Rating Analytics: USA dominates America’s top 10
Kaspars Migla is the creator and founder of chessratings.top. In his column, he analyzes monthly FIDE standard rating changes, career-high ratings, rating distribution by country, continent, region, and other rating-related statistics. For the first time in the history of FIDE rating calculation and probably for the first time ever America’s top-10 consists exclusively of the US players. By contrast, in the European top-10, six countries are represented, in Asia – 4; in Africa – 3. The last non-US man standing in America’s top-10 had been a GM from Peru Jorge Cori (2651) but after losing 20 rating points last month he slid down from 8th to 11th place in the list. The leading positions in America (which includes 38 federations) are held by Fabiano Caruana (2822), Leinier Dominguez Perez (2762), Wesley So (2760), Hikaru Nakamura (2741) and Jeffery Xiong (2712). You can see a full list here. The chess players from the U.S. came to the fore in America in 2010, when Hikaru Nakamura overtook Leinier Dominguez Perez who represented Cuba back then. Two factors brought about the U.S. domination: firstly, several elite grandmasters (first of all Fabiano Caruana and Wesley So) changed federation and now are playing under the U.S. banner; secondly, meteoric rise of its own young talents. For example, Jeffery Xiong has been steadily improving his rating for eight months in a row, an achievement comparable with a breakthrough by Alireza Firouzja (Iran, 2720). The young Iranian picked 102 rating points since the beginning of the year, which is the best result among top-100. This November Alireza once again surpassed his best rating, mounting to 29th position (among active players). Five players rated over 2700 reached their personal best this November. Alongside with Xiong and Firouzja, this quintet includes Nikita Vitiugov (Russia, 2751), Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Poland, 2748), and Kirill Alekseenko (Russia, 2715). Sixteen players rated 2600 and above (with seven juniors among them) peaked in November 2019. Evgeny Shtembuliak (Ukraine, 2600) cleared this rating bar thanks to his outstanding performance in the World Junior Championship U20 in which he took the title. When talking about women, the result by IM Dinara Saduakassova (Kazakhstan, 2505) in the FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss on the Isle of Man is definitely worth mentioning, as she broke her own record and reached grandmaster rating. A chess player from Denmark Gert Sogaard Kristensen (1705) showed the biggest rating gain in November – it took him three tournaments in his home country to earn 301 points. An FM Eugene Yanayt (USA, 2216) distinguished himself by playing the greatest number of games (41) in six tournaments the same month. (FIDE.com – Yanayt has not played chess for a while focusing on poker, where he became one of the best in the world in 2-7 triple draw lowball (one of poker variants). It remains to be seen, whether this great number of games means Eugene’s return to chess.) Among GMs, Yu Yangyi (China, 2753) has the most games, under his belt, namely 27, which is very unusual for a player from top-50. Nevertheless, all 27 games were played in very prestigious competitions – 16 in FIDE World Cup 2019 and 11 in FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss. Yuriy Kuzubov (Ukraine, 2652) is second with 25 games; Russian GMs Igor Naumkin (2400) and Ernesto Inarkiev (2665) are tied for the third with 24 games each. Chess remains a very popular game around the world. As many as 2219 new players with classical rating have been registered in November. The countries with the greatest increase are India (375 people), Germany (131), Russia (119), Iran (116) and France (96). The list of leaders over the last twelve months includes India (2893 people), Russia (2359), Spain (1789), Iran (1694), France (1642) and Germany (1424). Europe top-10 (active players) 1. GM Carlsen, Magnus (NOR) 28702. GM Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime (FRA) 27773. GM