-- exclusively for Chess Gateway
by John Lee Shaw --
Shirov: Kamsky "should be replaced, by me"
As
is widely known, there is quite an uncertainty surrounding the World
Chess Championship at the moment. Anand-Kramnik will take place later
this year, in October-November, and at around the same time, Veselin
Topalov was scheduled to play Gata Kamsky for the right to challenge
the winner of the Anand-Kramnik match in 2009.
A bid was proposed from the Bulgarian Chess Federation to hold the
match in Bulgaria. However, for quite logical reasons it has to be
said, Gata Kamsky stated that he would prefer not to play in Bulgaria,
but in a neutral country. FIDE then extended their deadlines for bids
to accomodate attempts to achieve this. There were whispers from the
Kamsky camp of Lviv, Ukraine, quoted in many media outlets, and more
recently the bid was said to have arrived and the money was on its way.
A further extension was given upon the request of Gata Kamsky's
manager, of May 15th in order to receive the transfer of the fund. FIDE
stated that all parties were expected to sign for the match by May
27th, which has been and gone with no news one way or the other. And
FIDE's record has shown that the phrase 'no news is good news' does not
apply in their case.
With the latest deadline's having passed and the silence making it
quite clear that something is not right with the Lviv bid, Alexey
Shirov, the reserve for the match, has released the following:
With this short press release I would like to bring attention to the following facts:
1. In spite of having passed
all the possible deadlines, FIDE still has not announced the venue of
the match Topalov-Kamsky. That means that the match should normally
take place in Bulgaria because the Lvov offer seems not to have been
materialized.
2. Mr. Gata Kamsky has declared
that he does not wish to play in Bulgaria. According to the match
regulations he should be replaced by me in this case.
3. It is absolutely clear that
the silence and uncertainty should end and the firm decision about the
forthcoming match should be taken. Nobody can wait forever and this
concerns the reserve players as well.
Alexei Shirov
Tarragona, 29.05.2008
One must say, that with Silvio Danailov recently clarifying that
Topalov is ready to play anywhere apart from Russia (obviously), and
Shirov is obviously ready and willing to play in Bulgaria (which seems
to be the only credible offer now), the ball is well and truly in the
court of Gata Kamsky. The one remaining question is: how long will it
be allowed to linger in the air?
Event Website
Cuidad de Leon
The
21st Magistral "Ciudad de León" will be held in Leon, Spain, May
29th to June 1st. The main event will be a knock-out tournament between
Viswanathan Anand, Vassily Ivanchuk, Alexey Shirov, and Francisco
Vallejo-Pons. There will be two semi-finals, played on Friday and
Saturday. These will consist of 4 games each. The winners will play in
the Final on Sunday, which will also be made up of 4 games. Time
control for all games is 20 minutes plus 10 seconds per move. In the
event of a drawn final, there will be tie-break blitz games.
Semi-Final 1, Friday 30th May (draw to be announced)
Event Website
Leko vs Carlsen Rapid Match
For
the fourth time, Peter Leko will play a rapid chess match in Miskolc,
Hungary. His opponent this year will be world number 5, Magnus Carlsen,
who is no doubt nicely rested from his joint first place in the Grand
Prix earlier this month. The match will be played over 8 games, 2 games
each day. There will be a rest day at the half way stage. Should be
exciting!
After the draws in the first two games, Magnus Carlsen was the first to
strike, winning game 4. However, Peter Leko will be kicking himself, as
he had failed to convert a winning edge in game 3, and missed some
drawing chances in game 4. A funny story that you will probably have
seen on TWIC, is that in game 3 Leko played 97.b8=Q and used an upside
down rook as the queen, which apparently crashed the coverage. Carlsen
leads 2.5-1.5.
Friday 30th is a rest day, no play. Games 5 & 6 Saturday 31st May. Leko has white for the odd games.
Event Website
2008 Frank K. Berry US Championships
The
2008 Frank K. Berry US Championships were held in Tulsa, United
States, May 13-21. The event was a closed 9-round swiss, with 24 players competing
for the mens title and 10 for the women's title. Alex Shabalov and
Irina Krush were defending champions.
