Chess Clock Contract Bidding Procedure finalized
The bidding procedure has been submitted in order to prevent the monopolization of certain areas and industries in a market economy, to encourage innovation, and to develop competition. The right for certain models of chess clocks to be designated as a “Chess Clock Recommended by FIDE for National Federations” has been granted to: – DGT 2010 model and DGT 3000 model (both manufactured by Digital Game Technology); – Chess Evolution Classic model (manufactured by Chess Evolution Kft.); – Leap KK 9908 model (manufactured by Shenzhen Huibo Industrial and Trading Co., Ltd). The right for certain models of chess clocks to be designated as an “Official FIDE Chess Clock” has been granted to DGT 2010 model and DGT 3000 model (both manufactured by Digital Game Technology); A right for certain models of chess clocks to be designated as a “FIDE Championship Clock” hasn’t been granted to any of the bidders. FIDE intends to consult with manufacturers to investigate the compatibility of chess clocks with electronic boards.
David Paravyan wins Gibraltar Masters 2020
One of the best open competitions in the world, the Gibraltar International Chess Festival took place in the Caleta Hotel January 22-30. The festival included several tournaments in three sections: Masters, Challengers and Amateurs. More than 500 players from all around the world participated in the event this year. The centerpiece of the festival, the Masters tournament, brought together 250 players including 7 top GMs rated 2700+. The event in Gibraltar is known for a very high level of competition and close fight to the very end and this year was no exception – the winner was determined in a rapid playoff. The twelfth World Champion Anatoly Karpov was an honorary guest of the Gibraltar International Chess Festival. The legendary player gave a simul to local fans and later reflected on his career in an extensive interview taken by Tania Sachdev. FIDE President Arkady Dvokovich visited the event for the first time in his life to watch the games, take part in the closing ceremony and socialize with organizers and participants in an informal setting. “I really love chess. Without this love, I would never go for the elections and this position. I like spending time with chess players and chess family – organizers, arbiters,” he told in an interview in which he shared his views on the future of the game. The Masters event, a 10-round Swiss tournament, saw the rise of young and very young players with four of them finishing in the top 10. Before the last round, five players were tied for the first position with 7 points each, followed by a huge group of participants on 6.5. In Round 10, none of the leaders managed to win, whereas three of their pursuers, namely Maxime Vashie-Lagrave, Daniil Yuffa, and David Navara scored very important victories over Parham Maghsoodloo, Andiban B. and Denis Kadric respectively. As it is often the case in Gibraltar, the Masters tournament ended in a seven-way tie on 7.5 and the top four with the highest performance rating went into a rapid playoff for the title and the first prize (£30,000). In the semifinals, Andrey Esipenko from Russia faced his compatriot David Paravyan whereas Daniil Yuffa took on the Grand Swiss’ triumphant Wang Hao. The Chinese GM dispatched his Russian opponent in rapid games 2-0 but Esipenko and Paravyan went all the way to the Armageddon-blitz in which David prevailed with White and advanced into the final. In the first game of the final, Wang Hao got a certain edge in Ruy Lopez with white pieces but at the key point, he apparently underestimated Paravyan’s counterplay on the queenside. The Chinese GM sacrificed a knight to complicate matters but his Russian vis-à-vis cold-bloodedly fended off all the threats and converted his extra material in the ensuing endgame. In the second encounter, David found himself in an inferior position with White but managed to hold it with resourceful defense and became the winner of the 2020 Gibraltar Masters. Tan Zhongyi from China turned in a very strong performance (2600) and deservedly took the women’s top prize (£20,000) scoring 7 points in 10 games. Official site: https://www.gibchess.com/Photo: John Saunders and Niki Riga Final standings: 1. David Paravyan (RUS) – 7½ 2. Wang Hao (CHN) – 7½3. Andrey Esipenko (RUS) – 7½4. Daniil Yuffa (RUS) – 7½5. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (FRA) – 7½6. David Navara (CZE) – 7½7. Mustafa Yilmaz (TUR) – 7½8. Parham Maghsoodloo (IRI) – 79. Jan Werle (NED) – 710. Veselin Topalov (BUL) – 7
