FIDE World Championships 2024 Call for Bids: Two days to deadline
FIDE Events Commission would like to remind to all National Federations that the procedure “Call for Bids FIDE World Championships 2024” will be ended for all bidders on July 14 2023. There are 11 competitions on the list: World Junior U20 Chess Championships 2024 World Senior Team Chess Championships 2024 World Senior Chess Championships 2024 World Youth U14, U16, U18 Championships 2024 World Amateur Chess Championships 2024 World School Chess Championships 2024 World Cadet & Youth Rapid & Blitz Championships 2024 World Cadet U8, U10, U12 Championships 2024 World U20 Junior Rapid & Blitz Championships 2024 World Schools Team Chess Championship 2024 World Cup U8, U10, U12 2024 (New) Dear bidders, please pay attention: FIDE Events Commission has changed its approach to accepting and processing bid applications. From now on it is stricter and more formalized. More details about the procedure including the Bidding Federations Responsibility, Bid Form and Bid Form Annex, Bid and Deposit Fees you can find HERE.
WWC Match 2023: Lei Tingjie takes the lead with convincing win over Ju Wenjun
In a complicated game in round five of the Women’s World Championship match, challenger Lei Tingjie defeated the reigning Champion Ju Wenjun The 26-year-old challenger seized the initiative early on and gradually tightened her grip on Ju Wenjun’s subdued defences. This was the first game in the match where one side had a clear advantage. Once again, Lei surprised her opponent by choosing the Italian game instead of the Ruy Lopez she had played as White in the previous two rounds. In a dynamic game, Lei managed to achieve more space across the board and exerted greater control in the centre and the light squares. The defending Champion Ju made a mistake on move 21, allowing White to create a strong push on the queenside – an advantage which impacted the course of the game. Although some exchanges of pieces provided Black with breathing space, the defending Women’s World Champion ended up in a passive position, desperately trying to withstand White’s squeezing. With no pressure on her back and with enough time on the clock, Lei proceeded to align her pieces and then eventually broke through in the centre with a devastating pawn push (45.e5), shattering Black’s defences. Ju spent over 22 minutes thinking about how to react. Visibly nervous, she made a bad move and found herself in a hopeless position as Lei quickly got two passers. Although Ju fought on for a little longer (having to even give up a bishop), the endgame was ultimately beyond salvation. This victory is a significant boost for Lei, marking her first triumph in the World Championship match. With seven more games scheduled for the classical part of the event, the defending Women’s World Champion, Ju, will undoubtedly strive to make her presence felt and mount a strong comeback. In the post-game interview Lei was asked if she feels any pressure: “If you feel it, you have it; if you don’t feel it, you don’t have it. I’m just happy to be here”, Lei responded. Lei, who had a concerned look on her face during the press conference, was asked why she seems not as happy as in the past four games which ended in a draw. Her response: “You can’t show your happy in front of people. I won a lot of “first win” [games] in my life… maybe I will be happy later”. Ju acknowledged that this was a tough game for her as she was weaker, but tried not to show any emotion and was mostly reserved. “This match puts more pressure on me than other tournaments, but this is something I have to endure”. The match continues on Tuesday, 12th July, with game six taking place at 3 PM Local Time in Shanghai (GMT +8). Here follows a closer look at game five of the match: The first move was officiated by Gui Jinsong, Director of the Mass Sports Department of Shanghai Administration of Sports, as well as by Zhou Jia, President of Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The challenger Lei Tingjie was White in this game, and again she opened with 1.e4, to which Ju responded with her standard 1.e5. Unlike in the previous two encounters where Lei opted for the Ruy Lopez, here she went for the Italian game, with 3.Bc4. Another opening surprise by the challenger. The opponents played a long manoeuvring game with many nuances, as Grandmaster Alik Gershon pointed out, and by move 14, stepped into uncharted territory. After Lei made the thematic d3-d4 push in the centre, she got a slight edge which increased after somewhat committal 14..c5 by Ju. With this move, Black blocked her dark-squared bishop and weakened the light-squares, which later had grave consequences. In subsequent play, Lei then launched a push on the queenside, but Ju’s response was far from optimal. Here Ju took the pawn with 21…axb4?! Better options were 21…Bd6 and 21…Bb7. As played, White got a clear advantage and control over the light squares