The men's title was taken by GM Yuri Shulman, who put in a strong
performance of 7/9. Just behind was Alexander Onischuk with 6.5/9, and
Sergey Kudrin was third with 6.0/9.
The women's title was taken by IM Anna Zatonskih who defeated defending
Champion, Irina Krush in a sudden death tie-break play off. Both women
had achieved 7.5/9 and then drawn a rapid play-off 2-2. There remained
a sudden death game, which Zatonskih won, Krush having to settle for
second place. Third was Katerina Rohonyan with 6/9.
Event Website
M-Tel Masters 2008: Ivanchuk Wins
The 2008 M-Tel Masters was held May 7th-18th, in Sofia,
Bulgaria. It saw the following line-up: Veselin Topalov, BGR,
2767; Levon Aronian, ARM, 2763; Teymour Radjabov, AZE, 2751; Vassily
Ivanchuk, UKR, 2740; Bu Xiangzhi, CHN, 2708; Ivan Cheparinov, BGR,
2695. It was a double round robin, with 90 minutes for 40 moves, 1
hour for the rest of the game thereafter. The 'Sofia' anti-draw rule
was in force.
The event has been won by Vassily Ivanchuk of the Ukraine,
with a very impressive 8/10. Ivanchuk only needed to draw his final
round game against Ivan Cheparinov in order to prevent himself being
caught by his nearest rival, Veselin Topalov. However, Ivanchuk went
one better and won the game to take the title by a comprehensive point
and a half. Topalov himself drew with Teymour Radjabov and finishes on
6.5/10. Levon Aronian also drew his game with Bu Xiangzhi. Cheparinov
0-1 Ivanchuk; Topalov ½-½ Radjabov; Aronian
½-½ Bu Xiangzhi.
Standing
s: 1. Ivanchuk -- 8.0; 2. Topalov -- 6.5; 3. Radjabov -- 5.5; 4. Cheparinov -- 4.0; 5. Bu Xiangzhi -- 3.0; 6. Aronian -- 3.0.
Tournament Website
Cez Chess Trophy 2008: Kramnik defeats Navara 5.5-2.5
The
Cez Chess Trophy was held in the Czech Republic May 14th-18th. It was
an 8-game rapid match between former World Champion Vladimir
Kramnik, and the Czech
Republic's #1 player, David Navara. The event was organised by the
Prague Chess Society, as part of the Prague Chess Festival.
Vladimir Kramnik won the match convincingly by 5.5 points to 2.5
points. David Navara notched up a full point by winning game eight, but
it was a little late. Still, there are not many people who take points
from Vladimir Kramnik, Navara can be very satisfied despite the score
line.
Event Website
President's Cup 2008: Evgeny Najer Wins
The
2008 Baku Chess Festival was held in Azerbaijan, May 9th-21st.
Part of the festival was the 2008 President's Cup, a 9-round
swiss, time control is g/90 +30s per move. Alexander Beliavsky, Antoaneta Stefanova, Nigel Short, Baadur
Jobava, and living legend Viktor Korchnoi competed. Top seeds were Vadim Milov
and Ivan Sokolov, each with 2690.
The tournament has been won by long-term leader Russia's Evgeny Najer
with a score of 7.5/9. Najer's draw with Georgian GM, Baadur Jobava in
the final round was enough for him to take sole first place. It was a
costly draw for Jobava, though. Although he finished a mere half point
behind Najer, Baadur was placed 8th on tie-break. All in all 8 players
in total finished on the same score, including Farid Abbasov and Gadir
Guseinov who took second and third respectively. A very good tournament
indeed, very fiercely fought, and congratulations are deserved for
organisers and players alike.
Top Final Standing
s:
1. Evgeney Najer -- 7.5; 2. Farid Abbasov -- 7.0; 3. Gadir Guseinov --
7.0; 4. Alexander Lastin -- 7.0; 5. Vadim Milov -- 7.0; 6. Alexey
Aleksandrov -- 7.0; 7. Tamaz Gelashvili -- 7.0; 8. Baadur Jobava --
7.0; 9. Nigel Short -- 7.0; 10. Marat Dzhumaev -- 6.5.
Event Website
Sigeman & Co. Chess Tournament: Hillarp-Persson Wins ...