Women’s Grand Prix Lausanne: Pairings announced
Photo: https://www.lausanne-tourisme.ch/en/ The full pairings for every round of the upcoming Women’s Grand Prix Lausanne has been announced. The third leg of Women’s Grand Prix will take place in the capital city of the canton of Vaud, Switzerland, March 1-14, 2020. Twelve players will compete in a round-robin tournament., The drawing and round by round pairings have been made by FIDE’s Chief Operating Officer, Willy Iclicki and Ms. Sava Stoisavljevic, Assistant to the FIDE COO in FIDE office in Lausanne. The participants received the following starting numbers: 1. Aleksandra Goryachkina (Russia), 2. Alexandra Kosteniuk (Russia), 3. Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ) (replaced Zhao Xue), 4. Antoaneta Stefanova (Bulgaria), 5. Harika Dronavalli (India), 6. Anna Muzychuk (Ukraine), 7. Mariya Muzychuk (Ukraine), 8. Pia Cramling (Sweden), 9. Marie Sebag (France), 10. Ju Wenjun(China), 11. Nana Dzagnidze (Georgia), 12. Alina Kashlinskaya (Russia). FULL PAIRINGS: Round 1 Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS) – Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS)Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS) – Nana Dzagnidze (GEO)Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ) – Ju Wenjun (CHN)Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG) – Marie Sebag (FRA)Harika Dronavalli (IND) – Pia Cramling (SWE)Anna Muzychuk (UKR) – Mariya Muzychuk (UKR) Round 2 Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS) – Mariya Muzychuk (UKR)Pia Cramling (SWE) – Anna Muzychuk (UKR)Marie Sebag (FRA) – Harika Dronavalli (IND)Ju Wenjun (CHN) – Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG)Nana Dzagnidze (GEO) – Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ)Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS) – Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS) Round 3 Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS) – Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS)Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ) – Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS)Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG) – Nana Dzagnidze (GEO)Harika Dronavalli (IND) – Ju Wenjun (CHN)Anna Muzychuk (UKR) – Marie Sebag (FRA)Mariya Muzychuk (UKR) – Pia Cramling (SWE) Round 4 Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS) – Pia Cramling (SWE)Marie Sebag (FRA) – Mariya Muzychuk (UKR)Ju Wenjun (CHN) – Anna Muzychuk (UKR)Nana Dzagnidze (GEO) – Harika Dronavalli (IND)Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS) – Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG)Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS) – Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ) Round 5 Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ) – Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS)Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG) – Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS)Harika Dronavalli (IND) – Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS)Anna Muzychuk (UKR) – Nana Dzagnidze (GEO)Mariya Muzychuk (UKR) – Ju Wenjun (CHN)Pia Cramling (SWE) – Marie Sebag (FRA) Round 6 Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS) – Marie Sebag (FRA)Ju Wenjun (CHN) – Pia Cramling (SWE)Nana Dzagnidze (GEO) – Mariya Muzychuk (UKR)Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS) – Anna Muzychuk (UKR)Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS) – Harika Dronavalli (IND)Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ) – Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG) Round 7 Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG) – Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS)Harika Dronavalli (IND) – Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ)Anna Muzychuk (UKR) – Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS)Mariya Muzychuk (UKR) – Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS)Pia Cramling (SWE) – Nana Dzagnidze (GEO)Marie Sebag (FRA) – Ju Wenjun (CHN) Round 8 Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS) – Ju Wenjun (CHN)Nana Dzagnidze (GEO) – Marie Sebag (FRA)Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS) – Pia Cramling (SWE)Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS) – Mariya Muzychuk (UKR)Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ) – Anna Muzychuk (UKR)Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG) – Harika Dronavalli (IND) Round 9 Harika Dronavalli (IND) – Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS)Anna Muzychuk (UKR) – Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG)Mariya Muzychuk (UKR) – Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ)Pia Cramling (SWE) – Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS)Marie Sebag (FRA) – Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS)Ju Wenjun (CHN) – Nana Dzagnidze (GEO) Round 10 Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS) – Nana Dzagnidze (GEO)Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS) – Ju Wenjun (CHN)Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS) – Marie Sebag (FRA)Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ) – Pia Cramling (SWE)Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG) – Mariya Muzychuk (UKR)Harika Dronavalli (IND) – Anna Muzychuk (UKR) Round 11 Anna Muzychuk (UKR) – Alina Kashlinskaya (RUS)Mariya Muzychuk (UKR) – Harika Dronavalli (IND)Pia Cramling (SWE) – Antoaneta Stefanova(BLG)Marie Sebag (FRA) – Zhansaya Abdumalik (KAZ)Ju Wenjun (CHN) – Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS)Nana Dzagnidze (GEO) – Aleksandra Goryachkina (RUS) Sixteen (16) players compete in four WGP tournaments. Each of the sixteen players participates in three out of four WGP tournaments. In each WGP event, every player scores WGP points according to her position in the final standings; the winner of WGP Series is a player who scores the greatest number of cumulative points earned in all three WGP tournaments she participated. Two players who score the most number of cumulative points in WGP Series qualify to the FIDE Women Candidates Tournament to be held in the first half of 2021. The current Women’s Grand Prix leader Humpy Konery opted to skip the third leg, but all her closest pursuers Aleksandra Goryachkina, Kateryna Lagno, and Alexandra Kosteniuk will come to Lausanne. The reigning World Champion Ju Wenjun, who participated in just one leg will do her best to close the gap. Overall standings after two legs in Skolkovo and Monte Carlo: 1. Humpy Koneru (293 points; 2 events)2. Aleksandra Goryachkina (253 points; 2 events)3. Kateryna Lagno (180 points; 2 events)4. Alexandra Kosteniuk (178 points; 2 events) 5-6. Ju Wenjun (120 points; 1 event)5-6. Harika Dronavalli (120 points; 2 events)7. Elisabeth Paehtz (95 points; 2 events)8. Valentina Gunina (85 points; 2 events)9. Anna Muzychuk (80 points; 1 event)10. Pia Cramling (70 points; 2 events)11. Mariya Muzychuk (60 points; 1 event)12. Alina Kashlinskaya (45 points; 1 event)13-14. Nana Dzagnidze (35 points; 1 event)13-14. Zhao Xue (35 points; 1 event)15-16. Antoaneta Stefanova (25 points; 1 event)15-16. Marie Sebag (25 points; 1 event) GP Lausanne Chief Arbiter’s Information (pdf) CHIEF ARBITER: IA Sava Stoisavljevic (SRB)DEPUTY CHIEF ARBITER: IA Olivier Jeitz (LUX):TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR: Maxim Korshunov (RUS)TOURNAMENT VENUE: The tournament venue is the Mövenpick Hotel, Avenue de Rhodanie 4, 1007 Lausanne.FORMAT & SYSTEM: The 12 players play a round-robin tournament (11 rounds). If a player withdraws after completing 50% or more of the games, the rest of her games are lost by default. In case a player completes less than 50%, all her