Rauf Mamedov wins French Online Blitz Championship
The Rapid and Blitz French championship was scheduled to be played in Orsay, but the coronavirus pandemic spoiled the initial plan. The blitz section of the championship (with time control: 3+2) was run online, May 16-17, and brought together 709 players, including 34 grandmasters. The line-up boasted of such stars as Alireza Firouzja and Vasyl Ivanchuk, who won the qualification phase on Day 1. Day 2 played in knockout-format, started sensationally as Alireza Firouzja was surprisingly eliminated by Kacper Piorun in the Round of 16. Other pre-event favorites Rauf Mamedov, Vasyl Ivanchuk, and Baadur Jobava turned in a very solid performance and made it to the semifinals. Mamedov beat Ivanchuk in Armageddon game and reached the final in which he was up against a three-time French Champion Christian Bauer who whitewashed Jobava (2-0). The four-game final was much closer than the score suggests – Christian gave Rauf a run for his money, leveling the score after losing the first game. In the fourth and final game, the Frenchman found himself in a must-win situation but failed to do the trick. Nevertheless, as the best French player in this tournament, Christian Bauer became French Online Blitz champion; Sophie Milliet wins the French women’s champion title. The tournament was broadcast on Twitch with commentary by GM Matthieu Cornette, 2016 French champion, and Kévin Bordi, a popular French streamer with more than 1500 viewers following the event simultaneously. The French Blitz Championship also served a noble purpose, as 20% of the registration fees were donated to the associations fighting against the coronavirus: the Fondation de France and the Blouses Roses. The French Chess Federation would like to thank the city of Orsay for supporting this championship.
Carlsen and Lagno take titles in Steinitz Memorial
Carlsen waltzes to victory Magnus Carlsen brought the FIDE Online Steinitz Memorial to a fitting end with a crushing win in the inaugural event held to honor his predecessor. The 16th World Champion’s performance echoed the dominance of the first undisputed king of chess, Austrian great Wilhelm Steinitz, as he waltzed to victory. Carlsen had led the field after the first day’s play but was overtaken yesterday by Russia’s former World Champion in rapid Daniil Dubov. However, the young pretender’s challenge quickly fizzled out today as he lost three straight games against fellow Russian Alexander Grischuk, China’s Bu Xiangzhi and the American teenager Jeffery Xiong. In the Bu game, in particular, the under-pressure Dubov played a shocker. IM Lawrence Trent, while commentating, likened Dubov’s dramatic slump to an “English batting collapse” – a phenomenon well known to cricket fans. Meanwhile, Carlsen benefitted from another shocker played by Grischuk in Round 15. In the chess24 commentary box, GM Peter Leko was absolutely brutal in his assessment of the out-of-form Grischuk’s play. “This is unbelievable,” he said. “Black is absolutely toast!” Carlsen was cruising ahead on 10/15 while Dubov fell back to second on 9/15. Yet in Round 17, Dubov had one last chance to get back in it as he faced the tournament leader. Dubov had to win and win again in Round 18, while Carlsen had to lose both, which was highly unlikely. Carlsen duly closed out the draw to secure the title with a round to spare. The champion was downbeat in his interview after the match and typically hard on his own play. He said: “I was terrible from start to finish. The result is OK, so I move on.” FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich paid tribute to the quality of play and the consistency of the top players. “No matter whether it’s online or offline the same guys win the tournaments,” he said. Lagno clinches the title in a thrilling tiebreak against Lei Tingjie Kateryna Lagno won a bizarre Armageddon tiebreak to secure first place in the inaugural FIDE Online Steinitz Memorial’s Women’s Section today. The Russian kept her cool as her play-off with Lei Tingjie went to a marathon 152 moves. The Chinese player, playing with White and needing to win, tried to flag her on time. Sunday’s final 6 rounds were full of drama as momentum swung back-and-forth before the focused Lagno eventually came out on top. Earlier Tingjie came from under the radar to draw level with Lagno at the end of 18 rounds of blitz. It followed a stunning charge from Zhansaya Abdumalik who, at one point, was on seven straight games and in the lead. The Kazakhstani’s momentum appeared unstoppable until Tingjie spoiled her run by holding her to a draw. With Tan Zhongyi and Lagno’s fellow Russian Alexandra Kosteniuk also in the mix, it looked like the tournament was wide open. Then Tingjie took up the mantle winning her final two games to finish the day’s blitz unbeaten on 5/6. Meanwhile, Lagno, the pre-tournament favorite, and overnight leader started with a loss and it took a “lucky” win on game 14 to spark her into life. Lagno then followed it up with a smooth win over Marie Sebag to wrest back the lead. Tingjie ended Kosteniuk’s hopes while in the 17th Abdumalik lost to Tan Zhongyi. By the final round, it was incredibly tight at the top with Lagno just ahead in a three-horse race. All eyes were on Abdumalik vs Lagno with Abdumalik needing a win. But in a tense encounter Lagno held the draw and Abdumalik was squeezed out. Tingjie, meanwhile, beat Elisabeth Paehtz to go into the tiebreak which Lagno eventually won. “We’ve witnessed a fantastic event with so many dramas,” said commentator GM Peter Leko More information at Chess24.com: FIDE Women’s Steinitz MemorialFIDE Open Steinitz Memorial
