Tribute to Liu Wenzhe
A couple of weeks ago, the FIDE Trainers Commission (TRG) announced the awards for 2020 and 2021. The categories have now been expanded to 10 so that every licensed trainer now has the opportunity to win an award and be recognized by their peers. One of the newly created awards bears the name of Liu Wenzhe (1940-2011), the pioneer and leader of China’s chess over four decades. Liu, born in Harbin, was from childhood a Xiangqi and Go player, but in his late teen years, he took a serious interest in Western chess, something that was very uncommon in that period. He soon rose to achieve the consideration of China’s leading player, and in 1961 he also established himself as a chess coach, so he could train others in the game that had captivated him. Already in his international chess debut in 1965, in a friendly match between China and the Soviet Union, he became the sensation. His victory against Nikolai Krogious was the first victory of a Chinese player against a grandmaster – at least in an official game. But it was only at the Buenos Aires Olympiad in 1978 with his spectacular crush of Nederland’s Jan Donner (a miniature named “The Chinese Immortal”) that the whole world took notice of his talent. Liu Wenzhe – Jan Hein Donner (Buenos Aires, 1978) 16. Qxg6!! Kxg6 17. Bh5+ Kh7 18. Bf7+ Bh6 19. g6+ Kg7 20. Bxh6+ 1-0 In 1980, he was awarded the International Master title, the first FIDE title of any kind for a Chinese player. Liu won the National Championship in 1980 and 1982, and he continued to be the main force of the Chinese team in 1978, 1980, and 1982 Olympiads. In 1986, he was named the first-ever head coach of the national team. From that moment on, Liu Wenzhe retired completely from competitive chess to focus on developing the system explained in his book “The Chinese School of Chess”, of which he is considered to be the founder. That school would eventually take his country to the top of world chess: Liu Wenzhe still lived when China won the first silver medal at a chess Olympiad (Turin, 2006), but unfortunately, he passed away before China’s sensational gold at Tromsø 2014.
Armenian Championships kick off in Yerevan
The Armenian Championship (so-called the Highest League) is taking place from 16-28 February 2021 in the capital of the country Yerevan. The 81st open event is a 12-player round-robin with the time control of 90 minutes for 40 moves followed by 30 minutes to the end of the game, plus a 30-second increment starting from move one. The winner qualifies for a spot in the national team. The opening ceremony and the playing rounds are held in the Tigran Petrosyan Chess House. Although the top-5 rated Armenian players are not participating, the event can boast of an impressive line-up with eleven grandmasters taking part. In Round 1 two highest-rated players Robert Hovhannisyan (2642) (pictured above) and Samvel Ter-Sahakyan (2640) scored confident victories with white pieces and took the lead. The 76th women’s championship is a 10-player round-robin tournament in which the highest-rated Maria Gevorgyan and Siranush Ghukasyan are considered to be the main favorites. Photo: Gevorg Perkuperkayn (ARMENPRESS)
Arkady Dvorkovich: FIDE promotes chess solidarity
Mr. Dvorkovich, what is the mission and vision of FIDE? The mission of FIDE is the diffusion and development of chess among all nations of the world, as well as the raising of the level of chess culture and knowledge on a sporting, scientific, creative, educational and cultural basis. The vision of FIDE is to support close international cooperation of chess devotees in all fields of chess activities, thereby also aiming to improve harmony and promote peace among all peoples of the world. FIDE especially encourages and supports: – the education of youth through chess sport and culture; – the promotion of women in all chess activities and events; – the promotion of ethics and any effort aimed to ensure that, in chess, the spirit of fair play prevails; – any effort aimed to improve the inclusion of disabled or differently-abled persons in chess events; – any effort aimed to improve the inclusion of refugees and migrants in chess events; – any efforts of private organisations and public authorities aimed to provide for the social and professional future of chess players; – any effort aimed to improve good governance in all chess organisations. FIDE promotes chess solidarity to carry out development programs and bridge socio-economic divides among individuals and countries regarding access to chess activities. Next question, what is the organisational culture of FIDE? FIDE’s organisational culture is consistent with its original motto, “Gens Una Sumus”, which means “We Are One Family”. Globally it is based on the efforts of hundreds of chess lovers contributing to the activities of national, zonal and continental federations as well as FIDE commissions. On a central level, there is a group of full-time professionals providing for strategic and operational governance, marketing and event management. There is a small headquarter in Lausanne surrounded by other international sports federations and neighbouring the International Olympic Committee. The other management team members are spread all around the world working on distance, so the COVID-19 pandemic did not create any catastrophic complications for day-to-day management itself, while making it impossible to run traditional over-the-board chess activities. Daily management is structured normally in a horizontal way, where project teams are being formed for each particular project and have a high degree of autonomy, whereas the FIDE President