aronian 2781, 1° Classificato Grand Prix
5. Gelfand 2761,  1° Classificato World Cup 2009
6. Mamedyarov 2741, over 2700 nominato dagli organizzatori
7. Radjabov 2733, 2° Classificato Grand Prix
   
8. Kamsky 2693,  perdente della sfida Topalov-Kamsky

• La squadra di Fabiano travolge i favoriti dell' Economist e balza in testa
  
• VII turno primo turno di riposo per Caruana
• Ivanchuk-Grischuk 1-0
• Jakovenko- Svidler 1/2
  

Il capitano del ShSM-64 ha concesso a Fabiano Caruana un giorno di riposo nel 7° turno della "Premier League" del Campionato Russo a squadre che si disputa oggi a Dagomys, nei pressi di Sochi, sul Mar Nero. Ieri, nel 6° turno, il nostro portacolori ha pattato con il Grande Maestro russo Alekseev. Domani, nell' 8° e penultimo turno, la squadra  di Caruana affronterà  l' SPb Chess Fed di Ivanchuk e Svidler, scontro diretto che probabilmente sarà decisivo per le sorti di questo Campionato.

Alekseev, Evgeny  (RUS, 2700) - Caruana, Fabiano (ITA, 2680)  
1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. d3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nf6 7. h3 Bc5 8. Be2 Be6 9. O-O Qe7 10. Na4 Bd4 11. Be3 Rd8 12. Qc1 Qb4 13. Qc2 O-O 14. a3 Qb5 15. Nc5 Bc8 16. Rfc1 a5 17. Rab1 Rfe8 18. b4 axb4 19. axb4 Re7 20. Qa4 Qxa4 21. Nxa4 Ne8 22. b5 Bxe3 23. fxe3 Na5 24. b6 f6 25. Rc5 cxb6 26. Nxb6 Nc6 27. Rd5 Be6 28. Rxd8 Nxd8 29. d4 exd4 30. exd4 Bf7 31. Bd3 Nd6 32. e5 fxe5 33. dxe5 Ne8 34. Be4 Nc6 35. Nd5 Bxd5 36. Bxd5+ Kh8 37. Bxc6 bxc6 38. Rb6 c5 39. Rb8 Kg8 40. Rc8 Kf7 41. Rxc5 Nc7 42. Kf2 Ne6 43. Ra5 h6 44. Kg3 Rb7 45. h4 Kg6 46. Ra4 h5 47. Ra8 Kf5 48. Rh8 Kg6 49. Re8 Kf5 50. Rh8 1/2-1/2

un'immagine della sfida, vinta da Caruana, dei sedicesimi della World Cup 2009

Gli incontri della squadra di Caruana

VI turno

5	3	[19.0]		ShSM-64	4.5-1.5	Economist-SGSEU - 1		[20.0]	4
	1	[2.0]	2750	Gelfand, Boris	1/2	Wang, Yue	2749	[1.5]	1
	2	[3.0]	2725	Karjakin, Sergey	1-0	Eljanov, Pavel	2736	[4.0]	2
	3	[1.0]	2715	Wang, Hao	1-0	Tomashevsky, Evgeny	2701	[2.5]	3
	4	[3.0]	2680	Caruana, Fabiano	1/2	Alekseev, Evgeny	2700	[3.0]	4
	6	[3.0]	2660	Riazantsev, Alexander	1-0	Ni, Hua	2667	[2.0]	5
	7	[3.0]	2665	Najer, Evgeniy	1/2	Roiz, Michael	2652	[2.0]	7

VII turno

2	5	[16.0]		M.Chigorin Chess Club		1-5	ShSM-64		[23.5]	3
	1	[2.5]	2617	Khairullin, Ildar		1/2	Gelfand, Boris	2750	[2.5]	1
	2	[3.0]	2600	Matlakov, Maxim		0-1	Wang, Hao	2715	[2.0]	3
	3	[2.0]	2600	Romanov, Evgeny		1/2	Grachev, Boris	2667	[2.0]	5
	6	[2.5]	2553	Shimanov, Aleksandr		0-1	Riazantsev, Alexander	2660	[4.0]	6
	7	[1.5]	2519	Anisimov, Pavel		0-1	Najer, Evgeniy	2665	[3.5]	7
	8	[1.5]	2486	Levin, Evgeny A.		0-1	Savchenko, Boris	2652	[2.0]	8

Classifica dopo 7 turni

Place	SNo.	Team	Fed.	Local	Match Points	Total	vs+	Wins	B.1
1	3	ShSM-64	RUS	2700	13.0	28.5	8;9;2;10;4;5;	6	4.0
2	6	SPb Chess Fed	RUS	2700	11.0	26.5	5;10;7;9;2;	5	3.5
3	4	Economist-SGSEU - 1	RUS	2704	10.0	27.0	7;9;2;10;	4	5.0
4	1	Ural	RUS	2618	8.0	22.5	10;6;7;	3	4.5
5	2	Yugra	RUS	2689	8.0	22.0	9;1;10;5;	4	3.5
6	8	Tomsk-400	RUS	2687	7.0	23.0	10;9;	2	4.0
7	5	M.Chigorin Chess Club	RUS	2584	6.0	17.0	7;8;1;	3	3.0
8	9	Etude-Contact	RUS	2555	4.0	18.5	5;7;	2	4.0
9	7	Economist-SGSEU - 2	RUS	2548	3.0	15.0	10;	1	2.5
10	10	BelGU	RUS	2493	0.0	10.0		0	1.0

Regolamento

A new year has begun, and is there a better moment to start working some more on your openings? We’ve changed our weekly PDF (+PGN!) magazine ChessVibes Openings slightly, and it might well be even more instructive…

This week on page 4 we introduced a new, interactive section called It’s Your Move: every week two exercises, of which the solutions and explanations will follow one week later. This will improve your understanding of certain opening, middlegame or even endgame themes even further.

A new year offers the chance to start all over, with new goals and new energy, also on the chess board. A bit of preparation can be of great help, and ChessVibes Openings is a fun and instructive way to keep your openings up to date.

What is ChessVibes Openings?

