Candidates Tournament to take place in Madrid sponsored by Chess.com
The 2022 Candidates Tournament, which will produce the challenger for the next world chess championship match, will take place in June-July 2022 in Madrid, Spain. As the organising sponsor of this prestigious tournament, Chess.com signed an agreement on Monday with governing body FIDE and the Scheinberg family, patrons of the event. The Candidates Tournament will once again be the most important tournament of the year, with eight top grandmasters fighting for a spot in the next title match. The previous Candidates tournament, which was held in Yekaterinburg, Russia partly in 2020 and partly in 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, was one of the best-viewed tournaments in chess history. So far, six players have qualified for the 2022 edition: GMs Fabiano Caruana, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Alireza Firouzja, Sergey Karjakin, Ian Nepomniachtchi, and Teimour Radjabov. The final two players will come from the 2022 FIDE Grand Prix, to be held February-April 2022. Following the agreement among FIDE, the Scheinberg family, and Chess.com, the dates and host city for the next Candidates Tournament have been set. The tournament is due to take place June 16 – July 7, 2022 in Madrid. The location of the playing hall is yet to be announced, but it’s known already that the opening and closing ceremonies will be held in the Four Seasons luxury hotel in the Spanish capital. “The Candidates tournament is one of the most exciting events in the chess calendar, and as such, it has massive followership. Its popularity has grown to the point that it is comparable to that of the World Championship Match. For FIDE, it is a great satisfaction to hold this important tournament in Spain, a country that loves chess,” said the FIDE President, Arkady Dvorkovich. “The partnership with Chess.com will also allow us to organise this event at the highest level, as was the case recently at the FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss in Riga. Last but surely not least I’d like to thank the Scheinberg family, whose constant contribution to chess deserves real appreciation.” “For the Spanish Chess Federation, it will be a great honour to cooperate with FIDE and Chess.com in making this event happen. Chess has always been very popular in our country, and well respected as an educational tool, with hundreds of thousands of children engaged in chess activities in schools. Hosting a top sporting event like the Candidates brings media attention, and gives all these kids something to look up to.”, said Javier Ochoa, President of the Spanish Chess Federation. “I am very excited to be working with FIDE and the Scheinberg family on this event. As a fan, I’m already looking forward to following this incredible tournament and can’t wait for the outcome,” said Erik Allebest, CEO of Chess.com. “I am also happy for these amazing players to have the opportunity to play in such a wonderful city and what will surely be a great venue.” The tournament is made possible by the generous patronage of the Scheinberg family, who have stated to be honoured to once again contribute to a major chess event that is part of the world championship cycle. Chess.com will provide further support as a co-organizer and official broadcast partner, once again having exclusive footage from the playing hall on Twitch. Spain’s chess tradition is centuries old. The rules of chess as we know it today were established in Spain in the late 15th century, around the time when the Catholic priest Ruy Lopez de Segura (c. 1530 – c. 1580) was considered to be the strongest player in the world. All major chess events have taken place in Spain at least once, including among others the 1987 Kasparov-Karpov World Championship in Seville, the Susan Polgar- Xie Jun Women’s World Championship match in Jaen in 1996, and the Chess Olympiad in Calvia in 2004. Spain has also hosted the Candidates final twice before. In 1987 Anatoly Karpov qualified for his Sevilla match by defeating Andrei Sokolov in Linares, and the 1993 FIDE Candidates final between GM Nigel Short and GM Jan Timman was held in El Escorial, about 45 kilometres (28 miles) northwest of Madrid. The 1998 Magistral Comunidad de Madrid, won by GM Viswanathan Anand, was the last major chess tournament in the Spanish capital. The Candidates Tournament itself has a long tradition as well. It was first held in 1950 in Budapest and