is permanently overseeing their activities and takes strategic decisions. How about the recruitment practices of FIDE? The highest FIDE body – FIDE Council – consists of elected members (including FIDE President, Treasurer and Vice-Presidents) serving a 4-year period. Day-to-day operations are run by the Management Board appointed by the FIDE President upon the approval of the FIDE Council. The appointments are based on a personal judgement of FIDE President and depend on a combination of professional and personal skills required to manage global chess activities. Regular 360-degree assessments are instrumental in verifying the efficiency of FIDE human capacity. As of today, most of FIDE higher management are chess players of various levels having additional skills in the related management fields (public governance, marketing, PR, finance, IT, event management). There is a selection of former parliament/government members, marketing professionals from other sport federations, journalists, members of the organising team of the FIFA 2018 World Cup in Russia. There were a couple of instances when staff members had been hired following a public announcement and a formalised selection procedure (example – Marco Verdoia, FIDE Marketing Director), but in most cases, hiring is done on ad hoc basis. Gender equality and other important non-discrimination factors are playing more and more significant role in FIDE’s recruitment practices. What is the training and development of FIDE like? A strategic training session has been organised once for Management Board members (lecturer – Pekka Viljakainen, Skolkovo Ventures). It helped in setting common goals and team building. An agreement was reached with FIFA to organise a series of training sessions based on FIFA’s best practices in marketing, finance and regional development, but the COVID-19 pandemic led to shifting those to 2022. So, most of FIDE’s staff professional development is done in learning-by-doing manner. A contract to provide an online training course for FIDE staff has been signed in June 2021 to be delivered before the end of the year. How about rewarding employees of FIDE? Intrinsic rewards for FIDE employees are normally in the form of people being aware both themselves and by recognition from the higher management that they achieved something special whether by organising a high-quality international chess event, or by successful fundraising in the interest of FIDE, or by improving an internal organisation of FIDE. Extrinsic rewards are based on the assessment of annual performance and done in monetary form (annual bonuses). What do you think of employees’ satisfaction and engagement with FIDE? Most people working for FIDE are real chess lovers, and their satisfaction – to a high degree – is based on continuing success stories in international chess. Also, regular attention from FIDE President and other FIDE Council members is highly appreciated. Individual initiative is always welcome in the implementation of various projects and rewarded accordingly. What can you say about performance management and its contribution to FIDE’s competitive advantage? Each FIDE employee has a clearly identified role and functional description in the overall management framework of FIDE. It is FIDE President’s role to make sure that Management Board members fully understand their medium-term, annual and shorter-term priorities. Key FIDE management team members have clearly established KPI’s related to their functional roles. Principle examples include FIDE marketing team members who are entitled to bonuses upon reaching fundraising targets with minimum bonuses for budgeted targets and higher bonuses for exceeding budgeted targets) Also, it is critical to ensure permanent feedback from FIDE constituencies, chess players and the broader chess community. That helps to adjust the day-to-day priorities and implementation practices. Such an approach has proved to be effective in improving both the institutional capacity of FIDE, its transparency, visibility and actual performance vis-à-vis other international sports federations, especially during the year of COVID-19 pandemic. Last question, Mr. Dvorkovich. What do
FIDE resumes the Candidates Tournament
The Candidates Tournament, the biennial 8-player event that decides who will be the Challenger for the World Chess Championship title, will resume on the 19th of April in Yekaterinburg, Russia. This double round-robin tournament kicked off on March 16, 2020. However, it had to be abruptly stopped 11 days later when the Russian government announced the closure of air traffic with other countries, amid a rapidly escalating coronavirus pandemic. The sudden crisis left hanging this prestigious event, one of the oldest traditions in the world of sports. Since half the rounds had already been played, this interruption created an unprecedented situation, as the regulations stipulate that the results obtained until that point must stand – rather than having the tournament re-started from scratch. When the tournament was interrupted, the French Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and the Russian Ian Nepomniachtchi were in the lead with 4½ points after seven games. Fabiano Caruana (USA), Anish Giri (Netherlands), Wang Hao (China) and Alexander Grischuk (Russia) are in the chasing pack, all with 3½ points. After a long wait, the challenger to Magnus Carlsen’s throne will be finally known by the 28th of April. This is the detailed schedule for the second half of the tournament, to which all players have agreed on and expressed their readiness to take part in: 19th April 2021, Round 820th