Asian Junior Championships 2021: Indians sweep out
VS Rahul (2387) of India drew with Orini Gholami of Iran in the final round of the Asian Junior Chess Championship to score 7 ½ points out of 9 games, win the title and complete a GM norm. Rahul turned in an excellent performance, leading from start to finish without a single defeat. He beat Kosala Amarathunga, Isara Dhahanayake, Ranindu Dilshan Liyanage all three from Sri Lanka and three Indian IMs: Vardaan Nagpal, GB Harshawardana and Mitrabha Guha. After a poor start, the top seed, IM Mitrabha Guha (pictured below), bounced back to climb to second place with 7 points, while IM GB Harshawardhana became third with 6½ points. Final standings open: 1 Raahul V S IND 2387 7½ 2 IM Mitrabha Guha IND 2509 7 3 IM Harshavardhan G B IND 2397 6½ 4 IM Raghunandan Kaumandur Srihari IND 2448 6 5 Gholami Orimi Mahdi IRI 2425 6 6 IM Vardaan Nagpal IND 2384 6 7 FM Liyanage Ranindu Dilshan SRI 2300 6 8 FM De Silva L M S T SRI 2131 5½ 9 Induwara T H D Thisarindu SRI 1359 5½ 10 FM Piyumantha M Sasith Nipun SRI 2214 5 The complete results can be found here Despite losing her top position in the penultimate round of the girls’ tournament, WIM Shri Savitha of India drew her last game with Chanindi Mewna Attanayake of Sri Lanka to earn the championship title and a beautiful trophy, completing the WGM norm along the way. She scored 7 points with five wins over Gimashi Weeratunghe, Niklesha Tharushi, Oshini Gunawardena of Sri Lanka, Al Maamari of UAE and WIM, K Priyanka of India and four draws. Priyanka K caught up with the leader in the penultimate round but somewhat unexpectedly lost to much lower-rated Tharushi T H D Niklesha to finish a half-point behind the champion, tying for second place with Anoush Mahdian. Nevertheless, Buchholz favoured Priyanka, who took silver. Final standings girls: 1 WIM Savitha Shri B IND 2281 7 2 WIM Priyanka K IND 2218 6½ 3 WFM Mahdian Anousha IRI 2212 6½ 4 Mohammadi Melika IRI 1807 6 5 WCM Sanudula K M Dahamdi SRI 1653 5½ 6 WFM Al Maamari Wafia Darwish UAE 1923 5½ 7 Attanayake Chanindi Mewna SRI 1317 5½ 8 WCM Tharushi T H D Niklesha SRI 1711 5½ 9 Gunawardhana Devindya Oshini SRI 1371 5 10 Newansa M Esandi SRI 1163 5 The complete results can be found here. The Asian Junior Chess Championships 2021, the only OTB event conducted by the Asian Chess Federation this year, was organized by the Chess Federation of Sri Lanka. A total of 54 players, 32 in the open and 22 in the girls’ section, took place in the event running from December 17-23 at Citrus Hotel, Waskaduwa. Both championships were 9-round Swiss tournaments with classical time control. The Awards Ceremony was held under the patronage of Mr Luxman Wijesuriya, the President of CFSL and a Vice President of Asian Chess Federation, where Mr Hisham Al Taher, the General Secretary of Asian Chess Federation and Mr Casto Abundo, the Executive Director of Asian Chess Federation address the audience virtually. The live games can be seen via the following link: Asian Girls Chess Championship 2021:https://view.livechesscloud.com#1d2fce85-a004-410d-93e5-a485328ef4dd Asian Juniors Chess Championship 2021:https://view.livechesscloud.com#5b19c578-e00f-4e8d-b77e-ccf6c5e56f4f
FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Championships 2021: Preview
One of the most anticipated events in the chess calendar, the FIDE Rapid and Blitz Championship, is around the corner. The open and women’s championships that have been held concurrently since 2016 will take place from December 25-31 in Warsaw, Poland, at PGE Narodowy Stadium. Traditionally, the participants will fight not only for titles and glory but also for substantial prize money. World Rapid & Blitz prize distribution: World Rapid Prize World Blitz Prize 1st place $60,000 1st place $60,000 2nd place $50,000 2nd place $50,000 3rd place $40,000 3rd place $40,000 4th place $30,000 4th place $30,000 5th place $25,000 5th place $25,000 6th place $22,000 6th place $22,000 7th place $18,000 7th place $18,000 8th place $14,000 8th place $14,000 9th place $11,000 9th place $11,000 10th place $8,000 10th place $8,000 11-16th places $5,000 each 11-16th places $5,000 each 17-25th places $3,000 each 17-25th places $3,000 each 26-35th places $1,5000 each 26-35th places $1,500 each TOTAL $350,000 TOTAL $350,000 Women’s World Rapid & Blitz prize distribution: Women’s World Rapid Prize Women’s World Blitz Prize 1st place $40,000 1st place $40,000 2nd place $30,000 2nd place $30,000 3rd place $20,000 3rd place $20,000 4th place $15,000 4th place $15,000 5th place $10,000 5th place $10,000 6th place $7,000 6th place $7,000 7th place $6,000 7th place $6,000 8th place $5,000 8th place $5,000 9th place $4,000 9th place $4,000 10th place $3,000 10th place $3,000 11-15th places $2,000 each 11-15th places $2,000 each TOTAL $150,000 TOTAL $150,000 The reigning champion in all three formats (classical, rapid and blitz), Magnus Carlsen, is heading into