FIDE World Championships 2024 Call for Bids: One month left before the deadline
FIDE Events Commission would like to remind to all National Federations that the procedure “Call for Bids for FIDE World Championships 2024” will end for 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 bid applications. From now on it will become 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.
Qualified players for FIDE Grand Swiss and Women’s Grand Swiss
FIDE is pleased to announce the first batch of qualified players for the FIDE Grand Swiss and Women’s Grand Swiss, according to the FIDE Rating List for June 1st. Both events are to be held in Douglas, Isle of Man, from October 23 to November 6. The full list can be found below. Qualified players can download their contracts from the following links, and return them signed to office@fide.com, with CC to alan@iomchess.com. They must also fill in their bank details in the form below and sent it together with the signed contract. Contract template for participants in the FIDE Grand Swiss Contract template for participants in the FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss Form: Bank Account Details (both for open and women’s) The deadline for players to confirm their participation is July 3, 12:00 CET. The organizing committee would appreciate it if those who plan to turn down the invitation could inform FIDE as soon as possible, so a reserve player can take their place. The deadline for reserve players is July 7, 16:00 CET, but they are encouraged to send their signed contracts at their earliest convenience. You will note from the contract that it is the players’ responsibility to arrange their own accommodation for 14 nights – there is no “official hotel”. You can find the full regulations on the FIDE Handbook: Regulations for FIDE Grand Swiss 2023 (PDF) Regulations for FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss (PDF) Qualified players, FIDE Grand Swiss # PLAYER FED FRLJune 23 1 Carlsen, Magnus NOR 2853 2 Firouzja, Alireza FRA 2786 3 Ding, Liren CHN 2780 4 Nepomniachtchi, Ian RUS 2779 5 Nakamura, Hikaru USA 2775 6 Caruana, Fabiano USA 2773 7 Giri, Anish NED 2772 8 So, Wesley USA 2765 9 Anand, Viswanathan IND 2754 10 Rapport, Richard ROU 2752 11 Radjabov, Teimour AZE 2747 12 Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime FRA 2747 13 Aronian, Levon USA 2742 14 Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar AZE 2740 15 Dominguez Perez, Leinier USA 2739 16 Grischuk, Alexander RUS 2736 17 Gukesh D IND 2736 18 Yu, Yangyi CHN 2734 19 Abdusattorov, Nodirbek UZB 2732 20 Duda, Jan-Krzysztof POL 2732 21 Le, Quang Liem VIE 2728 22 Topalov, Veselin BUL 2728 23 Wang, Hao CHN 2722 24 Wei, Yi CHN 2722 25 Vitiugov, Nikita FID 2721 26 Dubov, Daniil RUS 2716 27 Maghsoodloo, Parham IRI 2716 28 Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi IND 2712 29 Shankland, Sam USA 2711 30 Vallejo Pons, Francisco ESP 2706 31 Harikrishna, Pentala IND 2704 32 Erigaisi Arjun IND 2702 33 Artemiev, Vladislav RUS 2699 34 Sjugirov, Sanan RUS 2699 35 Niemann, Hans Moke USA 2695 36 Van Foreest, Jorden NED 2695 37 Bu, Xiangzhi CHN 2694 38 Eljanov, Pavel UKR 2694 39 Shevchenko, Kirill ROU 2694 40 Tomashevsky, Evgeny RUS 2694 41 Deac, Bogdan-Daniel ROU 2693 42 Sargissian, Gabriel ARM 2692 43 Xiong, Jeffery USA 2692 44 Anton Guijarro, David ESP 2691 45 Amin, Bassem EGY 2690 46 Keymer, Vincent GER 2690 47 Praggnanandhaa R IND 2690 48 Sevian, Samuel USA 2690 49 Navara, David CZE 2689 50 Robson, Ray USA 2689 51 Oparin, Grigoriy USA 2687 52 Alekseenko, Kirill FID 2686 53 Martirosyan, Haik M. ARM 