World Youth Champions crowned in Montesilvano, Italy
After eleven exciting rounds, the World Youth Championship under 14, 16 and 18 in the open and girls categories concluded in Montesilvano, Italy. Honorary guests Ottavio De Martinis, Major of Montesilvano, Lukasz Turlej, FIDE Secretary General, and Luigi Maggi, the President of the Italian Chess Federation, awarded newly crowned world champions and top-finishers. IM Aleksey Grebnev (FIDE, 2500) clinched the title in the U18 Open section with a round to spare, scoring 9.5/11. Grebnev lost his last game against top seed GM Volodar Murzin (FIDE, 2625), who took the silver medal with 9 points. IM Aldiyar Ansat came third with 8.5 points. WFM Ayan Allahverdiyeva (AZE, 2152) outplayed Luong Hoang Tu Linh (VIE, 1887) in a sharp Sicilian battle to claim gold, in the Girls U18 category with eight wins and three draws. WGM Rochelle Wu (USA, 2228) also won her last game against WCM Nguyen Hong Nhung (VIE, 1975) and got the silver medal. WIM Yelyzaveta Hrebenshchykova (UKR, 2292) was third with 8.5 points. The Open U16 tournament turned out to be the most dramatic. Two Polish players and good friends, IMs Jakub Seeman (2417) and Jan Klimkowski (2520) came to the final rounds as the joint leaders on 8.5/10. Seeman had better tiebreaks and needed to win to secure a gold medal. Seeman gained an advantage in a sharp Sicilian variation, later converted it with a powerful queen sacrifice and became the world champion in the U16 category. Klimkowski held a worse ending in a nerve-wracking game against FM Rajat Makkar (FRA, 2452) and took the silver medal with 9 points. FM Leonardo Costa (GER, 2492) also netted 9 points but had to settle for bronze due to inferior tiebreaks. Chuqiao Wang (CHN, 2215) was undefeated in the girls U16 category. She delivered a very strong performance of 9 wins and two draws (10/11) and became the champion in the Girls U16 competition. WFM Alexandra Shvedova (FIDE, 2170) finished a full point behind Wang and earned silver. WIM Alua Nurmanova (KAZ, 2367) and Tejaswini G (IND, 1956) tied for third place, with the former taking bronze thanks to a better Buchholz. FM Pawel Sowinski (POL, 2347) lifted the trophy in the Open U14, scoring 9/11. Sowinski and FM Magnus Ermitsch (GER, 2206) were neck and neck coming into the final round. Sowinski secured first place with a draw, as Ermitsch lost his last game against FM Nicolas Perossa (ITA, 2330). As a result, Ermitsch, Perossa and David Akhmedov (FIDE, 2240) tied for second place with 8.5 points. The Buchholz tiebreaker favoured Ermitsch and Perossa, who took silver and bronze, respectively. WFM Afruza Khamdamova (UZB, 2199) displayed an unwavering fighting spirit in every game to claim the title in the Girls U14 category with an impressive score of 10/11. Khamdamova forfeited her first-round game due to flight cancellation but went on to reel off ten consecutive victories. WFM Elnaz Kaliakhmet (KAZ,1933) finished one point behind the champions and got silver. The bronze medal goes to WIM Iris Mou (USA, 2086), who netted 8.5/11. Poland won the gold medal for overall results at the FIDE World Youth Championship 2023 with two gold and one silver medal. Uzbekistan and China shared second place. Final standings Open U18 Final standings Open U16 Final standings Open U14 Final standings Girls U18 Final standings Girls U16 Final standings Girls U14 Photos: Przemek Nikiel Official website: worldyouth2023.com/
2023 Sinquefield Cup: Day 4 Recap
