Paris Chess Grand Prix from Sept 27

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100-Day Countdown to 5th London Chess Classic Begins; Anand, Nakamura to play Rapid

August 30, 2013, 7:28 am

≫ Next: Interview with Chess Legends: Genna Sosonko on Elite Chess, Aging Process, World Champions

≪ Previous: 3rd Indonesia Open Chess Championship from Oct 9 in Jakarta

Alexandra Kosteniuk's Chess Blog for Daily Chess News and Trivia (c) 2013

Hi everyone,

Chess in Schools and Communities is delighted to announce the 100 day countdown is underway for the 5th London Chess Classic to be staged at the Olympia Conference Centre in Kensington, running from Saturday 7th December to Sunday 15th December.

Due to a demanding elite-player schedule through 2013 -- that will culminate with the World Championship match in Chennai, India between Vishy Anand and Magnus Carlsen set to end on November 26th, and the World Team Championship in Antalya, Turkey on 6th December -- this year the Classic will be headlined by a world-class Rapid tournament (25 minutes + 10 seconds per move) that will start on Wednesday 11th December and finish on Sunday 15th December.

This will feature a 16-player field split into four groups, with the top two from each group qualifying for the quarter final knockout stages. Scoring will be 3 points for a win, 1 for a draw, 0 for a loss (Sofia Rules will apply regarding draw offers). The total prize fund on offer will be €150,000 - the full breakdown being: 1st €50,000; 2nd €25,000; 3rd-4th €12,500; 5th-8th €6,250; 9th-16th €3,125.

And the first two players to sign up for the 5th Classic are both big crowd-pleasers: World Champion Anand and the US No.1 Hikaru Nakamura.

Anand (with or without the world crown) will be heading to London immediately after his title match with Carlsen, and Nakamura not long after playing in the Sinquefield Cup -- along with Carlsen, Aronian and Kamsky -- in St Louis, one of the strongest tournaments ever to be held in America. Over the next two weeks, the rest of the field will be announced as player contracts have been signed and approved.

The schools events will be expanded and the festival, with weekenders, FIDE Open, simultaneous displays and lectures will all take place as usual -- but look out for what could be a novelty twist to the FIDE Open! The smorgasbord of chess at the London Classic will also include Pro-Celebrity Chess, Blindfold Chess and Chess 960. Tickets will go on sale in September after the field has been finalised. Tickets will again be free for children.

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Interview with Chess Legends: Genna Sosonko on Elite Chess, Aging Process, World Champions

August 30, 2013, 12:59 am

≫ Next: Wholesale Chess Now Selling Chess King Training DVDs, Software: 10% Off Through Sept 8

≪ Previous: 100-Day Countdown to 5th London Chess Classic Begins; Anand, Nakamura to play Rapid

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012

Hi everyone,

Mikhail Botvinnik (seated) and Salo Flohr during their match in 1935, Moscow. Sosonko: "Chess in the 21st century has changed unimaginably, it has become a completely different game."
Photo credit: RIA Novosti, Shagin.

Elite chess and the aging

process: a conversation with Genna Sosonko

by David Kerans

If you take a peek at the table of contents of Genna Sosonko's latest book, The World Champions I Knew, you might think the title is a bit grandiose. For Sosonko devotes a significant amount of time to the legendary Capablanca and Alekhine, neither of whom he ever met. An attentive reader of the book, however, soon comes to conclude that the title is too modest.

In his successive portraits of the world champions Sosonko finds myriad ways to convey both well-known and lesser-known elements of chess culture as it developed over the twentieth century. A combination of oral history, anecdote, documents, photographs, and, wherever possible, his own personal recollections builds each portrait of a champion into a mosaic of a psyche and the world he experienced through chess. The result, I would wager, is the most memorable chess book you will ever read.

The World Champions I Knew makes no attempt at biography, nor chess analysis, nor psychoanalysis. Nowhere does Sosonko pretend to be complete in his coverage. Instead, he focuses on making these men as vivid as he can. In each case, he incorporates features of the time, the people, or the surroundings that oriented the man. In some cases he doesn't entirely establish what made them tick, but he always gives enough to feel that we know the man. And, importantly, the diversity of his subjects and his sources makes every chapter a fresh adventure. How many authors can claim that?

Beyond the world champions, and beyond the layer of grandmasters we meet along the way in The World Champions I Knew, we also get to meet Genna Sosonko, at least a bit. By this I mean not so much the moments when he participates in the narrative as much as the character of the narrative itself. Sosonko could not have made such a contribution to our images of the world champions without possessing a keen eye for detail, a knack for drawing out memories and reflections from many people, and, most important of all, a very unusual degree of empathy. Those who have read the chapter on Hein Donner in Smart Chip From St. Petersburg will have noticed how richly he portrayed Donner, and understood that such a portrait would not have been possible unless Sosonko had been engaged and perceptive in Donner's presence throughout their long acquaintance. Chess books don't teach you that...

