Legend of Chess: Carlsen moves atop the standings
World Champion Magnus Carlsen worked his magic to move to the top of the chess24 Legends of Chess leaderboard today as he racked up a stunning 3-0 win over Boris Gelfand. The Norwegian now has a perfect 12/12 points score having won all four of his matches in the $150,000 online super-tournament. Carlsen moved smoothly through the gears against Israel’s number 1 and even found time to pop out to the shops in between games. “I had more than half an hour, after the second game,” he joked in the post-match interview, after revealing he’d been off to buy groceries. In media interviews, Carlsen said: “I am not so concerned about who I will be facing in the final. I will have a good chance to win anyway.” In the other matches, China’s Ding Liren – who had been woefully out-of-form – picked up his first win by ruining Peter Svidler‘s impressive start with a final score of 2.5-1.5. Ian Nepomniachtchi and Vasyl Ivanchuk drew three consecutive games before the Russian triumphed in the last to win the match 2.5-1.5. Carlsen and Nepomniachtchi (who has also won all his matches but dropped one tournament point) are now strong favorites to make it through to the semis. Vladimir Kramnik beat Peter Leko in a similar fashion – a final game win allowed him to take the match 2.5-1.5. Anish Giri overcame the five-time world champ, Vishy Anand, in an Armageddon tiebreak after they drew all four of their regular games. Anand, who has struggled so far, ran out of time. Today was the fourth day of the round-robin battle for four places in the Legends of Chess semi-finals. The event, the fourth leg of the $1 million Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour, runs until August 5 and will carry a $150,000 prize fund. The winner will scoop a top prize of $45,000 and the last of the coveted spots in the tour’s Grand Final in August. Commentary is provided by Jan Gustafsson, Rustam Kasimdzhanov, and Tania Sachdev and special guests – including more legends to be announced later. The event is also be broadcast in 10 languages by chess24.com. Tournament rules and schedule The time control will be a rapid 15m + 10s from move 1 played in the chess24 Playzone. There will be two stages starting with a 10-player round-robin (July 21-29) with each round consisting of 4-game matches and Armageddon tiebreaks if needed. The top four will advance to the knockout semi-finals (July 31-August 2) and two will go through to the final (August 3-5). July 30 is a free day. All sessions will begin at 16:00 CEST. Highlights in English:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Rmx6IFrFYxYPrNhZVtxZbRWTiMAIICvc?usp=sharingNew files at around 23.00 CEST Rough edit highlights:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SItw6DwCyoTsZ0WiVAjw4BkVHEaGQFDI?usp=sharingNew files ready around 02.00 CEST FOR MORE INFORMATION:Leon Watsonleon@chessable.com+447786 078770
FIDE: birthplace and “parents”
Birthplace of FIDE. Photo: Google Maps This article was originally published on the FIDE Newsletter #10 (July 21, 2020). If you want to receive this biweekly publication directly in your inbox, please subscribe here. On July 20, 1924, FIDE was born in Paris. This is hardly news to any chess lover since the echoes of our birthday celebrations still resound on social media. But, where exactly was our Federation born, and who were its parents? FIDE was born at the Town Hall of the IX Arrondissement of Paris (6 Rue Drouot). This building is located a 2-min walk from the Richelieu-Drouot metro station and the Musée Grévin. As you probably know, that summer Paris was hosting the 1924 Summer Olympics, and a group of very determined men who truly loved chess decided to organize an important event alongside the Olympic Games: the first international team chess tournament, which is considered the first “unofficial” Chess Olympiad. This tournament was held at the “Hotel Majestic”, now known as “The Peninsula”. Among these men, there were two key figures. One was the secretary of the French Chess Federation, Pierre Vincent, who is described by “The Swiss Chess Review” as “the devoted and tireless secretary who was the initiator and soul of the tournament”. The other one was the world-champion-to-be, Alexander Alekhine, who back then was living in Paris under the status of “stateless refugee”. Pierre Vincent. Photo: January 1926 issue of L’Echiquier. On 20 July, the last day of the games, 15 delegates from all over the World signed the proclamation act of what was originally known as “Fédération Internationale des Échecs” or “FIE” (shortly after the acronym was changed to “FIDE”). These were the 