Every issue consists of a PDF Magazine and the accompanying PGN file. The PDF consists of four pages (A4 size) with the following contents:

• What’s hot? A round-up of this week’s important opening developments, with statistics about the frequence and score of the week’s most important opening novelty (page 1)
• What’s not? Which openings are not recommended at the moment, according to the top players? And why not? (page 1)
• Game of the week Each week you’ll find the theoretically most important game analysed by our two IMs, with a detailed survey of the opening phase (page 2).
• This week’s harvest Four more new important opening ideas from this week (page 3) revealed and described with explanation of the opening and early middlegame (page 3).
• It’s Your Move An interactive element: every week two exercises, of which the solutions/explanations will follow one week later. This will improve your understanding of certain opening, middlegame or even endgame themes even further.

Which openings are hot in top level chess? Which are not? Receive the latest opening novelties right in your mailbox with ChessVibes Openings, a weekly PDF magazine (+ PGN!) covering the latest openings news, co-authored by International Masters Merijn van Delft and Robert Ris and published by ChessVibes.

This week’s issue: #53, January 6, 2010

ChessVibes Openings #53
The latest opening developments of the first week of January 2010, covering Reggio Emilia, Hastings, Rilton Cup and the World Team Championship. All about the 7.Nf3 Najdorf which was analysed in our Game of the Week Bologan-Safarli, Reggio Emilia 2010.

Other lines that are covered:

• Ruy Lopez, Anti-Marshall
• Sicilian, Alapin
• Caro-Kann, Advance
• KID, Bayonet

This week we started a new section which replaced the Opening Expert: It’s Your Move. After one year of presenting opening experts, we felt it’s time to change page 4 of our magazine and introduce an interactive element: two exercises, of which the solutions/explanations will follow one week later.

Last week’s issue: #52, December 30, 2009

ChessVibes Openings #52
The latest opening developments of the last week of December 2009, covering the Russian Championship, the Korchnoi-Spassky match, Pamplona and Reggio Emilia. All about the Ruy Lopez, Berlin Wall which was analysed in our Game of the Week Grischuk-Jakovenko, Moscow 2009.

Other lines that are covered:

• Ruy Lopez, Marshall, 15.Qe2
• Alekhine, 4…dxe5
• QGA, 7.dxc5
• KID, Mar del Plata

This week’s Opening Expert is Georgian GM Baadur Jobava.

Previous issue: #51, December 23, 2009

ChessVibes Openings #51
The latest opening developments of the fourth week of December 2009, covering the European Rapid Championship, the Russian Championship and the Korchnoi-Spassky match. All about the Fianchetto Variation of the Grünfeld Defence which was analysed in our Game of the Week Khismatullin-Svidler, Moscow 2009. Other lines that are covered:

• Scotch, 4…Bc5 5.Nxc6
• Berlin, 5…Be7
• OSlav, 4.e3 Bg4
• Chebanenko Slav

This week’s Opening Expert is Israel GM Victor Mikhalevski.

Previous issue: #50, December 16, 2009

ChessVibes Openings #50
The latest opening developments of the third week of December 2009, covering the World Cup and the London Chess Classic. All about the Ragozin Defence which was analysed in our Game of the Week Kramnik-Short, London Chess Classic 2009. Other lines that are covered:

• Open Ruy Lopez
• Chebanenko Slav
• Open Catalan
• King’s Indian, 7…Na6

This week’s Opening Expert is Russian top GM and former World Champ Vladimir Kramnik.

Previous issue: #49, December 9, 2009

ChessVibes Openings #49
The latest opening developments of the second week of December 2009, covering the World Cup and the London Chess Classic. All about the Open Ruy Lopez which was analysed in our Game of the Week Karjakin-Mamedyarov, World Cup 2009. Other lines that are covered:

• Queen’s Gambit Declined, 5.Bf4
• Queen’s Gambit Accepted
• Grünfeld Indian, 5.Bd2
• King’s Indian, 6.h3

This week’s Opening Expert is Russian GM Vladimir Malakhov.

Ehm… can I have a look?

Here’s what ChessVibes Openings #16 (April 22, 2009) looks like:

FREE SAMPLE ISSUE – ChessVibes Openings #16 – click to download!

• What’s hot? A round-up of the most important opening developments of mid-April, including statistics about the frequence and score of the Chebanenko position after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 a6 5.c5 Nbd7 6.Bf4 Nh5 7.Bd2 Nhf6
• What’s not? This week 1.e4 e5 was hot, as the top players categorically avoided the Semi-Open Games. Interestingly, the classical 1…d5 was also much more popular than the more modern answers to 1.d4, at the FIDE Grand Prix in Nalchik.
• Game of the week “I didn’t spend much time on it before the game, but I prepared seriously for this tournament and we did investigate this line”, Peter Leko said at the press conference in Nalchik, after his game against Sergei Karjakin. Page two has a closer look at this highly interesting draw in the Chebanenko.
• This week’s harvest For more opening ideas from the Ruy Lopez Marshall, Sicilian Taimanov, Queen’s Indian and Ragozin Defence.
• Opening expert This week Rustam Kasimdzhanov is highlighted. The former FIDE World Champion and current second of Anand has a broad repertoire, switching from hypersharp openings like Dragon and Anti-Moscow to positional Queen‚Äôs Gambit lines.

FREE SAMPLE ISSUE – ChessVibes Openings #16 – click to download!

What does it cost?

As a subscriber you’ll receive the PDF Magazine and accompanying PGN files in your mailbox every week.

A one-year subscription is € 25 (that’s less than € 0.50 per issue!) - for price in US $ click here

Please note that it’s still possible to start your subscription as a first-week subscriber.
Just let us know and we’ll send you all previous issues!

July 1, 2009: Eugene Manchester reviews ChessVibes Openings for ChessCafe

In the July 1 issue of ChessCafe’s Book Review (mirror here) ChessVibes Openings was reviewed by Eugene Manchester. Some quotes:

“So, who-ya-gonna-call? Opening busters? Not quite. For the reasonable price of 25 euros per year, once a week you can receive intelligent, interesting opening surveys and analysis presented by a team lead by Dutch IMs Merijn van Delft & Robert Ris.”

