FIDE Executive Director attends symposium in Corsica
On April 12, 2022, the Island of Corsica, France, hosted a symposium, “The multiple contributions of chess to support success of studies”, that took place in the Palazzu Naziunale, in the city of Corte. The President of the University of Corsica, Dominique Federici, and the Director of the Fundazione Università di Corsica, Graziella Luisi, welcomed the participants of this event. The President of the Lega Corsa di Scacchi, Akkha Vilaisarn, then introduced the speakers: the Executive Director of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and Doctor of Education GM Victor Bologan, Guillaume Gerandi, Doctor of Physical Sciences, as well as Léo Battesti, the first president and founder of the Corsican Chess League (Ligue Corse des Echecs). Two elected officials, Congressman of Haute-Corse, Jean-Felix Acquaviva, and the Mayor of Corte, Dr Xavier Poli and executive adviser Lauda Guidicelli also attended the conference. The latter confirmed that the CDC strongly supported the League, which continues its productive work with different audiences: young people, girls and schoolchildren. The first speaker, Dr Guillaume Gerandi, a teacher at the University of Mulhouse (East of France), emphasized qualities developed by practising chess from an early age: concentration, calculation, structuring of thought, objectivity, imagination, etc. All these qualities can be transposed to his field of competence, scientific research. He also shared his experience as an arbiter, which proved useful in human management. FIDE Executive Director GM Bologan first told about his teaching experience at the Northwestern University of Qatar. His classes focus on Chess and Strategic Thinking. Currently, he is working on more intense training aimed at the students of business schools. This part sparked the interest of the President of the Associu di i Scacchi di U Centru, Dr Sauveur Giannoni, a professor of economics. Secondly, the FIDE Executive Director presented a “Chess ID” project for all chess players from amateurs to professionals. The idea is to create an ecosystem that brings together all the chess world players. In relation to Corsica, we are talking about 50,000 players in schools or chess clubs on this Mediterranean Island. One can imagine the scope of such a network if it is extended over the planet! Finally, Léo Battesti recounted the history of the Corsica League, which he has chaired for more than 20 years. When he arrived in Corsica twenty years ago, the Island had a strong connection with the Côte d’Azur and active chess life but was not very open to the world. The League turned to young people to involve as many people as possible. The League focused on schools in the city and rural areas to bring up the elite on the grass-root level. Victor Bologan confirmed that the image of the pyramid with a wide base perfectly illustrated the growth of the Corsica League. Akkha Vilaisarn stressed out very strong support for school teachers who are very keen on specific training in the game of chess. The President of the League and the Director of the Fundazione discussed future plans for joint projects between the two entities. At the end of the day, the FIDE Executive Director showed his chess skills over the board. Victor Bologan gave a simul to 20 professors and students learning chess at the University of Corsica. Despite the high level of the opponents, the grandmaster managed to win all the games.
Pragganandhaa wins 2022 Reykjavik Open
Rameshbabu Pragganandhaa emerged as the winner of 2022 Reykjavik Open after dramatic turn of events in the final round. The Indian youngster scored 7½/9 and finished a half-point ahead of Max Warmerdam, Mads Andersen, Hjorvar Steinn Gretarsson and Abhimanyu Mishra. The 2022 Reykjavik Open, a nine-round Swiss tournament with classical time control (90 min for 40 moves followed by 30 min to the end of the game, plus a 30-second increment starting from move one), took place in Harpa Music and Conference from April 6-12 with a double-round day on April 10. The sponsors of the event with a total prize fund of €15,000 were Kvika, Reykjavik City, and FIDE, which supported the tournament via the FIDE Aid package. Max Warmerdam, Mads Andersen, and Rameshbabu Pragganandhaa were heading into the final, ninth round as joint leaders on 6½ each, with a large group of players trailing them by half-point. After Mads and Max (pictured below) made a quick draw, it looked like the door was wide open for several players to join them. Indeed, Gukesh had a considerable advantage in the game against his compatriot Pragganandhaa, while young Abhimanyu Mishra and local favourite GM Hjörvar Steinn Grétarsson grabbed the initiative with black pieces against Pouya Idani and Lukasz Jarmula, respectively. Things changed drastically in time trouble as