2685 54 Sarana, Alexey SRB 2685 55 Tabatabaei, M. Amin IRI 2683 56 Esipenko, Andrey FID 2682 57 Nihal Sarin IND 2681 58 Howell, David W L ENG 2677 59 Fedoseev, Vladimir FID 2676 60 Wojtaszek, Radoslaw POL 2676 61 Grandelius, Nils SWE 2674 62 Kovalenko, Igor UKR 2674 63 Volokitin, Andrei UKR 2674 64 Kasimdzhanov, Rustam UZB 2673 65 Bacrot, Etienne FRA 2672 66 Bluebaum, Matthias GER 2672 67 Saric, Ivan CRO 2670 68 Naiditsch, Arkadij AZE 2669 69 Ni, Hua CHN 2669 70 Gelfand, Boris ISR 2668 71 Shirov, Alexei ESP 2668 72 Donchenko, Alexander GER 2667 73 Adams, Michael ENG 2666 74 Ponomariov, Ruslan UKR 2664 75 Cheparinov, Ivan BUL 2663 76 Matlakov, Maxim RUS 2662 77 Guseinov, Gadir AZE 2661 78 Korobov, Anton UKR 2661 79 Salem, A.R. Saleh UAE 2661 80 Kamsky, Gata USA 2659 81 Inarkiev, Ernesto FID 2658 82 Li, Chao b CHN 2658 83 Narayanan.S.L IND 2657 84 Kryvoruchko, Yuriy UKR 2656 85 Ivanchuk, Vasyl UKR 2655 86 Moussard, Jules FRA 2655 87 Nguyen, Thai Dai Van CZE 2653 88 Santos Latasa, Jaime ESP 2653 89 Liang, Awonder USA 2651 90 Predke, Alexandr SRB 2651 91 Melkumyan, Hrant ARM 2650 92 Ma, Qun CHN 2648 93 Malakhov, Vladimir FID 2646 94 Najer, Evgeniy FID 2646 95 Sindarov, Javokhir UZB 2646 96 Tari, Aryan NOR 2646 97 Gledura, Benjamin HUN 2645 98 L’Ami, Erwin NED 2645 99 Van Wely, Loek NED 2644 100 Mamedov, Rauf AZE 2642 Reserve players 1 Nyzhnyk, Illya UKR 2641 2 Sargsyan, Shant ARM 2640 3 Swiercz, Dariusz USA 2640 4 Yilmaz, Mustafa TUR 2639 5 Pichot, Alan ARG 2638 6 Yakubboev, Nodirbek UZB 2636 7 Cori, Jorge PER 2636 8 Idani, Pouya IRI 2633 9 Abasov, Nijat AZE 2632 10 Nabaty, Tamir ISR 2632 11 Fressinet, Laurent FRA 2632 12 Ragger, Markus AUT 2631 13 Hammer, Jon Ludvig NOR 2630 14 Petrosyan, Manuel ARM 2629 15 Meier, Georg URU 2629 16 Lenic, Luka SLO 2629 17 Gupta, Abhijeet IND 2628 18 Kuzubov, Yuriy UKR 2628 19 Karthikeyan, Murali IND 2628 20 Hou, Yifan CHN 2628 21 Papaioannou, Ioannis GRE 2628 22 Aravindh, Chithambaram VR. IND 2627 23 Durarbayli, Vasif AZE 2627 24 Popov, Ivan RUS 2627 25 Grigoryan, Karen H. ARM 2626 26 Aryan Chopra IND 2626 27 Iturrizaga Bonelli, Eduardo ESP 2626 28 McShane, Luke J ENG 2626 29 Areshchenko, Alexander UKR 2625 30 Bjerre, Jonas Buhl DEN 2624 Qualified players, FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss # PLAYER FED FRLJune 23 1 Hou, Yifan CHN 2628 2 Koneru, Humpy IND 2567 3 Ju, Wenjun CHN 2566 4 Goryachkina, Aleksandra FID 2557 5 Lei, Tingjie CHN 2554 6 Lagno, Kateryna RUS 2552 7 Kosteniuk, Alexandra SUI 2523 8 Tan, Zhongyi CHN 2523 9 Muzychuk, Mariya UKR 2515 10 Dronavalli, Harika IND 2510 11
Anna Zatonskih wins 2023 Cairns Cup
IM Anna Zatonskih became the winner of the 2023 Cairns Cup. Anna secured the title with one round to spare, an impressive result considering she won three games with the black pieces during the tournament. It was an intense and exciting final day of the event, with Zatonskih facing her longtime teammate and rival, GM Irina Krush. Despite already securing the event victory, Anna defended valiantly and managed to draw the longest game of the event on move 130, invoking the 50-moves rule. This draw sealed Anna’s undefeated run in the tournament and solidified her as the champion. It was truly an inspiring performance, especially considering she started as the last seed based on ratings. For her remarkable achievement, Anna won the grand prize of $45,000. GM Alexandra Kosteniuk had an important win on the final day, securing sole second place in the tournament. GMs Bella Khotenashvili and Irina Krush shared third place. The first game to finish was the one between GMs Bella Khotenashvili