FIDE World Cup 2023: Preliminary lists of eligible players announced
FIDE has already issued the first batch of invitations for those players already qualified to take part in the World Cup and Women’s World Cup, to be held in the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku, from July 29 to August 25. These players have until June 2th (June 5th, in some cases) to confirm their participation by returning a signed contract to office@fide.com. This batch of players amounts to approximately 50% of the total participants. A second batch of invitations in both Cups will be sent on June 1st, after the reference rating list according to the regulations (June 2023) is published. The third batch of players will be known on June 15th, at the conclusion of the Zonal and Continental events still pending to be played. The remaining spots are reserved for Federations based on the performance at the Chennai Chess Olympiad 2022: in total, 71 national federations in the Open section and 36 in Women’s are entitled to nominate a player, who must have been a member of their national team at the Olympiad 2022, that has not qualified by any other path. These Federations have between June 15-30 to submit their nominees. The World Cup is one of FIDE’s flagship competitions, and in recent editions, it has clearly become one of the most followed events in the chess calendar. This reflects FIDE’s efforts to expand the competition, increasing the variety of qualification paths and the number of represented countries (estimated at 80 for the 2023 edition), while drastically decreasing the number of wild cards. With 206 players in the open section, plus 103 in the Women’s competition, this event has seen its combined prize pool boosted to a whopping USD 2.5 million, the single largest one at any chess event in the world. The official contract to host the FIDE World Cup 2023 in Baku was signed on May 5th between the Minister of Sports and Youth of Azerbaijan, Farid Gayibov, FIDE President, Arkady Dvorkovich, and the President of the Chess Federation of Azerbaijan, Mahir Mammedov. The venue for the event will be the Baku Marriott Hotel Boulevard. Qualified players for the World Cup 2023 (pdf) Qualified players for the Women’s World Cup (pdf) Official website: worldcup2023.fide.com/ Photos: azernews.az/, mariott.com
Preliminary confirmation of participation in WSTC 2023 in Kazakhstan: Deadline extended
To all FIDE National Federations All FIDE member federations should email the FIDE Events Commission for preliminary confirmation of participation in the World Schools Team Championship (WSTC) 2023, that will take place in Kazakhstan from August 3-8, 2023. Only federations that held or are going to hold Stage 1 (National Championship) are eligible to apply for “invited team” status (with expenses for accommodations and travel covered by the organisers for one team). National Federations should indicate the exact dates before Saturday, June 03, 18:00 CEST; and after the competitions finish, provide the data (documents and photos) that confirm the organisation of the Championship as per Article 2.4 of the WSTC Regulations. If the National Championship has already been held, National Federations should submit all the necessary information according to Article 2.4 of the Regulations to the FIDE Events Commission. The Events Commission should be emailed at: fideevents@fide.com Regulations of the World Schools Team Championship (pdf)
FIDE WGP: Dinara Wagner reigns in Cyprus
GM Kateryna Lagno and GM Aleksandra Goryachkina qualified for the Candidates. It’s not often that the lowest-rated player in the field takes down a tough event, but WGM Dinara Wagner fought against the odds in Cyprus and achieved the most important success in her career. In the last-round, must-win scenario, Wagner defeated GM Bella Khotenashvili with Black in one of the most exciting rounds of chess I have ever witnessed. In addition to winning the fourth leg of the 2022-2023 FIDE Women’s Grand Prix and the first prize of 15,000 euros, Wagner scored her second IM norm and her first GM norm. With her important last-round win over IM Oliwia Kiolbasa, IM Polina Shuvalova shared second to fourth place with former World Champion GM Tan Zhongyi (third) and GM Harika Dronavalli (fourth), taking second on tiebreaks. The first game to finish in a draw was Lagno vs Assaubayeva. Although they played more than thirty moves, it was all home preparation, and