Giri, Anish (NED) 27764. GM Nepomniachtchi, Ian (RUS) 27735. GM Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar (AZE) 27726. GM Aronian, Levon (ARM) 27727. GM Radjabov, Teimour (AZE) 27678. GM Grischuk, Alexander (RUS) 27649. GM Karjakin, Sergey (RUS) 275410. GM Kramnik, Vladimir (RUS) 2753 Asia top-10 (active players) 1. GM Ding, Liren (CHN) 28012. GM Anand, Viswanathan (IND) 27573. GM Yu, Yangyi (CHN) 27534. GM Wang, Hao (CHN) 27525. GM Harikrishna, Pentala (IND) 27316. GM Wei, Yi (CHN) 27247. GM Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi (IND) 27228. GM Firouzja, Alireza (IRI) 27209. GM Le, Quang Liem (VIE) 271310. GM Bu, Xiangzhi (CHN) 2705 America top-10 (active players) 1. GM Caruana, Fabiano (USA) 28222. GM Dominguez Perez, Leinier (USA) 27623. GM So, Wesley (USA) 27604. GM Nakamura, Hikaru (USA) 27415. GM Xiong, Jeffery (USA) 27126. GM Kamsky, Gata (USA) 26847. GM Shankland, Sam (USA) 26798. GM Robson, Ray (USA) 26739. GM Swiercz, Dariusz (USA) 265910. GM Sevian, Samuel (USA) 2657 Africa Top 10 (active players) 1. GM Amin, Bassem (EGY) 26852. GM Adly, Ahmed (EGY) 26073. GM Hamdouchi, Hicham (MAR) 25624. GM Bellahcene,Bilel (ALG) 25395. GM Shoker, Samy (EGY) 25046. IM Arab, Adlane (ALG) 24857. GM Haddouche, Mohamed (ALG) 24838. GM Fawzy, Adham (EGY) 24789. IM Ezat, Mohamed (EGY) 245210-11. GM Rizouk, Aimen (ALG) 243910-11. IM Rakotomaharo, Fy Antenaina (MAD, 2439)
Moscow will host the King Salman World Rapid & Blitz Championships 2019
Rules for the FIDE Open World Rapid Championship & FIDE Open World Blitz Championship Rules for the FIDE Women’s World Rapid Championship & FIDE Women’s World Blitz Championship FIDE is pleased to announce the dates and venue of the King Salman World Rapid & Blitz Championships-2019. According to the 3-year contract signed in 2017, the company Sela Sport Company Limited (acting for and on behalf of the General Sports Authority of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) is a partner of FIDE and the owner of the rights to the World Rapid & Blitz Championships 2017-2019. This year, according to the decision of the organizers, the tournament will be hosted in Moscow from 25 to 30 of December 2019. Tournament schedule: December 25 — Opening CeremonyDecember 26-28 — Rapid competitionDecember 29-30 — Blitz competition FIDE is proud to note that the joint efforts of the parties secured a prize fund of 1 million US dollars for this event. The organizer will provide full board accommodation in a standard room (4-star hotel minimum), from December 25th to 31st 2019, to the players who meet the following criteria: Open competition Players rated at least 2550 in any of the FIDE rating lists (Standard, Rapid or Blitz) from January 1st to December 1st, 2019. Women’s competition Players rated at least 2250 in any of the FIDE rating lists (Standard, Rapid or Blitz) from January 1st to December 1st, 2019. VISA SUPPORT A participant can apply for a visa both in his home country and abroad. The main condition is to apply for a Russian visa only in official institutions such as the Consular Section of the Russian Embassy or Consulate-General. Other institutions (including an official Visa Application Center) and travel agencies offering their services will have no access to the information regarding the King Salman World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships 2019. All the embassies and consulates have been informed about the Championship by a circular letter of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They are ready to assist players with applying for a visa in a time pressure situation. When applying for a Russian visa, alongside with a complete set of documents requested by the Embassy, a participant shall provide the official invitation from the Chess Federation of Russia. This invitation is the main basis for issuing a visa that substitutes for a telex/reference number. Any accredited participant, who needs a visa to enter Russia, should download the visa invitation letter through the registration system. The visa application can start on December 3.
