FIDE Chess Olympiad 2028 – Call for bids
International Chess Federation (FIDE) is opening a bidding procedure for organising the major team competition in the chess 2028 calendar, the Chess Olympiad. Held over 15 days (including arrivals and departures), this global team event gathers thousands of players and chess fans. A whopping 186 chess federations were represented by a team in the open and 162 in the women’s section during the last Chess Olympiad in Chennai, India. Two other important events are to be held under the umbrella of this major chess gathering: Olympiad for People with Disabilities 2028 (where the organisers must be ready to host at least 80 teams) and FIDE Congress 2028. The bidder shall be responsible for hosting all three events and providing the proposal that would allow hosting the maximum number of teams. Currently, FIDE encompasses 199 federations and is expanding each year, as does the Olympiad with every new edition. Regulations The complete information about Chess Olympiad 2028 is in the Main Event Regulations. Information about FIDE Congress is here We will add the Regulations for the Competition for Players with Disabilities when they are ready later. Who can bid Any federation member of FIDE or any Organiser approved by a national federation may apply for the organisation of the FIDE Chess Olympiad and compulsory accompanying events. It is important to note that priority will be given to the bidders, who will also suggest hosting other FIDE events. Expression of interest and bidding process As per the decision of the FIDE Council, the first four weeks of the bidding process are allocated for the expression of interest. If no more than one potential bidder expresses their interest within four weeks, the overall bidding process shall last for eight weeks. If several parties express their interest within four weeks, the bidding process shall last 12 weeks. There is no form for expressing interest, and there is no need to fill in the formal bidding form at this stage. Potential bidders can express their interest by sending a formal letter to the FIDE office at office@fide.com by 6pm CET on September 12th, 2023. The letter of interest is not binding. The formal bidding application may be filled out after or instead of the expression of interest. Each application shall be filed per the form provided in Appendix 3 to the Regulations. The Applicant shall attach the following: Letters of support from a national federation and relevant local authorities, Supporting documents (government letters, contracts, bank guarantees, etc.) at the total amount of the bid’s budget. Irrevocable guarantee issued by: a) any of the Top 100 World Banks rated on The Bankers database or another bank which may be agreed with FIDE or b) a verified government guarantee for the amount of three hundred thousand (300,000) Euros to support the bid. Additional documents may be requested by FIDE for further evaluation. The complete requirements from the organiser, including financial obligations, are determined by section 6 of the Regulations. The nearest General Assembly shall award the right to host the events to the Applicant with the highest number of votes received.
FIDE World Youth Olympiad 2023: Day 2 Recap
After three rounds at the FIDE World Youth Olympiad 2023, China and Netherlands 1 jointly lead with 3/3. On the second day of the Olympiad, two rounds were played. Round 2 was held in the morning, right on the schedule. Just outside the “top boards,” there were many draws. The high seed teams 6 (Uzbekistan), 7 (Azerbaijan), 8 (France), and 9 (Israel) drew against lower-rated teams Bulgaria, Kazakhstan 2, Greece, and Italy, respectively. The top team, Turkey, whitewashed the 3rd team of the Netherlands, and their opponent from Round 1, Georgia, showed that their 2-2 draw was not a one-time success. They convincingly beat Slovakia by 3-1. Now back to the top boards. Kazakhstan 1 defeated India 3-1. It wasn’t easy, as only the black boards of Kazakhstan managed to win in the endgame. FM Sepenov relentlessly held onto a slight advantage in an endgame with heavy pieces, and eventually, the exposed white king (CM Adireddy) turned out to be a significant problem. WIM Nurmanova scored her second point for the team Kazakhstan. China continued its dominance by winning again with a score of 3.5-0.5, this time against Switzerland. Except for the draw between WFM Manko (Switzerland) and Kong Xiangrui, the Chinese players demonstrated sharper play than their Swiss opponents. The Dutch first team scored a narrow 2.5-1.5 win against Latvia, but it could have been different. On the first board, Arsenijs Savicevs played an excellent game against FM Yichen Han. The position emerging of Caro-Kann, Advance Variation, had strong similarities with the French Advance. In this line, black should be cautious of the move dxc5 followed by b4. Han underestimated this idea and ended up in a worse position by move 7. Move 13.c4 exposed Black’s weakness: White was developed and ready for action, while Black’s king was stuck in the center. Black seemed to solve some of his problems but with 22.Nf6 Savicevs showed that it was indeed White playing for a win. He preserved his advantage deep into the endgame but winning was still not straightforward. With 39…Rd7??, black blundered and allowed a beautiful skewer! White found the tactics and won the game. See the exciting battle on lichess On board 2, Arthur de Winter defeated Aleksejs Adamovics by handling the middlegame and endgame in the Maroczy structure better than his opponent. On board 3, Mikelis Vingris and Prajit Kumar didn’t upset the balance, resulting in a 1.5-1.5 draw. It all came down to the game on board 4 between the ladies Ter-Avetisjana and Verheij. Ter-Avetisjana pressed for a win but miscalculated a pawn sacrifice, giving Verheij a significant advantage that she duly converted into a full point, securing the win for the Netherlands. Hungary, seeded 5th, also won their second match. They defeated the 2nd team of the Netherlands by a score of 3.5-0.5, although it wasn’t as smooth as it might seem. Boards 