Steinitz Memorial: Dubov and Lagno on fire
Dubov’s day: Young Russian on fire as wheels come off for Carlsen Speed-chess specialist, Daniil Dubov, raced into the lead on drama-filled Day 2 of the FIDE Online Steinitz Memorial. The Russian won a key game against Magnus Carlsen as the World Champion suffered his first real wobble. Carlsen managed to steady himself but stays a half-point behind Dubov going into the final six rounds tomorrow. On a day of fast-paced action in practically every game, Carlsen got off to the perfect start by dispatching Bu Xiangzhi. He then rode his luck in a wild finish to come out on top against Jeffery Xiong, the youngest player in the field. Hot on his heels, however, was Dubov who dispatched Xiong and Peter Svidler in short order. It set up a key Game 9 clash between the pair when Dubov had the chance to overtake Carlsen. With Magnus in trouble, Dubov used his time advantage and stayed cool to close out a spectacular win. The former the World Rapid Champion leapfrogged Carlsen to go top. “Amazing stuff,” remarked IM Lawrence Trent. “This was incredible,” GM Peter Leko said. “Kudos to Daniil Dubov. Incredible.” Carlsen’s crushing loss set up a must-win game for the champion playing Black against Peter Svidler. But instead of straight bouncing back – as sometimes happens Magnus – the wheels really came off. The champion was in trouble all through the game and eventually fell to a checkmate. 48. Rxh6!+ 1-0 Dubov, meanwhile, calmly drew with Le Quang Liem to move a full point clear. Next up in Game 11 it was Carlsen’s turn to face Le while Dubov took on third-placed Shakhriyar Mamedyarov. The Norwegian found himself in an inferior position but bagged a huge win to keep up the pressure before Dubov’s lead was cut to half a point when he failed to convert. In the final round of the day, Dubov drew quickly against Anton Korobov to secure at least the joint lead overnight while Carlsen’s game was still ongoing. The champion, needing the win, seemed on top but Mamedyarov pulled off an amazing save to escape with a draw. Dubov, like his fellow Russian Kateryna Lagno in the Women’s section, claimed the day and leads overnight. In the other games, Alexander Grischuk dented Mamedyarov’s hopes with a win in Game 8 which Leko described as a “strategic masterpiece”. Mamedyarov, however, ended the day still in with a shout in third place on 7/12 while Svidler and Le are on 6.5. “I promised that I would play better today, but I didn’t. I don’t know what to say. It was so messy that it was terrible”, said Magnus Carlsen to 2Sjakk after the games where over. Kateryna Lagno claws her way to the top Kateryna Lagno, Russia’s reigning Women’s World Champion in blitz, hit top form as she battled her way into the lead on Day 2 of the FIDE Online Steinitz Memorial. The big pre-tournament favorite drew ahead of the overnight leader, and fellow Russian, Alexandra Kosteniuk with four wins out of six to finish a half-point clear at the top of the table. Yesterday, Kosteniuk blew away the field with 5.5/6. But on Day 2 she got off to a terrible losing her first two games – and after that, it didn’t get much better. In the key third game of the day against Lagno, Kosteniuk was cruising. But with just 10 seconds left on the clock, the former Women’s World Champion appeared to miss a huge opportunity and Lagno escaped with a draw. It was a huge result. In the next game, Lagno moved smoothly into the lead when she was too strong for Elisabeth Paehtz. Tan Zhongyi and Marie Sebag also briefly challenged for the lead but fell back while Antoaneta Stefanova scored 2.5/6 to sit in seventh place. Meanwhile, Zhansaya Abdumalik, the talented Kazakhstani IM, catapulted herself into the running by winning her last four games. Earlier, after her wipeout yesterday, Peru’s Deysi Cori had picked up her first win. In the final round of the day, Round 12 of 18, Lei Tingjie made a shocking blunder that put Tan Zhongyi back in business. However, despite losing her final game against Sarasadat Khademalsharieh, it was Lagno’s day. Lawrence Trent, commentating, said: “It’s going to be a very, very interesting day tomorrow.” The tournament is broadcast with commentary in multiple languages at www.Chess24.com/watch SCHEDULE:(all times are CEST) Friday, May 15th Saturday, May 16th Sunday, May 17th Rounds 1-6 Women:15:00 – 18:15 Rounds 7-12 Women:15:00 – 18:15 Rounds 13-18 Women:15:00 – 18:15 Rounds 1-6 Open:18:30 – 21:30 Rounds 7-12 Open:18:30 – 21:30 Rounds 13-18 Open:18:30 – 21:30 More information at Chess24.com: FIDE Women’s Steinitz MemorialFIDE Open Steinitz Memorial
2020 1st quarter FIDE Council Online Meeting: List of Decisions