Gukesh ruined his overwhelming position in just two moves and missed not only a win but also a draw. Gukesh D – Pragganandhaa R 35.Qe5? (35.h3! parrying Black’s main threat, 35…Qxa5 36.Qd2! Qa3 37.Qc2! and White wins) Qg4 36.Rg1?? (36.Be4=) Nd1! and Gukesh capitulated as the only way to avoid checkmate is to give up his queen 0-1 This unexpected outcome helped Pragganandhaa to take clear first and pocket the first prize of €5,000. Max Warmerdam, Mads Andersen, Hjörvar Steinn Grétarsson, and Abhimanyu Mishra finished a half-point behind and tied for the second place. Final standings: 1 Praggnanandhaa R IND 2624 7½ 2 Warmerdam, Max NED 2599 7 3 Andersen, Mads DEN 2582 7 4 Gretarsson, Hjorvar ISL 2542 7 5 Mishra, Abhimanyu USA 2524 7 6 Fier, Alexandr BRA 2573 6½ 7 Niemann, Hans Moke USA 2637 6½ 8 Gupta, Abhijeet IND 2616 6½ 9 Larkin, Vladyslav UKR 2424 6½ 10 Korley, Kassa DEN 2400 6½ Photo: Thorsteinn Magnusson and Hallfríður Sigurðardóttir Official website: reykjavikopen.com/
FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championships and WR&B 2022 – Call for bids
1.1 The International Chess Federation (FIDE) will hold the World Rapid and Blitz Championships (R&B) and World Women’s Rapid and Blitz Championships (WR&B) in the second half of 2022 (see the Tournaments Regulations: World Rapid and Blitz Championships 2022; World Women’s Rapid and Blitz Championships 2022). 1.2 FIDE is opening a bidding procedure to invite any federation member of FIDE or any organizer approved by the national federation to host the event. The federation’s letter of support may be provided later when the bid’s evaluation procedure is launched. 1.3 The bid may contain special proposals on financial and commercial conditions. The FIDE Council shall decide whether these conditions are admissible. 1.4 The Bidding Form shall be filled in by an Applicant. A signed copy shall be submitted as e-mail messages to the FIDE Secretariat to office@fide.com from 12 April to 31 May 2022 by 23:59 Lausanne time (FIDE has a right to extend this deadline). All the documents shall be submitted in English. Additional documents may be requested by the FIDE General Strategy Commission (GSC) for further evaluation. 1.5 Bid Evaluation Report shall be presented by GSC for approval by FIDE Council. Priority shall be given to an Organizer applying for both events – R&B and WR&B. 1.6 Once the Organizer is granted the right to host the event, a relevant announcement shall be made on the FIDE website. FIDE Technical Delegate (FIDE TD) may be appointed at the same time to supervise the event on behalf of FIDE in consultation with GSC.
Winners crowned at 2022 US High School Championship
1,067 players return to over-the-board play in Memphis, Tennessee to determine the nation’s top high school player; a massive seven-way tie for first place . Memphis, Tennessee: The 501(c)3 US Chess Federation’s 2022 National High School (K-12) Championship (NHS) took place from April 8-10 at the Renasant Convention Center in Memphis, Tennessee. Due to continuing concerns about the pandemic and travel difficulties related to severe weather on the east coast, attendance was lower than the typical range of 1400-1600 competitors, but still, 1,067 players from 40 states competed in this national championship event. This was the first in-person NHS since 2019. The first NHS was held in 1969. The Individual Championship ended in a seven-way tie for first. All seven are National High School Co-Champions (but listed in tiebreak order): IM Arthur Guo, 10th Grade, The Westminster Schools, Atlanta, Georgia Vishnu Vanapalli, 9th Grade, Ardrey Kell High School, Charlotte, North Carolina FM Gus Huston, 10th Grade, The Dalton School, New York, New York IM Anthony He, 11th Grade, Tesla Stem HS, Redmond, Washington Bijan Tahmassebi, 12th Grade, Winston Churchill HS, Potomac, Maryland FM Nico Chasin, 9th Grade, Columbia Grammar and Prep, New York, New York Advaith Karthik, 10th Grade, Cox Mill HS, Concord, North Carolina The Team Championship was won by The Dalton School of New York, New York. Team members are Gus Huston, Ryan Peterson, Max Mottola, and Nathaniel Shuman. Many other winners in multiple sections below the championship section were also revealed. These winners are properly identified as “Winner of the <X> section at the National High School Championship.” For a full list of winners, please visit uschess.org/results/2022/hs/. As US Chess fulfils its mission to “empower people, enrich lives, and enhance communities through chess,” we use our scholastic nationals to fulfill our goals to expand the educational, social, recreational and rehabilitative applications of chess; increase the visibility of chess on mainstream communications channels; develop the depth and breadth of our partnerships; use chess to increase opportunities for underrepresented segments of society, and to continuously improve internal operations and member services. US Chess Executive Director Carol Meyer notes: “Our vision is that chess is recognized as an essential tool that promotes inclusiveness and benefits education, rehabilitation, recreation, and friendly competition. This all comes together at our national scholastic championships.” The organizers are grateful for the sponsorship provided by SIG Susquehanna. For more information on our events, please visit www.uschess.org. Photos: Caroline King