Finally, a word to the wise here. New In Chess press has established a habit of underestimating the appeal of its titles, such that copies of some of their recent publications have escalated in value. (Donaldson on Rubinstein, van Perlo's Endgame Tactics, and Bareev's From London to Elista come immediately to mind). So get yourself a copy of The World Champions I Knew.You will not regret reading it, and might just turn a profit on it.

We had the opportunity to sit down with Grandmaster Sosonko when he came through Washington as an honored guest of a special tournament to honor the memory of Grandmaster Yurii Razuvaev. We put a number of questions to him concerning chess culture.

Kerans: Since Magnus Carlsen broke on the scene, if not earlier, most people have been convinced that chess players are getting younger. It hasn’t been hard to find explanations for that. Thus, the internet allows developing players to find opponents of their approximate class 24 hours a day, and tactics training sites feed you unlimited quantities of problems pitched to your skill level. Further, opening theory has expanded quickly and become easily accessible and searchable through databases. These explanations seem sufficient to me. And we can add the rapid advance of chess computers, of course. I have the impression that chess computers don’t do that much to develop young players, but I could be wrong. In any case, I assume chess computers help to develop some players, those with a certain frame of mind.

Meanwhile, in one of your recent articles I noticed an interesting quote on the transformation of chess and the ascendance of younger players, written all the way back in 1959, long before the computer revolution. It came from your friend, grandmaster Hein Donner. As you summarized it:

“…the Candidates Tournament of 1959 forced Donner to reverse his earlier opinion that Fischer would never become World Champion. ‘He is only 16 years old, Bobby Fischer from New York. And everyone has already accepted the fact that the wunderkind is at the same level as the strongest grandmasters in the world. And why not? These days, when energy and vigor play a larger role than knowledge and experience, chess is obviously getting younger.’”

Then, in you newest book, you say that in comparison to the time of Botvinnik, "Chess in the 21st century has changed unimaginably, it has become a completely different game." (p. 109).

Could you elaborate for us on the theme of chess getting younger over time?
Sosonko: I think the Dutch grandmaster Donner got it right with regards to chess getting younger by the late 1950s. The point was not merely that a 15 year-old Bobby Fischer had become a grandmaster and was competing in the Candidates Tournament for the World Championship. This period saw the beginning of a sharp shift in the nature of competitive chess at that time would work to the advantage of youth. This shift has become all the more clearly defined by now, and so we can say that chess has followed a trajectory we noticed earlier in other sports. In tennis, for instance, we all marveled at the great Australian, American, and English stars of the 1960s, but some of them remained on top well past their 30th birthdays. In those days gymnastics, swimming, and other sports had leaders of 25 or 26 years of age. But then they all got much younger, such that by now top tennis players head for retirement by age 30, and a swimmer of 25 or 26 is no longer considered young. The age of top chess players has dropped too, and I think the explanation is fairly obvious. The process of chess training has accelerated drastically. That which a developing player in earlier times learned in six months or a year can now be absorbed from databases in a matter of days. Of course it is true what Danish grandmaster Jacob Aagard said recently about the enduring presence of older players in the top ten. But look again at what we mean these days by “older player”. An older player in the days of Botvinnik and Smyslov was 45 or 50, say. But whom do we consider an older player now? We mention Annand and Gelfand, at 44-45, and Kramnik. But Kramnik is only 37. And believe me, young men are already considered older veterans in chess circles. Have a look at the Razuvaev Memorial Tournament going on now in Washington featuring real veterans, of age 65, 67.{the tournament pitted four top women players against four grandmasters over 65 years of age—DK} In the eyes of young players, these grandmasters are not so much veterans as mastodons from a bygone age. And the difference in age between on the one hand Gulko, Alburt, and Tukmakov, and on the other hand the great champions of 100 or 150 years ago like Steinitz or Lasker, is not that big. So the notion of an “older” player in chess has certainly changed.

I would like to make another point here. As I mentioned earlier, every sport has seen an acceleration of the learning process, and has become younger, with attendant consequences. Take a look at any of them, from track, to football (soccer), basketball, or others, and compare them to what they looked like 40 years ago. They look like different sports, being played at new speeds, etc. But, none of them, not one, has changed as much as chess. And so I think that chess in the twenty first century, in 2013, in comparison to the chess of the 1950s, or 1960s, or even 1980s, is simply a different game. And if you ask me what specifically is the difference in the game, well, the computer is the difference. If you go back 20 or 25 years ago, some grandmasters were at that time using computers as data bases to help them in finding games and variations. In the last ten years or more, however, the top grandmasters are using computers as sparring partners. They learn from the computer. In other sports computers assist in some technical respects, it is true. But in none of them is there any comparison to the role computers now play in top level chess do computers where technology has introduced colossal, fantastic changes.