FIDE Council decisions 12th of May, 2020 (online-meeting) OCM-2020/01 The Council approved the revised FIDE budget for 2020 proposed by MB. It was also noted that FIDE should closely monitor the financial state of national federations as an implication of pandemics with a further consideration by the Council if necessary. OCM-2020/02 The Council thanked Swiss authorities for the financial support regarding salaries of FIDE staff and rental payments for the FIDE office in Lausanne. OCM-2020/03 The Council approved the organization of online FIDE Council and other official and non-official meetings e.g. FIDE Zonal Council meetings and commission meetings. The Council noted a possibility to organize an online 2020 General Assembly. OCM-2020/04 The Council noted that the second half of the FIDE Candidates Tournament shall be held later this year and appreciated the commitment of Yekaterinburg partners to host the event. OCM-2020/05 The Council noted that the opening of World EXPO 2020 is confirmed to move to the fourth quarter of 2021 under the same name and with the same organizer, who expressed a clear commitment to host the World Championship Match with the dates and terms to be reconfirmed in a due course. OCM-2020/06 The Council approved shifting the Chess Olympiad 2020 to the next year, to be held at the same locations in Russia and within the same time frame as per FIDE Statement dated March 25th, 2020. OCM-2020/07 The Council took note of the President’s information on the preparations for the 2022 Olympiad. The Council requested the Belarus Chess Federation to provide the final information on the decision of the Belarus authorities about holding the 2022 Chess Olympiad in Minsk till the end of May 2020. OCM-2020/08 The Council approved that in case of a negative reply from the Belarus authorities, FIDE shall reopen the bidding procedure for the 2022 Chess Olympiad for a period of three months. OCM-2020/09 The Council noted that FIDE received one full bid for the 2024 Olympiad from Hungarian Chess Federation. Also, the Argentinian Chess Federation provided FIDE with a letter of intent with a promise to present the whole package with official guarantees by September 2020. The Council confirmed the high level of preparation of the Hungarian Chess Federation’s bid for 2024 and approved remote checking of all related details with formal inspections to be held when the situation allows the visits. The Council also recommended this bid for the ratification by the General Assembly subject to satisfactory inspections. OCM-2020/10 The Council noted that FIDE shall announce a bidding procedure for the World Cups 2022-2023. OCM-2020/11 The Council approved to create a separate procedure for the e-vote, should there be a necessity to decide about the Olympiad host city before the official GA meeting. Mr. Rivello, Chairman of Constitutional Commission, will advise on the procedural aspects. In the case of this e-vote, national federations to be consulted and informed accordingly. OCM-2020/12 The Council noted the information from FIDE President about the options for the timing of the last stage of the Women’s Grand-Prix series. OCM-2020/13 The Council requested the Events Commission to provide by the 1st of July an update regarding the respective 2020 World Championships and inform which events shall be moved to 2021 taking into account both the interests of the organizers of 2020-2021 tournaments and limitations related to the pandemics, including travel restrictions and budget constraints. OCM-2020/14 The Council approved the following online events to be organized by FIDE: – Steinitz memorial (regulations have been approved before);– Checkmate Coronavirus (regulations to be approved by MB);– Online Olympiad, including the players with disabilities (30 teams, President asked for the suggestions regarding 2 wildcards);– competitions for players with disabilities;– knock-out competitions with shorter time format. The Council agreed that FIDE needs a massive anti-cheating work before proceeding with official FIDE online events. FIDE is ready to fight it in cooperation with major chess online platforms. OCM-2020/15 The final regulations of the respective events will be approved by the Council in the near future following the suggestions from the Council members, in particular regarding a possible qualification stage for Online Olympiad. OCM-2020/16 The Council requested MB to provide information regarding media coverage of FIDE online activities and intensify the respective promotion efforts, including by the improvement in the quality of video coverage of FIDE events. The Council welcomed the development of a new visual standard for top FIDE events. OCM-2020/17 The Council noted the Continental reports and supported online activities run by the Continents. OCM-2020/18 The Council approved the new Commissions composition in principle. Council members have been requested to provide comments and proposals regarding personal composition of the commissions. OCM-2020/19 The Council approved the liquidation of the Online Commission conditional on the creation of a clear operational framework for managing and supporting FIDE online activities. OCM-2020/20 The Council approved the creation of the Athletes’ Commission. Council members have been requested to provide comments on possible procedures for the selection of members and on the regulations for the Athletes’ Commission OCM-2020/21 The Council has acknowledged the decisions by the President to appoint the new Chairs for the Planning and Development Commission and the Social Commission. OCM-2020/22 The Council approved MB efforts to kick-off the Chess ID project and noted that the details of the outsourcing procedures will be sent to the members shortly. OCM-2020/23 The Council noted the proposals regarding honorary GM titles. OCM-2020/24 The Council resolved to hold the next online Council meeting (regular quarterly meeting) in June 2020.