results are annulled.No postponement of any game is allowed. TIME CONTROL: The time control for each game is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 1.The games are played using the electronic clocks and boards approved by FIDE. DEFAULT TIME: Default time is 15 minutes after the start of each round. In case a player arrives at the chessboard with a delay of more than 15 minutes, the player loses the game. LIVE TRANSMISSION: All games in both sections are transmitted live on the Internet. DRAW BY MUTUAL AGREEMENT : The players cannot draw a game by agreement before black’s 30th move. A claim for a draw before black’s 30th move is permitted only through the Chief Arbiter (or his Deputy) in case of threefold repetition. TIE-BREAKS: If the top two (2) or
Resolution on the rating of Mr. Kobylianskyi and Mr. Shkuro
January 30th, 2020 RESOLUTION WHEREAS There are suspicion and concerns regarding the achievements of Mr. Ihor Kobylianskyi (FIDE ID 14106329) and Mr. Iuri Shkuro (FIDE ID 14108836) at recent rapid and blitz chess tournaments and the said suspicion and concerns have been reported to the FIDE Presidential Board. AND WHEREAS pursuant to Art. 0.5 of the FIDE Rating Regulations / FIDE Rapid and Blitz Rating Regulations «FIDE reserves the right not to rate a specific tournament». AND WHEREAS in discharge of its obligations under the relevant laws the FIDE Presidential Board wishes to protect the integrity of the sport of Chess, FIDE’s rating lists and the reputations of the players, The FIDE Presidential Board HEREBY RESOLVES as follows: 1. To authorize FIDE Legal Advisor Mr. Aleksandr Martynov and Qualification Commission (QC) Secretary Alex Holowczak to investigate the achievements of Mr. Ihor Kobylianskyi (FIDE ID 14106329) at rapid and blitz chess tournaments organized after May 2018 and Mr. Iuri Shkuro (FIDE ID 14108836) at blitz chess tournaments organized after November 2014 in order to confirm or disprove compliance by the players FIDE’s laws or regulations, FIDE’s general principles, including fair play and sportsmanship; 2. To request the said FIDE Legal Advisor to provide his recommendations on application of Art. 0.5 of the FIDE Rating Regulations / FIDE Rapid and Blitz Rating Regulations to the tournaments referred to in the FIDE laws or regulations mentioned in paragraph 1 of this resolution; 3. To suspend the rapid and blitz ratings of the above-mentioned players until the end of the said investigation; 4. To require the Ukranian Chess Federation (UCF) to seek advance written permission from the FIDE QC Chairman for the rating of any rapid or blitz tournament in which the said Mr. Kobylianskyi or Mr. Shkuro is due to play; 5. To bestow the right upon the FIDE QC Chairman to withdraw from rating the games of the said Mr. Kobylianskyi or Mr. Shkuro from a rating file if thought appropriate, whether or not previous permission had been sought by UCF; and 6. To support the FIDE QC in its continuing effort to improve the FIDE Rating Regulations and FIDE Rapid and Blitz Rating Regulations to protect, and promote the integrity of the rating process and lists and prevent accusations from interested parties of poor sportsmanship and questionable ethical practices when tournaments are registered or submitted for rating by any individual or federation.
90th FIDE Congress: Final List of Delegates
FIDE is publishing the final list of the delegates for 90th FIDE Congress. FINAL LIST OF DELEGATES (pdf)
Gibraltar Masters 2020: Esipenko leads halfway through