1 (Kobe Smeets) and 2 (Roger Labruyere) played excellent games for the Dutch team. Nevertheless, WIM Gaal (board 1) and FM Palczert (board 2) from Hungary proved stronger in the endgame. The 4th team of the Netherlands narrowly lost to Cyprus (2.5-1.5). Boyd Leenen was inspired after his game yesterday (a beautiful attacking game against his Chinese opponent). This time, Leenen initiated the attack and broke through his opponent’s position with a rook lift along the h-file. See the game on lichess In Round 3, which was held in the afternoon, the two top teams faced each other. Top-seeded Kazakhstan 1 played against 5th-seed Hungary. It was an intense battle between these two strong squads, resulting in a 2-2 tie. On the first board, WIM Zsoka Gaal had significant chances to defeat IM Ansat, who had previously made two draws. Unfortunately for Zsoka, her advantage evaporated in a complex endgame. On board 2, Kazakhstan secured a full point, as FM Sapenov (Kazakhstan) ultimately capitalized on an earlier missed opportunity. FM Kolimar played an instructive game against FM Mamedov and scored the victory for Hungary. On move 25, Mamedov allowed the white rook on c7, which then extended white’s control over the 7th rank with a second rook. The final position doesn’t feature two white rooks on the 7th rank, but two pawns! A beautiful win, see below. On the 4th board, there was a fierce battle with chances for advantage for both sides, but FM Giang and WIM Nurmanova ultimately agreed to a draw. As a result, Kazakhstan dropped the lead as China and Netherlands 1 scored three match victories. The Chinese squad has been performing exceptionally well. In Round 3 trounced Romania 4-0! China has not suffered any losses yet and has the most board points of all teams, making just two draws. The team has been playing very consistently; none of the players has had a difficult position in three rounds. The only exception happened on board 3 in this match, where Xiangrui Kong was building a brilliant attack. Everything was going well for him until moves 33 and 34, where he slipped up. His opponent, FM Cnejev, missed the opportunity, and on move 36, Kong executed a decisive combination to win material. Netherlands 1 is the only team joining China with 3 wins. They once again triumphed over Canada 1 by a score of 2.5-1.5. On board 1, FM Yichen Han is still to find his footing in the tournament. This time, Han had a winning position for most of his game, but under severe pressure, he turned it into a theoretical rook and bishop versus rook (without pawns) draw. He tried to push for more, but FM Atanasov didn’t yield. On board 2, another FM Johnathan Han from the Canadian team, faced FM Arthur de Winter. Han stood well in the Najdorf Sicilian, building up his advantage, although the position remained complex. After a misstep by his opponent, FM de Winter patiently seized control and secured a point for the Netherlands. CM Max Chen of Canada might regret not capitalizing in his game. Facing Prajit Kumar, he achieved a
2nd FIDE Council Meeting 2023: List of decisions
2nd FIDE Council Meeting August 1, 2023 LIST OF DECISIONS CM2-2023/01 To note President’s report. CM2-2023/02 To note Treasurer’s report. CM2-2023/03 To note information on FIDE major events calendar. CM2-2023/04 To open bidding procedure for the World Rapid and Blitz Championships 2024 on 15 August 2023. CM2-2023/05 To approve the FIDE Chess Olympiad 2028 Regulations and to open a bidding procedure by August 15, 2023. The call for bids shall be as follows: 4 weeks are allocated for the expression of interest. If there is no more than one potential bidder that express their interest within 4 weeks, the overall bidding process shall last for 8 weeks. If there are several parties that express their interest within 4 weeks, the overall bidding process shall last for 12 weeks. CM2-2023/06 To approve the World Fischer Random Chess Championship 2024 to be held preliminary on 18-24 February 2024 and to open bidding procedure for the event from 15 August to 30 September 2023. CM2-2023/07 To note the Global Strategy Commission’s report. CM2-2023/08 To note the Arbiters’ Commission’s report. CM2-2023/09 To approve the recommendations of the Arbiters’ Commission on Seminars, Classification upgrades, Amendments to the lecturer list, FA norms and titles. CM2-2023/10 To nominate President as the Council’s representative to the Consultation Team formed by Arbiters’ Commission on creation of the Arbiters’ Panels for the cycle 2024-2025. CM2-2023/11 To note the Qualification Commission’s report. CM2-2023/12 To approve the proposal on Rating Regulations amendments in principle, pending receipt of additional expert and public opinion. To instruct the Qualification Commission to collect such experts’ assessment, review all opinions and present the final version of the rating regulation changes to the FIDE Council in October 2023. Once approved, the changes will be communicated to the public by 1 December 2023 and will come into effect starting 1 January 2024. CM2-2023/13 To approve the recommendations of the Qualification Commission on titles. CM2-2023/14 To collect proposals of the Council members in respect of the Transfer Task Force’s report regarding transfer regulations and to have an expanded Working Group meeting to discuss those proposals. CM2-2023/15 Based on factual transfer statistics and analysis, MB to formulate alternative proposals for Council’s consideration regarding admission to team events. CM2-2023/16 To inform the Affiliated Organisations that no event regulations of their respective tournaments which imply titles and norms should be published without a prior FIDE approval. CM2-2023/17 To approve the recommendations of the Trainers’ Commission on titles and Academies. CM2-2023/18 To approve the recommendations of the Events Commission on titles. CM2-2023/19 To award World Junior U20 Chess Championships 2024 to Delhi, India, subject to the successful inspection. CM2-2023/20 To award World Senior Team Chess Championships 2024 to Krakow, Poland, subject to the successful inspection. CM2-2023/21 