24.07.2010 – There is something very special about children playing chess. Especially when it's many hundreds of them, from scores of different countries. This truly edifying event is taking place in the central Anatolian city of Kayseri (Turkey) and we are lucky to have a dedicated and ambitious photographer at the venue. Enjoy the latest extraordinary pictorial report by Anastasiya Karlovich.
Advertisement
Lawrence Trent: The Smith-Morra Gambit What do you do against the Sicilian Defence? Do you play a mainline, safe in the knowledge that despite being the most reliable way to gain an opening advantage, you could be condemned to spending years studying a huge body of opening theory, or do you choose an Anti-Sicilian, a way to sidestep the mainlines at the risk of allowing Black to have a sneaking chance to achieve equality?
The Sixth World School Chess Championship (under seven, under nine, under eleven,
under thirteen, under fifteen and under seventeen years old – open and
girls) is taking place between July the 20th and July 31st, 2010 in Kayseri,
Turkey, under the aegis of the Turkish First Lady Hayrünnisa Gül.
The event has been organized by Turkish Chess Federation (TFC).
Sixth World School Chess Championship: Third day report
Text and pictures by Anastasiya Karlovich
The organizers took care about the special prizes for the participants. The
winners will receive a FIDE Candidate Master title and the right to participate
(free accommodation) in the 2010 World Youth Chess Championship in Porto Carras,
Greece.
The champions of each category (twelve in all) will receive a notebook computer.
All second places in those categories will receive video MP3/MP4 players. Third
places will receive special chess sets. Other gifts (books or toys) will be
given to the 4th, 5th, 6th places.
The Yeni Camil or New Mosque in Kayseri
The clock tower
Kayseri Castle with posters of the WSCC and FIBA championships
A monument to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who was a Turkish army officer,
revolutionary
statesman, writer, and founder of the Republic of Turkey as well as its first
president
Two little girls from Sri Lanka arrive in Kayseri
The playing venue
Parents and spectators watch the games from the public gallery
Some come properly equipped
Limbering up before a move
Inspiration often comes from above
Decisions, decision...
The mascot is part of the game
You can even wear them in your cap
Hang on to your hat, here comes a good move...
headgear for a cool game of chess?
POCCNA? That's "Russia" in Cyrillic characters!
If it's attacked you graciously retreat it
It's never too early to start practising The Glare
That's doleful, you need more aggression! Well, he's learning, he's learning...
It is edifying to see so many young girls interested in the game
Please read our previous caption
Ballerinas and frilly socks
She wields a cute cap and a mean pen
Chew it and view it
They are not going to able to think of a caption for this one!
One of the many young Turkish talents – a.k.a. "young Turks"
The arbiters are often called to solomonically clear up a question
The lady's section
About the author
Anastasiya (Nastja) Karlovich was Ukrainian champion
and vice-champion among girls under 16, 18 and 20. She was European
Champion with the Ukrainian team in the Youth Team Championships. She
is also
a candidate officer in the National Law Academy Yaroslav the Wise,
a member of the chess club Law Academy
a member of the German club Grosslehna
one of the organisers of WGM and GM closed tournaments Cup of
Rector.
a Woman Grandmaster since 2003
Links
Official tournament
site (with schedules, pairings and results, standings,
cross tables, games in PGN and Elo reports)
To read, replay and analyse the PGN games we adivse you to download the free PGN
reader ChessBase Light. This program also gives you immediate access
to the chess server .
23.07.2010 – After suffering a defeat for wanting more in the fifth round, and then getting hit by the sort of chess blindness every player experiences at least once, after conducting a beautiful game in the sixth round. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov bounces back with a powerful game against Peter Leko, tying him for second and placing him in contention once more. Round seven report.
Advertisement
Lawrence Trent: The Smith-Morra Gambit What do you do against the Sicilian Defence? Do you play a mainline, safe in the knowledge that despite being the most reliable way to gain an opening advantage, you could be condemned to spending years studying a huge body of opening theory, or do you choose an Anti-Sicilian, a way to sidestep the mainlines at the risk of allowing Black to have a sneaking chance to achieve equality?
