Vachier-Lagrave and Assaubayeva are the new world blitz champions
In the tiebreak blitz shootout, the Frenchman defeated local superstar Jan-Krzysztof Duda with 2:1. In the women’s event, Bibisara Assaubayeva – the 17-year-old prodigy from Kazakhstan – spectacularly won the Women’s World Blitz Chess Championship, securing the title with a round to spare The open section of the World Blitz Chess Championship ended in a tiebreak shootout where 31-year-old Frenchman Maxime Vachier-Lagrave clinched the title after defeating local star Jan-Krzysztof Duda with 2:1. This is the first world championship title for the 31-year-old French Grandmaster, one of the top-rated players on the planet who came very close to this title in 2015 but had to settle for silver. The path of Maxime Vachier-Lagrave to the top didn’t go in a straight line. On the first day of the event, he lost three games and didn’t immediately figure as someone who would win the event. However, his resilience showed on day two – not losing a single game, drawing rarely and winning when it was necessary, including in the 21st round against none other than Magnus Carlsen. A day of ups and downs The second day of the open section of the world blitz saw the remaining nine (out of altogether 21) rounds played. Although tournament leader Levon Aronian (who won the title in 2010) started the day well – scoring important victories against top dogs Daniil Dubov and Anish Giri – he then suffered three consecutive losses throwing the tournament wide open. What made things worse was how Aronian lost: first, playing against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave as Black in Round 17, he equalized comfortably but then allowed the Frenchman to create some threats. In a game full of twists and turns, Aronian overlooked an almost winning move and then lost. In the next round, he fell to former compatriot Haik Martirosyan – after reaching an overwhelming position, he missed a simple move by his opponent and had to sacrifice a queen for a rook and a knight. Levon could have forced a draw by repetition at some point, but he took it too far. In the end, Levon was hoping for a ‘fortress’, but Black confidently led the white king away from his pieces before exchanging his queen for the rook and leaving his king to collect the remaining two pawns and promote his own. Then, in Round 19, Aronian lost to Vladimir Artemiev after making a risky choice in the opening. From a comfortable lead of one and a half points, Aronian lost it all in the end but still finished close to the very top – on fifth place, with 14 points. Just behind him is Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, who also finished on 14/21 and had a good tournament overall. As the sun was setting on Levon Aronian, there was a new dawn for Alireza Firouzja. Having struggled for most of the event, the current world number two made a miraculous recovery, scoring five victories in the final five rounds of the tournament and ending up in shared first place. On his path to the top, Firouzja crushed two players who were at one point leading in the tournament – Daniil Dubov and Levon Aronian. However, at the end of the day, he was left disappointed as he didn’t make it to the tiebreaks, due to inferior point breaks. Unlike Aronian and Firouza, local hero Jan-Krzysztof Duda was much more consistent in his performance throughout the blitz, always playing among the top boards. Apart from losing to Martirosyan and Dubov, the Polish Grandmaster won all his games in the rounds with confidence and vigour, which ultimately landed him in the tie breaks. This was a very good tournament for the 2018 Rapid Champion Daniil Dubov, who was always just a step behind first place, taking the lead after Round 18. However, Dubov opted to make a few quick draws in the closing rounds of the event, which ultimately ended, costing him a place in the tie breaks as he was half a point behind the top three. Still, with 14/21, Dubov finished alone in fourth place. Magnus Carlsen, who was defending the title of world champion in blitz, had another bad day – again losing three games – and with 13.5/21 finished on 12th place, just ahead of Russian superstar Alexander Grischuk who also has 13.5 points. In the five-day event in Poland, Carlsen lost two of the three chess crowns in his possession – in rapid and blitz chess. The freshly defeated contender for the title of World Champion, Ian Nepomniachtchi, lost steam in the final part of the day, making some quick draws and losing two games, including to Magnus Carlsen. Nepomniachtchi finished the tournament in a group of players on 12.5/21. The Tie Breaks Before the final – 21st round – six players were sharing first place: Levon Aronian, Daniil Dubov, Vladislav Artemiev, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Alireza Firouzja. In the final round of the open event, Daniil Dubov drew quickly with Anish Giri in the last game, banking on a chance to get a place in the tiebreak. Jan-Krzysztof Duda defeated Vladislav Artemiev. Defending champion Magnus Carlsen had no chances for first place, as he was on half a point behind the leading pack. He was leading black pieces against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave of France. In a tense game with the advantage changing hands, Carlsen lost, putting Lagrave among three players ending the regular part of the tournament in the shared first place, on 15/21. After the final round, there were three players tied for first place, on 15/21: Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Alireza Firouzja. According to the rules, only the first two among them (Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave) could go to tie breaks. Vachier-Lagrave was leading the white pieces in the first game. However, both players were cautious and didn’t show too much appetite for risk, agreeing to a draw. In the second game, Duda was in time trouble and an inferior position, but he managed to consolidate and force the Frenchman to a draw. However, in the third and final game, in the Ruy Lopez, Vachier-Lagrave introduced an improvement comparing to the first tiebreak game and got