Let me offer two examples here. When I am here in the U.S. I meet regularly with my former colleagues, many of whom teach chess to youngsters, either on the side or as a primary occupation. They teach in person or remotely over the internet. And two of them asked me recently, “Can you guess who are the 12 youngsters in my group right now?” So I shrugged my shoulders and guessed that they ought to be Americans of all kinds, with probably a few Russian-Americans thrown in. “Well,” they said, “10 out of 12 are of Chinese origin. These are kids who will read three volumes of Botvinnik literally in a week or ten days if we ask them to.”

Last, notice that in earlier times developing players needed the attention, the support, and the example of high quality trainers so as to improve at chess and become strong players. All this is important nowadays, too. However, the most important training tool for players now is the all-powerful computer. Within a few seconds, or even faster, it shows you how you ought to have moved. I remember my good friend and ex-world champion Vassily Smyslov's consternation regarding chess computers a few years ago when he was selecting some of his best games for publication. “You know, I didn't find a single one of my games that didn't have mistakes from me and my opponent, no matter how logical, harmonious, and coordinated the game appeared to be. For instance, I was very proud of one game, against Petrosian. But when I sent it to the editor, he put a chess computer to work on it—and not the strongest computer available, either—he told me that my analysis of a maneuver that 'tightened the noose around Black' didn't hold up. The computer indicated a two-move repositioning of Black's queen and rook, after which there would not have been any clear way for White to break through. I took a look and tried various ways to build up a winning position against the computer's recommendation for Black, but I couldn't do it. White wasn't winning. The computer was right.”

And so, when I say that chess has changed, when I say that top level chess is now a game for the young, who can more quickly soak up information, I have in mind precisely the computerization of the game. And here I can't help but conclude with a contrast of atmospheres, “then and now”, so to speak. The Dutch town Wijk aan Zee hosts one of the strongest tournaments of every year, in January. The first time I played in it was in 1974, and have played in it many times since. I remember vividly what it was like after the final rounds of the tournaments in the 1970s and 1980s. In the bar on the ground level you could see the leading grandmasters, people like Tal, Korchnoi, Petrosian, Larsen, and many others. Some would be having a beer; some would be playing a few blitz games; others would be playing bridge or other card games; and others might be chatting, likely about chess. Just compare that picture to what you see in the last five or six years. The tournament is as strong as ever, the top players are there. The bar is still there, it hasn't changed physically. But you won't see any of the grandmasters there now, not one. “So where are they?”, you'll ask me. They're in their rooms with their Notebooks or laptops, analyzing recently played games from all over the world on the internet. They're ferreting out inaccuracies wherever they can find them so as to be better prepared for their next games. They're investigate games from tournaments going on now in Rejkjavik, in Buenos Aires, in Moscow, and here in Washington. They're sure that in at least one of them they'll find something they can put to good use in the immediate future. That contrast in atmosphere and behavior from earlier days is quite a change in chess culture all by itself.

Kerans:“The Stairway of Life” chapter in your book Smart Chip from St. Petersburg made a strong impression on me. There you refrained from making any final conclusions regarding how well the new generation of wunderkinds would develop as chess players and as people. Additionally, you included a poignant quote from Women’s World Championship finalist Irina Levitina, that "Most chess players become intellectually and emotionally old at a relatively young age, when their successes and people's respect for them are in the past (p. 147). Seven years or more have passed since you published that. Looking now from the perspective of 2013, do you have more thoughts on the theme for us?

Sosonko: Well, this question overlaps with the themes we’ve just discussed. I’d say it’s quite obvious that for a young person of, say, 17-19 years old, who is just starting out on his career, who has a lot of ambition, and wants to perfect his talent, chess for him is the most important thing in his life. When journalists asked the young American hero Fischer what else he liked to do in life other than chess, he replied something like “What do you mean, ‘what else’? Why would I do something else?” But I think that by the time a person is 35 years old, or 40, other priorities arise. It might be family affairs, or obligations, or other opportunities. His ambition and motivation are already less intense than they used to be. Moreover, as science has shown, beyond a certain age the brain, the whole engine of chess play, doesn’t work at quite the same speed as it did in youth. It doesn’t respond as quickly to stimuli. Furthermore, just like the speed of computer technology keeps gradually accelerating, or the resolution of electronic displays acquires more definition, a young boy of 8 who has spent some formative years immersed in newer, faster technology has a slight advantage over a boy who is just a bit older, and spent those years with less advanced computer technology. His preparation and his reactions stand to be slightly sharper. And this stands to translate into an extra half point or full point here and there, which makes the difference between winning a tournament and finishing lower down.

If now we compare a chess player to, for instance, a performing artist like an actor or a musician, then at least in some sense it is clear that the chess player is in a more difficult and stressful position. In music, in film, or in theater, a performer who has earned a reputation can subsequently lean on that reputation. He or she can allow themself a subpar concert or performance once in a while without any meaningful damage to their reputation. Grigory Sokolov will remain Grigory Sokolov. Jascha Heifetz will remain Jascha Heifetz. But chess is a competitive sport. Even if a chess player has built up a reputation, every time he comes to a tournament or a game he has to prove himself again. If he is off his game, his opponents will take him down, younger players will pass him in the rankings.

