Final video from Grand Slam Chess Masters with lots of interviews
Carlsen wins Grand Slam Chess Masters with blitz playoff against Ivanchuk
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
Congratulations to Magnus Carlsen for winning the Grand Slam Chess Masters in his signature style. All credit to Vassily Ivanchuk for a tenacious show. Here are the final standings.
Grand Slam Masters Final 2011 | Round 10 Standings (football)
1-2 Magnus Carlsen, Vassily Ivanchuk 15
3-4 Hikaru Nakamura, Levon Aronian 12
5 Vishy Anand 12
6 Francisco Vallejo 10
After the last round saw Carlsen and Ivanchuk tie for first, a tiebreak of blitz games were held which saw Carlsen drawing the first game with White but winning the second with Black and the title. Carlsen drew with Hikaru Nakamura, Ivanchuk drew with Levon Aronian while Viswanathan Anand beat Francisco Vallejo.
Here are all the games of the last round including the tiebreaks. Enjoy. You can access the official website at this link.
Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final
Grand Slam Chess Masters Final R9: Carlsen beats Ivanchuk to lead jointly; Aronian beats Anand and Nakamura loses to Vallejo
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
The ninth and the penultimate round at the Grand Slam Final in Bilbao would be remembered for just three things - a porcupine, a clock and a sleeping titan. That's so much drama in a single round in such a high-level tournament.
First, the sleeping titan. This time world champion Vishy Anand was on the losing side with Levon Aronian playing a naturally-flowing symphony. Meanwhile, Hikaru Nakamura lost on time in a strange way. According to a detailed explanation on www.chessvibes.com, he thought he had made the 40th move and went away from the table. In effect, he had not and lost!
The game between Carlsen and tournament leader Vassily Ivanchuk should be watched rather than described. What to do when a porcupine attacks you?
Here are the nice games of the round. The last round would be played on Tuesday with Carlsen and Ivanchuk in joint lead. An exciting finish to the event is awaited.
Grand Slam Masters Final 2011 | Round 9 Standings (football)1-2 Magnus Carlsen, Vassily Ivanchuk 14
3-4 Hikaru Nakamura, Levon Aronian 11
5 Francisco Vallejo 10
6 Vishy Anand 9
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Labels: bilbao, Grand Slam Chess Masters Final
Grand Slam Chess Masters Final R7: Ivanchuk loses to Vallejo but holds on to lead, others draw
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
The chess news from the Grand Slam Bilbao Chess Masters is that - as luck would have it - tournament leader Vassily Ivanchuk lost to tail-ender Francisco Vallejo. Both Anand-Nakamura and Aronian-Carlsen ended in a draw, and so Ivanchuk is now still five points ahead of Anand, Aronian, Carlsen and Nakamura! You can access the official website at this link.
Ivanchuk on his way to giving Vallejo a win.
Grand Slam Masters Final 2011 | Round 6 Standings (football)
1 Vassily Ivanchuk 13
2-5 Hikaru Nakamura, Levon Aronian,
Vishy Anand, Magnus Carlsen 8
6 Francisco Vallejo 7
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Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final
Grand Slam Chess Masters Bilbao R6: Ivanchuk beats Nakamura, others draw
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
Vassily Ivanchuk is all engines go - full throttle. Coming into the second section of the Grand Slam Chess Masters, he began the Bilbao leg with a cool win over Hikaru Nakamura. Others drew their games.
The first leg of the Grand Slam was staged in São Paulo, Ibirapuera Park, from September 25th to October 1st, the second leg takes place in Bilbao, Alhóndiga, from 5th to 11th October. Tournament system: double round robin with six players over ten rounds. Time control: 90 minutes/40 moves + 60 minutes + 10 seconds/move starting with the first move.
Here are the games from Round 6 and pairings for Round 7 to take place on Friday. You can access the official website at this link.
Grand Slam Masters Final 2011 | Round 6 Standings (football)1 Vassily Ivanchuk 13
2-5 Hikaru Nakamura, Levon Aronian,
Vishy Anand, Magnus Carlsen 7
6 Francisco Vallejo 4
Labels: bilbao, Grand Slam Chess Masters Final
Another video from Grand Slam Chess Masters in Sao Paulo
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
Here is a nice video from Sao Paulo Grand Slam Chess Masters even as the second section of the event begins in Bilbao, Spain today.
Declaraciones de los jugadores participantes en la final de maestros del Gran Slam de Ajedrez 2011. V. Anand, M. Carlsen, V. Iv from Proyeccion TV on Vimeo.
Here are sections from the official website about the comments in the video.
Ivanchuk, the provisional top player on the leaderboard, paradoxically seems to be the careful of the players. The Ukrainian assures that “I will play each match as best I can, since all of my opponents in this tournament are very strong and dangerous”. At the moment his is the man to beat.
The man in second spot, American Hikaru Nakamura, three points behind Ivanchuk, remains focused on capturing the title in Bilbao, although he is convinced that none of his opponents will make this easy for him.