Wide-open race in the World Blitz as Carlsen suffers three defeats
An open field in the World Blitz Chess Championships as defending champions Carlsen and Lagno underperform on the first day Defending champion Magnus Carlsen got off to a bad start in the World Blitz Chess Championship, having suffered three losses on the first day and is a point and a half behind the tournament leader Levon Aronian. Sitting alone at the top on 10/12, Aronian (who in 2010 won the world blitz) lost just one game but beat all of his main opponents of the day. He is, however, yet to play the defending champion Magnus Carlsen as well as Hikaru Nakamura (who has won the silver medal in the previous edition of the event). Egypt’s Bassem Amin has staged a big surprise, finishing day one alone in second place, with 9.5/12, and is followed by the top Iranian player and former junior world champion Parham Maghsoodloo who is on 9/12. They are chased by a field of 12 grandmasters, all with 8.5 points, including defending champion Magnus Carlsen, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Daniil Dubov, Alexander Grischuk as well as one of the top blitz players in the world, Hikaru Nakamura who also struggled to make a breakthrough, making five draws in a row. The third tier of players, on 8/12, is led by local favourite Jan-Krzysztof Duda and includes former contender for the world chess crown and the 2016 World Blitz Champion Sergey Karjakin. World number two Alireza Firouzja is also on 8/12, but it is clear that he is not in his element. He started with a loss and then made two draws. His two-game victory run in rounds Four and Five ended when Serbian GM Aleksandar Indjic dominated the young French superstar in Round Six. Two more victories, and Firouzja lost another game – to Alexander Predke in Round Nine. However, the 18-year-old showed he is world-class material by keeping his cool and making a comeback with three victories in the final three rounds of the first day of the blitz. The former contender for the title of World Champion, American Fabiano Caruana, is on 7/12, while the winner of this year’s world rapid championship, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, has 6.5 points. A day of ups and downs for Magnus Carlsen The problems for Carlsen began in Round 5 where he got into time trouble and found himself in an inferior position Black against Polish GM Bartosz Socko. To make things even worse for the World Champion, he ended up a piece down with no compensation and had to capitulate. The audience burst into applause as Carlsen shook the hand of his opponent admitting defeat. Then came another shock for Carlsen. In Round 6 he was leading white pieces against the strong Grandmaster Vladimir Fedoseev (who finished the day on 8.5/12). The world champion played fast, making sure he didn’t repeat the mistake from the previous round and end up in time trouble. He achieved control over the game, but his execution was poor and – again – Carlsen made a fatal mistake on the move 44 and threw in the towel a few moves later. The world champion showed a sign of frustration as he slammed down one of the pieces on the chessboard following the game. Carlsen then managed to recover, scoring two victories, but then came another blow. In Round 9, he suffered a loss at the hands of Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (who finished the day on 7.5/12). The world champion was gradually outplayed and lost an exchange ending in a hopeless position. However, Carlsen did not allow the setbacks to crush him completely as he then defeated former Kasparov’s second Mikhail Kobalia and Turkey’s Vahap Sanal. But the day ended on a bitter-sweet note for Carlsen as he didn’t manage to win against India’s Arjun Erigaisi, who defended very well as Black. Carlsen enters the second part of the blitz championship a point and a half behind leader Levon Aronian. The women’s championship: Bibisara Assaubayeva leads as defender and three-times champion Lagno sinks With eight points, Bibisara Assaubayeva is the sole leader following the first day of the Women’s World Blitz Chess Championships, where nine rounds were played on the first day. The 17-year-old player from Kazakhstan has earlier this year shown great promise in the online Women’s Speed Chess Championship where she reached the quarterfinals and was eliminated by the eventual winner Hou Yifan. In the first nine rounds of the world blitz, Assaubayeva has lost just one game (to Valentina Gunina), defeating some of the tournament top contenders – Alexandra Kosteniuk, Polina Shuvalova and Anna Muzychuk. Following a solid performance in the three-day world rapid championship, 20-year-old Indian player Vaishali Rameshbabu (the sister of the Indian chess prodigy Praggnanandhaa) is in second place with 7.5/9. Three players are sharing third place – Humpy Koneru (pictured below), Alexandra Kosteniuk (who managed to recover from a loss in the first round to Turkey’s Ekaterina Atalik) and another Kazakh player, 21-year-old Zhansaya Abdumalik. Top seed player and the current titleholder, Kateryna Lagno, seriously struggled on the first day of the women’s world blitz tournament. The three-time women’s world blitz champion started with a loss to a significantly lower-rated player and then made a draw. Out of nine rounds, Lagno won just three games, drew four and lost two. With 5/9, she is now as far down as 40th place and will have an arduous task in the remaining eight rounds should she want to retain the title. Text: Milan Dinic Photo: Rafał Oleksiewicz, Lennart Ootes, Anna Shtourman and Michal Walusza Official website: worldrapidandblitz.fide.com/ Partners:
Vachier-Lagrave and Aronian forge into the lead
Day 1 of the quarterfinals at the Airthings Masters featured four mini-matches of four 15+10 games. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave defeated Wesley So 3-1 winning two games with Black in the sharpest lines of the Sicilian. The second game with unusual material balance (a rook and four pawns vs. a pair of bishops) was particularly exciting. The Frenchman proved once again that he feels in his element in this type of position. Levon Aronian beat Hikaru Nakamura 2½-1½ after winning the second game and drawing all the rest. In the critical second game, the Armenian obtained a very comfortable position in the London System and instructively exploited the weakness of dark squares in the opponent’s camp. Magnus Carlsen again outwitted Daniil Dubov in a drawn endgame in the starting encounter of their match, but the Russian stroke back in the third game. The World Champion snatched a poisoned a5-pawn and fell under a crushing attack. The second and fourth games were drawn. Ian Nepomniachtchi and Teimour Radjabov played solid chess and drew all four games although the Azerbaijani GM was much closer to the match victory. In game four Teimour reached a quite promising position but being short of time did not use all his chances. The second quarterfinal matches will be played on Wednesday starting at 2 PM GMT. Official website: https://championschesstour.com/
Candidates play-off introduced
As per the decision made at the FIDE Council meeting on December 27, a playoff has been introduced for the Candidates Tournament and the Women’s Candidates Tournament, to be played in the case of a tie for first place. This decision has been taken after consultation with all the players who have already qualified for the competition. A majority of them favoured the option of a play-off over the tie-break system used in previous editions (“1. The results of the games between the players involved in the tie; 2. Number of wins; 3. Sonneborn-Berger”). The play-off will consist of rapid games. Details like the exact time control to be used and the total number of players to take part in the tie-break, will be decided in January after further consultation with players. Once the precise format has been defined, FIDE will publish an updated version of the regulations. As it was announced yesterday, the Candidates Tournament 2022 will take place in Madrid, Spain, from June16 to July 7.
92nd FIDE General Assembly: results and decisions
The 92nd FIDE General Assembly took place yesterday, December 28, and for the first time ever, it was organized under a hybrid format. While most of the delegates participated through videocall, and votes were cast online, the FIDE President, Management board, and several members of the Council were present in Warsaw, where the World Rapid and Blitz Championship takes place. As it has become a tradition, the meeting began with a video In Memoriam in remembrance of the chess family members who passed away during the year. The President summarized the highlights of the year, including all the FIDE main competitions and FIDE’s social initiatives, one of the areas where our organization made more progress over the past few months. The report of the Treasurer Zhu Chen and discussions on financial matters demonstrated that FIDE is in good financial shape. The approach of presenting the FIDE budget has been changed to presenting gross income and expenditure, which allows for more transparency and resembles the best practice of our peer international sports federations. Such profound change comes from the implementation of what can be considered a change in our business model. In the past, FIDE outsourced organization of most Events, including World Championship Matches, to third parties. But shortly after the new management team took office in October 2018, FIDE has been building capabilities to organize event and acquired back the right to stage the World Championship Match. “This is a major change of business model for FIDE that requires us to review our financial reporting and budgeting process,” explains Chen. “While the pandemic forced us to postpone the implementation of our new business model by almost two years, the recent World Championship Match has proved that FIDE is on the right track.” The budget for 2022 is balanced and established at a total income and expenditure of 12.84 million EUR. “The Development Fund has been doubled, which means many opportunities for great projects”, explains Dana Reizniece-Ozola, FIDE’s Managing Director. It must be noted that, in 2021, more than 80% of the income was generated by sponsorship, donations and broadcast rights, compared to 48% in 2020, and 4,8% in 2016. In other words, the income from licenses and fees paid by member federations and chess players has been reduced from 95,2% in 2006 to less than 20% in 2021. Another important step forward was the approval of a New Ethics and Disciplinary Code, a pivotal document to provide FIDE with better governance policies and increased transparency. The new Code is the product of intensive work and review