To award World Senior Chess Championships 2024 to Constanta (Mamaia), Romania, subject to the successful inspection. CM2-2023/22 To award World Youth U14, U16, U18 Championships 2024 to Florianopolis, Brazil, subject to the successful inspection. CM2-2023/23 To award World Amateur Chess Championships 2024 to Acqui Terme, Italy, subject to the successful inspection. CM2-2023/24 To award World Cadet & Youth Rapid & Blitz Championships 2024 to Durres, Albania, subject to the successful inspection. CM2-2023/25 To conduct the necessary inspections for the World Cadet U8, U10, U12 Championships 2024 and World Schools Chess Championships 2024. CM2-2023/26 To note that no bids have been received for World Cup under 8, 10, 12 2024, World School Team Championship 2024. and World Under 20 Junior Rapid and Blitz Championships 2024. CM2-2023/27 To note that Uzbekistan Chess Federation offered to organize World Under 20 Junior Rapid and Blitz Championships 2024 and World School Rapid and Blitz Championships 2024 in Uzbekistan. To inspect the proposed venues. CM2-2023/28 To note that the Georgian Chess Federation offered to organize the World Cup under 8, 10, 12 2024, subject of inspection. To inspect the proposed venue. CM2-2023/29 To note the Fair Play Commission’s report. CM2-2023/30 To note the Technical Commission’s report. CM2-2023/31 To approve the proposal of the Technical Commission regarding play-off and tie-break regulations. Table of Changes. CM2-2023/32 To recognise DGT 2500 as a FIDE Endorsed product. CM2-2023/33 To approve updated FIDE Online Chess Regulations. Table of changes. CM2-2023/34 To note the Planning and Development Commission’s report. CM2-2023/35 To note Chess in Education Commission’s report. CM2-2023/36 To approve the recommendations of the Chess in Education Commission on School Instructor title. CM2-2023/37 To note the Social Commission’s report. CM2-2023/38 To note the Chess in Multi-sport Games Committee’s report. CM2-2023/39 To note Continental reports. CM2-2023/40 To suggest to the General Assembly the approval of the New Caledonia Chess Federation as an affiliated organisation of FIDE. CM2-2023/41 To amend the resolution of the FIDE Council CM1-2023/44 as follows: “To recommend the application of the Tonga Chess Federation for the ratification by the General Assembly”. To confirm that Tonga Chess Federation is eligible to receive FIDE Development Fund support according to PDC programs starting from August 2, 2023. CM2-2023/42 To approve the FIDE Questionnaire for National Federations applying for FIDE Membership. CM2-2023/43 To note the report of the FIDE Special Envoys on the situation in Bulgarian chess. CM2-2023/44 To note the report of the Reverse Delegate on South Africa. CM2-2023/45 To approve FIDE Policy on Transgender Chess Players Registration, effective from August 21, 2023. CM2-2023/46 To note FIDE 100 Years Anniversary update. CM2-2023/47 To announce the dates of the next meeting of the FIDE Council in due course. CM2-2023/48 To announce the dates and venue of the FIDE General Assembly in due course.
FIDE World Cup Round 5 Tiebreaks: Nepomniachtchi eliminated
Vidit Santos Gujrathi won both games in the second tiebreak, securing the last free spot in the quarter-finals of the Open. Salimova, Goryachkina and Muzuchyk are through to the semi-finals of the Women’s tournament Vidit Santos Gujrathi has become the fourth Indian player (alongside Erigaisi, Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa) to qualify for the final eight in the Open. He eliminated Ian Nepomniachtchi, defeating him in the second round of the rapid. The two were fighting for the only remaining spot in the quarter-finals of the World Cup. In the Women’s World Cup, Salimova beat Shuvalova in both rapid tiebreak games, while Goryachkina and Muzuchyk had to go all the way to the Blitz to secure their sports in the semis. The Open Tournament Highlights Two-time World Champion Candidate Ian Nepomniachtchi is out of the World Cup after losing to Vidit Santos Gujrathi in the tiebreaks. The two drew both of their classical games in round five. In the first rapid tiebreak, both games ended in a draw, with both sides playing evenly. However, in the second tiebreak, where each had 10 minutes, Nepomniachtchi faltered. First, he lost as White in the Neo-Catalan – making a blunder in the middlegame, recovering, and then again when opting to go to a rook and queen endgame. In the second game of the second tiebreak, in the Dutch Defence, Vidit – who was now leading the white pieces – was in control from the very beginning. Despite both sides making several imprecise moves, Vidit had the upper hand and won. This was a third tiebreak in the World Cup for both players, but it seems that it left a bigger toll on the former World Champion Candidate, whose strength failed him today. Vidit will be playing against Azerbaijan’s Nijat Abasov in the quarter-finals. The Women’s Tournament Highlights After making a comeback yesterday, Polina Shuvalova is out, having lost both games in the first rapid tiebreak to Bulgarian IM Nurgyul Salimova. Game one was crucial for Shuvalova: playing as Black, she was gifted a completely winning position in the endgame. Instead of converting it into victory, she made two consecutive blunders, dropping the victory in the first one and ending up losing after the second. In game two, Shuvalova allowed her king to get trapped in the middle and ended up defending a lost position but to no avail. Aleksandra Goryachkina had a difficult task against Harika Dronavalli but managed to prevail. The two played three rounds of tiebreaks to decide who would move to the semi-finals in the Women’s event. Goryachkina won the first tiebreak game today after Harika blundered a bishop in a drawn endgame. Goryachkina played as White in the second game and had a better position. However, she misplayed and allowed Dronavalli to dominate across the board. Then followed two draws in the 10-minute rapid games, with Harika having a strong advantage in the second but dropping it and finishing with a draw. It was time for the Blitz: In the first