Mind Games Day 5: Yifan, Karjakin gold

by Alejandro Ramirez
12/17/2013 – In two close blitz tournaments the final results came to the very last round. In the men's section Aronian and Karjakin tied at the top, but the Russian edged his opponent out on tiebreaks as he had bested the Armenian in the individual encounter. In the Women's section Gunina could have won if she defeated Hou Yifan in the last round, but she blundered and lost. Analysis of a blitz game!

ChessBase 17 - Mega package - Edition 2024 ChessBase 17 - Mega package - Edition 2024

It is the program of choice for anyone who loves the game and wants to know more about it. Start your personal success story with ChessBase and enjoy the game even more.

More...

 

SportAccord Mind Games will be held in Beijing, China between the 12th of December and 20th December 2012. The World Mind Games was held for the first time in 2008 and consisted of 5 disciplines: chess, bridge, draughts (checkers), go, and xiangqi (Chinese chess). SportAccord, the organizer of the Mind Games, is the umbrella organization for both Olympic and non-Olympic sports as well as for major organizers of conferences and sporting events.

Day 5: Blitz - Men

Karjakin won thanks to his better tiebreaks: he defeated Aronian in the personal encounter 1.5-0.5

Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, MVL, scored well, but not fantastically, every day and that added up to a third place finish

Everyone knows that when the cap is going backwards things are getting serious

Blitz chess wouldn't exist without controversy

Day three was a very close race. Ponomariov and Karjakin were the ones that scored the most points with 7.0/10 each. However close behind were Aronian, Giri and Grischuk with 6.5/10. Because of their previous results, however, Giri, Grischuk and Ponomariov needed more than that to opt for medals.

The leader after day two, Mamedyarov, was only able to score 4.0/10 and that also bumped him out of the top three positions. Karjakin, though, was able to catch up to Aronian and the two scored 19.5/20. The tiebreak system favored the Russian, though, as he has won the direct encounter 1.5-0.5 It was definitely a close tournament that could have gone to anyone even in the latter stages! The somewhat surprising third place was Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, who didn't have a single fantastic day but a series of good results put him in the podium.

Rank Name Rtg FED 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Pts
1 Karjakin Sergey 2837 RUS * * 1 ½​ 1 ½​ 1 0 1 1 1 ½​ 0 1 1 ½​ 1 0 0 ½​ 1 1 ½​ 1 0 1 0 ½​ ½​ 1 ½​ 1 19.5
2 Aronian Levon 2817 ARM 0 ½​ * * ½​ 1 0 ½​ 0 1 1 1 ½​ 0 1 1 ½​ 0 1 0 1 1 1 ½​ 1 1 ½​ 1 1 0 1 1 19.5
3 Vachier-Lagrave Maxime 2825 FRA 0 ½​ ½​ 0 * * 1 ½​ 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 ½​ 1 ½​ 1 1 1 1 1 0 ½​ ½​ 1 1 ½​ 1 ½​ ½​ 18.0
4 Mamedyarov Shakhriyar 2721 AZE 0 1 1 ½​ 0 ½​ * * ½​ 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 ½​ 1 1 1 ½​ ½​ 1 1 1 0 1 1 18.0
5 Nepomniachtchi Ian 2830 RUS 0 0 1 0 1 0 ½​ 1 * * 1 1 0 ½​ 1 0 1 ½​ 1 ½​ ½​ 1 1 0 0 0 ½​ ½​ 1 ½​ 1 1 17.0
6 Le Quang Liem 2841 VIE 0 ½​ 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 * * 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 0 ½​ ½​ ½​ 1 1 ½​ ½​ 1 ½​ ½​ 17.0
7 Grischuk Alexander 2798 RUS 1 0 ½​ 1 0 0 0 1 1 ½​ 1 0 * * 1 ½​ 0 ½​ 0 1 0 ½​ 1 1 ½​ 1 0 1 1 1 ½​ 0 16.5
8 Ponomariov Ruslan 2774 UKR 0 ½​ 0 0 1 ½​ 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 ½​ * * ½​ 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 ½​ ½​ ½​ 1 1 1 14.5
9 Giri Anish 2747 NED 0 1 ½​ 1 0 ½​ 0 1 0 ½​ 0 0 1 ½​ ½​ 0 * * 1 1 0 ½​ 0 0 ½​ ½​ ½​ ½​ ½​ 1 1 1 14.5
10 Ivanchuk Vassily 2750 UKR 1 ½​ 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 ½​ 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 * * ½​ ½​ ½​ ½​ 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 14.0
11 Kamsky Gata 2671 USA 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½​ 0 ½​ 0 0 1 1 ½​ 0 1 1 ½​ ½​ ½​ * * 1 0 1 1 1 ½​ 1 ½​ ½​ 0 13.5
12 Dominguez Perez Leinier 2769 CUB ½​ 0 0 ½​ 0 1 0 0 0 1 ½​ ½​ 0 0 1 0 1 1 ½​ ½​ 0 1 * * ½​ 1 ½​ 1 ½​ ½​ 0 ½​ 13.5
13 Radjabov Teimour 2755 AZE 1 0 0 0 ½​ ½​ ½​ ½​ 1 1 ½​ 0 ½​ 0 0 0 ½​ ½​ 1 0 0 0 ½​ 0 * * ½​ 1 0 ½​ 1 ½​ 12.0
14 Wang Yue 2723 CHN 1 ½​ ½​ 0 0 0 0 0 ½​ ½​ 0 ½​ 1 0 ½​ ½​ ½​ ½​ 1 0 0 ½​ ½​ 0 ½​ 0 * * ½​ 1 ½​ 0 11.0
15 Leko Peter 2722 HUN ½​ 0 0 1 ½​ 0 0 1 0 ½​ ½​ 0 0 0 ½​ 0 ½​ 0 0 1 0 ½​ ½​ ½​ 1 ½​ ½​ 0 * * ½​ 1 11.0
16 Wang Hao 2698 CHN ½​ 0 0 0 ½​ ½​ 0 0 0 0 ½​ ½​ ½​ 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 ½​ 1 1 ½​ 0 ½​ ½​ 1 ½​ 0 * * 10.5

