USA's Top Daily Chess News Blog, Informative, Fun, and Positive
hosted by Chess Queen™ & 12th Women's World Chess Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Shamkir April 19 Vugar Gashimov Memorial - World's Top Chess GMs Gather to Salute a Chess Star
Hello dear Chess Blog friends,
Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial 2014
Shamkir - the city that lies quietly on the banks of River Chagirchay in the foothills of the Lesser Caucasus - is named after the brightest of stars, the Sun.
Come April 19 and some of the world's best chess stars will gather in the Azerbaijan city to pay homage to another star - Vugar Gashimov. Gashimov is no more, but his beautiful chess remains with us forever. A chess memorial attended by the world's best could alone be a befitting tribute to Vugar Gashimov.
There will be two groups - A and B.
The official website of the event will transmit live all the games along with commentary, in English, Russian, and Azerbaijani, by some of the best in the chess world.
The Azeri comments will come from Grandmasters, honored coach of Azerbaijan, FIDE trainer Anar Allahverdiyev and coach of the national team of teenagers Farid Abbasov.
Two-time Wijk-aan-Zee champion, Olympiad and European Championship participant, honored FIDE coach Gennady Sosonko will also be part of the commentary team.
Along with Sosonko, coach of Vugar Gashimov Viorel Iordakescu will comment the games in English. Sergey Shipov, one of the world's most famous commentators will comment in Russian.
The tournament is hosted and organised by "Synergy Group" which works "For a sustainable future". The opening ceremony will be held on April 19 at Heydar Aliyev Center in Shamkir. Established in 2010, Synergy Group is one of the largest private investment holdings in Azerbaijan. The Group invests in a number of strategic industry areas with high growth potential. Synergy Group successfully operates a dynamic portfolio of 28 diverse and growth-oriented businesses and with all its companies employs more than 1500 people.
Vugar Gashimov
Born on July 24th, 1986 in Baku, Vugar Gashimov achieved his peak ranking-world#6 in November, 2009. He has been the winner of Baku Grand Prix. Representing Azerbaijani team, he became the European champion in 2009. He played a crucial role in the historical victory of the national team at the European Championship held in Serbia. In 2011 he became the winner of Reggio Emilia chess tournament held in Italy since 1958. Playing on behalf of several chess clubs, he became the champion of Croatia, Turkey, Romania, Iran, Spain and Moldova. A silver-medalist, Gashimov was known as a particularly strong blitz chess player. Owner of more than 72 titles, Vugar Gashimov is the winner of Kasparov Cup. For his individual indicators, he became silver medalist of the Chess Olympiad held in 2008. He is also a silver and bronze-medalist of the World Intellectual Games. Vugar Gashimov passed away on January 10th, 2014 in Heidelberg, Germany at the age of 27. The grandmaster from Baku had been ill for a long time and was under treatment for the last 1.5 years.
Magnus Carlsen wins Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial with Last Round Win over Fabiano Caruana
Hello everyone, World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen has won the Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial 2014 with a rating performance of 2868 which is actually less than his current rating of 2882. Carlsen topped the event with 5 wins, 2 losses and 3 draws!
World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen receiving the Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial winner's trophy...
... Pavel Eljanov receiving the trophy for the winner for the B Group.
Fabiano Caruana, who took on Carlsen, in the last round with an equal score was playing for the title as well. However, he had to settle for the second place with 5.5 points. Hikaru Nakamura, Teimour Radjabov and Sergey Karjakin all scored 5 points. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov scored 3. Yesterday, in the 9th round, Caruana came up with a solid performance to beat Mamedyarov and draw level at 5.5 with Carlsen who could only draw with Radjabov. Karjakin and Nakamura also drew their games. It all came down to the last round today in Shamkir. Magnus Carlsen was back with precise chess and steadily ground out Caruana to earn the win and the title. The others, Nakamura - Radjabov, Mamedyarov - Karjakin, drew their Round 10 games. Meanwhile, Pavel Eljanov convincingly won the B Group at the tournament. Group A
Group B
Vugar Gashimov
Born on July 24th, 1986 in Baku, Vugar Gashimov achieved his peak ranking-world#6 in November, 2009. He has been the winner of Baku Grand Prix. Representing Azerbaijani team, he became the European champion in 2009. He played a crucial role in the historical victory of the national team at the European Championship held in Serbia. In 2011 he became the winner of Reggio Emilia chess tournament held in Italy since 1958. Playing on behalf of several chess clubs, he became the champion of Croatia, Turkey, Romania, Iran, Spain and Moldova. A silver-medalist, Gashimov was known as a particularly strong blitz chess player. Owner of more than 72 titles, Vugar Gashimov is the winner of Kasparov Cup. For his individual indicators, he became silver medalist of the Chess Olympiad held in 2008. He is also a silver and bronze-medalist of the World Intellectual Games. Vugar Gashimov passed away on January 10th, 2014 in Heidelberg, Germany at the age of 27 due to illness.
Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial in Azerbaijan with World's Top Players from April 20-30
Chess Blog for Daily Chess News and Trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2014
Hello everyone,
In order to honor the memory of Vugar Gashimov, European champion and leading world chess player who passed away recently, “Synergy Group” organizes strong round robin tournament to be held in April in Azerbaijan.
A memorial for Vugar Gashimov will bring together such world-known names as the reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen (Norway), world #5 Fabiano Caruana (Italy), world #7 Hikaru Nakamura (USA), world #9 Sergey Karjakin (Russia), as well as Azerbaijani grandmasters European champion Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (world #11) and Teimour Radjabov (world #34).
The dates of Shamkir Chess Tournament in the memory of Vugar Gashimov are set for April 20th-30th. Opening Ceremony and draw of lots will be held on the 19th April.
The A tournament, sponsored by “Synergy Group”, one of the leading local investment companies, reportedly has a prize fund of €100,000.
There will be a second tournament alongside the main event. In this B tournament ten players will play: five from Azerbaijan (Eltaj Safarli, Nijat Abbasov, Gadir Huseynov, Rauf Mammadov, Vasif Durabeyli) and five from abroad Hao Wang (China), Pavel Eljanov (Ukraine), Etienne Bacrot (France), Radoslav Wojtaszek (Poland), and the new European champion Alexander Motylev (Russia).
The prize fund for this tournament will be €30,000.
The games will be hosted by Heydar Aliyev Center in Shamkir – the capital of Shamkir region which is the 8th largest city in Azerbaijan. Located in the northern foothills of the Lesser Caucasus, on the coast of the Chagirchay River on Tbilisi-Yevlakh highway, the city will welcome chess lovers from all over the world.
Organizing this event Synergy Group OJSC aims to pay due respect to Vugar Gashimov and participate in the “State Program supporting the development of Chess in Azerbaijan throughout 2009-2014″.
Vugar Gashimov passed away on January 10th, 2014 in Heidelberg, Germany at the age of 27. The grandmaster from Baku had been ill for a long time and was under treatment for the last year and a half.
Born on July 24th, 1986 in Baku, Vugar Gashimov achieved his peak ranking-world#6 in November, 2009. He has been the winner of Baku Grand Prix. Representing Azerbaijan, he became the European champion in 2009. He played a crucial role in the historical victory of the national team at the European Championship held in Serbia.
In 2011 he became the winner of Reggio Emilia chess tournament held in Italy since 1958. Playing on behalf of several chess clubs, he became the champion of Croatia, Turkey, Romania, Iran, Spain and Moldova.
A silver-medalist, Gashimov was known as a particularly strong blitz chess player. Owner of more than 72 titles, Vugar Gashimov is the winner of Kasparov Cup. For his individual indicators, he became silver medalist of the Chess Olympiad held in 2008. He is also a silver and bronze-medalist of the World Intellectual Games.
Vugar Gashimov and Francisco Vallejo Pons drew their games in the final round to jointly win the 53rd Torneo de Capodanno in Reggio Emilia, Italy. The winner's trophy went to Gashimov because of better tie-break.
Also, are you sure how to checkmate with bishop and knight? You can learn it from Vassily Ivanchuk in his game from Morozevich that we have here.
Run the moves through our pgnplayer or watch in flash below.