“The format and presentation are consistently of high quality, with variety of coverage and opening analysis.”

“The cost per year is roughly equivalent to a good chess book. Each week you get a four- page issue packed with opening analysis, at least two thoroughly annotated games with one or more of that week’s featured openings, a glimpse into the world of the latest opening novelties, in short, a quality weekly opening report.”

May 7, 2009: GM Hedinn Steingrimsson reviews ChessVibes Openings for Chess Today

In issues 3103 (Thursday, May 7) of Chess Today, the daily chess newspaper which also comes into your inbox by email in PDF, ChessVibes Openings was reviewed by GM Hedinn Steingrimsson from Iceland. Some quotes:

“What I like about ChessVibes Openings is their focus on the trend and discoveries that are revealed in super tournaments and by very strong players. It makes sense for all tournament chess players and opening theoreticians to follow these developments and getting an overview from ChessVibes Openings definitely saves time.”

“I find it positive that there is consistency in the openings covered so that the readers will with time have a certain repertoire available based on different theoretical articles from ChessVibes about e.g. the Anti-Moscow Variation.”

“For those that really want to find out how to get a better position out of the opening and are willing to enter complications and do some homework in order to succeed, ChessVibes Openings can be recommended.”

A Bursa, nella zona nord-occidentale della Turchia, si svolge dal 5 al 13 gennaio la settima edizione del Campionato del Mondo per nazioni. La competizione si tiene nei primi giorni del 2010, in realtà però è relativa all’anno 2009 dato che la manifestazione ha cadenza quadriennale.

Il Campionato del Mondo per nazioni ha una storia relativamente recente: nasce nel 1985 e originariamente tutte le sue edizioni avrebbero dovuto tenersi ogni quattro anni a Lucerna in Svizzera, dove peraltro si erano svolte le Olimpiadi scacchistiche del 1982. Il progetto venne abbandonato dopo quattro edizioni, trasferendo la competizione in Armenia nel 2001 e in Israele nel 2005. La formula è sempre stata quella del torneo ad inviti: dieci le squadre invitate che si confrontano in un girone all’italiana. Attualmente vengono ammesse le squadre vincitrici dei Campionati Continentali d’Europa, Asia, Africa e America (in questa edizione Russia, India che ha rimpiazzato il forfeit della Cina, Egitto e Brasile), le tre squadre meglio classificate alle precedenti Olimpiadi (Armenia, Israele e USA), due squadre invitate dalla FIDE (Azerbaigian e Grecia) e il paese ospitante (Turchia).

Le squadre in campo:

Morozevich, un giocatore scintillante!

Russia:

Alexander Grischuk 2736

Alexander Morozevich 2732

Vladimir Malakhov 2716

Dmitry Jakovenko 2730

Evgeny Tomashevsky 2705

Nikita Vitiugov 2692

Nella Russia assente Kramnik, ma anche Svidler. Fallito il tentativo di schierare per la prima volta Karjakin in una formazione russa, i regolamenti FIDE l’hanno impedito e Sergey è stato sostituito da Jakovenko. Attesa per Malakhov che ha fatto molto bene nel 2009. Sono i Campioni del Mondo per nazioni in carica avendo conquistato il titolo nel 2005 a Beer Sheva, dopo un emozionante ultimo turno, nel quale hanno surclassato i Cinesi fino ad allora in testa alla manifestazione. L’edizione del 2005 vedeva presente nella squadra femminile della Cina (fino al 2005 partecipava al Campionato anche una formazione femminile), una giocatrice che farà poi sensazione, l’allora 11enne Hou Yifan.

Malakhov, ha ricevuto consensi unanimi nel 2009

Gelfand, il vincitore della World Cup 2009

Israele:

Boris Gelfand 2761

Ilia Smirin 2668

Michael Roiz 2657

Emil Sutovsky 2657

Evgeny Postny 2648

Maxim Rodhstein 2622

La squadra del vincitore della World Cup, Boris Gelfand. Attualmente è al secondo posto nel ranking mondiale per nazioni, tra Russia e la grande assente Cina.

Rodshtein, giovanissimo secondo di Gelfand a Khanty-Mansiysk

Gashimov, finalmente n° 1 dell'Azeirbaigian

Azerbaijan:

Vugar Gashimov 2759

Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 2741

Teimour Radjabov 2733

Rauf Mamedov 2640

Gadir Guseinov 2614

Nidjat Mamedov 2610

Campioni Europei in carica, presenta ora Gashimov in prima scacchiera al posto di Radjabov. Quarti nel ranking FIDE (da tenere conto che nella classifica FIDE uscita il 1° gennaio 2010 mancano sia l’Ucraina che l’Argentina).

Nidjat Mamedov, tra i meno conosciuti dello squadrone azero

USA:

Hikaru Nakamura 2708

Alexander Onischuk 2670

Varuzhan Akobian 2628

Yuri Shulman 2624

Robert L. Hess 2572

Ray Robson 2570

Quinti nel ranking FIDE, senza Kamsky inpegnato a Reggio Emilia e con due giovani di notevoli ambizioni, Hess e Robson (rispettivamente classe 1991 e 1994).

Robert Hess

Ray Robson

Harikrishna Pentala

India:

Harikrishna, Pentala 2672

Ganguly, Surya Shekhar 2654

Sasikiran, Krishnan 2653

Geetha Narayanan Gopal 2584

Arun Prasad, S. 2567

Adhiban, B. 2511

Naturalmente assente Anand, rimpiazza la Cina, ma è una sostituzione di lusso, visto che gli indiani sono al sesto posto nel ranking mondiale.

Adhiban

Aronian, TopPlayer in questo WTCC 2009

Armenia:

Levon Aronian 2781

Gabriel Sargissian 2680

Vladimir Akopian 2678

Arman Pashikian 2647

Tigran Petrosian 2627

Tigran Kotanjian 2537

Noni nella classifica per nazioni 2010, ma Campioni Olimpici sia nel 2006 che nel 2008!

