FIDE launches the First Online Olympiad for People with Disabilities
61 teams from 45 different countries are taking part in the first Online Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities, organized by the International Chess Federation (FIDE). The event kicks off today and will run until December 3, a day recognized by the United Nations as the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. The competition brings together 400 players from all over the world (including reserves). Among them, there are two participants with the Grandmaster title, the highest distinction in chess. Poland, Germany, the Philippines, Israel, and Cuba are the favorites according to the initial rating, followed by other traditional “chess superpowers” like Russia and Ukraine. During a colorful and eventful opening ceremony, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich greeted the participants of the competition: “I am happy and proud to announce the opening of the first-ever FIDE Online Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities. It is a real honor to have it under FIDE’s auspices. Chess is winning against obstacles and challenges. You already won against your challenges, you are great people, and I wish you health and all the luck.” Chess, a tool for inclusion In chess, all that counts is how strong your ideas are. Physical differences due to age and sex are not an impediment to battle over the board, and of course, this has huge implications in the case of people with physical impairments. “I don’t let my disability define who I am. I let my mind, and what I can do, define who I am”, explained to CNN Anna Miller, an 11-year old participant in the 2019 FIDE World Junior Championship for People with Disabilities. “Just spread the word around: chess is for anybody. Anyone can play chess: girls, boys, people with disability”. “The potential of chess is quite big, not only in terms of leisure but also in terms of meeting the need for communication, cognitive development, and expanding communication capabilities of people with impairments”, explains Irina Mikhaylova, an Associate Professor at the Russian State Social University in Moscow. “It is a way to develop self-esteem and earn recognition” Grandmaster Thomas Luther is a three-time German Champion (1993, 2002, 2006), who reached the top 100 in the world ranking. Thomas became a world-class figure in an extremely competitive field despite the added challenge of being born with a physical disability. “Learning chess at an early age was key for me to succeed in life. The Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities will give a voice to disadvantaged people and will also help them to develop self-esteem and earn recognition. Chess is the only all-inclusive sport“, explains Thomas. “In these events, there are people who are facing challenges in life, and they will have the opportunity to meet other people facing similar chances. So there is a lot of communication, and friendships develop among the players. The social aspects are very important.” “Chess taught me to be more patient” Taking up chess has been life-changing for many people with physical impediments: “I was more vulnerable before I started playing chess. But then I took up chess and the game made me stronger. Soon I learned to not give up after defeats, and this is one of the defining characteristics of my personality”, says Handenur Şahin. Handenur, who was born with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), will defend the first board of the Turkish team at the upcoming Olympiad. “Chess also taught me to be more patient. Due to my disability, this feature of being more determined about my goals is crucial. Most things are more difficult to achieve for me and it is so important to know not to give up when you encounter any obstacle which comes from physical problems, or from other people’s prejudices.” The first-ever inclusive sport Chess became the first-ever inclusive sport in 1848 when, for the first time in history, a chess set was specially adapted to enable visually impaired players to recognize the position of the pieces by touching them. Theodore Tylor was among England´s leading players in the 1930s, and despite being nearly blind he managed to score a draw against Alekhine and Capablanca, two of the best players in the first half of the XX century. Currently, there are three international associations for blind players (IBCA), for physically impaired players (IPCA), and deaf players (ICCD). Each one of them is affiliated to FIDE and, traditionally, each one of these three organizations would have a team representing them at the World Chess Olympiad. Now, FIDE has materialized the ambitious project of organizing a dedicated Chess Olympiad exclusively for people with disabilities, to be held every two years. This event will give more players with disabilities the opportunity to compete at an international event, representing their country. Format, facts and figures This is a team competition, played on four boards, where at least one of the players has to be a woman. The event consists of two stages. The first one is a 7 round Swiss System, from which the best 4 teams will qualify to play a double-round semifinal (November 29-30). The two best teams will advance to the finals, while the two others will compete for the third prize. The time control in all stages is 25 minutes + 10 seconds. 