in the centre. Over the next several moves, Lei built up the pressure while Ju was forced to switch to defending. After the Women’s World Champion carried out a sound manoeuvre Nf6-e8-c7-e6 with the idea of Nd4, Lei had a very important choice to make. Lei could have continued to ramp up the pressure with 30.Qc4, which, most likely, promised more, but instead, she traded her light-squared bishop for Black’s knight with 30.Bxe6. White was still better, but Black had a break after some of the pieces had been removed from the board. Still, within a few moves, White again tightened her grip on the game. An extremely uncomfortable position for Black. With no active play, Ju has to defend passively, while Lei can gradually improve her position and probe Black’s defence here and there, taking no risks. By this point, both sides had under 10 minutes, but with three more moves to the first time control, it seemed safe. After 38.g3 Qc8 39.Kg2 Qe8 40.h4 it became clear that White was preparing a break either in the centre or on the kingside to stretch Black’s defence. 40…h5?! This control move made by Ju appears to be the last straw that broke the camel’s back as White breaks through on one of the wings. With precise 41.Bd2! Lei put the bishop in a position where it could see both flanks, noted Grandmaster and former World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk. On the next move, White played f2-f4 and began the final push. 45.e5! – the clincher. Ju Wenjun was visibly nervous at this point. She spent nearly 23 moves trying to find the best response, but her position is beyond salvation. With five minutes on the clock, Ju played 45…Qa8 (a lesser of many evils was Rd7, although after 46.Qf3, it’s still virtually impossible to hold), but it failed to 46.Qf3! played by Lei in under a minute. After trading the queens, Lei penetrated with her rook into Black’s camp and got to the b6-pawn. With a single passer against White’s two, Ju had no reasonable defence. Soon
FIDE World Junior Rapid & Blitz U20 Championship: Registration is open
FIDE, the Italian Chess Federation, and UniChess are happy to invite all FIDE member federations to participate in the World Junior U20 Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship 2023. The event will take place in Pula (Sardinia), Italy, from October 9 (arrival) to October 16 (departure), 2023. Personal rights will receive the winners of the World Youth Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship in Batumi 2023 and first 10 players on the starting list (10 for the open list and 10 for the girls’ list). All above-mentioned participants will be eligible for free full-board accommodation. The deadline for registration is September 15, 2023 The number of rounds will depend on the number of entries and will be announced after the registration is closed. Regulations and invitation letter (pdf) Official website: juniorrapidandblitz2023.fide.com Email: juniorrapidandblitz2023@fide.com Photo: Olaf Tausch
Anish Giri and Eline Roebers win 2023 Dutch Championship
Anish Giri and Eline Roebers are the new Dutch chess champions. The 29-old GM earned his fifth national title and the first since 2015, while 17-year-old Eline won her first Dutch crown. The 2023 Dutch Championship (open), a 13-player knockout tournament and took place in Utrecht from July 2-9, just about half a year after the previous edition. Each match consisted of two classical games, with 90 minutes for 40 moves, then 30 minutes to the end of the game, with a 30-second increment from move 1. In the case of 1-1 in the classical game, blitz tiebreaks were played. The event attracted all the best local players, including the Dutch # 1 Anish Giri, who had skipped several championships before, Jorden van Foreest and the defending champion Erwin l’Ami (all three got a bye through to Round 2). The two top seeds, Anish Giri and Jorden van Foreest confirmed their status as pre-event favourites and made it all the way to the final. Anish eliminated Benjamin Bok in the quarterfinals and then, in the semis, beat Max Warmerdam in the blitz tiebreaker. Jorden van Foreest knocked out Sipke Ernst and then played a nail-biter semifinal against Erwin l’Ami. The opponents exchanged blows in the classical games and the first two blitz games, with Jorden’s eventually prevailing in the fifth and drawing the sixth. The final was a very close battle – the first four games (two classical and two rapid) were drawn, although, in game 4, Giri had a won position at some point. Anish struck in game five after outplaying his opponent with the black pieces again, but this time he was precise to the very end. Jorden van Foreest – Anish Giri 28…Rxf3! 