Ding Liren gets official invitation to take part in FIDE World Championship match 2023
Grandmaster Ding Liren received this weekend the official invitation to take part in the FIDE World Championship match 2023, after the current World Champion Magnus Carlsen formally confirmed, in writing, that he gives up his right to take part in the match and defend his title. FIDE is currently negotiating with two potential hosting cities for the World Championship 2022. Once one of these proposals is approved, and the location, prize fund, and exact dates are fixed, Ian Nepomniachtchi and Ding Liren will receive the contract for the match.
New US World Champion – Nakamura follows in Bobby Fischer’s footsteps
US Chess Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura gained his first world title, winning the FIDE World Fischer Random Chess Championship today in Reykjavik, Iceland. He defeated Ian Nepomniachtchi, the previous and current challenger for the classical chess world title, winning in a nail-biting “Armageddon” playoff game after their match ended 2-2. The event was hosted by Iceland to commemorate the legendary chess match in Reykjavik where Bobby Fischer wrested the world champion title from Boris Spassky. The 1972 match was viewed as a Cold War battle between the turbulent American loner Fischer, and the traditionally dominant chess power of the Soviet Union. Ready for battle A very Fischer Random kind of daily routine has settled over the players, reflecting both the game and the format of the event. Magnus Carlsen’s towering second, Danish Grandmaster Peter Heine Nielsen, is always the first to arrive for the security check and unveiling of the start position. Carlsen will almost always appear last, breathless and bushy-haired. The organizers check their watches as the field and assistants gradually turn up, wondering if there is any gamesmanship in trying to be as close to late as possible. Unlike a traditional chess event, where opening preparation is laborious and top-secret, here, the players regularly kill down time by discussing previous games and wondering about the subtleties of play from as early as the first move. The philosophical discussions between professed Fischer Random lover Vladimir Fedoseev and Heine Nielsen would likely never take place in a classical chess setting and never before a serious game. Here, the fresh appeal of unexplored random territory has swept aside such obstacles. First battlefield Start position for mini-match one The final day’s matches will be best-of-four and decide each pair of final standings. Hikaru Nakamura chooses a pawn from Chief Arbiter Omar Salama’s outstretched fists and will play with the black pieces in games 1 and 4. His choice also determines the color sequence in all matches, with all higher-rated players – according to FIDE’s September 2022 Rapid Chess rating list – following his pattern. The pairings will therefore start: World Championship Title Final: Ian Nepomniachtchi – Hikaru Nakamura 3-4 play-off: Nodirbek Abdusattorov – Magnus Carlsen 5-6 playoff: Vladimir Fedoseev – Wesley So 7-8 play-off: Hjorvar Steinn Gretarsson – Matthias Blübaum Carlsen tells Norwegian TV that the start position looks ‘fairly normal’, except for the odd corners. Icelandic Grandmaster Helgi Olafsson, here as Hjorvar Steinn Gretarsson’s assistant, has a more concrete reaction: “The b-pawn will be popular!” referring to the initial move that liberates the most pieces. After this, the players scramble to their preparation area, to try and work out some basic ideas for both sides of the position. Artistic echo The first move of the final session is made by noted Norwegian photographer Dag Alveng, who has a historical link to the event. The unofficial title match between Nakamura and Carlsen to revive Fischer Random was held in Norway in 2018, with an Alveng exhibition of photos as the backdrop for the event, held at the Henie Onstad Art Center. When play began, the games reflected both verbal predictions – the b-pawn was indeed popular, and the games were more sedate and ‘classical’ than the random violence that has often appeared earlier in the event. The title match was the first to come to the boil, with both of the candidates fond of aggression and risk. Title duel Nakamura’s long experience with Fischer Random appears to give him greater flexibility: he seems to have a fine sense of acceptable risk, even in the often bizarre settings the opening position can provide. Nepomniachtchi played uncharacteristically slowly and was soon embroiled in dangerous complications, which Nakamura handled much better. After the game, Nakamura said: “Obviously, it’s nice to win in the first game, but more than that, it was good to just play a simple position, most of the (start) positions we’ve been getting have been pretty difficult… Overall it felt very smooth.” Nepomniachtchi visibly chose to chase the second game, breaking with a mirrored