Sinquefield 05: Topalov loses, Carlsen resurges

by Alejandro Ramirez
8/28/2015 – The tournament has become an even tighter race. Topalov had a fantastic start with 3.0/4 and played very strong chess, but Fabiano Caruana, who had a rough start with 0.0/2, has beaten the Bulgarian, escaped from the basement and Topalov is no longer leading. With Carlsen winning yet another game, the Norwegian is now tied for first with Aronian, who drew Grischuk.

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2015 Sinquefield Cup

This super-GM single Round Robin brings together some of the best players in the world. This is the second leg of the Grand Chess Tour.

The players – Magnus Carlsen (Norway), Levon Aronian (Armenia), Fabiano Caruana (USA), Hikaru Nakamura (USA), Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France), Alexander Grischuk (Russia), Anish Giri (Netherlands), Viswanathan Anand (India), Wesley So (USA).

The venue is the Chess Club and Scholastic Center at 4657 Maryland Avenue, Saint Louis, MO 63108. Tickets can be purchased at the Saint Louis Chess Club.

Round Five

Round Five
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
Aronian, Levon 2765
½-½
 Grischuk, Alexander 2771
Carlsen, Magnus 2853
1-0
 So, Wesley 2779
Nakamura, Hikaru 2814
½-½
 Giri, Anish 2793
Anand, Viswanathan 2816
½-½
 Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731
Topalov, Veselin 2816
0-1
 Caruana, Fabiano 2808

Daniel King shows the game of the day from round 5: Carlsen vs So

The tournament has become an even tighter race. Topalov had a fantastic start with 3.0/4 and played very strong chess, but in the top tournament in the world it is clear that even the most “out of shape” player could strike back at any moment! Fabiano Caruana, who had a rough start with 0.0/2, has beaten the Bulgarian, escaped from the basement and Topalov is no longer leading. With Carlsen winning yet another game, the Norwegian is now tied for first with Aronian, who drew Grischuk.

The first game to finish today was slightly surprising. Anand came out with an interesting idea in the Najdorf that caught MVL somewhat off guard. However, it wasn’t enough; MVL played well and despite being down a pawn had really good chances to hold. In the final position, White had an extra pawn but the position seemed to be much closer to a draw than a win. It was still surprising that Anand didn't try to convert the position or at least torture his opponent.

Giri thought it was "ridiculous" to accept a draw as early as Anand did, but Hess
did mention he thought the game was simply a dead drawn

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1.e41,165,57054%2421---
1.d4946,47455%2434---
1.Nf3281,31256%2441---
1.c4181,93756%2442---
1.g319,68856%2427---
1.b314,23654%2427---
1.f45,88648%2377---
1.Nc33,79651%2384---
1.b41,75348%2380---
1.a31,19754%2403---
1.e31,06848%2408---
1.d394850%2378---
1.g466246%2361---
1.h444653%2374---
1.c342651%2425---
1.h327956%2416---
1.a410860%2468---
1.f39147%2431---
1.Nh38966%2508---
1.Na34262%2482---
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Be3 Be6 9.Qd3 The idea of putting the queen on d3 to support a knight on d5 is common, it hasn't been seen in top level chess in this particular position. Nc6 10.a3 preventing Nb4 ideas and preparing Nd5. d5!? Black breaks through before White can establish his bind. However this doesn't fully equalize just yet. 11.exd5 Nxd5 12.Nxd5 Qxd5 12...Bxd5 13.0-0-0 seems dangerous for Black. But perhaps after 13.0-0! 13...Bxg2!? he can get away with capturing the pawn. 13.0-0-0 Qxd3 13...Qxg2 just looks suicidal, even if the computers can navigate the complications. 14.Bxd3 0-0-0 14...Bxb3?! 15.cxb3 0-0 doubles the pawns, but the bishop on the lightsquares is too strong to control. 15.Nc5 Bd5 16.c4 Black doesn't want to give up the pair of bishops, but that means that this bishop must take quite a tour. Bxg2 17.Rhg1 e4! An important move. 18.Be2 18.Rxg2 exd3 19.Rxg7 Ne5= is not entirely clear. 18...Bf3 19.Bxf3 exf3 20.Rxg7 Rxd1+ 21.Kxd1 Rd8+ 22.Kc1 Ne5 Black's structure isn't the best, and h7 is hanging, but he has good compensation. His pieces are active and Black's pawn on f3 is annoying. 23.Ne4! Kd7 23...Nxc4 24.Rxf7 Re8 24.Rxh7 Ke6 25.Nd2 Rc8 26.Kc2 26.Rh6+! 26...Nxc4 27.Nxc4 Rxc4+ 28.Kd3 Rg4 29.h3 Ra4 30.Rh6+ f6 31.Rh7 Ra5 32.Ke4 Rb5 33.Bd4 Bd6 34.Rh6 Be5 35.Bxe5 Rxe5+ 36.Kxf3 Rf5+ White is up a pawn, but converting it is very difficult black is too active and it is hard to make progress with a weak h-pawn. 37.Ke2 Re5+ 38.Kf1 Rb5 39.b4 Rd5 40.Rg6 a5 41.bxa5 Rxa5 42.Rg3 Ra4 ½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Anand,V2816Vachier-Lagrave,M2731½–½2015B923rd Sinquefield Cup 20155