the event as a clear favourite, but his old and new rivals are eager to challenge his supremacy. Can Magnus repeat his triumph of 2014 and 2019 and win a double-crown? Fresh from Gashimov Memorial, Fabiano Caruana (the winner of the event), Richard Rapport, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and former World Rapid and Blitz Champion (2013 and 2016, respectively) Sergey Karjakin seem to be in good form and ready for battle. The winner of the 2021 Speed Chess Championship, Hikaru Nakamura (who trounced Wesley So in the final of this competition), has not played OTB chess for quite a while, but you never discard the American when it comes to fast chess formats. The second-rated player in the world, young star Alireza Firouzja who gave Carlsen a real run for his money in the last Rapid Championship (2019), will definitely try to climb one step higher this time. Another young player, a local hero, freshly-mint European Blitz Champion Jan-Krzysztof Duda, who competed with Magnus for gold to the very last round in the Blitz Championship three years ago, will do his best on the home turf. Last but not least, let’s not forget about a quartet from CFR: the recent World Championship challenger Ian Nepomniachtchi, World Rapid Champion (2018) Daniil Dubov, three-time World Blitz Champion Alexander Grischuk and a speed-chess specialist Vladislav Artemiev. The Chinese players are not coming to Poland due to Covid-19 restrictions, which makes Humpy Koneru’s task of defending her Women’s Rapid Champion title a bit easier, at least on paper. Still, she is up against the powerful opposition from top CFR, Ukrainian, Georgian and Kazakhstani players, and we can expect a very close race in the Women’s Rapid Championship. As for the Women’s Blitz Championship, it will be interesting to see whether Kateryna Lagno can win her third straight title. Such a feat will not come easy, but it doesn’t look like “mission impossible” for the world’s #3 in Women’s Rapid List. We have five days of exciting chess ahead of us. Unfortunately, not all the potential spectators will be able to watch the action live – the organizers will allow only 200 visitors a day due to Covid-19 restrictions (all 1,000 tickets were sold out within an hour). Luckily, the event will be broadcast on various websites, including the official one https://worldrapidandblitz.fide.com/ so chess fans from all around the world can enjoy it in real-time. Photo: Maria Emelianova and Lennart Ootes
2021 FIDE General Assembly Agenda
FIDE is publishing the 2021 FIDE General Assembly Agenda. 2021 FIDE General Assembly Agenda (pdf)
Happy Holidays!
Dear members of the chess family, The year is coming to an end, and on the occasion of the festive season, I would like to thank all of you for your continued work towards promoting chess and your continued support of FIDE activities. Together we have managed to recover almost normal levels of activity during 2021, and despite the many challenges brought on by the pandemic, the chess family has every reason to be proud of its achievements. Not only have we successfully organised our flagship events, like the World Championship match, the Grand Swiss and the World Cup, but we have also managed to expand our portfolio with dozens of other activities, online and junior competitions, seminars, and social events. My particular thanks go to our FIDE team that, throughout 2021, worked again under difficult circumstances. Our management board, office staff, all the different departments, FIDE commissions and working groups went the extra mile. I am very grateful for their commitment, outstanding efforts, and contributions. I wish you a most peaceful and enjoyable festive period as we welcome the new year in the hope that it will bring us closer to a return to what we all enjoy. May you and your loved ones have a healthy, joyful, and prosperous 2022. Arkady DvorkovichFIDE President
2021 FIDE General Assembly Agenda and Final List of Delegates
FIDE is publishing the 2021 FIDE General Assembly Agenda and the final List of Delegates. 2021 FIDE General Assembly Agenda (pdf) Final List of Delegates (pdf)
Cadets & Youth Super Final: Congratulating the Winners
The FIDE Online Cadets and Youth Rapid cycle started in August with the selection stage to the World Cup, continued with the World Cup final, then two Grand Prix events, and culminated in the round-robin final with a 30,000 euros prize fund that finished on December 21. From more than 3,000 participants, only six strongest in each category (open and girls under 10, 12, 14, 16, 18) made it to the Super Final. The battles commenced on Tornelo playing platform, and it was not an easy walk for the initial favourites. A few of them had a rocky start but managed to pull themselves together, restore their status, and come out on top. One example was the highest-rated 10-year-old in the world, Turkish star Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus. He