scheme of development to launch an attack that counted on confusion to make up for objective correctness. Nakamura navigated the complications well, and chose to repeat the position and split the point even though he could have tried for more by risking more adventures in the firing line. Preserving his lead took top priority. Bronze drama The course of the first Abdusattorov – Carlsen game was nothing short of baffling. The Norwegian classical world champion was producing a patented technical grind, steadily increasing a positional advantage and having a big edge on the clock, with Abdusattorov’s time running down to zero. Then, in quick succession, Carlsen missed a probably winning blow, walked his king into tactical danger, and finally shed all of his remaining pieces to complete a remarkable fourth, wobbly loss in a row. After resigning, Carlsen tried to reset the pieces on the board, looked confused – since the start position here isn’t so easy to remember – then just shook his head with a sad grin on his face and left the playing room. Abdusattorov told Norwegian TV that Carlsen is clearly not in good shape here, but … there were three games still to play. The return fixture ended in revenge for the Norwegian, but only after a nervy back-and-forth struggle where both players were given chances to get the upper hand. So – Fedoseev This heavyweight battle had the air of very safe and solid games from position one, with balanced material, calm manoeuvring and gradual simplification – result: two evenly fought and solid draws. Blübaum – Gretarsson Blübaum took the lead after his Icelandic opponent blundered badly in what had been a fairly balanced game. The return game was a very solid affair, which ended in a draw, despite prolonged efforts. The final battlefield? Starting position two By now, there was no surprise when heads began to shake as the pieces landed on the demo screen. “Every time you have a knight in the
Anna Muzychuk edges out Humpy Koneru to reach semifinal
Anna Muzychuk narrowly defeated Humpy Koneru on a tiebreaker and advanced into the semifinals of FIDE Women’s Candidates. Four rapid games with the time control of 15+10 plus two blitz 5+3 blitz games in case of an equal score were scheduled between two opponents on October 30. If the score was still equal, then a certain number of 3+2 games would have been played until there was a winner. The first rapid game was a pretty solid one, as there were no big swings of evaluation by chess engines. It was the same Petrov Defence as in their classical games, with Anna playing 3.d4. This time around, Humpy deviated on the move 5, exchanging the knights with 5…Nxd2. Humpy had an advantage on the clock and some pressure on White’s position, but it was not enough – the game ended in repetition on the move 32. The second rapid game was also of very good quality as no player made obvious mistakes. Humpy deviated first from the game they played in the classical portion of the match with 6.Qa4+. After the queens exchange a few moves later, the opponents ended up in a balanced position and shook hands on move 34. Things started to get messy in the third rapid game, where this time Anna tried a new move 10.Bf5, in the line of Petrov Defence from the first rapid encounter. It seems like Humpy’s 13…Bxf5 was not the best decision, and Anna got a superior position thanks to the open g-file. White quickly took control of the proceedings, but it was still a very complicated position. Apparently, Muzychuk missed with 21…Bxc3! that gave Black dangerous counterplay. Anna’s reaction was far from optimal, and Humpy grabbed the initiative but not for long. A couple of mistakes from Koneru followed, and the pendulum swung again – Anna got an overwhelming advantage, but, short of time, she did not find a study-like win. Indeed after 30.Nd2!! sacrificing the knight but disrupting the coordination of Black’s pieces, White was winning. The main line is 30…Bxd2 31.Rg1 Bg5 32.h4 Bd8 33.f6 and Black has no way out. Instead, 30.Rg1 was played straight away, which allowed Humpy to force a draw by perpetual 30…Rb2+ 31.Kc1 Nd3+ 32.Kd1 Nxf2+ 33.Kc1 Nd3+ ½-½ This tiebreak had a very dramatic finale in a situation when both players were under tremendous pressure. Playing with Black, Anna made a very interesting opening choice, sacrificing a pawn for the initiative. The game ended prematurely though, as Humpy blundered a piece: Black just played 16.Bd2?? and resigned after 16…Bxd4 17.exd4 Qxe2 0-1 The match was extremely tense, with both players showing some amazing chess. One could be disappointed by a blunder that ruins five days of hard for five days, but competitive chess is cruel sometimes. Congratulations to Anna Muzychuk, who advances to the semis, where she faces Lei Tingjie. Right after the tiebreaker, a quick drawing of lots was held. Anna Myzuchuk will have white pieces in the first game of the semifinal. October 31 will be a rest day, a well-deserved time for the players to recover from their tough matches. The semifinal will start on October 1 at 15:00 CET. Official webstie: womenscandidates.fide.com Text: WGM Andreea Navrotescu Photo: Michał Walusza ORGANIZERS: PARTNERS:
Winners crowned at 2022 FIDE World Amateur Championship
The 2022 FIDE World Amateur Championship is in the books. The event took place in Malta from October 20-30 and was held in four sections: U2300, U2000, U1700 and Women U1700. Women playing in the open sections U2300 and U2000 were eligible to win prizes from both categories. All the competitions were 9-round Swiss tournaments with classical time control. In the Open U2300 section, it all came down to the final round. Abilmansur Abdilkhair from Kazakhstan (pictured below) scored a very important victory over Colombian Juan David Becerra and claimed gold with 7.5/9. Abilmansur improved his result compared to the 2021 FIDE World Amateur Chess Championships, where he finished second in the same section. Naranbold Sodbilegt (number 46 on the starting list) (pictured below) was the sole leader in the Open U2000 from start to finish – the 13-year-old Mongolian took gold with a perfect 9 out of 9. Two players tied for first place in U1700, with Soninbayar Tuguldur of Mongolia (pictured below) claiming gold thanks to better Buchholz over Aleksandr Martynov (FIDE), who had to settle for silver. The 13-year-old winner was number 50 on the starting list. Meri Grigoryan (England), Julia Gorozhankina (Latvia) and Nino Kordzadze (Austria) scored 3.5 points out of 9 and became the top-rated women in the Open U2300 section. They took gold, silver, and bronze in the Women U2300, respectively. Margarita Baliuniene of Lithuania finished ninth out of 75 players in the Open U2000 section and secured gold in the Women U2000. In the Women U1700, Margadgua Erdenebayar from Mongolia (pictured below) won the title with a round to spare, scoring 8.5 points out of 9. Margadgua said she started playing chess by chance while in the hospital. But now she is determined to tie her life with chess: “This year, I want to become a FIDE master, and in the future, my goal is to become a grandmaster.” Final standings: Open U2300 1. Abilmansur Abdilkhair (Kazakhstan) 2. Zhuban Bigabylov (Kazakhstan) 3. Juan David Becerra (Colombia) Open U2000 1. Naranbold Sodbilegt (Mongolia) 2. Matias Hurtado Bahamonde (Chile) 3. Aasef Alashtar (France) Open U1700 1. Soninbayar Tuguldur (Mongolia) 2. Aleksandr Martynov (FIDE) 3. Farhaan M (India) Women U2300 1. Meri Grigoryan (England) 2. Julia Gorozhankina (Latvia) 3. Nino Kordzadze (Austria) Women U2000 1. Margarita Baliuniene (Lithuania) 2. Helen Montiel Caceres (Paraguay) 3. Anna Andrzejewska (Poland) Women U1700 1. Margadgua Erdenebayar (Mongolia) 2. Arailym Alipbek (Kazakhstan) 3. Guruprasad Amulya (India) Some participants of the 2022 FIDE World Amateur Championships went to Malta hoping to win trophies, but the majority came to the tournament simply because they love the game and enjoy playing chess. Sara Brenska from Poland (pictured below) shared her story: “I started to play chess two years ago after watching ‘The Queen’s Gambit’ on Netflix. That’s how it all started. I am an intern at an international company in Poland, and I deal with taxes and accounting. I want to be better at chess, but honestly, I play it just for fun. I don’t have specific chess ambitions; I just want to play better.” Lithuanian Jonas Vaskevicius (pictured below, left) briefly explained why he is in Malta: “I am a lawyer, and two years ago, I started to work less; I had some free time. I thought that people should have some hobbies and for me, it is interesting to play chess. It is a good activity; I like spending my time playing chess. Participating in this Championship is nice, and I think everyone would like to do it, but the main goal is to enjoy the game”. According to tournament director Nikolaos Kalesis, this year, a record number of foreign players came to Malta to participate in the Championships. In total, the event brought together 197 players from 51 federations, including 27 title-holders. The FIDE World Amateur Chess Championships were held in the 4-star Conference Hotel “Paradise Bay Resort”, 30 km north of Malta International Airport, on the northern seaside of Malta Island from October 20-30. This year the prize fund was increased to €15,000 – from €10,000 last year. Photos: Andreas Kontokanis flickr.com/photos/karpidis/albums/72177720303080598 Official website: malta2022.net/ Complete results: chess-results.com/tnr669871.aspx?lan=1&art=1&rd=9&fed=FRA&flag=30
10th IBCA PanAmerican Games for Blind set new records