It’s no coincidence that 38 year-old ex-World Champion Vladimir Kramnik has said that he does not expect to play chess past age 40, and will move on to something else. He feels that the time to retire is not far off. He has two children, a home in Paris, a bourgeois lifestyle—as he describes it himself. He’s already not that Volodya Kramnik who rose up the number 1 spot on the world rating list at age 20, who defeated Kasparov to become World Champion at 25.

Further, I can say that among chess players, just like among people in general, far from every one of them is willing to admit that the years have an effect on him, that he is getting older, that he has less ambition. His physical condition slips, and physical condition plays a big role in chess. If you have a headache, if you didn’t sleep well, if you have quarreled with your wife, and so on and so on, well, none of your opponents or spectators will be cutting you any slack for that. And naturally, the older you get, the more “bad days” you have in life. Few chess players are willing to saw what the great early 20th -century Polish player David Przepiorka said of himself: “Why do I play worse nowadays? Because I am getting older. You younger players: take the stage.”

Kerans: Perhaps here I should remind our listeners that you have been speaking here about the effects of aging as they concern chess professionals, about those who perform at the limits of their abilities. I assume these effects are less pronounced among amateur players. I don’t notice age to be a disadvantage for myself, For the great mass of us, chess is not so different from what it was 100 years ago. We do our best. We try. We don’t spend a lot of time on opening preparation. We try to improve, to understand a variety of aspects of the game. And it seems to me also, that many players at the lower levels don’t perform at the limit of their abilities. They don’t use all the time on their clock. They don’t really work that hard.

Sosonko: No, they don’t.

Kerans: And I notice, to my advantage, that if I work really hard, I can get better, even at a relatively advanced age. I’m much stronger now, after 28 years of not playing at all, than I was when I took chess seriously as a young man. But let’s move on to our third and final theme. I’m hoping you can give us a few thoughts on growing up in this other environment, before the computer—growing up as a person, or as a chess player, whatever comes first to mind. Who do you feel was most responsible for raising you as a player, other than yourself? And whom did you rely? On what books did you rely? And if you want, you can answer the question they gave to Fischer as a teenager: what else did you do at age 14?

Sosonko: You are quite right David, that what I’ve been describing pertains to top level chess, to the real professionals. And when I talk about how much chess has changed, it is elite, professional level chess that I have in mind. If we are talking about amateur play, about strong amateur players like yourself, who haven’t been and obviously won’t ever be professionals, well, the rules of the game are the same as they have been for hundreds of years. The Knight moves in the same way as before, the Rook moves in the same way as before, castling is the same. Nevertheless, even for amateur players, when they are studying chess, they have their silicon friend on the screen to assist them. But that’s another story. When I began playing chess, it was my mother who taught me. There weren’t any computers, of course, and we were so poor that we didn’t even have a chess set. Mom cut out pieces of paper to substitute for chessmen, writing “Knight”, “Rook”, “Bishop”, etc. on them, and made a board out of cardboard. I remember that chess set very well. When I got truly interested in chess I took a look at chess books, and I can name two that made the biggest impression on me. One was a book that Mikhail Tal also mentioned as having shaped him, the book of his trainer Alexander Koblents, School of Chess Play. That book is not well known in the West. The other one, which I studied a bit later, was International Master Panov’s 300 Selected Games of Alexander Alekhine,where the notes are mostly Alekhine’s own. I still have my copy of that book, old and falling apart as it is. Those are the two books which made the deepest impression on me.

Kerans: Perhaps in parting you can tell us a bit about yourself at age 14, say. If you weren’t playing chess, was it football, school?

Sosonko: Oh yes, of course, I really began to play chess seriously when I injured my arm playing football one summer, when I was thirteen. I was in a cast needed about a month and a half to recover. Our family didn’t go away on any vacation or have a dacha, so I went all the time to the Tauride Gardens in Leningrad, where adult and older players were always playing. I watched a lot and played plenty, so that this period was my first practical training in chess. After that I went to the Young Pioneers Palace, and on from there.

(Voice of Russia: http://voicerussia.com/2013_08_29/Elite-chess-and-the-aging-process-a-conversation-with-Genna-Sosonko-9988/)

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
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Also see her personal chess blog
at www.chessqueen.com
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Wholesale Chess Now Selling Chess King Training DVDs, Software: 10% Off Through Sept 8

August 30, 2013, 1:31 am

≫ Next: World Chess Champion Anand's Seconds: Sandipan Chanda, Surya Shekhar Ganguly, Radoslaw Wojtaszek

≪ Previous: Interview with Chess Legends: Genna Sosonko on Elite Chess, Aging Process, World Champions

Hi everyone,

Wholesale Chess is pleased to announce that the company has added the Chess King software and training DVDs to their extensive selection of chess software and DVDs. Chess King 2 and 3 are now available to purchase on the website. When customers buy Chess King 2, they will also receive the top-selling chess playing software, Houdini 2. Chess King 3 includes Houdini 3, which has all of the robust features of Houdini 2 but also supports up to six core processors for faster analysis.