After a much-needed Thanksgiving break, the players returned to the board today with seemingly renewed energy. Fans crowded the entrance to the World Chess Hall of Fame, patiently waiting for pictures and signatures, and the players gladly obliged. The exciting atmosphere provided the perfect conditions for the end of the tournament’s drawing streak, and yes, we finally got it! When the smoke cleared, it was GM Wesley So who emerged with the full point, catapulting himself into sole lead and bolstering his campaign for a spot in the 2024 Candidates Tournament. GM Levon Aronian received a bye today due to the withdrawal of GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda. ROUND 4 GIRI-VACHIER-LAGRAVE | ½-½, 38 moves Contrary to his dynamic style, Vachier-Lagrave chose the Queen’s Gambit Accepted, but seemed unfamiliar with Giri’s 7.Re1, a trendy approach against the QGA. With Vachier-Lagrave walking right into his preparation, Giri achieved a comfortable endgame edge. But several miscues and miscalculations left him on the edge of the cliff until Vachier-Lagrave missed his chance on move 31. Giri-Vachier-Lagrave: 24.f4? from Giri reached the position above, missing Vachier’s 24…Nf5!. Black saves the piece after 25. g4 Nfd4 26.f5 Ne5! and the e6 bishop is taboo due to the fork on e2 Giri-Vachier-Lagrave: The greedy 31…Rxb2 spoiled the win; instead, 31…Bd5 would have broken down the White defenses with threats like f5 and Ne2+ on the horizon. Giri grabbed his chance with the rejoinder 32.f5+, and the two combatants signed a peace treaty right before time control. Both players look thrilled about the game! Vachier seems to pointing to the f5 square, a key battleground in this game. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes NEPOMNIACHTCHI-CARUANA | ½-½, 63 moves Two participants already confirmed for the 2024 Candidates faced off in likely their last game before the Candidates tournament which will be held in Toronto in April 2024. Nepomniachtchi took a less-explored approach in the Nimzo with 5.Bd2 followed by 6.a3, resulting in an IQP (isolated queen’s pawn) middlegame. Nepomniachtchi correctly changed the character of the position by giving up two pieces for a rook and two pawns, but accurate defense from Caruana kept him within the drawing margins. The game petered out to a rook and two pawns vs rook and one pawn endgame, which Caruana held with ease. SO-RAPPORT | 1-0, 36 moves Rapport, true to his unconventional self, surprised everyone with his choice of the King’s Indian, an opening known for its risky nature, especially at the top level. He seemed to be provoking So into hyper aggression that could be punished, but So conducted the game in a calm, controlled manner. With So maintaining a solid and pesky edge, Rapport decided to lash out with an exchange sacrifice in hopes of catching So’s king in the crossfire. However with cold and correct calculation, So rebuffed the attack and scored the first win of the 2023 Sinquefield Cup. So-Rapport: 20…Rxc4 from Rapport was a bit too extravagant as the material prevailed. 20…Bb5 would’ve kept the position within drawing margins. So is our first leader! | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes FIROUZJA-DOMINGUEZ | ½-½, 46 moves Firouzja decided to go with the London against Dominguez, a player known for his deep theoretical knowledge, perhaps with the idea of getting a fresh battleground without machine intervention. Yet Dominguez still was in book, getting a comfortable position out of the opening with chances for both sides. With such a complicated and tense position, the players exchanged inaccuracies and mistakes, with the advantage switching hands and the clock ticking down for both. In time pressure, Firouzja incorrectly allowed a trade of queens, but Dominguez promptly returned the favor by mistakenly allowing Firouzja to trade a pair of rooks. The resulting endgame proved to have minimal weaknesses for both sides, and the two players settled on a draw on move 47. Anish checks the London on the board intently! | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes The Sinquefield Cup continues on November 25, with live coverage starting at 1:15 PM CST. Catch all the action live with grandmaster commentators Yasser Seirawan, Peter Svidler, and Jovanka Houska on uschesschamps.com and on the Saint Louis Chess Club’s YouTube and Twitch.tv channels! Written by WGM Gulrukhbegim Tokhirjonova Official website:grandchesstour.org/2023-grand-chess-tour/2023-sinquefield-cup/