The 10th IBCA PanAmerican Games for the Blind and Visually Impaired took place in Mexico City, Mexico, from October 23-29, 2022. Organized by the IBCA and the Mexican National Network for the Blind with chief organizer Mr Benito Enrique Hernández López, the competition brought together 54 participants representing 13 federations from North, South, and Central America. The players used specialized Braille chess boards, talking clocks, and voice recording equipment. Located at Utopia Meyehualco, part of the Centro de recreación en la Ciudad de México, the playing venue allowed the participants to enjoy excellent playing conditions in outdoor patios protected from sun and wind. On a rest day, the organizers kindly offered free excursions to the Museo Nacional de Arte, the Mexican national art museum that features a unique collection of Mexican art from the mid-sixteenth century, and to the Basílica de Santa María de Guadalupe, an outstanding social and cultural phenomenon that receives more than 20 million pilgrims every year, making it the most visited Marian precinct in the world, surpassed among the Catholic shrines only by Saint Peter’s Basilica. Titles and medals were contested in four categories. The Totally Blind / Women section witnessed the triumph of Columbian ladies: Gold Medal Yolima Franco Perez (COL) Silver Medal Maribel Yepes Bermudez (COL) Bronze Medal Leidy Tatiana Contreras Sandoval (COL) Similar domination was demonstrated by Columbian players in the Totally Blind / Open section: Gold Medal Fredy Alexander Jaimes (COL) Silver Medal Saulo de Jesus Torres (COL) Bronze Medal Fernando Daza Samboni (COL) In the Visually Impaired / Women section, the trophies went to representatives of three different countries: Gold Medal Leidy Johanna Bautista Chiquillo (COL) Silver Medal Jessica T. Lauser (USA) Bronze Medal Eunize Nikol Espinosa Toala (ECU) Finally, in the Visually Impaired / Open section, two players from Venezuela made the podium: Gold Medal Harlen Jose Otero Munelo (VEN) Silver Medal Henry Monterrey (VEN) Bronze Medal John Mike Rosales (COL) The closing ceremony on October 29th featured Ms Clara Brugada Molina, Mayor of Iztapalapa, Ciudad de Mexico; Ms Diana Tsypina (Canada), IBCA 2nd Vice-President; Mr Fernando Daza Samboni (Columbia), IBCA Continental Representative for the Americas; Ms. Yolanda Nuñez, Secretary General of the Mexican National Network for the Blind (RENAC México); Mr Javier Pelalta, Head Principal of Sports; Ms Diana Elizabeth Taylor Sanchez, Head of Linguistic Services; Ms Lidia Rodriguez, Secretary of Inclusion and Wellness; authorized representatives of municipal agencies in charge of tourism and the affairs of the disabled. The ceremony started with a live rendition of the Mexican anthem and continued with traditional songs and dances performed by Iztapalapa artists. Then, Mayor Clara Brugada Molina thanked all participants and officials for coming to Mexico City and reminded them of the rich history of the place that was founded by the Aztecs as Tenochtitlan. For seven days, the most populous city in North America opened its heart to disabled players. She highlighted the excellent collaboration between the IBCA, the organizers, and local authorities that made it possible for the participants to meet in Iztapalapa in person and enjoy chess. The IBCA 2nd Vice-President Ms Diana Tsypina thanked the authorities of Mexico City and Iztapalapa, the local organizers, and the IBCA América Board members for all the hard work they put into this important competition. Fair play and good sportsmanship were shown by everyone. The event set new participation records both in the number of players and the number of federations represented. Ms. Tsypina reminded the audience that such a well-attended PanAmerican competition was yet another milestone in executing the IBCA strategic development plan for 2021-25. The IBCA and its national members – the organizations specifically established for the promotion of Braille chess for the blind and visually impaired – productively work in with respective countries’ governments, NGOs, national Paralympic Committees, the International Blind Sports Federation, FIDE, and other international associations as partners respecting each other’s core areas of expertise and advancing the goals set in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, and similar documents. Chief Arbiter Gustavo Vargas Cortez announced the official results. The dignitaries presented the players with medals and trophies. The winners were met with huge applause. The national anthems of Columbia and Venezuela were played. The next IBCA PanAmerican Games will be held in Guatemala. The International Braille Chess Association (IBCA) is the supreme body responsible for chess for the blind and visually impaired. The IBCA is part of the International Blind Sports Federation and an Affiliated Member of FIDE. Founded in 1958, the IBCA has grown to more than sixty countries on four continents. Its major competitions include the Blind Chess Olympiad and the Blind World Chess Championships. Information and photos are provided by the IBCA América, the Mexican National Network for the Blind, and Alcaldía Iztapalapa.