15 founding signatories: Ignacio de Peñalver y Zamora (1857-1933) of Spain. Florenziano Marusi (1860-1936) of Milan, Italy. Francis Hooper Rawlins (1861-1925) of Bath, England. Steven Francis Smith (1861-1928) of British Columbia, Canada. Anatol A. Tscherpurnoff (1871-1942) of Helsinki, Finland. Marc Nicolet (1876-1942) of Biel, Switzerland. Jakov Ovadija (1878-1941) of Belgrade, Yugoslavia. Pierre Vincent (1878-1956) of France. Alexander Rueb (1882-1959) of The Hague, Holland. Istvan Abonyi (1886-1942) of Budapest, Hungary. Leon Willem Weltjens (1887-1975) of Anvers, Belgium. Ion Gudju (1897- 1988) of Bucharest, Romania. Karel Skalička (1896-1979) of Prague, Czechoslovakia. Izaak Towbin (1899-1941) of Korets, Poland. Roberto Gabriel Grau (1900-1944) of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Attendants to the first FIDE Congress, Paris 1924 Alexander Rueb, President of the Dutch Federation, was appointed as the first FIDE President. By profession, he was a lawyer at the Dutch Supreme Court and diplomat. As a player, he was a mere amateur, and not particularly strong, but he wrote books on endgame studies and he was a passionate collector of chess books (his collection is now in the library of the University of Amsterdam). Dr. Rueb served as president of Fide for 25 years, from 1924 to 1949, and you can find more information about his life in this article. Mikhail Botvinnik and Alexander Rueb
FIDE Online Olympiad Base Division: Preview
FIDE Online Olympiad starts on July 25 with matches in the Base Division, where 30 teams divided into three pools will fight for 12 seats in Division 4 – the next stage of this competition, scheduled for July 29-31. A total of 163 teams registered for the tournament, but the strongest squads will engage in a battle in a few weeks. Usually, at live Olympiads, the teams that can’t boast of the world’s best players in their lineups are not in the spotlight, as the general chess audience focuses on favorites. The unique format of FIDE Online Olympiad gives us a chance to take a closer look at the teams bereft of chess stars but united by a sincere love for the game and a strong desire to develop and make progress. The qualifying format of tournaments in divisions also allows us to make some predictions and try to figure out the teams that will advance to the next stage. Base Division consists of the teams that either have not performed well at the last live Olympiads or did not participate at all (five teams are making a debut at FIDE Online Olympiad: Bhutan, Cayman Islands, Grenada, Laos, and Saint Lucia). Four teams from each Base Division pool will qualify for Division 4. Pool A (Brunei Darussalam, Bhutan, Guam, Laos, Oman, Macau, Somalia, Pakistan, Fiji, Myanmar) Myanmar is a clear favorite in this group – with 3 IM (Wynn Zaw Htun, Nay Oo Kyaw Tun and Myint Han) in its ranks, this team will most likely take first place and a spot in Division 4, in which it is going to be one of the favorites as well. Myanmar chessplayers have been playing online a lot lately and this format suits this rapidly growing chess country very well. Brunei Darussalam also looks like a strong contender for a slot in Division 4 – all the players of this team headed by FM Azahari Aliuddin have FIDE rating. Since the two main favorites of group A will clash in the first round this match promises to be the centerpiece of the starting day. As for the teams taking two other qualification spots, it is a tough call. If we use rating as the main reference, then Fiji, Guam, and Oman are going to contest for third and four places in this pool. On the other hand, it is hard to evaluate the level of players who have not participated in international tournaments and have no FIDE rating. It might be very interesting to follow the Pakistani team – chess has just begun to grow in this country, but who knows, maybe the local federation already managed to find some future champions. Pool B (Mali, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lebanon, Qatar, Burundi, San Marino, Liberia, Gambia, Gabon, Bahrain) There is a clear favorite in this group as well – Lebanon put together a strong, balanced team headed IM Eid Fadi with two WFMs on women’s boards. Two neighboring countries Qatar and Bahrain also have a very good chance to qualify for Division 4. Both teams are staffed with experienced players. With a well-known GM Hicham Hamdouchi as a coach, Qatar is headed by IM Nezd Husein Aziz. Burundi turned in the best performance among all Base Division teams at the last Olympiad in Batumi and will try to prove that it was not a fluke. One of the two European teams in Base Division – San