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USA's Top Daily Chess News Blog, Informative, Fun, and Positive

hosted by Chess Queen™ & 12th Women's World Chess Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk

 

Saturday, April 30, 2011

Nakamura-Carlsen secret blitz chess match in the middle of the night

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011

Hello everybody,

After the closing ceremony of the World Blitz Championship, in Moscow, Magnus Carlsen played a couple of tandem rapid games alongside Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov. They faced Vladimir Kramnik and Arkady Dvorkovich. Carlsen (and Kramnik) had already played several hours of 3-minute (+2 second increment) blitz during the final ten rounds - Day 3 - of the Blitz Championship.

After that Nakamura and Carlsen played 40 blitz games straight - way into the night/morning.The complete background to the 'event' is here - the Chess Life Online, December 8, 2010.
The following video was taken at around 4:00 AM by Macaulay Peterson, the early morning of November 19th. It was Game 38, of 40. Enjoy.





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Campomanes Memorial Chess Tournament in Yangon, Myanmnar from July 5-12

Chess blog for latest chess news and trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011

Hello everyone,

This is like quaint. When did you last hear of an open chess tournament in Burma - ah! Myanmar now?



The Myanmar Chess Federation shall organise the Campomanes Memorial (Yangon International Open) 5-12 July 2011 in Yangon with $10,000 in cash prizes.

The tournament will be Swiss System; FIDE-rated and titled; Rate of play will be 90 minutes for the whole game with 30 seconds increment for every move starting from the first move.

Prize Fund (US$ 10,000)
Open: 1st US$ 3,000; 2nd US$ 1,600; 3rd US$ 1,200; 4th US$ 1,000; 5th US$ 700; 6th US$ 500; 7th & 8th US$ 300 each; 9th & 10th US$ 200 each. 

Best Myanmar Players: 1st US$ 500; 2nd US$ 300; 3rd US$ 200.
Best Women Players and Best Junior Players (U-18, U-14, U-10) prizes are also awarded.

Myanmar Chess Federation Members - US$ 60; Others - US$ 120
Entry fee is non-refundable. Entry Fees are waived for GMs, WGMs, IMs and WIMs. There will be a discount of 25% of entry fees for those who register on or before 31st May, 2011.

The venue is the Central Hotel, Bogyoke Aung San Road, Yangon.
The hotel is located in the center of Yangon. There are many places of interest such as the landmark of Myanmar Shwedagon Pagoda, Sule Pagoda, Bogyoke Aung San Market, Yangon Port, National Museum within the walking distance. More information can be found at www.myanmar.com.
Myanmar Chess Federation
Aung San Stadium, Yangon, MYANMAR.
or by Fax to: (95) 1546001 or 1546009
or by E-mail to: mgmglwin25@gmail.com, chess1991@gmail.com


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Anand, Judit rule top of Fide chess ratings lists for May 2011

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011


Hi everybody,


Judit Polgar 2699
It's great that Chess Queen Alexandra Kosteniuk has gained 19 ELO points in the Fide rating list for May 1, 2011 taking her up to the 10th spot among women at 2522. The highest gain of ELO points has been made by the just-crowned US Women's Chess Champion Anna Zatonskih. Judit Polgar continues to be at the first spot followed by Koneru Humpy and Hou Yifan. 


Among the men, since there were no super tournaments held in March-April, Viswanathan Anand remains at No. 1 with Magnus Carlsen right behind at No. 2.  



Here are the top-30 overall: (No we don't have a woman there yet though Judit Polgar is just shy of the 2700 mark at 2699! We wish her quick 'recovery' of that one point.)