61 teams, totaling 396 players (including reserve players) 45 countries represented: 21 teams from Asia, 20 from Europe, 13 from the Americas, and 7 from Africa. Youngest player: Nguyen Tran, from the USA, born in 2011. Oldest player: Aldric Gomez, from France, born in 1941. Top players: GM Marcin Tazbir (Poland, 2513)Alexey Smirnov (Russia, 2436)IM Igor Yarmonov (Ukraine, 2391)FM Stanislav Babarykin (Russia, 2387) About Gazprom Gazprom is a global energy company focused on geological exploration, production, transportation, storage, processing and sales of gas, gas condensate and oil, sales of gas as a vehicle fuel, as well as generation and marketing of heat and electric power. Gazprom is the global leader measured by the amount of reserves and volumes of gas production. Gazprom sells gas to Russian consumers and exports gas to over 30 countries within and beyond the former Soviet Union. Gazprom
SCC quarterfinals: So defeats Duda
GM Wesley So defeated GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda in a Speed Chess Championship quarterfinal match that was tight in the beginning and tight in the end, but it was a tour de force by So in the middle. With the exception of World Champion Magnus Carlsen and GM Hikaru Nakamura, So is the most accomplished player in Speed Chess Championship history, and with this victory, he has advanced to the semifinals where he will face the winner of the match between Nakamura and GM Vladimir Fedoseev. So and Duda had played one previous Speed Chess Championship match in 2018, and So won convincingly, 20-7. Two years later, Duda is a considerably more accomplished player and no longer a junior. Would his performance against the reigning U.S. champion be superior this time around? In general, Duda performed much better. The final score of 16-10 was certainly closer, and Jan-Krzysztof even leaped out to an early lead of 2.5-0.5. He ultimately drew the 5+1 time control (4-4) and won the 1+1 time control 5-4, but in the 3+1 portion of the match, So was simply untouchable. He won seven games and drew only two for a point total of 8-1. As the match advanced to 1|1, Duda was almost mathematically out of contention, but he did start well with a victory. After the two grandmasters exchanged a series of blows, Duda’s consecutive wins in games five and six gave him the edge in the time control, and he ultimately won it 5-4. Text: Sam Copeland Photo: chess.com
2020 Open Ukrainian Championship kicks off
The 2020 Open Ukrainian Chess Championship got underway in Omelnyk village (Poltava region). The event includes classical chess, rapid and blitz Swiss tournaments, and stretches throughout November 17-29. Among 38 participants there are 15 Grandmasters, 2 Woman Grandmasters, and 12 International Masters. Six female players are taking part. With several top players missing (including the last-year champion Evgeny Shtembuliak) the #3 in the Ukrainian rating list Anton Korobov (2683), #8 Yuriy Kuzubov (2641), and #9 Vladimir Onischuk (2633) are considered to be the main favorites. The first round had no surprises in store as all the rating favorites convincingly won their games. Official site: http://ukrchess.org.ua/turnir/Archive/Ukr_Champ/open_2020/teh.html
Quarterfinals set at Speed Chess Championship
GM Vladislav Artemiev (@Sibelephant) will be GM Magnus Carlsen’s opponent in the quarterfinals of the 2020 Speed Chess Championship Main Event. The Russian grandmaster beat GM Anish Giri (@AnishGiri) 15.5-11.5. Based on his online experience and the Chess.com ratings, Artemiev was the slight favorite and he lived up to the expectations. Playing just a little bit faster than his opponent and with great tactical vision, the Russian player deservedly won this match. It was a result even Giri himself had expected. In fact, he moved up to a shared 12th place in the standings of our Fantasy competition (yep, he plays!) as he accurately predicted the four-point margin with which he’d lose to Artemiev. The match started quite even and was still tied after four games. Artemiev had won a nice, smooth first game and after a draw, Giri won his first. That was one of the rare moments in the match where Artemiev stumbled in a winning position. Usually, it was the other way around, with Artemiev being the one throwing in little tactical tricks here and there that were often completely missed by the commentators and sometimes by Giri as well. Artemiev won game five in a technical endgame and then also game eight, this time again with a small tactical shot. The score at the end of the five-minute segment was 5.5-3.5 and never in the match could Giri level the score again. Occasionally, Giri got the chance to show what he’s worth. That was the case in the second 3+1 game. Afterward, he revealed that he hadn’t prepared much, but that he did look at the Neo-Veresov (GM Baadur Jobava‘s 2.Nc3 and 3.Bf4) because he “always loses against that system in