and Harika Dronavalli. The players went for a theoretical line in the QGD (Queen’s Gambit Declined). The game was balanced throughout, but in the end, it petered out to a draw. GM Bella Khotenashvili shares 3rd place | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Bryan Adams GM Elisabeth Paehtz played the Anti-Marshal line in the Closed Ruy Lopez and the position was balanced for some of the game. Unfortunately for her, she started burning time, and her position worsened. Elisabeth made the fatal mistake closer to the time control. 39. Ne3?? was a decisive blunder that allowed the clincher by Alexandra 39…d4!! Kosteniuk finishes the tournament with 5/8 (or, as she put it in the interview 6/9 🙂 ) and places sole 2nd. GM Alexandra Kosteniuk – full focus on | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Bryan Adams The game between GM Nana Dzagnitze and IM Gunay Mammadzada was a back-and-forth battle, with Gunay initially having the advantage but eventually blundering into a lost position. After 45. e4, Gunay played 45…Rh6?? Instead, she could have gone for 45…fxe4 46.Qxf6+ Rxf6 47.Rxf6 Kg7 with a decisive advantage She blundered again on moves 47 and 48, and it was Dzagnidze who ended up victorious. However, the most captivating game of the round was the one between Krush and Zatonskih. Despite already securing the tournament victory, Anna put up a strong fight. Krush had a chance to catch up with Kosteniuk and secure second place with a win, but she missed several winning opportunities in a rook and opposite colour bishop endgame. Both players were under time pressure, and Anna could have saved the game with the precise move, but she missed the opportunity as well. Ultimately, the game ended in a draw. It was probably the best-missed opportunity for Irina to seal the deal. In this position, she played 83. Bg5, instead 83.Bc3 would have won a piece after 83…Rxe7 84.Rxa4 +- IM Anna Zatonskih – final round focus mode| Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller The event showcased intense and fighting chess, serving as an inspiration for the next generation of players to never give up and fight until the very end. Text: WGM Sabina Foisor Photos: Bryan Adams and Crystal Fuller Dates & Location: June 3 – 13, 2023World Chess Hall of Fame Livestream:USChessChamps.Com Web: uschesschamps.com | Twitter: @STLChessClubInstagram: @STLChessClub | Facebook: @STLChessClubYouTube: @STLChessClub | Twitch.tv: @STLChessClub#TheAmericanCup #STLChessClub Press Contact:Rebecca Buffingtonrbuffington@saintlouischessclub.org Photo Credits:Photos and appropriate credits available on Flickr
Winners crowned at 2023 FIDE World Cadets & Youth Blitz and Rapid Championship
The curtain fell on the FIDE World Cadets& Youth Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship 2023 held in Batumi at Hotel Euphoria. More than 450 boys and girls from 35 federations competed in under 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18 years old age categories (girls and open to all). After six days and 11 rounds of exciting competition, all 120 medals were awarded to the best youngsters in each group. The closing ceremony of the World Chess Youth Championship in the conference hall of the Legend Hotel was attended by Deputy Minister of Education, Culture and Sports of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, Badri Nakashidze; the Head of the Sports Department, Irma Nizharadze; the Minister of Education, Culture and Sports of Adjara, Maya Khajishvili; the Mayor of Batumi, Archil Chikovani; ECU President, Zurab Azmaiparashvili; FIDE