From Thursday July 15 to Sunday, July 25, 2010 the 38th edition annual Sparkassen
Chess-Meeting is taking place in Dortmund, Germany. It is a six-player round
robin, in which each player has to play two games against each other, one with
white and one with black pieces. Draw offers are not allowed – a game
can only be declared a draw, by the arbiter, if there is no possible win for
one side, or if a position is repeated three time. The winner of this tournament
will be determined after ten rounds. Games start at 15:00h = 3 p.m. local time
(CEST, = 17:00 Moscow, 14:00 p.m. London, 9:00 a.m. New York). All games will
be broadcast by the official web site's "Live
Games" page and on the Playchess.com
server, with live audio commentary, in German, by Dennis Breder (July 15-18),
Niclas Huschenbeth (19-21), Merijn van Delft (22, 24, 25) and Julian Zimmermann
(July 23).
Round 7: Thursday, July 22, 15:00h
Shak. Mamedyarov
1-0
Peter Leko
Arkadij Naiditsch
½-½
Le Quang Liem
Vladimir Kramnik
½-½
Ruslan Ponomariov
The seventh round continued what has been a great tournament so far, with dynamic
fighting chess through and through.
At the start of round seven: Richard A. Conn Jr. (middle), who is on the Karpov
team as candidate for Deputy President of FIDE, chats with Alexander Bakh,
arbiter in Dortmund (and former president of the Russian Chess Federation, who
in May), while guest-of-honour Anatoly Karpov waits for his ceremonial duty.
...which is to execute the first move to officially start the seventh round
game between Vladimir Kramnik and Ruslan Ponomariov. Note that Karpov was the
12th World Champion, Kramnik the 14th, while Ruslan Ponomariov, 4th FIDE knockout
world champion.
Kramnik,Vladimir - Ponomariov,Ruslan [E17]
Sparkassen GM Dortmund GER (7), 22.07.2010
Kramnik played a rare line in a Queen's Indian against Ponomariov with reasonable
attempts on both sides to wrest the initiative. 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6
4.g3 Bb7 5.Bg2 Be7 6.0-0 0-0 7.Re1 a5 8.a3 Na6 9.Nc3 Ne4 10.Qc2 Nxc3 11.Qxc3
f5 12.Bf4 Bf6 13.Rad1 Nc5 14.Be5 Ne4 15.Qc2 d6 16.Nd2.
Tournament leader Ruslan Ponomariov going into a Queen's Indian
Karpov and Conn follow the action on the stage
Naiditsch had White against Quang Liem and showed utter disdain for their pawn
structures in a Caro-Kann Advance variation. It quickly defused into a double-rook
ending with no options for either and a draw ensued.
The game of the round was unquestionably Mamedyarov's comeback at Leko's expense.
After losing a game to Ponomariov in the fifth round for making unreasonable
demands of his position, and then botching what would have been a contender
for best game of the tournament against Naiditsch, many a player might have
been demoralized by such tragic turnarounds, but not him.
Mamedyarov ready to put an end to his losing streak at Leko's expense
Down in the dumps: Peter Leko with his shakiest performance in years
... and that in spite of Peter's magic potions
Perhaps in what would have been an excellent application of positive thinking,
he concluded that if his desire to win had been a little excessive against Ruslan,
he had played an essentially beautiful game in the sixth round, except for that
inexplicable blindness that hit him, but that has also hit most every player
there is. He was playing very well by all standards, and just needed to get
it all under grip.
Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar - Leko,Peter [A15]
Sparkassen GM Dortmund GER (7), 22.07.2010
18...Nf5 Taking the pawn with 18...Qxd3 would be worse because after
19.Nd5 f5 (White is threatening 20.Nf6+ Kh8 21.Nxe8 Nxe8 22.Bxc6 Winning the piece.) 20.Nc4 Qxd1 21.Rfxd1 b5 22.Nd6 c4 White recovers
the pawn with a healthy edge. 23.b3 e4 24.bxc4 b4 25.axb4 axb4 26.Rb1 b3 27.c5+/= 19.Nd5 Kg7 20.Nc4 f6 21.Qc2 Nce7
Black's position is a mess. His pieces are completely uncoordinated, trying
to counter White's heavy pieces, central control, and passed b-pawn. 30...d2 30...Qb8 would do no better after 31.b5 Ne5 32.Qc7+ Bd7 33.f4 Qxb5 34.fxe5
Rc8 35.exf6+ Kg8 (35...Kxf6 36.Qd6+ Kg7 37.Qd4+ Kg8 38.Rxc8+ Bxc8 39.Qd8+
Kg7 40.Qxc8) 36.Qxc8+ Bxc8 37.Rxc8+ Kf7 38.h3 Kxf6 39.Rc3 Nf7 40.Rcxd3+-
And once the dust has settled, White is winning. 31.Rc2 Qb8 32.b5 Ne5 33.Qc7+
Bd7 34.Rdxd2 Qxb5 35.f4 Nhf7 36.fxe5 Nxe5 37.Bf1 Qa4 38.Rc4 Qb5 39.Rcd4 1-0. A great effort by Shakhriyar, placing him once more in second, tied with
Quang Liem Le, and a half-point behind Ponomariov. The game is afoot.
Current standings
Round seven under way. We counted around 150 spectators in the theatre
Visitors playing chess in the halls of the Dortmund Schauspielhaus
Karpov and Conn – a press conference with the two running mates for FIDE
presidency
The two had just flown in from Asia, where they had been campaigning for
their ticket
Afterwards a photo op in the Town Hall, were more chess is being played
The two campaigners taking a one-day break in Dortmund
The games are being broadcast live on the official
web site and on the chess server .
If you are not a member you can download the free PGN reader ChessBase
Light, which gives you immediate access. You can also use the program
to read, replay and analyse PGN games. New and enhanced: CB Light 2009!
23.07.2010 – No less than four top tournaments are covered in CBM 137: the Kings tournament in Bazna, the FIDE Grand Prix in Astrakhan,
the Capablanca Memprial, and the Karpov Tournament. Remarkably the winners are
also the star authors of the new DVD. Carlsen, Eljanov, Karjakin, Bologan among
other top players explain their best games in great depth. Twelve opening articles
offer ideas for your repertoire.
Shipping starts July 28. Order or read this preview.
Advertisement
Lawrence Trent: The Smith-Morra Gambit What do you do against the Sicilian Defence? Do you play a mainline, safe in the knowledge that despite being the most reliable way to gain an opening advantage, you could be condemned to spending years studying a huge body of opening theory, or do you choose an Anti-Sicilian, a way to sidestep the mainlines at the risk of allowing Black to have a sneaking chance to achieve equality?
22.07.2010 – 355 players plus 500 accompanying delegates from 70 different countries have convened in the central Anatolian city of Kayseri (Turkey) to participate in this event, which is being staged under the aegis of the Turkish First Lady, Hayrünnisa Gül. The children are between seven and seventeen, and competing in twelve categories. Big pictorial report by Anastasiya Karlovich.
Advertisement
Lawrence Trent: The Smith-Morra Gambit What do you do against the Sicilian Defence? Do you play a mainline, safe in the knowledge that despite being the most reliable way to gain an opening advantage, you could be condemned to spending years studying a huge body of opening theory, or do you choose an Anti-Sicilian, a way to sidestep the mainlines at the risk of allowing Black to have a sneaking chance to achieve equality?
This event is being held from July 21-30, 2010, in Kayseri, Turkey, under the
aegis of the Turkish First Lady, Hayrünnisa Gül. The event has been
organized by Turkish Chess Federation (TFC). Players between seven and 17 years
are competing in twelve categories.
President Abdullah Gül and First Lady Hayrünnisa Gül with
successful chess players
The above photo is from Turkish National Day Reception on 29th October 2008.
Left to right Canan Ali Marandi (mother of Cemil Can), FM Cemil Can Ali Marandi
(2007 World School Chess Championship first place, 2008 European Youth Chess
Champion Under 10), President of the Republic of Turkey Abdullah Gül, Batuhan
Dastan (2009 European Youth Chess Championship fourth place under 12, 2010 European
Individual School Chess Champion), First Lady Hayrunnisa Gül.