“We are excited to have the Chess King Software and DVDs available to our customers,” says Neil Essig, the Marketing Manager at Wholesale Chess. “Not only are we carrying Chess King 2 and 3, but we have also added three levels of Chess King Tactics software, as well as Chess King Opening, Middle Game, and Endgame software.”

In addition to new software, Wholesale Chess has added six training DVDs from Chess King. The series Complete Chess Course features training on Opening Principles, Tactics and Strategy, and Endgames. Those who want to focus on their opening moves can purchase a DVD from the series Chess King’s Guide to Opening Ideas, which includes Open Games, Semi-Open Games, and Closed Games. These six titles can be viewed on a standard DVD player or DVD ROM drive.

For a limited time, Wholesale Chess is offering an introductory promotion of 10% off all Chess King titles. Use the promo code “ChessKing” in your shopping cart to receive 10% off all Chess King Software and DVDs. This promotion is valid through September 8th, 2013 and can be combined with free shipping to the continental U.S. on all orders over $50.

These new titles are limited in stock and will sell quickly. Don’t wait—check out the complete line of Chess King products at http://www.WholesaleChess.com.

About Wholesale Chess
Wholesale Chess is the number one supplier of chess sets and equipment on the web. We have thousands of items in stock ready to ship today. Some of the company’s customers include game shops, chess clubs, schools, after-school programs, libraries, prisons, churches, and individual chess enthusiasts around the world.

If you would like more information on this topic or want to contact Wholesale Chess, call 801-544-4242 or email info@wholesalechess.com. Wholesale Chess is located at 695 North 900 West Ste. 5, Kaysville, UT, 84037.

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World Chess Champion Anand's Seconds: Sandipan Chanda, Surya Shekhar Ganguly, Radoslaw Wojtaszek

August 30, 2013, 5:37 am

≫ Next: Vienna Chess Open 2013: Stanislav Novikov wins on Tiebreak

≪ Previous: Wholesale Chess Now Selling Chess King Training DVDs, Software: 10% Off Through Sept 8

Hi everyone,

Indian newspapers have reported that World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand's new team member is Indian Grandmaster Sandipan Chanda. Chanda belongs to the same city as another of Anand's seconds - Kolkata. Grandmaster Surya Shekhar Ganguly, from Kolkata, continues in Anand's team. Anand takes on World No. 1 Carlsen for the world championship in November. (Photo: Sandipan Chanda - new addition to Viswanathan Anand's team.)

Chanda, 30, is the second Indian player to be hired by the 42-year-old Anand. Ganguly, a five-time national champion, Pieter Heine Nielsen of Denmark, former world champion in the knock-out format, Rustam Kasimdzhanov of Uzbekistan and Polish GM Radoslaw Wojtaszek have been core members of Team Anand in the last three World Championships.

Ganguly and Wojtaszek will continue to assist the world No. 7. Chanda had accompanied Anand during a recent GM tournament in Norway.

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Vienna Chess Open 2013: Stanislav Novikov wins on Tiebreak

August 30, 2013, 6:15 am

≫ Next: 10 Chess Films to Watch: Video Countdown

≪ Previous: World Chess Champion Anand's Seconds: Sandipan Chanda, Surya Shekhar Ganguly, Radoslaw Wojtaszek

Hi everyone,

The 18th edition of the Vienna Chess Open was held on 17th – 25th August 2013 at the Vienna Town Hall – Stiege 1, Lichtenfelsgasse 2 – in the Austrian Capital.
The event consisted of four playing groups:Group A, Open to all / 9 rounds CH-system

Group B, rating Elo U2000 / 9 rounds CH-system
Group C, rating Elo U1600 / 9 rounds CH-system
Group D, rating Elo U1600 / 5 rounds CH-system

The playing venue was the beautiful Vienna Town Hall. The Group A had 397 participants from 39 countries, including 22 Grandmasters and 31 International Masters. At the end of the tournament, seven players were tied on the first place with 7,5/9 points each: GM Stanislav Novikov RUS 2545, IM Batuhan Dastan TUR 2417, IM Hagen Poetsch GER 2446, GM Alexey Kim KOR 2477, GM Ralf Akesson SWE 2467, IM Jonathan Hawkins ENG 2521 and IM Kacper Drozdowski POL 2437.

Stanislav Novikov is awarded the winner’s trophy thanks to the best tie-break. Batuhan Dastan and Hagen Poetsch have earned GM norms.

The Group B had 221 participants from 30 countries. Dominik Horvath (AUT 1784) took a clear first place with 8,0/9 points.

The Group C had 91 players from seven federations. Local players Nebojsa Ritopecki and Bertalan Molnar shared the first place with 7,5/9 points each.