Note: Blitz ratings used

Men Blitz games 21-30

Day 5: Blitz - Women

The World Champion was not happy with today's results, but she still got the gold medal. She scored 5.5/10 today.

Kosteniuk unfortunatley could not continue her winning streak after being victorious in today's first two games

Ushenina had a fantastic day two but not such a great day three, She finished only one point behing Muzychuk who was third.

The somewhat surprising "winner" of day three with 7.5/10: Antoaneta Stefanova

Pia Cramling scored 10.0/30, will she rebound in the Basque? Muzychuk proved it was possible to come back from a bad set of games!

The women's section was also very close, despite the fact that at the end Hou Yifan won it with two points to spare, it simply does not tell the whole tale. The entire tournament could have finished differently if Gunina had seen an important resource in the final round:

[Event "WMSG Blitz"] [Site "?"] [Date "2013.12.16"] [Round "30.12"] [White "Gunina Valentina (RUS)"] [Black "Hou Yifan (CHN)"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E32"] [PlyCount "72"] [EventDate "2013.??.??"] [WhiteClock "0:00:13"] [BlackClock "0:01:08"] {Normally blitz games should not be annotated, but this is a special case as the winner of this game would win the entire tournament!} 1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. Nf3 d5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 c5 9. dxc5 Be6 10. e3 Bxc5 11. Be2 Nc6 12. O-O Be7 13. Rfd1 Qa5 {a typical battle between in an isolated pawn position. White has the better chances because Black really has not created too many threats as of late. On the other hand it is not always easy to make progress in these types of positions.} 14. a3 Rfd8 15. b4 Qc7 16. Bg3 Qd7 17. e4 Rac8 18. Bb5 a6 $6 (18... Qe8 {was rather necessary to get the queen out of danger.}) 19. Ne5 $1 {very strong.} Nxb4 {The key moment in the tournament.} (19... Qe8 {was still forced.} 20. Nxc6 bxc6 21. Bxa6 Ra8 { although White emerges up a pawn.}) 20. Bxd7 $2 {Missing a fantastic resource.} (20. Qb2 $1 Qc7 21. Nc6 $1 Bd6 22. Nxd8 Bxg3 23. hxg3 Qxc3 24. Qxc3 Rxc3 25. axb4 axb5 {and White finishes up an exchange with excellent winning chances.}) 20... Nxc2 21. Bxc8 Rxc8 {Yes, White is also up an exchange in this variation, but both a1 and c3 are hanging.} 22. exd5 Nxa1 23. dxe6 fxe6 24. Ne2 Nb3 { Black is up a pawn with no compensation.} 25. Rb1 Nc5 26. Ng6 Kf7 27. Ne5+ Ke8 28. f3 Nfd7 29. Ng6 Kf7 30. Nxe7 Kxe7 31. Nd4 b5 32. Rd1 Nb6 33. Be5 Kf7 34. Bd6 Nc4 35. Bg3 Rd8 36. Bf2 e5 {a thrilling finish.} 0-1

Muzychuk, Gunina and Hou Yifan all scored an acceptable 5.5/10 in the last day, but it was their previous results that put them in the podium. Muzychuk was able to maintain her third place over Ushenina since the ex-World Champion only scored 50% in the last day.

