Revolution in the 70's, Part 1 of Kasparov's new series of chess books (Modern Chess Series) came out a couple of weeks ago. I've read all the text and played through a couple of the games; quite interesting. I think I like it even better than the My Great Predecessors series.
Here's a Chess Cafe interview with Kasparov regarding recent changes in his plans for the series. Right now it seems like after "Revolution" he's going to do two volumes on his games with Karpov, two volumes on his selected best games, and a book on Man vs Machine. Also, he's going to do an additional book in the MGP series consisting just of anecdotes, no chess. He says this makes a total of 13 books in both series, but by my count it's just 12.
Monday, March 19, 2007
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Harry Potter and the Chess Game
Here's an interesting article by Jeremy Silman, who designed the chess scene in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
http://www.jeremysilman.com/movies_tv_js/harry_potter.html
http://www.jeremysilman.com/movies_tv_js/harry_potter.html
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Linares/Morelia R14
Svidler 2728 - Morozevich 2741 [C11]
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 a6 8.Qd2 b5 9.a3 Bb7 10.dxc5 Bxc5 11.Bxc5 Nxc5 12.Bd3 b4 13.Ne2 Qb6 14.Qe3 d4 15.Nfxd4 Nxd4 16.Qxd4 bxa3 17.Rxa3 Rd8 18.Qe3 Qxb2 19.Qxc5 Qb1+ 20.Kd2 Qxh1 21.Nc3 Qxh2 22.Ra4 Qxg2+ 23.Kc1 Rc8 24.Qb4 Qg1+ 25.Nd1 Bf3 26.Rxa6 Qc5 27.Qa4+ Kf8 28.Ra5 Qg1 0-1
Leko 2749 - Carlsen 2690 [E15]
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 b6 4.g3 Bb4+ 5.Bd2 Bxd2+ 6.Qxd2 Ba6 7.b3 0-0 8.Nc3 d5 9.cxd5 exd5 10.Bg2 Re8 11.Ne5 c5 12.0-0 Bb7 13.Rfd1 Na6 14.Qf4 Nc7 15.Ng4 Nxg4 16.Qxg4 Qf6 17.e3 Rad8 18.Rac1 Qe7 19.dxc5 bxc5 20.Qa4 Rd7 21.Ne4 d4 22.exd4 Bxe4 23.Bxe4 Ne6 24.d5 Nd4 25.Re1 Qd8 26.Kf1 Rde7 27.Bd3 Qc8 28.g4 Rxe1+ 29.Rxe1 Rf8 30.h3 Qd8 31.Be4 Qb6 32.Bg2 g6 33.Kg1 Kg7 34.Qd7 Rd8 35.Qe7 a5 36.Kh1 Nb5 37.Re6 Nd6 38.Qf6+ Kg8 39.Re7 a4 40.bxa4 c4 41.Kh2 Qb8 42.f4 Qc8 43.Re3 Re8 44.Rxe8+ Nxe8 45.Qc6 Qxc6 46.dxc6 Kf8 47.Kg3 Ke7 48.Kf2 Kd6 49.Ke3 Kc5 50.g5 Nc7 51.a3 Ne6 52.Be4 c3 53.f5 1-0
Anand wins by a full point
Friday, March 09, 2007
Linares/Morelia R13
Morozevich over Topalov in 80 moves. The other three games were drawn.
Anand's 1/2 point lead at +3 intact going into the last round.
Anand's 1/2 point lead at +3 intact going into the last round.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Linares/Morelia R12
Ivanchuk 2750 - Morozevich 2741 [C45]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4 Bc5 5.Nb3 Bb6 6.Nc3 Nf6 7.Bg5 h6 8.Bh4 d6 9.Qe2 0-0 10.0-0-0 Re8 11.f3 Be6 12.Kb1 a5 13.Bf2 a4 14.Nc5 a3 15.Nxe6 Rxe6 16.Bxb6 cxb6 17.Qd2 axb2 18.Bc4 Re5 19.Bb3 Rc5 20.Na4 Rca5 21.Nc3 Ne8 22.Nd5 Ne5 23.Qd4 Nd7 24.Rd2 Nc5 25.Rhd1 Nxb3 26.axb3 Nc7 27.Nxc7 Qxc7 28.Qxb2 b5 29.Rxd6 b4 30.Rd7 Qxh2 31.Rxb7 Qxg2 32.Rxb4 Qxf3 33.Rbd4 Kh7 34.b4 Ra4 35.e5 Qe2 36.R4d3 h5 37.b5 Ra1+ 38.Qxa1 Rxa1+ 39.Kxa1 Qxe5+ 0-1
Leko 2749 - Svidler 2728 [B90]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.f3 Be6 9.Qd2 0-0 10.0-0-0 a5 11.Qe1 Qc8 12.a3 a4 13.Nd2 Nbd7 14.Kb1 Rd8 15.Bb5 d5 16.exd5 Nxd5 17.Nxd5 Bxd5 18.Qe2 Qc7 19.Ne4 Be6 20.Nc3 Nb6 21.Rxd8+ Rxd8 22.Nxa4 Nc4 23.Bxc4 Bxc4 24.Qf2 Qc6 25.Nb6 Be6 26.Qe2 f5 27.Re1 Bf6 28.g3 h6 29.Bf2 e4 30.fxe4 fxe4 31.a4 Qd6 32.c4 Qb4 33.Nd5 Bxd5 34.cxd5 Rxd5 35.Qc2 Rd2 36.Qc8+ Kf7 0-1
Anand's lead is unaffected at +3 with two rounds to go.
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Linares/Morelia R11
Carlsen 2690 - Ivanchuk 2750 [D87]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Bc4 c5 8.Ne2 Nc6 9.Be3 0-0 10.0-0 Na5 11.Bd3 b6 12.Rc1 cxd4 13.cxd4 e6 14.Qd2 Bb7 15.h4 Qe7 16.h5 Rfc8 17.e5 Rxc1 18.Rxc1 Rc8 19.Rxc8+ Bxc8 20.Bg5 Qc7 21.Bf6 Nc6 22.Qg5 h6 23.Qc1 g5 24.Bb5 Bd7 25.d5 exd5 26.Nd4 Bxf6 27.exf6 Qd6 28.Bxc6 Qxf6 29.Bxd7 Qxd4 30.g3 Qc5 31.Qxc5 bxc5 32.Bc6 d4 33.Bb5 Kf8 34.f4 gxf4 35.gxf4 1-0
Anand still in sole lead at +3, but Carlsen is only 1/2 point behind.
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Bc4 c5 8.Ne2 Nc6 9.Be3 0-0 10.0-0 Na5 11.Bd3 b6 12.Rc1 cxd4 13.cxd4 e6 14.Qd2 Bb7 15.h4 Qe7 16.h5 Rfc8 17.e5 Rxc1 18.Rxc1 Rc8 19.Rxc8+ Bxc8 20.Bg5 Qc7 21.Bf6 Nc6 22.Qg5 h6 23.Qc1 g5 24.Bb5 Bd7 25.d5 exd5 26.Nd4 Bxf6 27.exf6 Qd6 28.Bxc6 Qxf6 29.Bxd7 Qxd4 30.g3 Qc5 31.Qxc5 bxc5 32.Bc6 d4 33.Bb5 Kf8 34.f4 gxf4 35.gxf4 1-0
Anand still in sole lead at +3, but Carlsen is only 1/2 point behind.