Marino – enlisted just six players and will have to play all matches without substitutions. Pool С (Cyprus, Cayman Islands, Mauritania, Aruba, Libya, Antigua & Barbuda, Haiti, Saint Lucia, Cape Verde, Grenada) In this most unpredictable group three teams – Cayman Islands, Saint Lucia, and Grenada (that registered at the last moment) – make debut in such a high-level competition. Most likely they will have a hard time fighting with, say, Haiti, on equal terms. Indeed, Haiti has no stars in its lineup but all the team members are quite experienced players with FIDE rating. Apart from Haiti, team Cyprus with the head of FIDE Social Commission FM Paris Klerides playing under its banner looks like a strong candidate to progress to Division 4. It will be interesting to watch Cape Verde in action – the highest-rated player in Base Division IM Ortega Amarelle Mariano competes for this island nation but his teammates lack chess experience. The matches in Base Division will be held over July 25-27 with three rounds of speed chess (15+5) played every day. FIDE.com and the official website of the FIDE Online Olympiad will be covering the competition daily. More information on the official website: https://olymp.fide.com
Legends of Chess: Carlsen and Svidler share top spot
Online chess saw a historic moment today as two of the world’s greatest ever players created a game full of finesse that was immediately branded a new “immortal”. India’s veteran former world champ Vishy Anand, 50, and fellow former title-holder Vladimir Kramnik, 45, astonished fans watching the $150,000 chess24 Legends of Chess with arguably the best game ever played in an online super-tournament. Former FIDE World Champion Rustam Kasimdzhanov said the thrilling see-saw encounter was “history in the making” and “a legend in itself” as the action unfolded. On social media, fans tuning into the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour event, broadcast online in 10 languages, said the epic was “truly the game of the year” and a “masterpiece”. However, the game – the first of today’s Round 3 – ended in heartbreak for the evergreen Anand as he missed his winning chance under time pressure and cracked. After being on the receiving end of Anand’s brilliance, Kramnik’s equally-inspired defensive play held out and he took the point. It didn’t stop fans and commentators alike proclaiming it one of Anand’s greatest games. International Master Tania Sachdev, speaking on chess24’s live show, said: “I don’t think this immoral was ruined by Vlad, I actually think Vlad contributed to making this because it takes two. Vishy showed excellent tactical ideas and big Vlag came up with immense resources.” The first-game loss was devastating for Anand who crumbled in game 2 and then couldn’t stop Kramnik getting the draw he needed to win the match 2.5-0.5. Kramnik said afterward: “It was fun and games in the first game, yeah.” Before he admitted: “I’m sure it was lost at some point.” He added: “I think it was difficult for Vishy to get back to his senses after the first game.” In the other matches, Russia’s number 1 Ian Nepomniachtchi wrapped it up in three games against Anish Giri with a 2.5-0.5 score. Peter Leko, another one of the veterans taking part in the battle of the generations event, put up a strong fight against Magnus Carlsen. But in game 4 the reigning World Champion turned the screw against Leko and broke through to secure the tie 2.5-1.5 and stand equal top of the leaderboard. Carlsen admitted afterward that Leko, who came out of retirement to play in the tournament, had caused him serious problems. “For sure,” Carlsen said. “Especially of course in the third game because I was quite lost so overall winning this in regulation [time] was a big, big ask.” The Norwegian was joined on 9 points by eight-time Russian champion Peter Svidler who continued his excellent form with a 2.5-1.5 win over Boris Gelfand. Meanwhile, at the other end of the table, Ding Liren‘s miserable streak continued as he was beaten 2.5-1.5 by Vasyl Ivanchuk. It was Ding’s third reverse in a row and puts him in serious danger of being knocked out. Today was the third day of the round-robin battle for four places in the Legends of Chess semi-finals. The event, the fourth leg of the $1 million Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour, runs until August 5 and will carry a $150,000 prize fund. The winner will scoop a top prize of $45,000 and the last of the coveted spots in the tour’s Grand Final in August. Tournament rules and schedule The time control will be a rapid 15m + 10s from move 1 played in the chess24 Playzone. There will be two stages starting with a 10-player round-robin (July 21-29) with each round consisting of 4-game matches and Armageddon tiebreaks if needed. The top four will advance to the knockout semi-finals (July 31-August 2) and two will go through to the final (August 3-5). July 30 is a free day. All sessions will begin at 16:00 CEST. Highlights in English:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Rmx6IFrFYxYPrNhZVtxZbRWTiMAIICvc?usp=sharingNew files at around 23.00 CEST Rough edit highlights:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SItw6DwCyoTsZ0WiVAjw4BkVHEaGQFDI?usp=sharingNew files ready around 02.00 CEST FOR MORE INFORMATION:Leon Watsonleon@chessable.com+447786 078770