Global Exchange Forum: Facts and myths about gender in chess
The Year of the Woman in Chess is in full swing with the strong engagement of women in chess worldwide through workshops, training seminars, fundraisers, and women’s day events, organized by the FIDE Commission for Women’s Chess. One more online event – the Global Exchange Forum, a quarterly seminar aiming to connect chess officials, organizers and influencers working on behalf of women around the globe – was organized in cooperation with Chess24. The first one in a series took place yesterday. The event was hosted by Agnieszka Milewska, Director of Woman’s Chess and Eva Repkova, Chairperson of the FIDE Commission for Women’s Chess. The special guest of the forum, GM David Smerdon, presented research on the gender gap in chess” Facts and Myths about Gender in Chess”. David is a Ph.D. in Economics at the University of Amsterdam and Tindergen Institute. He was awarded the title of international grandmaster in 2009 and has represented Australia in seven chess Olympiads. Smerdon was part of an international research team of academics that included GM Hou Yifan, one of the best female players in history and the current #1 rated woman. They took an in-depth look at some of the challenges women face in chess and the possible approaches to address them. According to the results of the research, girls drop out at faster rates than boys at all ages, but the drop-out is especially severe after age 16. Besides, there are both participation and performance gaps for women in chess. It is caused both by social and biological factors. Stereotypes are among the social factors that negatively affect women’s performance. Multiple studies have found that women chess players play worse against men than against other women, while men modify their playing style when facing women – they take longer to resign against women and play riskier openings against attractive females. Some evidence shows that women and men exhibit a similar life-cycle of chess strength, except for women who have children, which is both biological and social factors. When speaking of boosting female participation in chess, it was noted that role models matter for minorities in competitive environments. For example, Ugandan girls who watched “Queen of Katwe” before their math exams were 44% more likely to pass. Having a female leader among Indian polititians means girls are more likely to pursue politics, and delay marriage and children. The same happens in chess. Not just top players can be role models for girls playing chess. It can be trainers at all levels, administrators, arbiters, organizers, commentators, and streamers. Peer effect is another thing that can shorten the gender gap in chess. In men-dominated environments, having more women peers significantly helps women. The results of the research show that having to train alone, feeling pressure to represent all female players, and lacking social/friendship groups cause disincentives to continue for female players. Smerdon’s recommendations on how to increase the numbers of women playing chess are: – Sponsor an annual FIDE retreat for talented girls, featuring role-models – Consider introducing a ‘gentle’ quota into national leagues – Develop and publish an annual Women in Chess Federation ranking For more information about the research, you can watch the Exchange Forum on FIDE’s Youtube channel or download David Smerdon’s “Facts and Myths about Gender in Chess” presentation.
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Matthias Blüebaum, King of Europe Chess and brain ageing Ten years of Chicago’s Chess in Jail Program Singapore Chess Federation gets a $360,000 donation Global Exchange Forum Brief news from National Federations READ NEWSLETTER
Matthias Bluebaum wins European Individual Championship 2022