Steinitz Memorial: Carlsen and Kosteniuk lead after six rounds
Magnus means business Magnus Carlsen burst out of the blocks to grab the lead in a fiery Day 1 of the super-strong FIDE Steinitz Online Memorial. The Norwegian bullied his way to the top of the standings after six rounds of blitz as the tournament celebrating Wilhelm Steinitz, the first undisputed World Chess Champion, got under-way. Having goaded Peter Svidler on Twitter before the event started, Carlsen’s Round 1 encounter with the Russian ended in a draw – but only after a thrilling topsy-turvy game. Svidler could have won but missed a forced mate on move 37. Carlsen then made a shocking error of his own by missing a winning knight fork on 49.Nc2. But that draw just sparked Carlsen into life. The Norwegian made up for his blunder in the next game with a trademark grind to dispose of Le Quang Liem and take the lead. GM Peter Leko, commentating live on chess24, said: “I think in the last three years Magnus has made incredible steps forward in his preparation.” Round 3 saw a rejuvenated Carlsen going for a London System “beauty prize” against Mamedyarov after the Azerbaijani got into trouble early. Although Carlsen wobbled before he could pull off a quick win, he went on to secure victory and stay ahead of the pack. Meanwhile, 19-year-old Jeffery Xiong, playing on his first online super-tournament, also had a big win in Round 3 against Alexander Grischuk. Disaster then struck for Carlsen in Round 4 as the World Champion played a howler against Anton Korobov that left him with a hopeless task. “It does happen, it does happen to the very best as well. This is blitz,” said Leko. With four rounds gone, Korobov, Xiong and former World Rapid Champion Daniil Dubov caught up with Carlsen at the top on 2.5/4. Carlsen, however, wasn’t phased as he bounced back immediately with a smooth win over the Spaniard David Anton. Round 5 saw Dubov, the young Russian, dispatch fellow countryman Grischuk to keep the pressure on at the top. Xiong fell back with a tricky draw against Xiangzhi Bu and Korobov lost to drop out of the race. Then in the final round, Dubov’s unbeaten streak ended as he collapsed against Xiangzhi while Carlsen played out a draw against Grischuk to move into the lead. Carlsen goes into Day 2 a half-point ahead of the chasing pack. Kosteniuk dominates the women’s section Alexandra Kosteniuk, of Russia, was in blistering form as the FIDE Online Steinitz Memorial tournament kicked off with a series of hyper-aggressive games. The former World Women’s Champion went on a hot streak of five straight blitz wins as she demolished the field in the Women’s section. However, in a dramatic final game, Kosteniuk was pegged back to a draw by the promising 23-year-old Chinese Grandmaster Tingjie Lei. “It was a very high-quality game,” enthused GM Peter Leko, after the first of three days of blitz sessions. Kosteniuk leads a point and a half clear at the top of the table with Zhongyi Tan second on 4. The tournament is broadcast with commentary in multiple languages at www.Chess24.com/watch Schedule (all times are CEST): Friday, May 15th Saturday, May 16th Sunday, May 17th Rounds 1-6 Women:15:00 – 18:15 Rounds 7-12 Women:15:00 – 18:15 Rounds 13-18 Women:15:00 – 18:15 Rounds 1-6 Open:18:30 – 21:30 Rounds 7-12 Open:18:30 – 21:30 Rounds 13-18 Open18:30 – 21:30 More information at Chess24.com: FIDE Women’s Steinitz MemorialFIDE Open Steinitz Memorial
Rating analytics: Born in the same year – five-player teams