The Sigeman & Co. Chess Tournament takes place in Malmo, Sweden,
April 22nd-30th. The event is a 9-round Swiss. Competing this year are:
GM Daniel Stellwagen (2621); GM Vasilios Kotronias (2611); GM Evgeny
Agrest (2567); GM Jan Timman (2565); GM Lars Bo Hansen (2563); GM
Kjetil Lie (2558); GM Lajos Portisch (2523); GM Tiger Hillarp-Persson
(2491); GM Ralf Akesson (2466); Axel Smith (2428).
The
event has been won by Sweden's Tiger Hillarp-Persson, with 7.5/9.
Daniel Stellwagen finished in second place, with 6.5/9, drawing with
Hillarp Persson in the final round -- a win would have given him a tie
for first. Third was Denmark's Lars Bo Hansen with 6/9.
Final Standing
s: Hillarp-Persson -- 7.5;
Stellwagen -- 7: Hansen -- 6; Timman, Akesson -- 5; Agrest -- 4.5; Lie, Kotronias -- 3; Smith -- 2.5; Portisch -- 2.
Tournament Website
Topalov Wins Dos Hermanas Tournament
The 14th Dos Hermanas Tournament took place 18-20 April, in Spain.
Veselin Topalov, Alexey Shirov, Judit Polgar, and Francisco Vallejo
competed. The event consisted of 4-game matches, with g/20 + 10/s time
control. In the semi-finals, Francisco Vallejo defeated Alexey Shirov
3-1, and Veselin Topalov also went through comfortably against Judit
Polgar. In the final, Topalov struck early by winning the first game,
and Vallejo could not strike back as the other games were drawn.
Topalov took the tournament 2.5-1.5.
Tournament Website
European Individual Chess Championships
The European Individual Chess Championships were held April 20th to
May 4th, in Poldiva, Bulgaria. The tournament (with both men and
women's events) was an 11-round swiss. Sergey Movsesian (winner of Corus
B this year) tops the men's event, with Pia Cramling top seed for the
women. 23 players from the Men's section and 13 players from the Women's section qualify for the next World Cup.
The
Men's event has been won by Dutch Grandmaster, Sergey Tiviakov, with
8.5/11. Going in to the final round, 8 players were tied on 7.5 points,
but there were quite early draws on the other top boards, which turned
all eyes to Tiviakov's game with Emil Sutovsky. Tiviakov, playing
white, brought out his c3-sicilian, and took the victory which awarded
him sole first place. Tie-breaks were needed for silver and bronze
medals, and the final was between Sergey Movsesian and Sergey Volkov.
It was won by Movsesian, who takes the silver, with Volkov getting
bronze.
Final Top
Standing
s (Men):
1. GM Sergey Tiviakov -- 8.5; 2. GM Sergey Volkov -- 8.0; 3. GM Pavel
Tregubov -- 8.0; 4. GM Sergey Movsesian -- 8.0; 5. GM Erwin l'Ami --
8.0; 6. GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave -- 8.0; 7. GM Boris Grachev -- 8.0;
8. GM Vladimir Baklan -- 8.0; 9. GM Yuri Kryvoruchko -- 8.0; 10. GM
Tomi Nyback -- 8.0.
Katerina Lahno had led the Women's section going in to the final round,
and thanks to a draw over Anna Ushenina, there she remained at the end
of it. Elsewhere, Antoaneta Stefanova defeated Eva Moser after having
had a bit of an off period, and Viktoria Cmilyte bested Pia Cramling.
Tie-breaks took place to decide silver and bronze medals. Viktoria
Cmilyte beat Anna Ushenina 2-1 in the final to take silver, Ushenina is
awarded the bronze medal.
Final Top
Standing
s (Women):
1. GM Katerina Lahno -- 8.5; 2. IM Anna Ushenina -- 8.0; 3. WGM Natalia
Zhukova -- 8.0; 4. IM Viktoria Cmilyte -- 8.0; 5. Lilit Mkrtchian --
8.0; 6. IM Almira Skripchenko -- 8.0; 7. IM Yelena Dembo -- 8.0; 8. GM
Pia Cramling -- 7.5; 9. WGM Natalia Pogonina -- 7.5; 10. IM Anna
Muzychuk -- 7.5.