Arman Pashikian

Vescovi, in continua ascesa

Brasile:

Giovanni Vescovi 2660

Rafael Leitao 2620

Gilberto Milos 2618

Alexandr Fier 2601

Andre Diamant 2497

Darcy Lima 2481

Hanno vinto il Campionato Panamericano 2009 davanti a Cuba. 23esimi nella classifica FIDE.

Andre Diamant

Kotronias, esperienza al servizio della Grecia

Grecia:

Ioannis Papaioannou 2625

Hristos Banikas 2608

Vassilios Kotronias 2599

Dimitrios Mastrovasilis 2571

Stelios Halkias 2566

Athanasios Mastrovasilis 2510

Forse il loro miglior risultato come squadra è stato un pregevolissimo quarto posto al Campionato Europeo di Goteborg nel 2005. 24esimi nel ranking mondiale.

Dimitrios Mastrovasilis, l'abbiamo visto spesso giocare in Italia

Adly, una delle due "perle" egiziane

Egitto:

Ahmed Adly 2591

Bassem Amin 2544

Mohamed Ezat 2471

Khaled Abdel Razik 2468

Imed Abdelnabbi 2448

Walaa Sarwat 2386

Campioni d’Africa ma anche vincitori dei “Pan Arab Games”. 40esimi nel Ranking FIDE.

Bassem Amin, altro grande talento, ma qui sarà dura

Kivanc Haznedaroglu e il dovere di una prestazione dignitosa

Turchia:

Mert Erdogdu 2513

Baris Esen 2513

Kivanc Haznedaroglu 2498

Mustafa Yilmaz 2478

Emre Can 2442

Burak Firat 2413

Paese ospitante di questa come di tante altre manifestazioni scacchistiche di primissimo livello. Non hanno ancora una squadra competitiva (e curiosamente manca il suo giocatore più forte, Mikhail Gurevich, 2597), ma sembra che in Turchia gli scacchi siano attualmente un fenomeno di massa. 43esimi nella classifica mondiale.

Emre Can, si è fatto valere in tanti tornei giovanili

Previsti dunque nove turni, si gioca su quattro scacchiere e due sono le riserve.

Cadenza di gioco: 90’ x 40 mosse + 30’ per finire, sempre con 30” d’abbuono a mossa.

La formazione USA che vinse l'edizione 1993 a Lucerna: inconfondibile Gata Kamsky!

L'Ucraina vincitrice nel 2001: si riconoscono tra gli altri Ponomariov, Romanishin e SuperIvanchuk

Sito ufficiale

Games 3 and 4 both ended in a draw and so Viktor Korchnoi still has a small lead in his match against Boris Spassky. The match in Elista will consist of eight games in total, and after four games the score is 2.5-1.5 for the oldest of the two legends.

Photo © Official site

The match between 10th World Champion Boris Spassky and former World Championship contender Viktor Korchnoi is the final event in the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the union between Kalmykia and Russia. The two play a total of eight games in Elista from December 17th until 27th, for a prize fund of US$ 20,000. The time control seems to be 90 minutes + 30 seconds per move.

The third game was a Nimzo/Queen’s Indian hybrid where the players left theory at an early stage. Spassky’s positional a5-a4 move was an attempt to refute White’s Qb3, but he might have regretted it later when Korchnoi had regrouped his king’s knight to c3. After Korchnoi missed an opportunity to reach a favourable rook ending, Spassky easily drew the resulting rook ending.

Yesterday in game 4 Korchnoi again employed the French Defence, just like in game 2 and in their famous match in Belgrade in 1977. Then he only went for the Winawer with 3…Bb4, but 32 years later his preferred move is 3…Nf6. At the press conference Korchnoi explained that he’s working on a book on the French Defence (great news, in our opinion – how can it be anything else than an instant classic, like Uhlmann’s Ein Leben Lang Französisch?) and therefore at the moment plays it without exception.

Spassky didn’t follow the current main line (4.e5) but chose 4.Bg5, and then seemed caught by surprise by Korchnoi’s plan which delayed the thematical …c5 pawn break. He played the new move 10.a4, which allowed the Black queen to b4. About ten moves later it was clear that White was not better, and so Spassky decided to repeat moves. Today is a rest day in Elista.

Games 3 & 4

Game viewer by ChessTempo

Links

• Our first report on the match
• Official website
• Games in PGN

Two of the most legendary chess players still alive are currently playing an 8-game match in Elista, Kalmykia: 78-year-old Viktor Korchnoi and 72-year-old Boris Spassky. Korchnoi won the first game; the second ended in a draw today.

Photo © Official site

The match between the two chess legends, 10th World Champion Boris Spassky from Russia and former World Championship contender Viktor Korchnoi from Switzerland, is the final event in the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the union between Kalmykia and Russia. The two will play a total of eight games in Elista from December 17th until 27th, for a prize fund of US$ 20,000. The time control seems to be 90 minutes + 30 seconds per move.

According to the Mega2009 database, Korchnoi and Spassky played a total of 69 games (including rapid) against each other in exactly half a century: between 1955 and 2005. Korchnoi has the best score: 22 wins, 14 losses and 33 draws. The most important games were of course played in their two Candidates final matches. In 1968, in Kiev, Spassky won 6.5-3.5 while nine years later in Belgrade it was Korchnoi who won with 10.5-7.5.

After two games of a much more friendly character, Korchnoi leads this new match against Spassky 1.5-0.5. According to the official website, Spassky had arrived in Elista in advance. However, Korchnoi, who travelled from London where he had played two simul exhibitions at the Chess Classic, had got stuck in Moscow due to a snow storm. He eventually arrived late in the evening on Thursday the 17th, and Spassky proposed to play just six games and add a second rest day. “However, Victor L. did not go against the regulations, bravely agreed to start the game, as planned.” And won, outplaying his opponent in an ending with rook and knight for both sides. Today Spassky got an advantage but Korchnoi held the draw instructively.

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And you thought you had seen the last chess moves of 2009 from the top players. Well, no, there’s one more gig with 2700 players before the year ends: the 9th European Rapid Championship, the upcoming weekend, with Vassily Ivanchuk and Alexei Shirov among its participants. We have an interview with top seed Vugar Gashimov, by GM Bartlomiej Macieja.