One of the best open tournaments in the world, Gibraltar International Chess Festival is underway in the British Overseas Territory. The festival includes several tournaments in three sections, running January 22-30: Masters, Challengers and Amateurs. More than 500 players are taking part this year. In the Masters tournament, Andrey Esipenko (Russia, #6 in the juniors rating list) emerged as the sole leader with an excellent score 5½ out of 6 points after beating Ivan Cheparinov (Bulgaria) with black pieces on the first board in Round 6. Mikhail Antipov (Russia), Wang Hao (China), Parham Maghsoodloo (Iran, #3 in the juniors rating list), David Paravyan (Russia), Mikhail Kobalia (Russia), Indian wunderkind Praggnanandhaa R (who knocked over Veselin Topalov in Round 6) and Alan Pichot (Argentina) are trailing by a half-point. A large group of players, that includes Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France), Michael Adams (England), Krishnan Sasikiran and Kirill Alekseenko (Russia) among others is on 4½. GM Bela Khotenashvili (Georgia) who also belongs to this large group mentioned above is leading the women’s field. With 4 out of 6 points Nataliya Buksa (Ukraine), Zhansaya Abdumalik (Kazakhstan), Anna Muzychuk (Ukraine) and Natalija Pogonina (Russia) are also in the contest for the top women’s prize (£20,000). With four rounds to go, the event is still wide open. As it is often the case in Gibraltar, most likely the winner will be determined in the last round. Official site: https://www.gibchess.com/Photo: John Saunders and Niki Riga Top 10 after 6 rounds: 1. Andrey Esipenko – 5½ 2. Mikhail Antipov – 5 3. Wang Hao – 54. Parham Maghsoodloo – 55. David Paravyan – 56. Mikhail Kobalia – 57. Praggnanandhaa R – 58. Alan Pichot – 59. Jose Carlos Ibarra Jerez – 4½10. Ivan Cheparinov – 4½
Marking the centennial of Lim Kok Ann’s birth
(Photo: Singapore Chess: A History 1945-1990) On January 27, 2020, Lim Kok Ann, a chess player from Singapore, the General Secretary of FIDE from 1982 untill 1988 would have celebrated his 100 anniversary. Lim Kok Ann is called one of the “Fathers of Asian chess” and rightly so. For more than 50 years Lim Kok Ann relentlessly promoted chess in his native Singapore and the entire Asian continent. Having started with organizing the first chess championship in the history of Singapore back in 1949, he was gradually fulfilling his dream which he formulated as “a chessboard in every Singapore house”. When more than forty years later Singapore team debuted at Chess Olympiad, it had three IMs in its line-up. Lim Kok Ann won the first Singapore championship and then took the title two more times in 1960 and 1968. (Photo: https://qcdchess.com) Lim Kok Ann‘s achievements did not go unnoticed in the chess community – as a result, Florencio Compamanes appointed him the General Secretary of FIDE in 1982. Lim Kok Ann served in this position for six years, till 1988. None other than Lim Kok Ann created and published FIDE Handbook (you can find the current version on our site), which became his most important work. One of the areas the professor focused on was a well-known fifty-move rule. Despite his advanced age and status, Lim Kok Ann was no alien to spontaneous decisions sometimes – having made his mind to move to Switzerland to work for FIDE he simply asked his wife to pack their bags. Not many people in the world of chess know about another side of Lim Kok Ann’s life. He was awarded the title of professor for his achievements in medicine. Back in 1957, a talented scientist, he revealed and isolated the virus which causes Asian flu. He has worked beside future Nobel prize winners in the research laboratories all around the world, and later on, became the Dean of the Medical School of the University of Singapore. There is one medical achievement Lim Kok Ann was particularly proud of: when working at the Houston headquarters of the World Health Organization in 1959 he devised and implemented a new diagnostic procedure that simplified the identification of enteroviruses – viruses which cause enteritis. (Photo: http://www.chesshistory.com) In later life, Lim Kok Ann returned to Methodist faith, from which he distanced at some point, but continued to officiate at major chess events as Chief Arbiter. On March 8, 2003, Lim Kok Ann died of a heart attack; ironically, shortly after the infamous SARS epidemic broke out, one of the deceases the professor was fighting against his entire life. When asked what chess had taught him in an interview in 1995, the professor said, “People compare chess with life. You prepare your forces, make split-second decisions, take risks and learn from defeat. All these are valuable lessons in life”.