game Dronavalli misplayed in a rook and queen endgame and lost. In the second Blitz game, Goryachkina had a sizable advantage and no counterplay from her opponent but did not try too hard to convert, as a draw was enough to qualify for the semi-finals. She is taking on Tan Zhongyi in the semi-finals. Elisabeth Paehtz and Anna Muzychuk were the last to finish after three stages of tiebreaks which saw the Ukrainian GM progress to the next stage. In both rapid matches, Paehtz and Muzychuk exchanged heavy blows. In the second game of the second tiebreak, Paehtz had a lucky break: she completely misplayed in a winning position and transferred a strong advantage to White, who, in turn, misplayed and ended up losing. Interestingly, Black won all the rapid games. In the Blitz Match, Muzychuk – a three-time world blitz champion among women – won the first game after Paehtz overlooked the only opponent’s threat in an overwhelming position. The second game ended in a draw. Muzychuk will be playing Nurgyul Salimova in the semi-finals. Round 6 starts on Tuesday, 15th of August, at 3 PM local time in Baku, Azerbaijan. Here follows a closer look at some of the top games from round five tiebreaks: Ian Nepomniachtchi was defeated by Vidit in both games of the second tiebreak. In game one, where he played as White, Nepomniachtchi was completely lost after blundering in the following position: Black is already better, pressuring along the d-file and having more options to attack the white king. The most logical move for White was to move the queen to e2, but Nepomniachtchi went two squares too far. 25.Qg4?? After this, Black is dominating: 25…Qc6+ 26.Kg1 Nf5 27.Rf3 Rd4. Vidit, however, went for 25…Nf5 which is strong enough but not decisive 26.Rf3 Qc6! 27.Ne5 Qa8 28.Kg1 And now, instead of 28…Rd2! the Indian GM played 28…Rd4? allowing White to equalise with 29.Rf4! Things were even in the next few moves, as White managed to escape Black’s pressure on the king. But then Nepomniachtchi again made a mistake, which opened a road to a dead end for him. With the rooks being exchanged on f8 in the previous move, Nepomniachtchi should have tried to keep things steady and play 37.Nc3, to help protest his weak a2-pawn. Instead, he opted to simplify: 37.Nxd6? Qxd6 38.Qf3+ Ke7 39.Qc3 Kf7 40.Qf3+ Ke7 41.Qc3+ Kf7 42.Qf3+ Kg8! A bit of psychological play and adding some extra time (due to a 10-second bonification per move) by Vidit. 43.Rd1 Qf8 44.Qe3 Rxa2 45.g5 Qf5 46.Rd8+ Kh7 47.gxh6 Ra1+ 48.Kg2 Qg4+ Forcing the exchange of queens 49.Qd3 Qxg3+ 50.hxg3 Kxh6 Black has a winning rook endgame which he executed confidently. 0-1, 60 moves In the second game of the second tiebreak, Nepomniachtchi lost control from the opening and was weaker throughout, ending up losing. A well-deserved success for Vidit. Polina Shuvalova suffered a huge misfortune today, losing a winning endgame in their first rapid game of the tiebreaks agasint Nurgyul Salimova. Playing as Black, Shuvalova found herself in the following position after several bad
FIDE Fair Play Seminar in Durrës, Albania, announced
FIDE Fair Play Commission, in collaboration with FIDE Commission for Women’s Chess and the Albanian Chess Federation, is pleased to announce the upcoming FIDE Fair Play Seminar, scheduled to take place in Durrës, Albania, from October 4-7, 2023. The seminar will coincide with the European Club Cup 2023, making it an ideal opportunity for chess arbiters, organizers, and others interested in gathering and learning crucial aspects of fair play in chess. The seminar aims to provide fair play knowledge and share the best practices at events. Scope of the seminar – Fair Play Legal Framework – Anti-Cheating Regulations – Prof. Regan’s Statistics – Technical devices and their usage – Fair Play Theory and Practice at OTB Events Lecturers will also cover various topics such as preparations for an event, interaction with tournament officials and spectators, crowd management, preventing or detecting cheating, observations, body language, psychological aspects and odd behaviours, statistics, etc., all in the spirit of recognizing, detecting, and preventing unethical practices and promoting a positive chess culture. At the end of the seminar, on the successful completion of the exam, the seminar participants will receive an FPE seminar norm as one of the requirements for the FPE title. The FIDE Fair Play Seminar is open to all chess enthusiasts, players, coaches, arbiters, organizers, and officials who share a passion for promoting fair play, learning more about the dark side of the sport and the practices of recognition and prevention, upholding the highest ethical standards in chess. Attendees will gain invaluable knowledge and insights to reinforce fair play practices within their respective chess federations and communities. Dates: October 4-7, 2023 Location and venue: Grand Blue FAFA, Durrës, Albania Photo: fafa.al/grand-blue-fafa/ Registration Registration for the FIDE Fair Play Seminar opens on the 1st of August. Registration deadline: 1st of October. The number of places is limited and will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. The FIDE Commission for Women’s Chess covers 10 spots for 10 female participants (seminar + exam only) – on a first-come, first-served basis. To reserve your spot, please send a registration e-mail to: fairplay@fide.com and secretary.fpl@fide.com. Visa & Accommodation Regarding visa requirements and accommodation, please email the Organizing Committee (office@clubcup2023.com).More information on the following link – clubcup2023.com/tournament-info/visas/ Seminar fee: 200 EUR Exam fee: 50 EUR Seminar Language: English Seminar Lecturers: Bojana Bejatovic – FPL SecretaryLecturer 2 – To be confirmedLecturer 3 – To be confirmed Another important seminar will run at the same dates, so those interested can benefit from attending both. You have a chance to become a certified DGT e-boards operator. Seminar Agenda and Syllabus will be provided additionally. We look forward to welcoming you at the FIDE Fair Play Seminar to fortify the foundations of fair play in chess.