over the past year. “It is the mission of FIDE to promote the highest possible ethical values within the sport of chess and to ensure that the spirit of fair play and good sportsmanship prevails. The Code sets out ethical values, principles, duties and proper sanctions applicable throughout the chess community and sport,” explains Francois Strydom, Chairman of the FIDE Ethics & Disciplinary Commission. In the same direction, a new set of FIDE electoral rules were approved for the electoral procedure that must take place in 2022. This document defines the scope of application and general principles, the eligibility and nomination and candidates, the ethical considerations to observe during the campaign, the designation of the electoral commission, and the counting of votes, among many other details. These new rules also imply a strong stance for an increased gender balance, something particularly important in a year that has been designated by FIDE as “The Year of Women in Chess”. Finally, we are happy to announce that the FIDE family keeps growing. To begin with, the request to join FIDE by four new Federations was approved. Dominica, St.Vincent and Grenadines, Niger, and Belize, are now members of FIDE. FIDE will be happy to host the new member federations in the World Chess Olympiad in Moscow next year, and also provide them with development funding and capacity building support. They are already taking the first steps, and for instance the St Vincent and Grenadines Chess Federation just held its first national championship ever. On December 17, Chinedu Benjamin Enemchukwu was crowned as the first national champion in this Caribbean country. FIDE also awarded a new title of a FIDE Honorary Member. The 92nd FIDE General Assembly voted unanimously in favour of awarding the title of “FIDE Honorary Member” to Andrey Filatov, President of the Chess Federation of Russia, for his special contribution to development of chess. Over the entire history of FIDE that counts nearly 100 years, the honorary member title has been awarded to about 80 people, including one of the Federation founders, Lord Frederick Hamilton-Russell, world champions Max Euwe and Boris Spassky, world women’s champions Nona Gaprindashvili and Maia Chiburdanidze, the oldest grandmaster in the world Yuri Averbakh, the inventor of the universally adopted in chess ELO system, Arpad Elo, and the leaders of the Soviet Chess Federation Boris Rodionov and Vitaly Sevastyanov. Decisions of 2021 FIDE General Assembly Decisions of 2021 4th FIDE Council Meeting Please visit the FIDE Congress website for a complete information. Photo: David Llada
Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Alexandra Kosteniuk win World Rapid Championship
Following a blitz tie break victory against Ian Nepomniachtchi, the 17-year-old Uzbek prodigy Nodirbek Abdusatorov won the crown in rapid chess, stripping the defender Magnus Carlsen of his title. In the women’s section, Alexandra Kosteniuk finished first with 9/11 and won her first-ever world crown in rapid chess With 9.5 points out of 13 rounds, Nodirbek Abdusattorov was the first among four players tied for the top spot in the open section of the World Rapid Chess Championship. The other three were Ian Nepomniachtchi, defending champion Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana. Under regulations, only the top two players went on to play the tie-breaks. The champion in rapid chess was decided by two blitz games in which each player had three minutes with a two-second increment per move. The first game was drawn, so the champion was decided in the second game, where Abdusattorov as White scored a victory against Ian Nepomniachtchi. With this victory, Abdusattorov did not only make history but also won a prize of 60,000 USD. In the women’s section, Alexandra Kosteniuk is the winner of the World Rapid Chess Championship. In eleven rounds of the women’s tournament, Kosteniuk did not lose a single game – scoring seven victories (6 in a row in the first six rounds) and making four draws. How the final day unfolded in the open section Day three of the rapid saw the remaining four of 13 rounds played. There was a big surprise in Round Ten as the defending champion Magnus Carlsen lost to the 17-year-old Uzbek Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Following the English Opening, both sides ended in an equal position, but Carsen, leading black pieces, tried to force a victory. However, things didn’t go his way and – for the first time in the tournament – Carlsen was the one in time trouble. Undeterred, he played aggressively, but Abdusattorov did not let himself be intimidated, finding the right moves and seeking counterplay. The two ended in a queen and pawn endgame where, although Carlsen had an extra pawn, White advanced his pawn down the h-file closer to the promotion. Carlsen could have forced a draw with precise play, but he overlooked a check on the a1-h8 diagonal which forced the exchange of queens, leaving White to promote and win. Carlsen resigned instantly. This was not the first time Abdusatorrov caused problems for Carlsen. In the 2019 edition of the World Rapid Championship, played in Moscow, the then 15-year-old Uzbek managed to make a comeback in a weaker position against Carlsen and get a draw, which then visibly upset the world champion. Abdusatorrov’s victory was a big shock which not only turned the tables on Carlsen but changed things at the top of the scoresheet. It was now Abdusattorov and Ian Nepomniachtchi (who in Round Ten beat compatriot Alexander Grischuk) who were in the lead, on 8.5/10, half a point ahead of Carlsen, who was joined