FIDE World FR Championship: Carlsen crashes out, Nakamura downs prodigy to set up surprise final
Ian Nepomniachtchi gained Fischer Random revenge for his unsuccessful classical title challenge against Magnus Carlsen last year, and immovable object Hikaru Nakamura toppled the irresistible force of the preliminaries, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, to set up a title match few predicted. Nakamura, the only undefeated player in the event, eliminated Abdusattorov with a shocking 3-0 sweep, while Nepomniachtchi won three in a row after dropping the first game in a very nervy clash with Carlsen. The day’s play The knockout segment in the FIDE World Fischer Random Chess Championship produced the title finalists from two intriguing semifinal match-ups. Reigning classical chess world Magnus Carlsen faced his previous challenger for that title, Ian Nepomniachtchi, in one of the best-of-four, two mini-match duels. Reigning World Rapid Chess Champion, the Uzbekistan teenage prodigy Nodirbek Abdusattorov, who had shown awesome form in the preliminary group stage, met the well-known master of both this variant, but also all forms of speedier chess – US Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura. Carlsen was the last to arrive as the players gathered for the unveiling of the first position of the day, as well as another drawing of lots. Chief Arbiter Omar Salama concealed a different colored pawn in each fist and asked first Carlsen, and then Nakamura, to choose a hand. Carlsen picked one with black, meaning he will play this color in games 1 and 4, while Nakamura did the opposite. This ritual guarantees that the players will get both sequences of color in the mini-matches. Start position 1 Salama said that he reckoned that getting to play white in the final game could be a small advantage in a must-win situation – though it must be stressed that given the embryonic state of opening knowledge in Fischer Random, the statistical advantage of who moves first is harder to measure. Today’s ceremonial first moves were played by a pair of six-year-olds, Aria Björk and Thor Gudni, representing their preschool Laufasborg. Salama has been teaching chess there for 15 years and explained Laufasborg’s unusually rich chess tradition, which has been covered in several international TV news documentaries. “The chess room there is named after (Iceland’s first Grandmaster) Fridrik Olafsson, who visits it often on his birthday, 26th of January – which is the chess day of Iceland.” All kinds of excitement The two games quickly burst into action, with everyone ready to take risks and with complicated and fluctuating battles on both boards. Nepomniachtchi appeared to be on the brink of defeat after giving Carlsen a chance to attack, but his much quicker rate of play soon began to elicit errors from the Norwegian. Carlsen appeared to miss a clear win when down to his last seconds to complete the first 30 moves. This meant the battle flared up again, but now with Nepomniachtchi also beginning to run short of time. A thrilling slugfest lasted until the final seconds, with Carlsen extracting the full point in dramatic fashion, which was greeted by spontaneous applause from the audience. “It was exciting for me too, I understood early that I was going to be under time pressure… In the end, it was a bit messy, a bit random,” Carlsen said. Veteran versus teen The other match had no lack of drama, with Abdusattorov playing with the mix of aggression and optimism that has fueled great results in Reykjavik so far. He seemed to have gained the upper hand quickly, but Nakamura is a master of clever and complex defending. He conjured up a tricky concept and turned the tables when this wily idea punished an overoptimistic decision from his opponent. “Probably I was losing at one moment, but when he allowed this (material) imbalance it was just too easy for me to play,” Nakamura explained. Nakamura turned a material imbalance into a material superiority and won smoothly. Things change quickly in a knockout event. Abdusattorov had dominated his preliminary group and impressed with his smooth attacking play, but now he had to show that can fight back against one of the craftiest of Fischer Random players. Return games Einar S. Einarsson, former President of the Icelandic Chess federation and honorary member of FIDE, made the first move in the second game of the day. The Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi game followed a similar script, the latter playing provocatively and very quickly, while Carlsen again risked serious time shortage while trying to work out the complicated critical variations. Carlsen has been plagued by an unusually high number of serious oversights in the event, and here he stumbled again