The European Rapid Championship 2009 will take place on the 19th and 20th of December in Warsaw, Poland. It will be clearly the strongest championship ever. 769 participants have already registered. The average rating of the top 10 participants is 2700.

Participants (top 30)

Interview with the highest rated participant of the European Rapid Championship 2009, Vugar Gashimov

“It would not surprise anybody, if Ivanchuk won the European Rapid Championship 2009. But I also wish to win the tournament and it means it will be interesting!”

Bartlomiej Macieja: How many times have you been to Poland?

Vugar Gashimov: Let me count. I played tournaments in Swidnica 1999 and in Bydgoszcz 2001, as well as the European Rapid Championship 2005 in Warsaw. So now it will be my 4th time.

BM: Were you satisfied with your result in the European Rapid Championship 2005?

VG: In principle, I don’t take rapid tournaments so seriously. At the same time I try to win each tournament in which I participate, thus I find my previous result disapointing and I will try to succeed this year.

BM: Does it mean that you will consider every place other than the first one as a failure?

VG: In principle yes, but it would not upset me much, as this year has been very successful for me. Obviously, a victory in Warsaw would not harm.

BM: Who do you consider to be your main rival?

VG: My main opponents are obviously Ivanchuk and Shirov, but one can’t forget about Movsesian, Malakhov and Bologan. However, the most important is how I will play. If I play well, it will not matter who will be sitting on the other side of a board. If I play badly, the same rule will apply.

BM: After a defeat in the recent World Cup, Vassily Ivanchuk said he was very disappointed with his performance and most probably he would find a tournament before a New Year Eve in order “to win at least somewhere”. It looks like Vassily is motivated stronger than anybody else to win the European Rapid Championship. Do you think you can prevent his plan or you will be satisfied also with the second place?

VG: In principle, everybody knows that Ivanchuk is a very strong player, who is able to win any tournament. So it would not surprise anybody, if he won the European Rapid Championship 2009. But I also wish to win the tournament and it means it will be interesting!

BM: How do you evaluate chances of Polish players? The current title holder is Radoslaw Wojtaszek.

VG: In principle, Polish players have a slight advantage, as they participate in this tournament every year. As for Wojtaszek, he is undoubtly a strong chess player, but I think it will be difficult for him to defend his title, as this year the tournament will be much stronger than last year. Possibly, it will be the strongest European Rapid Championship ever.

BM: This year already 769 participants have registered. How many times have you played in such big tournaments?

VG: So far I have played 4 massive tournaments: 3 times in Cappelle la Grande and the European Rapid Championship 2005 in Warsaw.

BM: How do you prepare for rapid events? How does your preparation differ from a preparation for tournaments with longer time controls?

VG: The difference is that I basically don’t prepare for rapid events, because there is no sufficient time between rounds.

BM: What about a psychological or a physical preparation? Maybe you rest?

VG: My typical preparation I do every day irrespective of if I play in a classical or a rapid tournament or if I don’t play at all. As for a psychological preparation, I do it myself. Let’s say I am a psychologist for myself and I don’t have problems with it.
I don’t always manage to do a physical preparation, but if only I can I surely do it. Mainly I play football. Sport is also a way to rest for me.

BM: How do you evaluate your performance in the World Cup 2009?

VG: I was in a bad shape, but nevertheless I managed to qualify to a quarter-final. I think for the first time (it was my first World Cup) my result can be considered acceptable.

BM: Many spectators were surprised when you offered a draw with white to Ponomariov on move 15.

VG: As I have already said, I was in a bad shape, and the position in which I offered a draw was equal. In principle, I should have won in a rapid tie-break. In the first game I didn’t win with an extra piece. If I had won that game, everything would have been different. But it is already past, now I think about the tournaments which are waiting for me, not about those that have already past.

BM: A very successful for you personally and for the whole Azerbaijan team was the European Team Championship in Novi Sad. What are your impressions?

VG: Impressions are obviously remarkable. Everybody expected the Azeri national team to win somewhere, as we were getting stronger and stronger every year. Starting from 2001, every year the average rating of the team was increasing. The appearance of Zurab Azmaiparashvili in the team helped us to play as a real team, what immediately led to the result.
The tournament was successful for me personally too. I performed well and additionally I won to Stellwagen one of the most important games in my career.

BM: It was a very long and tensed game, but it looked like Stellwagen could have escaped for a draw. What were your thoughts in the end of that game, when you stayed alone at the battlefield?

VG: More or less at the moment when I stayed alone, Russia finished their match 2-2. It became clear for me that my victory would bring gold medals for the national team of Azerbaijan. It is very difficult to play in such moments due to the pressure of responsibility. But I played very well until some point and I got a winning position. Then I made a mistake. Since that moment Stellwagen defended very well, he played all best moves, but it seems he got tired from suffering, as I was creating him problems with every move. I was waiting for a mistake, it happened in the end and I used it. I think everything was quite logical, the national team of Azerbaijan played against almost all strong opponents and was leading from the first round.

BM: End of the game, end of the round, end of the championship, and a huge happiness inside the team, but I think in the whole Azerbaijan as well. Is chess popular in your country?

VG: Chess in undoubtly very popular in Azerbaijan. Indeed, we have huge chess traditions, Kasparov was born and became the world champion in Baku. The victory in the European Team Championship has made chess even more popular.

BM: In such a case, the government surely helps top players of the country?

VG: I can say only on behalf of myself – I pay all my expenses and I don’t have any support.

BM: It is very strange, you are currently the strongest chess player of the country. Have you, at least, received any special prize for the European Team Championship title?

VG: It is strange, but this is reality. We got only what we were promised for the first place before the tournament.

BM: You are already 6th in the world in the current FIDE list, your rating continuously grows and there seems to be no limit. What do you think, when will you become the number 1?

VG: It simply requires a lot of work and a good play. Under such conditions I think in 1-2 years I can become even the number 1.

BM: And that is what I wish you! Thank you very much for the interview!

VG: Thank you. You are always welcome!

Boris Gelfand won the FIDE World Cup. He defeated Ruslan Ponomariov today in the tiebreak of the final, needing four rapid games and four blitz games to decide matters. The Israeli Grandmaster cashed US$ 120,000 (net 96,000) while Ponomariov takes home US$ 80,000 (net 64,000).