Kaspars Migla is the creator and founder of a chess website chessratings.top. In his column, he analyzes FIDE standard rating changes, career-highs, rating distribution by country, continent, region, and other rating-related statistics. In this edition, he focuses on the particular years that produced the greatest number of chess talents. More than ten years have passed since Magnus Carlsen topped the world rating. When looking at the list, we see not only the World Champion’s actual rating but also the year he was born – 1990. The portal chessratings.top made an attempt to find out whether this year is a special one and focused on the results of other highest-rated players born in 1990. In this research, we took five active players born in the same year and formed hypothetical teams by analogy with Chess Olympiads. We also compared 1990 with other years (both open and women sections) to see how players born earlier have been performing. Are there any other strong players born in 1990 apart from Magnus Carlsen? The answer is a definite yes! We are saying it with confidence because an average rating of the top-5 active players born in 1990 is whopping 2780.6. It means that a hypothetical “team 1990” has the highest rating compared to any other team consisting of players born in the same year. Below you can see the top-5 of teams comprising five players born in the same year (the first figure is the current ranking): Team 19901. Carlsen, Magnus (NOR) 28634. Nepomniachtchi, Ian (RUS) 27845. Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime (FRA) 277817. Karjakin, Sergey (RUS) 275222. Andreikin, Dmitry (RUS) 2726Average rating: 2780.6 Team 19879. Radjabov, Teimour (AZE) 276518. Nakamura, Hikaru (USA) 273625. Vitiugov, Nikita (RUS) 272228. Wojtaszek, Radoslaw (POL) 271934. Tomashevsky, Evgeny (RUS) 2706Average rating: 2728.6 Team 19836. Grischuk, Alexander (RUS) 277714. Dominguez Perez, Leinier (USA) 275847. Jakovenko, Dmitry (RUS) 268453. Sargissian, Gabriel (ARM) 268264. Bacrot, Etienne (FRA) 2673Average rating: 2714.8 Team 199410. Giri, Anish (NED, 2764)23. Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi (IND, 2726)33. Yu, Yangyi (CHN, 2709)48. Predke, Alexandr (RUS, 2684)65. Robson, Ray (USA, 2673)Average rating: 2711.2 Team 19922. Caruana, Fabiano (USA) 28353. Ding, Liren (CHN) 279182. Adhiban, B. (IND) 2659136. Heimann, Andreas (GER) 2633143. Yilmaz, Mustafa (TUR) 2630Average rating: 2709.6 Since the players born in 1990 reached an optimal “chess age” (30), many may take team 1990’s leading position for granted. That is not the case though. In reality the year 1990 was simply rich in chess talents. The same applies to 1983 and 1987. Looking at the same list but as of May 2010, we see the same teams in top-3 but in a different order: 1. Team 1983 2. Team 1987 3. Team 1990. Check out the leader as of May 1, 2010. Team 1983 7. Grischuk, Alexander (RUS) 27609. Eljanov, Pavel (UKR) 275118. Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR) 273321. Jakovenko, Dmitry (RUS) 272526. Jobava, Baadur (GEO) 2715Average rating: 2736.8 Let’s rewind nine more years – Team 1969 was the best squad as of April 2001 (the ratings were not calculated in May): 3. Anand, Viswanathan (IND) 27947. Ivanchuk, Vassily (UKR) 273118. Dreev, Alexey (RUS) 268556. Piket, Jeroen (NED) 2628165. Korneev, Oleg (RUS) 2572Average rating: 2682 Garry Kasparov (born in 1963) was the rating leader back then (2822), but “his” team 1963 stood only third, trailing team 1975 (lead by Vladimir Kramnik and Veselin Topalov) and team 1971 (headed by Michael Adams). In the crosstable below, you can see the top teams year by year from 2001 to 2020 with their average rating and age. Carlsen’s team 1990 has been dominating since 2013, whereas team-leaders’ average rating increased by almost 100 points, from 2688.6 to 2780.6. It is also worth mentioning that nine years ago, in 2011 the chess elite was the youngest ever! Year Top team year Av.rating Av.age 2001 1969 2688.6 32 2002 1975 2682.6 27 2003 1969 2683 34 2004 1975 2679.4 29 2005 1969 2692.8 36 2006 1983 2701 23 2007 1983 2707.4 24 2008 1983 2711 25 2009 1983 2735.8 26 2010 1983 2736.8 27 2011 1990 2744 21 2012 1987 2743.4 25 2013 1990 2757.4 23 2014 1990 2773.4 24 2015 1990 2766.8 25 2016 1990 2771.4 26 2017 1990 2776.8 27 2018 1990 2773.4 28 2019 1990 2777.6 29 2020 1990 2780.6 30 When it comes to women there is no such a gap between the