Tournament Website
FIDE Grand Prix
The FIDE Grand Prix took place April 20th to May 6th, in Baku,
Azerbaijan. Players for the event were: Magnus Carlsen, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Teymour
Radjabov, Sergey Karjakin, Michael Adams, Gata Kamsky, Alexander
Grischuk. Etienne Bacrot, Ivan Cheparinov, Wang Yue, Ernesto Inarkiev,
Vugar Gashimov, David Navara.
The
event saw a 3-way-tie for first place between top seed, Magnus Carlsen,
Wang Yue of China, and home GM Vugar Gashimov. They finished on 8
points from the 13 rounds.
Final Standing
s:
Gashimov, Wang Yue, Carlsen -- 8.0; Mamedyarov, Grischuk -- 7.5; Adams,
Svidler -- 6.5; Radjabov, Kamsky, Karjakin -- 6.0; Cheparinov, Navara
-- 5.5; Bacrot, Inarkiev -- 5.0.
Tournament Website or here (may or may not work, coverage also from ChessPro, TWIC, and ChessVibes I also wish to draw your attention to Henrik Carlsen's blogs from Baku. They are generally very informative, and a great insight in to Magnus' tournament!)
Gausdal Classics 2008
The Gausdal Classics were held in Gausdal, Norway, 8-16 April. The main
event was a ten-player round-robin, with GM Vasilios Kotronias of
Greece as the top seed. The event has been won, however, by American GM
Gregory Kaidanov with 7/9. 2nd was India's Geetha Narayanan Gopal a
point behind with 6 points, and Kotronias came in third with 5.5.
Final Standing
s:
Kaidanov -- 7; Gopal -- 6; Kotronias -- 5.5; Sandipan,
Macieja, Ikonnikov -- 5; Lie -- 4.5; Krush -- 3.5; Hole -- 2.5;
Moscow -- 1.
Tournament Website
Dubai Open 2008
The Dubai Open took place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, April 5-15.
Celebrating its 10th anniversary, the event saw 131 players compete,
from 25 different countries. 29 grandmasters showed for the event, with
Gadir Guseinov top seed. The event was won by Wesley So of the
Philippines, with 7/9. Wesley tied with Merab Gagunashvili of Georgia,
China's Li Chao, and Ehsan Ghaem Maghami of Iran, but had a higher
average opponent rating, and so was awarded the victory.
The event was hugely contested, with a total of 23 players earning
between 6 and 7 points, top seed Guseinov, Ahmed Adly, and Parimarjan
Negi among them. My compliments on this factor, and also to the
organisers for the information available via their website throughout
the tournament.
Final Standing
s:
So, Gagunashvili, Ghaem Maghami, Chao -- 7; Abhijeet, Drozdoskiy,
Laxman, Neverov, Aruntinian, Ibrahimov, Guseinov, Guliev -- 6.5; Saleh,
Kuzubov, Kotanjian, Adly, Ibrayev, Sachdev, Wu, Zhou, Ashwin, Negi,
Guliev -- 6.
Tournament Website
II Ruy Lopez Masters: Adams Wins
The second Ruy Lopez Chess Festival took place April 4th-13th. It was
held in Merida, Spain. Michael Adams won the main event, an all play
all between 8 players, which also saw Gabriel Sargissian and Fabiano
Caruana among its participants. Adams' final round draw against
Sargissian was enough to secure the win by a half point ove Zhang
Pengxiang.
Final Standings: Adams -- 5.5; Zhang Pengxiang -- 5.0;
Sargissian, Koneru -- 4.5; Caruana -- 2.5; Granda Zuniga, Hou Yifan,
Perez Candelario -- 2.
Tournament Website
Kramnik DGT Simul vs Sebag and Werle
On April 2nd, former World Chess Champion, Vladimir Kramnik, played a
clock simul against IM Marie Sebag and GM Jan Werle. The event took
place in Enschede, Holland, the location of the new HQ of DGT Projects,
and was to exhibit their new FOIDOS broadcasting software. FOIDOS not
only broadcasts games, but also live images of the players, as well as
commentary.
Kramnik won both games (not surprising really) a 49-mover against
Sebag, and 38 against Werle. Arbiter was Guert Gijssen, GM Yasser
Seirawan commentated.
More from the DGT Website
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