The FIDE World Chess Cup takes place November 20th-December 15th inn Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. It’s a seven-round knockout with six rounds of matches comprising two games per round. The final seventh round consists of four games and will be played December 10th-14th. The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an addition of 30 seconds per move from move one. Games start at 15:00h local time (11:00 CET).

Tiebreak

After four rather uninteresting classical games, we had a nail-biting tiebreak today that decided the winner of the World Cup. In the first rapid game Ponomariov got a tiny plus in an endgame with bishop versus knight, but Gelfand held it. Then Gelfand won a nice second game, after which a shaky 3rd one ended in a draw. Ponomariov had to win game 4, and he did, with the black pieces!

In the first blitz games Gelfand immediately took the lead with a crushing victory that only lasted 21 moves when Black’s queen was trapped. Ponomariov then struck back with a very nice attacking game that involved an exchange sacrifice, but then spoilt the 3rd game with some unforced errors. Again he had to win to stay in the match, and this time he had White, but this time he didn’t succeed. A crucial moment was move 23, where Ponomariov miscalculated. Gelfand got an advantage and never let go.

Boris Gelfand was the top seed, and the deserved winner. He played the most convincing chess in Khanty-Mansiysk, showing excellent preparation and making almost no mistakes in the whole event. He’s won a nice sum of money, a spot in the Candidates and as we learnt today he’ll now probably be invited to Linares as well.

You can replay IM Merijn van Delft’s annotations from the live page below in the game viewer. We’re covering the World Cup and the London Chess Classic for free; starting from 2010 our live commentary will be subscription-based. You’ll find more info here.

Tiebreak games

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The fourth game of the World Cup final between Boris Gelfand and Ruslan Ponomariov also ended in a draw and so tomorrow a tiebreak of rapid and possible blitz games will decide on the winner of the 2009 FIDE World Cup. Let us know who you think will win!

The FIDE World Chess Cup takes place November 20th-December 15th inn Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. It’s a seven-round knockout with six rounds of matches comprising two games per round. The final seventh round consists of four games and will be played December 10th-14th. The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an addition of 30 seconds per move from move one. Games start at 15:00h local time (11:00 CET).

Game 4

Today, in another Catalan, the players followed the game Gelfand-Anand from last month for nineteen moves. After that the position remained more or less balanced. In all four games the players decided for safety first, and so tomorrow the decision will come in a tiebreak match of four rapid games, and if needed, ten blitz games before a possible sudden death game will finally decide matters. The winner gets USD 120,000 (net 96,000) while the runner-up tales home USD 80,000 (net 64,000). Who do you think is the favourite?

You can still replay IM Jan-Willem de Jong’s annotations on the live page. We’re covering the World Cup and the London Chess Classic for free; starting from 2010 our live commentary will be subscription-based. You’ll find more info here.

Games 1-4

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The third game of the World Cup final between Ruslan Ponomariov and Boris Gelfand also ended in a draw and so we’re just one game away from a tiebreak. Ponomariov avoided the Petroff with 1.d4 and in a Slav that looked like a Slechter and soon like a Grünfeld, he won a pawn but then repeated moves in timetrouble.

The FIDE World Chess Cup takes place November 20th-December 15th inn Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. It’s a seven-round knockout with six rounds of matches comprising two games per round. The final seventh round consists of four games and will be played December 10th-14th. The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an addition of 30 seconds per move from move one. Games start at 15:00h local time (11:00 CET).

Game 3

Although he didn’t want to admit on Thursday that there’s not much to do against the Petroff these days, Ponomariov avoided that opening anyway in his second White game. He tried the 4.Qc2 Slav, but also against this system Gelfand knew exactly what he was doing and he played the opening fast. It was Ponomariov who had a big think first, after the move 7…Be6, with which Gelfand deviated from one of his own games.

Everything was going fine for Black, until an inaccuracy on move 19 which suddenly allowed the white rook to the seventh. Not long after that Ponomariov won a pawn on the queenside, but by then he had gotten into timetrouble, and he decided to play it safe. Still it was quite a surprise to see White going for the draw with such a healthy extra pawn. Tomorrow Ponomariov has to show what he’s worth with the black pieces one more time; another draw will force a tiebreak on Monday but any other result will bring a winner of this 2009 World Cup.

You can still replay GM Emanuel Berg’s annotations on the live page. We’re covering the World Cup and the London Chess Classic for free; starting from 2010 our live commentary will be subscription-based. You’ll find more info here.

Games 1-3

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Dopo 20 giorni di torneo, la World Cup 2009 è finalmente giunta al suo atto conclusivo che, oltre ad assegnare un premio di 120mila dollari al primo (80mila al secondo), selezionerà uno degli otto partecipanti al Torneo dei Candidati al Titolo di Campione del Mondo. La Finale, diversamente dai turni precedenti, si disputa sulla lunghezza di 4 partite a cadenza classica. In caso di parità si svolgeranno, nelle stesse modalità dei turni precedenti, gli spareggi rapid.

La Finale

1

2-2

?Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR)

1/2

?Gelfand, Boris (ISR)

? I Finalisti

Gelfand (n. 1 uno del ranking di partenza), ha rispettato i pronostici della vigilia giungendo in Finale dopo aver eliminato Obdochuk, Amonatov, J, Polgar, Vachier Lagrave, Jakovenko e Karjakin? con uno score complessivo di 5 vittorie, 6 pareggi e una sconfitta (l'unica del torneo, contro la Polgar) nelle partite a cadenza classica. Ottimo anche lo score nelle partite rapid: 4 vittorie e 6 patte. L'unica volta che Gelfand è dovuto ricorrere agli spareggi blitz, ha ottenuto 1 vittoria e 1 patta contro Vachier Lagrave.

Boris Gelfand, riuscirà a piazzare la zampata vincente?