bullet.” The Dutchman got a great position out of the opening and finished it off in style. Giri held on and even ended up winning the three-minute segment with a one-point margin. He got a little help in one of the games as Artemiev briefly had issues with his internet and flagged in a drawn position, shortly after missing a win. With 9-8 for Artemiev, the players started the bullet segment and in that phase, more than before, the Russian player was faster and more accurate. The impression was that Giri didn’t make the most out of his promising positions. In the post-match interview, he didn’t agree he was doing so well in the openings: “Maybe the computer will say I had 0.40 here or there but it was not like there was anything I was thrilled about and he was pretty familiar with the positions and I think he was doing OK. I think too often I was down on the clock and I had not a great position but otherwise, in terms of time scrambles, I think I played OK.” Giri won $851.85 based on win percentage; Artemiev won $2,000 for the victory plus $1,148.15 on percentage, totaling $3,148.15. He moves on to the quarterfinals, where he will play GM Magnus Carlsen. “It should be a very interesting and also a difficult match for me,” said Artemiev. “It was a good motivation for today because it was clear that the winner of our match would go to Magnus. I’m happy and probably I will prepare, I don’t know, a few hours maybe.” The first quarterfinal has been scheduled and will be played on Thursday, November 19, at 9 a.m. Pacific / 18:00 Central Europe between GM Wesley So and GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda. Text: Peter Doggers Photo: chess.com
Chess.com, FIDE agree to broadcast rights deal for 2021 FIDE World Championship
Chess.com has become the first company to acquire broadcast rights for the 2021 FIDE World Championship Match. The company, based in Palo Alto, California, will be an official broadcast partner for what is set to be the biggest global chess event of recent decades. The groundbreaking agreement between Chess.com and FIDE will bring the world chess championship to a wider audience than ever before. As the world’s biggest online chess platform, Chess.com has been the leading broadcaster of the board game in recent years, in partnership with streaming platform Twitch. Held every two years, the FIDE World Championship Match is by far the most important event for the sport. As the final stage of a long world championship cycle, it is also the most popular: the last title match, held in 2018, was followed by dozens of millions of fans around the globe. “We are truly excited about the prospects of the 2021 World Championship Match, and this agreement is a first step towards making it a great success”, said FIDE President, Arkady Dvorkovich. “The popularity of chess is on the rise: more and more people devote more time to playing the game than ever before. Chess has always been an exciting and popular game, but now it is also much more accessible, and Chess.com contributed a great deal to that, bringing chess to a whole new audience. We are confident that this will be the most followed World Championship match of recent decades.” Chess.com will broadcast its official coverage across multiple platforms in the world’s most popular languages, featuring commentary from some of the biggest names in chess and entertainment. “FIDE has been one of Chess.com’s most important partners during the pandemic, helping to bring millions of new players to chess by working with us on some of the world’s most important events,” said Chess.com’s Director of Business Development, Nick Barton. “Chess is experiencing historic growth and we’ve been humbled by the sheer volume of new players from around the world who are finding joy playing on our site each day. This broadcast partnership provides us the opportunity to continue our mission of making chess fun and accessible for everyone.” With its unofficial coverage of the 2018 world championship, Chess.com reached 3.4 million unique viewers. The record-breaking coverage of this year’s Pogchamps event saw even higher per-day unique viewers. The FIDE World Championship Match is planned to be held in the fall of 2021. It will be played between reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen and the winner of the 2020 Candidates tournament. In addition to the championship, Chess.com has also acquired broadcast rights for the next two Candidates tournaments. The first is scheduled for the spring of 2021 and entails the second half of the 2020 tournament, which was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The next Candidates tournament is scheduled for 2022. Contacts: FIDE – press@fide.comChess.com – press@chess.com
ChessTech Conference 2020 announced