Special Tasks Director, the President of the Georgian Chess Federation, Akaki Iashvili; Georgian Chess Federation first Vice-President George Giorgadze and many other guests, as well as more than 500 participants and their parents. FIDE Special Tasks Director, the President of the Georgian Chess Federation, and the Tournament Director, Akaki Iashvili, thanked all the players and guests for participating. The government members told about the event’s preparation process and stressed a high organizational level. Zurab Azmaiparashvili also praised the host country, organizers and arbiters: “I am very glad that the Cadet World Championship was held in one of the wonderful countries of the world – Georgia.” The closing ceremony started with the performance of the Georgian anthem and national dances. Then, the first vice-president of the Georgian Chess Federation, Giorgi Giorgadze, awarded the participants of the Champions Match: Mariya Muzychuk, Anna Muzychuk, Nino Batsiashvili and Meri Arabidze. The members of the government awarded the best five players in all categories. Finally, the winners of the second World Youth Solving Championship received their trophies. Final standings Blitz Under 8 Open: Cheng, Louis (SCO) Nabiyev, Iman (KAZ) Le, Phan Hoang Quan Nguyen, Nhat Khuong Melkonyan, Davit Under 8 Girls: Sivanandan, Bodhana (ENG) Khusnitdinova, Husnorakhon (UZB) Sobirova, Mumtozbegim (UZB) Sarvaanica, A S (IND) Ruslanova, Dunya (TKM) Under 10 Open: Sklokin, Sergey (FID) Guo, Ethan (USA) Banerjee, Supratit (SCO) Bulgak, Damir (FID) Sason, Noam (ISR) Under 10 Girls: Sevastsyanchuk, Anastasiya (FID) Chiokadze, Barbare (GEO) Zavivaeva, Kristina (FID) Milner, Romi (USA) Berikkyzy, Alanna (KAZ) Under 12 Open: Moskvinov, Prokhor (FID) Korelskiy, Egor (FID) Dau, Khuong Duy (VIE) Karpenko, Anton (FID) Kviriashvili, Andria (GEO) Under 12 Girls: Altynbek, Aiaru (KAZ) Tong, Thai Hoang An (VIE) Akbari, Rosha (IRI) Aydogan, Arya (TUR) Venskaya, Nika (FID) Under 14 Open: Vetokhin, Savva (FID) Uskov, Artem (FID) Agasarov, Benik (ARM) Dinh, Nho Kiet (VIE) Gilfanov, Marat I (FID) Under 14 Girls: Nurgaliyeva, Zarina (KAZ) Kirtadze, Anastasia (GEO) Mgeladze Kesaria (GEO) Tabermakova, Leila (FID) Sgukhman, Anna (FID) Under 16 Open: Gurel, Ediz (TUR) Stribuk, Artiom (FID) Piliposyan, Robert (ARM) Navumenka, Mikhei (FID) Sapenov, Daniyal (KAZ) Under 16 Girls: Shvedova, Alexandra (FID) Norman, Kseniya (FID) Volchkova, Alena (FID) Hayrapetyan, Nvard (ARM) Amulya, Guruprasad (IND) Under 18 Open: Murzin, Volodar (FID) Grebnev, Aleksey (FID) Sahakyan, Aleks (ARM) Tsaruk, Maksim (FID) Prisacaru, Stefan-Emilian (ARM) Under 18 Girls: Omonova, Umida (UZB) Zeliantsova, Kseniya (FID) Nguyen, Hong Nhung (VIE) Shohradova, Lala (TKM) Tsotsonava, Elene (GEO) Photos: Guram Turashvili Official website: batumi2023.fide.com/ Live games Pairings and Results
2023 Asian Championship: Vohidov and Deshmukh clinch titles
GM Shamsiddin Vohidov (Uzbekistan) and WGM Divya Deshmukh (India) emerged as the winners of the 2023 Asian Continental Chess Championship. The event, with a prize fund of $100,000, held in the open and women sections, took place from June 3-12, 2023, in Almaty, Kazakhstan and brought together 129 players from 18 national federations. Shamsiddin Vohidov (pictured below) grabbed the lead in the open tournament after defeating Rinat Jumabayev in Round 6 leaders’ clash and never looked back. The 21-year-old from Uzbekistan scored 7/9 and finished clear first, a half-point ahead of a large group of players on 6.5/9, including top seed Arjun Erigaisi of India. GM Bardiya