The Group D had 28 participants. After five rounds of play, Iuliia Zaitceva (RUS) and Thomas Spitzer (AUT) shared the first place with 4,5 points each. (Official website)

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10 Chess Films to Watch: Video Countdown

August 30, 2013, 6:46 am

≫ Next: Chess World Cup Final Game 1: Vladimir Kramnik beats Dmitry Andreikin

≪ Previous: Vienna Chess Open 2013: Stanislav Novikov wins on Tiebreak

Alexandra Kosteniuk's Chess Blog for Daily Chess News and Trivia (c) 2013

Hi everyone,

Here is a nice video of scenes compiled from ten movies on chess. These are quite popular movies in English, French and Spanish that have chess as a central motif. Enjoy and don't forget to send us your favourite chess videos.

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Chess World Cup Final Game 1: Vladimir Kramnik beats Dmitry Andreikin

August 31, 2013, 8:52 am

≫ Next: President Chess Cup in Dubai: Omar Noaman wins Clear First

≪ Previous: 10 Chess Films to Watch: Video Countdown

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012

Hi everyone,

What would you play as Vladimir Kramnik? Replay the full game at Chess King.

The Chess World Cup resumed on Friday with the first game of the final played between Vladimir Kramnik and Dmitry Andreikin of Russia. Both have already qualified for the Candidates 2014. The final includes four games followed by the tiebreak if required.

The game started as a Queen's Gambit Declined in which Andreikin played cautiously only allowing the former world champion to take a grip on the game. In an almost equal position, Kramnik went for a Queen sacrifice picking up a rook and bishop while pressurising Black with a passed pawn. Black was in a bind particularly because of back-rank problems. Kramnik had no problems converting to a win in a Two Rooks versus Queen endgame.

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President Chess Cup in Dubai: Omar Noaman wins Clear First

August 31, 2013, 9:06 am

≫ Next: Top Names in Moscow Blitz Chess Championship 2013 on Sept 1; Watch Live

≪ Previous: Chess World Cup Final Game 1: Vladimir Kramnik beats Dmitry Andreikin

Hi everyone,

The prestigious President Cup Tournament was held from 15th to 22nd August, 2013, at the Dubai Chess and Culture Club in Dubai, UAE. Top seeded player International Master Omar Noaman from Sharjah won the competition with 8,5 points from nine rounds.

CM Faisal Abdulla of Abu Dhabi Chess Club was runners-up with 7,5 points while FM Ibrahim Mohamed Khouri also from Abu Dhabi chess Club was placed third with 7 points. Mansour Abbas finished fourth with 5 points.

The tournament had a notable absence of Grandmaster Salem A.R.Saleh, the defending Champion, who was away playing in the World Cup at Tromso, Norway.

Mahdi Abdu Rahim, the Technical Secretary of the UAE Chess Federation, said: “The tournament was held smoothly as per FIDE Rules and will be a FIDE rated chess event”.

Saud Mohammed, the Manager of UAE Chess Federation, said: “The tournament showcased the best talents in UAE and also provided a unique opportunity for the budding chess players to hone their skills”.

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Top Names in Moscow Blitz Chess Championship 2013 on Sept 1; Watch Live

August 31, 2013, 9:23 am

≫ Next: 14th Karpov Chess Tournament begins in Poikovsky

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Hi everyone,

The 67th Moscow Blitz Chess Championship will take place on 1st September at the park “Krasnaya Presnya”. The Championship was established back in 1946 by the newspaper “Vechernyaya Moskva” and traditionally takes place outdoors. You can follow the event live at the official website.

A number of well-known Grandmasters will take part in the event – the 2012 World Rapid Champion Sergey Karjakin, the 2012 World Blitz Champion Alexander Grischuk, two-times Russian Champion Alexander Morozevich and reigning Women's World Blitz Champion Valentina Gunina.

The event will consist of eight tournaments: the main Moscow Final Championship, Moscow Final “B” Championship, Women’s Championship, Veteran Groups (men and women), Junior Groups (boys and girls), and the Moscow Chess Federation Journalists Cup.
The time control will be 5 minutes per player per game. The tournaments will start at 12:00 local time and the closing ceremony will be at 18:00.

Many famous players were Moscow Blitz Champions, including the names like Mikhail Tal, Vassily Smyslov, Yuri Averbakh, Evgeny Vasiukov, Vladimir Kramnik, Alexander Grischuk and Alexander Morozevich.

Vasiukov and Morozevich are holding the record number of trophies – six each. (News by Eldar Mukhametov, press secretary of the Moscow Chess Federation/www.chessdom.com)

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14th Karpov Chess Tournament begins in Poikovsky

September 1, 2013, 8:52 am

≫ Next: Oslo Chess International 2013 begins September 29

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Alexandra Kosteniuk's Chess Blog for Daily Chess News and Trivia (c) 2013

Hi everyone,

The International Chess Tournament named after the former world champion Anatoly Karpov is taking place from 27th August to 7th September in Poikovsky, Russia. The tournament format is ten-player round robin. Evgeny Tomashevsky was invited to play, but after he qualified for the World Chess Cup semifinal, the organizers have replaced him with Alexander Motylev.