The Paulsen/Taimanov in Nakamura-Giri was an unbelievably deep preparation, especially when you take into consideration how early the novelty was in the game. Nakamura said he forgot which rook to play, chose the wrong one and was worse. A mistake by Giri allowed the American to equalize. A strange perpetual happened and the game was drawn.

Nakamura is not afraid to wear a logo... or three

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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Qc7 6.Be3 a6 7.Qd2 Nf6 8.0-0-0 Be7 9.f4 b5 10.e5 b4 11.Ncb5 axb5 12.Nxb5 Qb8 13.exf6 gxf6 14.Kb1 d5 15.Qf2 A novelty according to my database, but apparently both players knew this move well. Ba6 16.Bb6 Bxb5 17.Bxb5 Qb7 18.Rhe1 Rb8 19.Bxc6+ Qxc6 20.Bd4 Ra8 21.b3 Kd7 22.a4! Giri missed this move in his preparation, a move which seems to be quite strong. bxa3 23.Rd3? The players were very critical of this move. Apparently up this point it had all been Nakamura's preparation, but he confused which rook to move! 23.Re2! Rhc8 a bizarre thing about this position as that Stockfish gives a comfortable advantage to White... but Komodo thinks Black is better. Just analyzing the position I would say White has the better chances, planning to put his king on a2 and preparing c4. On the other hand, Aronian told me he has a feeling Black is better, so it's pretty confusing. 23.c4 23.Ka2 Rhc8 24.Re2 Bc5 23...Rhc8 24.Re2 Qb5! Around this time Nakamura noticed something was wrong: c4 is impossible since the rook is always under attack. As he put it "I don't know what I was doing". 25.Qf3 Ra6 25...Rc6! Was more precise, now f5 fails to 26.f5 e5! 27.Bxe5 a2+ 28.Ka1 fxe5 29.Rxd5+ Rd6 is the important point. Here the queen is untouchable since a2 is still defended and Rd1 is mate. 26.f5! Rac6 26...e5 27.Bxe5+- 27.fxe6+ fxe6 28.Rdd2 a2+ 29.Ka1 29.Kxa2 is playable, but strange. 29...f5 30.Qe3 30.g4!? fxg4 31.Qxg4 Qxb3 is a funny draw. 32.cxb3 Rc1+ 33.Kxa2 Ra8+ 34.Kb2 Ba3+ 35.Ka2= 30...Rg8 31.c4 Finally with the break through. dxc4 32.Bc5+ Ke8 33.Bxe7 Kxe7 34.Qh6 Qb6! Very resourceful from Giri, now this was the only move to draw. 35.Qxh7+ Kf8 36.Qh4 Ke8 37.Qh5+ White has nothing better than a perpetual as Black has real threats now. ½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Nakamura,H2814Giri,A2793½–½2015B483rd Sinquefield Cup 20155

Stylish central... Anish Giri

Next, Levon Aronian brought an interesting idea in the Panov Caro-Kann, which was reached in a weird move order. Unfortunately, Grischuk over the board outplayed his opponent. Grischuk had quite an advantage, but the position was very messy with the kings castled on opposite sides. He was unable to find the most precise variations, mainly because as usual he was in time pressure, and Aronian was able to get a draw.