GM Matthias Bluebaum (Germany) is a new European Champion. The 24-year-old native of Lemgo (North Rhine-Westphalia) completed the European Individual Championship 2022 undefeated, scored 8½/11 and achieved major success in his career. The European Individual Championship 2022, an 11-round Swiss tournament with classical time control, took place from March 27 to April 6, 2022, in Terme Čatež, Slovenia. The total prize fund of the event amounted to €100,000, with €20,000 reserved for the winner. The event brought together 320 players (257 titled ones) from 40 European federations, including 114 GMs, 53 IM, 3 WGM and 12 WIM. The champion started with a draw but then reeled off six straight victories and grabbed the lead. After making three draws with his main competitors, he slowed down a bit and allowed Gabriel Sargissian (Armenia) to catch up with him coming into the final round. Both leaders played with white pieces, which suggested an exciting fight in the home stretch, but somewhat surprisingly, the Armenian GM made a quick draw with Jaime Santos Latasa. The German GM, who faced Ivan Saric of Croatia, played a much longer game but also split a point. As a result, Matthias Bluebaum and Gabriel Sargissian (pictured above) tied for the top position, but the gold went to the German as the average rating of his opponents (the first tiebreaker) was 16 points higher. A large group of six players shared third place. Ivan Saric (pictured below) had the highest rating average of the opponents and claimed bronze. Govhar Beydullayeva from Azerbaijan got the best score among all women participating in the event. The 18-year-old runner-up of the two last national championships turned in an excellent performance, finished in the top-50 and picked up 76 rating points. According to FIDE regulations for World Cup and the ECU Board decision, 20 best players qualified for the FIDE World Cup 2023. Since Matthias Bluebaum and Mustafa Yilmaz had already qualified from the last year European Championship, Aleksandar Indjic (21st in the final standings) and Haik Martirosyan (22nd) also punched the tickets to the FIDE World Cup 2023. Final standings: 1 Bluebaum, Matthias GER 2642 8½ 2 Sargissian, Gabriel ARM 2681 8½ 3 Saric, Ivan CRO 2687 8 4 Cheparinov, Ivan ECX 2672 8 5 Santos Latasa, Jaime ESP 2648 8 6 Yilmaz, Mustafa TUR 2624 8 7 Ponomariov, Ruslan UKR 2636 8 8 Durarbayli, Vasif AZE 2628 8 9 Gadimbayli, Abdulla AZE 2451 7½ 10 Iskandarov, Misratdin AZE 2577 7½ 11 Guseinov, Gadir AZE 2661 7½ 12 Ter-Sahakyan, Samvel ARM 2632 7½ 13 Sargsyan, Shant ARM 2639 7½ 14 Kobo, Ori ISR 2510 7½ 15 Moussard, Jules FRA 2630 7½ 16 Tari, Aryan NOR 2653 7½ 17 Anton Guijarro, David ESP 2694 7½ 18 Kuzubov, Yuriy UKR 2639 7½ 19 Kozul, Zdenko CRO 2619 7½ 20 Nesterov, Arseniy FID 2522 7½ 21 Indjic Aleksandar SRB 2605 7½ 22 Martirosyan Haik ARM 2633 7½ You can find full results here. Photo: ŠZS/Luka Rifelj Official website: eicc2022.eu/
Israel to host 21st IPCA World Individual Championship 2022
Israeli Chess Federation will host the World IPCA Chess Championship for Disabled Players together with IPCA (International Physically Disabled Chess Association – Affiliated to the International Chess Federation, FIDE). The event will be held from May 8-17 in Ashdod City (Israel). Organizers: The Israeli Chess Federation, Sports Authority of Ashdod Municipality, Ashdod Municipal Chess Club, IPCA (International Physically Disabled Chess Association – affiliated to FIDE). Venue & Dates: The championship will be held in Hotel “Leonardo”, Mediterranean Sea Ave. 1, Ashdod City, Israel from May 8 (arrival date) to May 17 (departure date). Location: https://cutt.ly/vDIBdIw Participation: All physically disabled chess players – men, women and juniors (boys, girls) 2002 year of birth and younger (including users of wheelchairs) with the disability group in the player’s country but not less than 50% physical disability are eligible for participation. Registration for the tournament: Registration for the 21st IPCA World Individual Chess Championship 2022 should be completed on the official website until April 20, 2022 The championship participants are responsible for obtaining an Israeli visa if needed. For assistance with visa arrangements, please contact the Israeli Chess Federation via e-mail office@chessfed.org.il and provide the following information: 1) Surname and name(s) (as in passport)2) Citizenship3) Date of birth4) Passport number5) Passport expiry date6) Function (player, accompanying person). The participation fees should be paid to the bank account of the organizer not later than April 20, 2022. Bank details: ACCOUNT HOLDER: THE ISRAELI CHESS FEDERATION BANK NAME: MIZRACHI BANK ADDRESS: TAGORE 28, TEL AVIV IBAN: IL56-0204-9300-0000-0488-009 SWIFT CODE: MIZBILITXXX Official Web page of Championship – https://ipca.chess.org.il/ Start list on Chess Results – https://cutt.ly/yDINeul Official IPCA Web page – https://ipcachess.org/ Organizers e-mail – office@chessfed.org.il Moshe Slav – Championship Manager Phone: +972-508557766, E-mail: moshe@slavgroup.co.il Svetlana Gerasimova – IPCA President Zvika Barkai PhD – Chairman of the Israeli Chess Federation
Panama to host World School Chess Championship 2022