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Linares/Morelia R10
Anand 2779 - Carlsen 2690 [C96]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0-0 9.h3 Na5 10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Nd7 12.d5 Nb6 13.Nbd2 g6 14.b4 cxb4 15.cxb4 Nac4 16.Nxc4 Nxc4 17.Bb3 Nb6 18.Be3 Bd7 19.Rc1 Rc8 20.Rxc8 Bxc8 21.Qc2 Bd7 22.Rc1 Na8 23.Qd2 Qb8 24.Bg5 Bxg5 25.Nxg5 Rc8 26.Rf1 h6 27.Ne6 Kh7 28.f4 Qa7+ 29.Kh2 Be8 30.f5 gxf5 31.exf5 f6 32.Re1 Nc7 33.Rc1 Bd7 34.Rc3 e4 35.Rg3 Nxe6 36.dxe6 Be8 37.e7 Bh5 38.Qxd6 1-0
Ivanchuk 2750 - Svidler 2728 [C88]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.h3 Bb7 9.d3 Re8 10.a4 h6 11.axb5 axb5 12.Rxa8 Bxa8 13.c3 d6 14.Na3 b4 15.Nc4 Bf8 16.Bd2 bxc3 17.bxc3 Nb8 18.Ne3 Nbd7 19.Ng4 Nc5 20.Bc4 Nxg4 21.hxg4 d5 22.exd5 Bxd5 23.Rxe5 Rxe5 24.Nxe5 Bxc4 25.dxc4 Ne4 26.Qf3 Nxd2 27.Qxf7+ Kh7 28.Qf5+ Kg8 29.Qe6+ Kh7 30.Qg6+ Kg8 31.Qe6+ Kh7 32.Qg6+ Kg8 33.Qf7+ Kh7 34.Nd7 Ba3 35.c5 Kh8 36.g5 hxg5 37.Qe6 Ne4 38.Qh3+ Kg8 39.Qe6+ Kh8 40.Qxe4 Qxd7 41.Qa8+ Kh7 42.Qxa3 Qd1+ 43.Kh2 Qh5+ 44.Kg1 1/2-1/2
Leko 2749 - Topalov 2783 [B90]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nf3 Qc7 8.a4 Be7 9.a5 0-0 10.Be2 Be6 11.0-0 Rc8 12.Nd5 Nxd5 13.exd5 Bg4 14.c4 Nd7 15.Nd2 Bxe2 16.Qxe2 f5 17.f3 Nf6 18.b4 Qd7 19.Rfd1 Qe8 20.Qd3 Qh5 21.c5 Rd8 22.Nc4 Rac8 23.Rac1 e4 24.fxe4 fxe4 25.Qb3 Ng4 26.h3 Nxe3 27.Nxe3 Bg5 28.c6 Rf8 29.Re1 Qh4 30.Qa2 Bf4 31.Qe2 Qg3 32.Nf1 Qd3 33.Qxd3 exd3 34.Rc4 bxc6 35.dxc6 d5 36.Rd4 Rxc6 37.Rxd3 Rc4 38.b5 axb5 39.Rxd5 b4 40.a6 Rc6 41.Rb5 Bd6 42.Ra1 Ra8 43.a7 Rb6 44.Rxb6 Bc5+ 45.Kh1 Bxb6 46.Ra4 Bc5 47.Ra5 Bxa7 48.Nd2 Rd8 49.Rxa7 Rxd2 50.Rb7 Rd4 51.Kg1 Rf4 52.Kh2 h5 53.Kg3 Rc4 54.Kf3 Kh7 55.Rb6 g5 56.Rb7+ Kg6 57.Rb6+ Kf7 58.g4 Rf4+ 59.Kg3 h4+ 60.Kg2 Rc4 61.Kf3 Ke7 62.Ke3 Kd7 63.Kd2 Kc7 64.Rb5 Kc6 65.Rxg5 b3 66.Rg8 Rc2+ 67.Kd1 Kc7 68.Rg7+ Kb6 69.Rg8 Ka7 70.Rg7+ Ka6 71.Rg8 Kb7 72.Rg7+ Kc6 73.Rg8 Rh2 74.Kc1 Rxh3 75.g5 Kd7 76.Rf8 Ke7 77.Rf6 Rg3 78.Rh6 h3 79.Kb2 Kf7 80.Ka3 Kg7 81.Kb2 Kg8 82.Ka3 Kf7 83.Kb2 Kg7 84.Kc1 1/2-1/2
Anand beats Carlsen, in sole lead by a full point at +3 now.
Comment on MGP2
In My Great Predecessors 2, Kasparov rants about the unfairness of the rule limiting world championship candidates from a single country. In particular, he claims that this rule operated against Bronstein (and Averbakh) in the Portoroz 1958 Interzonal and dedicates two pages (pp186-187) to these comments. However, I don't understand what he's talking about.
The six players who moved on from Portoroz to the 1959 Candidates Tournament were Tal (13.5), Gligoric (13), Petrosian and Benko (12.5), and Olafsson and Fischer (12) - and these are precisely the six highest scorers. Bronstein and Averbakh were a half-point behind at 11.5, together with Mantovic, Szabo and Pachman. Yes, IF Bronstein and Averbakh had scored 12, THEN the rule would have operated against them (because Tal and Petrosian were ahead of them and there was only one slot left). But they didn't, so I don't get what Kasparov's beef is.
The six players who moved on from Portoroz to the 1959 Candidates Tournament were Tal (13.5), Gligoric (13), Petrosian and Benko (12.5), and Olafsson and Fischer (12) - and these are precisely the six highest scorers. Bronstein and Averbakh were a half-point behind at 11.5, together with Mantovic, Szabo and Pachman. Yes, IF Bronstein and Averbakh had scored 12, THEN the rule would have operated against them (because Tal and Petrosian were ahead of them and there was only one slot left). But they didn't, so I don't get what Kasparov's beef is.
Saturday, March 03, 2007
New World Championship Format (Again)
It's deja vu all over again. Ilyumzhinov has instituted yet another world championship qualification system. In all fairness, this system makes some sense. But we all know it won't stick any more than the last five systems he's suggested, so who cares. It's so sad that professional chess has turned into such a joke.
The proposal is to terminate the World Championship Tournament and keep the World Cup as a Candidates tournament to find a challenger for a World Championship match. So in every odd year there will be only the World Cup (2007, 2009, etc.) and the respective winner will play every next year (2008, 2010, etc.) a match against the World Champion.
2007: World Cup will be held in Khanty-Mansiysk
Early 2008: The winner from WCCT 2007 in Mexico plays a World Championship match against the previous World Champion. If Kramnik does not win the WCCT 2007, then Kramnik [as previous World Champion] can challenge the winner of Mexico in the first part of 2008. If Kramnik wins in Mexico, then the right to challenge goes to the previous World Champion, i.e. Topalov.
Late 2008 or Early 2009: The winner of the 2008 World Championship match plays a World Championship match against the winner of the 2007 World Cup.
A little bit more detail is available on the Chessbase website.
The proposal is to terminate the World Championship Tournament and keep the World Cup as a Candidates tournament to find a challenger for a World Championship match. So in every odd year there will be only the World Cup (2007, 2009, etc.) and the respective winner will play every next year (2008, 2010, etc.) a match against the World Champion.
2007: World Cup will be held in Khanty-Mansiysk
Early 2008: The winner from WCCT 2007 in Mexico plays a World Championship match against the previous World Champion. If Kramnik does not win the WCCT 2007, then Kramnik [as previous World Champion] can challenge the winner of Mexico in the first part of 2008. If Kramnik wins in Mexico, then the right to challenge goes to the previous World Champion, i.e. Topalov.
Late 2008 or Early 2009: The winner of the 2008 World Championship match plays a World Championship match against the winner of the 2007 World Cup.
A little bit more detail is available on the Chessbase website.
Linares/Morelia R9
Anand and Carlsen in lead at +2. Topalov is 1/2 point from the bottom of the table. I predict that the April 2007 ratings list will sport a new #1.