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1.c4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.e3!? Clever. Aronian comes into the game with a very clear opening preparation. A few players have tried 1.Nf3 c5 2.e4 against Grischuk to trick him into a Sicilian, but Aronian has other thoughts in mind. Nf6 4.d4 cxd4 5.exd4 d5 6.Nc3 Suddenly, we are in a Panov Caro-Kann. The positions's are usually very unbalanced. Bg4 main line. 6...e6 is possible. 7.Bg5!? In a position that has been reached thousands of times, Aronian chooses a move that has only been played 19 times in the database. Grischuk sank into deep thought after this. e6 7...Ne4 seems possible, but after 8.Be3 it's unclear if the knight is well placed on e4. 8.cxd5 exd5 9.Qe2+ Played very quickly. Be6 very natural, but Aronian started thinking after this move. Perhaps he didn't expect it or his preparation was simply not that deep. 10.Bxf6 gxf6 Black's pawn structure is shattered, but he has the pair of bishops and White hasn't finished developing yet. 11.Qc2 Qb6 12.a3 It almost feels like Aronian's last two moves were too slow. 0-0-0 The king is as safe on the queenside as it will be anywhere else. 13.Na4 Qc7 14.Bb5 Rg8 Surprisingly, it is not trivial for White to defend the g2 pawn. 15.0-0 15.g3 Bh3 is some trouble, as Bg2 is a difficult threat to parry. 15...Bh3 16.Nh4 16.g3 was a very interesting idea, sacrificing the exchange Bxf1 17.Bxf1 gives White the structural advantage and slightly safer king. However when one plays a game it is clear that an exchange is an exchange, so this cannot be done lightly. 16...Rg4 17.Bxc6 bxc6 17...Rxh4!? leads to other kinds of craziness. 18.Rac1 bxc6 18.Qd3 Rxh4 19.gxh3 Qf4 Getting low on time, Grischuk's hand hovered over his queen for a while before making this move. 20.Rac1 20.Qa6+! Kd7 21.Rfe1 20...Kd7! A very nice move, preemptively removing the king from the dangerous c-file. 20...Bd6 21.Rxc6+ Kd7 22.Rxd6+ gives White more than enough compensation for the exchange. 21.Rfe1 Bd6 22.Kf1 Qxd4 Already in severe time pressure, Grischuk manages to win a pawn. However it is very messy and difficult to play precisely here. 23.Qf5+ Kc7 24.Nc3 Kb7 24...Qc4+ 25.Ne2 Qb5! looks too complicated to be played by a human with minutes left and 15 moves to go. 25.Ne2 Qe5 25...Qe4! 26.Qc2 Rc4 27.Qb3+ Regaining the pawn, Aronian equalizes. Kc7 28.Rxc4 dxc4 29.Qxc4 Qd5 30.Qxd5 cxd5 ½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Aronian,L2765Grischuk,A2771½–½2015B133rd Sinquefield Cup 20155

Grischuk had a good position, but as usual he was plagued by time pressure [photo by Austin Fuller]

Topalov seemed dominant in Norway and again now in the Sinquefield Cup, but Caruana has put a stop to his streak. The American player thought he was in a little bit of trouble but was very surprised when the Bulgarian pushed his pawn to e6. After this, Caruana swiftly advanced on the kingside, winning material. Topalov had compensation but it was clearly insufficient, precise simplifications that ultimately ended Topalov’s game.