Kayseri
Kayseri is a city in Central Anatolia, with a population of around on million
[View
Larger Map]
Kayseri Square and Hilton Kayseri (one of the hotels will be used for the
event)
The Mustafa Kemal Ataturk monument on Kayseri Square
Sixth World School Chess Championship: First day report
Text and pictures by Anastasiya Karlovich
The Sixth World School Chess Championship started on 21st of July and will
be held till 31 July 2010. About 355 players and 506 participants are present
on the event. The tournament has been organised for the first time in Turkey,
in Kayseri, a that hosts many sport events and becoming a well-known sport center
in Turkey and abroad. After the WSCC the FIBA World Championship will take place
in the same venue.
A view of the city of Kayseri from the Hilton Hotel
A musical reception for the players and guests
The President of the Turkish Chess Federation, Ali Nihat Yazici, delivers
his opening speech
Youthful players from different continents with the TCF President
Two young models pose for our camera
Others find the opening ceremony festivities exhausting
Even the younger ones know how to fill out a score sheet
The official cap of the event
Girls before the start of their game
Oh dear, my opponent is threatening scholar's mate!!
Arbiter, I need some help here...
Me too, please
It would be interesting to know how many children fell into a scholar's mate
You are never too young to start with competitive chess
Or to what species you belong – real or as a comfort toy
About the author
Anastasiya (Nastja) Karlovich was Ukrainian champion
and vice-champion among girls under 16, 18 and 20. She was European
Champion with the Ukrainian team in the Youth Team Championships. She
is also
a candidate officer in the National Law Academy Yaroslav the Wise,
a member of the chess club Law Academy
a member of the German club Grosslehna
one of the organisers of WGM and GM closed tournaments Cup of
Rector.
a Woman Grandmaster since 2003
Links
Official tournament
site (with schedules, pairings and results, standings,
cross tables, games in PGN and Elo reports)
To read, replay and analyse the PGN games we adivse you to download the free PGN
reader ChessBase Light. This program also gives you immediate access
to the chess server .
22.07.2010 – In the sixth round, the players came back rested, but the games all went quietly, ending in draws except for one: Mamedyarov's powerful attack against Naiditsch. After a missed opportunity to go down in glory, the unthinkable happened. During the rest day, however, fans were given a chance to obtain autographs from their heroes. Don't miss the report and beautiful photos.
Advertisement
Lawrence Trent: The Smith-Morra Gambit What do you do against the Sicilian Defence? Do you play a mainline, safe in the knowledge that despite being the most reliable way to gain an opening advantage, you could be condemned to spending years studying a huge body of opening theory, or do you choose an Anti-Sicilian, a way to sidestep the mainlines at the risk of allowing Black to have a sneaking chance to achieve equality?
From Thursday July 15 to Sunday, July 25, 2010 the 38th edition annual Sparkassen
Chess-Meeting is taking place in Dortmund, Germany. It is a six-player round
robin, in which each player has to play two games against each other, one with
white and one with black pieces. Draw offers are not allowed – a game
can only be declared a draw, by the arbiter, if there is no possible win for
one side, or if a position is repeated three time. The winner of this tournament
will be determined after ten rounds. Games start at 15:00h = 3 p.m. local time
(CEST, = 17:00 Moscow, 14:00 p.m. London, 9:00 a.m. New York). All games will
be broadcast by the official web site's "Live
Games" page and on the Playchess.com
server, with live audio commentary, in German, by Dennis Breder (July 15-18),
Niclas Huschenbeth (19-21), Merijn van Delft (22, 24, 25) and Julian Zimmermann
(July 23).
Round 6: Wednesday, July 21, 15:00h
Peter Leko
½-½
Ruslan Ponomariov
Le Quang Liem
½-½
Vladimir Kramnik
Shak. Mamedyarov
0-1
Arkadij Naiditsch
After a rest day, the players resumed battle, and despite a couple of quiet
games, one board reserved a significant surprise.