163 countries take part in the Online Chess Olympiad
The International Chess Federation partners with Gazprom, Ugra, and Chess.com to launch the biggest online chess event of 2020 The International Chess Federation (FIDE), one of the oldest sporting bodies in the world, is about to launch its biggest online event since its foundation. Teams from 163 countries will battle over a virtual chessboard between July 24 and August 30 to win the first-ever Online Chess Olympiad. Each team will consist of six players, in a mixed format with a minimum of three female players and two junior players. The event is FIDE’s response to the postponement of the “traditional” Chess Olympiad, which was planned to take place between Moscow and Khanty-Mansiysk (Russia) in August 2020. Involving more than 3,000 participants, the event was rescheduled to 2021, shortly after the IOC had also announced the postponement of the Tokyo Olympic Games. With the support of Gazprom as General Partner, the government of the Ugra region as Official Partner, and Chess.com as the playing platform, the first FIDE Online Olympiad is the latest example of how chess has adapted to the coronavirus crisis. Despite having to cancel all official events played over the board -including flagship competitions like the Candidates Tournament and the World Championship match-, chess has thrived during the global lockdown. The initial ranking is topped by Russia, followed by China, USA, Armenia, and Ukraine. The Chinese, absolute winners of the 2018 Chess Olympiad both in the Open and Women’s sections, have also won the Online Nations Cup, played last May. Russia (2599) China (2595) USA (2535) Armenia (2453) Ukraine (2441) Azerbaijan (2434) India (2419) Germany (2419) Cuba (2413) Poland (2401)… 163 teams in total. Average rating including reserve players. The time control will be rapid, with 15 minutes + 5 seconds increment per move. The event will consist of two stages: the “Divisions stage”, and the Play-offs stage, from Round of 16 to the final. Since the Online Olympiad is a mixed event, for pairing purposes the ranking was established in accordance with the final standings of the last “Gaprindashvili Cup”, which combines the results in the open and women’s sections at the Batumi Chess Olympiad 2018. More information on the official website:https://olymp.fide.com
Chess Legends: Carlsen, Gelfand and Svidler lead after Round 2
Chess great Vishy Anand went toe-to-toe with World Champion Magnus Carlsen today before finally collapsing in round 2 of the chess24 Legends of Chess online super-tournament. The veteran former world title-holder, playing the man who took the crown off him seven years ago, battled hard but ultimately came up short in today’s marquee tie. Anand and Carlsen famously played World Championship matches in 2013 and 2014 in which the Norwegian came out on top. Carlsen has dominated world chess since. But any thoughts that an in-form Carlsen would brush aside the 50-year-old legend were quickly dispelled as Anand played solidly to hold for three consecutive draws. Carlsen, who is playing from a boat in the Mediterranean Sea, eventually broke through in the final game to pick up the maximum 3 tournament points. The World Champion is looking in ominous form having won both his opening matches in the $1 million Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour event which he entered on the back of winning the Chessable Masters earlier this month. World number 3 Ding Liren‘s woes continued as he looked badly out-of-form against Ian Nepomniachtchi. Ding, who has been dogged by connection problems in previous tournaments, went down 2.5-0.5. He has now lost 2/2 rounds while the Russian Nepomniachtchi has won both his matches. Boris Gelfand, the oldest in the field who downed Ding yesterday, claimed another scalp when he overpowered Vasyl Ivanchuk in the final game to take the match 2.5-1.5. Vladimir Kramnik, the man who dethroned Garry Kasparov to become the 14th