Magnus Carlsen, number one in the FIDE rankings, insists that “after beating Ivanchuk (referring to the last round in Sao Paulo) anything is possible In Bilbao. I am going to give it my all to get as many points as possible”. When asked about the current tournament leader the Norwegian is confident that “Ivanchuk is the leader now but complicated matches in Bilbao still await him”. He however rules out Vallejo, currently in last place.
When asked about the results obtained to date (Anand and Aronian tied with 6 points), the Norwegian recalls how especially exciting “the victory against Ivanchuk was. I really needed to win that game; it was something very special for me”. On the other hand, his worst match was “seeing myself in trouble against Paco Vallejo wasn’t something I enjoyed but after a loss you have to keep going”.
World Champion Anand, who stands 4 points behind current leader, Ivanchuk, does not seem worried by the difference. “There are still matches left so we have got to try” he says. The Indian chessplayer appears very critical of the way he has played so far, saying “It hasn’t been ideal. I feel like it hasn’t gone too well. It is difficult to choose the worst match but I suppose it would be the one I lost”.
When asked to evaluate his performance so far, Aronian blows both hot and cold. He believes that “the majority of the matches have been interesting” but only seems dissatisfied with his game against Anand. He thinks it is “time to improve. I am confident that I will play better in Bilbao”, where he will undoubtedly fight for victory. donde además luchará por la victoria. “There are still five rounds left, so anyone who is not way down in terms of points can win the title”, he advises.
Paco Vallejo, special guest at the Masters Final this year, is not hiding his disappointment over his poor showing so far. “I haven’t been very inspired in the games”, he recognizes after ending up in last place in the first stage. In the five rounds played in Brazil the Spaniard has suffered four losses and has walked away with one victory. “It’s no use grumbling about it, so in Bilbao I will come out with full force. I am sure I will do much better” he assures. Vallejo is aware that he is competing among players all within the top ten in the world, but he believes he has “what it takes to play against them and do much better”. When it comes to what we can expect in Bilbao he is convinced that, “in the remaining matches there is still a lot of game left. I would not rule anyone out (when it comes to the title), not even myself…”.
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Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final
Bilbao Chess Grand Slam Masters resumes Thursday - be there!
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hi everyone,
Back to all the great chess from Sao Paulo, Brazil, now flowing into Bilbao, Spain.
On Wednesday the second leg of the Grand Slam Masters Final was officially opened in Bilbao, Spain. Five of the six players were present - Vassily Ivanchuk, who was robbed on Monday in Sau Paulo, arrives in Bilbao on Wednesday and has informed the organizers that he wants to play his game against Nakamura on Thursday, 'without privileges'.
La IV Final de Maestros del Grand Slam de Ajedrez reúne en Bilbao a seis de las principales figuras del ajedrez mundial from Proyeccion TV on Vimeo.
Photographic Exhibition
Coinciding with the tournament, metro passengers can view the history of this great sporting event through images. A photographic exhibition entitled “Bilbao mueve pieza" (Bilbao moves pieces) traces the evolution of the tournament since 1999 when it was in its infant stages as a modest competition organized by a group of chess fans from Bilbao, to 2010 when it definitively became one of the foremost chess events in the world. The exhibition, made up of a total of 12 large panels measuring 2.31 by 1.3 metres, will be in place from October 6 at the Indautxu (Urquijo exit) and Moyúa (Diputación exit) stations.
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Labels: bilbao, Grand Slam Chess Masters Final
Sao Paulo Grand Slam Chess Masters R5: Carlsen, Nakamura win
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
The party now moves on to Bilbao, Spain. But in Round 5, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, we had two decisive games! At half-time, tournament leader Vassily Ivanchuk lost his first game of the event to Magnus Carlsen but maintained his lead. Hikaru Nakamura, who beat Vallejo in round 5, is now clear second with 7 points. The game between Vishy Anand and Levon Aronian ended in a draw. Here are the standings after Round 5.
Grand Slam Masters Final 2011 | Round 5 Standings (football)
1 Vassily Ivanchuk 10
2 Hikaru Nakamura 7
3-5 Levon Aronian, Vishy Anand, Magnus Carlsen 6
6 Francisco Vallejo 3
And, the games for you to enjoy in our special game player. Just use the pop-down menu to choose the game you want to see.
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Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final, Sao Paulo
Sao Paulo Grand Slam Chess Masters R4: Ivanchuk beats Aronian, extends lead; Anand beats Vallejo
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
Vassily Ivanchuk won his third consecutive game at the Grand Slam Masters Final on Friday. In Sao Paulo, Brazil the Ukrainian defeated Levon Aronian with the black pieces to lead and Vishy Anand joined Aronian in second place after beating Francisco Vallejo with Black. The third game, between Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura, ended in a draw after 43 moves!
Grand Slam Masters Final 2011 | Round 4 Standings (football)
1 Vassily Ivanchuk 10
2-3 Levon Aronian, Vishy Anand 5
4 Hikaru Nakamura 4
5-6 Magnus Carlsen, Francisco Vallejo 3
You can access the official website at this link.