The traditional London Chess Conference moves online, being rebranded as “ChessTech Conference 2020”. It will be held from December 5-6, in parallel with the FIDE Congress. The FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovic will be one of the main speakers. Over the past seven years, the London Chess Conference has grown in importance, establishing itself as a reference in chess and education, and the world’s premier chess-related conference overall. With a particular focus on topics like chess in school programs and chess and female empowerment, the event brings together specialists from all over the world, stimulating the exchange of ideas and experiences. Since its inception in 2013, this conference has been held alongside the London ChessClassic, being initially run by Chess in Schools and Communities (CSC), and in the last few years, by the company ChessPlus. Unfortunately, this year’s edition of the London Chess Classic has been canceled due to the pandemic (it will be back in the summer of 2021), so ChessPlus has moved the whole event online, rebranding it as ChessTech Conference 2020. Accordingly, the event will also see its focus shifting to “chess and technology”, while still maintaining the education connection. No longer under the wing of a world-class tournament, the conference will be this time embedded in a different context, taking place in parallel with the first online edition of the annual FIDE Congress. Delegates, Council, and commission members are encouraged to follow the conference, while Arkady Dvorkovich has been confirmed as one of the main speakers. FIDE has also contributed to the budget through a continental ECU grant, while early commercial sponsors are Tornelo.com and Chess.com. If you are a chess merchant and you want to support this initiative, you can check your options and packages on this document. “We are inviting industry leaders, pioneers, and startups alike. We are expecting 400+ attendees, mostly decision-makers, technologists and multipliers, and 25+ businesses to be present. In 30+ sessions of different formats, the conference will reflect on the fast developments since the start of the pandemic and offer glimpses of what we can expect in the near future,” explain the organizers. A detailed program has been announced on a new website with its usual mix of keynote speeches, workshops, debates, and interviews, which will bring together the world’s leading experts in chess and technology. These are some of the main topics: Playing Platforms Anti-Cheating Chess Streaming Chess Databases Tournament Trackers Tournament Administration Classroom Software Online Training Academies Training Utilities Study Systems Chess Engines “The conference will use a mix of platforms to boost learning, interaction, and networking”, reads the website. “Practitioners, decision-makers, and researchers from around the globe will share their knowledge. Platforms and producers will exhibit their latest developments.” The conference is free to attend, and registration is already other through this link. People representing companies are expected to pay for a professional ticket (£50) or to sponsor the event. This ticket gives access to some extra benefits. Dates: December 5-6 Conference Director: John Foley Contact: info@chessconference.org Website: www.chessconference.org
SCC Round of 16: Duda eliminates Caruana
GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda (@Polish_fighter3000) started with three losses but ended up beating GM Fabiano Caruana (@FabianoCaruana) 17-9 in the Roud of 16 of the 2020 Speed Chess Championship Main Event. Remarkably, the players had never played online before. “The shorter the time control is, the bigger are my chances,” said Duda before the match and the course of the encounter proved that he was absolutely right. After two 5+1 and 3+1 sections, the Polish GM edged ahead by one point but dominated the proceedings in the fastest 1+1 part and won the match by a large margin. The 2020 Speed Chess Championship Main Event is a knockout tournament among 16 of the best grandmasters in the world who will play for a $100,000 prize fund, double the amount of last year. The tournament will run November 1-December 13, 2020 on Chess.com. Each individual match will feature 90 minutes of 5+1 blitz, 60 minutes of 3+1 blitz, and 30 minutes of 1+1 bullet chess.
SCC Round of 16: Aronian knocks out Nepomniachtchi
GM Levon Aronian (@LevonAronian) defeated GM Ian Nepomniachtchi (@lachesisQ) 14-11 in the fifth match in the 2020 Speed Chess Championship Main Event. It was an exciting clash of two heavy-weights. Aronian’s win was a small upset victory as Nepomniachtchi was the higher seed in this match based on the FIDE blitz rating list. Also, the Russian grandmaster had won the same matchup, also in the first round, in 2017. Unlike three years ago, Aronian kept up a fairly high level of play all the way into the bullet phase. After a draw in the first game, it was Nepomniachtchi who drew first blood with a nice attack on the king. As Aronian also needed much more time on the clock in those first two games, he definitely seemed under pressure from the start. However, he showed to be tactically sharp as well in the very next game and leveled the score. Aronian won the next game as well and ended up winning the five-minute segment 4.5-3.5. The first 3+1 game clearly showed signs of Nepomniachtchi lacking form. Things seemed to go in Aronian’s direction, but suddenly Nepomniachtchi won two in a row, and all was equal again: 8-8. Aronian recovered with a win in