the second edition, the 1953 Candidates Tournament in Zurich, belongs to the most famous tournaments in chess history. In modern times, the 2013 Candidates Tournament in London was particularly dramatic and historic, when the current world champion GM Magnus Carlsen managed to qualify for his first world championship. He went on to beat Anand later that year, and successfully defended his title in 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2021. Recently, Carlsen has stated that he only wishes to defend his title if his opponent will be from the new generation of chess players. His preferred opponent is 18-year-old Firouzja, who recently surged to the world number-two position behind Carlsen as the youngest-ever player to break the 2800 Elo rating margin. Photo: Fermín Rodríguez Fajardo About FIDE: Founded in 1924, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) is the governing body of the sport of chess, and it regulates all international chess competitions. Constituted as a non-governmental institution, it was recognized by the International Olympic Committee as a Global Sporting Organisation in 1999. Headquartered in Lausanne, it is one of the largest sports organisations, encompassing 195 countries as affiliate members, in the form of National Chess Federations. About Chess.com: Chess.com is the world’s largest chess site, with a community of more than 77 million members from around the world playing millions of games every day. Launched in 2007, Chess.com is the leader in chess news, lessons, events, and live entertainment. Visit Chess.com to play, learn and connect with chess—the world’s most popular game. Contact: FIDE:press@fide.com Chess.com:press@chess.com
FIDE Congress 2021: Full schedule and detailed information
Please visit the FIDE Congress website for a full schedule, complete information and regular updates. The FIDE Annual Congress comprises meetings of the FIDE Commissions, Council and the Zonal Council as well as the General Assembly of FIDE, which is FIDE’s highest body. This year, the FIDE Congress will be held during the following dates: – FIDE Commissions meetings: December 6th – December 25th, 2021 (online format)– FIDE Zonal Council meeting: December 26th, 2021 (hybrid format)– FIDE Council meeting: December 27th, 2021 (hybrid format)– FIDE General Assembly: December 28th, 2021 (hybrid format)
FIDE World Rapid Chess Championships: Day 2 Recap
After two days and nine rounds in the open section of the World Rapid Chess Championship, world number one Magnus Carlsen is alone in the lead with 7.5/9, half a point ahead of everyone else. He is chased by three players, each on seven points – Alexander Grischuk, Ian Nepomniachtchi and, the big surprise of the tournament, 17-year-old Nodirbek Abdusattorov. In the women’s section, Alexandra Kosteniuk is dominating the tournament. With 7.5/9, she enters the final day with a point and a half ahead of everyone else. The Open tournament Magnus Carlsen is poised to defend his title of World Champion in rapid chess after another powerful performance in the four games played on the second day of the tournament. Following a draw in round six with Baadur Jobava (where Carlsen had a more comfortable position but the Georgian skilfully held on to the very endgame), the World Champion was then up against the world number two, Alireza Firouzja. All eyes were on this game as it was the first encounter between the two since Carlsen said that 18-year-old Firouzja is the only player who can motivate him to defend the title of World Champion in classical chess for the sixth time. In the Advance Variation of the Caro Kann, Carlsen obtained some space advantage and more comfortable play. Instead of waiting to be slowly crushed, Firouzja played bravely, realising that only action could give him an opportunity to neutralise Carlsen’s pressure. However, it did not work out as Magnus played with precision and never let him off the hook. The loss did not hinder Firouzja much as he drew the next game with Van Foreest and then defeated Kirill Shevchenko to finish the day on 6.5/9 and remain in the race for the top position. When we consider that Firouzja is 13 years younger than Carlsen and that he has already reached a 2800 ELO and has become the world’s number two at the age of 18, it is clear that the reigning World Champion has much to fear. The most dangerous opponent of the day for Carlsen proved to be his old rival Alexander Grischuk who, in the Queen’s Gambit