youngest age group and all the others. Interestingly enough, the team of the current rating leader Hou Yifan (CHN, 2658), who was born in 1994, did not “qualify” for the top-3. Team 19914. Ju, Wenjun (CHN) 25609. Harika, Dronavalli (IND) 251510. Tan, Zhongyi (CHN) 251021. Girya, Olga (RUS) 246942. Ding, Yixin (CHN) 2422Average rating: 2495.2 Team 19872. Koneru, Humpy (IND) 25868. Dzagnidze, Nana (GEO) 252426. Batsiashvili, Nino (GEO) 245738. Munguntuul, Batkhuyag (MGL) 242847. Zawadzka, Jolanta (POL) 2419Average rating: 2482.8 Team 198515. Zhao, Xue (CHN) 248618. Pogonina, Natalija (RUS) 247519. Paehtz, Elisabeth (GER) 247350. Ushenina, Anna (UKR) 2416117. Lujan, Carolina (ARG) 2346Average rating: 2439.2 In May 2010, when legendary Judit Polgar was still active, two teams (see below) had an average rating of 2500+. None of the current team-leaders managed to climb that high. Team 19761. Polgar, Judit (HUN) 268222. Xu, Yuhua (CHN) 248427. Zhu, Chen (QAT) 247635. Gaponenko, Inna (UKR) 246536. Skripchenko, Almira (FRA) 2464Average rating: 2514.2 Team 19855. Kosintseva, Nadezhda (RUS) 255314. Pogonina, Natalija (RUS) 250117. Zhao, Xue (CHN) 249320. Paehtz, Elisabeth (GER) 248532. Ushenina, Anna (UKR) 2468Average rating: 2500 Team 1976 was the best in 2001 with an average rating exceeding a 2500 mark: 1. Polgar, Judit (HUN) 26764. Zhu, Chen (CHN) 25387. Xu, Yuhua (CHN) 250124. Skripchenko, Almira (MDA) 244161. Gaponenko, Inna (UKR) 2373Average rating: 2505.8. It is time to apply the same principle to various countries. Probably chess historians know whether there was a team at Chess Olympiad with all players born in the same year. It is highly unlikely but not impossible, at least theoretically. Moreover, one such hypothetical team would have a chance to be in a contest for medals. We are talking about the country replete with talented players born in 1990, namely, Russia. Russia 1990Nepomniachtchi, Ian (RUS) 2784Karjakin, Sergey (RUS) 2752Andreikin, Dmitry (RUS) 2726Popov, Ivan (RUS) 2636Lintchevski, Daniil
FIDE announces Checkmate Coronavirus project
The Coronavirus pandemic has caused an unprecedented global crisis. In support of efforts of national governments and people around the world, the International Chess Federation, FIDE, has decided to promote an online international chess initiative supporting spending long hours at home. The goal of the initiative is also to promote the ideals of unity and solidarity, which must be manifested in such challenging times. From May 18 until June 16, FIDE will join forces with major internet chess platforms in organizing more than 2,000 online tournaments. “Checkmate Coronavirus” tournaments will be played at lichess.org, chess.com, chess24.com, and FIDE Online Arena. There will be almost 80 tournaments a day aimed at all chess players, regardless of age, country, or level of play. There will also be a prize draw with 1,500 special prizes. Inspired by the Olympic motto (not to win but to take part), we want to give a winning chance to everyone and to reward involvement and participation. The major prize will consist of at least 64 one-week invitations to the 2021 Chess Olympiad in Moscow with flight and lodging expenses fully covered. Other prizes include souvenirs, tickets to chess workshops, and mini-matches with grandmasters. On our website (www.checkmatecoronavirus.com) you can find a full schedule where you can choose the tournament type and preferred platform. On www.checkmatecoronavirus.com you can also check out if you have won any of our special prizes. Remember, the more tournaments you play – the bigger your chances to win! Join this worldwide chess initiative! Take part in the biggest official event in terms of participation and non-stop games running, by any sports federation, ever! And remember – you can play any time on any platform. Your results do not matter, you can win great prizes anyway! Stay safe and play chess online! Let’s checkmate coronavirus!
