Tolerance Games, Asian Chess Women’s Contest announced
UAE Ministry of Tolerance and Coexistence, International Chess Federation, and Asian Chess Federation are pleased to announce the Tolerance Games – Asian Chess Women’s Contest that will take place from February 06-07, 2023, in Abu-Dhabi, UAE. The event will be held as a part of the Global Tolerance and Human Fraternity Summit in Etihad Towers. Girls and ladies from Asia and all around the world are welcome to participate in various activities, from playing chess to learning about the empowerment chess gives to women and society. Program of the Tolerance Games: February 06, 2023 10:30 – 11:30 – Opening ceremony 11:30 – 12:30 – “Little Chess Star” Chess Tournament (8 invited girls play two qualification tournaments, followed by the final match for the first and second place.) 11:30 – 13:30 – Session with a coach “Learn to play in one hour” for all the guests. 13:00 – 13:45 – Grand Final of “Little Chess Star” Chess Tournament (Two finalists will play the mini-match for the first and second place). 17:00 – 20:30 – Open Asian Women Blitz Chess Tournament (7 rounds blitz tournament (time control: 5min + 3sec) for up to 100 female chess players). 17:30 – 19:30 – Leadership workshop “Women and Chess – Promoting Tolerance & Women Empowerment” featuring Anastasia Sorokina, Chair of FIDE Commission for Women in Chess; Dana Reizniece-Ozola, Women chess grandmaster, politician, FIDE Deputy Chair of Management Board; Anastasia Karlovich, WIM, Ukrainian chess journalist and photographer. February 07, 2023 10:00 – 11:00 – Simultaneous Game Exhibition with invited Women Chess Grandmaster 12:00 – 12:30 – Closing ceremony of “Little Chess Stars Tournament” and Open Asian Women Blitz Chess Tournament All Asian female players are welcome to participate in the Open Asian Women Blitz Chess Tournament. Players may register online at chess-results.com/anmeldung.aspx?lan=1&ggid=719754 The playing venue of the event is Etihad Towers, Abu Dhabi. The tournament will be held on 6 February 2023 as follows: Technical Meeting 16:00 Round 1 17:00Round 2 17:30Round 3 18:00Round 4 18:30Round 5 19:00Round 6 19:30Round 7 20:00 Time control for each player per game is 5 minutes + 3 seconds for each move, starting with the first one. The winner is determined by the highest number of points scored. In case of equality of points, the winner is determined by application of the tie-breaking criteria: ◦ Direct encounter◦ Number of games won◦ Number of Games won with the Black Pieces◦ Buchholz System The winners will receive trophies and share AED 21,000 in cash prizes, with AED 7,000 going to the winner.
Breaking barriers: Inaugural Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities opens in Belgrade
In the historic building of the National Assembly of Serbia, players from all continents, FIDE officials, members of the Serbian government, chess celebrities and guests gathered to inaugurate the first-ever Chess Olympiad for people with disabilities. The Serbian National Assembly building is a majestic and breathtaking structure. It has been the epicentre of many historic decisions and events which shaped Southeast Europe and, this evening, it was a place where new pages of chess history were written. The International Chess Federation (FIDE) and the chess world have come together to recognize the importance of chess in helping people with disabilities to overcome their challenges and achieve their full potential. In the central hall of the Assembly building, usually reserved for presidents, Prime Ministers, monarchs and politicians, the chess world – represented by about 150 admirers of the game from various backgrounds and cultures – took centre stage. The ceremony began with a short video about the previous important events in chess history tied to the capital of Serbia (once, Yugoslavia); to name a few: the days when all top world players and champions in the second part of the 20th century often played in the city, to the huge crowds gathering at the Palace of Unions (which sits just diagonally across the Assembly building) where the first match USSR vs The Rest of the World took place in 1970, to the Fischer-Spassky match in 1992. The video was subtitled, and there were also sign language interpreters for people hard of hearing. “Chess is one of the most inclusive sports in the world” Following the video, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich, as well as the Deputy CEO of the Serbian energy company “NIS Serbia” Vadim Smirnov, the Serbian Minister for Sports Zoran Gajic, as well as the President of the Serbian chess federation Dragan Lazic, addressed the audience. FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich said that the chess community came together to make this event possible, recognizing the power of chess in helping individuals with disabilities achieve their full potential. “This is the first ever Chess Olympiad organized by FIDE for players who have disabilities but who are very much able to play chess and able to live their proud lives”, Dvorkovich said. He thanked the Serbian government for the support and pointed out that it took “just a few minutes” for the Prime Minister Ana Brnabic and the minister of Sport Zoran Gajic to decide that Serbia would host the event. “Chess is one of the most inclusive sports in the world, and we are proud of that. Children and, seniors, people from any background, are playing chess without any obstacles. We will continue to support this great journey”, the FIDE President said. Dvorkovich also made reference to the Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic who today won the Australian Open and became the absolute best tennis player in tennis history, noting that Serbia is a country of sport. “Serbia – the country of sport” Zoran Gajic, the Serbian minister of sport and a well-known person in the volleyball world who won several medals as a coach in Olympic, world, and European events, reiterated Dvorkovich’s concluding statement. “Welcome to Serbia – the country of sport”, Gajic said, noting that his country is very honoured to be hosting this event, the first ever in history. As a country of sports, Serbia wants to use this event to promote sports among people with disabilities. Although Serbia is a country of Novak Djokovic, Nikola Jokic, and other great players, we also respect our great Grandmasters – Svetozar Gligoric, Ljubomir Ljubojevic and Alisa Maric and others, and we want to share that with everyone”. Sport is a deeply ingrained part of the Serbian culture and has a long-standing tradition in the country. While basketball and football (soccer) are among the most popular sports, chess is very widespread. Despite having roughly 7,5 million people, Serbia is among the top five countries in the world (with Russia, Germany, the US and Spain) with the largest number of titled chess players. “Chess as a part of a healthy lifestyle” Vadim Smirnov, the deputy CEO of NIS Serbia, one of the key sponsors of the event, emphasized the importance of chess as a part of a healthy lifestyle. “NIS is a family of 12.000 employees [in Serbia], and a healthy lifestyle is a part of our values. We will always support sports, and children’s sports in particular. Chess teaches you work and fair play, and those are the values very important in our business. We strongly believe in equality for the whole world, in sports and among us as people”, Smirnov said. Dragan Lazic, the President of the Serbian chess federation, thanked FIDE for choosing Serbia as the place for the first Olympiad for people with disabilities and expressed hope that in the next years, the country will also host a chess Olympiad. Following the drawing of lots, Poland – the top seed team – will start the tournament with white pieces. The link between chess, volleyball and the meaning of life Zoran Gajic, the Serbian minister of sport, is a renowned coach in volleyball and has won many medals, including in the Olympics. In an interview for FIDE, he pointed out the link between chess and volleyball. “Mathematics, geometry, physical laws and natural sciences, logical way of thinking – these are all elements that are very important in the preparation of volleyball and general sports teams and all link back to chess. Not to mention the statistical method of opponent analysis, analysis of one’s matches, training, level of training and recovery of athletes… All this must be predicted a few moves in advance. In our sport (in volleyball), there are terms such as a player’s career, a four-year Olympic cycle, mesocycles, and micro cycles… These are periods that are planned in order to be organized. Everything I said reminds irresistibly of chess.” He also noted that chess is a great metaphor for the meaning of life: “A life path to success is
Anish Giri wins Tata Steel Masters 2023