Svidler 2728 - Anand 2779 [C42]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.d4 d5 6.Bd3 Nc6 7.0-0 Be7 8.c4 Nb4 9.Be2 0-0 10.a3 Nc6 11.cxd5 Qxd5 12.Nc3 Nxc3 13.bxc3 Bf5 14.Re1 Rfe8 15.Bf4 Rac8 16.h3 Be4 17.Qa4 Qf5 18.Bg3 Bc2 19.Qb5 Qxb5 20.Bxb5 a6 21.Bxc6 bxc6 22.Re5 f6 23.Ra5 Bd3 24.Ne1 Bb5 25.a4 Be2 26.Nc2 c5 27.dxc5 Kf7 28.c6 Red8 29.Ne3 Rd2 30.Rb1 Bd6 31.Bxd6 Rxd6 32.Nf5 Rxc6 33.Nd4 Rb6 34.Re1 Bd3 35.Rc5 Rd6 36.Re3 Bb1 37.Nc6 Re8 38.Nd4 Rc8 39.Re2 Bd3 40.Re1 Rd7 41.f3 1/2-1/2
Topalov 2783 - Ivanchuk 2750 [B42]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 a6 5.Bd3 Bc5 6.Nb3 Ba7 7.Qe2 d6 8.Be3 Nc6 9.f4 Nge7 10.0-0 0-0 11.c3 b5 12.N1d2 Bxe3+ 13.Qxe3 Rb8 14.Kh1 Qb6 15.Qe2 a5 16.a3 Bd7 17.Rf3 Ng6 18.g3 Rfd8 19.Rd1 Nce7 20.h4 h6 21.Kh2 Be8 22.Rg1 Nc6 23.h5 Nf8 24.g4 e5 25.g5 hxg5 26.fxg5 Rb7 27.Qf1 Ne6 28.h6 g6 29.Nc1 Qc7 30.Qf2 Qe7 31.Qh4 b4 32.Nc4 bxc3 33.bxc3 d5 34.exd5 Rxd5 35.Re3 Qc5 36.Rf1 Rb2+ 37.Rf2 Rxf2+ 38.Qxf2 Qe7 39.Be4 Rd1 40.Qc2 Rd8 41.Nd3 Nxg5 42.Bxc6 Bxc6 43.Ndxe5 Qf6 44.Nxc6 Qxc6 45.Qe2 Qc7+ 46.Ne5 Rd5 47.Kg2 Ne6 48.Qc4 Qe7 49.Kg3 Qg5+ 50.Ng4 Rc5 51.Qe4 Rf5 52.Rf3 Kh7 53.c4 a4 54.Qe3 Qe7 55.Qc3 Qc7+ 56.Kf2 Rxf3+ 57.Qxf3 Qc5+ 58.Ne3 f5 59.Qb7+ Kxh6 60.Qd5 Qe7 61.Qe5 Qh4+ 62.Kf1 Ng5 63.Qh8+ Nh7 64.Qe5 Nf6 65.Ke2 Kg5 66.c5 Qh5+ 67.Kd3 Qf3 68.Kc4 Qb7 69.Qc3 Ne4 70.Qb4 Qa6+ 71.Kd4 Qf6+ 72.Kd5 Kf4 73.Qd4 Qf7+ 74.Kc6 Qe8+ 75.Kb6 Qb8+ 76.Ka6 Qa8+ 77.Kb6 Qb8+ 1/2-1/2
Morozevich 2741 - Leko 2749 [E15]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.g3 Ba6 5.Qb3 Be7 6.Nc3 0-0 7.e4 c5 8.d5 exd5 9.exd5 Re8 10.Bd3 Bf8+ 11.Kf1 d6 12.Kg2 Nbd7 13.h4 g6 14.Qa4 Bb7 15.h5 Nxh5 16.Rxh5 gxh5 17.Ne4 f5 18.Neg5 h6 19.Nh3 Ne5 20.Nxe5 dxe5 21.Bxf5 Qf6 22.Be4 Re7 23.Qd1 h4 24.Qh5 hxg3 25.fxg3 Rg7 26.Bd2 Qf7 27.Qe2 Bc8 28.Nf2 Bf5 29.Bxf5 Qxf5 30.Ne4 Rf7 31.Rh1 Qg6 32.Rh4 Kh8 33.Ng5 Rf5 34.Ne6 h5 35.Bg5 Kg8 36.Rxh5 Re8 37.g4 Rf7 38.Bh4 Bg7 39.Rg5 Qh6 40.Qxe5 Kh8 41.Rxg7 Qd2+ 42.Kh3 Qd3+ 43.Bg3 Rxe6 44.dxe6 Rxg7 45.e7 Qh7+ 46.Kg2 1-0
Carlsen-Aronian copied Topalov-Leko from round 3 until the 27th move and was abandoned as a draw two moves later.
Friday, March 02, 2007
Linares/Morelia R8
Anand, Carlsen in lead at +2.
Morozevich 2741 - Carlsen 2690 [C83]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.c3 Be7 10.Nbd2 Nc5 11.a4 Nxb3 12.Qxb3 0-0 13.axb5 axb5 14.Rxa8 Qxa8 15.Qxb5 Rd8 16.Qd3 Qb7 17.Nd4 Nxe5 18.Qe2 Bf6 19.Nxe6 fxe6 20.f4 Qb6+ 21.Kh1 Nf7 22.Nf3 c5 23.g4 Re8 24.g5 Bd8 25.f5 e5 26.c4 Qa6 27.Re1 e4 28.cxd5 Qxe2 29.Rxe2 Nd6 30.Nh4 h6 31.Bf4 Nb5 32.d6 Nd4 33.Rg2 Bxg5 34.Bxg5 hxg5 35.Rxg5 Kf7 36.Rg3 Nb5 37.Rg6 Rd8 38.Re6 Nxd6 39.Re5 c4 40.Rd5 Kf6 41.Ng2 Ke7 42.Ne3 1/2-1/2
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Morelia/Linares R7
Ivanchuk 2750 - Aronian 2744 [D38]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Bg5 Nbd7 6.cxd5 exd5 7.Qc2 c5 8.a3 Bxc3+ 9.Qxc3 h6 10.Bxf6 Qxf6 11.e3 0-0 12.Be2 b6 13.0-0 Bb7 14.Rfc1 Rac8 15.dxc5 Qxc3 16.Rxc3 Rxc5 17.Rcc1 Rfc8 18.Rd1 Rc2 19.Bb5 Nf8 20.Rab1 R2c7 21.Ba4 Ne6 22.Bb3 Kf8 23.h3 Rc5 24.Kh2 Ke7 25.Rd2 Rb5 26.Ba2 Rbc5 27.Ne1 a5 28.Rbd1 Rd8 29.Kg3 Rb5 30.f3 Rc8 31.Nd3 d4 32.Bxe6 Kxe6 33.Nf4+ Ke7 34.Rxd4 Rc7 35.R1d2 Rbc5 36.e4 Rc4 37.Rd6 R4c6 38.e5 Rc2 39.Rxc2 Rxc2 40.Rxb6 Bc6 41.b4 g5 42.Nh5 axb4 43.axb4 Bd5 44.Ng7 Re2 45.Nf5+ Ke8 46.Nxh6 Be6 47.Rb5 Rb2 48.Rb8+ Kd7 49.Rg8 1-0
Leko 2749 - Anand 2779 [E04]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Nf3 dxc4 5.Bg2 a6 6.0-0 Nc6 7.e3 Bd7 8.Nc3 b5 9.Ne5 Nxe5 10.dxe5 Nd5 11.Nxd5 exd5 12.Qxd5 Rb8 13.a4 Bb4 14.Rd1 Qe7 15.Bd2 Bc5 16.axb5 axb5 17.Ba5 c6 18.Qd2 Rc8 19.Rac1 h5 20.b4 Ba7 21.Ra1 Rh6 22.Qc3 Bf5 23.e6 Rxe6 24.Qxg7 Bg4 25.Rd2 Bb8 26.h3 Be5 27.Qg8+ Qf8 28.Qxf8+ Kxf8 29.Rc1 Bf5 30.e4 Bh7 31.Bb6 Bf6 32.h4 Bxe4 33.Bh3 Bd5 34.Bxe6 fxe6 35.Bc5+ Be7 36.Bxe7+ Kxe7 37.Rb2 Kd6 38.Kf1 c5 39.Ke2 cxb4 40.Rxb4 Kc5 41.Rcb1 Bc6 0-1
Topalov 2783 - Morozevich 2741 [C11]
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 a6 8.Ne2 Qb6 9.Qc1 g5 10.c3 cxd4 11.cxd4 Bb4+ 12.Kf2 f6 13.g3 Rf8 14.Kg2 g4 15.Nh4 Rg8 16.h3 h5 17.hxg4 hxg4 18.Nc3 fxe5 19.fxe5 Ncxe5 20.dxe5 d4 21.Na4 Qa5 22.Qc4 Nxe5 23.Qxd4 Nf3 24.Nxf3 gxf3+ 25.Kf2 Qxa4 26.Bd3 Qd7 27.Qe4 Bd6 28.Rag1 Qg7 29.Rh6 Qxb2+ 30.Kxf3 Rf8+ 31.Bf4 Qe5 32.Qg6+ Kd8 33.Kg2 Qb2+ 34.Kh1 Bxf4 35.gxf4 Bd7 36.Be4 Kc7 37.Rb1 Qf2 38.Rxb7+ Kc8 39.Rb1 Ra7 40.f5 Rc7 41.fxe6 Be8 42.Qg5 Qd4 43.Bg2 Rf4 44.e7 Rc5 45.Qg3 Rc3 46.Qe1 Re3 47.Qa5 Bb5 48.Rc1+ 1-0
At the half-way point, Anand and Carlsen are in the lead with a score of 4.5 (+3-1=3).