by Fabiano Caruana (who scored a confident victory as Black over Bassem Amin to reach the top). Round 11 saw the first duel between Carlsen and Nepomniachtchi since the two played the match for the title of World Champion earlier in the month in Dubai. Carlsen (White) opted for a sideline in the Catalan, but Nepomniachtchi was unfazed with this surprise. He easily equalised and brought the game to a draw. While Carlsen was struggling to get a lucky break, luck was clearly on the side of Abdusattorov as he managed to save a very bad position with a two-pawn deficit as Black against Fedoseev, keeping him in the lead after the 11th round, together with Nepomniachtchi. Things changed again in Round 12: luck was again on the youngster’s side. Playing with black pieces, he ended in a hopeless position against the young Indian star Gukesh but managed to wriggle out, although not without some help from his opponent. Meanwhile, Carlsen, won an exchange but his opponent, the seasoned heavyweight Levon Aronian was holding his ground. Suddenly Aronian overlooked a rook exchange, handing over the victory to Carlsen and a place among the tournament leaders. In this round, Nepomniachtchi made a quick draw with Nakamura, saving himself for the final rapid game. In the final round of the regular part of the tournament, it was an open race: there were four players on nine points (Abdusattorov, Nepomniachtchi, Carlsen and Caruana) and three on 8.5 (Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Hikaru Nakamura and Dommaraju Gukesh). The game between Caruana and Nepomniachtchi ended in a speedy draw, with almost no serious play. The local favourite, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, was close to winning as Black against Abdusattorov, but the Uzbek managed to save a weaker rook endgame and clinch half a point. All eyes were now on the game between Nakamura (who in 2019 won the bronze medal at the world rapid) and Carlsen. Nakamura, playing with white pieces, was caught out in the opening but managed to consolidate. The position transpired into an even rook endgame where Carlsen had an extra pawn. Despite being an expert in grinding opponents in equal positions until they finally make a mistake, Magnus did not manage to convert as Hikaru did not crack and the two finally agreed to a draw. Thus, the third and final day of the World Rapid Chess Championship – which started with an upset for Carlsen – ended in a drama as there were four players on 9.5 points, in a tie for first place: Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana. According to the rules, only the first two among them (Abdusattorov and Nepomniachtchi) went to the tie breaks to decide who would be the champion. The tie-breaks There was a drawing of lots to determine who would be leading the white pieces in the first blitz game. Nepomniachtchi drew White. In the first blitz game of the tie break, Nepomniachtchi had come out from the opening with a strong position. Abdusattorov had serious problems in the middlegame but – like in other games during this final day – managed to defend well and get a draw. In the second game, Abdusattorov opted for his favourite
Candidates Tournament to take place in Madrid sponsored by Chess.com
The 2022 Candidates Tournament, which will produce the challenger for the next world chess championship match, will take place in June-July 2022 in Madrid, Spain. As the organising sponsor of this prestigious tournament, Chess.com signed an agreement on Monday with governing body FIDE and the Scheinberg family, patrons of the event. The Candidates Tournament will once again be the most important tournament of the year, with eight top grandmasters fighting for a spot in the next title match. The previous Candidates tournament, which was held in Yekaterinburg, Russia partly in 2020 and partly in 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, was one of the best-viewed tournaments in chess history. So far, six players have qualified for the 2022 edition: GMs Fabiano Caruana, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Alireza Firouzja, Sergey Karjakin, Ian Nepomniachtchi, and Teimour Radjabov. The final two players will come from the 2022 FIDE Grand Prix, to be held February-April 2022. Following the agreement among FIDE, the Scheinberg family, and Chess.com, the dates and host city for the next Candidates Tournament have been set. The tournament is due to take place June 16 – July 7, 2022 in Madrid. The location of the playing hall is yet to be announced, but it’s known already that the opening and closing ceremonies will be held in the Four Seasons luxury hotel in the Spanish capital. “The Candidates tournament is one of the most exciting events in the chess calendar, and as such, it has massive followership. Its popularity has grown to the point that it is comparable to that of the World Championship Match. For FIDE, it is a great satisfaction to hold this important tournament in Spain, a country that loves chess,” said the FIDE President, Arkady Dvorkovich. “The partnership with Chess.com will also allow us to organise this event at the highest level, as was the case recently at the FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss in Riga. Last but surely not least I’d like to thank the Scheinberg family, whose constant contribution to chess deserves real appreciation.” “For the Spanish Chess Federation, it will be a great honour to cooperate with FIDE and Chess.com in making this event happen. Chess has always been very popular in our country, and well respected as an educational tool, with hundreds of thousands of children engaged in chess activities