International Arbiter Training Seminar held in Moscow
The International Arbiter Training Seminar, the fifth event in the FIDE & CFR Pilot Project for Training and Certification of the International Arbiters for the 2020 World Chess Olympiad, took place at the Russian State Social University in Moscow on January 24-27, 2020. Held in Russian and English, this IA Training Seminar was a flagship event in the business program of the XVI Moscow Open International RSSU Chess Cup. The number and geography of participants grow with every subsequent Training Seminar. The Moscow event featured 35 International Arbiters representing five national federations: Russia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine. Despite different origins, citizenships, and ages, the attendees shared a common language and were brought up in the cherished traditions of the renowned Soviet school of chess arbitering that was established by such luminaries as Lev Abramov, Vladimir Dvorkovich, and Yuri Averbakh. This shared background allowed them to work out common interpretations of the finer points in the Laws of Chess and to agree on the best processes and practices to be used in the upcoming competitions. The Pilot Project’s objective is to train and to certify a cadre of IAs, especially female arbiters, who are on top of all recent changes in the Laws of Chess and the FIDE Competition Rules, plus are able to communicate in English efficiently and to be integrated into multinational arbiter teams at the top-level FIDE events, culminating in the Chess Olympiads 2020 and 2022. The specific task is to build an expanded list of arbiters who will serve in various capacities at the 44th World Chess Olympiad in Moscow and the 1st World Chess Paralympiad in Khanty-Mansiysk. The unique innovative approach by the Chess Federation of Russia offered the leading International Arbiters of the partner countries both an intensive refreshment course on the most difficult areas of high-level arbitering and a chance to practice and to apply new skills during the 2020 Moscow Open, the largest chess festival in this country, where many of the workshop attendees are serving in senior roles. The Principal Lecturer, IA/IO/FL Alexander Tkachev (Russia), the CFR Technical Director, generalized the lessons learned from previous Pilot Project events in Moscow, Tashkent, Baku, and Sochi, as well as shared first-hand experience of the challenging situations that occurred during the recently completed World Rapid & Blitz Championships in Moscow and the World Women’s Championship Match in Vladivostok. In his responses to multiple questions from the audience, Mr. Tkachev described in detail the criteria that arbiters shall meet in order to be nominated for the World Chess Olympiad in Moscow and the 1st Chess Paralympiad in Khanty-Mansiysk. The Guest Lecturer, IA/IO Vadim Tsypin (Canada) presented a refresher on the FIDE Competition (Tournament) Rules for team competitions and led a group discussion that focused on the officials’ interactions with team captains. The workshop attendees used this topic as a springboard to share their opinions on a wide range of chess life issues. Mr. Tsypin directed participants through problem-solving sessions that had them practice using English in real-life chess game situations that sharpened the attendees’ analysis and communication skills. IA/IO Vladimir Makhnev shared his experience of leading an anti-cheating team during the 2019 WRBC. A lively discussion on the priority of the host nation’s laws followed. For the second time in the pilot project, an examination test featured an equal number of questions in Russian and English, including several open-ended questions. A post mortem discussion allowed participants to see their marked tests, to review difficult questions with the Lecturers, and to provide feedback on the Workshop. Several IAs asked to extend such events to at least one more working day and to expand them faster to other countries with experienced Russian-speaking arbiters who would be an asset to the 2020 Olympiad. Photo galleryPhoto: Galina Popova
Tata Steel Masters 2020: Rich Man, Poor Man