Declined, had a slightly better position in which the World Champion all of a sudden blundered an exchange. Alexander, in his turn, failed to demonstrate the necessary accuracy and allowed Magnus to take the initiative in a very complex endgame. Luckily for Grischuk, the safety margin was sufficient for a draw, and a truce was called. The two then spent a while enthusiastically analysing the game. Carlsen finished the day on a high note, beating the local favourite and one of the greatest rising stars in chess, Jan-Krzysztof Duda. When it seemed that the local hero had solved all his opening problems, Magnus came up with a very interesting exchange sacrifice to steer the game towards a slightly better ending. Once again, Carlsen demonstrated his excellent endgame technique to turn “slightly better” into a clean and confident victory. Overall, the second day proved to be difficult for Duda – he started with a loss (to Ian Nepomniachtchi) in Round Six, then scored two victories, only to be defeated in the last round. Still, with 6.5 points, he enters the final day with solid chances for one of the top places. The big surprise of the tournament is the ‘young gun’ from Uzbekistan, 17-year-old Nodirbek Abdusattorov, who, after losing in Round Six to Anton Korobov, scored three consecutive wins against top-class players (Levon Aronian, Radoslaw Wojtaszek and Boris Gelfand) and with 7/9 points is in shared 2-4th place. He will be playing Magnus Carlsen on the top board at the start of the final day of the rapid championship. Nodirbek is joined by Alexander Grischuk and Ian Nepomniachtchi, who are also on 7/9 and have been confidently building up their momentum for the final rounds in the first two days. Following them is a score of nine players on 6.5 points, including heavyweights Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana. The latter (who on day one suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of Abdusattorov) is lucky to be in this group as he managed to save a lost game in Round Seven against Andrei Volokitin thanks to an oversight by his opponent. Dutchman Jorden Van Foreest and Egyptian Amin Bassem also show great form in the World Rapid open tournament. With 6.5/9, they remain in striking distance for the top places. Among the young lions at the top is the 53-year-old veteran Boris Gelfand, who has 6/9. After the first eight rounds, Gelfand was in 8th place, just half a point behind Carlsen, but then in the final (ninth) round of day two, he suffered his first loss in the tournament at the hands of Abdusattorov. Among other top players, Levon Aronian has six points, while Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Anish Giri, Sergey Karjakin, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Alexei Shirov are all on 5.5/9. The Women’s tournament The second day of the Women’s world rapid was marked by Alexandra Kosteniuk’s, sterllar perfrormance. The Women’s World Cup winner finished a point and a half ahead of everyone else. She is followed by six players on 6/8 (in the women’s section, eight rounds have been played so far – four on each day*). In Round Five, in a direct duel for first place, Kosteniuk scored a lucky victory against Valentina Gunina, with whom she shared the top after day one. Despite achieving an overwhelming position, Gunina made several mistakes and eventually lost. Kosteniuk won the next round game against Nataliya Buksa but then had to work hard to escape with a draw against one of the surprising stars of the event, Assel Serikbay. Alexandra finished the day confidently, defeating the former World Champion and one of the top contenders for the title, Mariya Muzychuk. “From 2012, I played in every single edition of the World Rapid & Blitz, and three times I took silver medals. So, of course, I’d like to jump higher”, Kosteniuk said in an interview on day two. She was, however, cautious about the interviewer praising her performance so far: “It’s important how you start but [it’s] more important how you finish”. The group of six players on 6/8 chasing Kosteniuk is led by Assel Serikbay of Kazakhstan. Starting the second day of the event with two victories, the 19-year-old GM
FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships: Day 1 Recap