Daneshwar (Iran) and IM Alisher Suleimenov (Kazakhstan), who had the best opponents’ rating average, took silver and bronze, respectively. Final standings open: 1 GM Vokhidov, Shamsiddin UZB 2583 7 2 GM Daneshvar, Bardiya IRI 2555 6½ 3 IM Suleymenov, Alisher KAZ 2463 6½ 4 GM Puranik, Abhimanyu IND 2602 6½ 5 GM Tin, Jingyao SGP 2570 6½ 6 GM Erigaisi, Arjun IND 2702 6½ 7 GM Sethuraman, S.P. IND 2606 6½ 8 IM Madaminov, Mukhiddin UZB 2431 6 9 Utegaliyev, Azamat KAZ 2432 6 10 GM Jumabayev, Rinat KAZ 2590 6 Complete results The women’s tournament was dominated by Divya Deshmukh (pictured below), who netted an impressive 7.5/9, conceding her competition only three draws and becoming the only unbeaten participant. The champion’s compatriot, WGM Mary Ann Gomes, tied for second place with top-rated IM Batkhuyag Munguntuul. Both finished on 6.5/9, but silver goes to the Indian thanks to the highest opponents’ rating average. Final standings women: 1 WGM Divya, Deshmukh IND 2389 7½ 2 WGM Gomes, Mary Ann IND 2315 6½ 3 IM Munguntuul, Batkhuyag MGL 2397 6½ 4 WIM Balabayeva, Xeniya KAZ 2186 6 5 WIM Kairbekova, Amina KAZ 2146 6 6 WFM Khamdamova, Afruza UZB 2260 6 7 WIM Chitlange, Sakshi IND 2225 5½ 8 WIM Kamalidenova, Meruert KAZ 2350 5½ 9 WGM Alinasab, Mobina IRI 2347 5½ 10 WGM Gong, Qianyun SGP 2257 5½ Complete results The four top finishers in the Open Championship and the gold and silver winners in the Women’s Championship qualified for the 2023 FIDE World Cup will take place in Baku (Azerbaijan) from July 29 to August 26. 2023 Asian Continental Chess Championship was organized by Ministry of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Asian Chess Federation, Kazakhstan Chess Federation with the support of Almaty city akimat. Freedom Holding Corp was the general partner of the competition. Photos: official website Official website: asianchampionship2023.kz/
World Cadets & Youth Blitz Championship 2023 starts in Batumi
The World Cadets & Youth & Blitz Chess Championship 2023, organized by FIDE and the Georgian Chess Federation, kicked off at the Euphoria Hotel in Batumi with a short opening ceremony. The blitz competitions in all categories are 11-round Swiss tournaments with 3-min + 2-second increment time control. The event brought together 426 participants from 35 countries. The event will be broadcast live with professional commentary by IM Valeri Gaprindashvili daily. The opening ceremony was attended by Deputy Minister of Education, Culture and Sports of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara – Badri Nakashidze, Head of the Sports Department- Irma Nizharadze, FIDE Special Tasks Director, the President of the Georgian Chess Federation, who welcomed the participants and wished them success. The government members made the first ceremonial move on several boards. On the first day, six rounds were played, with as many as five participants having the perfect score of 6 out of 6. Tomorrow, June 11, the final five rounds of the World Blitz Championship will be played at Legend hotel, followed by the closing ceremony scheduled for 8 PM local time. Photos: Mindia Malakmadze Official website: batumi2023.fide.com/ Live games Pairings and Results Champions Match Day 5 On the same day, the fifth round of the Champions Match was played in the conference hall of the Legend Hotel in Batumi. In the fifth round, Ukrainian players, Mariya and Anna Muzychuk had the white pieces. Mariya Muzychuk – Nino Batsiashvili (0.5-0.5) In the Rossolimo Sicilian Black gradually expanded on the kingside and grabbed the initiative. In subsequent play, Nino came up