Anche Ponomariov (7) ha subito una sola sconfitta in tutto il torneo, nella 1^ partita rapid contro Malakhov. Per il resto un percorso senza incertezze. L'ucraino ha superato El Gindy, Akobian, Motylev, Bacrot, Gashimov e Malakhov con uno score complessivo di 2 vittorie e 10 patte nelle partite a cadenza classica e 8 vittorie, 6 patte e una sconfitta nelle rapid. Per qualificarsi l'ex campione del Mondo Fide (World Cup 2002) non è mai dovuto ricorrere agli spareggi blitz.

Ruslan Ponomariov, con Gelfand sullo sfondo. C'e da scommetere che questa volta Boris non sbadiglierà ...

? ??
Alla competizione ha partecipato anche il nostro Fabiano Caruana che, dopo aver superato i due GM cubani Bruzon e Dominguez e il GM russo Alekseev, è stato eliminato negli ottavi e solo negli spareggi rapid da uno dei favoriti della vigilia, il GM Vugar Gashimov.

Formato della World Cup
Si tratta di un torneo ad eliminazione diretta (K.O.) in cui i 128 contendenti si affrontano in due partite a cadenza classica (90' x 40 mosse + 30' per finire, sempre con l'incremento di 30" a mossa); in caso di parità si procede con la disputa di quattro partite rapid (25' + 10" a mossa); in caso di ulteriore parità verranno attivati gli gli spareggi blitz (5' + 3"), previsti minimatches su due lampo (per un massimo di dieci lampo), il primo che riporterà un minimatch passerà il turno; ultima possibilità: l'armageddon (5' al bianco, 4' al nero, dopo la 60esima 3" di incremento per mossa, in caso di patta passa il nero)

Calendario della Finale
10 December: Round 7 - Game 1
11 December: Round 7 - Game 2
12 December: Round 7 - Game 3
13 December: Round 7 - Game 4
14 December: Tiebreaks / Closing Ceremony

Si gioca con inizio alle ore 15 locali (11 in Italia)

?

Two decades after the USSR broke up, Soviet training methods remain potent at the chessboard. When the field of 128 was reduced to the quarter-finals in the current World Cup, all eight grandmasters remaining had their education from Soviet coaches.

The final four-game match now in progress to decide who qualifies for the 2010 candidates is between Ukraine's Ruslan Ponomariov, who won the 2002 World Cup as a teenager, and Boris Gelfand, the 41-year-old top seed. In the semi-finals Ponomariov beat Vlad Malakhov 4-2 while Gelfand eliminated Sergey Karjakin 2-0. In both the semi-final and in the game below the Israeli veteran defeated opponents more than half his age.

Sergey Karjakin, 19, who lost to Gelfand 0-2, chose the 'safe' Bishop's Opening in an attempt to avoid the Petroff 2 Nf3 Nf6, but after 1 e4 e5 2 Bc4 Nf6 3 d3 Nc6 4 Nf3 Be7 5 0-0 0-0 6 Bb3 d5 7 exd5 Nxd5 8 h3 a5 9 a4 Nd4 10 Nxd4 exd4 11 Re1 was rocked by the new plan Ra6! White should have bailed out for a draw by 12 Bxd5 Qxd5 13 Rxe7 Rg6 14 f3 Bxh3 15 Re2 Qxf3 16 Qf1 Bxg2! but instead fell to a crushing attack on his king.

Gelfand's 1 c4 English Opening had a tiny edge against France's junior world champion when Black erred by 16...f5? (better c6 17 bxc6 bxc6 18 Ne3 Rb8) after which 17 Nh4! and 19 Qh5! homed in on the weak light squares. When Gelfand launched a second front down the open b file, Black's defences collapsed.

B Gelfand v M Vachier Lagrave

1 c4 Nf6 2 Nc3 e5 3 Nf3 Nc6 4 a3 g6 5 g3 Bg7 6 Bg2 O-O 7 O-O d6 8 d3 h6 9 Rb1 Be6 10 b4 Qd7 11 b5 Nd8 12 a4 Bh3 13 Nd5 Bxg2 14 Kxg2 Ne8 15 e4 Ne6 16 Bb2 f5? 17 Nh4 Kh7 18 exf5 gxf5 19 Qh5 c6 20 bxc6 bxc6 21 Ne3 f4 22 Nef5 Rf6 23 d4 exd4 24 Nxd4 Nxd4 25 Bxd4 Re6 26 Qf5+ Kg8 27 Rfe1 Nc7 28 Bxg7 Kxg7 29 Rb7 Re7 30 Rxe7+ Qxe7 31 Qxf4 Kg8 32 Nf5 1-0

3117

P Svidler v V Malakhov, World Cup 2009. Black (to play) can choose a plausible move which loses instantly or a less obvious one which wins instantly. Can you find both?

3117 1...dxe1Q?? 2 Bxf7+ Rxf7 (Kg7 3 Qg6+) 3 Qxf7+ forces a speedy mate. The game ended dxe1N+! and White resigned due to 2 Rxe1 Qf2+ and Ng3 mate.

Game 1 and 2 of the World Cup final between Boris Gelfand and Ruslan Ponomariov have ended in a draw. In the first, Ponomariov achieved a tiny edge against Gelfand’s Petroff but by strong play the Israeli GM held the draw quite easily. The second game lasted only 20 moves, when Gelfand apparently decided that his opponent had equalized in a Catalan.

The FIDE World Chess Cup takes place November 20th-December 15th inn Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. It’s a seven-round knockout with six rounds of matches comprising two games per round. The final seventh round consists of four games and will be played December 10th-14th. The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an addition of 30 seconds per move from move one. Games start at 15:00h local time (11:00 CET).

Games 1 & 2

After the only rest day of the tournament on Wednesday, the final of the FIDE World Cup started yesterday. Our online commentator GM Sipke Ernst wrote: “Both players have shown excellent form throughout the tournament, so it is very hard to pick the winner. A lot will depend on the energy left with the two players. Both enjoyed some rest after the semi-finals (Gelfand even had two restdays in a row) but I think this is hardly enough to recuperate.”

Well, perhaps Ruslan Ponomariov is a slight favourite. If only because he has won such a tournament before, back in 2002, when the FIDE World Championship title was at stake. Besides, in head-to-head games Ponomariov scored 9.5-6.5 against Gelfand, although it must be said that half of those games were blitz and rapid games. All games with a classical time control ended in a draw so far, and this is still the case at half time in the final.