Participants:
Ian Nepomniachtchi, Dmitry Jakovenko (Poikovsky winner in 2007 and 2012), Alexander Motylev, Ernesto Inarkiev (Russia), Pavel Eljanov (Ukraine), Viktor Laznicka (Czech Republic), Ivan Cheparinov (Bulgaria), Viorel Bologan (winner in 2000, 2001, 2005, Moldova), Alexander Onischuk (winner in 2002, USA) and Emil Sutovsky (Israel).

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
www.chessblog.com
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at www.chessqueen.com
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Oslo Chess International 2013 begins September 29

September 1, 2013, 10:05 am

≫ Next: World Chess Cup 2013 Final: Kramnik Leads Andreikin 2-1 in Tromso

≪ Previous: 14th Karpov Chess Tournament begins in Poikovsky

Hi everyone,

The 2013 edition of Oslo Chess International will take place in Norway, 29 September – 6 October 2013. The tournament organized by Hans Olav Lahlum and Akademisk Sjakklubb Oslo is a 9-round Swiss open for all players having the official titles GM, IM, FM, WGM, WIM or WFM from FIDE. Also qualified are other male players with an official FIDE-ELO of at least 2150, and other female players with an official FIDE-ELO of at least 2000.

Less than a month before the start of the championship, among the top seeded participants are GM Ilia Smirin, GM Sergei Tiviakov, GM Sergei Volkov, GM Eduardas Rozentalis, GM Maxim Turov, GM Eric Hansen, GM Rainer Buhmann (winner in 2012), GM Yuri Soldovnichenko, GM Siemen Agdestein, IM Benjamin Bok, GM Leif Erlend Johannessen, GM Marc Narciso Dublan, IM Frode Elsness, IM Aman Hambleton, IM Torbjørn Ringdal Hansen, IM Irina Krush, etc. See the full participants list below.

Registration and more information at the official website

The playing venue

The playing venue is Thon Hotel Ullevaal Stadion at Sognsveien 77c, Oslo, Norway. It is a large hotel and conference centre, right next to Norway’s national football stadium in Oslo. The hotel offers excellent facilities to play chess games in the playing hall, as well as for analysis and blitz playing outside the playing hall afterwards.

The playing hotel is a two minute walk from the bus and tube station. It is two minutes tube travel from the Oslo University, and less than ten minutes from the main railway station (Oslo S).

Participants coming from other countries and cities in Norway can use a direct bus connection from Oslo Airport Gardermoen to the hotel door. Shops, restaurants etc can be found within a two minutes walking distance from the hotel.

Participants
GM-group
GM Ilia SMIRIN ISR 2663 21.08.68
GM Sergei TIVIAKOV NED 2656 14.02.73
GM Sergei VOLKOV RUS 2626 07.02.74
GM Eduardas ROZENTALIS LTU 2607 27.05.63
GM Maxim TUROV RUS 2588 07.12.79
GM Eric HANSEN CAN 2584 24.05.92
GM Rainer BUHMANN GER 2583 20.02.81
GM Yuri SOLODOVNICHENKO UKR 2570 08.02.78
GM Simen AGDESTEIN NOR 2567 15.05.67
IM Benjamin BOK NED 2527 25.01.95
GM Leif Erlend JOHANNESSEN NOR 2519 14.05.80
GM Marc NARCISO DUBLAN ESP 2505 20.01.74
IM Frode ELSNESS NOR 2505 15.06.73
IM Aman HAMBLETON CAN 2500 30.12.92
IM Torbjørn Ringdal HANSEN NOR 2492 01.03.79
IM Irina KRUSH USA 2489 24.12.83
IM Alexander DONCHENKO GER 2476 22.03.98
IM Mads ANDERSEN DEN 2476 01.03.95
IM Espen LIE NOR 2455 03.01.84
GM Rune DJURHUUS NOR 2453 25.01.70
IM Lawrence TRENT ENG 2429 28.04.86
IM Timofey GALINSKY UKR 2427 23.09.75
IM Rasmus SVANE GER 2425 21.05.97
Jonas LAMPERT GER 2393 25.08.97
IM Atle GRØNN NOR 2372 07.08.71
IM Maxim DEVEREAUX NOR 2355 05.05.76
IM Nicolai GETZ NOR 2350 19.11.91
FM Thorsten SCHMITZ GER 2322 19.08.74
Nils NIJS BEL 2298 04.11.93
Eric VAARALA SWE 2289 16.09.93
IM Petter HAUGLI NOR 2287 12.10.58
Anders HOBBER NOR 2275 25.03.94
FM Jan LUNDIN SWE 2271 08.07.63
FM Brede Alexander KVISVIK NOR 2270 09.09.84
FM Jochen SCHOELLMANN GER 2268 08.04.69
WGM Olga DOLZHIKOVA NOR 2244 22.01.79
Odin Blikra VEA NOR 2226 10.08.84
WGM Niina KOSKELA NOR 2220 08.08.71
Mats PERSSON SWE 2218 29.06.77
WGM Elmira MIRZOEVA RUS 2215 02.11.81
Lars Oskar HAUGE NOR 2206 17.11.98
FM Richard BJERKE NOR 2173 23.02.58
Pål RØYSET NOR 2170 20.05.74
Frode LILLEVOLD NOR 2161 04.03.72
Johannes KVISLA NOR 2155 08.10.90
Håkon STRAND NOR 2151 25.12.84
Erlend MIKALSEN NOR 2145 14.11.93
WFM Nagarjan RAGHAVI IND 2144 28.01.89
Stig K. MARTINSEN NOR 2138 26.06.80
Kenneth GVEIN NOR 2133 29.09.79
Eric MOSKOW USA 2127 25.06.58