lost the second game, but a brilliant series of wins in the middle of the event brought him back to first place in the tournament table. On the last day, the final test awaited when he faced his main pursuer, Indian Vaz Ethan. The two exchanged punches maintaining the status quo. Top-3, Open U10: CM Erdogmus Yagiz Kaan (TUR, 2276) – 6 AIM Vaz Ethan (IND, 1384) – 5 CM Schnaider Ilan (ARG, 2106) – 3,5 Who could predict that in Open U12 the first day would decide the outcome? The favourite was clear: nobody expected anything but a victory from Abhimanyu Mishra, the wonderboy who just broke Karjakin’s record for obtaining the grandmaster title at the youngest-ever age. However, Ukrainian talent Ihor Samunenkov had another opinion and stated it loudly, defeating Mishra in their first-day mini-match 1.5-0.5. Both had an excellent run, handing their opponents only 1.5 points. Mishra eventually managed to catch up with Samunenkov, so their direct encounter decided the medals distribution, and gold went to the Ukrainian FIDE Master. Keep an eye on this young man, who also won the national rapid championship this year (not youth, but an overall one!). Top-3, Open U12: FM Samunenkov Ihor (UKR, 2369) – 6,5 GM Mishra Abhimanyu (USA, 2510) – 6,5 Zemlyanskii Ivan (RUS, 2169) – 3,5 In Open U14, the competition was close and unclear until the last moments. An early leader Aldiyar Ansat from Kazakhstan slowed down in the middle of the tournament and let Ediz Gurel from Turkey catch him going into the last two days. They faced each other on a penultimate day and made two draws, postponing the fight for gold to the final day. Aldiyar lost the final game, while Ediz scored 1.5 in his mini-match and claimed first place. In addition to that, Dimitrios Makridis caught up with Aldiyar and overcame him in the standings due to a better tiebreak. Top-3, Open U14: FM Gurel Ediz (TUR, 2390) – 7 Makridis Dimitrios (GRE, 2082) – 6 IM Ansat Aldiyar (KAZ, 2366) – 6 A very close race marked Open U16, too. Eventual winner Volodar Murzin won only two of his mini-matches—1.5-0.5 against FM Samadov on the first day and 2-0 against FM De Silva on the second—and it was enough for a clear first place. Not losing any mini-match was key to his success in this highly competitive category. Samunenkov and Murzin took silver in their categories (U14 and U16) last year, and now, one year older, they both improved their result to the highest possible place. Top-3, Open U16: IM Murzin Volodar (RUS, 2519) – 6,5 FM Babazada Khazar (AZE, 2429) – 6 IM Pranav V (IND, 2486) – 6 Nikolaos Spyropoulos was unstoppable in the Open U18. He started with six straight wins, interrupted by losing in Round 7. The misfire did not discourage him, as he scored other 2,5 points out of the last three games, demonstrating the best result among all categories in the event. The victor’s only offender, Harshavardhan G B was rewarded with second place. Top-3, Open U18: FM Spyropoulos Nikolaos (GRE, 2445) – 8,5 IM Harshavardhan G B (IND, 2397) – 6,5 FM Makoveev Ilya (RUS, 2322) – 6,5 In the Girls U10, nobody could run on par with Diana Preobrazhenskaya from Russia, who went supersonic at the finish winning the last four games. She came to the finish line two full points above the field, adding a first-place result to last year’s bronze. Top-3, Girls U10: Preobrazhenskaya Diana (RUS, 1789) – 8 Akbari Rosha (IRI, 1380) – 6 Gunawardhana Devindya Oshini (SRI, 1371) – 6 For most of the Girls U12 tournament, rating favourite Alice Lee from the USA and Anna Shukhman from Russia went neck to neck, Anna trailing by half a point. The two met on Day 4, with Alice winning 1.5-0.5 and essentially cementing her first place. Even one loss on the last day could not change the outcome anymore. Top-3, Girls U12: WIM Lee Alice (USA, 2178) – 8 WCM Shukhman Anna (RUS, 2014) – 7,5 Kirtadze Anastasia (GEO, 1701) – 5 Girls U16 was a challenging journey for the rating-favourite, Hungarian star WIM Zsoka Gaal (2362). After an unconvincing start, she was trailing the discovery of the event and her second-day offender, Fiorella Contreras Huaman from Peru (1931), by half a point going into the last two rounds. But Fiorella started to stumble and scored only 1.5 out of 4 at the finish, eventually letting Zsoka reestablish herself at the top. Top-3, Girls U14: WIM Gaal Zsoka (HUN, 2362) – 6,5 WFM Contreras Huaman Fiorella (PER, 1931) – 6 WCM Nguyen Linh Dan (VIE, 1413) – 5,5 Another surprise of the event, Nguyen Hong Nhung from Vietnam (1697), lost only one game in the first six rounds of the Girls U16 tournament. However, she faced the rating-favourites on the last two days, WIM Meruert Kamalidenova (2351) and WFM Xeniya Balabayeva (2220). Balabayeva won 2-0 to claim clear first place, placing an explicit mark at the end of a great run without any single loss. The encounter between Nguyen and Kamalidenova ended 1-1, leaving the latter in third place, a somewhat disappointing result