On to Linares!
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Morelia/Linares R6
Anand 2779 - Ivanchuk 2750 [B90]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nb3 Be6 8.Qd2 Nbd7 9.0-0-0 Be7 10.h3 b5 11.g4 0-0 12.Kb1 Qc7 13.Bg2 Nb6 14.Bxb6 Qxb6 15.f4 Bc4 16.g5 Nh5 17.fxe5 dxe5 18.Nd5 Bxd5 19.exd5 Bd6 20.Na5 f5 21.gxf6 Rxf6 22.Rhf1 Re8 23.Rxf6 Nxf6 24.Nb3 e4 25.Nd4 Re5 26.c3 Qc5 27.Qe2 Nxd5 28.Bxe4 Nf6 29.Nb3 Qc7 30.Nd2 Qe7 31.Qd3 Bc5 32.Bg2 1/2-1/2
The other three games were drawn in 16, 20 and 22 moves. Carlsen remains in the lead at +2.Thursday, February 22, 2007
Morelia/Linares R5
Aronian 2744 - Anand 2779 [D23]
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Qc2 dxc4 5.Qxc4 Bf5 6.g3 Nbd7 7.Nc3 e6 8.Bg2 Be7 9.0-0 0-0 10.Re1 Ne4 11.Qb3 Qb6 12.Nh4 Bxh4 13.gxh4 Nef6 14.e4 Bg6 15.Qxb6 axb6 16.Bf4 Rfe8 17.Rad1 b5 18.Bd6 e5 19.d5 Nh5 20.Bf1 f6 21.b3 Nf4 22.a4 bxa4 23.bxa4 Bf7 24.Rb1 Ra7 25.Red1 Rc8 26.Ne2 Nxe2+ 27.Bxe2 cxd5 28.exd5 Nf8 29.Bb5 Raa8 30.Be7 Ng6 31.d6 Nxe7 32.Bd7 Nc6 33.Rxb7 Nd4 34.Bxc8 Rxc8 35.Rdb1 Rf8 36.Rb8 Be8 37.a5 Nf3+ 38.Kf1 Nd2+ 39.Ke1 Nxb1 40.a6 Bc6 41.a7 Kf7 42.d7 Ke7 43.Rxf8 Kxd7 44.a8Q Bxa8 45.Rxa8 h5 46.Ra7+ Ke6 47.Rxg7 Kf5 48.Rg3 1-0
Carlsen 2690 - Topalov 2783 [D45]
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.e3 Nbd7 6.Qc2 Bd6 7.b3 0-0 8.Be2 b6 9.0-0 Bb7 10.Bb2 Re8 11.Rad1 Qe7 12.Rfe1 Rac8 13.e4 Nxe4 14.Nxe4 dxe4 15.Qxe4 Bb4 16.Rf1 Ba3 17.Bxa3 Qxa3 18.Qc2 Nf6 19.c5 Ba6 20.Bxa6 Qxa6 21.Ne5 Nd5 22.Nc4 Red8 23.a3 Rc7 24.Qc1 Ne7 25.Rd2 Nf5 26.Rfd1 b5 27.Ne5 Qc8 28.Rd3 f6 29.Nf3 Rcd7 30.Qf4 Rd5 31.Qe4 Qd7 32.R3d2 h5 33.h4 a5 34.Kf1 Re8 35.Re1 Kf7 36.Red1 Nh6 37.Re1 Re7 38.Qf4 Rf5 39.Qd6 Qc8 40.Rde2 Rd5 41.Qf4 Nf5 42.Re4 Rd8 43.g4 hxg4 44.Qxg4 Qd7 45.h5 Kg8 46.Kg2 Qd5 47.Qg6 Rf8 48.h6 Qd8 49.d5 Qxd5 50.Rg4 Qd7 51.Rh1 Qe8 52.hxg7 Rxg7 53.Qh7+ Kf7 54.Rxg7+ Nxg7 55.Rh6 Qd8 56.Qg6+ Kg8 57.Qh7+ Kf7 58.Qg6+ Kg8 59.Rh7 Qd7 60.Nd2 f5 61.Nf3 Rf6 62.Qxf6 Kxh7 63.Ng5+ Kg8 64.Qg6 1-0Turns out that Topalov resigned in a position that is a draw. Carlsen showed him the defense immediately after he had resigned {64...Qd5+ 65.f3 e5 66.Qh7+ Kf8 67.Qh8+ Qg8 68.Nh7+ Draw}. So if it happens to the world's highest rated player, I shouldn't feel too bad that it happened to me.