Round 9 results
Sergei Movsesian - Francisco Vallejo Pons 1/2-1/2
Michele Godena - Fabiano Caruana 1/2-1/2
Alexander Onischuk - Vugar Gashimov 1/2-1/2
David Navara - Nigel Short 1-0
Vassily Ivanchuk - Alexander Morozevich 1-0
Final standings:
1-2. Vugar Gashimov AZE 2733 and Francisco Vallejo Pons ESP 2698 - 6.0
3-5. Vassily Ivanchuk UKR 2764, David Navara CZE 2708 and Sergei Movsesian SVK 2721 - 5.0
6-7. Fabiano Caruana ITA 2709 and Alexander Onischuk USA 2683 - 4.5
Reggio Emilia Chess Tournament R7: Gashimov beats Vallejo Pons, catches up with lead
Chess news and chess trivia blog (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello Everyone,
The seventh round at the 53rd Torneo di Capodanno in Reggio Emilia Italy saw the leader Vallejo Pons go down fighting to Vugar Gashimov. This allowed the latter to catch up with joint lead. Also, Ivanchuk lost his second game in a row which is a rarity for the grandmaster.
Vugar Gashimov and Martha Fierro (The latter is providing commentary for the tournament.)
Round 7 results
Ivanchuk, Vassily
- Navara, David
0-1
Movsesian, Sergei
- Morozevich, Alexander
1/2-1/2
Onischuk, Alexander
- Caruana, Fabiano
1/2-1/2
Vallejo Pons, Francisco
- Gashimov, Vugar
0-1
Godena, Michele
- Short, Nigel
0-1
Standings after 7 rounds
1.
Gashimov, Vugar
AZE
2733
4½
2.
Vallejo Pons, Francisco
ESP
2698
4½
3.
Movsesian, Sergei
SVK
2721
4
4.
Onischuk, Alexander
USA
2683
4
5.
Navara, David
CZE
2708
4
6.
Caruana, Fabiano
ITA
2709
3½
7.
Short, Nigel
ENG
2680
3½
8.
Morozevich, Alexander
RUS
2700
3
9.
Ivanchuk, Vassily
UKR
2764
3
10.
Godena, Michele
ITA
2549
1
Here is the nice Vallejo Pons-Gashimov game. You can go through the moves via our pgnplayer or watch in flash below. Enjoy.
Azerbaijan and chess fans worldwide paid their final tributes to Grandmaster Vugar Gashimov who was laid to rest in the 'Alley of Honor'. Thousands of fans, along with friends and relatives of the Grandmaster, members of the Azerbaijani national chess team, government officials and Azerbaijan Chess Federation officials paid their last respects on the talented player's last journey. Our heartfelt condolences to Gashimov's family. (via www.chess-news.ru Also: RIP: Vugar Gashimov is no more) From Alexandra Kosteniuk's www.chessblog.com Also see her personal chess blog at www.chessqueen.com Don't miss Chess Queen™ YouTube Channel
Hello chess blog friends, the Azerbaijan press reports that a memorial statue of Vugar Gashimov was unveiled today on the 28th birth anniversary of the talented chess player. Azerbaijan Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports Ismail Ismailov said, Gashimov had made a tremendous contribution to chess history of Azerbaijan. He said the Azerbaijan Government would take steps to ensure that Gashimov was remembered. A memorial chess tournament - for children - was also inaugurated today. Gashimov's father, present on the occasion, thanked the sculptor, Azad Aliyev.. He also spoke about Vugar's love for chess and his joy in keeping the Azerbaijani flag flying high with chess victories.
Tata Steel Chess R8: Exciting games as Carlsen, Aronian keep lead
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hello everyone,
There were exciting games all around in the eighth round at the Tata Steel Chess Tournament though only one game ended in a decisive manner - Anish Giri losing to Vugar Gashimov.
With these results we have both Carlsen and Aronian at 5.5 points each, Radjabov at 5 points, Ivanchuk, Caruana, Nakamura at 4.5 points each, Giri and Van Wely at 4, Topalov, Karjakin, Kamsky at 3.5, Gashimov, Gelfand at 3 and Navara at 2 points.
You can see the Giri-Gashimov game with Chess King.