Fabiano Caruana finished Masters event in Wijk aan Zee in style winning his last game against Vladislav Artemiev in the longest and the most interesting encounter of the round. All the other games were drawn. FIDE.com summarizes the results of the first super tournament of 2020. Fabiano Caruana guaranteed himself a tournament win after Round 12, but he still wasn’t in a hurry to get a bowl of traditional pea soup. He easily equalized after highly unorthodox 1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 Nd7!? and then secured a clear advantage after Artemiev ran in circles for a while in the middlegame. All games were over long ago, but Caruana kept looking for a win. The Russian GM found an interesting opportunity to escape by sacrificing his knight to activate the queen and deliver a perpetual. Unfortunately for him, he chose the wrong “checking route” – 49.Qd7+ would have saved the game as after 49…Rf7 50.Qd4+ Kf8 there is a key check from d8. After 49.Qe7+ Artemiev was doomed as Caruana’s king ran away and found a safe haven in White’s camp. 4 out of 6 other games were not exciting at all as in So – Carlsen, Duda – Anand, Firouzja – Dubov, and Kovalev – Vitiugov duels both participants had nothing against a peaceful outcome. On the contrary, Anish Giri badly wanted to beat Jorden van Foreest and to surpass him in the tournament standings – he had a clear advantage at some moment after van Foreest didn’t dare take a pawn on b4, but even White’s extra pawn in the rook endgame wasn’t enough for a win. Yu Yangyi had a chance to shut the tournament door with a bang as he was up an exchange against Jeffery Xiong, but suddenly the Chinese GM just offered a draw in a position where he could have pushed for a win for a long stretch of time. Tata Steel Masters 2020 will be remembered for Fabiano Caruana’s outstanding performance. He finished with a remarkable score of 10 out of 13 (7 wins with no losses) two points ahead of Magnus Carlsen. It’s his best tournament performance since Sinquefield Cup 2014 when he won 7 games in a row at the start. Here, in Wijk aan Zee he won the last 4 games. Twice, against van Foreest and against Anand he was on the brink of defeat but managed to escape both times – in the game with the Dutchman by simply offering a draw. Caruana’s live rating is up to 2842 after the event, only 20 points behind Magnus Carlsen. Magnus Carlsen was out of form at the beginning of the tournament but still finished in clear second place with a respectable 8/13 keeping his unbeaten streak alive. His most important achievement is undoubtedly a victory over Firouzja with Black – a prelude for their long upcoming battle. Wesley So finished third with 7.5 points and also undefeated. He started the event with two victories and was even leading for a short moment, but his energy level was seemingly not high enough as he went on nine game drawing streak. Jorden van Foreest turned in by far the best tournament in his life. He managed not only to finish with +1 score (three wins and two losses) but played some fighting, spirited chess throughout the event and showed absolutely no fear in mixing up with the “big boys”. The lowest-rated participant tied for the 4th place with Daniil Dubov who was actually 3rd lowest-rated player in the tournament. It’s also a pretty good result for Dubov who is almost back into “2700 class” with live rating of 2699. Meanwhile, Jorden will increase his rating by 23 points and enter the top 100 (Open) for the first time in his life. Alireza Firouzja once again became the main magnet to spectators’ attention in Wijk aan Zee. The 16-year-old prodigy from Iran, now living in France and playing under FIDE flag, was sensationally leading the tournament until Round 9. He played some amazing games (his wins against Artemiev and Xiong were especially good) and went for the big battles against the world’s best – he suffered three losses in a row in these clashes, but definitely can be really proud of how he handled himself in his first classical chess super tournament. 50-year-old Vishwanathan Anand also played a nice tournament. His two wins – against the two youngest opponents, Firouzja and Xiong – were almost perfect, and his two losses were dramatic: he could have forced a draw after very deep combo versus So and was clearly winning against future tournament winner Caruana. All other players were not at their best in Wijk aan Zee, but still contributed into a tournament that was a real joy for all the chess fans around the globe. FIDE.com team and the whole chess community are already waiting for Tata Steel 2021. One participant is already known – David Anton Guijarro won the Challengers event and according to a long-standing tradition will play Masters next year. Official site: https://www.tatasteelchess.com/Photo: Alina l’Ami Tata Steel Masters 2020 Final Standings: 1. Caruana – 10;2. Carlsen – 8;3. So – 7½;4-5. Van Foreest, Dubov – 7;6-9. Firouzja, Duda, Giri, Anand – 6½;10-11. Artemiev, Xiong – 6;12. Vitiugov – 5;13. Yu Yangyi – 4½;14. Kovalev – 4