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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.d3 Bc5 5.c3 0-0 6.0-0 d6 7.Nbd2 Ne7 8.d4 exd4 9.cxd4 Bb6 10.Re1 Bg4 a deviation from the Topalov-Nakamura game of round two. Black immediately pressures the center and develops his bishop, instead of improving his knight first. 11.h3 Bh5 12.Qb3 White gets out of the pin so that he can improve his knight. Before this happens, Caruana strikes the center. d5 13.e5 Nd7 Black would love to install a knight on e6 and start blockading, but he is a bit far away from doing so. On the other hand White hasn't even fully developed yet, so any break on e6 lacks strength. 14.a4 a5 15.Qd1 since c5 was weakened by d5, the knight wants to go to b3 instead of the queen. Nb8!? Interesting remaneuvering, and notice that this knight started on g8! It is now headed to b4. 16.Nb3 Nbc6 17.Bg5 h6 18.Bh4 Qc8 18...Bxf3 19.Qxf3 Nxd4 20.Nxd4 Bxd4 21.Qg4 looks extremely unpleasant. The attack on the kingside isn't easy to parry. 19.g4! Gaining space, kicking out the bishop. White of course has to be worried of weakening the kingside, but Caruana has to prove it. Bg6 20.Rc1 Bh7 21.Bg3 21.Nc5 seemed more consistent. 21...Nb4 22.Re3 Na2 23.Ra1 Nb4 24.Ne1 of course, Topalov doesn't want to draw right away. Nec6 25.Qd2 Qe6 26.Bxc6?! I don't understand this move. White's bishop wasn't the most valuable, but Black's knights were superfluous and White in the future might want to have his bishop to rip apart the blockade on the light squares. Qxc6 27.Rc3 Qe6 28.Ng2 f6!? Making things sharp. Black starts opening lines for his bishops and pieces. 29.Nf4 Qd7 30.e6 "I thought this was a disastrous move" - Fabiano Caruana. 30.Nh5!? f5 31.e6 31.Bf4!? 31...Qxe6 32.Be5-+ 30...Qe7 31.Re1 f5! Going for the complications, despite being down on time. Caruana keeps trying to rip apart the kingside. 32.Nc5 Bxc5 33.Rxc5 c6 White finds himself without coordination. The threat of g5 is seriously looming. 34.Rc3 g5 35.Ng2 35.Nh5 f4 36.Bh2 looks ugly, but at least doesn't lose material yet. 35...f4 36.Nxf4 gxf4 37.Bxf4 Nd3! Going for the greedy option! 38.Rxd3 Bxd3 39.Bxh6 Rf3! Black is up a rook, but White does have three passed pawns and Black's king is exposed 40.Re3 Rxe3 41.Qxe3 Qh7! Very precise 41...Be4 42.f3 Bxf3 43.Qxf3 Qxe6 Was also a good option as now both kings are under fire. 42.f3 Re8 43.h4 Qg6 44.e7 Qd6 Threatening the pawn on e7 and check on g3. White, of course, cannot afford to trade bishops. 45.Bf4 Qxe7! Excellent understanding. 45...Rxe7 46.Be5 is more material, but also more complicated. 46.Qxd3 Qe1+ 47.Qf1 forced Qxf1+ 48.Kxf1 Rf8 49.Be5 Rxf3+ 50.Kg2 Rb3 51.h5 Rxb2+ 52.Kg3 b5 53.axb5 Rxb5 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Topalov,V2816Caruana,F28080–12015C653rd Sinquefield Cup 20155

Topalov is human, after all

Magnus Carlsen was able to obtain some pressure from the opening. Despite being down a pawn, his dominant knight on d5 was too strong. The combination of the strong knight and the pawn expansion on the kingside made the Black king very uncomfortable. Wesley So committed a mistake even though it was hard to make moves. Carlsen missed several winning moves, but it didn’t matter; his position was good enough.

Carlsen is back on top after his first round loss

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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nb3 Be6 8.f3 Nbd7 9.Qd2 b5 10.0-0-0 Be7 11.g4 b4 12.Nd5 Bxd5 13.exd5 Nb6 14.Na5 Nbxd5 15.Nc4 Rare but possible. Dominguez used it many years ago to win a game against Predojevic. The idea is that White will seek compensation for his pawn by using the opposite colored bishops to restrain the d-pawn and create an initiative on the light squares. Nxe3 16.Nxe3 0-0 17.Bc4 Nd7! After a long thing, this makes sense. The idea is that the knight will remaneuver to a more useful spot, like b6, and make the bishop on c4 uncomfortable. 18.h4 a5 18...Nb6 made more sense, but perhaps So didn't want to allow Qxb4 19.Qxb4 d5 20.Qa5∞ 19.g5 Rc8 20.Bd5 Nb6 21.Kb1 Qc7 22.Rhf1 Nxd5 23.Nxd5 Qb7 24.f4 f5 White retains compensation for the pawn. His strong knight on d5 is untouchable, but a pawn is a pawn. 25.Qe3 e4 26.h5! White's advance of this pawn is key. He will make Black's position very uncomfortable as So cannot afford to open up the kingside. Rc5 27.h6 g6 28.Qb3 So is in trouble, despite what the engines say. It is unpleasant to find moves and the king is always suffering. Rf7 29.a4! Bd8 30.Rd4 putting on the squeeze. Kf8 31.Rfd1 Rc6 32.Ne3 Bb6 what else? 33.Nc4 33.Rxd6! was a big move, even if White retains the advantage in the game continuation. Rxd6 34.Rxd6 Bc7 35.Re6! The point is as follows: Bxf4 36.Nd5 Bxg5 37.Qc4! and the attack becomes too strong. 33...Bxd4 33...Rxc4 34.Qxc4 Qc7 is no fun for So. 34.Nxa5 Qb6 35.Nxc6 Bc5 35...Qxc6 36.Rxd4 and all of Black's pawns are falling and the king feels unsafe. 36.Qd5 e3 37.a5! Qb5 37...Qc7 was better resistance 38.Nd8! Ra7 39.Ne6+ Ke8 40.Nd4? 40.Nxc5! was much stronger Qxc5 41.Qg8+ Kd7 42.Qxh7+ Kc6 43.Qxg6 and since e2 is not possible due to Qe8+ and Qxa5 isnt possible due to Qxd5+, Black is just lost. 40...Qxa5 41.Qg8+ Kd7 42.Qxh7+ Kc8 43.Qg8+ Kb7 44.c3 bxc3 45.Qb3+! Qb6 46.Qxb6+ 46.Qxc3! was very strong, though the move in the game should be better for white, Qxc3 seems winning. Black has too many problems to solve and his king is very weak. 46...Kxb6 47.bxc3 Bxd4 48.Rxd4 Kc6 49.Kc2 Ra2+ 50.Kd1 Rf2 51.Ke1 The pawn on h6 is just too strong. Black has no hope to hold. Kd7 52.Ra4 Ke6 53.Ra8 Rh2 54.c4 Kf7 55.Rb8 Ke6 56.Rg8 1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Carlsen,M2853So,W27791–02015B903rd Sinquefield Cup 20155