29. Qxf3 Rxf3 30. Kxf3 Ne5+ and Black’s queen and powerful central pawns proved superior to White’s two rooks | 0-1, 52 moves Jorden did his best to create complications in game 6 with the black pieces, but Anish had everything under control all the way and secured a draw and the title from the position of strength. In addition to the title, Anish Giri picked 13 FIDE Circuit points and leapfrogged Gukesh D to grab the lead in the race for a spot in the Candidates. FIDE Circuit points awarded in 2023 Dutch Championship: Giri, Anish 13.09 Van Foreest, Jorden 10.47 Ami, Erwin 8.51 Warmerdam, Max 8.51 The women’s event, a double four-player round robin was dominated by the highest-rated lady in the Netherlands, Eline Roebers (2363). Eline won all her mini-matches against the competition and finished two points ahead of Anna-Maja Kazarian. Robin Duson took bronze. Final standings women: 1 IM Roebers, Elin 2363 5 2 WIM Kazarian, Anna-Maja 2187 3 3 Duson, Robin 2177 2½ 4 WIM Van Weersel, Arlette 2173 1½ Photos: Harry Gielen Official website: schaakbond.nl/
Swedish Championship 2023: Vitalii Sivuk claims title
GM Vitalii Sivuk is the new chess champion of Sweden. The 31-year-old native of Ukraine turned in an excellent performance in the 2023 Swedish Championship and won his maiden title with a round to spare. The Swedish Chess Championship 2023 took place in 2023 in Helsingborg from June30 to July 9 and was played in several different classes – from youngsters tournament to the battle for the Swedish championship gold in the Champion Class, a round-robin with classical time control, featuring local best players. Sivuk took the lead as early as in Round 3 after defeating the defending champion GM Jonny Hector and never looked back. The new champion scored impressive 7/9 and became the only unbeaten player in the event. A three-time national champion GM Tiger Hillarp Persson (pictured above) finished 1.5 points behind Sivuk and earned silver. IM Milton Pantzar and GM Thomas Ernst tied for third place with the former taking bronze thanks to a slightly better tiebreak. Final standings: 1 GM Vitalii Sivuk 2432 7 2 GM Tiger Hillarp 2493 5½ 3 IM Milton Pantzar 2442 5 4 GM Thomas Ernst 2288 5 5 IM Jung Min Seo 2469 4½ 6 FM William Olsson 2383 4½ 7 GM Erik Blomqvist 2500 4 8 GM Jonny Hector 2481 3½ 9 IM Kaan Küçüksarı 2512 3½ 10 IM Linus Johansson 2466 2½ Complete results in all categories Official website: schack.se/tavlingar/schack-sm/sm-i-helsingborg-2023/ Photos: Lars OA Hedlund / Swedish Chess Association
Hou Yifan on chess in China and the match for Women’s World Champion
It’s all about finding the balance between experience and motivation Ahead of the Match in China to determine the 18th Women’s World Champion, I was in Dubai for the inaugural edition of the Global Chess League, and there I caught up with Hou Yifan. A former Women’s World Champion (2010-2017) and still the highest-rated player on the FIDE Women’s rating list (2628), Hou has left a strong mark on chess with her exceptional skill and results. Despite deciding to move to academia, she is still present in the chess world, and her recent resurfacing at the Global Chess League in Dubai was a chance to ask her in person about the match between Ju Wenjun and Lei Tingjie and chess in China. The first thing I asked Hou was to explain how China got into a position to have the crown in both the Women’s and the Open category. “As a Chinese player, I am happy to see how chess develops in our country. That is actually the work of not our generation but all of the Chinese players from before – even back to the 60s and 70s”, she explains, pointing out the strong common spirit which was built among the Chinese players over the years. “We also have traditions to play together – both men and women – and we learn”. The rise and success of Chinese chess in recent years have gone hand in hand with increasing government support for the game. “That helps a lot”, Hou acknowledged, noting that chess plays a greater role in Chinese society now than a few years back. Hou Yifan was five and a half when she got introduced to chess. “It was a coincidence because none of my family members plays chess, nor was it big in my hometown (Xinghua, in the east of China). I just happened to see a chess board somewhere in the street”. Hou had a chess teacher, but at the time – in 1999 – online wasn’t a big thing, and there weren’t many online resources. “I went to a private chess club, and my coach was an amateur chess player. He would take out the books and we would start rehearsing a few opening moves, and then we just start playing. It was a very exciting period for me. Now it’s different and much more modern”. Hou was one of several Chinese chess players to win medals and pave the way for the country to climb to the top of the chess world. Ding Liren’s success in winning the World Championship Match in Astana sparked talk of Chinese dominance in chess. “Even though the titles are both in China, I wouldn’t say China is dominating the chess world. In the open section, Magnus decided not to compete, but personally, I think he is the strongest”, Hou said, adding: “To win a title does not equal dominance”. But the