One of the most important events in the chess calendar – The World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships – started on Sunday in the Polish capital Warsaw. More than 250 strongest world players accompanied by their trainers and staff, descended on the PGE Narodowy Stadium, the home of the Polish national football team Magnus Carlsen, who just defended his fifth world title in classical chess and who is the defending rapid and blitz champion, is looking for another hat-trick, wanting to finish the year with all three titles under his belt. Aiming to bring him down is a field made up of world heavyweights including the 2021 challenger for the title Ian Nepomniachtchi, 18-year-old Alireza Firouzja (whom Carlsen recently named as the most likely person to motivate him to defend the chess crown for the sixth time), American Hikaru Nakamura who won bronze (in rapid) and silver (in blitz) medals in the last edition of this event, as well as the three-time world blitz chess champion Alexander Grischuk and the local favourite and chess superstar Jan-Krzysztof Duda, to name a few. In the women’s section, the winners of the 2019 women’s rapid and blitz tournaments – Humpy Koneru and Kateryna Lagno – are also looking to defend their titles. Most of the former women’s world champions in rapid and blitz, including Anna Muzychuk, Antoaneta Stefanova, Alexandra Kosteniuk, Valentina Gunina and Nana Dzagnidze, are also taking part. This FIDE organised event also hosts an impressive one million USD prize fund, with 700,000 going to the open championships and 300,000 for the women’s championships. The first competition to start is the World Rapid Chess Championship, held in two sections – open and women’s and will last for three days. The first day consisted of five rounds in the open and four rounds in the women’s section. Open tournament After the first day and the first five rounds of the World Rapid Chess Championship, there is no single player with a maximum score, suggesting how close the games and the players are. The lead is held by just three players on 4,5/5: local Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Magnus Carlsen of Norway and Georgia’s Baadur Jobava. Behind them are 13 players on four points, led by Ian Nepomniachtchi. With a freshly shaved face and in his familiar tailored and branded suit, Magnus Carlsen gave an imposing performance on the first day of the rapid, confirming why he holds the world title in all three categories – classical, rapid and blitz. In his familiar style of trying to get blood out of a stone (and succeeding in it!), Carlsen started with a victory in a game that lasted 104 moves. Despite his opponent – Georgian GM Merab Gagunashvili – holding the world champion to an equal position for 100 moves, in a theoretically drawn endgame where Carlsen had just a rook and a bishop and Black had a rook, he managed to break his opponent’s nerves leading him to blunder. Carlsen continued in his uncompromising style in the second game – not being satisfied with an even position as Black, he embarked on creating threats to his opponent Samvel Ter-Sahakyan who skilfully avoided them to the very end. The game lasted until the two kings were the only remaining pieces on board, forcing Carlsen to come to terms with a draw. Unfazed by this setback, the defending champion scored three more victories – against the seasoned Aleksey Dreev, the promising Indian prodigy Bharathakoti Harsha and the great Alexei Shirov (who finished the day on 3.5/5), although against the Latvian, the World Champion had a dangerous position after the opening. Although arguably the biggest star of the event, Carlsen is not the only favourite. That title also applies to Jan-Krzysztof Duda, who is well-known and liked in his native Poland. Playing on home turf seems to have given wind in Duda’s sails as he confidently defeated his opponents in the first four rounds. The winner of the 2021 World Cup also had luck on his side, as he managed to get out of a hopeless position against Baadur Jobava in Round 5 by ‘selling him’ what one commentator described as a ‘cheap trick’ in the final stages of the game. By splitting a point, both Jobava and Duda ended on 4.5/5, sharing first place with Carlsen. Ian Nepomniachtchi – who suffered a crushing defeat in the recent match for the title of world champion – showed that he is in high spirits and motivated, as he finished the first day as the leader of the second tier of 13 players with four points. The Russian started with three wins but was slowed down in Round Four by the exceptionally talented 17-year-old Nodirbek Abdusattorov (who in the 2019 edition of the World Rapid Championship