FIDE World Youth Olympiad 2023: Day 1 Recap
The FIDE World Youth Olympiad 2023 kicked off today at Eindhoven’s High Tech Campus in the Netherlands. The “smartest square kilometre in the world” is a fitting backdrop for the U16 team chess tournament, which brings together 252 players from 63 teams and 47 countries. The Olympiad is a 9-round Swiss tournament with a time control of 45 minutes with an increment of 10 seconds per move starting from move 1. Each team consists of four players, of which at least one woman player. Opening Ceremony This year, the Royal Dutch Chess Federation marks its 150th anniversary as the oldest chess federation in the world. The President of the Federation and WGM, Bianca de Jong-Muhren, expressed her enthusiasm during the opening ceremony, stating, “We managed to bring an international youth championship to the Netherlands, with a new international women’s top tournament as a bonus. We are going to make it an unforgettable event!” After the opening ceremony, she seamlessly transitioned to providing commentary alongside IM Stefan Kuipers. The event’s opening was graced by Maes van Lanschot, Eindhoven’s alderman of sports and a chess enthusiast, who made the ceremonial first move alongside Yichen Han, the first board player from the Dutch team. Round 1 results Top team Kazakhstan 1 had a significant challenge against Australia 1. Boards 1-3 ended in draws, with only the game between WCM Cheng (Australia) and WIM Alua Nurmanova of Kazakhstan (pictured below) ending in favor of the favorite. After an inaccuracy in black’s opening, white seized control of the dark squares. This became evident when the white knight landed on d6 on move 12. With control over these dark squares, the white player didn’t let go of the advantage. With a devastating king’s attack and a beautiful final combination, white decided the game. The second team in the starting list, China, had less trouble against the 4th team from the Netherlands. Boards 1-3 saw intense battles, with the advantage often leaning towards China during the games. Sascha Kurt saved the honor for the Dutch team by holding his opponent to a draw. On board 4, WIM Lu launched a strong attack against Boyd Leenen. The attack was a great example of aggressively breaking through a position. A visual delight with piece sacrifices, perhaps not as much for Boyd Leenen. Check out the game on lichess.org And now, on to the first surprise between Georgia and Turkey. According to the ratings, Turkey was the favorite, although the rapid ratings seemed to be somewhat misleading. On board 1, IM Gurel (Turkey) had a chance to clinch a win against FM Kiladze (Georgia), who agreed to a draw in a better position due to severe time pressure. Board 4 also seemed in favor of Georgia for a long time, but unfortunately, Kesaria Mgeladze couldn’t convert her advantage into a win against WCM Akat. The fate of the match was decided on the boards in between, with special attention to board 3, where IM Erdogmus demonstrated how to seize and maintain control. As often happens in these openings, it’s a risk for black to exchange on d4 and thus give up the center. Nevertheless, black did this, giving white a pleasant spatial advantage. When the black knight was banished to b7 on move 20, black had to admit that there were many weak spots in the position. It became a long ordeal where Erdogmus showed that there’s no need to rush to exploit weaknesses. Check out the game on lichess.org Despite Erdogmus’s win, the match was tied 2-2 draw, as the Georgian WFM Kirtadze proved stronger than FM Kilic. Moving on to the host country, the Netherlands, which stands in 4th place with their first team and surely aims to contend for the podium. On board 1, FM Yichen Han seemed to struggle to achieve much with his London System. However, his opponent from Kazakhstan 5(!) was a bit too greedy by capturing the h-pawn. Rooks love open lines, so Han probably welcomed this move. Not much later, Bogdanov made an even bigger blunder. A rough start for the black player. For Kazakhstan 5, Mariya Kholyavo upheld the honor by defeating Dana Verheij in an exciting game. In a tactical feast from the Sicilian Defense, Kholyavo showed better calculation. Take a look at the various tactics in this game. FM Arthur de Winter (board 2) and Prajit Kumar (board 3) engaged in battles where they proved superior to their opponents. The other Dutch teams enjoyed success. Team 4 lost to China but teams 2 and 3 won their matches. Team 2, consisting of Kobe Smeets, Roger Labruyere, Rhys Arnold, and Isafara Gergin, faced off against Thailand 2. The result was 3-1, with Isafara unfortunately losing to an opponent who played extremely precisely. The remaining games were far from smooth, but determination and sharpness were on the Dutch side. Team 3, with Noah Ritzerveld, Wouter Terlouw, Oscar Zecha, and Fleur Westerhof, proved to be too much for Uganda 3. Quite a young team, with Fleur Westerhof from 2009 as the “oldest” player on the team. Results of top10 matches: Australia 1 – Kazakhstan 1 1½-2½China – The Netherlands 4 3½-½Georgia – Turkey 2-2The Netherlands 1 – Kazakhstan 5 3-1Kazakhstan 4 – Hungary 1-3Uzbekistan – Canada 2 4-0Paraguay – Azerbaijan 0-4France – Morocco 3-1Canada 3 – Israel 0-4Romania – South Africa 1 4-0 Text: Bram Klapwijk Photos: Lennart Ootes and Frans Peeters Official website: youtholympiad2023.fide.com/
FIDE World Cup Round 5 Game 2: Decisive outcomes and missed opportunities