World Chess Champion, blew a chance to take his match against Anish Giri to an Armageddon tiebreak. Giri, Netherlands number 1, then secured the draw he needed in their last game to take the match 2.5-1.5. The “Peter derby” match-up between 2004 world title challenger Peter Leko and eight-time Russian champ Peter Svidler also ended in a 2.5-1.5 win for Svidler. The Russian was not particularly happy with the level of play he demonstrated in two starting games but found consolation in two straight wins in games 3 and 4. The event, the fourth leg of the $1 million Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour, runs until August 5 and will carry a $150,000 prize fund. The winner will scoop a top prize of $45,000 and the last of the coveted spots in the tour’s Grand Final in August. Tournament rules and schedule The time control will be a rapid 15m + 10s from move 1 played in the chess24 Playzone. There will be two stages starting with a 10-player round-robin (July 21-29) with each round consisting of 4-game matches and Armageddon tiebreaks if needed. The top four will advance to the knockout semi-finals (July 31-August 2) and two will go through to the final (August 3-5). July 30 is a free day. All sessions will begin at 16:00 CEST. Highlights in English:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Rmx6IFrFYxYPrNhZVtxZbRWTiMAIICvc?usp=sharingNew files at around 23.00 CEST Rough edit highlights:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SItw6DwCyoTsZ0WiVAjw4BkVHEaGQFDI?usp=sharingNew files ready around 02.00 CEST FOR MORE INFORMATION:Leon Watsonleon@chessable.com+447786 078770
Gazprom becomes General Partner of FIDE Online Olympiad
On July 22, 2020, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and Gazprom PJSC signed a partnership agreement. Under this agreement, Gazprom becomes the General partner of the FIDE Online Chess Olympiad, the largest online chess event in 2020. FIDE Online Chess Olympiad will be held from July 25 to August 30, 2020. This massive tournament is a digital twin of the XLIV World Chess Olympiad, which was postponed to the summer, 2021 (due to the spread of coronavirus infection). Chess matches will be held on the world’s largest online platform Chess.com. 163 teams representing national chess federations – members of FIDE – will take part in the Olympiad. Commentary by chess experts will be conducted in multiple languages, including English, Russian, Spanish, German, French, and Chinese. The FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich: “Today, when the world is in the epicenter of a crisis caused by a pandemic, events whose mission is to unite people and give hope, are particularly significant. Over the past few months, we have seen explosive growth in interest in chess – tens, and perhaps hundreds of millions of people around the world play at a real or virtual chess board every day. We are very grateful to our partner, Gazprom, for supporting the FIDE Online Chess Olympiad and for the opportunity to bring together chess fans from all over the world at this truly global sporting event.” 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 is the biggest gas supplier to Europe. Gazprom is among the top three oil and gas condensate producers in the Russian Federation, ranking number one in Russia in terms of electricity generation among thermal generation companies and in terms of thermal energy generation. More info: www.gazprom.comContact: pr@gazprom.ru About FIDE Founded in Paris in 1924, the International Chess Federation was one of the first sports associations in history, and the first one to organize an official World Championship. With headquarters in Lausanne, FIDE is now one of the largest sporting bodies in the world, with 195 member federations. More info: www.fide.comContact: press@fide.com
Legends of Chess: Boris Gelfand thrashes world number 3
Golden oldie Boris Gelfand rolled back the years today as the chess world welcomed back a host of great players from the past in the chess24 Legends of Chess super-tournament. Gelfand, who was ranked world number 3 in 1990, thrashed the 2020 world number 3 Ding Liren in what was a stunning start to the $150,000 battle of the generations event. The 52-year-old, playing in his first major online tournament, was so dominant he signed off with a 13-move win as fans on social media proclaimed him the “OG” – or “Original Gangster”. Gelfand, nicknamed “Gandalf”, is the most senior in a field of top players from the past and present taking part in the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour event. He won game 2 after a first game draw and then came very close to beating