Alexander Grischuk wins FIDE Grand Prix in Hamburg
Alexander Grischuk is the winner of the FIDE Grand Prix in Hamburg. The 36-year-old Russian grandmaster decided the tiebreak of the finals against Jan-Krzysztof Duda in his favor and claimed the victory in the third leg of the Grand Prix series 2019. With this win, Grischuk virtually booked his ticket for the Candidates Tournament which will take place in Yekaterinburg, Russia from March 15 to April 5, 2020. “Now it will be very pleasant for me to watch the final event. Of course, I wish luck to everyone who can still qualify, to “Shakh” Mamedyarov, to Nepomniachtchi and Maxime. But not too much luck to Maxime cause I don’t want him to overtake me. I can not be rooting against myself”, said Grischuk shortly after his victory. On the last day, full of exciting games played with short time control, Grischuk and Duda needed four rapid games to determine the winner. Duda started the first rapid game of the day with the English Opening. The critical position arose after his 12th move when he attacked the black pawn on e4. Grischuk decided to sacrifice this pawn and go for an attack on the kingside. That proved to be the wrong idea. Soon, Duda had complete control over the center, the bishop pair and an extra pawn. With time running down the only question remaining was if Duda could manage to convert his decisive advantage to a full point. He did and did it convincingly. In the endgame, he created a passed pawn on the ‘c’-file and combined it with a mating attack on the back rank. Grischuk struck back immediately in the second rapid game. He started with some excellent opening play in a well-known-line of the Queen’s Indian Defence, and after only 17 moves, he was a pawn up. Duda’s situation soon became desperate. Grischuk penetrated with his queen into black’s back rank and created irrefutable threats. In the third rapid game, Grischuk started again with the white pieces and took the lead. This time Duda chose the Slav Defence, but once again he faced a position which he wasn’t really familiar with. He tried to clear the situation in the center, but Grischuk found a fantastic pawn sacrifice which yielded him a strong initiative thanks to his active pieces and development advantage. Duda tried to find shelter for his king on the queenside, but this allowed Grischuk to launch a devastating attack. He broke through black’s defense and eventually won a full rook. Duda kept fighting as both players were short on time, but the outcome of the game was never in doubt. In the fourth and final rapid game, Duda started with 1.e4 and tried to turn the tables with the Four Knights Game. Both players spent most of their available time of ten minutes on the opening moves. Duda seemed to have a slight initiative in the middlegame, but Grischuk found a brilliant maneuver to centralize his knight on the e4 square. Duda exchanged this knight but consequently transformed into a middlegame with opposite-colored bishops wherein Black had the better minor piece. As usual, Duda fought bravely, but this time he was only able to get away with half a point by offering a draw in a hopeless position. Both players praised each other after the dramatic fight, and Grischuk drew an interesting comparison: “First I want to thank Jan-Krzysztof for this incredible match. I enjoyed every moment of each game all three days. All the games were very tense, and it was a huge fight with no short draws or anything. I was getting a feeling that Jan plays a little bit like an old computer, not exactly Stockfish, but like some Fritz without an opening database, without an opening book, because every game – White/Black – he plays not his best in the opening but then playing incredibly. I remember when I was young, the computers were not as strong, and you could try to compete with them, but still, they were beating you. And I was getting the same feeling today, but then twice I got just too much of an advantage to save even for Fritz or for Jan.” Even after losing against Grischuk, Duda had no reason to be dissatisfied with his performance in Hamburg: “First of all I want to congratulate