April 2021, Round 921st April 2021, Round 10(22nd April 2021, rest day)23rd April 2021, Round 1124th April 2021, Round 12(25th April 2021, rest day)26th April 2021, Round 1327th April 2021, Round 1428th April 2021, tie-breaks (if required) The eyes of the entire chess world will be on this tournament, which is expected to receive massive coverage. The recent surge of interest towards chess and the special circumstances around the event guarantees the biggest number of spectators for any Candidates Tournament in chess history. Standings after Round 7: Player Points Rating 1 Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 4½ 2767 2 Ian Nepomniachtchi 4½ 2774 3 Fabiano Caruana 3½ 2842 4 Anish Giri 3½ 2763 5 Wang Hao 3½ 2762 6 Alexander Grischuk 3½ 2777 7 Liren Ding 2½ 2805 8 Kirill Alekseenko 2½ 2698 Pairings for round eight: Fabiano Caruana (USA) – Maxime Vachier-Lagr. (FRA) Hao Wang (CHN) – Liren Ding (CHN) Ian Nepomniachtchi (RUS) – Anish Giri (NED) Kirill Alekseenko (RUS) – Alexander Grischuk (RUS) About the Candidates Tournament The current format of the Candidates Tournament was established in 1950 as the best way to determine who should be the World Champion Challenger. Currently, it is fought under the format of a double round-robin tournament (14 rounds), with the eight best players on the planet- except the champion himself. The selection process from which the World Chess Challenger emerges is probably one of the toughest of any sport. The scarcity of opportunities to ascend this summit makes any mistake more tragic, increasing the epic nature of the struggle. About the World Chess Championship The winner of the Candidates Tournament will be Carlsen’s rival in the World Championship Match, a face-off between two contenders where they play to the best of 14 games. The 2021 World Championship match will take place 24 November – 16 December 2021 as one of the highlights of the Expo 2020 Dubai. The two players will compete for a prize fund of 2 million euros.
Superb turnout for FIDE World Corporate Championship
We couldn’t have dreamed of a better welcome for the inaugural edition of the FIDE Online World Corporate Chess Championship that will be played next weekend (February 19-21). With 284 teams registered from 78 different countries, the event will bring together 1,467 players. This turnout widely surpassed all our estimations, and we would like to thank our partners at Chess.com and the Chief Arbiter, Alex Holowczak, for the extra effort they are making to accommodate all the participants. However, quality is even more important than quantity, and here is where things get really exciting. Most of the top companies in the world have joined the competition. So much so, that it would be just easier to name the ones that did not! The list of participating teams includes giants like Amazon, Samsung, Ford, Microsoft, Gazprom, Facebook, Siemens, Dell Technologies, Bosch, Airbus, IBM, Boeing, Sony, Intel, ArcelorMittal, Equinor, HP, Twitter, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Vodafone, Sberbank, American Express, Deutsche Bank, UBS, Oracle, Credit Suisse, and Airbnb – just to name a few prominent names from the Fortune Global list. And the line-ups are no less impressive, with none other than the World Champion himself topping the list! Magnus Carlsen will defend the first board for Kindred Group (which encompasses Unibet, the company that sponsors him), while Anish Giri will play for Optiver, a Dutch trading firm that has supported him during the past five years of his career. Companies are allowed to have just one invited player for the event, so we also find Ian Nepomniachtchi playing for Sberbank, Vladislav Artemiev playing for Aeroflot, and Salem Saleh playing for Emirates Airlines, among many others. In total, 204 titled players will take part in the competition, including 36 Grandmasters. We hope that some of these collaborations will turn into long term sponsorship agreements for many of these players. We also find top executives playing for their teams, like Bernhard Spalt, CEO of Erste Group Bank, and Tomislav Topic, who is now the CEO of a telecom company in Ecuador, Telconet. However, the strongest executive is the two-time French Champion and former top-player Joel Lautier, a Member of the Supervisory Board of Sovcombank, who will make a temporary comeback to play in the championship. There was no entry fee of any kind for this competition. However, FIDE is organizing a fund-raiser in cooperation with the platform Softgiving, and participant companies are encouraged to donate towards one of three social projects currently being developed by FIDE: Chess in Education programs for underprivileged children, Chess for people with Disabilities, and the FIDE veterans support program. If you also want to contribute, you can do it through this link: https://give.softgiving.com/FIDE
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Superb turnout for the World Corporate Chess Championship FIDE and CSR World University Online Championships A tribute to Liu Wenzhe Agadmator hits 1 million subscribers Birthdays READ NEWSLETTER
New appointments in FIDE Commissions
The following changes have been approved in FIDE Commissions: Mrs. Ilaha Kadimova to be appointed as the Secretary of Events Commission. Two-time Junior World Champion (1992 and 1993), Ilaha Kadimova became WGM in 1994. For several years she served as a secretary for Commission for Women’s Chess and now has been transferred to the Events Commission where her experience may prove valuable. Mrs. Christelle Jager-Hafstad to be appointed as the Secretary of Commission for Women’s Chess.