while trying to refute his opponent’s quick and risky approach. Despite the blunder, Nepomniachtchi was forced to work surprisingly hard to overcome Carlsen’s grim resistance, and he looked both relieved and annoyed when he finally evened up the match. Experience still counts for something in a youthful world, and Nakamura produced an extremely smooth performance to take a surprising 2-0 lead over the man no one wanted to play. Wesley So had some success vs. Abdusattorov in the preliminaries by trying to avoid the sharp, complex positions where the youngster had been so deadly, and Nakamura took a leaf out of this book, exchanging queens early and methodically outplaying his rival in the much more sedate type of position that arose. A newish start The second half of the matches would be played from a new position. Now the tension was more evident, with the players eager to hurry off and try to plot some opening strategy. Abdusattorov was unable to concentrate enough to give a reaction to Norwegian TV, finally just shrugging apologetically and saying he had nothing to add. Starting position 2 The tension may also have been related to what they got – players have muttered darkly whenever they see knights in the corner. This time Carlsen and Abdusattorov would begin their mini-matches with the white pieces. In the initial phase of play both of them appeared to emerge with small advantages, though Abdusattorov’s vs. Nakamura was far more chaotic. Carlsen decided to go pawn
Lei Tingjie advances, Humpy Koneru and Anna Muzychuk to play tiebreaker
The 4th and final game of the quarterfinals was launched by Svetlana Berezovska, national coach и former national championand and Jean Michel Rapaire, president of the Monaco chess club. Both Muzychuk sisters were in a must-win situation with the white pieces against Lei Tingjie and Humpy Koneru. The first game to finish was the Lei Tingjie – Mariya Muzychuk. After successfully defending in the second round of their match, Lei played the rock-solid Petrov Defence once again. Mariya deviated from the first game as early as move 9, playing 9.Re1 instead of 9.Nc3. Even though Tingjie had a 28-minute think before move 14, the position always remained roughly equal, and the somehow misplaced Na6 got back into the game on move 20. A logical draw was signed on the move 43 and Lei Tingjie punched her ticket to the semi-finals. As for the other match of the day, Anna Muzychuk delivered an amazing game and went on to win on demand to even the score. The opponents repeated the second game of their match, but Humpy swerved off first on the move 12 by playing 12…Nc6 instead of 12…Bf8. With a little more space and more coordinated pieces, it seems like the position was easier to play for Anna, who engineered some activity on the kingside by planting her knight on f5 and advancing h-pawn. Koneru tried to create some counterplay in the center, but it was not nearly as effective. According to the engines, Humpy’s decisive mistake was 22…c4? because she had to spend a lot of time getting it back. Anna, meanwhile, regrouped and pounced on Black’s king by sacrificing an exchange on move 35. After 35.Rexd4 Bxd4 36.Rxd4 Qa2? (better was 36…Qc6 although after 37.Rd6 Qc4 38.Qxe6+ White has a clear advantage in the endgame) 37.Rd7 White launched a deadly attack on Black’s king. A real drama unfolded on the critical control move 40. First Muzychuk erroneously played 40.Kh3? instead of a more natural 40.f4, but with just a few seconds on the clock, Humpy missed a hidden opportunity to draw the game by 40…Rxf2, forcing an exchange of the queens. Instead, the Indian GM grabbed another pawn 40…Qxf6? but after 41.Rg7+ Kh8 42.Ra7 it was all over for Black. Anna won the game convincingly on the move 58. Therefore, Lei will have the right to rest for two consecutive days while the winner of the Muzychuk – Humpy match will be decided tomorrow, 30th of October. The tie-breaks with the rapid 15+10 time control and then blitz if needed promise to be exciting! Official webstie: womenscandidates.fide.com Text: WGM Andreea Navrotescu Photo: Michał Walusza ORGANIZERS: PARTNERS:
Women’s Candidates Pool A: The tension is rising