ELO-group
Øyvind BENTSEN NOR 2121 11.04.73
Tarjei Joten SVENSEN NOR 2101 20.10.81
Irina DONCHENKO GER 2083 24.01.61
Egmond-Gabriel DULMAN ROU 2077 16.01.85
Geir MOSENG NOR 2052 01.05.62
Ola PETTERSSON SWE 2044 26.06.39
Jens Hjorth KJØLBERG NOR 2019 15.08.94
Per OMTVEDT NOR 2018 28.02.52
Sondre MERKESVIK NOR 2000 27.03.00
Helge THETING NOR 1983 10.09.48
Terje TORGERSEN NOR 1977 14.11.69
Yerazik KHACHATOURIAN NOR 1972 30.11.82
Mats WAHLSTEDT SWE 1966 16.02.47
Finn EGELAND NOR 1962 03.07.70
Monika MACHLIK NOR 1955 09.10.97
Ellen ØEN CARLSEN NOR 1947 07.05.89
Eivind X. DJURHUUS NOR 1933 01.01.00
Steinar BEDDARI NOR 1910 05.01.80
Martin Bergsjø ØSTBY NOR 1900 17.07.00
Bert DUIJKER NED 1895 26.03.50
Alf-Gøran JAKOBSEN NOR 1889 28.12.93
Roar LINDBLOM NOR 1877 13.03.43
Henrik STORESUND NOR 1871 18.05.96
Eskild Ekeland GRØNN NOR 1866 09.05.99
Line Jin JØRGENSEN NOR 1856 26.06.91
Torbjørn Reidar JOHANSEN NOR 1855 26.04.65
Jøran PETTERSEN NOR 1844 14.10.73
Per H. WIBE NOR 1831 31.05.45
Karim ALI NOR 1826 29.01.60
Edit MACHLIK NOR 1824 09.10.97
Jon MACHLIK NOR 1816 20.04.96
Yonne TANGELDER NOR 1804 20.02.83
Njaal ROHOLDT NOR 1749 24.06.75
Gunnar BUE NOR 1694 23.05.43
Endre MACHLIK NOR 1692 14.01.00
Kazim YILMAZ NOR 1675 30.07.97
Øyvind MØRKEDAL NOR 1659 31.05.83
Trond JACOBSEN NOR 1649 10.11.76
Anders Nilsson AURE NOR 1622 21.12.98
Franzke DE KOSTER NED 1612 20.10.46
Terje LIE NOR 1597 22.06.52
Leif E WÆRSTAD NOR 1538 04.08.56
Mykhalo GALINSKYI UKR 1449 01.10.03
Ola Torstein ENDRESEN NOR 1399 25.05.79
Shaun ONDO NOR (1405) 17.01.99
Eric TORGERSEN NOR (1204) 12.04.66
Sigurd Kjelsbøl HUSE NOR (1127) 27.05.01
Embla Ekeland GRØNN NOR (846) 06.03.03
Chess tournament update via www.chessdom.com

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's

Also see her personal chess blog

Don't miss Chess Queen™

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World Chess Cup 2013 Final: Kramnik Leads Andreikin 2-1 in Tromso

September 1, 2013, 10:04 am

≫ Next: 5 Killer Women Chess Players - Name Them?

≪ Previous: Oslo Chess International 2013 begins September 29

Hi everyone,

Former World Chess Champion Vladimir Kramnik leads against Dmitry Andreikin in the Chess World Cup Final match 2-1 in Tromso. In the final game, Andreikin is in a must-win situation to be able to force a tiebreak. Both the Russians have already qualified for the Candidates 2014.

The second game of the final match witnessed a cautious Andreikin trying to break Vladimir Kramnik's defences. Andreikin failed to capitalise on a risky continuation by Kramnik and the game ended in a draw. The third game of the final match was another draw on Sunday. Andreikin did not go for any complications and played safe enough to steer the game to an easy draw. Kramnik on his part had no reason to try and win as he is already leading in the match.

The FIDE World Cup is a knockout, starting with 128 players, with two games (90 min for 40 moves + 30 min for the rest, with 30 seconds increment) between pairs of players. The tiebreaks consist of two rapid games (25 min + 10 sec), then two accelerated games (10 min + 10 sec), and finally an Armageddon.

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's

Also see her personal chess blog

Don't miss Chess Queen™