Here are the great games of Round 5. Use the pop-down menu to choose the game you want to see.
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Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final
Grand Slam Chess Masters R3: Anand loses to Ivanchuk, Carlsen loses to Vallejo; Ivanchuk leads
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
There was thunder and lightning in the third round at the Grand Slam Chess Masters in Sao Paulo as Viswanathan Anand lost to Vassily Ivanchuk and Magnus Carlsen lost to Francisco Vallejo. Hikaru Makamura and Levon Aronian decided to draw their game.
You can access the official website at this link and enjoy the games in the special game player below.
Grand Slam Masters Final 2011 | Round 3 Standings (football)
- 1 Vassily Ivanchuk 7
- 2 Levon Aronian 5
- 3-4 Nakamura, Vallejo 3
- 5-6 Anand, Carlsen
Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final
Grand Slam Chess Masters Final Sao Paulo R2: Ivanchuk beats Vallejo, others draw
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
We had one decisive game in the second round - like in the first - at the Grand Slam Chess Maters Final in Sao Paulo. There was fighting chess all around though. Magnus Carlsen-Levon Aronian, Hikaru Nakamura-Viswanathan Anand were drawn but Vassily Ivanchuk beat Francisco Vallejo. You can access the official website for more info.
Here are the games. Use the pop-down menu to check the games.
Grand Slam Masters Final 2011 | Round 2 Standings (football)
- 1-2 Levon Aronian, Vassily Ivanchuk 4
- 3-5 Anand, Carlsen, Nakamura 2
- 6 Vallejo 0
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Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final, Sao Paulo
Grand Slam Chess Masters: Aronian begins with win, others draw
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
Grandmaster Levon Aronian starts the Bilbao half of the Grand Slam Chess Masters with a win over Francisco Vallejo while the others draw. The games Vishy Anand vs Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura vs Vassily Ivanchuk ended in draws.
The 4th edition of the Grand Slam Masters Final runs from September 25th until October 11th and is played in two different venues. The first five rounds of this double round-robin event takes place in Sao Paulo, Brazil from 25th of September to 1st of October, and the second leg will be played in Bilbao, Spain from 6th to 11th of October. Magnus Carlsen, Vishy Anand, Levon Aronian, Vassily Ivanchuk, Hikaru Nakamura and Francisco Vallejo play a double round-robin. In both venues, the Ibirapuera Park in Sao Paulo and the Bilbao Alhóndiga, the players play in a big class cube. The rate of play is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves plus 60 minutes to finish the game, with 10 seconds increment per move from move number 41. Players are not allowed to agree to a draw without the arbiter’s permission. In case both players request it to him, the arbiter will make his decision after consulting with the technical assistant. The football scoring system is used: 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 for a loss.
In the third edition, last year, the infamous glass cube was dropped but this time it's back. Both in the Ibirapuera Park in Sao Paulo and the Bilbao Alhóndiga the players will again be executing their moves in a sound-proof 'aquarium'. This makes it possible to set up a commentary booth right next to the 'playing hall', where Spanish journalist Leontxo Garcia and guests are explaining the games during the rounds, and talking to the players after the games.
Here are the nice first round games.
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Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final, Sao Paulo
Grand Slam Chess Masters Final starts today in Sao Paulo
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
This year's Grand Slam Masters Final includes the world's top 3 players and starts today in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The first round pairings are Nakamura-Ivanchuk, Anand-Carlsen and Aronian-Vallejo.
The six participants with the mayor of Sao Paulo
The 4th edition of the Grand Slam Masters Final runs from September 25-October 11 and will be played in two different venues. The first five rounds of this double round-robin event will be played in Sao Paulo, Brazil from 25th of September to 1st of October, and the second leg will be played in Bilbao, Spain from 6th to 11th of October. In both venues, the Ibirapuera Park in Sao Paulo and the Bilbao Alhóndiga, the traditional big glass cube will be installed, inside which Magnus Carlsen, Vishy Anand, Levon Aronian, Vassily Ivanchuk, Hikaru Nakamura and Paco Vallejo will play a double round-robin.
The tournament was officially opened on Sunday, September 25th in the Sao Paulo Ibirapuera Park, a major urban park.
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Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final, Sao Paulo
Living chess at the Grand Slam Chess Masters Final opening ceremony on Sept 19
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hi everyone,
There was a nice performance of living chess at the opening ceremony of the Grand Slam Masters Final on September 19, 2011. Mercedes de Miguel (in photo), a famous basque designer, was the host of the ceremony that took place in the Alhóndiga de Bilbao. At the same place the second half of the tournament will be held (October 5-11), and like during the first two editions the players will be playing their games in a glass cube. The first half of the tournament is in Sao Paolo, Brazil, between September 25 and October 1. Check out the official website.
Here is the video of the event. Apologies, we couldn't get an English version! But you would like it nevertheless (after the speeches.)
Labels: Grand Slam Chess Masters Final
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