story is different in women’s chess, where nine of the 17 women’s world champions so far have come from China. “We are really one of the best teams, that’s for sure,” Hou said as she explained that there are different factors at play. “Before, we used to have these traditions to train together with men, but it wasn’t that common in recent years. For the moment, the women players get support from the federation and a huge number of people working with them”. “When I was young, a few matches were organised by the federation, helping me a lot. For example, just before I won my world championship title, I had a match with Anatoly Karpov, which was very useful, and I also got some advice from him”, she added. When talk turned to the match in China between Ju Wenjun and Lei Tingjie, Hou was cautious. “It’s hard to say what will happen. Ju is experienced and won the title before, Lei is young, and maybe she is more motivated. It will depend on their prep and how they build their shape up”. I asked Hou if it was easier to defend the crown or to attack the title. “For me, it doesn’t matter. It’s simply focusing on chess games. I was comfortable with both”. According to the currently highest-rated woman player, the key to success is finding the right balance between motivation and skill. “If you lack motivation, you just enjoy yourself, but that has its drawbacks. To have motivation but lack experience – it reminds me of Firouzja in the 2020 Candidates; he didn’t do well, but he tried hard. There should be a balance. The players will find the most suitable path for themselves. It’s not the same for everyone. You should see what makes you feel more ready”, Hou said. Text: Milan Dinic Photo: Anna Shtourman
Magnus Carlsen wins 2023 SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz
World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen capped off an incredible blitz performance to win the 2023 SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz with a score of 26.0/36, taking home a first place prize of $40,000. Finishing in second place was Nepomniachtchi (22.5), with Caruana (21.5) third, Firouzja (21) fourth, and Gukesh (19.5) earning clear fifth. BLITZ | ROUNDS 10-18 Carlsen’s perfect streak from yesterday was snapped in the first round of the day, as he failed to convert a slightly better endgame against Caruana. Magnus then drew with Duda before uncorking four straight wins against Gukesh, Saric, Anand, and Nepomniachtchi to clinch tournament victory. Nepomniachtchi-Carlsen: 16…Bxe5! snagged a big pawn for Carlsen, as 17.Rxe5 Rxe5 18.Qxe5 would lose White’s queen after 18…Bxc2+! | 0-1, 20 moves Carlsen would go on to lose to Firouzja and Rapport before closing things out with a win over Lupulescu, ending his tournament on a high note. Magnus’s final result is just a point short of his own 27.0/36 record score in the 2019 Tata Steel Rapid & Blitz. Fighting for second throughout the day were Nepomniachtchi and Caruana, with Nepo managing to take an early lead and keep his standing until the very end. Firouzja-Nepomniachtchi: After 25…Bc3, Black was soon winning a decisive amount of material. | 0-1, 55 moves While first place was out of reach, Nepomniachtchi managed to maintain second. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes A solid third place for Caruana, who now has a significant lead in the overall Grand Chess Tour. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes Scoring the most in today’s round-robin were Firouzja and Gukesh, who each picked up 6.5/9 points for the day. Firouzja in particular caught fire in the second half of the event, as he closed things out with five straight wins over Gukesh, Anand, Carlsen, Lupulescu, and Duda: Carlsen-Firouzja: After 45…d2! both sides would make a new queen, but the pin along the d-file was difficult for White to resolve. | 0-1, 96 moves Firouzja scored 6.5/9 on both days of the blitz, finishing fourth overall. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes The young wildcard Gukesh took a very respectable fifth place and $15,000 for his effort. With just two events left in the 2023 Grand Chess Tour, the Saint Louis Rapid and Blitz followed by the Sinquefield Cup in November, Caruana currently leads the GCT standings with 20 points. The 2023 Grand Chess Tour continues next with the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz, which will take place November 12-19 in Saint Louis, Missouri. Tune in to live coverage on grandchesstour.org and on the Saint Louis Chess Club’s YouTube and Twitch.tv channels. Text: IM Kostya Kavutskiy Further Information: Web: GrandChessTour.org | Twitter: @GrandChessTourInstagram: @GrandChessTour | Facebook: @GrandChessTour Venue: The Westin Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia July 5 – 9, 2023 Press Contact:press@grandchesstour.org Livestream:GrandChessTour.org Photos:Courtesy of Grand Chess Tour and Spectrum StudiosCredits available on Flickr.