my opponent. My openings didn’t work out, especially with Black, I think. The second game was terrible because I just blundered a pawn in the opening”. Asked about his overall performance, he replied: “My play here was great. I didn’t expect to get into the final, I didn’t even expect to get into the third round because I found Nepomniachtchi and Yu Yangyi to be the most and probably most unpleasant opponents for me because I haven’t won a single game in classical chess against both of them, but I was lucky that they both blundered a game actually in one move.” Final, tiebreak result: Alexander Grischuk – Jan-Krzysztof Duda 2,5-1,5 Modus for the tiebreak: Two 25+10 rapid games are played. If still tied, there are two 10+10 games, then two 5+3. Finally, a single Armageddon game is played, where White has 5 minutes to Black’s 4 (with a 2-second increment from move 61), but Black wins the match with a draw. Standings FIDE Grand Prix 2019 (after 3 of 4 legs) In principle, only three players are left with a chance to qualify via the FIDE Grand Prix for the Candidates besides Alexander Grischuk. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Ian Nepomniachtchi will most probably compete for the second ticket in Jerusalem with the Frenchman starting with the best prospects. Official website: https://worldchess.com FIDE Press officer for the event: Georgios Souleidis Official Photographer: Valeria Gordienko World Chess contact: media@worldchess.com Photo: Valeria Gordienko, Niki Riga Photos are available for the press from the following link to Dropbox. Leading partners supporting the FIDE World Chess Grand Prix Series 2019 include: Algorand as the Exclusive Blockchain PartnerPhosAgro as the Official Strategic PartnerKaspersky as the Official Cybersecurity PartnerPella Sietas Shipyard as Official PartnerPrytek as the Technology Transfer Partner
Obiettivo Risarcimento and Nona take European Club Cup
A record number of teams, 66 in the open and 14 in women’s sections participated in the European Club Cup that concluded in Ulcinj, Montenegro. The winners of the competition in the hotel complex Holiday Villages earned the titles of European club champions. In the open section Obiettivo Risarcimento Padova rolled up a 100% score – the Italian team staffed with experienced grandmasters from England, Hungary and Spain and two local players on the bottom boards dominated the competition winning all seven matches. Due to the short distance (only 7 rounds) and by the twist of the tournament fortune AVE Novy Bor avoided a clash with the champion. The team from the Czech Republic lost just two matchpoints and became second. The defending champion Mednyi Vsadnik from Russia suffered a defeat in the key penultimate round match with Obiettivo Risarcimento and finished third. The rating-favorite of the event and the champion of 2016 Alkaloid lost to both Obiettivo Risarcimento and Mednyi Vsadnik and failed to make it into the top-3. In the women’s section, the favorites lived up to their reputation by occupying the winner’s podium, although in an order different than the ratings list would suggest. A team from Georgia Nona (named after legendary Nona Gaprindashvili) started with two draws but then won four matches in a row, including the encounters with its main competitors Kyiv Chess Federation and Cercle d’Echecs Monte Carlo, and deservedly took the title. Final standings Open section: 1. Obiettivo Risarcimento Padova (ITA) – 142. AVE Novy Bor (CZE) – 123. Mednyi Vsadnik (RUS) – 114. Alkaloid (MKD) – 105. Moscow Chess Team (RUS) – 106. Valerenga (NOR) – 107. Molodezka (RUS) – 108. Vugar Gashimov (AZE) – 109. Koge SK (DEN) – 1010. Primorsky District (RUS) – 10 Women’s section: 1. Nona (GEO) – 112. Kyiv Chess Federation (UKR) – 103. Cercle d`Echecs Monte Carlo (MNC) – 104. Odlar Yurdu (AZE) – 95. Ugra (RUS) – 8 Official site
FIDE Grand Prix Hamburg: Grischuk pushes but Duda holds