It is a free day tomorrow, after all...

Standings

Round Five Games

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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Be3 Be6 9.Qd3 The idea of putting the queen on d3 to support a knight on d5 is common, it hasn't been seen in top level chess in this particular position. Nc6 10.a3 preventing Nb4 ideas and preparing Nd5. d5!? Black breaks through before White can establish his bind. However this doesn't fully equalize just yet. 11.exd5 Nxd5 12.Nxd5 Qxd5 12...Bxd5 13.0-0-0 seems dangerous for Black. But perhaps after 13.0-0! 13...Bxg2!? he can get away with capturing the pawn. 13.0-0-0 Qxd3 13...Qxg2 just looks suicidal, even if the computers can navigate the complications. 14.Bxd3 0-0-0 14...Bxb3?! 15.cxb3 0-0 doubles the pawns, but the bishop on the lightsquares is too strong to control. 15.Nc5 Bd5 16.c4 Black doesn't want to give up the pair of bishops, but that means that this bishop must take quite a tour. Bxg2 17.Rhg1 e4! An important move. 18.Be2 18.Rxg2 exd3 19.Rxg7 Ne5= is not entirely clear. 18...Bf3 19.Bxf3 exf3 20.Rxg7 Rxd1+ 21.Kxd1 Rd8+ 22.Kc1 Ne5 Black's structure isn't the best, and h7 is hanging, but he has good compensation. His pieces are active and Black's pawn on f3 is annoying. 23.Ne4! Kd7 23...Nxc4 24.Rxf7 Re8 24.Rxh7 Ke6 25.Nd2 Rc8 26.Kc2 26.Rh6+! 26...Nxc4 27.Nxc4 Rxc4+ 28.Kd3 Rg4 29.h3 Ra4 30.Rh6+ f6 31.Rh7 Ra5 32.Ke4 Rb5 33.Bd4 Bd6 34.Rh6 Be5 35.Bxe5 Rxe5+ 36.Kxf3 Rf5+ White is up a pawn, but converting it is very difficult black is too active and it is hard to make progress with a weak h-pawn. 37.Ke2 Re5+ 38.Kf1 Rb5 39.b4 Rd5 40.Rg6 a5 41.bxa5 Rxa5 42.Rg3 Ra4 ½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Anand,V2816Vachier-Lagrave,M2731½–½2015B923rd Sinquefield Cup 20155
Aronian,L2765Grischuk,A2771½–½2015B133rd Sinquefield Cup 20155
Carlsen,M2853So,W27791–02015B903rd Sinquefield Cup 20155
Nakamura,H2814Giri,A2793½–½2015B483rd Sinquefield Cup 20155
Topalov,V2816Caruana,F28080–12015C653rd Sinquefield Cup 20155