Norwegian Championship: Simen Agdestein clinches ninth title
Simen Agdestein emerged as the winner of the 2023 Norwegian Championship Championship and took his ninth national title. Aged 56, Simen beat his own record set last year and again became the oldest Norwegian champion of all time. The 2023 Norwegian Championship was held in fifteen categories from June 30 to July 8 in Vallhall Arena, Oslo. The Klasse Elite, a 9-round Swiss tournament brought together the best local players, except Magnus Carlsen, who was fighting in SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Zagreb those days. Unlike the 2022 event, in which Agdestein had breezed past competition and won with a round to spare, the 2023 campaign was not an easy ride for the defending champion. Simen grabbed the lead after Round 4 but suffered a setback in Round 6 at the hands of IM Benjamin Haldorsen, who caught up with him. Undaunted, Agdestein finished strong with two straight victories, scored 6.5/9 and clinched the title. GM Evgeny Romanov, IM Elham Abdrlauf and the rating favourite GM Aryan Tari finished a half-point behind the champion and tied for second place. Silver and bronze went to Romanov and Abdrlauf, respectively, thanks to superior median Buchholz. Final standings: 1 GM Simen Agdestein 2584 6½ 2 GM Evgeny Romanov 2555 6 3 IM Elham Abdrlauf 2522 6 4 GM Aryan Tari 2646 6 5 FM Aksel Bu Kvaløy 2347 5½ 6 IM Kristian Stuvik Holm 2480 5 7 GM Lars Oskar Hauge 2508 5 8 GM Jon Ludvig Hammer 2630 5 9 IM Benjamin Haldorsen 2454 4½ 10 FM Jens E Ingebretsen 2342 4½ Complete results Official website: nm2023.no/ Photos: Helge Brekke
WWC Match 2023: Lei’s opening surprise meets Ju’s endgame resurgence
Another tough game in the match for the title of Women’s World Champion as challenger Lei Tingjie continues to pressure Ju Wenjun with opening surprises, while the defender counters in the endgame Despite her excellent resourcefulness, things are becoming increasingly uncomfortable in the openings for the defending Women’s World Champion. The fourth game of the match saw another Queen’s gambit played, but this time Lei (who was Black) opted for the Vienna variation which strikes a fine balance between sharpness and positional soundness. Lei sacrificed a pawn early on and got sufficient positional compensation. Once again, the challenger surprised the defending World Champion with her opening preparation: while Lei’s homework went deep into the middlegame, Ju was out of her book early on. Despite being heavily down on time, Ju showed great resourcefulness, finding strong countering moves and holding the balance. After the queens were exchanged in the final stages of the middlegame, the tension somewhat eased, but the position remained hard to play for both sides. With further exchanges following, the two players entered an even endgame with a pair of rooks and opposite-coloured bishops in which Black finally regained a pawn. It seemed that they were heading for a quick draw, but at this point – like in game three – we saw a twist. By the endgame, Lei was the one slightly behind on time, with 30 minutes compared to Ju’s 36. Similar to game three, it was now Ju who began turning up the pressure by advancing her central pawns. Lei was desperately down on time by the end and had to play extremely precisely. Luckily for her, in the most critical moment in the endgame, Lei found the only move to hold a draw. The game ended in threefold repetition, after 61 moves. Grandmasters analysing the games noted that both players played very precisely throughout the match so far as neither side had clear winning chances. The result is now 2:2. The players will have their second rest day in the match on Monday, 10th July. Game five will be played on Tuesday, 11th July, at 3 PM Local Time in Shanghai (GMT +8) Here follows a closer look at game four of the match: Ju Wenjun opened with 1.d4, sticking with her standard opening-move choice. After 1…d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4 Lei was the first to deviate from the line played in game two, where she went for the Tarrasch Defense. This time around, the opponents tested the Vienna variation of the Queen’s Gambit declined – one of the most underrated and interesting lines, as noted by GM Daniel Naroditsky. It’s a system that strikes a balance between having a sharp position and, at the same time, being relatively sound from a positional standpoint for Black. While the queenside pawn structure isn’t good for Black, as compensation, she has a strong outpost on d5. The players followed the realms of theory here, playing their moves quickly. Black offered a pawn sacrifice – a well-known idea in this position. White has the option to take on a7, but Black would just continue with Nb6-d5, playing for the initiative. “Impressive that Lei has her preparation covered this far,” noted Woman Grandmaster Jovanka Houska. It was the first move after which Ju spent more time thinking, suggesting that here she was out of preparation but played the most logical 15.Ne4, which is the first line of Stockfish. Two moves down the road, White accepted the pawn sacrifice. 