both players seemed content with the result. Soon after, Goryachkina and Harika also split the point: with this result, Harika secured a well-deserved spot at the top of the table, confirming once again that her poor result in Delhi was already forgotten. Goryachkina also had a good reason to draw: after a series of very unfortunate results, a draw secured her qualification for the Candidates. Mammadzada and Kosteniuk battled it out in a technical queenless French Tarrasch, but neither of the two was able to unbalance the position to her favour, and the draw became inevitable. Shuvalova caught her opponent in opening preparation, and once again, Kiolbasa spent a huge amount of time: soon, she was in time trouble. Shuvalova missed a win and soon found herself in a complicated position but eventually, Kiolbasa blundered under the pressure. 40.Qxh6+ forced resignation due to 40…gxh6 41.Rg1+ In the key game of the day, Wagner outplayed her opponent with a very dangerous kingside attack, finishing things off with a nice tactic. 34…Bg2! Many roads lead to Rome and it is one of them. Bella tried 35.f3 but capitulated after 35…Qf4+ as Black checkmates in seven. From then on, she just had to wait to see if Tan Zhongyi could take advantage of her extra material against Dzagnidze. After some ups and downs, one of the most exciting games of the event ended in a draw. FIDE WGP Cyprus final standings Regarding the overall scores of the full Grand Prix, the winner is GM Kateryna Lagno, followed closely by GM Aleksandra Goryachkina. Both of these players qualify for the 2024 Women’s Candidates Tournament. Check out an interview with the overall winner of FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022-2023, Kateryna Lagno. FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022-2023 final standings During the closing ceremony FIDE General Secretary Lukasz Turlej expressed his gratitude to the Cyprus Chess Federation and partners Freedom Finance for the invitation to dispute the event in Nicosia and for the great conditions, hotel, and playing venue. Evgeniy Tyapkin, Executive Director of Freedom Finance Europe, confirmed that they were committed to cultivating the framework, the competition and the excitement in their partnership with FIDE in Cyprus and across the world. Olga Milko, Director of Business Development at Freedom Finance Europe, reminded everyone about the equality of opportunities. “Chess develops many strategic skills at the same time. Scientific research confirms that there is no difference in intelligence between genders, and if all other things are equal, girls show even better results.” Finally, Criton Tornaritis, President of the Cyprus Chess Federation, took the stage, congratulated all the players, and expressed his wish to see everyone again next year and organize more events in the future. Text: IM Michael Rahal (Nicosia, Cyprus) Photos: Mark Livshitz About Freedom Finance Europe Freedom Finance Europe, a subsidiary of Freedom Holding Corp., is a leading European stockbroker. The company’s Freedom24 web and mobile app investment platform provides traders with direct access to 15 global stock exchanges, including NYSE, Nasdaq, LSE, Euronext and others. Freedom Finance Europe is licensed by Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) with the right to cater clients from EU and EEA countries. The company is rated “B/B” by S&P Global Ratings. Headquartered in Limassol, the company has tied agents and representative offices in Berlin, Madrid, Paris, Milan, Vienna, Warsaw, and Athens. More information: https://www.freedom24.com/
Igor Zaitsev celebrates his 85th birthday
Igor Zaitsev, a legendary analyst and pioneer of many trails in chess openings, has turned 85 today. His most valuable contribution to opening theory is, arguably, the so-called Zaitsev Variation. Indeed, Igor was first to realize that the rook could move back – over a half-century it had not occurred to the best players in the world – and then developed the most complicated systems that became one of the main lines in such a thoroughly analyzed opening as the Ruy Lopez. Another illustration of his creativity is brilliant 11.Ng5! – a true revelation, a touch of genius. How many other interesting ideas, shown to Karpov (with whom he worked for many years), remained unseen? That said, Zaitsev has always been a creative rather than a practical person. He generated the brightest ideas but was not