in schools. Hosting a top sporting event like the Candidates brings media attention, and gives all these kids something to look up to.”, said Javier Ochoa, President of the Spanish Chess Federation. “I am very excited to be working with FIDE and the Scheinberg family on this event. As a fan, I’m already looking forward to following this incredible tournament and can’t wait for the outcome,” said Erik Allebest, CEO of Chess.com. “I am also happy for these amazing players to have the opportunity to play in such a wonderful city and what will surely be a great venue.” The tournament is made possible by the generous patronage of the Scheinberg family, who have stated to be honoured to once again contribute to a major chess event that is part of the world championship cycle. Chess.com will provide further support as a co-organizer and official broadcast partner, once again having exclusive footage from the playing hall on Twitch. Spain’s chess tradition is centuries old. The rules of chess as we know it today were established in Spain in the late 15th century, around the time when the Catholic priest Ruy Lopez de Segura (c. 1530 – c. 1580) was considered to be the strongest player in the world. All major chess events have taken place in Spain at least once, including among others the 1987 Kasparov-Karpov World Championship in Seville, the Susan Polgar- Xie Jun Women’s World Championship match in Jaen in 1996, and the Chess Olympiad in Calvia in 2004. Spain has also hosted the Candidates final twice before. In 1987 Anatoly Karpov qualified for his Sevilla match by defeating Andrei Sokolov in Linares, and the 1993 FIDE Candidates final between GM Nigel Short and GM Jan Timman was held in El Escorial, about 45 kilometres (28 miles) northwest of Madrid. The 1998 Magistral Comunidad de Madrid, won by GM Viswanathan Anand, was the last major chess tournament in the Spanish capital. The Candidates Tournament itself has a long tradition as well. It was first held in 1950 in Budapest and the second edition, the 1953 Candidates Tournament in Zurich, belongs to the most famous tournaments in chess history. In modern times, the 2013 Candidates Tournament in London was particularly dramatic and historic, when the current world champion GM Magnus Carlsen managed to qualify for his first world championship. He went on to beat Anand later that year, and successfully defended his title in 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2021. Recently, Carlsen has stated that he only wishes to defend his title if his opponent will be from the new generation of chess players. His preferred opponent is 18-year-old Firouzja, who recently surged to the world number-two position behind Carlsen as the youngest-ever player to break the 2800 Elo rating margin. Photo: Fermín Rodríguez Fajardo About FIDE: Founded in 1924, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) is the governing body of the sport of chess, and it regulates all international chess competitions. Constituted as a non-governmental institution, it was recognized by the International Olympic Committee as a Global Sporting Organisation in 1999. Headquartered in Lausanne, it is one of the largest sports organisations, encompassing 195 countries as affiliate members, in the form of National Chess Federations. About Chess.com: Chess.com is the world’s largest chess site, with a community of more than 77 million members from around the world playing millions of games every day. Launched in 2007, Chess.com is the leader in chess news, lessons, events, and live entertainment. Visit Chess.com to play, learn and connect with chess—the world’s most popular game. Contact: FIDE:press@fide.com Chess.com:press@chess.com
FIDE Congress 2021: Full schedule and detailed information
Please visit the FIDE Congress website for a full schedule, complete information and regular updates. The FIDE Annual Congress comprises meetings of the FIDE Commissions, Council and the Zonal Council as well as the General Assembly of FIDE, which is FIDE’s highest body. This year, the FIDE Congress will be held during the following dates: – FIDE Commissions meetings: December 6th – December 25th, 2021 (online format)– FIDE Zonal Council meeting: December 26th, 2021 (hybrid format)– FIDE Council meeting: December 27th, 2021 (hybrid format)– FIDE General Assembly: December 28th, 2021 (hybrid format)
FIDE World Rapid Chess Championships: Day 2 Recap
After two days and nine rounds in the open section of the World Rapid Chess Championship, world number one Magnus Carlsen is alone in the lead with 7.5/9, half a point ahead of everyone else. He is chased by three players, each on seven points – Alexander Grischuk, Ian Nepomniachtchi and, the big surprise of the tournament, 17-year-old Nodirbek Abdusattorov. In the women’s section, Alexandra Kosteniuk is dominating the tournament. With 7.5/9, she enters the final day with a point and a half ahead of everyone else. The Open tournament Magnus Carlsen is poised to defend his title of World Champion in rapid chess after another powerful performance in the four games played on the second day of the tournament. Following a draw in round six with Baadur Jobava (where Carlsen had a more comfortable position but the Georgian skilfully held on to the very endgame), the World Champion was then up against the world number two, Alireza Firouzja. All eyes were on this game as it was the first encounter between the two since Carlsen said that 18-year-old Firouzja is the only player who can motivate him to defend the title of World Champion in classical chess for the sixth time. In the Advance Variation of the Caro Kann, Carlsen obtained