In the first game Ruslan Ponomariov started with the white pieces and he had to prove that there’s still hope for White against the Petroff, these days played by Boris Gelfand with almost no exception. The 26-year-old Ukrainian chose a set-up that was tried by Akopian a few times, e.g. against Kasimdzhanov in Jermuk this year. As always, Gelfand was well prepared and came up with the new idea 19…Bxe5 and 20…c5. According to GM Ernst this was an instant equalizer.

Still, White’s position looked a bit more pleasant, thanks to his bishop pair and a passed d-pawn, but with some tactics Gelfand showed that Black had not much to fear. Afterwards, at the press conference the players were asked whether the Petroff will ‘kill chess’. Ponomariov didn’t agree as he thought he had reasonable chances in the game. Gelfand said the same: “No, you cannot kill chess. Yes, we played the Petroff but we had the position which gave possibilities for both opponents. Today we were equal. If someone had blundered, we could have scored a result.”

Today’s game, live commentated by GM Dimitri Reinderman, was rather disappointing. In a Catalan Ponomariov chose a Stonewall set-up and right after the opening, at move 20, he offered a draw, which was accepted by Gelfand. Reinderman: “Gelfand accepted the draw offer from Ponomariov after 8 minutes thinking. The timing of the draw-offer was good: this is the moment that white has to start thinking of a plan, and it’s not so easy. If White gives Black hanging pawns, his knight on e5 will be hanging. For Black, the next move isn’t obvious too though: both dxc4 Nxc4 (attacking the bishop) and cxd4 exd4 (opening the e-file so White can attack e6) has disadvantages. Rybka doesn’t really have a clue either: it gives 21.Nfd3, 21.f3, and 21.Nh3 (strange move, but it does have a nasty threat…) as the best moves (0.2 for White). The first suggestion looks most normal; it’s useful to defend the other knight. I hoped to learn something today from how Gelfand would play this type of position: alas it was not to be. At least I learned that he seems to think that Black is ok here…”

You can still replay GM Dimitri Reinderman’s annotations on the live page. We’re covering the World Cup and the London Chess Classic for free; starting from 2010 our live commentary will be subscription-based. You’ll find more info here.

Games 1-2

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After Boris Gelfand, today Ruslan Ponomariov also qualified for the final of the 2009 FIDE World Cup. The Ukrainian defeated Vladimir Malakhov in a very exciting rapid tiebreak final: 3-1. Ponomariov lost the first game, but then won three in a row.

The FIDE World Chess Cup takes place November 20th-December 15th inn Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. It’s a seven-round knockout with six rounds of matches comprising two games per round. The final seventh round consists of four games and will be played December 10th-14th.

The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an addition of 30 seconds per move from move one. Games start at 15:00h local time (11:00 CET).

Tiebreak round 6

It was a completely new experience for ChessVibes and it’s host Merijn van Delft on the live commentary today; first four rapid games, starting from 11:00 CET in the morning, and while the fourth started, by then the first round of the London Chess Classic had also started. Not an easy job, but the result was there: a wonderful coverage of a total of eight high-level chess games, which you can still replay.

Merijn had a nice start of his day as Ponomariov and Malakhov were fighting out a wonderful match. The first game went to Malakhov, and even with the black pieces. Again his Chebanenko Slav looked very solid, and then the Russian sacrificed his knight for a strong attack. Ponomariov could get away with a bad rook ending, but thanks to good technique Malakhov won the game anyway. A great start.

In such a situation one might start to play for a win with Black, but not by running too many risks. For this the Grünfeld is well-suited, and this is what Ponomariov picked. Malakhov however was well prepared and got a highly promising position, but then blew it. A level endgame came on the board in which it seemed like Ponomariov wanted to show that he’s an even stronger endgame player than Malakhov. And he did.

In the next game Ponomariov decided to avoid another Chebanenko and he did that by postponing d2-d4 (but making all the other normal moves against the Slav). In the end the move had to be played, and a standard QGA was reached. Malakhov was taken by surprise by the move 10.e4!? and immediately erred. White’s attack was very strong, and after the queens were exchanged Ponomariov won his piece back, and then won the endgame easily, two pawns up.

Probably in shock of what was happening, Malakhov again went wrong already in the opening phase of game 4, mixing up the move order. Ponomariov quickly won a pawn, and because of the score Malakhov avoided the exchange of queens, but this led to an even quicker disaster.

You can still replay IM Merijn van Delft’s annotations on the live page. We’re covering the World Cup and the London Chess Classic for free; starting from 2010 our live commentary will be subscription-based. You’ll find more info here.

Tiebreak games round 6

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Boris Gelfand has reached the final of the 2009 FIDE World Cup. Today he again defeated Sergey Karjakin, who had to take many risks in a must-win situation. Malakhov and Ponomariov drew again and so tomorrow’s tiebreaks will decide who will be Gelfand’s opponent.

The FIDE World Chess Cup takes place November 20th-December 15th inn Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. It’s a seven-round knockout with six rounds of matches comprising two games per round. The final seventh round consists of four games.

The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an addition of 30 seconds per move from move one. Games start at 15:00h local time (11:00 CET).

Round 6, day 2

How to beat Boris Gelfand with Black? For Sergey Karjakin it was a mission impossible today, but he certainly tried. His 16…h6 was very risky, but at least if forced some complications, and complications is already something, isn’t it. However, as it turned out they favoured White, and an accurately calculating Gelfand had no trouble in finding the flaws of Black’s play. He had seen that the trapped bishop on h7 could simply be sacrificed for a devastating attack.

Malakhov-Ponomariov was quite an interesting Nimzo which ended rather abruptly when already at move 27 the players decided it was enough. They will battle it out in the tiebreaks tomorrow, starting from 11:00 CET. It will be covered live by us, as well as the first round of the London Chess Classic. (You can still replay IM Robert Ris’ annotations on the live page until tomorrow morning.)

We’re covering the World Cup and the London Chess Classic for free; starting from 2010 our live commentary will be subscription-based. You’ll find more info here.

Games round 6, day 2

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