Wesley So wins Valentine’s Day final
US star Wesley So inflicted a heartbreaking defeat on World Champion Magnus Carlsen to win the Opera Euro Rapid on Valentine’s Day. So became the first player to take two Meltwater Champions Chess Tour titles as he moved into a slender lead in the year-long series. The 27-year-old, who plays from his home in Minnetonka, MN, has toppled Carlsen in both finals and appears to have moved up a gear in online rapid chess. He can now stake a strong claim to have usurped Carlsen and be considered the world’s best in this format. Having saved a late draw in the first set yesterday, So struck early in the first game today after Carlsen launched a risky attack that went badly wrong. Two draws followed before a thrilling final game that could have gone either way ended with a third draw that handed victory overall in the tournament to So. The Filpino-born star defended brilliantly against Carlsen’s increasingly desperate attacks. Try as he might, Carlsen just couldn’t breakthrough. Carlsen blamed himself for not trusting his intuition and failing to make accurate moves. He also praised So for putting him under pressure. So’s win was a repeat of his impressive triumph over Carlsen in the Skilling Open, the first event of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour. The new Opera Euro Rapid champion had gone into today’s decider having only just saved a 2-2 draw in the first set. It suggested today’s final set would be tight. But any thoughts that it would turn into a battle of attrition were dashed almost immediately. In the first game Carlsen, believing an opportunity was there, rolled the dice with a speculative bishop sacrifice. Was it genius or bluff? Carlsen said earlier that he wanted to take the match into more dangerous waters – and he did. But So cooly kept Carlsen at bay and the Norwegian was soon left regretting his decision. It was 1-0 to So after just 28 moves, and already Carlsen was left needing a comeback. Pressure mounted in the second game as Carlsen let an advantage slip. So defended and it ended in a draw. Carlsen now was up against it, needing to win in one of the last two games to take the match to a tiebreak. So, however, just needed a win or to avoid defeat. Again in the third Carlsen pushed and had opportunities, but the champion’s form has been up and down in this tournament and he did not take them. The game ended in another draw meaning Carlsen was left under immense pressure to win the final game of the set to level the score. So was never going to play safe and the two-time US champ launched a gutsy attack that left his king wide open. Carlsen, meanwhile, countered to set up a full-blooded battle between the two. Carlsen had momentum and went for it, but was somehow missing his killer instinct. The champion had lost the thread and his attack fizzled out as So defended brilliantly yet again. Carlsen said: “I’m a bit frustrated again today. Losing to Wesley is OK, he clearly had the most convincing tournament coming into today. But I do feel like I missed a lot of chances, that’s the frustrating part.” Carlsen added that he should have trusted his intuition more and taken his chances. “Overall no shame in losing to him,” Carlsen said. “But I feel like I could have done a whole lot better and it’s not going to sit well with me tonight.” In the battle for third-place, Teimour Radjabov – who led the Tour before this event – beat Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in two straight games. Radjabov put his win down exhaustion on MVL’s part that contributed to a major blunder as the nine-day tournament came to an end. Opera is the official browser of the Tour and title partner of the event which carries a $100,000 prize pot. The Meltwater Champions Chess Tour, organized by the Play Magnus Group, is the first full season of top-level online chess events. It comprises nine Regular and Major tournaments culminating in a $300,000 Final which starts in September. All matches are played in a rapid chess format with blitz and “armageddon” tie-breaks if needed. For further information, please contact: Leon Watson, PR for Champions Chess Tourleon@chessable.com+44 7786 078 770
Wesley So roars back to leave final on a knife-edge
Magnus Carlsen led early on before Wesley So roared back as the first day of a tense Opera Euro Rapid final ended all-square. The pair now goes into Sunday’s second day for a final-set shootout for the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour event’s title. It was a slow start yet Game 1 eventually sparked into life when Carlsen, with the White pieces, made a small mistake. It left So with the winning chances and he went for it. So got so close, but not close enough as Carlsen held on for the draw. Game 2 started with a super-sharp line of the Two Knight Defense dangerous for both sides, and it was the champ who found himself on the wrong end of it. But with victory in his sights, So blundered and in just one move the game turned around. Carlsen made no mistake to convert. It was a painful missed opportunity for So, but a