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The first game starts at 16:20h local time = 15:20h Paris/Berlin, 14:20h GMT/London and 09:20h NY (you can find the time in your city here). The exact schedule is as follows:
The venue is the Musala Hall in the Hilton Hotel, Sofia, Bulgaria. The organizer and sponsor is MobilTel EAD with the support of the Bulgarian Chess Federation and the media partnership of Dneven Trud Newspaper.
Top Bulgarian GM Veselin Topalov vs world number three player Vishy Anand
The regulations state that "the main rule while holding the competition will be correctness and mutual respect – “FAIR PLAY”. When achieving an equal position (equal score) in the last minutes of the match, it would be ADVISABLE for the party having more time, if it were not to see a winning plan, to offer a draw." After this preamble the conditions are laid out:
Interesting are some special provisions mentioned with regard to medical care (do they know something we don't know?): "If during the match any of the competitors should urgently need any medical help, the referee judge will stop the clock after which he records the last move and the times of the two players. After 5 minutes at the most, the game is continued. If the competitor who has fallen sick cannot continue playing, he loses the game."
According to the official web site the two players have so far met 48 times. Anand scored 13 victories, Topalov nine. The Sicilian Defense was used in 23 games, there were ten Najdorfs, nine Ruy Lopezes, five French, three Rubinsteins, and Anand defended twice with the Petroff. 27 games were played under classical time control, with an even 50% score for both players. In blindfold chess the score was +2 =3 –1 for Anand, while in rapid chess he was victorious with +4 =9 –1.
Here is a list of their individual encounters:
1 | Anand | Topalov | Las Palmas | 1993 | 1 - 0 | 40 |
2 | Anand | Topalov | Madrid | 1993 | draw | 38 |
3 | Anand | Topalov | Linares | 1994 | 0 - 1 | 42 |
4 | Topalov | Anand | Wijk aan Zee | 1996 | 1 - 0 | 28 |
5 | Anand | Topalov | Amsterdam | 1996 | 0 - 1 | 51 |
6 | Topalov | Anand | Dos Hermanas | 1996 | draw | 30 |
7 | Anand | Topalov | Dortmund | 1996 | 1 - 0 | 38 |
8 | Anand | Topalov | Las Palmas | 1996 | draw | 29 |
9 | Topalov | Anand | Las Palmas | 1996 | draw | 39 |
10 | Anand | Topalov | Linares | 1997 | draw | 20 |
11 | Topalov | Anand | Dos Hermanas | 1997 | draw | 26 |
12 | Topalov | Anand | Monaco - blind | 1997 | draw | 44 |
13 | Anand | Topalov | Monaco- rapid | 1997 | draw | 49 |
14 | Topalov | Anand | Frankfurt - rapid | 1997 | 0 - 1 | 34 |
15 | Anand | Topalov | Frankfurt - rapid | 1997 | draw | 36 |
16 | Topalov | Anand | Dortmund | 1997 | 1 - 0 | 42 |
17 | Anand | Topalov | Wijk aan Zee | 1998 | 1 - 0 | 29 |
18 | Topalov | Anand | Linares | 1998 | draw | 40 |
19 | Anand | Topalov | Linares | 1998 | 1 - 0 | 78 |
20 | Topalov | Anand | Monaco - blind | 1998 | draw | 56 |
21 | Anand | Topalov | Monaco- rapid | 1998 | draw | 36 |
22 | Anand | Topalov | Tilburg | 1998 | draw | 46 |
23 | Anand | Topalov | Wijk aan Zee | 1999 | 1 - 0 | 41 |
24 | Anand | Topalov | Hoogovenn- blitz | 1999 | draw | 42 |
25 | Anand | Topalov | Linares | 1999 | draw | 65 |
26 | Topalov | Anand | Linares | 1999 | 0 – 1 | 43 |
27 | Topalov | Anand | Monaco - blind | 1999 | 1 - 0 | 63 |
28 | Anand | Topalov | Monaco- rapid | 1999 | 1 - 0 | 34 |
29 | Topalov | Anand | Dos Hermanas | 1999 | draw | 25 |
30 | Anand | Topalov | Dortmund | 1999 | draw | 51 |
31 | Anand | Topalov | Monaco - blind | 2000 | 1 - 0 | 47 |
32 | Topalov | Anand | Monaco- rapid | 2000 | draw | 32 |
33 | Topalov | Anand | Wijk aan Zee | 2001 | draw | 34 |
34 | Topalov | Anand | Monaco - blind | 2001 | draw | 25 |
35 | Anand | Topalov | Monaco- rapid | 2001 | 0 – 1 | 30 |
36 | Topalov | Àíàíä | Dortmund | 2001 | 1 - 0 | 45 |
37 | Anand | Topalov | Dortmund | 2001 | 0 - 1 | 84 |
38 | Topalov | Anand | Monte Carlo - rapid | 2003 | draw | 17 |
39 | Anand | Topalov | Monte Carlo - blind | 2003 | 1 - 0 | 43 |
40 | Topalov | Anand | Wijk aan Zee | 2003 | 0 - 1 | 61 |
41 | Anand | Topalov | Corsica – rapid | 2003 | draw | 29 |
42 | Topalov | Anand | Corsica – rapid | 2003 | draw | 37 |
43 | Anand | Topalov | Corsica – rapid | 2003 | draw | 29 |
44 | Topalov | Anand | Corsica – rapid | 2003 | draw | 33 |
45 | Àíàíä | Topalov | Corsica – rapid | 2003 | 1 - 0 | 33 |
46 | Topalov | Anand | Corsica – rapid | 2003 | 0 - 1 | 61 |
47 | Topalov | Anand | Estrella | 2003 | draw | 13 |
48 | Topalov | Anand | Wijk aan Zee | 2004 | 1 - 0 | 43 |