Rank Name Rtg FED 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Pts
1 Hou Yifan 2559 CHN * * 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 ½​ 1 ½​ 1 ½​ 1 1 ½​ 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 ½​ 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 21.5
2 Gunina Valentina 2527 RUS 0 0 * * 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 ½​ 1 ½​ 0 1 1 1 1 0 ½​ 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 19.5
3 Muzychuk Anna 2639 SLO 1 1 1 1 * * 0 1 0 0 ½​ 1 ½​ 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 ½​ 0 1 1 1 18.5
4 Ushenina Anna 2489 UKR 0 1 0 0 1 0 * * ½​ 0 ½​ 0 ½​ 1 ½​ 1 1 1 ½​ 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 17.5
5 Stefanova Antoaneta 2508 BUL 0 ½​ 0 0 1 1 ½​ 1 * * ½​ 1 0 ½​ 0 1 ½​ 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 ½​ 0 ½​ 1 ½​ 1 1 17.0
6 Lagno Kateryna 2532 UKR 0 ½​ 0 ½​ ½​ 0 ½​ 1 ½​ 0 * * 1 1 0 1 ½​ 1 ½​ 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 ½​ 1 0 16.0
7 Kosteniuk Alexandra 2612 RUS 0 ½​ 0 ½​ ½​ 1 ½​ 0 1 ½​ 0 0 * * 1 1 0 0 1 ½​ ½​ 1 1 1 0 1 ½​ 0 ½​ 1 ½​ 0 15.0
8 Dzagnidze Nana 2579 GEO 0 0 1 0 0 1 ½​ 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 * * 1 ½​ 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 ½​ 1 14.5
9 Zhao Xue 2471 CHN ½​ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½​ 0 ½​ 0 1 1 0 ½​ * * 1 1 ½​ 1 1 0 1 1 1 ½​ 1 0 1 ½​ 14.5
10 Koneru Humpy 2558 IND 1 0 0 1 0 1 ½​ 1 1 0 ½​ 0 0 ½​ 1 0 0 0 * * 1 0 0 0 ½​ 1 ½​ 1 1 0 1 1 14.5
11 Sebag Marie 2501 FRA 1 0 ½​ 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 ½​ 0 0 0 ½​ 0 0 1 * * 1 ½​ 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 14.0
12 Kosintseva Tatiana 2480 RUS 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 ½​ * * 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 ½​ 14.0
13 Ju Wenjun 2454 CHN ½​ 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 ½​ 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 ½​ 0 0 0 0 1 * * 1 1 0 ½​ ½​ 1 13.5
14 Cmilyte Viktorija 2532 LTU 0 0 1 0 0 ½​ 0 0 1 ½​ 0 0 ½​ 1 0 0 0 ½​ ½​ 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 * * ½​ ½​ 0 1 10.5
15 Cramling Pia 2430 SWE 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 ½​ 0 ½​ ½​ 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 ½​ ½​ ½​ * * 0 0 10.0
16 Paehtz Elisabeth 2574 GER 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 ½​ 1 ½​ 0 0 ½​ 0 0 0 0 1 ½​ ½​ 0 1 0 1 1 * * 9.5

Note: Blitz ratings used

Women Blitz games 21-30

Blitz Prize Giving Ceremony

Muzychuk went from having an atrocious rapid result to getting a medal in the blitz

Gunina was the leader after day one, and she was one win away from taking the gold!

The winners: Gunina, Hou Yifan and Muzychuk

Proudly Chinese, or China's Pride?

MVL from France obtained the third place, Aronian applauds before going to take his second place in the stand

Karjakin edged out the victory, but a gold medal is a gold medal!

Tomorrow starts the unique Basque system, in which players will face each other in two rapid games simultaneously against each other, one with White and one with Black.

Photos by Gu Xiaobing, taken from the official FIDE website

Schedule

Thursday, December 12th 14:00-19:00    Rapid Event: 1-4 rounds (men), 1-4 rounds (women)
Friday, December 13th 14:00-19:00    Rapid Event: 5-7 rounds (men), 5-7 rounds (women)
Saturday, December 14th 14:00-19:00    Blitz Event: 1-10 rounds (men), 1-10 rounds (women)
Sunday, December 15th 14:00-19:00    Blitz Event: 11-20 rounds (men), 11-20 rounds (women)
Monday, December 16th 14:00-19:00    Blitz Event: 21-30 rounds (men), 21-30 rounds (women)
Tuesday, December 17th 14:00-19:00    Basque System: 1-3 rounds (men), 1-3 rounds (women)
Wednesday, December 18th 11:00-16:00    Basque System: 4-5 rounds (men), 4-5 rounds (women) &
Closing Ceremony

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.

Discuss

Rules for reader comments

 
 

Not registered yet? Register