thrilling game to watch. Game 3 was a totally different affair. It lasted only 60 seconds as both players steered it to a super-quick draw. For Carlsen, now 2-1 up with one to play, the strategy appeared to make sense and he said after at that point he was “knackered”. For So, however, it was a more risky idea as taking the draw meant gambling the set on winning the last game with the White pieces. But it worked. Near the end, with Carlsen needing just a draw, the game exploded into life as So created a stunning checkmate threat. It was devastating and Carlsen had to resign. So, speaking from his home in Minnetonka, USA, said he was “thrilled to win on-demand with the White pieces” and happy to rescue the set. Carlsen had missed the chance to be in the driving seat in the final but was still happy with sharing the first set. He said: “I’m fairly happy with a draw today so I will just try and push a little bit harder tomorrow.” In the match for third place, Teimour Radjabov wrestled first set from Maxime Vachier Lagrave after winning Game 4 with white pieces. Tomorrow’s grand finale resumes at 17:00. Opera is the official browser of the Tour and title partner of the event which carries a $100,000 prize pot. The Meltwater Champions Chess Tour, organized by the Play Magnus Group, is the first full season of top-level online chess events. It comprises nine Regular and Major tournaments culminating in a $300,000 Final which starts in September. All matches are played in a rapid chess format with blitz and “armageddon” tie-breaks if needed. For further information, please contact: Leon Watson, PR for Champions Chess Tourleon@chessable.com+44 7786 078 770
Carlsen and So set up a thrilling final
World Champion Magnus Carlsen and US rival Wesley So won their semis on Friday to set up a thrilling final of the Opera Euro Rapid. The two big guns of elite online chess will face-off for the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour event title in a two-day final over the weekend. With $30,000 at stake, it promises a fascinating repeat of the Skilling Open final when So ruined Carlsen’s 30th birthday. So got there by making short work of the in-form Tour leader Teimour Radjabov. The American dominated today’s set and won with a game to spare. Wesley destroyed Radjabov, who went 15 games unbeaten during this event, in their third game. Following two draws, that result won So the set and the tie to take him smoothly into the final with the minimum of fuss. So, the reigning US Champion, said afterward: “Overall, today wasn’t Teimour’s day. Coming into the match I thought he was the slight favourite. “But Teimour is a very excellent player so, clearly, some things went wrong for him today.” It was nowhere near as smooth for Carlsen, however, who started the final having been seen on camera snacking on Chinese noodles. Presumably, Carlsen was celebrating the start of the Chinese Year of the Ox – an animal he would need all the strength of to overcome the Frenchman Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. And so it proved. Carlsen was made to battle his own blunders, a critical mouse-slip and an inspired ice-cool opponent to make it through in the final armageddon tiebreaker. After a dominant first set win yesterday, draws were good for Carlsen and when the first two games finished all-square, he appeared to be cruising. But in the third, the Norwegian made a critical oversight which lost him a bishop and left him doomed in the game. The Frenchman was back in the match. With another draw not enough, Carlsen went all out for the win in the last game of the set and promptly lost leaving the score 3-1 to Vachier-Lagrave. The tie was one-set all and had to be decided by a play-off. Carlsen was still the favourite, however, and showed his legendary endgame skills again as he crushed the life out of MVL’s position to win the first of two blitz tiebreaker games. The second descended into an intense battle of nerves but it was MVL who went ahead and then showed perfect endgame technique under pressure to force Carlsen into resigning. MVL was level again and the semi went down to the final Armageddon tiebreaker. Yet Carlsen had saved his best for last and played a flawless game to book his place in the final. Carlsen said he is expecting “a very tough fight” against So on Saturday. The champ added: “He’s been mightily impressive so far in the event. I don’t think he’s been in much danger since losing his first game. Yeah, it’s going to be fun.” Tomorrow’s two-day final starts at 17:00. Opera is the official browser of the Tour and title partner of the event which carries a $100,000 prize pot. The Meltwater Champions Chess Tour, organized by the Play Magnus Group, is the first full season of top-level online chess events. It comprises nine Regular and Major tournaments culminating in a $300,000 Final which starts in September. All matches are played in a rapid chess format with blitz and “armageddon” tie-breaks if needed. For further information, please contact: Leon Watson, PR for Champions Chess Tourleon@chessable.com+44 7786 078 770