Carlsen in lead at +2
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Morelia/Linares R4
Anand 2779 - Morozevich 2741 [C95]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0-0 9.h3 Nb8 10.d4 Nbd7 11.Nbd2 Bb7 12.Bc2 Re8 13.Nf1 Bf8 14.Ng3 c6 15.Nf5 Qc7 16.dxe5 dxe5 17.Nh2 c5 18.Qf3 c4 19.Bg5 Re6 20.Rad1 Nc5 21.Bxf6 Rxf6 22.Ng4 Re6 23.Nge3 Qa5 24.a3 g6 25.Nd5 Rd8 26.Qg3 Rd7 27.Nfe3 Qd8 28.Qf3 Bg7 29.a4 Red6 30.axb5 axb5 31.g4 Qh4 32.Ra1 Ne6 33.Qg3 Qxg3+ 34.fxg3 Nc5 35.h4 h6 36.Ra5 Bc6 37.Nb4 Bxe4 38.Bxe4 Nxe4 39.Rxb5 Nd2 40.Kg2 e4 41.Re2 Bf8 42.Ned5 e3 43.Nxe3 Re6 44.Nbd5 Nb3 45.Nf4 Rc6 46.Nxc4 Rxc4 47.Rxb3 Kg7 48.Rb5 Bc5 49.g5 hxg5 50.hxg5 Be7 51.Kf3 Bd8 52.Re4 Rc6 53.Kg4 Rd2 54.Rd5 Rxd5 55.Nxd5 Re6 56.Rxe6 fxe6 57.Nf4 Kf7 58.Nd3 Bc7 59.Kf3 1-0
Ivanchuk 2750 - Carlsen 2690 [A46]
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 b5 5.Nbd2 Bb7 6.Nb3 a5 7.Bd2 Nc6 8.Nc1 Bd6 9.Nd3 0-0 10.0-0 Ne4 11.Be3 b4 12.Re1 Ba6 13.Nfe5 Ne7 14.f3 Nf5 15.Bf4 Nf6 16.c3 Ne7 17.Qd2 bxc3 18.bxc3 Rc8 19.Bg5 Bxd3 20.Nxd3 Nd7 21.e4 c5 22.exd5 exd5 23.Bh3 cxd4 24.cxd4 h6 25.Bf4 Bxf4 26.Nxf4 Rc4 27.Bf1 Rc8 28.Bh3 Rc4 29.Bf1 Rc8 30.Rab1 Nf6 31.Rb5 Nc6 32.Rc5 Qb6 33.Rec1 g5 34.Ne2 Ne5 35.Qc3 Nc4 36.Kh1 Nd7 37.Rxc8 Rxc8 38.Qd3 Nf6 39.Nc3 Qb2 40.Rc2 Qa1 41.Qd1 Qxd1 42.Nxd1 Re8 43.Kg2 Ne3+ 44.Nxe3 Rxe3 45.Kf2 Ra3 46.Bb5 h5 47.Ke2 Kg7 48.Rb2 h4 49.Kf2 hxg3+ 50.hxg3 g4 51.Be2 gxf3 52.Bxf3 a4 53.Rb5 Rxa2+ 54.Ke3 a3 55.Ra5 Ra1 56.Kd2 a2 57.Kc2 Rf1 58.Bd1 Ne4 59.g4 Nf2 60.Rxa2 Rxd1 0-1
Leko 2749 - Aronian 2744 [E10]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Bb4+ 5.Bd2 Be7 6.Bg2 0-0 7.0-0 c6 8.Bf4 b6 9.Nc3 Bb7 10.Rc1 Nh5 11.Bxb8 Qxb8 12.Ne5 Nf6 13.e3 Rd8 14.cxd5 cxd5 15.f4 Qd6 16.Nb5 Qb4 17.Rc7 Ba6 18.a4 Bxb5 19.axb5 Bd6 20.Rxf7 Bxe5 21.fxe5 Kxf7 22.Qh5+ Kg8 23.exf6 gxf6 24.Qg4+ Kh8 25.Qxe6 Rf8 26.Qxd5 Rae8 27.Rf3 Qe1+ 28.Bf1 Rxe3 29.Qd6 Ree8 30.Rxf6 Kg7 31.Rxf8 Rxf8 32.Qe5+ Qxe5 33.dxe5 Re8 34.Bc4 Rxe5 35.Kf2 Kf6 36.b3 Re4 37.Bd3 Re7 38.Kf3 h6 39.Kg4 Re5 40.Bc4 Rc5 41.Kf4 Rf5+ 42.Ke4 Rf2 43.h4 Rd2 44.Ke3 Rd8 45.Ke4 Rd1 46.Bd5 1/2-1/2
Anand in sole lead at +2
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Morelia/Linares R3
Carlsen 2690 - Anand 2779 [E15]
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Nf3 Nbd7 6.Bd3 dxc4 7.Bxc4 b5 8.Bd3 Bd6 9.0-0 0-0 10.b3 Bb7 11.Bb2 a6 12.Ne4 Nxe4 13.Bxe4 Nf6 14.Bc2 c5 15.dxc5 Bxc5 16.Ng5 Qxd1 17.Raxd1 Kh8 18.g3 h6 19.Bxf6 hxg5 20.Bb2 Rac8 21.Rc1 Rfd8 22.Rfd1 Bf3 23.Rxd8+ Rxd8 24.a3 b4 25.a4 f5 26.Kf1 f4 27.Be4 Bxe4 28.Rxc5 Rd1+ 29.Ke2 Rb1 30.Bc1 f3+ 31.Kd1 Rxb3 32.Rc4 Bd3 33.Rc8+ Kh7 34.e4 Rb1 35.Kd2 Bxe4 36.Ke3 Bd5 37.Bd2 Rb3+ 38.Kd4 Rb2 39.Be3 Re2 40.Rc1 Ba2 0-1
Morozevich 2741 - Aronian 2744 [D38]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.cxd5 exd5 6.Bg5 Nbd7 7.e3 c5 8.Be2 Qa5 9.0-0 0-0 10.Nd2 Bxc3 11.bxc3 Qxc3 12.Rc1 Qa3 13.dxc5 Qxa2 14.Bf4 Re8 15.Nf3 Ne4 16.Bb5 a6 17.Ba4 Nexc5 18.Rxc5 Nxc5 19.Bxe8 Be6 20.Be5 Rxe8 21.Bxg7 Kxg7 22.Qd4+ Kg8 23.Qxc5 Qc4 24.Qd6 Rc8 25.h3 Qc7 26.Qb4 a5 27.Qh4 Qc2 28.Nd4 Qe4 29.Qe7 b6 30.Kh2 Bf5 31.Qf6 Bg6 32.f4 Qxe3 33.Rf3 Qc1 34.Rg3 Qa1 35.f5 Rc1 36.Re3 Rh1+ 37.Kg3 Re1 38.Rf3 Rf1 39.fxg6 Rxf3+ 40.Qxf3 Qe1+ 41.Kf4 hxg6 42.Qxd5 Qf2+ 43.Nf3 1/2-1/2
Svidler 2728 - Ivanchuk 2750 [C42]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.d4 d5 6.Bd3 Bd6 7.0-0 0-0 8.c4 c6 9.Re1 Bf5 10.Qb3 Qd7 11.Nc3 Nxc3 12.Bxf5 Qxf5 13.Qxb7 Qd7 14.Qxd7 Nxd7 15.c5 Bxh2+ 16.Nxh2 Ne4 17.Bf4 Rfe8 18.f3 Nef6 19.Nf1 Nf8 20.Rxe8 Rxe8 21.Rd1 Re7 22.Nd2 Ne6 23.Be5 a5 24.Nb3 Ra7 25.a4 Nh5 26.Re1 h6 27.Kf2 Nhf4 28.Re3 h5 29.g3 Nh3+ 30.Ke1 g5 31.Nc1 g4 32.fxg4 hxg4 33.Rb3 Nhg5 34.Bb8 Rd7 35.Ne2 Nf3+ 36.Kd1 Nfxd4 37.Nxd4 Nxd4 38.Rb6 Re7 39.b4 axb4 40.a5 Re3 41.Rxb4 Nb5 42.Kd2 Re8 43.Rxg4+ Kh7 44.Bd6 d4 45.Bf4 Ra8 46.Rh4+ Kg7 47.Be5+ f6 48.Rg4+ Kf7 49.Rf4 Ke6 50.Bxd4 Nxd4 51.Rxd4 Rxa5 52.Rd6+ Ke5 53.Rxc6 Ra3 1/2-1/2
Anand, Ivanchuk in lead at +1
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Morelia/Linares R2
Ivanchuk and Carlsen in the lead at +1.