cut out to play at the highest level. After becoming a GM, Zaitsev quickly switched to coaching and analytical work. Most and foremost, he relished the depth and beauty of chess. Since, with such an approach, it became increasingly difficult to keep it up in the computer age, Zaitsev withdrew from elite chess at the turn of the century. Still, he has constantly analyzed and had numerous publications. He even refuted computer analyses on many occasions in those blessed years when this was still possible. Zaitsev also composed poetry on the anniversaries of colleagues and friends and for his own pleasure, sharing a bit of his soul. Congratulating Igor on his 85th birthday, I want to thank him on behalf of many chess players and fans of our game for those special moments he gave us. Thank you, Igor, and be well! Emil Sutovsky, FIDE Chief Executive Officer
The final round to decide the winner of Cyprus Grand Prix and two Women’s Candidates
GM Kateryna Lagno and GM Aleksandra Goryachkina qualified for the Candidates. It’s not often that the lowest-rated player in the field takes down a tough event, but WGM Dinara Wagner fought against the odds in Cyprus and achieved the most important success in her career. In the last-round, must-win scenario, Wagner defeated GM Bella Khotenashvili with Black in one of the most exciting rounds of chess I have ever witnessed. In addition to winning the fourth leg of the 2022-2023 FIDE Women’s Grand Prix and the first prize of 15,000 euros, Wagner scored her second IM norm and her first GM norm. With her important last-round win over IM Oliwia Kiolbasa, IM Polina Shuvalova shared second to fourth place with former World Champion GM Tan Zhongyi (third) and GM Harika Dronavalli (fourth), taking second on tiebreaks. The first game to finish in a draw was Lagno vs Assaubayeva. Although they played more than thirty moves, it was all home preparation, and both players seemed content with the result. Soon after, Goryachkina and Harika also split the point: with this result, Harika secured a well-deserved spot at the top of the table, confirming once again that her poor result in Delhi was already forgotten. Goryachkina also had a good reason to draw: after a series of very unfortunate results, a draw secured her qualification for the Candidates. Mammadzada and Kosteniuk battled it out in a technical queenless French Tarrasch, but neither of the two was able to unbalance the position to her favour, and the draw became inevitable. Shuvalova caught her opponent in opening preparation, and once again, Kiolbasa spent a huge amount of time: soon, she was in time trouble. Shuvalova missed a win and soon found herself in a complicated position but eventually, Kiolbasa blundered under the pressure. 40.Qxh6+ forced resignation due to 40…gxh6 41.Rg1+ In the key game of the day, Wagner outplayed her opponent with a very dangerous kingside attack, finishing things off with a nice tactic. 34…Bg2! Many roads lead to Rome and it is one of them. Bella tried 35.f3 but capitulated after 35…Qf4+ as Black checkmates in seven. From then on, she just had to wait to see if Tan Zhongyi could take advantage of her extra material against Dzagnidze. After some ups and downs, one of the most exciting games of the event ended in a draw. FIDE WGP Cyprus final standings Regarding the overall scores of the full Grand Prix, the winner is GM Kateryna Lagno, followed closely by GM Aleksandra Goryachkina. Both of these players qualify for the 2024 Women’s Candidates Tournament. Check out an interview with the overall winner of FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022-2023, Kateryna Lagno. FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022-2023 final standings During the closing ceremony FIDE General Secretary Lukasz Turlej expressed his gratitude to the Cyprus Chess Federation and partners Freedom Finance for the invitation to dispute the event in Nicosia and for the great conditions, hotel, and playing venue. Evgeniy Tyapkin, Executive Director of Freedom Finance Europe, confirmed that they were committed to cultivating the framework, the competition and the excitement in their partnership with FIDE in Cyprus and across the world. Olga Milko, Director of Business Development at Freedom Finance Europe, reminded everyone about the equality of opportunities. “Chess develops many strategic skills at the same time. Scientific research confirms that there is no difference in intelligence