16.Rxa7 “A very critical move”, said grandmaster Alik Gershon who was commenting on the game together with GM Xu Yi. White is out of her book and needs to find every move keeping in mind that her opponent is in a position where she can shift between plans. By move 20, Black reached complete equality by skillfully rotating her knights on b4 and d4 squares. By this point, Lei had an hour and 33 minutes – three minutes more than at the start of the match (due to a 30-second increment per move), while the defending world champion Ju Wenjun had under an hour. In subsequent play, the opponents slowly manoeuvred in a very complicated position. On move 27, the queens were traded, but there was still plenty of tension in the game. With her 29th move, Lei made a seemingly risky pawn push on the kingside 29…g5, but chess engines approved her choice. After 30.h3 Nf4 31.Bxf4 gxf4 32.Nb5 Bc6 33.Kf1 Kf8 34.Rd1, it seemed that neither side had any real improving moves left. The exchanges continued, and both sides reached an even endgame with a pair of rooks and the opposite-coloured bishops. Since White was more active, Ju put Lei to the test by advancing her central pawns. To her credit, the challenger demonstrated necessary accuracy in defence with just two minutes on her clock. In the end, Lei had to find the only move to secure a draw. 59…Bd6! The point is that 59…Bc5 fails to 60.e7 Re3 61.Rc8 winning the bishop. After the precise move by Lei, White can’t make any progress. The game ended in a draw after threefold repetition. A surprising twist at the end, but Lei held on. The score is now 2:2. Text: Milan Dinic Photos: Stev Bonhage and David Llada Official website: womenworldchampionship.fide.com/ About the Match The match will take place in two Chinese cities, where each of the contestants comes from. The first half of the match will be in Shanghai, while the second half takes place in Chongqing. The match will consist of 12 games of classical chess. The payers will have 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 more minutes for the rest of the game, plus a 30-second increment per move starting on move one. Players cannot offer a draw before they reach the 41st move. In case of a tie, there will be the following tiebreaks: Four games with a 25+10 time control. Two games with a 5+3 time control. Two more games with a 5+3 time control. One game with a
2023 SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz – Day 4 Recap
An elated Carlsen after completing his 9-0 run. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen achieved a monumental performance in today’s action, winning all nine of his games to take a significant lead in the SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz. The historic run started with wins over Caruana and Duda, as Carlsen then proceeded to mow down the rest of the field, ending with 20.0/27 points going into the second half of the blitz tomorrow. Finishing the day tied for second place were the previous day’s leaders Nepomniachtchi and Caruana, who each scored a modest +1. BLITZ | ROUNDS 1-9 The day started off on the fortunate side for Carlsen, as he first ground down Caruana in a drawn queen and pawn ending. Magnus then started to gain steam with wins over Duda and Gukesh before simply taking apart the rest of the competition, winning many endgames along the way. Final wins over Firouzja, Rapport, and Lupulescu sealed the perfect day for Magnus: Gukesh-Carlsen: 56…Rc2+! forced a winning king and pawn ending. | 0-1, 54 moves Anand-Carlsen: 28…Bd4! was a nice spot by Carlsen, since 29.Bxd4 29…Rb1+ leads to mate. Lupulescu-Carlsen: 43…f3! allowed Magnus to complete the ‘triple hat-trick’, winning after 44.Rxf3+ Rxf3 45.gxf3 Rb2-+ An unprecedented run by Carlsen, who seemed to have every game go his way. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes The previous leaders, Nepomniachtchi and Caruana both had up-and-down days. Nepo lost to Firouzja and Carlsen but managed to defeat Lupulescu, Duda, and Gukesh. Meanwhile Caruana lost three out of his first four to Carlsen, Anand, and Firouzja, but was able to come back with wins over Gukesh, Lupulescu, Saric, and Rapport to earn a plus score for the day. Nepomniachtchi – Gukesh: After essaying the King’s Gambit and reaching a dominating middlegame, Nepo capitalized on his edge with the winning 24.Nxf7!+- Not a disastrous day for Nepo, who remains tied for second. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Lennart Ootes Caruana lost his first three out of four but completely turned things around by the end. | Photo courtesy of Grand Chess Tour, Bryan Adams The 2023 SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz continues Sunday, July 9, with tournament action live starting at 8:05 AM CT with Grandmaster commentators Yasser Seirawan, Evgenij Miroshnichenko, 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 Further Information: Web: GrandChessTour.org | Twitter: @GrandChessTourInstagram: @GrandChessTour | Facebook: @GrandChessTour Venue: The Westin Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia July 5 – 9, 2023 Press Contact:press@grandchesstour.org Livestream:GrandChessTour.org Photos:Courtesy of Grand Chess Tour and Spectrum StudiosCredits available on Flickr.