Ivanchuk 2750 - Topalov 2783 [B90]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nf3 Be7 8.Bc4 0-0 9.0-0 Be6 10.Bxe6 fxe6 11.Na4 Ng4 12.Qd3 Nxe3 13.Qxe3 b5 14.Nb6 Ra7 15.Nd5 Rb7 16.Qd2 Nc6 17.Rad1 Rd7 18.Qc3 Nb8 19.Nxe7+ Qxe7 20.Rd3 h6 21.Rfd1 Rfd8 22.h4 Kh7 23.R1d2 Qf8 24.Qb3 Qe8 25.a4 Qg6 26.axb5 axb5 27.Re3 Na6 28.Qxb5 Nc5 29.Qc4 Ra7 30.Re1 Qe8 31.b4 Na4 32.Qb3 Nb6 33.Red1 Rad7 34.Qd3 Rc8 35.c3 Ra7 36.Qe3 Ra6 37.Qe2 Nc4 38.Ra2 Rac6 39.Ra7 R6c7 40.Rda1 Qf7 41.Qxc4 1-0
Anand 2779 - Svidler 2728 [C88]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.h3 Bb7 9.d3 Re8 10.a4 h6 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.c3 Na5 13.Bc2 c5 14.d4 cxd4 15.cxd4 exd4 16.e5 Nd5 17.Nxd4 Nb4 18.axb5 Nxc2 19.Qxc2 axb5 20.Nxb5 Qb6 21.Nc3 Qc6 22.Nf3 Nc4 23.Rxa8 Bxa8 24.Bf4 Bb4 25.Qb3 Ba5 26.Rc1 Qe6 27.Ne1 Bc6 28.Ne2 Nxe5 29.Qxe6 Rxe6 30.Nd4 Bxe1 31.Rxe1 Nd3 32.Nxe6 Nxe1 33.Nd4 Nd3 34.Bd6 Nxb2 35.f3 Nc4 36.Bb4 h5 37.Kf2 f6 38.Nf5 Ne5 39.Bc3 Kf7 40.Nd6+ Ke7 41.Nf5+ Kf8 42.Ke3 g6 43.Nd6 Ke7 44.Bb4 g5 45.Nc4+ Ke6 46.Nxe5 fxe5 47.Bd2 1/2-1/2
Ivanchuk 2750 - Topalov 2783 [B90]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nf3 Be7 8.Bc4 0-0 9.0-0 Be6 10.Bxe6 fxe6 11.Na4 Ng4 12.Qd3 Nxe3 13.Qxe3 b5 14.Nb6 Ra7 15.Nd5 Rb7 16.Qd2 Nc6 17.Rad1 Rd7 18.Qc3 Nb8 19.Nxe7+ Qxe7 20.Rd3 h6 21.Rfd1 Rfd8 22.h4 Kh7 23.R1d2 Qf8 24.Qb3 Qe8 25.a4 Qg6 26.axb5 axb5 27.Re3 Na6 28.Qxb5 Nc5 29.Qc4 Ra7 30.Re1 Qe8 31.b4 Na4 32.Qb3 Nb6 33.Red1 Rad7 34.Qd3 Rc8 35.c3 Ra7 36.Qe3 Ra6 37.Qe2 Nc4 38.Ra2 Rac6 39.Ra7 R6c7 40.Rda1 Qf7 41.Qxc4 1-0
Anand 2779 - Svidler 2728 [C88]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.h3 Bb7 9.d3 Re8 10.a4 h6 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.c3 Na5 13.Bc2 c5 14.d4 cxd4 15.cxd4 exd4 16.e5 Nd5 17.Nxd4 Nb4 18.axb5 Nxc2 19.Qxc2 axb5 20.Nxb5 Qb6 21.Nc3 Qc6 22.Nf3 Nc4 23.Rxa8 Bxa8 24.Bf4 Bb4 25.Qb3 Ba5 26.Rc1 Qe6 27.Ne1 Bc6 28.Ne2 Nxe5 29.Qxe6 Rxe6 30.Nd4 Bxe1 31.Rxe1 Nd3 32.Nxe6 Nxe1 33.Nd4 Nd3 34.Bd6 Nxb2 35.f3 Nc4 36.Bb4 h5 37.Kf2 f6 38.Nf5 Ne5 39.Bc3 Kf7 40.Nd6+ Ke7 41.Nf5+ Kf8 42.Ke3 g6 43.Nd6 Ke7 44.Bb4 g5 45.Nc4+ Ke6 46.Nxe5 fxe5 47.Bd2 1/2-1/2
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Morelia/Linares R1
Carlsen (2690) - Morozevich (2741) [E66]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 0-0 5.Nc3 d6 6.Nf3 c5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.d5 Na5 9.Nd2 e5 10.b3 Ng4 11.h3 Nh6 12.Nde4 f6 13.Nxd6 Qxd6 14.Ne4 Qd8 15.Nxc5 f5 16.d6 e4 17.d7 Nf7 18.Rb1 Qe7 19.dxc8Q Raxc8 20.Na4 Rfd8 21.Qe1 Nc6 22.Nc3 Nd4 23.Bb2 b5 24.Nd5 Qd6 25.Bxd4 Bxd4 26.Rd1 Be5 27.Qa5 bxc4 28.Ne3 Qc7 29.Qxc7 Bxc7 30.Nxc4 Ne5 31.Rxd8+ Rxd8 32.Rc1 Nxc4 33.Rxc4 Rd1+ 34.Bf1 Bd6 35.e3 a5 36.Kg2 Kf7 37.Rc2 Ke7 38.Be2 Rd5 39.Bc4 Rd1 40.g4 f4 41.exf4 Bxf4 42.Re2 Rd4 43.Bd3 Kf6 44.Bxe4 Rd2 45.Rxd2 Bxd2 46.Kg3 Be1 47.Kf3 Bb4 48.h4 h6 49.Ke2 Bd6 50.Kd3 Bc5 51.f4 h5 52.g5+ Kg7 53.Kc4 Bd6 54.Kb5 Bxf4 55.Kxa5 Bg3 56.Kb5 Bxh4 57.a4 Bxg5 58.a5 Kf6 59.a6 Be3 60.Kc6 g5 61.b4 Ke5 62.b5 Kxe4 63.b6 g4 64.a7 g3 65.a8Q Kf3 66.b7 Bf4 67.Qf8 Ke4 68.Qe8+ 1-0
The other three games ended in draws, so Carlsen is for the moment in the lead at +1.Monday, January 29, 2007
Saturday, January 20, 2007
World Cup Results
Note that despite being sponsored by FIDE and being called the World Cup and taking place in 2007, this is NOT the 2007 FIDE World Cup that will determine the world championship candidate in late 2008, per FIDE's latest proposal for mis-managing the world title.