In a dramatic turn of events, Anish Giri beat Richard Rapport and leapfrogged Nodirberk Abdusattorov, who suffered a painful defeat at the hands of Jorden Van Foreest. Anish finished a half-point ahead of Nodirbek and won his home tournament for the first time in his career. Magnus Carlsen outplayed Arjun Erigaisi and tied for second place with Abdusattorov but came third due to inferior tiebreaks. Parham Maghsoodloo also ended on a high note besting Levon Aronian. Anish Giri – Richard Rapport 1-0 Richard Rapport essayed a rare line 6…g6 in the Sicilian Rauzer allowing White to disrupt his pawn structure. Black timely played thematic f6-f5 and nearly equalized but Giri still had a slight edge. Anish got a chance to increase his advantage with 29.Bxe6 followed by 30.h4, but after the Dutchman opted for innocuous 29.Bd5, the worst was behind Rapport. Giri tried the last push in an equal position, and surprisingly, it worked out for him. After 34…Kg8 (Kh8, Kh7 Kf8) Black is out of danger, but Richard chose the only self-defeating square 34…Kg6?? apparently missing 35.Rxd6! Black’s position collapsed, and he capitulated just a few moves later after 35…Kg5 36. Rd5 Qe1+ 37. Kg2 Be7 38. Rxf5+ Kh4 39. Qg3+ 1-0 Nodirbek Abdusattorov – Jorden Van Foreest 0-1 The game saw a rare line of the Sicilian Taimanov in which White traded the queens and steered into a slightly better maneuvering endgame. With 16.g5 followed by 17.f4 Nodirbek shut down Black’s g8-knight but made some positional concessions of the e5-square and potentially weak g5-pawn. White should have struck on the queenside with a2-a4 at some point, but Abdusattorov continued maneuvering instead. Later on, he planted one of his knights on f6 but then committed a serious inaccuracy by trading it for Black’s passive g8-knight. Little by little, Van Foreest got to White’s weak pawns, inflicted defeat on the leader, and helped his compatriot win the event. Arjun Erigaisi – Magnus Carlsen 0-1 Eager to win, Carlsen opted for the double fianchetto and got an offbeat, fresh position, which gradually transformed into King’s Indian type of structure. Erigaisi played somewhat sluggishly and allowed Magnus to grab initiative with 17…a4, but the World Champion missed this chance, and the position became equal again. In the subsequent play, White gradually evacuated his king to the queenside while Black sacrificed a piece on g4 for two pawns and got full compensation and good practical chances. Arjun held his ground for quite a while, but after passing the time control, he lost his way, returned a piece in a wrong situation (he could have done it earlier, maintaining equality) and found himself in a hopeless position. The final portion of the game was a smooth sail for Carlsen, who won effortlessly. Ding Liren – Fabiano Caruana ½–½ The opponents decided to leave the tournament behind as soon as possible in made a quick draw in the Ruy Lopez. Praggnanandhaa R – Wesley So ½–½ The American played his pet Semi-Tarrasch line in which Black sacrificed a pawn for the initiative. The opponents seemed to follow their home preparation for quite a while, but when the dust settled, an equal endgame emerged on the board. White managed to win a pawn, but it did not change the evaluation of the position even by a fraction, and the opponents shook hands on move 44. Levon Aronian – Parham Maghsoodloo 0-1 The opponent tested a popular line of the Sicilian Najdorf in which White got an edge after Black wasted a couple of tempi with Nf6-e8-f6. In the following maneuvering Levon played somewhat hesitantly and let his opponent make the thematic exchange sacrifice on c3. Black got some compensation but hardly more. However, just a few moves later, Levon miscalculated and played 26.c3? hoping to regain the pawn after 26…dxc3 later on. It was not the case, though, as Parham clung to this pawn, which eventually cost White an exchange. Soon it came down to a queen endgame where Black’s a-pawn freely advanced to a2, forcing Aronian to capitulate. Vincent Keymer – Gukesh D ½–½ The Indian mixed up two plans in the Nimzo-Indian, and the German immediately grabbed the initiative by striking in the center. However, to keep the ball rolling, Keymer had to find a quite unorthodox move 15.Qb3! allowing Black to ruin his pawn structure on the kingside. Vincent did not, and the opponents quickly traded most of the pieces and sealed the piece in a dead-equal position. Final standings: 1. Anish Giri – 8.5; 2. Nodirbek Abdusattorov – 8; Magnus Carlsen – 8; 4. Wesley So – 7.5; 5. Fabiano Caruana – 7; 6. Parham Maghsoodloo – 7; 7. Levon Aronian – 6.5; 8. Richard Rapport – 6.5; 9. Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa – 6; 10. Jorden Van Foreest – 6; 11. Ding Liren 5.5; 12. Gukesh D – 5.5; 13. Vincent Keymer – 5; 14. Arjun Erigaisi – 4. Alexander Donchenko (pictured above, right) emerged as the winner of the Tata Steel Challengers after beating Velimir Ivic in the final round. The champion scored 10/13, finished a point clear of Mustafa Yilmaz and punched his ticket to the next year Tata Steel Masters next year. Stefan Beukema won the Amateur section and qualified for the Challengers next year. Official website: tatasteelchess.com Photos: tatasteelchess.com, Jurriaan Hoefsmit and Lennart Ootes