All but one spot for the final eight in the Open has been decided after today’s round. Three out of four games in the Women’s tournament see one side drop a winning position Magnus Carlsen eliminated Vasyl Ivanchuk with another victory today. Nijat Abasov and R Praggnanandhaa join Carlsen as a trio that progresses to the final eight with a 100 per cent score in round five. Caruana is also through, along with Dominguez, Erigaisi and Gukesh. Nepomniachtchi and Vidit will decide in tomorrow’s tiebreak who will take the last remaining place in the quarter-finals. Tan Zhongyi is the only player to qualify for the semi-finals among the women, while the rest go to the tiebreaks. Three of the four games in the Women’s tournament today saw one side drop a winning position. The Open Tournament Highlights Vasyl Ivanchuk, the great chess wizard from Ukraine, finally broke. In his second game against Carlsen, he suffered another defeat, this time with the white pieces. Ivanchuk had his chances in the Anti-Marshall line of the Ruy Lopez but did not find a way to increase pressure, and after mutual inaccuracies, the opponents entered an even bishop endgame (with Carlsen having a runner on the b-file). The Ukrainian GM completely misplayed it blundering a pawn, and resigned two moves later. Baku will definitely see a new World Cup champion as the winner of the previous edition, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, is also out. After a draw in the first game, he lost as White to Fabiano Caruana in an exciting game. Ian Nepomniachtchi enters his third tiebreak of the World Cup as he drew again today against Vidit Santosh Gujrathi. Azerbaijan’s Nijat Abasov is through, having defeated Saleh Salem in both games. Dominguez, Gukesh and Erigaisi are also through – they all drew their games, having won in the first duel. Praggnanandhaa also advanced after a late win against Ferenc Berkes. The formidable Hungarian master had an excellent run at the World Cup. However, today he found himself in a difficult position on the black side of the French Defence. Playing actively on both flanks, Praggnanandhaa achieved a dominant position by move 24, before executing a nice combination that left him with a winning endgame. The Women’s Tournament Highlights While the Open tournament featured a lot of winning games, things were slightly different in the Women’s World Cup, with plenty of missed chances. Elisabeth Paehtz and Anna Muzychuk drew once again today. Muzychuk had a clearly winning position in the endgame after a blunder by Paehtz but let it slip within two moves. Harika Dronavalli and Aleksandra Goryachkina played the Berlin line of the Ruy Lopez, which ended in a rook endgame. The two spent a lot of time testing each other before deciding to call it a day. With two draws, the victor will be decided in the tiebreaks. Polina Shuvalova made a comeback against Bulgaria’s Nurgyul Salimova. In a game which saw huge swings – with Salimova at one point winning – Shuvalova came out victorious after securing two passers for a knight, with rooks on the board. Tan Zhongyi is through after securing a draw against Bella Khotenashvili. In an endgame with a pair of bishops and a pair of rooks on the board, Khotenashvili was on the brink of victory twice but misplayed both times. The full results of today’s games can be found here: worldcup2023.fide.com/pairings. The tiebreaks game of round five starts on Monday, 14th of August, at 3 PM local time in Baku, Azerbaijan. Here follows a closer look at some of the top games of the second day of Roud 5: Fabiano Caruana is in great shape, and he is showing it. He went to the tiebreaks only once so far (against Yilmaz in round three, beating him both times). Today, he defeated the 2021 World Cup winner, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, on the black side of Nimzo-Indian. Black has a sizable edge, as his knights are much more active than the white bishops. Choosing between two evils, Duda took the “wrong” knight. He should have taken the one on c4, although after 20.Bxc4 dxc4 21.Qa3 Nf6 White’s position is no fun. Instead, Jan-Krzysztof played 20.Bxe4 but after 20…fxe4 21.fxe4 Rxf1 22.Rxf1 dxe4 Black’s c4-knight is dominating, and the queen is coming to d5 next. 23.Qc3 Kh7 24.Bf4 Qd5! X-raying the white king. White has no reasonable defence against a coordinated attack of Black’s pieces. 25.Kg3 Rf8 26.Qb4 Rf7 27.Rc1 g5! after this move White’s position falls apart. 28.Qxc4 gxf4+ 29.Kg2 f3+ 30.Kf1 Qd7 (30…Qxc4 was enough, but Fabiano wanted to finish the game with a direct attack) 31.d5 Re7. Now these two pawns will wreak havoc on White. 32.Qc5 Re5 33.Re1 Rxd5 34.Qc2 Qb5+! The end is near for White. 35.Kf2 Qb6+ 36.Kf1 Rd4 37.Kf2 Qa6+ 38.Kg1 Qd6 39.Kf1 Rd1 40.Qe3 Qd3+ 41.Kf2 (after 41.Qxd3 Rxe1+ 42.Kxe1 exd3 White inevitably runs in zugzwang) Rd2+ 43.Kg3 f2 In this position, the 2021 World Cup winner finally threw in the towel. 0-1 Praggnanandhaa ended Ferenc Berkes’ ambitions in the World Cup today, scoring a spectacular victory. The Hungarian was in a difficult spot after the opening. Pragg, who is much better, has just pushed g2-g4. For better or worse, Ferenc should have retreated his knight to e7, although his position is not to be envied. 24….Nxh4? This capture fails to a nice combination by the young Indian. 25.Nxh4 Qxh4 26.Bxc4! bxc4 27.Rxc6! Rxc6 28.Ra8+ Kd7 29.Qf3 f5 30.b5 Rc8 31.Nxd5! A sacrifice Black cannot accept as it leads to checkmate. 31…Qxg4+ 32.Qxg4 fxg4 33.Nb6+ Kc7 34.Nxc8 Kb7 35.Ra6 Kc8 36.Rxe6 and White’s passers are much faster. 1-0, 48 moves. Nurgyul Salimova (playing as Black) had a chance to qualify for the next stage directly. She had a dominant position against Polina Shuvalova but ended up spoiling it. Both sides exchanged critical mistakes in this see-saw game, but Salimova did it one time too many. Salimova has a knight for two pawns, but White’s pawns have still not advanced far, and Black is holding everything. White just played 33.h3, and the best option was 33…hxg4 (or 33…a1Q+ straight away with the
World Cup Round 5 Game 1: Multiple victories and surprises in Baku