Vugar Gashimov 'Lives Again' as Shamkir Memorial Chess 2014 begins with World's Top Chess Stars
Hello everyone,
The Shamkir Chess 2014 tournament was officially opened on Saturday at the Heydar Aliyev Center in Shamkir, Azerbaijan. A touching opening ceremony included a short movie about Vugar Gashimov, for whom this tournament is a memorial. The drawing of lots resulted in the following pairings for the first round on Sunday: Carlsen-Mamedyarov, Nakamura-Caruana, Karjakin-Radjabov (A group), Wojtaszek-Durarbayli, Eljanov-Mamedov, Motylev-Abasov, Safarli-Huseinov and Wang-Bacrot (B group).
The opening ceremony, which was attended by about 150 people, started with a one-minute of silence for Vugar. A number of honorable guests paid due respect to Vugar's memory giving speeches, including the mayor of Shamkir, the Deputy Minister of Youth and Sport and the Vice President of the Azerbaijan Chess Federation.
A touching moment followed when the father of Vugar appeared on stage. Starting with “Dear good friends of Vugar, because that is what you are since you have come here”, he spoke proudly about how much his son had achieved in the short life he was given. There were hardly spectators who kept dry eyes.
He expressed his appreciation for the support he had received from the government and said: “he's not just my son, but the son of the motherland.”
Chairman of Supervisory Board at Synergy Group, Riyad Huseynov greeted all the participants. Emphasizing the importance of this tournament for whole chess community, Mr. Huseynov stated to be honored organizing Shamkir Chess 2014: "I assure all of you that the Organizing Committee of the tournament will do their best to make sure everything is on high level. I declare the tournament open. Let the strongest win."
One of Vugar's friends and former coach, Viorel Iordachescu, also gave a personal and emotional speech. “My collaboration and friendship with Vugar was the happiest period of my life. With the loss of Vugar I lost a part of me.” Iordachescu also introduced special stamps to the audience.
The drawing of lots was a rather simple affair, performed by Chief Arbiter Faik Gasanov. First the players of the B group came on stage, and then the players of the A group. They all had to choose a small trophy, and at the bottom they found their lot number. For the A group Magnus Carlsen appeared first on stage, and he picked number 1 which means he starts with two whites. The ceremony finished with a dance performance, and after that there was a reception. (official website) From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial 2014 Round 8: Carlsen Keeps 1/2-Point Lead Over Caruana
Hello everyone,
World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen not too happy to draw with Sergey Karjakin, but keeps the lead after 8 rounds at the Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial 2014. (official website)
There has not been a dull moment at the Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial 2014 in Shamkir. The eighth round witnessed sharp chess with very few games left now.
Fabiano Caruana and Hikaru Nakamura won their respective games to keep Magnus Carlsen - the leader - within catching distance. Caruana is half a point behind Carlsen and three players are only one point away!
Shakhriyar Mamedyarov tried aggressive experimental chess and went down fighting to Hikaru Nakamura. Carlsen could not break Sergey Karjakin's solid defence leading to a dead draw with Bishops and pawns locked. Caruana continued to press and Caruana held his nerve, went for a pawn sac and broke Radjabov's game in time pressure.
Standings after Round 8 have Carlsen at 5 points, Caruana at 4.5 points, Karjakin, Radjabov, Nakamura at 4 points each and Mamedyarov with 2 points. From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
Photos - Chess Players' Tribute to Vugar Gashimov in Shamkir
Hello everyone,
Participants and eminent guests paid tributes to Heydar Aliyev, third president of Azerbaijan, and talented Grandmaster Vugar Gashimov of Azerbaijan, in Shamkir, recently during the Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial 2014. The event was won by World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen. These photos are via the official website.
Vugar Gashimov Memorial Chess 2014: Carlsen Loses to both Caruana, Radjabov (Updated)
Hello everyone, The Vugar Gashimov Memorial Chess 2014 in Shamkir has hit the chess headlines like a bomb explosion. Not only did World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen lose to Fabiano Caruana but he set a sort of record by suffering his second straight loss the very next round to Teimour Radjabov. Round 1 and 2 began "normally" enough with the World Chess Champion beating Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Hikaru Nakamura. All other games were drawn in both the rounds. In Round 3, Sergey Karjakin worked hard to hold Magnus Carlsen to a draw and the latter was unable to convert a win. Nakamura, meanwhile, beat Mamedyarov.
Round 4 and 5 - Fabiano Caruana and Teimour Radjabov delight fans by beating World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen in successive rounds. That's how tough chess can be at the top level. Photos: Official website.
