Firouzja beats Carlsen in the Banter Blitz Cup final
The 132-player knock-out event with the total prize fund of $50,000 stretched from the beginning of autumn. The final on April 15 saw Magnus Carlsen and the crowd favorite 16-year-old Alireza Firouzja clash in a 16-game (3 minutes, no increment) blitz battle for $14,000 first prize. On the way to the ultimate showdown, Carlsen defeated GM Sanan Sjugirov in the semis and GM Nils Grandelius in the quarters. Firouzja eliminated GM SL Narayanan (SF) and GM Georg Meier (QF). Due to a lack of over-the-board events, this match was a real treat to spectators and lived up to the highest expectations. Firouzja grabbed the lead after winning the first game with Black but Carlsen bounced back in game 3 and kept coming back after each win of the youngster. The opponents kept this pace for 11 games and the score was still even. In game 12, Carlsen took the lead for the first time, but Firouzja leveled the score right away. They exchanged the blows in games 14 and 15 again to find themselves on an even score before the last game. Game 16 went perfectly for Firouzja as he outplayed the world champion in his own element – the endgame. After it was over, Carlsen complained about being in a bad shape but gave credit to his opponent: “He’s amazingly strong. Full credit!” Both players streamed and commented on the games live, thus “Banter Blitz”. You can replay the match by the following links.Carlsen: https://chess24.com/en/live/video/banter-blitz-cup—magnus-carlsen-vs–alireza-firouzjaFirouzja: https://chess24.com/en/live/video/banter-blitz-cup—firouzja-vs–carlsen In just a couple of days, Carlsen and Firouzja will meet over the virtual board again – the strongest online event of this spring, “Magnus Carlsen Invitational” starts on April 18.
UPDATE: FIDE workshop for tournament organizers
UPDATE: April 15, 2020 More than 90 people attended the first workshop by FIDE Competitions Director Maxim Korshunov. In view of this success, we have decided to repeat it next week, again on Monday and Tuesday (April 20-21). The content, format, and other details regarding the workshop remain exactly the same (see below). Likewise, a second stage workshop with more advanced content (for those who have already attended the first one), will be held on April 27-28. Maxim joined FIDE in September last year, having previously worked at the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup (as stadium manager, leading a team of more than 150 direct subordinates), the World EXPO 2015 in Milan (as Deputy Head of Department at the Russian Pavilion), and the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi 2014 (as Senior Manager within the Organizing Committee). The conference will be be held over ZOOM. In order to register, simply send an email to korshunov@fide.com. Prior to the start, the organizer will send a link from where you can join the lecture. Schedule:20.04.2020 [Monday], 12:00 (GMT 0)21.04.2020 [Tuesday], 12:00 (GMT 0) Title – Event operational planning tools Lecturer – Maxim Korshunov, FIDE Competitions director. Description – The lecturer will show operational tools that can help chess organizers to deliver the best practices of worldwide events: During the conference you will find out: a) How to prepare operational plans for an eventb) How to create responsibility assignment matricesc) How to do daily check-lists and check the venue on a day-to-day basisd) How to plan and deliver the zones of the venue for the different client groupse) How to activate a sponsorship f) How to integrate activities together with local authorities. Photo: Eteri Kublashvili
Arkady Dvorkovich: I have no regrets
FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich gave a big interview to a popular Russian newspaper Kommersant. This is the first part of this interview. Let’s start with the Candidates Tournament. You opened it in the middle of March, exactly on the day the Ministry of Sport of the Russian Federation issued an order imposing severe restrictions on sports events in the country. Do you have any regrets about your decision to run this event? After all, you had to put in on hold halfway through. Arkady Dvorkovich: I have no regrets. It was a conscious decision. I personally weighed all the factors that had to be taken into consideration before the event. First and foremost, it was about chess fans all around the world as so many people were looking forward to watching this competition. I was 100% sure that we would provide the health security of all the participants and people involved in the organization of this tournament. It was a critical factor. Besides, it was very important not to disrupt the World Championship cycle and to do our best to keep to the schedule. Another key factor was providing equal rights and conditions for all the participants. For example, Ding Liren arrived in Russia in advance on March 1, to get the required 14-day quarantine. Had we failed to ensure his participation in the Candidates Tournament (the decision was being made at the end of February) the entire event would have been in question. The final line-up was formed 10 days before the event. All the participants reaffirmed their willingness to contend for the chess crown. We did not have sound reasons to postpone the tournament. Some participants, for example, Alexander Grischuk complained about the atmosphere and the problems with concentration during the games. Were you aware of that? A.D.: First of all, there were no official complaints. We quickly reacted to all requests, made many concessions, took into considerations even tiny details to create a comfortable psychological atmosphere. Don’t forget, that all the players are real professionals. Allow me to remind you about the order by the Ministry of Sport of the Russian Federation. Essentially, this order canceled all the sports competitions in Russia, didn’t it? A.D.: The Candidates Tournament is not a mass sport event as there were only eight players participating. It was not affected by these restrictions. We were in constant contact with regional authorities, the Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation and Rospotrebnadzor (Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare) regarding the event and got the green light. I understand that it is very hard to make projections right now. Do you have any scenarios regarding the completion of the event – plan A, plan B, and plan C? A.D.: We do. Plan A – the optimistic scenario – is to hold the second part of the event in August or September. Many experts believe that this is a realistic timeframe bearing in mind how the situation with the COVID-19 has been evolving. We might return to normal life by the middle or the end of the summer. In this case, the winner of the Candidates Tournament will have enough time for thorough preparation for the World Championship match – approximately 3 months. But again, this is an optimistic scenario, under which the title match will be held in December of 2020 as planned. Are there less optimistic scenarios? A.D.: A less optimistic plan is to move the entire cycle a few months later. However, this is an undesirable alternative for us. We believe that the first, optimistic scenario can materialize. Let me clarify just in case. Will the second part of the Candidates be held in Yekaterinburg? A.D.: It will. I see no obstacles. We have the confirmation from our key partners, SIMA Land company and the regional authorities. They expressed their willingness to hold the second part of the event in Yekaterinburg. Naturally, if some other location wants to host it, we will consider such a request. At present, Yekaterinburg remains our priority. Let’s return to the World Championship match. Will it be held in Dubai in December as you mentioned before? A.D.: We hope it will take place in December in Dubai. In the case of force-majeure, we will be considering the alternatives. Presently, our partners are still willing to hold this match. If there is any contract? A.D.: We agreed on the terms. It remains just to sign the contract. At the beginning of the year, FIDE published the terms and conditions of bidding for the right to hold the World Championship match. One of the key conditions was a guaranteed prize fund of at least €2,000,000. Is this condition met? A.D.: Sure. Why Dubai, exactly? A.D.: The idea came about several months ago in connection with EXPO-2020 that will be held in this city. The World Expo will provide maximum interest to the venue. Plus, its theme – The Global Mind – is consonant with chess. We entered into the negotiations and reached a mutual understanding. Dubai was not the only bidder. We considered several options but Dubai looks the most attractive one. I am a little concerned that you are going to hold the title match as part of EXPO. Do you think it might downgrade the event, make it some sort of a side order to the main course? A.D.: Of course not. This match is not a part of EXPO, we will just use its platform. It will be one of the central events of this period, which is going to attract the maximum audience. In other words, you are confident that this symbiosis will increase the exposure of the match. A.D.: Definitely. You already mentioned that in the best-case scenario there would be three months between the completion of the Candidates tournament and the start of the World Championship match. Indeed, it is enough for the participants to prepare for the competition, but is it a sufficient period to promote and advertise the match? Previously this process took twice as long. A.D.: We will start