with a very strong queen sacrifice for a rook, a minor piece and a pawn and got a clear edge. However, Nino missed a powerful 38…Nc2! building up pressure and letting Mariya escape after 38…Nd1+ 39.Kg1 A draw by perpetual was agreed on move 61. Anna Muzychuk – Meri Arabidze (1-0) In the Carlsbad variation of Queen’s Gambit Declined, both opponents castled long, but Anna played much more purposefully and gradually got Meri on the ropes. Eventually, Muzychuk converted her huge positional advantage into extra material with some nice tactics. After 26.Rxc6! Rxc6 27. Nxc6 Bxc6 28.Qxa6 White emerged with an extra pawn and forced Black’s capitulation just a few moves down the road. The last round (the sixth round) will be held In Batumi at Legend Hotel at 11 AM local time. Live games Pairings and Results
Hikaru Nakamura wins Norway Chess 2023
Hikaru Nakamura clinched his maiden Norway Chess title after winning on demand over the tournament leader Fabiano Caruana in the final-round game. The 11th edition of this prestigious tournament, a 10-player round-robin, featuring elite GMs, took place at Finansparken in Stavanger, Norway, from May 30 to June 9. Each round consisted of a classical game with a win worth 3 points and a loss – 0. In case of a draw, the players played an Armageddon game, where the winner scored 1½ points, and the loser got just 1 point with a draw favouring Black. Fabiano Caruana beat Magnus Carlsen in the first-round classical game, grabbed the lead and preserved his top position up to Round 9. As the tournament fate would have it, the leader faced second-placed Hikaru Nakamura in the final round. Trailing Caruana by 2.5 points, Hikaru had a chance to wrestle the title from Fabiano by winning the classical game with the white pieces. The opponents played a well-known line of the Two Knight Defence which has been tested in many games lately. Black got sufficient compensation for a sacrificed pawn, but the first original move by Caruana (17…f5? instead of tried-and-trusted 17…Nb4) was the decisive mistake as Hikaru simply won another pawn. As the winner said in his post-game interview, Caruana must have confused the move order, as in some variations, f7-f5 is very good for Black. Nakamura quickly neutralized the opponent’s initiative and converted his extra material in an endgame. Hikaru took home NOK 750,000 and earned 27.19 FIDE Circuit points. Fabiano Caruana came in second (16.5/27), while 17-year-old Gukesh Dommaraju, who turned in a very solid performance, took third place (14.5/27). The defending and five-time Norway Chess champion Magnus Carlsen finished only sixth, not winning a single classical game. Final standings Photo: Norway Chess Official website: norwaychess.no/
FIDE World U8-10 Rapid & Blitz and Champions Match: Day 5 recap
On June 9, the World U8-10 Rapid & Blitz participants had a rest day. The organizers prepared a busy program for them. The young players visited Batumi Botanical Garden, a member of the International Plant Protection Council (BGCI) of the world’s botanical gardens since 1998. The Second World Championship in solving chess compositions was also held in three age categories under 10, 14 and 18 (boys and girls). Each participant had 90 minutes to solve eight positions (3 two-moves; 3 three-moves and 2 studies). The Nesis Cup 2023, a 9-round Swiss blitz tournament (3+2), which brought together 32 players, also took place on a free day. Final standings Open: Murzin, Volodar Maghalashvili, Davit Kobalia, Mikhail Amonatov, Farrukh Jojua, Davit Final standings Women Nikoladze, Sopio Ziaziulkina, Nastassia