Li Chao tops Reykjavik

by Alejandro Ramirez
3/13/2014 – After a disappointing first round the Chinese player has managed to to go on a rampage and his 8.5/10 was sufficient to earn him a clear first place. Van Kampen, Hansen, Olafsson and Rozentalis finished only half a point behind while a big pack followed with 7.5/10. We bring you a final report and pictures of the closing ceremony, finishing a very pleasant event!

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Final Standings

The 2014 Reykjavik Open has come to an exciting close. In past editions some quick draws have made the event less than exciting at the top, but that was certainly not the case this year. The last rounds saw people fighting tooth and nail to remain in the top boards, hoping for a chance at first prize.

No one was safe in this event. After seven rounds of chess it seemed that GM Amin Bassem from Egypt was untouchable, scoring a massive 6.5/7, but three tough losses in a row - against Li Chao, Van Kampen and Panjwani, left him far from the leader table.

Van Kampen (right) beat Amin Bassem in round eight

The winner at the end of the day was second seed Li Chao from China. He started drawin a 2000 rated player from Canada in the first round but he scored four wins after that, drew Kobalia, then won in consecutive games against Rozentalis, Amin Bassem, Rapport and secured his first place with 8.5/10 by drawing Van Kampen in the last round.

Hansen beat Naiditsch in the penultimate round and is now crossing 2600

The top standings were a slight surprise. Van Kampen and Hansen, had amazing tournaments and finished second and third. Also with 8.0/10 was Rozentalis who was always near the top boards. Helgi Olafsson, the legendary chess player, proved that he can still play fighting and good chess, finishing with a solid +9.5 rating.

Despite only starting with 2.5/4 Olafsson fought his way into the 8.0/10 pack

Tatev Abrahamyan is the strongest player in the world with purple hair

Rk. Name FED RtgI Pts. Rp K rtg+/-
1 Li Chao CHN 2700 8.5 2698 10 12.6
2 Van Kampen Robin NED 2603 8.0 2727 10 19.3
3 Hansen Eric CAN 2587 8.0 2695 10 16.7
4 Rozentalis Eduardas LTU 2623 8.0 2675 10 9.4
5 Olafsson Helgi ISL 2546 8.0 2598 10 9.5
6 L'Ami Erwin NED 2646 7.5 2637 10 3.5
7 Harika Dronavalli IND 2487 7.5 2623 10 19.9
8 Gretarsson Hjorvar Steinn ISL 2511 7.5 2588 10 12.4
9 Stefansson Hannes ISL 2541 7.5 2567 10 4.8
10 Panjwani Raja CAN 2460 7.5 2508 0 0.0
11 Naiditsch Arkadij GER 2706 7.0 2584 10 -8.5
12 Rapport Richard HUN 2681 7.0 2625 10 -1.6
13 Ramirez Alejandro USA 2599 7.0 2530 10 -4.1
14 Berkes Ferenc HUN 2687 7.0 2554 10 -10.2
15 Jones Gawain C B ENG 2651 7.0 2564 10 -5.7
16 Browne Walter S. USA 2444 7.0 2480 10 8.6
17 Danielsen Henrik ISL 2501 7.0 2486 10 0.9
18 Gajewski Grzegorz POL 2631 7.0 2465 10 -8.9
19 Hamitevici Vladimir MDA 2456 7.0 2456 10 3.0
20 Grandelius Nils SWE 2600 7.0 2499 10 -7.5

Closing Ceremony

The closing ceremony was held in Reykjavik City Hall. A nice reception with champagne and appetizers greeted the players.

Reykjavik is full of interesting colors. Harpa, for example, lights up at night!

It's also full of pretty lakes!

Two of the Americans, Ramirez and Abrahamyan, with matching colors. Tatev Abrahamyan scored an IM norm, but it is her fourth and only needs four rating points to become an IM.

Rapport and Vojinovic at the ceremony

Henrik Carlsen, Magnus' father, was the guest of honor at the event.

A traditional musical performance kicked things off

Many norms were earned at the event. Aravindh Chithambaram from India scored an IM and received a kiss in the cheek for his efforts, to which he seemed very confused at how to react!

Best female prizes. GM Harika Dronavalli won best woman, WGM Tatev Abrahamyan was second and GM Krush from America was third.

The winner circle! All of the top 10 players are there, if you can spot them.

Li Chao, Olafsson and Harika: three big names in the top of the leaderboard

An important victory for the Chinese player, who is sky rocketing in rating lately

Replay select games

Pictures by Alina l'Ami

Links

The games will be broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download a free Playchess client there and get immediate access. You can also use ChessBase 12 or any of our Fritz compatible chess programs.

 


Grandmaster Alejandro Ramirez has been playing tournament chess since 1998. His accomplishments include qualifying for the 2004 and 2013 World Cups as well as playing for Costa Rica in the 2002, 2004 and 2008 Olympiads. He currently has a rating of 2583 and is author of a number of popular and critically acclaimed ChessBase-DVDs.

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