| 1/4 | 1/2 | Final | Winner | |||||
| Sokolov |  | |||||||
| 0.5-1.5 | LEKO |  | ||||||
| LEKO | ||||||||
| 2-0 | LEKO |  | ||||||
| RUBLEVSKY | | |||||||
| 1.5-0.5 | Rublevsky | |||||||
| Naiditsch | ||||||||
| 3-2 | LEKO | |||||||
| Smirin | | |||||||
| 0.5-1.5 | Shirov | | ||||||
| SHIROV | ||||||||
| 0.5-1.5 | Gelfand | |||||||
| GELFAND | | |||||||
| 2-0 | GELFAND | |||||||
| Nakamura | ||||||||
| 2.5-1.5 | LEKO | |||||||
| Harikrishna |  | |||||||
| 2-3 | Morozevich |  | ||||||
| MOROZEVICH | ||||||||
| 0.5-1.5 | Radjabov |  | ||||||
| RADJABOV | | |||||||
| 1.5-0.5 | RADJABOV | |||||||
| Bareev | ||||||||
| 0-2 | Ivanchuk | |||||||
| Bologan | | |||||||
| 2-3 | Bacrot | | ||||||
| BACROT | ||||||||
| 0.5-1.5 | IVANCHUK | |||||||
| IVANCHUK | | |||||||
| 2-0 | IVANCHUK | |||||||
| Amonatov | ||||||||
Monday, January 01, 2007
January 2007 Rating List
| Rank | Name | Title | Country | Rating | Games | B-Year |
| 1 | Topalov, Veselin | g | BUL | 2783 | 17 | 1975 |
| 2 | Anand, Viswanathan | g | IND | 2779 | 0 | 1969 |
| 3 | Kramnik, Vladimir | g | RUS | 2766 | 11 | 1975 |
| 4 | Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar | g | AZE | 2754 | 25 | 1985 |
| 5 | Ivanchuk, Vassily | g | UKR | 2750 | 33 | 1969 |
| 6 | Leko, Peter | g | HUN | 2749 | 9 | 1979 |
| 7 | Aronian, Levon | g | ARM | 2744 | 13 | 1982 |
| 8 | Morozevich, Alexander | g | RUS | 2741 | 15 | 1977 |
| 9 | Adams, Michael | g | ENG | 2735 | 0 | 1971 |
| 10 | Gelfand, Boris | g | ISR | 2733 | 19 | 1968 |
| 11 | Radjabov, Teimour | g | AZE | 2729 | 6 | 1987 |
| 12 | Svidler, Peter | g | RUS | 2728 | 28 | 1976 |
| 13 | Polgar, Judit | g | HUN | 2727 | 6 | 1976 |
| 14 | Ponomariov, Ruslan | g | UKR | 2723 | 15 | 1983 |
| 15 | Navara, David | g | CZE | 2719 | 16 | 1985 |
| 16 | Grischuk, Alexander | g | RUS | 2717 | 16 | 1983 |
| 17 | Shirov, Alexei | g | ESP | 2715 | 21 | 1972 |
| 18 | Bacrot, Etienne | g | FRA | 2705 | 0 | 1983 |
| 19 | Kamsky, Gata | g | USA | 2705 | 0 | 1974 |
| 20 | Akopian, Vladimir | g | ARM | 2700 | 15 | 1971 |
| 21 | Sasikiran, Krishnan | g | IND | 2700 | 14 | 1981 |
- Topalov hangs on to the #1 slot, 4 points ahead of Anand
- Mamedyarov moves up 8 slots to #4 with a 26-point gain
- Svidler drops 9 slots to #12
- Sasikiran joins the 2700 club
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Two more games
RMD-ALD, 12/23/2006
1.Nc3 Nf6 2.e4 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.Bb5 Bb4 5.d4 {5.O-O O-O 6.d3 (C49)} Nxe4 6.Bxc6 {6.Qd3, Paulsen Louis - Morphy Paul, New York 1857; 6.O-O Bxc3 (6...Nxc3 7.bxc3 Bxc3, Smejkalova Martina - Simlova Jana, Czech Republic 2001) 7.bxc3 a6, Pearson Alexandra - Sakthivel Gaya, Sydney 2002} dxc6 7.Nxe5 O-O 8.O-O Nxc3 9.bxc3 Bd6 10.Qd3 Qh4 11.Nf3 Qf6 12.Ng5 Qh6 13.g3 Bh3 14.Nxh3 Qxh3 15.Re1 Rfe8 16.Bd2 Re7 17.Rxe7 Bxe7 18.Re1 Qd7 19.Kg2 Re8 20.h3 Bd6 21.Re4 Rxe4 22.Qxe4 Be7 23.Qf4 Qd5+ 24.Kh2 Bd6 25.Qg4 h5 26.Qc8+ Kh7 27.Qxb7 h4 28.Bf4 Bxf4 29.gxf4 Qxa2 30.Qb3 Qxb3 31.cxb3 Kg6 32.Kg2 Kf5 33.Kf3 f6 34.Ke3 g5 35.fxg5 fxg5 36.f3 a6? {36...a5!=} 37.b4 c5 38.d5? {38.dxc5! +/-} cxb4 39.cxb4 Ke5 40.Kd3 Kf4 41.Kd4 Kxf3 42.Kc5 g4 43.Kc6 gxh3 44.Kxc7 h2 45.d6 h1Q 46.d7 Qc1+ 47.Kb7 {47.Kd6} Qd2 48.Kc8 Qxd7+ 49.Kxd7 h3 0-1
RMD-ALD, 12/26/2006
1.e4 c5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 e6 4.O-O d6 5.d3 Nf6 6.Nc3 Be7 7.Be3 O-O 8.d4 cxd4 9.Nxd4 Bd7 10.b3 Ne5 11.Be2 Rc8 12.Qd2 d5 13.exd5 exd5 14.a4 Ne4 15.Nxe4 dxe4 16.a5 Bc6 17.a6 b6 18.c4 Bc5 19.Rfc1 Ba8 20.b4 Bxd4 21.Qxd4 Qxd4 22.Bxd4 Nc6 23.Bc3 Rfd8 24.h3 Nd4 25.Bg4 f5 26.Bxd4 fxg4 27.Be3 gxh3 28.Kh2 hxg2 29.Kxg2 Bc6 30.b5 Be8 31.Kg3 Rd3 32.Kf4 Bg6 33.c5 bxc5 34.Rxc5 Rf8+ 35.Ke5 Rf5+ 36.Ke6 Rxc5? {36...Rf6+! -/+} 37.Bxc5 Rc3 38.Bxa7 Rc7 39.b6 Bf7+ 40.Ke5 Re7+ 41.Kf4 Bd5 42.b7 Bxb7 43.Bc5 Rf7+ 44.Ke3 Bxa6 45.Rxa6 g6 46.Ra8+ Kg7 47.Ra7 Rxa7 48.Bxa7 Kf6 49.Kxe4 g5 50.Kf3 h5 51.Bb6 Kf5 52.Bd8 g4+ 53.Kg3 Kg6 54.Kh4 Kh6 55.Bg5+ Kg6 56.Be3 Kf5 57.Kxh5 1-0
1.Nc3 Nf6 2.e4 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.Bb5 Bb4 5.d4 {5.O-O O-O 6.d3 (C49)} Nxe4 6.Bxc6 {6.Qd3, Paulsen Louis - Morphy Paul, New York 1857; 6.O-O Bxc3 (6...Nxc3 7.bxc3 Bxc3, Smejkalova Martina - Simlova Jana, Czech Republic 2001) 7.bxc3 a6, Pearson Alexandra - Sakthivel Gaya, Sydney 2002} dxc6 7.Nxe5 O-O 8.O-O Nxc3 9.bxc3 Bd6 10.Qd3 Qh4 11.Nf3 Qf6 12.Ng5 Qh6 13.g3 Bh3 14.Nxh3 Qxh3 15.Re1 Rfe8 16.Bd2 Re7 17.Rxe7 Bxe7 18.Re1 Qd7 19.Kg2 Re8 20.h3 Bd6 21.Re4 Rxe4 22.Qxe4 Be7 23.Qf4 Qd5+ 24.Kh2 Bd6 25.Qg4 h5 26.Qc8+ Kh7 27.Qxb7 h4 28.Bf4 Bxf4 29.gxf4 Qxa2 30.Qb3 Qxb3 31.cxb3 Kg6 32.Kg2 Kf5 33.Kf3 f6 34.Ke3 g5 35.fxg5 fxg5 36.f3 a6? {36...a5!=} 37.b4 c5 38.d5? {38.dxc5! +/-} cxb4 39.cxb4 Ke5 40.Kd3 Kf4 41.Kd4 Kxf3 42.Kc5 g4 43.Kc6 gxh3 44.Kxc7 h2 45.d6 h1Q 46.d7 Qc1+ 47.Kb7 {47.Kd6} Qd2 48.Kc8 Qxd7+ 49.Kxd7 h3 0-1
RMD-ALD, 12/26/2006
1.e4 c5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 e6 4.O-O d6 5.d3 Nf6 6.Nc3 Be7 7.Be3 O-O 8.d4 cxd4 9.Nxd4 Bd7 10.b3 Ne5 11.Be2 Rc8 12.Qd2 d5 13.exd5 exd5 14.a4 Ne4 15.Nxe4 dxe4 16.a5 Bc6 17.a6 b6 18.c4 Bc5 19.Rfc1 Ba8 20.b4 Bxd4 21.Qxd4 Qxd4 22.Bxd4 Nc6 23.Bc3 Rfd8 24.h3 Nd4 25.Bg4 f5 26.Bxd4 fxg4 27.Be3 gxh3 28.Kh2 hxg2 29.Kxg2 Bc6 30.b5 Be8 31.Kg3 Rd3 32.Kf4 Bg6 33.c5 bxc5 34.Rxc5 Rf8+ 35.Ke5 Rf5+ 36.Ke6 Rxc5? {36...Rf6+! -/+} 37.Bxc5 Rc3 38.Bxa7 Rc7 39.b6 Bf7+ 40.Ke5 Re7+ 41.Kf4 Bd5 42.b7 Bxb7 43.Bc5 Rf7+ 44.Ke3 Bxa6 45.Rxa6 g6 46.Ra8+ Kg7 47.Ra7 Rxa7 48.Bxa7 Kf6 49.Kxe4 g5 50.Kf3 h5 51.Bb6 Kf5 52.Bd8 g4+ 53.Kg3 Kg6 54.Kh4 Kh6 55.Bg5+ Kg6 56.Be3 Kf5 57.Kxh5 1-0
Saturday, December 23, 2006
One of my games
Haven't posted one in a while. In fact, it's been exactly one year since my last post.