Once again, the spectators at the FIDE Grand Prix in Hamburg – and of course around the world – will be treated to one final day full of nailbiting rapid and blitz chess. The finalists, Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Alexander Grischuk put up an intense fight in the second round of the mini-match today, with the Russian player pushing for a win with the black pieces, but Duda defending like a lion and finally saving the half point. The Consul General of the Russian Federation in Hamburg, Andrei Sharashkin, ceremonially opened the second game of the final between Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Alexander Grischuk. Duda started the fight with 1.d4 but was obviously not prepared for the line of the Queen´s Gambit Declined which appeared on the board. Already after Grischuk’s 6th move, he had spent 18 minutes. And despite the long think, he only managed to slide into a position which is considered to be harmless for Black. Ten moves later, the players had reached a position with an isolated pawn on d5. As for white, he was still to develop his kingside and bring his king to safety by castling. Grischuk used about 30 minutes to find the critical continuation and lashed out with a pawn sacrifice at the end of it. Soon, he planted his light-squared bishop on d7, with the idea of exploiting White’s weak light squares on the queenside. The 21-year-old Polish grandmaster realized that he was in trouble and sank into deep thought. He took the pawn on d5 and, one move later, found the only defense to stay in the game. And then it was Grischuk’s turn to go into the think tank. He spent as many as 30 minutes in order to find the best continuation to keep the initiative going. As the game heated up, both players were down to 20 minutes after 13 moves. It was clear that time trouble might be a decisive factor. In a highly tactical position, Grischuk continued the attack with a piece sacrifice. Duda stood on the edge of the precipice but showed amazing defensive skills, despite being short on time. Grischuk was unable to find anything better than getting his piece back and transposing into a slightly better endgame. Both grandmasters played on with a queen and a rook. Grischuk had a passed pawn on the ‘b’-file to boast of. But in the end, this proved to be only a symbolical advantage. Duda fought his way out and drew the game. Even after the game, both players were still absorbed by this dramatic battle. Grischuk gave his impression of it in his trademark style: “Maybe a better calculator like Maxime Vachier-Lagrave would have found something, but he would not get this position because he doesn’t play the Queen’s Gambit, which is the most aggressive opening”. Final, game 2 result: Jan-Krzysztof Duda – Alexander Grischuk 1/2-1/2 The tiebreak of the final will start on Sunday at 15:00 (CET) with Duda having the white pieces in the first rapid game. Modus for the tiebreak:Two 25+10 rapid games are played. If still tied, there are two 10+10 games, then two 5+3. Finally, a single Armageddon game is played, where White has 5 minutes to Black’s 4 (with a 2-second increment from move 61), but Black wins the match with a draw. Official website and LIVE broadcast: https://worldchess.com FIDE Press officer for the event: Georgios Souleidis Official Photographer: Valeria Gordienko World Chess contact: media@worldchess.com Photos are available for the press from the following link to Dropbox. Leading partners supporting the FIDE World Chess Grand Prix Series 2019 include: Algorand as the Exclusive Blockchain PartnerPhosAgro as the Official Strategic PartnerKaspersky as the Official Cybersecurity PartnerPella Sietas Shipyard as Official PartnerPrytek as the Technology Transfer Partner
FIDE Grand Prix Hamburg: Final starts with a draw