Disaster struck for Carlsen in Round 4. Playing Black against Caruana, he was at the receiving end with a slight fumble allowing Caruana to grind out a win. Carlsen blundered a pawn and then couldn't prevent a collapse. The other games were drawn. This is Magnus Carlsen's first loss in classical chess after winning the world champion title in November, 2013. Today, in Round 5, the World Chess Champion was to face the horror of his second successive loss against Teimour Radjabov. Nakamura and Karjakin settled for a draw while Mamedyarov beat Caruana! The standings after Round 5 have Radjabov in lead with 3 points followed by Carlsen, Nakamura, Caruana, Karjakin all at 2.5 points and Mamedyarov at 2 points. *Games via Chess King soon The Vugar Gashimov Chess Memorial is being held in Shamkir, Azerbaijan, from April 20-30 and is divided into two groups. The A Group features six players: World Champion Magnus Carlsen (2881), Fabiano Caruana (2783), Sergey Karjakin (2772), Hikaru Nakamura (2772), and the two Azeri players Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (2760) and Teimour Radjabov (2713). The B group includes ten players - top five from various countries and five from Azerbaijan.
Tomorrow is a rest day at Shamkir Chess 2014 tournament. There will be held an opening ceremony of a chess school in Shamkir. Synergy Group officials, media representatives and Shamkir Chess 2014 tournament participants will attend the ceremony. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov rapid world champion and blitz world champion Sergey Karjakin will show 10 sessions on the board at Zeka Youth Center. At 16:00 football tournament will be held with the participation of 4 teams. Competition with foreign players for team of World and national Grandmasters will play for the Azerbaijan national team. In addition, the organizers of the tournament consisting of the members of organizing committee Synergy Group, and journalists will compete as well.
Chess Blog for Daily Chess News and Trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2013
Hello everyone,
It is sad news that member of the Azerbaijan National Chess team, the talented GM Vugar Gashimov is no more. He was under treatment at a Heidelberg clinic in Germany.
Born July 24, 1986 in Baku, Gashimov was three times Azerbaijani national chess champion. He played in the gold medal-winning Azerbaijani team at the European Team Chess Championship in Novi Sad in 2009 and became winner of Reggio Emilia chess tournament in 2011.
We send our heartfelt condolences to Vugar Gashimov's friends and family.
Reggio Emilia Chess Tournament R8: Vallejo Pons, Gashimov tied for lead with one round to go
Chess news and chess trivia blog (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello Everyone,
It's back to Francisco Vallejo Pons in the lead along with Vugar Gashimov after eight rounds at the 53rd Torneo di Capodanno in Reggio Emilia, Italy. There is just one more round left. Round 8 results
Caruana Fabiano-Movsesian Sergei½-½
Gashimov Vugar-Navara David1-0
Morozevich Alexander-Godena Michele1-0
Short Nigel-Ivanchuk Vassily0-1
Vallejo Pons Francisco-Onischuk Alexander1-0
Standings after Round 8
1.
Gashimov, Vugar
g
AZE
2733
5½
2.
Vallejo Pons, Francisco
g
ESP
2698
5½
3.
Movsesian, Sergei
g
SVK
2721
4½
4.
Caruana, Fabiano
g
ITA
2709
4
5.
Morozevich, Alexander
g
RUS
2700
4
6.
Onischuk, Alexander
g
USA
2683
4
7.
Ivanchuk, Vassily
g
UKR
2764
4
8.
Navara, David
g
CZE
2708
4
9.
Short, Nigel
g
ENG
2680
3½
10.
Godena, Michele
g
ITA
2549
1
At the dinner with the chief organiser of the tournament.
Amber 2011 R5: Aronian leads after 2-0 win over Gashimov, Carlsen loses to Ivanchuk
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011 Hi everyone,
Aronian and Carlsen were leading at the end of Round 4 but Round 5 changed it. While Aronian has gone into sole lead with a 2-0 win over Vugar Gashimov, Carlsen went down to Ivanchuk. Here are the standings after Round 5.
Don't be shy about contacting me
to share women's chess news
or to propose collaboration
Best chess wishes to you! Alexandra Kosteniuk
12th Women's World Chess Champion
Facebook, Twitter, Youtube