some space advantage and more comfortable play. Instead of waiting to be slowly crushed, Firouzja played bravely, realising that only action could give him an opportunity to neutralise Carlsen’s pressure. However, it did not work out as Magnus played with precision and never let him off the hook. The loss did not hinder Firouzja much as he drew the next game with Van Foreest and then defeated Kirill Shevchenko to finish the day on 6.5/9 and remain in the race for the top position. When we consider that Firouzja is 13 years younger than Carlsen and that he has already reached a 2800 ELO and has become the world’s number two at the age of 18, it is clear that the reigning World Champion has much to fear. The most dangerous opponent of the day for Carlsen proved to be his old rival Alexander Grischuk who, in the Queen’s Gambit Declined, had a slightly better position in which the World Champion all of a sudden blundered an exchange. Alexander, in his turn, failed to demonstrate the necessary accuracy and allowed Magnus to take the initiative in a very complex endgame. Luckily for Grischuk, the safety margin was sufficient for a draw, and a truce was called. The two then spent a while enthusiastically analysing the game. Carlsen finished the day on a high note, beating the local favourite and one of the greatest rising stars in chess, Jan-Krzysztof Duda. When it seemed that the local hero had solved all his opening problems, Magnus came up with a very interesting exchange sacrifice to steer the game towards a slightly better ending. Once again, Carlsen demonstrated his excellent endgame technique to turn “slightly better” into a clean and confident victory. Overall, the second day proved to be difficult for Duda – he started with a loss (to Ian Nepomniachtchi) in Round Six, then scored two victories, only to be defeated in the last round. Still, with 6.5 points, he enters the final day with solid chances for one of the top places. The big surprise of the tournament is the ‘young gun’ from Uzbekistan, 17-year-old Nodirbek Abdusattorov, who, after losing in Round Six to Anton Korobov, scored three consecutive wins against top-class players (Levon Aronian, Radoslaw Wojtaszek and Boris Gelfand) and with 7/9 points is in shared 2-4th place. He will be playing Magnus Carlsen on the top board at the start of the final day of the rapid championship. Nodirbek is joined by Alexander Grischuk and Ian Nepomniachtchi, who are also on 7/9 and have been confidently building up their momentum for the final rounds in the first two days. Following them is a score of nine players on 6.5 points, including heavyweights Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana. The latter (who on day one suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of Abdusattorov) is lucky to be in this group as he managed to save a lost game in Round Seven against Andrei Volokitin thanks to an oversight by his opponent. Dutchman Jorden Van Foreest and Egyptian Amin Bassem also show great form in the World Rapid open tournament. With 6.5/9, they remain in striking distance for the top places. Among the young lions at the top is the 53-year-old veteran Boris Gelfand, who has 6/9. After the first eight rounds, Gelfand was in 8th place, just half a point behind Carlsen, but then in the final (ninth) round of day two, he suffered his first loss in the tournament at the hands of Abdusattorov. Among other top players, Levon Aronian has six points, while Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Anish Giri, Sergey Karjakin, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Alexei Shirov are all on 5.5/9. The Women’s tournament The second day of the Women’s world rapid was marked by Alexandra Kosteniuk’s, sterllar perfrormance. The Women’s World Cup winner finished a point and a half ahead of everyone else. She is followed by six players on 6/8 (in the women’s section, eight rounds have been played so far – four on each day*). In Round Five, in a direct duel for first place, Kosteniuk scored a lucky victory against Valentina Gunina, with whom she shared the top after day one. Despite achieving an overwhelming position, Gunina made several mistakes and eventually lost. Kosteniuk won the next round game against Nataliya Buksa but then had to work hard to escape with a draw against one of the surprising stars of the event, Assel Serikbay. Alexandra finished the day confidently, defeating the former World Champion and one of the top contenders for the title, Mariya Muzychuk. “From 2012, I played in every single edition of the World Rapid & Blitz, and three times I took silver medals. So, of course, I’d like to jump higher”, Kosteniuk said in an interview on day two. She was, however, cautious about the interviewer praising her performance so far: “It’s important how you start but [it’s] more important how you finish”. The group of six players on 6/8 chasing Kosteniuk is led by Assel Serikbay of Kazakhstan. Starting the second day of the event with two victories, the 19-year-old GM
FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships: Day 1 Recap