The FIDE Grand Prix in Hamburg has reached the home stretch. After starting the event with 16 grandmasters, only Alexander Grischuk and Jan-Krzysztof Duda have remained to determine the winner and runner-up of the third leg of the series. Grischuk would like to increase his lead in the Grand Prix by as much as possible since this Hamburg leg will be his last one in the series. The 36-year-old grandmaster has collected 17 points so far, but with Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (13 points), Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (10 points) and Ian Nepomniachtchi (9 points), there are three players left who could theoretically surpass him in the last instalment of the series in Jerusalem. In the first game of the final, the German champion under 10 Alissa Wartenberg made the first move. For the first encounter in classical chess between these two players, Grischuk decided to open the game with 1.d4. Duda responded with the Queen’s Indian Defence, which is one of his favourite openings. The opponents followed one of the main lines where Grischuk seemed better prepared. By moving his rook to c2 on move 13, he adopted an idea of Ivan Cheparinov which the Bulgarian grandmaster played three weeks ago at the Chess.com FIDE Grand Swiss on the Isle of Man. This, clearly, came as a surprise for the 21-year-old Polish player who thought for more than 50 minutes for his next two moves. Grischuk returned the favour and sank into deep thought. He used 47 minutes for his next two moves to find a forced sequence that yielded him a better position. He managed to resolve the situation in the centre and ruin black’s kingside pawn structure. At this point, it was clear that both players would suffer severe clock pressure. Time trouble became more evident when less than four minutes remained and the time control mark was still 13 moves away. White still held an advantage due to a better pawn structure and a strong knight, but Black activated all of his heavy pieces on the open e-file. Duda’s counterplay seemed to be sufficient to distract Grischuk. Shortly before time control on move 40, Alexander had the chance to get a clear advantage with a strong knight move 35.Ne5. Instead, he exchanged the queens and forced an endgame where Black was a pawn down but had enough counterplay thanks to his active rooks. After the time control, Grischuk spent 25 minutes evaluating the situation on the board. As there was no advantage on the horizon, he forced matters by exchanging a rook and simplifying the position. Duda also didn’t see a path leading to advantage, so the players agreed to a draw after 46 moves in an equal rook endgame. Final, game 1 result:Alexander Grischuk – Jan-Krzysztof Duda 1/2-1/2 Game 2 of the final will start on Saturday at 15:00 (CET). Official website and LIVE broadcast: https://worldchess.com FIDE Press officer for the event: Georgios Souleidis Official Photographer: Valeria Gordienko World Chess contact: media@worldchess.com Photos are available for the press via the following link to Dropbox. Leading partners supporting the FIDE World Chess Grand Prix Series 2019 include: Algorand as the Exclusive Blockchain PartnerPhosAgro as the Official Strategic PartnerKaspersky as the Official Cybersecurity PartnerPella Sietas Shipyard as Official PartnerPrytek as the Technology Transfer Partner
FIDE Book of the Year 2018 shortlist
After great deliberation and an anonymous vote, the panel of judges narrowed down a longlist and announced a shortlist for the FIDE Book of the Year 2018 award. Three books are running for the prestigious award (in random order): The Complete Manual of Positional Chess (by Konstantin Sakaev and Konstantin Landa) This book co-authored by two Grandmasters focuses on numerous positional concepts such as quick development, fighting for the center, material balance, etc. Together with the Candidates: Budapest 1950 to Berlin 2018 (by Alexey Kuzmin) The book presents the history of Candidates tournaments and matches and offers many tests position taken from these competitions. Applying Logic in Chess (by Erik Kislik) In his work Erik Kislik proves that many important topics such as pawn-structure, material imbalance, compensation, etc., can be tackled applying logic. Unlike other awards by FIDE Trainers’ Commission, the Averbakh/Boleslavsky Award for Book of the Year is judged separately. The panel includes three judges: Nigel Short, Artur Jussupow, and the World’s oldest living grandmaster, Yuri Averbakh. “We congratulate the finalists! The competition level was very high, all nine books have their merits”, Artur Jussupow said. The judges hope to complete their work by the end of November and announce the winner.