$1 million Magnus Carlsen Tour: A new era in chess
World Champion Magnus Carlsen revealed his $1 million vision for a new online chess tour designed to cement the game’s future in the public eye. Four super-tournaments culminating in a Grand Final in August will become the new “majors” for online chess, the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour. It follows the breakthrough success of the Magnus Carlsen Invitational which shattered all records for online viewership and now serves as the first leg of the Tour. Carlsen believes carrying the momentum into an online Tour presents the opportunity to establish chess permanently as a mass media sport. The World Champion said: “The Invitational was a lot of fun and we heard great feedback from the players, our broadcast partners, and the viewers. While physical chess tournaments and sports are still either canceled or postponed, bringing an entire chess tour online is what I feel is right for chess now.” The Invitational was the first online chess tournament to be broadcast on TV. It went out on Spanish, German, Russian, and Czech TV and was covered live on Norway’s biggest commercial channel. The Tour will continue to bring exciting chess entertainment to viewers via TV, streaming services, and on www.chess24.com throughout the summer. Tour Schedule Magnus Carlsen Invitational: Apr 18 – May 3 Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge: May 19 – June 3 Online Chess Masters: June 20 – July 5 Legends of Chess: July 21 – August 5 Tour Final: August 9 – August 20 The top four players of each tournament are guaranteed a place in the following one. The Grand Final will be played among the winners of the individual tournaments. The combined prize fund is $1 million, the highest ever in online chess. The next tournament, the Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge, starts on May 19. The name builds on the heritage of the Lindores Abbey Chess Stars, a Scottish super-tournament held for the first time last year with Magnus Carlsen, Vishy Anand, Sergey Karjakin, and Ding Liren taking part. This physical tournament has now moved online to join the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour and is associated with the Lindores Abbey Heritage Society, which maintains the historic site. Under the tournament’s social media hashtag #HeritageChess, fans can learn more about every participating player and his country’s chess history. It is an effort to show the rich heritage of chess on which the players’ careers have been built. The Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge will feature four returning players from the Magnus Carlsen Invitational: Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Ding Liren, and Alireza Firouzja. Eight new players will be introduced: Wesley So, Alexander Grischuk, Sergey Karjakin, Levon Aronian, Wei Yi, Daniil Dubov, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, and Yu Yangyi. Chess24 will cover every tournament in nine languages, with commentary beginning at 3 PM CEST each tournament day. The official home of the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour is chess24.com/tour. FOR MORE INFORMATION:Leon Watsonleon@chessable.com+447786 078770
Alexander Grischuk wins Play for Russia charity tournament
The Play for Russia Charity Tournament played on lichess.org, ended on May 14, with a determined Alexander Grischuk overcoming first Vladimir Kramnik and then Evgeny Tomashevsky to win the event. Facing Vladimir Kramnik, Grischuk seemed to have his work cut out for him when he lost the first semi-final game with the white pieces. In a must-win situation, Alexander scored an extremely important victory in the second game with Black – ensuring the two played an Armageddon decider. Kramnik chose to play with black pieces, needing just a draw to secure his slot in the final. Facing a must-win situation once again Grischuk played valiantly, and after obtaining a better position he finished things off with winning tactics. A distraught Kramnik had to step away from the computer briefly, before conceding defeat. When talking with GM Evgenij Miroschnichenko and WIM Fiona Steil-Antoni on the Lichess stream later, Alexander remarked that he felt these two games against Kramnik were the “cleanest” and “most beautiful” games he played in the entire event. Photo: Theo Heinze With Kramnik eliminated, on the other side of the draw the two-time Russian champion, Evgeny Tomashevsky, faced off against eight-time Russian champion, Peter Svidler. Playing precise and positional chess, Tomashevsky secured a convincing win in his first game and then drew the second – guaranteeing his place in the final with Grischuk. The final match took only three games instead of four, with Grischuk emerging victorious in each encounter. After a fiercely contested battle in the first game in which Tomashevsky at some point had an upper hand, Grischuk came out with a victory – following up quickly on his success in the second encounter. Evgeny had better chances in the third game but mishandled his position in the time scramble and eventually lost. Alexander Grischuk: “All three final games turned out to be very complex. Evgeny had an advantage both in the first and third games, and the second one was more or less equal. I was lucky to win. But the most important thing was that this event