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Photos by Lennart Ootes

Pairings

Round One
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
Giri, Anish 2793
1-0
 Grischuk, Alexander 2771
So, Wesley 2779
0-1
 Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731
Aronian, Levon 2765
1-0
 Caruana, Fabiano 2808
Carlsen, Magnus 2853
0-1
 Topalov, Veselin 2816
Nakamura, Hikaru 2814
1-0
 Anand, Viswanathan 2816
Round Two
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
Grischuk, Alexander 2771
1-0
 Anand, Viswanathan 2816
Topalov, Veselin 2816
1-0
 Nakamura, Hikaru 2814
Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731
½-½
 Aronian, Levon 2765
Giri, Anish 2793
½-½
 So, Wesley 2779
Caruana, Fabiano 2808
0-1
 Carlsen, Magnus 2853
Round Three
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
So, Wesley 2779
1-0
 Grischuk, Alexander 2771
Aronian, Levon 2765
½-½
 Giri, Anish 2793
Carlsen, Magnus 2853
1-0
 Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731
Nakamura, Hikaru 2814
½-½
 Caruana, Fabiano 2808
Anand, Viswanathan 2816
½-½
 Topalov, Veselin 2816
Round Four
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
Grischuk, Alexander 2771
½-½
 Topalov, Veselin 2816
Caruana, Fabiano 2808
½-½
 Anand, Viswanathan 2816
Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731
½-½
 Nakamura, Hikaru 2814
Giri, Anish 2793
½-½
 Carlsen, Magnus 2853
So, Wesley 2779
0-1
 Aronian, Levon 2765
Round Five
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
Aronian, Levon 2765
½-½
 Grischuk, Alexander 2771
Carlsen, Magnus 2853
1-0
 So, Wesley 2779
Nakamura, Hikaru 2814
½-½
 Giri, Anish 2793
Anand, Viswanathan 2816
½-½
 Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731
Topalov, Veselin 2816
0-1
 Caruana, Fabiano 2808
Round Six
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
Grischuk, Alexander 2771   Caruana, Fabiano 2808
Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731   Topalov, Veselin 2816
Giri, Anish 2793   Anand, Viswanathan 2816
So, Wesley 2779   Nakamura, Hikaru 2814
Aronian, Levon 2765   Carlsen, Magnus 2853
Round Seven
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
Carlsen, Magnus 2853   Grischuk, Alexander 2771
Nakamura, Hikaru 2814   Aronian, Levon 2765
Anand, Viswanathan 2816   So, Wesley 2779
Topalov, Veselin 2816   Giri, Anish 2793
Caruana, Fabiano 2808   Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731
Round Eight
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
Grischuk, Alexander 2771   Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731
Giri, Anish 2793   Caruana, Fabiano 2808
So, Wesley 2779   Topalov, Veselin 2816
Aronian, Levon 2765   Anand, Viswanathan 2816
Carlsen, Magnus 2853   Nakamura, Hikaru 2814
Round Nine
Name
Rtg
Res.
Name
Rtg
Nakamura, Hikaru 2814   Grischuk, Alexander 2771
Anand, Viswanathan 2816   Carlsen, Magnus 2853
Topalov, Veselin 2816   Aronian, Levon 2765
Caruana, Fabiano 2808   So, Wesley 2779
Vachier-Lagr, Maxime 2731   Giri, Anish 2793

Games start at 1 p.m. local time (20:00h CEST, 22:00h Moscow, Thursday 12:30 New Delhi, 03:00h Tokyo, 04:00 Canberra – check your location here).

Playoffs, if necessary, will be on the 2nd at 1pm.

The games will be broadcast live on Playchess, with expert analysis (see schedule below).

Broadcast Schedule

Day Date Time Event German
English
Sunday Aug. 23 1 PM Round 1 Thomas Luther   
Mihail Marin
Monday Aug. 24 1 PM Round 2 Calrstedt/Pähtz
Mihail Marin
Tuesday Aug. 25 1 PM Round 3 S. Siebrecht  
Simon Williams
Wednesday Aug. 26 1 PM Round 4 S. Siebrecht  
Simon Williams
Thursday Aug. 27 1 PM Round 5 S. Siebrecht  
Simon Williams
Friday Aug. 28 Rest Day
Saturday Aug. 29 1 PM Round 6 Reeh/Breutigam
Y. Pelletier
Sunday Aug. 30 1 PM Round 7 Reeh/Breutigam
Y. Pelletier
Monday Aug. 31 1 PM Round 8 S. Siebrecht  
Daniel King
Tuesday Sept. 1 1 PM Round 9 Y. Pelletier
Daniel King
Wednesday Sept. 2 1 PM Playoffs  
 

Links

The games are being 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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