his 27-year-old opponent outright with a game to spare. That disappointment didn’t stop him though. Game 4 saw Gelfand post his super-swift win to comprehensively end the match 3-1. “Of course it’s great to beat one of the best players in the world,” Gelfand said afterward. “To win against him it’s a really great feeling.” Vladimir Kramnik, the man who conquered Garry Kasparov to become the 14th World Chess Champion, also rattled his younger opponent, Russia’s number 1 Ian Nepomniachtchi, but ultimately fell short. Kramnik, aged 45, took the lead against the world number 4 in game 2 but Nepomniachtchi hit back in the next game. The match went to an Armageddon play-off which the younger player smoothly won. India’s greatest ever player Vishy Anand, 50, and eight-time Russian champ Peter Svidler drew three games in a row before Anand blundered in the final game to hand his opponent victory. Meanwhile, reigning World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen battered his rival Anish Giri, the Netherlands number 1. Carlsen won the second and fourth games to post a 3-1 score. In his interview afterward, Carlsen confirmed rumors that he has not played on land. “Yeah, I’m on a boat,” he said. “But I’m going back on Thursday so I’ll be playing from home.” Asked about his on-going Twitter exchanges with Giri, Carlsen added: “If [Giri] feels offended by something that wasn’t supposed to happen. It was always friendly banter to me. “I do take pretty serious exception to the notion there’s a PR campaign against him because Team Magnus sees him as a serious threat…” The legends match-up between 2004 world title challenger Peter Leko and Vasyl “Chucky” Ivanchuk finished all square and went to an Armageddon play-off with the Hungarian winning. The event, the fourth leg of the $1 million Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour, runs until August 5 and will carry a $150,000 prize fund. The winner will scoop a top prize of $45,000 and the last of the coveted spots in the tour’s Grand Final in August. Carlsen, Anand and Kramnik are the last three undisputed world champions together in one tournament. Anand is the man Carlsen wrestled his world title from seven years ago, while Kramnik ushered in a new era in chess in 2000. Commentary is provided by Jan Gustafsson, Rustam Kasimdzhanov, and Tania Sachdev and special guests – including more legends to be announced later. The event is also be broadcast in 10 languages by chess24.com. The official tournament social media hashtag is #ChessLegends. Tournament rules and schedule The time control will be a rapid 15m + 10s from move 1 played in the chess24 Playzone. There will be two stages starting with a 10-player round-robin (July 21-29) with each round consisting of 4-game matches and Armageddon tiebreaks if needed. The top four will advance to the knockout semi-finals (July 31-August 2) and two will go through to the final (August 3-5). July 30 is a free day. All sessions will begin at 16:00 CEST. Highlights in English:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Rmx6IFrFYxYPrNhZVtxZbRWTiMAIICvc?usp=sharingNew files at around 23.00 CEST Rough edit highlights:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SItw6DwCyoTsZ0WiVAjw4BkVHEaGQFDI?usp=sharingNew files ready around 02.00 CEST FOR MORE INFORMATION:Leon Watsonleon@chessable.com+447786 078770
International Chess Day celebrated around the world
The recognition by the United Nations, approved in December 2019, has been the final endorsement to the “International Chess Day”, which is now a more than established tradition. This year, FIDE’s campaign consisted of asking chess fans from all around the world to teach one person how to play chess, with the aim to bring new players to the game. The idea received a warm welcome, especially among our friends in Africa and the Americas, and we are confident that there are many more chess players today than a few days ago. A beautiful initiative was the one launched by the Chess Club Hammam-Lif, in Tunisia. Starting on Sunday, they decided to celebrate International Chess Day by offering chess lessons to passers-by at the Hammam-Lif train station, in collaboration with the Tunisian National Railways Company. Another fine initiative was the one by Belarus Chess Federation. In line with FIDE’s campaign, they invited young football players from the Dynamo Brest Academy, and hockey players from BFSO “Dynamo”, to receive a chess course. These young sportsmen learned the importance of concentration, strategic thinking, and mental discipline. The coach also stressed the value of taking responsibility for the decisions they make. We hope they