Bodnaruk, Kseniya Beridze, Tinatin Vlasova, Nataliya The World Blitz Championship will start at 3 PM local time at Euphoria Hotel in Batumi on June 10. Official website: batumi2023.fide.com/ Live games Pairings and Results Champions Match Day 4 On the same day, Round 4 of the Champions Match was played in the conference hall of the Legend Hotel in Batumi. Nino Batsiashvili – Mariya Muzychuk (0.5-0.5) The opponents quickly got off the beaten track in a symmetrical line of Gruenfeld Defense after Mariya sacrificed a pawn on move ten. Nino accepted the sacrifice, but Black comfortably maintained equality throughout the battle that ended in a draw in a knight vs bishop endgame. Meri Arabidze – Anna Muzychuk (0.5-0.5) Black introduced an interesting novelty in a sharp line of the Queen’s Gambit as early as on move eight and obtained a very promising position. Sensing that things were not going her way, Meri sacrificed a pawn but did not get sufficient compensation. However, a natural plan with fianchettoing the dark-square bishop and castling short that Anna opted for was not optimal as Meri engineered some activity along the light squares. After a series of mutual errors in the middlegame, Muzychuk emerged clearly better again, but with just under a minute on the clock had to settle for a draw on move 29. The Round 5 of the Champions Match will start on June 10 at 3 PM local time, with the Ukrainian players having the white pieces. Photos: Mindia Malakmadze Live games Pairings and Results
Winners crowned at FIDE World Rapid U8-18 2023 in Batumi
The curtain fell on the World Rapid Chess Championship U8-18, organized by FIDE and the Georgian Chess Federation. The rapid part of the event stretched over three days, from June 5-8, in the conference hall of Hotel Euphoria in Batumi. Now we know the winners in all six age categories. Boys U8: Mujammed, Shayan Noushad Ibrahim Cheng, Louis Nguyen, Nhat Khuong Babkin, Timofey Dm Anetov, Amrizhan Boys U10: Sklokin, Sergey Kakavand, Ramtin Bulgak, Damir Zhauynbay, Alimzhan Beniosev, Daniel Boys U12: Dau, Khuong Duy Temirbekov, Taimaz Ambartsumian, Tyhran Yeganegi, Barad Moskvinov, Prokhor Boys U14: Pham, Tran Gia Phuc Dinh, Nho Kiet Vetokhin, Savva Uskov, Artem Averin, Nikolay Boys U16: Piliposyan, Robert Navumenka, Mikhei Sapenov, Daniyal Stribuk, Artiom Gurel, Ediz Boys U18: Murzin, Volodar Grebnev, Aleksey Tsaruk, Maksim Sahakyan, Aleks Siniauski, Artsiom Girls U8: Sivanandan, Bodhana Sobirova, Mumtozbegim Sharvaanica, A S Nguyen, Thi Quynh Hoa Saltkhutsishvili, Sara Girls U10: Zavivaeva, Kristina Berikkyzy, Alanna Milner, Romi Schirmbeck, Lilian Chiokadze, Barbare Girls U12: Le, Thai Hoang Anh Altynbek, Airu Preobrazhenskaya, Diana Tong, Thai Hoang An Akbari, Rosha Girls U14: Kirtadze, Anastasia Nurgaliyeva, Zarina Shukhman, Anna Zubkovskaya, Ekaterina Mai, Hieu Linh Girls U16: Shvedova, Alexandra Norman, Kseniya Shohradova, Leyla Khachatryan, Mariam Seemann, Pola Girls U18: Omonova, Umida Nguyen, Hong Nhung Lomaia, Diana Tsotsonava, Elene Poliakova, Varvara The closing ceremony will be held on June 11, after the completion of the blitz tournament. Tomorrow, June 9, the participants of the championship have a rest day. The organizers prepared some exciting activities for them, including visiting the Batumi Botanical Garden. The two-day World Blitz Championship U8 – 18 starts on June 10 at 3 PM local time. Champions Match: The rest day On June 8, the participants of the Champions Match had an amazing day. The Muzychuk sisters shared their valuable experience with young players and gave them a simul. They also had an opportunity to visit the most picturesque sites of Batumi, including a promenade a promenade along the Batumi seafront Boulevard. Photos: Mindia Malakmadze