Round five of the World Cup in Baku saw a day of gripping matches with seven out of 12 games played in both the Open and the Women’s tournament ending in victories The Open tournament saw as many as five games finishing in a victory. Magnus Carlsen triumphed over Vasyl Ivanchuk in a poignant match, after choosing a better plan during strategical manoeuvring. Leinier Dominguez Perez, Nijat Abasov as well as Indians Gukesh D and Arjun Erigaisi are also among the winners of the first day of round five. There were two decisive games in the Women’s tournament – former World Champion Tan Zhongyi defeated Bella Khotenashvili while Polina Shuvalova lost to Nurgyul Salimova after a mistake in an even endgame. Elisabeth Paehtz had a relatively quick draw with Anna Muzychuk, while Aleksandra Goryachkina and Harika Dronavalli split a point following a long debate in the Tarrasch. The Open Tournament Highlights In the match of the day, Magnus Carlsen defeated the Ukrainian legend Vasyl Ivanchuk after a challenging game which lasted 43 moves. The match between the two is more than chess, especially in the current circumstances. Until shortly before the World Cup started it wasn’t even clear whether Ivanchuk will be allowed to leave his war-torn country to play. Despite coming straight from a war zone, Ivanchuk showed incredible strength and focus and made it to the final 16. However, today wasn’t his day on the board. Playing the Catalan, Ivanchuk made a mistake in the positional manoeuvring, allowing Carlsen to activate his pieces and build up momentum. By move 36 Black was in deep trouble with Carlsen having two extra pawns and posing threats across the board. Ivanchuk tried to find a vent for his pieces, but Carlsen played very precisely and didn’t allow Black any chances. Rather than continue to suffer, Ivanchuk decided to resign after three hours of play. Leinier Dominguez Perez scored as White against Alexey Sarana. In the Sicilian, Perez emerged with slightly more initiative and with a pair of bishops. Sarana underestimated the threat that bishops posed and, after a blunder, entered a losing position. Wang Hao lost with white pieces against Gukesh D. While the two sides were even for most of the game, the Chinese Grandmaster misplayed in the endgame allowing Black to progress his d-pawn to promotion and win material. Another Indian, Arjun Erigaisiwas trying to squeeze blood from a stone in an even endgame against Nils Grandelius and, eventually, his determination paid off as the Swedish GM overlooked a pawn. In the final twist of the day, Saleem Saleh made a fatal error in an equal endgame against Nijat Abasov that cost him a game. Vidit and Nepomniachtchi drew in the Petrov Defense. After an imprecision by Nepomniachtchi (who was playing as Black), Vidit had a slight edge but then he missed the best move and the game was even until the end, finishing with a threefold repetition. Hungarian Ferenc Berkes and R Praggnanandhaa split a point in the Semi-Slav. Caruana and Duda also drew their game. After a theoretical debate in the Petrov where both sides played very precisely, the two gradually transitioned towards a drawn rook endgame and decided to split a point. The Women’s Tournament Highlights Tan Zhongyi was the first to score a victory in the Women’s quarter-finals. She defeated Georgia’s Bella Khotenashvili with white pieces. The former World Champion was better throughout the game, but on two occasions she dropped her advantage and allowed Black to equalise. Khotenashvili didn’t use these opportunities and ended up losing with an effective sacrifice combination leading to checkmate. Bulgaria’s Nurgyul Salimova staged a surprise, defeating Polina Shuvalova. In the Queen’s Gambit Declined, White (Salimova) gained a slight edge which she held throughout the game. The two reached an endgame with a minor piece and a rook each and it looked like a draw. However, Shuvalova somewhat surprisingly gave up an important pawn on g5, leaving White with a runner on the g-file. White then transitioned to a winning rook endgame and converted her advantage by move 77. Aleksandra Goryachkina and Harika Dronavalli drew their game in the Tarrasch Defence. Anna Muzychuk and Elisabet Paehtz also split a point. In the Four Knights Sicilian, the two quickly progressed to an even rook endgame and decided to call it a day. The full results of today’s games can be found here: worldcup2023.fide.com/pairings. The second game of round five starts on Sunday, 13th of August, at 3 PM local time in Baku, Azerbaijan. Here follows a closer look at some of the top games of the round five: Magnus Carlsen defeated Vasyl Ivanchuk with white pieces in the Catalan. It’s Black’s turn to move and the best option here was to continue development with Rfe8. However, Ivanchuk took on f3 and from this moment on his position started to deteriorate. 22…Bxf3 23.Nxf3a6 24.Ra4 White got more space while Black has no good active options. 30.Qc2! Sensing opportunity, Carlsen begins to align an attack on the black king. 30…g6 31.Ba2 Kg7 32.Ng5 Rf8 33.e6 The computer suggested Qe4 and Ree4 as stronger options. Now Black could have played 33…Nd4 with complications although White is significantly better. Ivanchuk, however, played 33…f6? 34.Bb1! f5 35.Qc1 Rd5? 36.Ba2! Rc5 37.Qe3 Nd5 38.Qd2 Rf6 39.b4 Rc3. With the pendulum-like manoeuvre of his bishop White unhinged Black’s defence and now Magnus proceeds to simplify the position into a winning game. 40.Bxd5 cxd5 41.Qxd5 f4 Black tried to find a way for some activity but to no avail. 42.gxf4 Rf5 43.Qe4 and at this point Ivanchuk decided to call it a day, finding himself in a dead end without any solid viable moves. 1-0 A very important victory for Carlsen. Leinier Dominguez Perez scored a solid win against Alexey Sarana. The position is even. White has a pair of bishops and more initiative but overall, Black should be able to hold. However, Sarana overlooked a threat from the bishops’ pair. 21…b5? (21…Rbc8 and 21…Kh8 keeping the balance were much better options) 22.Qe5 Rac8 23.h5! Bxc2 Forcing Black to remove his
FIDE World Senior Team Championships 2023: Registration deadline extended
All FIDE member Federations have an excellent opportunity to register their teams and become a part of the World Senior Teams Chess Championships 2023 in Struga (North Macedonia), situated on the shore of spectacular Ohrid Lake. The registration deadline has been extended to August 18. The Championships will take place from September 18 (arrival) to 29 (departure), 2023. The event will be played in two categories: age 50+ and age 65+. There will be separate Women’s Championship(s) if there are at least ten teams from at least two continents. Otherwise, women’s teams will play in the open tournament(s). Every player must have reached or reach the required age in the year of competition. Official website: seniorteam2023.fide.com E-mail: seniorteam2023@fide.com Regulations and invitation letter (pdf)