can transfer this knowledge to their daily life and the playing field! New Zeland Chess Federation celebrated International chess day by staging a 6-game blitz match between former NZ Chess Champions FM’s Ewen Green & Martin Dreyer. Following the completion of the ChessAgainstCovid charity drive, everyone involved went back to the humdrum of their lives for a while and one week prior to International Chess Day, GM Kevin Goh roused up the team with the idea of an International Chess Day event for Singaporeans or those who are based in Singapore. To spice things up, he cajoled his friends to sponsor the event and in a good time. The list of prizes included vouchers on popular chess education Chessmood platform, premium Chess24 membership, Modern Chess Master Class Workshop, and various chess books. And to top it all, he revealed that FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich would grace the event with an appearance on livestream and also, FIDE Director GM Emil Sutovsky would conduct an interactive Q&A session with viewers. The entries came fast and furious. In the space of 2 days, more than 100 applications were submitted. Out of the 109 participants, there were 4 IMs, 1 WGM, 7 FMs as many of the country’s top juniors showing up to test their online blitz skills against fellow Singaporeans. So on International Chess Day (20th July 2020) at 8 pm, the Arena 3 minute (no increment) blitz event began. After two hours of intense arena blitzing (and berserk-ing), it was WGM Gong Qianyun who emerged the champion with 75 points. She had completed 6 hours of chess coaching before the event and said she was ‘dying’ during the games…but that didn’t stop her from besting the other 108 opponents. Second place went to youngster Ethan Poh who had led for most of the event. Third on the virtual podium was clinched by IM Dr. Hsu Li Yang, who scored the highest percentage win rate of 87% (however, he did not try for berserk bonus points). The Associate professor is now the Vice Dean (Global Health) at NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health. The event was covered on livestream by GM Kevin Goh and IM Irene Sukandar: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/685207349 GM Emil Sutovsky, Director General of FIDE explained the importance of keeping the global chess community engaged during this period. He also conducted an interactive Q&A session and spoke on many important topics such as self-improvement in chess, chess in schools as well as The FIDE Online Olympiad. FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich appeared on livestream and greeted all the participants: “On the part of FIDE, I’m glad to greet all players in Singapore and surrounding countries in the whole region. What we do now…all kinds of online chess activities is another indication that we are one family, we are working together and we are connected around chess and inside chess. We all love this game and are ready to contribute, a lot, each of us in our own positions to contribute to the development of chess and to the promotion of the game. Also, I believe that it is extremely important (to remember) that chess is not as developed as in some parts of Europe, Russia, the United States, China, and India. Also, other countries are starting to engage in important activities to raise the popularity of chess. One of the most important instruments here is educational chess and I very much hope that chess be promoted into schools in all countries in South East Asia, including Singapore and that will improve the educational abilities of kids. Chess can teach them how to think logically and strategically, how to win and lose with pride and respect to your partner. Also, it is vital to teaching the important things that chess can do for kids and juniors. Once again, thank you for all your efforts and please continue playing chess and enjoy.” A lot of people celebrated International Chess Day in its own way, and if you check the hashtag #InternationalChessDay (or #WorldChessDay) you will find plenty of interesting posts. The day was massively followed by museums, libraries, private schools, and radio stations from all over the world. It became one of the hottest “trending topics” of the day in several countries, so some big companies tried to catch the wave and used the hashtag to gain visibility for their brand. Here is a compilation of the nicest posts:
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United Nations: “Chess for recovering better” International Chess Day Letter by the IOC President Thomas Bach Anna Ushenina wins the Women’s Speed Chess Championship Anniversaries READ NEWSLETTER