2023 Cairns Cup: Anna Zatonskih leads midway through
The participants of the 2023 Cairns Cup in Saint Louis crossed the halfway mark. Ten of the world’s top female players continue a battle for their share of the $180,000 prize fund. With four rounds to go, it is still wide open. The start of the fifth day was marred by the unfortunate withdrawal of GM Humpy Koneru, who had to leave the tournament due to medical (non-COVID) issues. According to tournament regulations, Koneru’s results in the event will be annulled and won’t affect the final standings, but the games she played will still be FIDE-rated. The round only saw one decisive outcome as Khotenashvili narrowly managed to escape Dzagnidze’s mating attack to win her third game in a row, moving to clear second place in the standings with 3.0/5. Meanwhile, the tournament leader Zatonskih drew with Dronavalli, maintaining a half-point lead with 3.5/5 going into the rest day. The surprise leader of the tournament, Anna Zatonskih, reached a typical Carlsbad structure against Harika Dronavalli but failed to achieve any kind of serious pull in the position, with the players eventually simplifying down into a drawn rook endgame. IM Anna Zatonskih | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller The game of the round was undoubtedly Dzagnidze-Khotenashvili, which started as a quiet Reti Opening that at one point turned incredibly sharp, as Dzagnidze found a fantastic piece sacrifice and launched a mating attack against Khotenashvili’s king. But Nana failed to find all the right moves to finish the attack as she blundered near the first time control, allowing Khotenashvili to consolidate and win thanks to her extra knight. 24.Kg2!! left the bishop on d5 hanging in order to play Qd4 & Rh1, with a devastating attack. But Dzagnidze later went wrong and ended up down a piece. A hat trick and now clear second place for GM Bella Khotenashvili, who was on the verge of losing today. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller In Abdumalik-Kosteniuk, the players followed a familiar theoretical line in the Four Knights Scotch and drew without much drama. GM Zhansaya Abdumalik | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller Meanwhile, in Krush-Paehtz, the 8-time U.S. Women’s Champion played quite boldly out of the opening, which saw her king end up on c3 supporting a very early queenside expansion. However, Elisabeth responded well and eventually forced a repetition from a slightly more comfortable position. After 12.b4, White’s queenside expansion was impressive, but the lack of development gave Black time to generate good counterplay. The 2023 Cairns Cup continues Friday, June 9, with tournament action live starting at 1:20 PM CT with commentators Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan, International Master Nazi Paikidze, and International Master Almira Skripchenko on uschesschamps.com and on the Saint Louis Chess Club’s YouTube and Twitch.tv channels. Text: IM Kostya Kavutskiy Photos: Crystal Fuller Dates & Location: June 3 – 13, 2023World Chess Hall of Fame Livestream:USChessChamps.Com Web: uschesschamps.com | Twitter: @STLChessClubInstagram: @STLChessClub | Facebook: @STLChessClubYouTube: @STLChessClub | Twitch.tv: @STLChessClub#TheAmericanCup #STLChessClub Press Contact:Rebecca Buffingtonrbuffington@saintlouischessclub.org Photo Credits:Photos and appropriate credits available on Flickr