backed Carlsen into a corner in a game that eventually ended in a draw). Nepomniachtchi then drew in Round 5 with Anton Korobov. The 18-year-old naturalised Frenchman Alireza Firouzja has also started day one strongly. The rising star who – next to Carlsen – is probably most under the weight of expectations following the world champion’s recent comments, has four points. The list of players on four points also includes Alexander Grischuk and a heavyweight from the earlier chess era – Boris Gelfand, who is showing he is in good form as he has scored three victories and made two draws. The lucky joiner of the ‘Club 13’ is Anish Giri, who won a completely lost position in the fourth round thanks to an incredible oversight by his opponent. Hikaru Nakamura – who won the bronze medal in the 2019 World Rapid Championship – is on 3.5 points, as is the former contender for the world title, Fabiano Caruana. The Women’s tournament CFR superstars Valentina Gunina and Alexandra Kosteniuk are in the lead after the first day of the women’s world rapid chess championship, having scored four victories out of four games. “I feel I’m in good shape, but it’s just the start and it’s early to say something,” commented Gunina, who in Rounds 1 and 3 played two sisters, Zeinab and Turkan Mamedjarova and defeated them both. Alexandra Kosteniuk – who this year won the inaugural Women’s Chess World Cup and has previously held the titles of women’s world and European champion – has shown confidence and stability in her games on
Asian Junior Championships 2021: Indians sweep out
VS Rahul (2387) of India drew with Orini Gholami of Iran in the final round of the Asian Junior Chess Championship to score 7 ½ points out of 9 games, win the title and complete a GM norm. Rahul turned in an excellent performance, leading from start to finish without a single defeat. He beat Kosala Amarathunga, Isara Dhahanayake, Ranindu Dilshan Liyanage all three from Sri Lanka and three Indian IMs: Vardaan Nagpal, GB Harshawardana and Mitrabha Guha. After a poor start, the top seed, IM Mitrabha Guha (pictured below), bounced back to climb to second place with 7 points, while IM GB Harshawardhana became third with 6½ points. Final standings open: 1 Raahul V S IND 2387 7½ 2 IM Mitrabha Guha IND 2509 7 3 IM Harshavardhan G B IND 2397 6½ 4 IM Raghunandan Kaumandur Srihari IND 2448 6 5 Gholami Orimi Mahdi IRI 2425 6 6 IM Vardaan Nagpal IND 2384 6 7 FM Liyanage Ranindu Dilshan SRI 2300 6 8 FM De Silva L M S T SRI 2131 5½ 9 Induwara T H D Thisarindu SRI 1359 5½ 10 FM Piyumantha M Sasith Nipun SRI 2214 5 The complete results can be found here Despite losing her top position in the penultimate round of the girls’ tournament, WIM Shri Savitha of India drew her last game with Chanindi Mewna Attanayake of Sri Lanka to earn the championship title and a beautiful trophy, completing the WGM norm along the way. She scored 7 points with five wins over Gimashi Weeratunghe, Niklesha Tharushi, Oshini Gunawardena of Sri Lanka, Al Maamari of UAE and WIM, K Priyanka of India and four draws. Priyanka K caught up with the leader in the penultimate round but somewhat unexpectedly lost to much lower-rated Tharushi T H D Niklesha to finish a half-point behind the champion, tying for second place with Anoush Mahdian. Nevertheless, Buchholz favoured Priyanka, who took silver. Final standings girls: 1 WIM Savitha Shri B IND 2281 7 2 WIM Priyanka K IND 2218 6½ 3 WFM Mahdian Anousha IRI 2212 6½ 4 Mohammadi Melika IRI 1807 6 5 WCM Sanudula K M Dahamdi SRI 1653 5½ 6 WFM Al Maamari Wafia Darwish UAE 1923 5½ 7 Attanayake Chanindi Mewna SRI 1317 5½ 8 WCM Tharushi T H D Niklesha SRI 1711 5½ 9 Gunawardhana Devindya Oshini SRI 1371 5 10 Newansa M Esandi SRI 1163 5 The complete results can be found here. The Asian Junior Chess Championships 2021, the only OTB event conducted by the Asian Chess Federation this year, was organized by the Chess Federation of Sri Lanka. A total of 54 players, 32 in the open and 22 in the girls’ section, took place in the event running from December 17-23 at Citrus Hotel, Waskaduwa. Both championships were 9-round Swiss tournaments with classical time control. The Awards Ceremony was held under the patronage of Mr Luxman Wijesuriya, the President of CFSL and a Vice President of Asian Chess Federation, where Mr Hisham Al Taher, the General Secretary of Asian Chess Federation and Mr Casto Abundo, the Executive Director of Asian Chess Federation address the audience virtually. The live games can be seen via the following link: Asian Girls Chess Championship 2021:https://view.livechesscloud.com#1d2fce85-a004-410d-93e5-a485328ef4dd Asian Juniors Chess Championship 2021:https://view.livechesscloud.com#5b19c578-e00f-4e8d-b77e-ccf6c5e56f4f
FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Championships 2021: Preview
One of the most anticipated events in the chess calendar, the FIDE Rapid and Blitz Championship, is around the corner. The open and women’s championships that have been held concurrently since 2016 will take place from December 25-31 in Warsaw, Poland, at PGE Narodowy Stadium. Traditionally, the participants will fight not only for titles and glory but also for substantial prize money. World Rapid & Blitz prize distribution: World Rapid Prize World Blitz Prize 1st place $60,000 1st place $60,000 2nd place $50,000 2nd place $50,000 3rd place $40,000 3rd place $40,000 4th place $30,000 4th place $30,000 5th place $25,000 5th place $25,000 6th place $22,000 6th place $22,000 7th place $18,000 7th place $18,000 8th place $14,000 8th place $14,000 9th place $11,000 9th place $11,000 10th place $8,000 10th place $8,000 11-16th places $5,000 each 11-16th places $5,000 each 17-25th places $3,000 each 17-25th places $3,000 each 26-35th places $1,5000 each 26-35th places $1,500 each TOTAL $350,000 TOTAL $350,000 Women’s World Rapid & Blitz prize distribution: Women’s World Rapid Prize Women’s World Blitz Prize 1st place $40,000 1st place $40,000 2nd place $30,000 2nd place $30,000 3rd place $20,000 3rd place $20,000 4th place $15,000 4th place $15,000 5th place $10,000 5th place $10,000 6th place $7,000 6th place $7,000 7th place $6,000 7th place $6,000 8th place $5,000 8th place $5,000 9th place $4,000 9th place $4,000 10th place $3,000 10th place $3,000 11-15th places $2,000 each 11-15th places $2,000 each TOTAL $150,000 TOTAL $150,000 The reigning champion in all three formats (classical, rapid and blitz), Magnus Carlsen, is heading into the event as a clear favourite, but his old and new rivals are eager to challenge his supremacy. Can Magnus repeat his triumph of 2014 and 2019 and win a double-crown? Fresh from Gashimov Memorial, Fabiano Caruana (the winner of the event), Richard Rapport, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and former World Rapid and Blitz Champion (2013 and 2016, respectively) Sergey Karjakin seem to be in good form and ready for battle. The winner of the 2021 Speed Chess Championship, Hikaru Nakamura (who trounced Wesley So in the final of this competition), has not played OTB chess for quite a while, but you never discard the American when it comes to fast chess formats. The second-rated player in the world, young star Alireza Firouzja who gave Carlsen a real run for his money in the last Rapid Championship (2019), will definitely try to climb one step higher this time. Another young player, a local hero, freshly-mint European Blitz Champion Jan-Krzysztof Duda, who competed with Magnus for gold to the very last round in the Blitz Championship three years ago, will do his best on the home turf. Last but not least, let’s not forget about a quartet from CFR: the recent World Championship challenger Ian Nepomniachtchi, World Rapid Champion (2018) Daniil Dubov, three-time World Blitz Champion Alexander Grischuk and a speed-chess specialist Vladislav Artemiev. The Chinese players are not coming to Poland due to Covid-19 restrictions, which makes Humpy Koneru’s task of defending her Women’s Rapid Champion title a bit easier, at least on paper. Still, she is up against the powerful opposition from top CFR, Ukrainian, Georgian and Kazakhstani players, and we can expect a very close race in the Women’s Rapid Championship. As for the Women’s Blitz Championship, it will be interesting to see whether Kateryna Lagno can win her third straight title. Such a feat will not come easy, but it doesn’t look like “mission impossible” for the world’s #3 in Women’s Rapid List. We have five days of exciting chess ahead of us. Unfortunately, not all the potential spectators will be able to watch the action live – the organizers will allow only 200 visitors a day due to Covid-19 restrictions (all 1,000 tickets were sold out within an hour). Luckily, the event will be broadcast on various websites, including the official one https://worldrapidandblitz.fide.com/ so chess fans from all around the world can enjoy it in real-time. Photo: Maria Emelianova and Lennart Ootes
Happy Holidays!
