Mednyi Vsadnik and CFM win Russian Team Championships
Russian Team Championships concluded in Sochi. The event was held from November 18-29, 2020, in the Grand Hotel Zhemchuzhina, Sochi. The open section 9-round tournament was played in a round-robin format, whereas women competed in a 9-round Swiss tournament. In the open section, Mednyi Vsadnik from Saint Petersburg, with Nikita Vitiugov, Maxim Matlakov, and Vladimir Fedoseev in the lineup, secured the title with one round to spare after winning eight matches in a row. In the final round the newly-crowned champions split points with CPRF Moscow (3-3) Chess Federation of Moscow (Evgeniy Najer, Vladimir Malakhov) finished second, Molodezhka from Tyumen region (Daniil Dubov, Alexander Riazantsev) took bronze. Final standings open: 1. Mednyi Vsadnik – 17 match points (35 points) 2. CFM – 14 (35½)3. Molodezhka – 14 (34)4. Ladya – 11 (31½)5. M. Botvinnik school – 10 (30½)6. CPRF – 9 (27½) 7. SShOR – 6 (23½)8. Achimgaz YNAO – 6 (22½)9. Cimmeria – 2 (14½)10. Moscow region – 1 (15½) Chess Federation of Moscow, led by IMs Polina Shuvalova and Ekaterina Kovalevskaya, won the women’s tournament. Ugra (WGMs Natalija Pogonina, Olga Girya) came in a close second, Cimmeria headed by IM Tatiana Vasilevich, claimed bronze. Final standings women: 1. CFM – 16 (25)2. Ugra – 15 (28)3. Cimmeria – 12 (22)4. SShOR-1 – 11 (23½)5. Moscow region – 11 (19)6. Ladya (Tatarstan) – 9 (17)7. Achimgaz YNAO – 8 (17½)8. SShOR-2 – 8 (17½)9. Amazones Yadda – 7 (16)10. Chess Federation of the Nizhny Novgorod region – 7 (14)11. Turbonasos – 7 (12½)12. Belgorod State University – 4 (11½)13. Tolpar – 2 (10½) Photo: Vladimir Barsky
Carlsen and So square off in final
After a week of play, the first event of the Champions Chess Tour, Skilling Open, is down the stretch. Magnus Carlsen will face off with Wesley So in the final that will take place on Sunday and Monday on chess24. In the semifinals, Carlsen and So defeated Ian Nepomniachtchi and Hikaru Nakamura respectively in close duels. After winning the first match, Carlsen fell behind in the second but bounced back immediately and then sealed his spot in the finals by drawing games 3 and 4. So also won his first match over Nakamura and managed to hold his edge on the second day as all four games were drawn. Carlsen about his So: “He’s one of the people that I find most difficult to play against because he rarely makes either tactical or positional mistakes, so he’s just very, very strong and I’ll have to be on top of my game!” Carlsen’s loss to So in the 2019 World Fischer Random Championship final is still fresh in memory, so the upcoming match promises a fierce and exciting battle.