Max Warmerdam wins Teplice Open 2024
Grandmaster Max Warmerdam emerged victorious in the 2024 Teplice Open, a chess tournament with a rich history dating back to 1922 and held annually since 2006. The competition, supported by the FIDE Aid Package initiative (launched in 2021), took place from June 15th to 23rd at the Sports Hall in Teplice, Czech Republic. The event attracted 240 players from 33 countries, including 16 Grandmasters. It was a tightly contested event, with several players sharing the top position most of the way. Going into the final round, a remarkable six participants jointly lead with 6.5 points each. Max Warmerdam, Alexander Donchenko, and Tin Jingyao secured crucial victories in the final round, resulting in a three-way tie for first place. Warmerdam came out on top thanks to a superior rating average of the opponents, while Doncheko and Jingyao took second and third place respectively, based on the Buchholz tiebreaker. Women’s honors went to WGM Ravi Rakshitta, who scored 6.5 points out of 9. Local hopeful IM Vaclav Finek (pictured below) also impressed, netting 7 points and tying for third place overall while simultaneously winning the U18 category. Final standings: 1 GM Warmerdam, Max NED 2654 7½ 2 GM Tin, Jingyao SGP 2570 7½ 3 GM Donchenko, Alexander GER 2639 7½ 4 GM Stocek, Jiri CZE 2524 7 5 IM Akbas, Umut Ata TUR 2437 7 6 IM Finek, Vaclav CZE 2450 7 7 GM Svane, Frederik GER 2638 6½ 8 IM Martin, Julian GER 2402 6½ 9 IM Kaasen, Tor Fredrik NOR 2465 6½ 10 GM Babula, Vlastimil CZE 2521 6½ Complete final standings Official website: tepliceopen.com Photos: Teplice Chess Club
Gawain Jones and Elmira Mirzoeva сrowned English Chess Champions
Gawain Jones and Elmira Mirzoeva are the new English Chess Champions, emerging victorious after thrilling tiebreaker battles. The 2024 English Championship took place in Kenilworth from June 20-23. Both the Open and Women’s competitions were 7-round Swiss tournaments with classical time control. The open event became a tense race between defending champion Michael Adams, Peter Wells, and Gawain Jones. Although Adams held a half-point lead entering the final round (5.5/6), a draw against Ameet Ghasi opened the door for his competitors. Jones pulled off a crucial victory over Wells on the black side of Ruy Lopez and tied for first place. According to the tournament regulations, a rapid tiebreaker was played to determine a champion. After winning the first game with black pieces, Jones drew the second one and captured the title. Final standings Open The women’s tournament followed a similar script, with Elmira Mirzoeva winning on-demand her final round game to catch up with the defending champion, top seed Katarzyna Toma. The women’s tiebreaker was a very close affair. Mirzoeva won the first rapid game, but Toma bounced back in the second one, forcing the blitz playoff. There, Elmira prevailed in the first blitz encounter with black pieces and secured the title after drawing the second one. Final standings Women Photos: Lennart Ootes and Etery Kublashvili