Rank
Name
Title
Country
Rating
Games
BYr
 1
 Anand, Viswanathan
 g
 IND
 2817
 0
1969
 2
 Carlsen, Magnus
 g
 NOR
 2815
 0
1990
 3
 Aronian, Levon
 g
 ARM
 2808
 0
1982
 4
 Kramnik, Vladimir
 g
 RUS
 2785
 0
1975
 5
 Ivanchuk, Vassily
 g
 UKR
 2776
 9
1969
 6
 Karjakin, Sergey
 g
 RUS
 2776
 0
1990
 7
 Topalov, Veselin
 g
 BUL
 2775
 0
1975
 8
 Nakamura, Hikaru
 g
 USA
 2774
 0
1987
 9
 Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar
 g
 AZE
 2772
 0
1985
 10
 Gashimov, Vugar
 g
 AZE
 2760
 6
1986
 11
 Ponomariov, Ruslan
 g
 UKR
 2754
 10
1983
 12
 Grischuk, Alexander
 g
 RUS
 2747
 0
1983
 13
 Radjabov, Teimour
 g
 AZE
 2744
 0
1987
 14
 Svidler, Peter
 g
 RUS
 2739
 28
1976
 15
 Vitiugov, Nikita
 g
 RUS
 2733
 31
1987
 16
 Gelfand, Boris
 g
 ISR
 2733
 4
1968
 17
 Jakovenko, Dmitry
 g
 RUS
 2732
 20
1983
 18
 Kamsky, Gata
 g
 USA
 2732
 7
1974
 19
 Wang, Hao
 g
 CHN
 2732
 6
1989
 20
 Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime
 g
 FRA
 2731
 5
1990
 21
 Dominguez Perez, Leinier
 g
 CUB
 2726
 12
1983
 22
 Adams, Michael
 g
 ENG
 2726
 9
1971
 23
 Vallejo Pons, Francisco
 g
 ESP
 2722
 30
1982
 24
 Wojtaszek, Radoslaw
 g
 POL
 2721
 22
1987
 25
 Almasi, Zoltan
 g
 HUN
 2719
 0
1976
 26
 Leko, Peter
 g
 HUN
 2717
 0
1979
 27
 Naiditsch, Arkadij
 g
 GER
 2716
 35
1985
 28
 Caruana, Fabiano
 g
 ITA
 2714
 21
1992
 29
 Wang, Yue
 g
 CHN
 2714
 11
1987
 30
 Eljanov, Pavel
 g
 UKR
 2712
 14
1983


And the women's top-30




Rank
Name
Title
Country
Rating
Games
BYr
 1
 Polgar, Judit
 g
 HUN
 2699
 11
1976
 2
 Koneru, Humpy
 g
 IND
 2614
 11
1987
 3
 Hou, Yifan
 g
 CHN
 2612
 20
1994
 4
 Kosintseva, Nadezhda
 m
 RUS
 2567
 0
1985
 5
 Kosintseva, Tatiana
 g
 RUS
 2559
 0
1986
 6
 Dzagnidze, Nana
 g
 GEO
 2557
 11
1987
 7
 Zatonskih, Anna
 m
 USA
 2537
 27
1978
 8
 Muzychuk, Anna
 m
 SLO
 2537
 20
1990
 9
 Lahno, Kateryna
 g
 UKR
 2530
 10
1989
 10
 Kosteniuk, Alexandra
 g
 RUS
 2522
 7
1984
 11
 Harika, Dronavalli
 m
 IND
 2520
 18
1991
 12
 Ju, Wenjun
 wg
 CHN
 2511
 29
1991
 13
 Stefanova, Antoaneta
 g
 BUL
 2506
 16
1979
 14
 Danielian, Elina
 g
 ARM
 2506
 11
1978
 15
 Cmilyte, Viktorija
 g
 LTU
 2504
 21
1983
 16
 Sebag, Marie
 g
 FRA
 2504
 11
1986
 17
 Chiburdanidze, Maia
 g
 GEO
 2500
 11
1961
 18
 Galliamova, Alisa
 m
 RUS
 2492
 7
1972
 19
 Socko, Monika
 g
 POL
 2487
 20
1978
 20
 Gunina, Valentina
 wg
 RUS
 2487
 15
1989
 21
 Zhu, Chen
 g
 QAT
 2485
 11
1976
 22
 Xu, Yuhua
 g
 CHN
 2480
 11
1976
 23
 Ruan, Lufei
 wg
 CHN
 2479
 3
1987
 24
 Zhao, Xue
 g
 CHN
 2475
 20
1985
 25
 Muzychuk, Mariya
 m
 UKR
 2473
 14
1992
 26
 Dembo, Yelena
 m
 GRE
 2471
 10
1983
 27
 Khotenashvili, Bela
 m
 GEO
 2470
 17
1988
 28
 Krush, Irina
 m
 USA
 2469
 4
1983
 29
 Cramling, Pia
 g
 SWE
 2468
 18
1963
 30
 Ushenina, Anna
 m
 UKR
 2468
 16
1985


You can access complete lists here.



From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
Also see her personal blog at

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For the love of chess... - Interview with Vassily Ivanchuk

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011

Hello everybody,

We found this nice two-part interview with the talented and one of the strongest Grandmasters in the world - Vassily Ivanchuk at Chess In Translation. He talks about all the beautiful aspects of a chess life and life otherwise. Here are some excerpts:

------------------------------
In one interview you compared chess to love. Doesn’t your wife get offended by such comparisons, and by the fact that almost all your thoughts are about chess? (Translator’s note: in a recent interview GM Mikhail Golubev asked, “I’ve got a question from a fan. How can you find and not lose a taste for playing chess?” Ivanchuk replied: “You know, a taste for chess is a kind of love… and who can answer the question of how to find, or not lose, that love? I don’t know.”