between genders, and if all other things are equal, girls show even better results.” Finally, Criton Tornaritis, President of the Cyprus Chess Federation, took the stage, congratulated all the players, and expressed his wish to see everyone again next year and organize more events in the future. Text: IM Michael Rahal (Nicosia, Cyprus) Photos: Mark Livshitz About Freedom Finance Europe Freedom Finance Europe, a subsidiary of Freedom Holding Corp., is a leading European stockbroker. The company’s Freedom24 web and mobile app investment platform provides traders with direct access to 15 global stock exchanges, including NYSE, Nasdaq, LSE, Euronext and others. Freedom Finance Europe is licensed by Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) with the right to cater clients from EU and EEA countries. The company is rated “B/B” by S&P Global Ratings. Headquartered in Limassol, the company has tied agents and representative offices in Berlin, Madrid, Paris, Milan, Vienna, Warsaw, and Athens. More information: https://www.freedom24.com/
Icelandic Championship: Vignir Vatnar Stefánsson wins maiden title
20-year-old IM Vignir Vatnar Stefánsson won his first Icelandic championship title in a close and exciting competition that came down to the wire. Like many previous editions, the 2023 Icelandic Championship was a 12-player round-robin tournament with classical time control that took place from May 15–25 in Hafnarfjordur, Iceland. As tournament fate would have it, as many as three participants – Gudmundur Kjartansson, Vignir Vatnar Stefánsson and Hannes Stefansson – scored 8.5/11 and tied for first place. In the final round, the leaders Vignir and Hannes drew their game (although the former was very close to a victory) while Gudmundur beat Lenka Ptacnikova and caught up with them. To determine the champion, a blitz double round robin (5 min + 5 sec increment) was played. Vignir Vatnar Stefánsson defeated Gudmundur Kjartansson and then escaped with a draw against Hannes Stefansson, while Kjartansson made quick work of Hannes Stefansson to score a full point. The competition culminated in the fourth-round game between Gudmundur Kjartansson and Vignir Vatnar Stefánsson. Playing with White, Gudmundur achieved a slightly better position but made a fatal error on move 28, allowing his opponent to launch a deadly attack. Now Vignir needed just a draw with the white pieces in the duel between Stefanssons. Although he was in danger at some point, Vignir (pictured below, left) managed to trade most of the pieces and reached a draw that secured his maiden national title. Final standings: 1 IM Vignir Vatnar Stefansson 2470 8½ 2 GM Gudmundur Kjartansson 2402 8½ 3 GM Hannes Stefansson 2521 8½ 4 IM Hilmir Freyr Heimisson 2353 8 5 GM Hjorvar Steinn Gretarsson 2539 6 6 FM Aleksandr Domalchuk-Jonasson 2338 5½ 7 GM Johann Hjartarson 2466 5½ 8 GM Henrik Danielsen 2501 4 9 IM Dagur Ragnarsson 2346 4 10 WGM Lenka Ptacnikova 2099 3 11 GM Bragi Thorfinnsson 2431 2½ 12 Johann Ingvason 2076 2 Official website: https://skak.is/frettir/ Photos: official website
Magnus Carlsen wins 2023 Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland
Magnus Carlsen won the 2023 Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland after another incredible performance during the second day of the blitz portion, ending with a score of 24/36 and taking home the $40,000 1st place prize. Placing 2nd was local favorite and defending champion Jan-Krzyzstof Duda, who led until the final day and ended just a point behind with 23/36, after nearly winning a final game against Carlsen that would have forced a playoff. Tied for third were Wesley So and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, each with 21½ points, with Levon Aronian finishing in clear fifth place with 20½. BLITZ | ROUNDS 10-18 Carlsen’s day started off with victories against Vachier-Lagrave and So, extending his fantastic win streak from the end of yesterday to seven. He was then held to a draw by Deac, who played most of the game on the increment, before going on to defeat Wojtaszek, Shevchenko, and Rapport in consecutive rounds to overtake the lead. 55.Qxb3! was the stylish finish in Carlsen – So, as 55…Nxb3 56.Nc2++- leaves White with three extra pawns. After 20…Nb4!, which ended the game Rapport – Carlsen. Then followed draws with Giri and Aronian, leaving Magnus a full point ahead of the previous day’s leader, Duda. Duda led for most of the event, and in the end was extremely close to forcing a playoff. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes For Duda the day was more up-and-down, as he won several games, defeating Rapport, Shevchenko, So, Deac, and Wojtaszek–but he also dropped a couple games to Giri, Aronian, and MVL. 23.Qd5+! allowed Duda to force a winning bishop ending against So. Going into the final round, Duda would need to defeat Carlsen with Black in order to catch up and force a playoff. Despite losing an exchange out of the opening, Duda managed to survive into the endgame and completely turn it around. The Polish No. 1 was even winning at various moments, with a bishop and two pawns against Carlsen’s rook. But in the time-scramble Duda missed a few chances and Carlsen managed to hold after 124 moves of play, clinching the title. After 116.Re8, …Bb6! was one of Duda’s missed opportunities in the game, as White cannot prevent e3: 117.Kd2 Kd4 (threatening e3+ Rxe3 Ba5+, etc.) The final game. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes Finishing in third place were Wesley So and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, each taking home $22,500 and 7.5 GCT points. Wesley So | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Bryan Adams Maxime Vachier-Lagrave | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes Fifth place and $15,000 for Levon Aronian | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes $10,000 and four GCT points for Anish Giri | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes Current GCT Standings after Poland The 2023 Grand Chess Tour continues with the SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz in Zagreb, Croatia, taking place July 3-10. Tune in for live Grandmaster commentary on grandchesstour.org and on the Saint Louis Chess Club’s YouTube and Twitch.tv channels. Text: IM Kostya Kavutskiy Photos: Courtesy of Grand Chess Tour and Spectrum Studios Credits available on Flickr. Further Information:Web: GrandChessTour.org | Twitter: @GrandChessTourInstagram: @GrandChessTour | Facebook: @GrandChessTour#GrandChessTour#SuperbetRapidBlitzPoland Venue: Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw, PolandMay 21 – May 25, 2023 Press Contact:press@grandchesstour.org Livestream:GrandChessTour.org
2023 GCT Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland: Day 4 Recap
After winning five straight games to close out the day World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen roared back to within half a point of the leader, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, at the half-way mark of the blitz portion. Going into the final day of the blitz tomorrow, Duda has 17.5 points, Carlsen – 17, with Wesley So (16.5), Levon Aronian (16), and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (15.5) all within striking distance. BLITZ | ROUNDS 1-9 The day started somewhat slowly for Carlsen as he beat MVL in the first round before losing to So in Round 2, followed by two draws against Deac and Wojtaszek. But then after executing a clinical mating attack against Shevchenko’s Dragon in Round 5, the previous World Champion simply could not be stopped, as he won the next four games as well, ending the day with a technical endgame win against Duda. 25.Qh2! forced resignation, with an inevitable mate on the h-file. 87…Rxe4! was Carlsen’s winning breakthrough, allowing Black to promote one of his pawns next. Back to his usual self, a whopping 7.0/9 in the blitz for Magnus. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes Duda in the meantime also struggled during the first part of the day, scoring just 1/4 until a win against MVL propped him back into the lead: After 35…d5? 36.cxd5 MVL realized too late that he could not recapture 36…exd5 in view of 37.Bb5!+-, heading into a winning king and pawn ending. Duda then went on to defeat Deac and Wojtaszek in back-to-back games before losing to Carlsen in the final round, though he was still able to stay in the lead at the end of the day. Duda did just enough to remain in first going into the final day. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes So finished the day on a decent +2, with wins over Carlsen, Aronian, and Deac while only losing a single game to Giri. In particular So’s game against Magnus was high class, as he did not achieve much out of the opening against Carlsen’s Scandinavian Defense, but managed to masterfully exploit the power of his bishop in the endgame, which eventually allowed him to win two extra pawns in the knight endgame. 