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Tuesday, December 2, 2014

St Louis Chess Showdown: Nakamura beats Aronian for $60,000

Hello chess blog friends, this chess update is about the Levon Aronian - Hikaru Nakamura clash in St Louis recently. The American Grandmaster won the event with blitz fireworks to take home the 60,000 winner’s purse.
 

Brian Jerauld updates for the US Chess Federation website: Nakamura fell back on his instincts Tuesday afternoon, peppering Armenian heavyweight GM Levon Aronian with 9.5 points across 16 games of Blitz chess in the fifth round. The speed attack tipped the Showdown’s scorecard just before its last bell, after the match had entered Tuesday’s final round tied after four Classical games of chess. Nakamura and Aronian traded wins in the first two rounds, then fought to a pair of draws."

"In his post-game interview, Aronian admitted the 3-minute, 2-second-increment time control had often served as kryptonite in his blitzing history, perhaps revealed by his clock falling tragically behind in nearly every game played at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis. The American, however, looked comfortable in his zone on Tuesday, upholding his reputation as one of the chess world’s fastest thinkers. The earth’s second highest-rated Blitz player perhaps showcased his talents best in the round’s opening game -- first hanging his queen, then stunning Aronian with a rook-and-two-knights checkmate. Nakamura eventually won the round with six wins, besting Aronian’s three. They drew seven times."

Aronian, ranked as the World No. 4 Blitz player, earned $40,000 for his efforts in the Showdown.

You can watch the full blitz match below, along with analysis form GMs Maurice Ashley,Yasser Seirawan and WGM Jennifer Shahade.





For more information, including round replays and videos, visit www.uschesschamps.com.


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Thursday, July 12, 2012

U.S. Junior Chess Championship 2012 Begins Today

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012

Hi everyone,

Round 1 of the 2012 U.S. Junior Closed Championship begins today in Saint Louis, and the marquee match-up pits GM-elect conrad Holt against IM Darwin Yang, who recently secured his second GM norm last month at the New York International. The first round begins at 11 a.m. CT, Noon EST, and the event will feature live play-by-play from GM Ben Finegold and FM Aviv Friedman. Round two will take place today at 5 p.m. CT, 6 p.m. ET. Access the live commentary by visiting www.uschesschamps.com/live.




Tournament play will run through July 15, and the event will feature two rounds per day. The event features an overall prize fund of $18,000.
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Monday, April 9, 2012

GM Norm Chess Tourney Begins In Saint Louis Tonight

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012

Hi everyone,

The Saint Louis Invitational, a GM norm tournament, is beginning today at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis. This is  the second norm tournament held at the CCSCSL (outside of U.S. Championship events) in as many years. The nine-round, round-robin event is scheduled to be held April 9 through April 13.



The field includes
1 GM Margvelashvili, Giorgi GEO 2547
2 GM Moradiabadi, Elshan IRI 2542
3 GM Finegold, Benjamin USA 2505
4 IM Sevillano, Enrico USA 2502
5 IM Arnold, Marc T USA 2502
6 IM Gerzhoy, Leonid CAN 2489
7 IM Molner, Mackenzie USA 2465
8 IM Brooks, Michael A USA 2456
9 IM Yang, Darwin USA 2448
10 IM Young, Angelo PHI 2321
Last year's GM norm tournament required a score of 6.5/9 and produced no norms, but this year's event is stronger, with an average FIDE rating of 2478, and will require a score of 6/9 to achieve a GM norm.

Click here for more information about the event and to watch all of the action live!
The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis
The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization that is committed to making chess an important part of our community. In addition to providing a forum for the community to play tournaments and casual games, the club also offers chess improvement classes, beginner lessons and special lectures.

Recognising the cognitive and behavioral benefits of chess, the Chess Club and Scholastic Center is committed to supporting those chess programs that already exist in area schools while encouraging the development of new in-school and after-school programs. For more information, visit www.saintlouischessclub.org.

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

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