After the first rest day, on the 28th of October, the third games of the 2022 Women’s Candidates Pool A semifinals were played. Both encounters of the day saw some pressure from the black side: indeed, Anna and Mariya had the initiative against Humpy Koneru and Lei Tingjie, respectively. Although both games ended in a draw, an accurate defence was needed for that to happen. It particularly applies to the encounter between Lei Tingjie and Mariya Muzychuk, in which Black was very close to winning. The first game to conclude was the Humpy – Muzychuk one. After some theoretical line of the Semi-Tarrasch that both players seemed to know well, Black introduced a novelty on the move 11 (the first line of Stockfish) and emerged a pawn up in the endgame but with the King stuck in the center. The game was roughly equal all along, and it even seemed like Black could have tested White’s defensive skills a little bit had Anna played 26…Be7! exerting some pressure, instead of 26…g5. All in all, the opponents played a clean, high-quality game that logically ended in a draw. As for the second game between Lei and Muzychuk, it seems like Black missed a clear win. After the queens were exchanged early on in a rare line of Slav Defense, Mariya gradually outplayed her opponent in the ending. She took control of the g-open file, the only available one in the position, and infiltrated with her took into White’s camp. Unfortunately, when Mariya was on the verge of finishing things off, she got off track: Mariya missed 43…Nb4! preserving her knight from the exchange with excellent winning chances. Instead, she played 43…Ke7 and after 44.Bxc6! Lei held a draw with relative ease despite being down a pawn. Tomorrow, the 29th of October the last round of the quarterfinals will be played. Both Muzychuk sisters will have White pieces in a must-win situation. Stay tuned to see if they will manage to even the score and force their opponents to what would be an exciting tie-break! Official webstie: womenscandidates.fide.com Text: WGM Andreea Navrotescu Photo: Michał Walusza ORGANIZERS: PARTNERS:
2022 3rd FIDE Council meeting: List of decisions
2022 3rd FIDE Council meeting 17 October 2022 List of decisions CM3-2022/01 To note President’s report. CM3-2022/02 To note Treasurer’s report. CM3-2022/03 To note that the suggestions regarding the restructuring of the Federations’ arrears should be sent to the Treasurer and Financial Director. CM3-2022/04 To open bidding procedure for four remaining tournaments under EVE aegis for 2023. CM3-2022/05 To note the Global Strategy Commission’s report. CM3-2022/06 To note the Arbiters’ Commission’s report. CM3-2022/07 To approve the recommendations of the Arbiters’ Commission on Seminars, Classification upgrades, Amendments to the FIDE lecturer list, FA norms and titles. CM3-2022/08 To note the Qualification Commission’s report. CM3-2022/09 To approve the change in Article 7.2.2 of the FIDE Rating Regulations regarding a definition of an “active player”. CM3-2022/10 To refer the proposal in respect of the “Terms used in Tables for Direct Titles” to the next FIDE Council meeting. CM3-2022/11 To approve the proposal of the Qualification Commission in respect of the norms validity and form IT 1 (certificate of title result). CM3-2022/12 To approve the recommendations of the Qualification Commission on titles. CM3-2022/13 To approve the proposed Resolution regarding transfer regulations’ review and tasks the Office to publish the information and send it to all Federations. CM3-2022/14 To note the Rules Commission’s report. CM3-2022/15 To approve the recommendations of the Trainers’ Commission on titles and Academies. CM3-2022/16 To note the Technical Commission’s report. CM3-2022/17 To instruct the Technical Commission to discuss the proposals in respect of Recommendations for the Tournament Organisers with the relevant Commissions. CM3-2022/18 To approve the recommendations of the Events Commission on titles. CM3-2022/19 To note the Planning and Development Commission’s report. CM3-2022/20 To note Continental Reports. CM3-2022/21 To note that the Asian Continental Assembly will be held in January 2023. CM3-2022/22 To note President’s information about non-elected Commissions’ composition. CM3-2022/23 To hold the next FIDE Council meeting in Jerusalem, Israel, on November 25th, 2022.
2022 FIDE World Amateur Championship enters final stretch
The 2022 FIDE World Amateur Championship is nearing the finish line. Seven out of nine rounds have been played in Malta. With 7 points out of 7, Mongolian players Naranbold Sodbilegt and Margadgua Erdenebayar (pictured below) are the sole leaders in the Open U2000 and Women U1700 categories, respectively. Michal Popiol (Poland), Juan David Becerra (Colombia) and Abilmansur Abdilkhair (Kazakhstan) share the lead in the Open U2300 sitting on 5.5/7. Among the leaders, only Popiol (pictured below), who is 10th on the starting list, has been unbeaten so far. There is a three-way tie for the top position in the U1700 section as well. With two rounds to go, Indian Farhaan M, Otgonbayar Bat-Erdene from Mongolia and Kao Jamison Edrich of Hong Kong are leading the field with 6/7. The 2022 FIDE World Amateur Championships takes place in Malta from October 20-30. The event brought together 197 players from 51 federations, including 27 title-holders. Photo: Andreas Kontokanis