The Aeroflot qualifier, Quang Liem Le, has shown his appearance in a tournament
of this caliber is but the first of many as he once again stood his ground against
former world champion, Vladimir Kramnik. In fact, not only did he hold his own,
but he even managed to put the Russian into a bit of a spot, causing worry among
his fans, when he came out of a tussle with a queen for rook and bishop. That
said, there were few if no opportunities to press this into anything more, and
they drew ten moves later.
Qualifier Quang Liem Le holding his own against former world champion Kramnik.
Le Quang Liem (2681) - Kramnik,V (2790) [E05]
Sparkassen GM Dortmund GER (6), 21.07.2010
27.Rb3! This zwischenzug wins the queen for rook and piece, though it
is not unlikely that Kramnik had seen it and judged that he could hold comfortably.
It also relinquishes any shadow of a chance that he might play for more, which
says something about how he judged his position. 27...Qxb3 28.Qxb3 Bxe5 29.h4
g6 30.h5 Bg7 31.Rc5 Rd7 32.Rb5 Rfd8 33.Qf3 Rd5 34.Rxd5 Rxd5 35.hxg6 hxg6 36.Qe4
Bf6 37.Qf3 Bg7 38.Qe4 Bf6 39.Qf3 1/2-1/2.[Click
to replay]
Leko and Ponomariov also played a topical Catalan, with Ruslan playing a position
with tripled isolated pawns on an open file, something that would have had the
hypermodernists of old screaming bloody murder, yet obtaining enough counterplay
on the open b-file to make up for the sacrilege. In the end, there really wasn't
much venom in the position for either and they drew after 41 moves.
Leko playing Ponomariov in round six.
The only decisive result was also an extremely ugly one. Mamdyarov was playing
the Meran as White, against Naiditsch, and had a magical opportunity to rejoin
the lead alongside Ponomariov, when an unbelievable disaster struck.
The Azerbaidjan genius had conducted the game with verve and class, and now
had a golden opportunity to finish it off in style. Unfortunately he misses
the chance here and plays 25.Nf3? Instead 25.Qd3! Qb6 26.Ng4 Kg7 27.f4
Raa8 28.Kh2 gxf4 29.Bxf4 and White's attack is decisive. Ex: 29...Rh8 30.Rf1
Rh7 31.Bg5!! Bxg5 32.Rxf7+ Kxf7 33.Qxh7+ Ke8 34.Rf1! Be7 35.Qg8+ Nf8 36.Rxf8+!
Bxf8 37.Nf6+ Kd8 (37...Ke7 38.Qh7+ Kd8 39.Qd7#) 38.Qxf8+ Kc7 39.Qxa8. 25...Rb6 26.Bc3 Qb5 27.a4 Qa6 28.Bd2 Kh7 29.Rc7 Rb7 30.Rac1 Rxc7 31.Rxc7
Rd8 32.Nh2 Qe2 33.Bxa5 Qd1+ 34.Nf1 Qxa4 35.Qc3 Ra8 After spending the entire
game either completely won or just better, he has a moment of madness.
36.Rxd7?? No doubt, Mamedyarov is still wondering what on earth possessed
him to play this (36...QxR ends the game). 0-1.[Click
to replay]
Current standings
On their rest day, the organizers had an autograph hour, in which all the players
gave out autographs to chess fans. Here are some pictures from the event.
Fans line up before the start of the autograph session.
The players at their stations (left to right): Arkadij Naiditsch, Peter
Leko, Vladimir
Kramnik, Ruslan Ponomariov, Shak Mamedyarov, Quang Liem Le.
The fans mostly used the handout pamphlets, but some brought their own material.
Vladimir Kramnik.
Ruslan Ponomariov.
Vietnamese prodigy, 19-year-old Quang Liem Le.
"No, I asked you to write, 'to the next world chess champion.' It is
for my sister."
The games are being broadcast live on the official
web site and on the chess server .
If you are not a member you can download the free PGN reader ChessBase
Light, which gives you immediate access. You can also use the program
to read, replay and analyse PGN games. New and enhanced: CB Light 2009!