Call for Bids: FIDE World Chess Championships 2021
CALL FOR BIDS FIDE WORLD CHESS CHAMPIONSHIPS 2021 Deadline 29th November 2019 1. World Junior Chess Championship 2021 2. World Youth U16 Chess Olympiad 20213. World Youth (U14, U16 & U18) Chess Championships 2021 (Africa) 4. World Cadets (U08, U10 & U12) Chess Championships 2021 (Africa) 5. World Youth & Cadets Rapid & Blitz Chess Championships 2021 Remarks: – World School Chess Championships 2021 awarded to Halkidiki, Greece (2-May-2021/11-May-2021) at 2018 2nd quarter Presidential Board 9-10 July 2018 Bucharest, Romania.– With effect from 1st January 2013, a bid for any FIDE Competitions onwards shall include the name of a FIDE licensed International Organizer.– All bids should be submitted by the due date in sealed envelope or scanned documents to the FIDE Secretariat, postal address: Avenue de Rhodanie 54, 1007 Lausanne, Switzerland / Email: office@fide.com by 29th November 2019, 16:00 CET (UTC/GMT + 1 hour).– Each bid should be accompanied with a bid fee. 2.000 Euro – World Youth & Cadets Chess Championships 1.000 Euro – World Junior Chess Championship 500 Euro – All other FIDE World Chess Championships Bid Fees are not refundable. Bid fees should be paid the latest by 6th December 2019 to the FIDE bank account (free of charges) or to be enclosed in the bid envelope. FIDE Bank Details:ACCOUNT NAME: FEDERATION INTERNATIONALE DES ECHECSBANK NAME: CAIXABANK S.ABANK ADDRESS: AV. DIAGONAL, 621-629, 0828 BARCELONABIC/CODE SWIFT: CAIXESBBXXXIBAN: ES32 2100 0555 3107 0028 5124 · All bidders must fill the bid form and the new bid from annex completely. · Price of hotels, details about the accommodation and tournament hall must be written in the bid.· FIDE EVE will make inspections. There will be a second inspection prior 2 to 4 months to awarded organization.· FIDE Officials -Appeals Committee, Chief Arbiter, Deputy Arbiter(s)- will be decided and appointed by FIDE by taking proposal of organizers.· FIDE Technical Delegate will be appointed by FIDE EVE.· The bid form and new added annex can be downloaded here. Bid Form Bid Form Annex
FIDE Grand Prix Hamburg: Duda advances into the final
Having concluded the classical leg of their semi-final match at the Hamburg FIDE Grand Prix with two draws, Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Daniil Dubov had to fight it out once again on Wednesday to determine a winner who will meet Alexander Grischuk in the final. The modus of the tiebreak at the FIDE Grand Prix demands two rapid games with the time control of 25 minutes + 10 seconds increment as the first step. Game 1 saw Duda playing with white pieces. The reaction to his 1.e4 was the Kalashnikov variation of the Sicilian Defence. Dubov chose a sideline and played much faster than his opponent. Before move 20, the players had exchanged queens and several minor pieces to reach an equal endgame with a rook and a light-squared bishop respectively. But while the position looked stable, Dubov stirred things up by offering a pawn on his twenty-fourth move. Perhaps, it was best for Duda to avoid taking the pawn, but he decided to take the risk. In turn, the black forces immediately sprang into action. A passed pawn soon appeared on the ‘e’ file, and the active black pieces fully backed up its advance. Duda struggled to keep this pawn under control and ended up resigning on the 54th move. The Polish GM needed a win in the second game to level the score. With the black pieces, he opted for the Modern Defence and got an unbalanced position. In contrast to the first game, the players reached a closed setup in the middlegame which gave Duda chances to fight for the win. Dubov used his space advantage to launch a kingside attack, whereas Duda obtained a long-lasting edge on the other side of the board. The position soon became very complex, and with time running down both grandmasters failed to find the best continuations. After a bit more than 40 moves, time-trouble was making an even bigger impact on the evaluation of the position. First, Duda reached a winning position, but an oversight on his part allowed an equal rook endgame. Then, it was Dubov’s turn to blunder. He permitted the black king to penetrate into his camp and to get to his key b2-pawn. Dubov’s loss meant that the tiebreak was to continue. Another mini-match of two further rapid games with an even faster time control of 10 minutes + 10 seconds soon began. The first game was a short and painless affair. Dubov offered a draw after only twelve moves, and Duda accepted it. The second game, however, was a completely different story. Duda chose the Torre Attack and went out for the K.O. For the most part, the Polish grandmaster had the upper hand but Dubov, again, was playing faster. At some point, Daniil silently offered a draw by repetition, but Jan-Krzysztof was resolved to continue the fight. With only two minutes on the