VI: Oksana’s got used to it, no doubt. It’s not our first year together, after all. Initially, of course, it was hit and miss, but such is the life of a chess player. At least between tournaments we try to lead a rich and varied life. Grandmaster Vladimir Malakhov once responded to a similar question by saying, “Yes, I often travel to tournaments, but when I get back home I’m completely at my wife’s disposal”. I don’t know about being completely at her disposal, but I try. I devote a lot of time between tournaments to domestic matters. I don’t have to be begged to do something. I try to assist my wife at home, offering to help. You’d better ask Oksana whether that works out or not. My wife doesn’t see me as a grandmaster, but as a normal man. Does she understand chess? She has some idea: she knows how the pieces move, the surnames of famous chess players and she reads the chess magazines I subscribe to. So she knows about everything that’s going on. Of course, my wife supports me and follows my performances. She’s very glad when I win, but at the same time she understands that it’s impossible to win all the time. Therefore she’s philosophical about my defeats.

FLAWED GAMES ARE THE MOST BEAUTIFUL

You’ve had so many victories. Is there one among them which you recall more often than the others?

VI: In general, I’ve always believed that my greatest, and therefore also my most memorable victories, still lie ahead. But it’s true that I really do have a lot of favourite games. But you know how it is? After any game you play people start analysing it “to shreds”. Immediately after a won game it can strike you as truly beautiful and almost perfect. But then it turns out that at certain points there were mistakes, minor inaccuracies.

Have I played flawless games? Of course. But flawed games are usually the most beautiful and are dearer to me. If an opponent doesn’t put up much resistance then it’s much easier to play a flawless game. You remember games where, despite being positionally lost, you nevertheless managed to escape with a draw. One such example is the game against Gata Kamsky at the tournament in Armenia in 2009. I was saved from a loss by the 50-move rule, which states that if not a single piece has been taken over the course of those moves then the game is declared a draw. Kamsky almost gained the chance to take my piece, but only on the 51st move. So I put up as much resistance as I could: I calculated whether he’d be able to carry out the capture, and how long I could avoid it.(smiles) As for losses… They’re painful for me. Fortunately time heals wounds, and your memory washes away the feeling of losing.


Oksana and Vassily Ivanchuk

Here is the game:


You can read the full interview here.

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Friday, April 29, 2011

Balcony chess replaced by balcony kiss: Prince William, Kate British royal wedding today

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011


Hello everybody,


Congratulations to Prince William of England and Kate Middleton for getting married today. Sources, however, told us that they had planned a balcony chess session before a large crowd!


But they had to manage with a balcony kiss (two actually) after the wedding - as part of a tradition started by their parents Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana!


The reasons a kiss replaced chess:

  • The shaky weather - as it is always in London - meant that rain might just spoil the royal chess set
  • The Royal wedding live telecast cameras had not been hooked up in the balcony and we wouldn't have a clear view of the chessboard
  • The Queen would get tired after already having sat through a beautiful though long wedding ceremony. Of course she is a great chess fan too.
(Ok we're just kidding but some genuine chess connections with the British royalty)

Here is our favourite note about Queen Victoria -

The following quote from a contemporary publication was given on page 14 of the January 1889 International Chess Magazine:

‘…the greatest solace the Empress Victoria has in her widowhood is chess – a game she frequently played with the Crown Prince when they found themselves with a leisure hour. The Empress generally travels with a chess board and men.’



Also just the time to remind you of our previous www.chessblog.com posts:




From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
www.chessblog.com
Also see her personal blog at
www.chessqueen.com

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Chinese city Shi Jiazhuang chess team wins Asian Cities Chess 2011

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011

Hi everyone,

The team from the Chinese city of Shi Jiazhuang won all their matches to win the Asian Cities Team Championship for the Dubai Cup held 21-28 April 2011 in Jakarta, Indonesia. The team included GM Yu Yangyi, GM Li Chao, Wan Yunguo, GM Wang Rui and GM Zhang Pengxiang. They scored a perfect 18 match points on the basis of 2-1-0 points per match.

ac_shijzihuang

Asian Chess Federation president Sheikh Sultan bin Khalifah Al Nahyan (left) awards the Dubai Cup to the Chinese city of Shi Jiazhuang with the check for $10,000. At right is Senator GM Utut Adianto, Chairman of the Jakarta Asian Cities Organizing Committee.

ac_astana

The Astana team with their runner-up check of $6,000
ac_tehran

Sheikh Sultan presents the third place check of $4,000 to the Tehran team.

ac_allteamwinners


Visit chess-results.com for round by round results and standings. Download games at the Asian Chess Federation site. Visit the official site.

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