The World School Chess Championship 2022 will be held from June 10-19, 2022, at the Wyndham Panama Albrook Mall Hotel & Convention Center, Panama City, under the auspices of FIDE and the Panama Chess Federation. There will be 12 sections in the tournament, Open and Girls for each age category: Under 17, Under 15, Under 13, Under 11, Under 9 and Under 7. A player’s age as of January 1, 2022, determines their age eligibility for a particular section. Tournament Schedule: 10 June 2022: Arrivals 11 June 2022: 10:30 Technical Meeting 11 June 2022: 14:15 Opening Ceremony 11 June 2022: 15:00 Round 1 12 June 2022: 15:00 Round 2 13 June 2022: 10:00 Round 3 13 June 2022: 17:00 Round 4 14 June 2022: 15:00 Round 5 15 June 2022: Free Day 16 June 2022: 10:00 Round 6 16 June 2022: 17:00 Round 7 17 June 2022: 15:00 Round 8 18 June 2022: 10:00 Round 9 18 June 2022: 18:00 Closing Ceremony 19 June 2022: Departures The participating National Federations, FIDE-affiliated organizations, as approved by the FIDE Council, and FIDE endorsed Chess Academies shall submit their registration of participants to registro@wscc2022.org until May 9, 2022. All entries shall include full name, FIDE ID, rating, accompanying persons, accommodation type, dates of arrival/departure and receipt of bank transfer. The following fees will be charged: – Tournament Registration Fee – $110.00/player – FIDE Entry Fee – $45.00/player – Special Fee for Accompanying Persons – $90.00/accompanying person Regulations for the World School Chess Championship 2022 (pdf) The official website of the championship: wscc2022.org
Wesley So wins FIDE Grand Prix Berlin
The last battle of the entire 2022 FIDE Grand Prix series organised by World Chess has finished on the 4th of April. In the final match tiebreaker, Wesley So outplayed Hikaru Nakamura by a score of 1½:½ and won the third leg of the Grand Prix in Berlin. The tournament winner and the runner-up looked happy at the closing ceremony as both of them could celebrate the success in the tournament. Despite the result of the final match, Hikaru Nakamura qualified for the FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022 and became the overall winner of FIDE Grand Prix Series 2022. Richard Rapport, who is the second in the overall standings and also punched his ticket to the Candidates, while Wesley So took third place in the Series. After the match ended, Wesley So said: “I am only 28, and I’m hoping that next year or in a couple of years, I will get a chance to play in the Candidates. The last time I played, I was very inexperienced and finished second to last, so I think if you qualify, you have to be ready to fight for first place.” Hikaru Nakamura: “The odds [of winning the whole series] were probably 10-15% before everything began. I was quite fortunate in the first leg as I got players who hadn’t played as much; they weren’t sharp.” In the first tiebreaker game, Hikaru chose the Bishop opening, which Wesley So didn’t expect to see on the board today. However, Wesley played confidently with Black and got a serious positional advantage by move 15. Hikaru showed his excellent defensive skills, and after a couple of mistakes by the opponent, he managed to create a very dangerous attack on the kingside. It was Wesley’s turn to find the only moves to stay in the game. After several evaluation swings in this complicated topsy-turvy game, the opponents split a point in a drawish rook ending. In the second game, the Berlin Defense in Ruy Lopez was played. White managed to get a pleasant edge, but the position seemed quite balanced until a certain point. Wesley exchanged the queens at the cost of doubling his pawns on the d-file but engineered some initiative in the center. On the 32nd move, Hikaru made a terrible blunder 32…c6 and after a simple refutation 33.Bxe5 found himself in a hopeless position. Wesley emerged a piece up and then slowly but surely converted his advantage to win the game and the match. FIDE Grand Prix Series 2022 final standings: Player Berlin Belgrade Berlin Total Hikaru Nakamura 13 10 23 Richard Rapport 7 13 20 Wesley So 4 13 17 Levon Aronian 10 2 12 Dmitry Andreikin 10 10 Amin Tabatabaei 3 7 10 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 3 7 10 Leinier Dominguez 7 2 9 Sam Shankland 4 4 8 Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 7 1 8 Anish Giri 7 0 7 Vidit Gujrathi 3 4 7 Nikita Vitiugov 3 3 6 Alexandr Predke 3 1 4 Grigoriy Oparin 0 4 4 Andrey Esipenko 4 0 4 Vincent Keymer 0 4 4 Radosław Wojtaszek 4 4 Vladimir Fedoseev 2 1 3 Yu Yangyi 0 3 3 Daniil Dubov 3 0 3 Alexander Grischuk 2 0 2 Pentala Harikrishna 2 0 2 Etienne Bacrot 0 2 2 Alexei Shirov 0 1 1 The FIDE Grand Prix Series is brought to you by World Chess. Leading partners supporting the FIDE Grand Prix Series 2022 include: Kaspersky as the Official Cybersecurity Partner; Algorand as the Official Blockchain Partner; Prytek as the Technology Transfer Partner; FIDE Online Arena as the official Partner. Photo: FIDE Grand Prix Berlin Press kit