clock, Duda managed to force a better rook endgame and finally overcame the resistance of his opponent. Semi-final, tiebreak results:Jan-Krzysztof Duda – Daniil Dubov 2,5-1,5 Modus for the tiebreak:Two 25+10 rapid games are played. If still tied, there are two 10+10 games, then two 5+3. Finally, a single Armageddon game is played, where White has 5 minutes to Black’s 4 (with a 2-second increment from move 61), but Black wins the match with a draw Official website and LIVE broadcast: https://worldchess.com FIDE Press officer for the event: Georgios Souleidis Official Photographer: Valeria Gordienko World Chess contact: media@worldchess.com Photos are available for the press via the following link to Dropbox. Leading partners supporting the FIDE World Chess Grand Prix Series 2019 include: Algorand as the Exclusive Blockchain PartnerPhosAgro as the Official Strategic PartnerKaspersky as the Official Cybersecurity PartnerPella Sietas Shipyard as Official PartnerPrytek as the Technology Transfer Partner
Judit Polgar inspires ‘Chess and Female Empowerment’ conference
The strongest female chess player of all time, Judit Polgar, will be the inspirational headline speaker at the 7th London Chess and Education Conference (November 30-December 1, at the Irish Cultural Centre, Hammersmith). The conference, a regular feature of the festival of events during the London Chess Classic, will feature a stellar line-up of expert speakers from around the world and focus on the ground-breaking theme ‘Chess and Female Empowerment.’ Conference participants from up to 40 countries, including female and male chess players, educators and organisers, are expected to offer insights on how to improve the gender balance in chess and examine initiatives to make the game more welcoming and accessible to women and girls at all levels. Judit, an Honorary FIDE Vice-President, will relate how her experiences – breaking through to the world top 10 while overcoming obstacles to female participation in professional chess, and promoting chess for all in her home country of Hungary and around the world – can inspire new generations of female players to excel and compete on equal terms with their male counterparts. Other keynote speakers at the conference will include US Chess Federation Executive Director Carol Meyer and Grandmaster Viktorija Cmylite-Nielsen, a former professional chess player who is now a leading politician in Lithuania. The conference will reach a fitting conclusion with Judit Polgar leading a wide-ranging roundtable discussion, “A Century of Women´s Chess: What Have We Learned?” on Sunday, 1st December. Speakers from the UK will include England’s top female professional chess player, IM and WGM Jovanka Houska, the renowned chess writer and investigative journalist Sarah Hurst, leading chess educators Sarah Kett and Samantha Ali, of charity Chess in Schools and Communities, and Chris Fegan, Director of Women’s Chess for the English Chess Federation. Roundtables and workshops will include: * Creating a safe and welcome environment for women * Successful women who have played chess* How can girls be encouraged to excel at chess?* How to make chess more accessible to women* Challenges for female chess officials* Lessons from other sports Underlining the conference’s important role in promoting women and girls in chess will be the presentation of two brand new surveys on women and girls in chess – a statistical analysis of numbers of women and girls in national chess federations by the European Chess Union, and a study conducted through the US Chess Federation, with qualitative insights into chess and gender issues. A third study of online chess games in the Netherlands will provide details of how girls and boys compare. An extra highlight will be a Q&A discussion during the Saturday lunch break featuring leading chess author Jonathan Rowson, an acclaimed expert in applied philosophy, who will be sharing insights from his new book, “The Moves That Matter: A Chess Grandmaster on the Game of Life” in conversation with Guardian journalist Stephen Moss. The fee to attend the London Chess and Education Conference: ‘Chess and Female Empowerment’ is £65 for one day and £95 for two days. Participants of the London Chess Classic Open or Weekender events can take part on both days with a one-day-ticket. Tickets can be bought directly here. The 7th London Chess and Education Conference takes place at the Irish Cultural Centre, 5 Black’s Road, Hammersmith, London W6 9DT from 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM on Saturday, November 30 and 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM on Sunday 1st December. It is organized by ChessPlus and sponsored by FIDE, the European Chess Union, leading UK chess and education charity Chess in Schools and Communities (CSC), the London Chess Classic and the ECF. Official site: www.londonchessclassic.com