Dear members of the chess family, The year is coming to an end, and on the occasion of the festive season, I would like to thank all of you for your continued work towards promoting chess and your continued support of FIDE activities. Together we have managed to recover almost normal levels of activity during 2021, and despite the many challenges brought on by the pandemic, the chess family has every reason to be proud of its achievements. Not only have we successfully organised our flagship events, like the World Championship match, the Grand Swiss and the World Cup, but we have also managed to expand our portfolio with dozens of other activities, online and junior competitions, seminars, and social events. My particular thanks go to our FIDE team that, throughout 2021, worked again under difficult circumstances. Our management board, office staff, all the different departments, FIDE commissions and working groups went the extra mile. I am very grateful for their commitment, outstanding efforts, and contributions. I wish you a most peaceful and enjoyable festive period as we welcome the new year in the hope that it will bring us closer to a return to what we all enjoy. May you and your loved ones have a healthy, joyful, and prosperous 2022. Arkady DvorkovichFIDE President
2021 FIDE General Assembly Agenda and Final List of Delegates
FIDE is publishing the 2021 FIDE General Assembly Agenda and the final List of Delegates. 2021 FIDE General Assembly Agenda (pdf) Final List of Delegates (pdf)
Cadets & Youth Super Final: Congratulating the Winners
The FIDE Online Cadets and Youth Rapid cycle started in August with the selection stage to the World Cup, continued with the World Cup final, then two Grand Prix events, and culminated in the round-robin final with a 30,000 euros prize fund that finished on December 21. From more than 3,000 participants, only six strongest in each category (open and girls under 10, 12, 14, 16, 18) made it to the Super Final. The battles commenced on Tornelo playing platform, and it was not an easy walk for the initial favourites. A few of them had a rocky start but managed to pull themselves together, restore their status, and come out on top. One example was the highest-rated 10-year-old in the world, Turkish star Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus. He lost the second game, but a brilliant series of wins in the middle of the event brought him back to first place in the tournament table. On the last day, the final test awaited when he faced his main pursuer, Indian Vaz Ethan. The two exchanged punches maintaining the status quo. Top-3, Open U10: CM Erdogmus Yagiz Kaan (TUR, 2276) – 6 AIM Vaz Ethan (IND, 1384) – 5 CM Schnaider Ilan (ARG, 2106) – 3,5 Who could predict that in Open U12 the first day would decide the outcome? The favourite was clear: nobody expected anything but a victory from Abhimanyu Mishra, the wonderboy who just broke Karjakin’s record for obtaining the grandmaster title at the youngest-ever age. However, Ukrainian talent Ihor Samunenkov had another opinion and stated it loudly, defeating Mishra in their first-day mini-match 1.5-0.5. Both had an excellent run, handing their opponents only 1.5 points. Mishra eventually managed to catch up with Samunenkov, so their direct encounter decided the medals distribution, and gold went to the Ukrainian FIDE Master. Keep an eye on this young man, who also won the national rapid championship this year (not youth, but an overall one!). Top-3, Open U12: FM Samunenkov Ihor (UKR, 2369) – 6,5 GM Mishra Abhimanyu (USA, 2510) – 6,5 Zemlyanskii Ivan (RUS, 2169) – 3,5 In Open U14, the competition was close and unclear until the last moments. An early leader Aldiyar Ansat from Kazakhstan slowed down in the middle of the tournament and let Ediz Gurel from Turkey catch him going into the last two days. They faced each other on a penultimate day and made two draws, postponing the fight for gold to the final day. Aldiyar lost the final game, while Ediz scored 1.5 in his mini-match and claimed first place. In addition to that, Dimitrios Makridis caught up with Aldiyar and overcame him in the standings due