World Cup Round 4 Tiebreaks: Hikaru Nakamura and Ju Wenjun are out
Round 4 tiebreaks saw another set of top players eliminated from the World Cup, including a shocking exit by one of the world’s top players, Hikaru Nakamura In the Open tournament, Magnus Carlsen triumphed over Vincent Keymer after two rapid tiebreak matches. Hikaru Nakamura, one of the favourites in the event, was eliminated after losing both tiebreak games to the 18-year-old Indian prodigy R Praggnanandhaa. In the Women’s tournament, World Champion Ju Wenjun was eliminated after losing to Germany’s Elisabeth Paehtz in the first tiebreaker (0.5:1.5), while Georgia’s Bella Khotenashvili defeated India’s Humpy Koneru. The Open Tournament Highlights Magnus Carlsen managed to qualify to the next stage but it wasn’t easy: the World Champion in Rapid had to play two sets of rapid matches against German prodigy Vincent Keymer who gave the Norwegian a nasty shock, defeating him two days ago. The first tiebreak match ended with two draws, despite Carlsen having strong chances in both games. The second tiebreak match started with a draw where neither side managed to get an advantage. In the second game, Carlsen had a winning position by move 23. However, he first dropped the advantage but then regained it a few moves later. Carlsen continued to gradually improve his position until forcing Keymer to surrender after 68 moves in a queens’ endgame. One of the strongest world players, including in rapid chess, Hikaru Nakamura, was knocked out of the World Cup today by R Praggnanandhaa who turned 18 just yesterday! The Indian defeated Nakamura in both of their rapid games during the first tiebreak. In both games, Praggnanandhaa emerged better from the opening and held the initiative until sealing the victory. Surprisingly, as soon as Praggnanandhaa won, Magnus Carlsen, who was in the middle of his own game, stood up to congratulate the Indian player. Speaking after his victory, the 18-year-old Indian happily noted: “It is one of my best days”. In another notable upset, Azerbaijan’s Nijat Abasov overcame the seasoned Grandmaster Peter Svidler, winning 1.5:0.5 in their rapid tiebreak. Svidler lost the second rapid game as White after blundering in an even position. One of the top favourites, Ian Nepomniachtchi, defeated Nihal Sarin 2:0 in their rapid tiebreak match. Sarin had more chances in the first game and missed a win, while in the second his opponent dominated throughout the game. Salem Saleh advanced into the round of 16 after defeating Daniele Vocaturo in both rapids finishing a great run of the Italian GM in Baku. Gukesh D is also through after beating Esipenko 1.5:0.5 in the first tiebreaker. Duda, Dominguez and Ivanchuk progressed to the 1/8 stage after winning in their second rapid matches of the day. The longest tiebreak duel of the day was played between China’s Wang Hao and Germany’s Rasmus Svane. After all four games in the two rapid tiebreak matches ended in a draw, it all came down to the Blitz. In time trouble, Wang Hao missed a winning opportunity in game one which ended in a draw. In the second 5+3 game the opponents split a point as well. The German finally broke in the endgame of the first 3+2 game allowing Wang to win and proceed to the next stage. The Women’s Tournament Highlights The Women’s World Champion Ju Wenjun has been knocked out of the Women’s World Cup after losing the second tiebreak game to Germany’s Elisabeth Paehtz. The tiebreaker saw a quiet draw in game one, but in game two Paehtz (playing as White) punished her opponent’s imprecisions made early on and converted her sizable positional advantage in a rook endgame. In another big upset, Women’s fourth strongest woman player, Humpy Koneru, lost both of her rapid games against Georgia’s Bella Khotenashvili. The Georgian was clearly better in game one, but in the second duel, Harika blundered in an even position and ended up facing checkmate. Bulgaria’s Nurgyul Salimova is through to the next stage, having prevailed over Medina Warda Aulia 1.5:0.5 in the first tiebreaker after the player from Indonesia blundered in a better position as Black in game two. Harika Dronavalli bested Dutch Women’s Champion Eline Roebers. The full results of today’s tiebreaks can be found here: https://worldcup2023.fide.com/pairings. Round five starts on Saturday, 12th of August, at 3 PM local time in Baku, Azerbaijan. Here follows a closer look at some of the top games of the round four tiebreaks: In the first game of the tiebreak rapid match, Praggnanandha achieved a better position as Black as early as move nine after White played 9.a3 White should have opted for 9.d4 as was played in numerous games but Hikaru mixed up his move order. After 9…Ba5 10.d3 Nxd5! 11.cxd5 Nb8 (a seemingly unnatural but the right move) 12.dxe4 gxh4 13.Bh6 Re8 14.gxh4 Qxh4 15.Qc1 f6 16.Kh1 Nd7 and Black had little problem converting his extra piece. 33 moves, 0-1 The Indian prodigy outplayed Nakamura in their second game as well, justifying his place in the final 16. Peter Svidler was out after misplaying in an even position, against Nijat Abasov. The best option for White was 25.Bc7. Instead, Svidler played 25.Bg5? but overlooked a strong reply by his opponent. 25…Ne5! 26.Nd6 Nxd6 27.Bxb7 Bc5 and White resigned facing either losing his queen or checkmate attack he can not defend himself from. 0-1 Women’s World Champion Ju Wenjun exits the World Cup without much to show. In almost all of her games – including those where she had the initiative of the first move – she played rather quietly and without much vigour. After making a relatively quick draw in an uneventful game where she was White, she got punished in the second one by Paehtsz. Ju started making mistakes early on, and White kept picking up on them. 9…Qb6? A first mistake. 9…Nxe5 is better for Black. 10.0-0 Be7 11.Nxd7! Nxd7 12.Bxd5! In the case of 12…exd5 13.Nxd5 and the e7-bishop is falling with the king trapped in the centre awaiting an unpleasant end. 12…Qxb2 13.Bxc6 bxc6 14.Qd3 0-0 White has a sizable advantage thanks to a better pawn structure and more active pieces. By move 22, White