took place in general. The struggle was very exciting in all its stages. I’d like to thank the participants, everyone involved, everybody who gave donations and, of course, Vladimir Kramnik as he was the main initiator of the event.” Photo: Maria Emelianova By the end of the event, a massive 24,670,000 roubles ($335,000) was raised as donations for Russian charities, in the battle against COVID-19. Grischuk shared that the impact homeless are feeling right now was an issue close to his heart – and that he had chosen a nationwide Russian charity to receive the part of the prize fund he represented. The prize fund, raised by the participants was distributed equally among the charities of their choice regardless of the final standings. Whilst the event and the excitement of top-level chess is now over, donations will still be accepted by the Russian Chess Federation until the end of the week. Further information on how to donate and the biggest sponsors are available on the Russian Chess Federation’s website. A massive thank you to all sponsors, players, organizers, and chess fans who made this amazing and worthwhile event a true success. The tournament was initiated by the participants and organized with the support of the Chess Federation of Russia, the Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation, the Timchenko Foundation, the Ramax group of companies, and Gazprombank (Switzerland). Match TV, a media partner of the tournament, provided the coverage and live broadcast. Text: lichess.org
Kramnik, Svidler, Tomashevsky and Grischuk through to semifinals
The Chess Federation of Russia and the Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation combined efforts to support the first charity online tournament initiated by Russian chess players. The event is being played on lichess.org in a 5+2 blitz format and features the country’s strongest grandmasters. The entire prize pool ($330,000 already raised so far) will be donated to regional hospitals and health workers fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. The participants will determine the recipients of the donations beforehand, depending on the needs of a particular institution. The entire prize fund is distributed equally among the regions, regardless of the final standings. More details and how to donate can be found on the Russian Chess Federation’s website (EN). The first day of the Play for Russia charity event left chess fans spoilt for choice, with firework matches like Grischuk vs Riazantsev, to classic match-ups like Kramnik vs Svidler. Alexander Grischuk, the three-time World Blitz Champion, was undefeated on day 1, with wins against Riazantsev, Svidler, Karjakin, and Kramnik – and draws against the rest of the field. Such a commanding performance gave Grischuk the lead on the first day, with 5.5/7. Despite retiring from professional chess in 2019, Vladimir Kramnik, the three-time World Champion, was hot on Grischuk’s heels, with four wins (including victories against podium-placer Tomashevsky, and one of the favorites, Ian Nepomniachtchi) and two draws. Kramnik drew laughs and smiles after announcing chess is “only a hobby” for him these days – with an excellent performance of 5/7 showing the truth of “once a World Champion, always a World Champion”. Two-time Russian champion, Evgeny Tomashevsky, finished the first day on third position (4/7) with victories over Ian Nepomniachtchi and Ernesto Inarkiev and the only loss to Kramnik. Sergey Karjakin, Ian Nepomniachtchi, and Peter Svidler (3/7 each) remained in contention and even Ernesto Inarkiev and Alexander Riazantsev (scoring 2.5/7 and 2/7 respectively) still had a chance to qualify for the semifinals. The second day of the event was even more eventful as Vladimir Kramnik overtook Alexander Grischuk to win the double round-robin overall with a dominating 10.5/14. Peter Svidler had a great second day as he scored six points in seven rounds and found himself in the second position of the final standings. After a great start, Alexander Grischuk slowed down drastically but still made it to the next stage although in the semifinal he is up against the most dangerous opponent Vladimir Kramnik. Evgeny Tomashevsky turned in an equally solid performance as on the first day and edged ahead of Grischuk thanks to better Sonneborn-Berger. Today, the four best performers from the double round-robin will play semi-finals and finals to determine Play for Russia Champion. Just like on the first two days WIM Fiona Steil-Antoni and GM Evgenij Miroschnichenko will be providing English commentary of the games on the Lichess Twitch and YouTube for Day 3. Russian commentary will be available on MatchTV (Russian TV-channel). Semifinal and final matches – 14 May 2020: 12:00 GMT:Vladimir Kramnik v Alexander Grischuk Alexander Grischuk v Vladimir Kramnik 13:00 GMT:Peter Svidler v Evgeny TomashevskyEvgeny Tomashevsky v Peter Svidler 14:00 GMT:Finalist 1 v Finalist 2Finalist 2 v Finalist 1Finalist 1 v Finalist 2Finalist 2 v Finalist 1 If scores are equal, an Armageddon round will be played. Standings after 14 rounds: Position Participant Points / 14 1. Vladimir Kramnik 10.5 2. Peter Svidler 9 3. Evgeny Tomashevsky* 8 4. Alexander Grischuk* 8 5. Sergey Karjakin 7.5 6. Ernesto Inarkiev 5.5 7. Ian Nepomniachtchi 5 8. Alexander Riazantsev 2.5 * Sonneborn-Berger was used Text: lichess.org