One of the most important events in the chess calendar – The World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships – started on Sunday in the Polish capital Warsaw. More than 250 strongest world players accompanied by their trainers and staff, descended on the PGE Narodowy Stadium, the home of the Polish national football team Magnus Carlsen, who just defended his fifth world title in classical chess and who is the defending rapid and blitz champion, is looking for another hat-trick, wanting to finish the year with all three titles under his belt. Aiming to bring him down is a field made up of world heavyweights including the 2021 challenger for the title Ian Nepomniachtchi, 18-year-old Alireza Firouzja (whom Carlsen recently named as the most likely person to motivate him to defend the chess crown for the sixth time), American Hikaru Nakamura who won bronze (in rapid) and silver (in blitz) medals in the last edition of this event, as well as the three-time world blitz chess champion Alexander Grischuk and the local favourite and chess superstar Jan-Krzysztof Duda, to name a few. In the women’s section, the winners of the 2019 women’s rapid and blitz tournaments – Humpy Koneru and Kateryna Lagno – are also looking to defend their titles. Most of the former women’s world champions in rapid and blitz, including Anna Muzychuk, Antoaneta Stefanova, Alexandra Kosteniuk, Valentina Gunina and Nana Dzagnidze, are also taking part. This FIDE organised event also hosts an impressive one million USD prize fund, with 700,000 going to the open championships and 300,000 for the women’s championships. The first competition to start is the World Rapid Chess Championship, held in two sections – open and women’s and will last for three days. The first day consisted of five rounds in the open and four rounds in the women’s section. Open tournament After the first day and the first five rounds of the World Rapid Chess Championship, there is no single player with a maximum score, suggesting how close the games and the players are. The lead is held by just three players on 4,5/5: local Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Magnus Carlsen of Norway and Georgia’s Baadur Jobava. Behind them are 13 players on four points, led by Ian Nepomniachtchi. With a freshly shaved face and in his familiar tailored and branded suit, Magnus Carlsen gave an imposing performance on the first day of the rapid, confirming why he holds the world title in all three categories – classical, rapid and blitz. In his familiar style of trying to get blood out of a stone (and succeeding in it!), Carlsen started with a victory in a game that lasted 104 moves. Despite his opponent – Georgian GM Merab Gagunashvili – holding the world champion to an equal position for 100 moves, in a theoretically drawn endgame where Carlsen had just a rook and a bishop and Black had a rook, he managed to break his opponent’s nerves leading him to blunder. Carlsen continued in his uncompromising style in the second game – not being satisfied with an even position as Black, he embarked on creating threats to his opponent Samvel Ter-Sahakyan who skilfully avoided them to the very end. The game lasted until the two kings were the only remaining pieces on board, forcing Carlsen to come to terms with a draw. Unfazed by this setback, the defending champion scored three more victories – against the seasoned Aleksey Dreev, the promising Indian prodigy Bharathakoti Harsha and the great Alexei Shirov (who finished the day on 3.5/5), although against the Latvian, the World Champion had a dangerous position after the opening. Although arguably the biggest star of the event, Carlsen is not the only favourite. That title also applies to Jan-Krzysztof Duda, who is well-known and liked in his native Poland. Playing on home turf seems to have given wind in Duda’s sails as he confidently defeated his opponents in the first four rounds. The winner of the 2021 World Cup also had luck on his side, as he managed to get out of a hopeless position against Baadur Jobava in Round 5 by ‘selling him’ what one commentator described as a ‘cheap trick’ in the final stages of the game. By splitting a point, both Jobava and Duda ended on 4.5/5, sharing first place with Carlsen. Ian Nepomniachtchi – who suffered a crushing defeat in the recent match for the title of world champion – showed that he is in high spirits and motivated, as he finished the first day as the leader of the second tier of 13 players with four points. The Russian started with three wins but was slowed down in Round Four by the exceptionally talented 17-year-old Nodirbek Abdusattorov (who in the 2019 edition of the World Rapid Championship backed Carlsen into a corner in a game that eventually ended in a draw). Nepomniachtchi then drew in Round 5 with Anton Korobov. The 18-year-old naturalised Frenchman Alireza Firouzja has also started day one strongly. The rising star who – next to Carlsen – is probably most under the weight of expectations following the world champion’s recent comments, has four points. The list of players on four points also includes Alexander Grischuk and a heavyweight from the earlier chess era – Boris Gelfand, who is showing he is in good form as he has scored three victories and made two draws. The lucky joiner of the ‘Club 13’ is Anish Giri, who won a completely lost position in the fourth round thanks to an incredible oversight by his opponent. Hikaru Nakamura – who won the bronze medal in the 2019 World Rapid Championship – is on 3.5 points, as is the former contender for the world title, Fabiano Caruana. The Women’s tournament CFR superstars Valentina Gunina and Alexandra Kosteniuk are in the lead after the first day of the women’s world rapid chess championship, having scored four victories out of four games. “I feel I’m in good shape, but it’s just the start and it’s early to say something,” commented Gunina, who in Rounds 1 and 3 played two sisters, Zeinab and Turkan Mamedjarova and defeated them both. Alexandra Kosteniuk – who this year won the inaugural Women’s Chess World Cup and has previously held the titles of women’s world and European champion – has shown confidence and stability in her games on