35.Nf3! allowed So to first pick up the d4-pawn, with a winning knight endgame. So was the only player to successfully best Magnus. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes Aronian’s day was quite topsy-turvy, as he started off with a loss to Giri, then scored wins over Shevchenko, Duda, and Deac before ending the day with losses to Carlsen and Rapport. But a strong performance was shown by the Ukranian-Polish Shevchenko, who managed to win games against Deac, Rapport, Wojtaszek, and Giri. 29…Rc8! allowed Black’s rook to penetrate decisively on the 2nd rank. Tour wildcard Shevchenko did not fare well in the rapid, but his 5.5 in the blitz was tied with So and second only to Carlsen. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes The 2023 Superbet Rapid & Blitz continues Thursday, May 25, with tournament action live starting at 7:05 AM CT with Grandmaster commentators Yasser Seirawan, Var Akobian, Cristian Chirila and International Master Nazi Paikidze on grandchesstour.org and on the Saint Louis Chess Club’s YouTube and Twitch.tv channels. Text: IM Kostya Kavutskiy Photos: Courtesy of Grand Chess Tour and Spectrum Studios Credits available on Flickr. Further Information:Web: GrandChessTour.org | Twitter: @GrandChessTourInstagram: @GrandChessTour | Facebook: @GrandChessTour#GrandChessTour#SuperbetRapidBlitzPoland Venue: Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw, PolandMay 21 – May 25, 2023 Press Contact:press@grandchesstour.org Livestream:GrandChessTour.org
Georg Meier wins American Continental Championship 2023
A native of Germany GM Georg Meier, representing Uruguay, emerged as the winner of the 2023 American Continental Chess Championship 2023. The 11-round Swiss tournament with classical time control took place from May 15-23 in Juan Dolio, Dominican Republic. The event brought together 162 players from all around the Americas. The top four finishers qualified for the 2023 FIDE World Cup, which is a part of the World Championship cycle. Georg had a shaky start losing his second-round encounter to FM Matias Latorre (Paraguay) but then picked up steam and won five straight games in Rounds 6-10. Coming to the final round a half-point ahead of GMs Carlos Daniel Albornoz Cabrera (Cuba) and Fidel Corrales Jimenez (USA), Meier drew his game with the former and clinched the title and the $5,000 first prize as the latter also scored just a half-point facing Cristobal Henriquez Villagra. As many as seven players netted 8 points each and tied for fourth place, with IM Josiah Stearman (USA) punching the fourth ticket to the 2023 FIDE World Cup thanks to the superior rating average of his opponents (the first tiebreak criteria). Final standings: 1 GM Meier, Georg URU 2614 9 2 GM Albornoz Cabrera, Carlos Daniel CUB 2586 8½ 3 GM Corrales Jimenez, Fidel USA 2489 8½ 4 IM Stearman, Josiah USA 2385 8 5 IM Ghazarian, Kirk USA 2475 8 6 GM Henriquez Villagra, Cristobal CHI 2616 8 7 GM Kaidanov, Gregory USA 2559 8 8 IM Leiva, Gianmarco PER 2392 8 9 GM Santiago, Yago De Moura BRA 2471 8 10 GM Cori, Jorge PER 2650 8 Complete results Photos: Federación Dominicana de Ajedrez Facebook
FIDE World Cadet Championships U8, U10 and U12: Registration is open
FIDE and the Egyptian Chess Federation invite all FIDE Member Federations and eligible players to participate in the FIDE World Cadet Chess Championships U8, U10 and U12. The event will take place in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, from October 14-27, 2023. National Federations can register one invited player in each category: under 8, 10, and 12 (Open and Girls). A total of six invited players and one accompanying official from the national federation are invited by the Organizer. All players must not have reached the age of 8, 10 or 12 by January 1, 2023. Photo: dailynewsegypt.com Personal rights are granted to the top three finishers in each category of the 2022 World Cadet Championships and the 2022 Continental Cadets Champions. National federation can register as many additional players and accompanying persons as they wish but only upon confirmation by the organizing committee. The deadline for registration is August 14, 2023. FIDE World Cadet Chess Championships 2023 official website will be launched in July. FIDE World Cadet Championships regulations and invitation letter (pdf) E-mail: wccc2023@fide.com