Tata Steel Masters 2020: Caruana wins it all
Fabiano Caruana played one of the best tournaments of his outstanding career and by beating Jan-Krzystof Duda in Round 12 he secured first place and is 1.5 (!) ahead of Magnus Carlsen going into the last round. Duda had some opening problems at the beginning of the event, but since that he has been quite comfortable in most of his games and actually was one of the 4 players (together with Caruana, Carlsen and So) without a single loss. It all changed after Round 12. Once again, he got into big trouble right after the opening, and Caruana actually considered his position winning until Duda came up with 18…Rb8 idea. After that Fabiano didn’t see a forced win (engines suggest 20.Bd2! and it’s interesting why Caruana thought it was not enough) and accepted just a better position. He didn’t know if his advantage was enough for a win until Duda moved his knight to f8 on move 29. It was an easy sail for the tournament winner after that as he quickly got an extra pawn and completely dominating position. With this win, Caruana secured a clear tournament victory, as his only real competitor Magnus Carlsen couldn’t break Vladislav Artemiev‘s defense. World Champion decided against testing Artemiev’s Caro-Cann and chose a calmer line against Gruenfeld (11.d5 instead of 11.Be2 is the most principled continuation). The 21-year-old Russian chose a way to defense introduced by his elder compatriot Peter Svidler which is always a good path in Gruenfeld and held his own in the endgame. Carlsen won a pawn, but the rook ending was completely drawn. Daniil Dubov somewhat easily crushed Yu Yangiy and moved into the top 5. The Chinese GM has a disastrous tournament and seems completely out of his game. He went for a very passive set-up only playing for a draw and then blundered with 16…Ra7 as according to Dubov he missed 18.Qb4 completely. White penetrated into Black’s camp immediately and it looks like 21.Qb8! was winning on the spot. Dubov missed it and went for a more positional approach, but Black’s position was so ugly that it collapsed soon anyway. The young Russian was happy to have this win as historically he has had very poor results against players from China. Jorden van Foreest had his fair share of crazy games in this event and is probably very happy his position in the tournament standings. That must be the reason why he went for a classical line in the Scotch against Weslley So – White was not taking any risks, but to win against super-solid So playing this way is just impossible. Kovalev surprised Anand with a very rare 3…Nd4 in Ruy Lopez and Anand refused a big battle – a draw was agreed on move 20. Nikita Vitiugov was clearly better against Alireza Firouzja after the opening, but he is probably just waiting for this tournament to be over as on several occasions he chose to simplify the position instead of playing for a full point. Anish Giri and Jeffery Xiong played an exciting match in the third round of the World Cup 2019 that finally went Xiong’s way and today Giri was looking for revenge. He was playing Black but soon got a slightly better position. He probably missed a small chance to get a real edge around move 23, and when he won a pawn after the first time control the queen endgame was very drawish as White was checking black king non-stop. Nevertheless, Giri tortured his opponent for quite a while trying everything but with no real progress. Finally, he settled for a draw on move 107 but definitely with a heavy heart. In the last round, Caruana will play a “no-pressure” game versus Artemiev, and Carlsen has Black against So, and it is hard to expect a big fight in those games. While Masters’ winner is already known, there was a sudden twist in the Challengers event. David Anton who was crushing the field played a very weird game against the tournament outsider Max Warmerdam and lost with White after making several terrible mistakes. Now he is only half a point ahead of the group of his chasers that includes 15-year-old Nodirbek Abdusattorov. The winner of the Challengers event will play Masters next year. Official site: https://www.tatasteelchess.com/Photo: Alina l’Ami Tata Steel Masters 2020 Standings after Round 12: 1. Caruana – 9;2. Carlsen – 7½;3. So – 7;4-5. Van Foreest, Dubov – 6½;6-10. Firouzja, Duda, Giri, Artemiev, Anand – 6;11. Xiong – 5½;12. Vitiugov – 4½;13. Yu Yangyi – 4;14. Kovalev – 3½