RMD-ALD, 12/23/2006
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.Bf4 Bb4+ {3...c5 (A46/4); 3...d5 (D02/16)} 4.c3 Be7 5.e3 {5.Nbd2} O-O 6.Bd3 c5 7.O-O Nc6 8.Ne5 Nd5 9.Nxc6 bxc6 10.Bg3 cxd4 11.cxd4 Qb6 12.b3 Nb4 13.Nc3 Nxd3 14.Qxd3 Rd8 15.Na4 Qa5 16.Qc3 Qxc3 17.Nxc3 d5 18.f3 c5 19.Nb5 cxd4 20.Nxd4 Bf6 21.Rfd1 Ba6 22.Rac1 Rac8 23.Nc6 Re8 24.Nxa7 Ra8 25.Nc6 Bb5 26.Nb4 Be7 27.Nxd5 exd5 28.Rxd5 Ba6 29.a4 Bf6 30.e4 h6 31.e5 Be7 32.f4 Rab8 33.Rb1 Rec8 34.Be1 Bc5+ 35.Bf2 Bxf2+ 36.Kxf2 Bc4 37.Rd2 Bxb3? {37...Rxb3} 38.Rdb2 Rc3 39.a5 Ra8 40.Ra1 Rc2+ 41.Rxc2 Bxc2 42.g3 Kf8 43.Ke3 Ke7 44.Kd4 Ke6 45.Kc5 Kf5 46.Kb6 Kg4 47.Kb7 Be4+ 48.Kb6 Kh3 49.Ra2 Bg2 50.a6 Kxh2 51.g4 Kg3 52.f5 Bd5 53.Ra4 Kh4 54.Kc5 Bf3 55.e6 fxe6 56.fxe6 Bxg4 57.e7 Kg5 58.Kd6 Bh5 59.a7 Be8 60.Ra5+ Kf6 61.Kc7 Kxe7 62.Kb7 Rd8 63.a8Q Rxa8 64.Rxa8 Bf7 65.Kb6 Kf6 66.Kc5 g5 67.Ra1 g4 68.Rf1+ Kg6 69.Kd4 h5 70.Ke3 Bd5 71.Kf2? {71.Kf4!=} Kg5 72.Kg1 h4 73.Kh2 Be6 74.Rf8 g3+ 75.Kg2 Kg4 76.Rf6 h3+ 77.Kg1 Bd5? {I thought there was a win here as I was playing the game, but I couldn't find it. The winning move was 77...h2+! 78.Kg2 (78.Kh1? Bd5+ 79.Rf3 Bxf3#) Bd5+ 79.Kf1 h1Q+ with mate to follow. - ALD} 78.Rg6+ Kf3 79.Rf6+ Ke2 80.Rh6 {Of course not 80.Rf5?? h2# or 80.Rg6?? h2#} h2+ 81.Rxh2+ gxh2+ 82.Kxh2 Draw
RMD-ALD, 12/23/2006
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.Bf4 Bb4+ {3...c5 (A46/4); 3...d5 (D02/16)} 4.c3 Be7 5.e3 {5.Nbd2} O-O 6.Bd3 c5 7.O-O Nc6 8.Ne5 Nd5 9.Nxc6 bxc6 10.Bg3 cxd4 11.cxd4 Qb6 12.b3 Nb4 13.Nc3 Nxd3 14.Qxd3 Rd8 15.Na4 Qa5 16.Qc3 Qxc3 17.Nxc3 d5 18.f3 c5 19.Nb5 cxd4 20.Nxd4 Bf6 21.Rfd1 Ba6 22.Rac1 Rac8 23.Nc6 Re8 24.Nxa7 Ra8 25.Nc6 Bb5 26.Nb4 Be7 27.Nxd5 exd5 28.Rxd5 Ba6 29.a4 Bf6 30.e4 h6 31.e5 Be7 32.f4 Rab8 33.Rb1 Rec8 34.Be1 Bc5+ 35.Bf2 Bxf2+ 36.Kxf2 Bc4 37.Rd2 Bxb3? {37...Rxb3} 38.Rdb2 Rc3 39.a5 Ra8 40.Ra1 Rc2+ 41.Rxc2 Bxc2 42.g3 Kf8 43.Ke3 Ke7 44.Kd4 Ke6 45.Kc5 Kf5 46.Kb6 Kg4 47.Kb7 Be4+ 48.Kb6 Kh3 49.Ra2 Bg2 50.a6 Kxh2 51.g4 Kg3 52.f5 Bd5 53.Ra4 Kh4 54.Kc5 Bf3 55.e6 fxe6 56.fxe6 Bxg4 57.e7 Kg5 58.Kd6 Bh5 59.a7 Be8 60.Ra5+ Kf6 61.Kc7 Kxe7 62.Kb7 Rd8 63.a8Q Rxa8 64.Rxa8 Bf7 65.Kb6 Kf6 66.Kc5 g5 67.Ra1 g4 68.Rf1+ Kg6 69.Kd4 h5 70.Ke3 Bd5 71.Kf2? {71.Kf4!=} Kg5 72.Kg1 h4 73.Kh2 Be6 74.Rf8 g3+ 75.Kg2 Kg4 76.Rf6 h3+ 77.Kg1 Bd5? {I thought there was a win here as I was playing the game, but I couldn't find it. The winning move was 77...h2+! 78.Kg2 (78.Kh1? Bd5+ 79.Rf3 Bxf3#) Bd5+ 79.Kf1 h1Q+ with mate to follow. - ALD} 78.Rg6+ Kf3 79.Rf6+ Ke2 80.Rh6 {Of course not 80.Rf5?? h2# or 80.Rg6?? h2#} h2+ 81.Rxh2+ gxh2+ 82.Kxh2 Draw
Friday, December 08, 2006
Top Six Tournaments Of All Time
#1 Vienna 1882
#2 Linares 1993
#3 Nottingham 1936
#4 AVRO 1938
#5 Linares 1992
#6 Wijk aan Zee 2001
All six of these tournaments featured the players rated 1-8 at the time.
#2 Linares 1993
#3 Nottingham 1936
#4 AVRO 1938
#5 Linares 1992
#6 Wijk aan Zee 2001
All six of these tournaments featured the players rated 1-8 at the time.
Thursday, December 07, 2006
David Bronstein, RIP
Bronstein tied a match against Botvinnik for the world championship 12-12 in 1951.
http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3525
http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3525
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