the last three-minute game, so he went into the bullet with a one-point lead. Having been the faster player so far, Nepomniachtchi still seemed to be the slight favorite for those 1+1 games, but Aronian had his own agenda and took a great start in the final portion of the match. With 13-9 on the scoreboard in Levon’s favor and eight minutes and five seconds to go on the match clock, the battle seemed decided. However, a blunder in the next game in a winning position was a blow for Aronian, who would then also lose the next one. With two minutes and 15 seconds left on the clock, Nepomniachtchi needed to win two more games — and the first one in those two minutes. That way he would have kept chances to reach a tiebreak, as we saw in the match between GM Alireza Firouzja and GM Vladimir Fedoseev. Aronian, however, got himself together and ended up winning that last game that went beyond the clock time. Text: Peter Doggers Photo: chess.com
Isle of Man will host the FIDE Grand Swiss and Women’s Grand Swiss 2021
Photo above: Richard Hoare The FIDE Council has approved the bid received from Isle of Man to host the FIDE Grand Swiss 2021, scheduled to take place from Monday, October 25 to Monday, November 8, 2021. With 164 players in total and a combined prize fund of USD 550,000, the event is set to be the strongest and highest-budgeted swiss tournament ever registered in history. The FIDE Grand Swiss will be limited to 114 participants and it is expected to feature the world’s top-100 players, invited by ranking order. Together with nine other FIDE nominees and five wildcards granted by the organizer, they will compete for a prize fund of USD 425,000. In addition to that, the inaugural edition of the FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss will be held concurrently, with invitations to the world’s top-40 players. They will be joined by seven other FIDE nominees, plus three organizer’s wildcards. At stake, USD 125,000 in prize money. Just as important as the extraordinary prize fund is the fact that both events will be part of the race for the World Championship title, producing the “Candidates” for the next cycle. In the case of the Grand Swiss, the winner and the runner-up will advance directly to the Candidates tournament, while the Women’s Grand Swiss will produce one qualifier for the Women’s Candidates tournament. This structure gives continuity to the plan initiated in 2019 when FIDE incorporated a large Swiss tournament as one of the means to qualify for the Candidates and makes it extensive to the women’s cycle as well. The strategic idea behind this reform was to provide more opportunities for a larger number of players, with the participation of all the continents in both open and women. This makes the qualifying cycle more democratic and more exciting, diversifying the paths through which a person can enter the Candidates. Photo: Fiona Steil-Antoni All players will get their travel and lodging expenses covered. The organizing committee has proposed the Royal Hall of the Villa Marina in Douglas, Isle of Man, as the venue for the event. This stunning concert hall, with a capacity for 1500 people, has hosted five Isle of Man Internationals, from 2014 to 2018. The event is, of course, subject to the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions by mid-2021. At present, Isle of Man’s borders are closed, while local tournaments are being played without restrictions. The full regulations will be published at the end of November.
Friendship Team Tournament starts on November 21
The Belarusian Chess Federation and FIDE Chess Academy in Belarus supported by FIDE joined efforts to organize the International Online Friendship Chess Team Tournament. The 7-round Swiss Team event with the time control of 10 minutes + 5 seconds will be held on the Tornelo online platform from 21st to 22nd of November 2020. The International Online Friendship Chess Team Tournament is open for youth teams from all the countries. Each country can register one team of 6 players (two players aged under 12, two players aged under 10, and two players aged under 8) and a captain/representative. This person is responsible for all communication and represents his or her team at the technical meeting. Registration can be made by filling a registration form which should be sent at blr_chess@tut.by by November 17, 2020. The tournament will not be included in for FIDE rapid or any other kind of rating. Schedule: November 20th Technical meeting 18:00 CET November 21st Opening Ceremony 13:30 CET November 21st Rounds 1-4 14:00 – 16:30 CET November 22nd Rounds 5-7 14:00 – 16:00 CET Prizes: The teams taking 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places will be awarded a free online lecture with top Grandmasters: Boris Gelfand – World Championship challenger (2012) Ruslan Ponomariov – FIDE World Champion (FIDE World Chess Championship 2002) Antoaneta Stefanova – Women’s World Champion (2004-2006) All players will receive electronic certificates. International Online Friendship Chess Team Tournament regulations (pdf) Contacts: Tournament DirectorNadezhda KravchukCellphone: + 375 (29) 2030906E-mail: blr_chess@tut.by