to a better tiebreak. Top-3, Open U14: FM Gurel Ediz (TUR, 2390) – 7 Makridis Dimitrios (GRE, 2082) – 6 IM Ansat Aldiyar (KAZ, 2366) – 6 A very close race marked Open U16, too. Eventual winner Volodar Murzin won only two of his mini-matches—1.5-0.5 against FM Samadov on the first day and 2-0 against FM De Silva on the second—and it was enough for a clear first place. Not losing any mini-match was key to his success in this highly competitive category. Samunenkov and Murzin took silver in their categories (U14 and U16) last year, and now, one year older, they both improved their result to the highest possible place. Top-3, Open U16: IM Murzin Volodar (RUS, 2519) – 6,5 FM Babazada Khazar (AZE, 2429) – 6 IM Pranav V (IND, 2486) – 6 Nikolaos Spyropoulos was unstoppable in the Open U18. He started with six straight wins, interrupted by losing in Round 7. The misfire did not discourage him, as he scored other 2,5 points out of the last three games, demonstrating the best result among all categories in the event. The victor’s only offender, Harshavardhan G B was rewarded with second place. Top-3, Open U18: FM Spyropoulos Nikolaos (GRE, 2445) – 8,5 IM Harshavardhan G B (IND, 2397) – 6,5 FM Makoveev Ilya (RUS, 2322) – 6,5 In the Girls U10, nobody could run on par with Diana Preobrazhenskaya from Russia, who went supersonic at the finish winning the last four games. She came to the finish line two full points above the field, adding a first-place result to last year’s bronze. Top-3, Girls U10: Preobrazhenskaya Diana (RUS, 1789) – 8 Akbari Rosha (IRI, 1380) – 6 Gunawardhana Devindya Oshini (SRI, 1371) – 6 For most of the Girls U12 tournament, rating favourite Alice Lee from the USA and Anna Shukhman from Russia went neck to neck, Anna trailing by half a point. The two met on Day 4, with Alice winning 1.5-0.5 and essentially cementing her first place. Even one loss on the last day could not change the outcome anymore. Top-3, Girls U12: WIM Lee Alice (USA, 2178) – 8 WCM Shukhman Anna (RUS, 2014) – 7,5 Kirtadze Anastasia (GEO, 1701) – 5 Girls U16 was a challenging journey for the rating-favourite, Hungarian star WIM Zsoka Gaal (2362). After an unconvincing start, she was trailing the discovery of the event and her second-day offender, Fiorella Contreras Huaman from Peru (1931), by half a point going into the last two rounds. But Fiorella started to stumble and scored only 1.5 out of 4 at the finish, eventually letting Zsoka reestablish herself at the top. Top-3, Girls U14: WIM Gaal Zsoka (HUN, 2362) – 6,5 WFM Contreras Huaman Fiorella (PER, 1931) – 6 WCM Nguyen Linh Dan (VIE, 1413) – 5,5 Another surprise of the event, Nguyen Hong Nhung from Vietnam (1697), lost only one game in the first six rounds of the Girls U16 tournament. However, she faced the rating-favourites on the last two days, WIM Meruert Kamalidenova (2351) and WFM Xeniya Balabayeva (2220). Balabayeva won 2-0 to claim clear first place, placing an explicit mark at the end of a great run without any single loss. The encounter between Nguyen and Kamalidenova ended 1-1, leaving the latter in third place, a somewhat disappointing result
400 students took part in the largest Montenegro School Championship ever
The final tournament of the Montenegro School Chess Championship took place in “Štampar Marakije” school in Podgorica. After qualifications tournaments, four hundred (400!) students from all parts of Montenegro participated in this competition, making it the largest of its kind to have ever happened in the country. Montenegro Chess Federation names the Chess in Schools project as an essential strategic commitment. For this project, FIDE acted as a partner of the Chess Federation of Montenegro and was honoured by its anthem at the opening ceremony. Both sides hope to continue this fruitful cooperation that will lead to new records in the future. The competition took place in four groups, and the best competitors were awarded medals and trophies. Štampar Makarije school showed the best overall results and earned the right to represent Montenegro on an international level next year. Photos and information provided by Montenegro Chess Federation