Snowdrops lead Old Hands by five points

Snowdrops vs Old Hands 2013

The Snowdrops are represented by Lithuanian GM Viktorij Cmilyte (30, from Lithuania, rated 2506), IM Maria Muzychuk (21, Ukraine, 2491) WGM Alina Kashlinskaya (20, Russia, 2422) and WGM Nastassia Ziaziulkina (18, Belarus, 2350). The "Old Hands" are GM Iossif Dorfman (61, France, 2580) GM Boris Gulko (66, USA, 2543), GM Borislav Ivkov (80, Serbia, 2408) GM Wolfgang Uhlmann (78, Germany, 2334). The event is taking place at Hotel Zámecek in Podebrady, the rate of play is 90 minutes for 40 moves, 30 minutes for the rest, with an increament of 30 seconds per move.

Round four (reports by GM David Navara)

In our previous report the Snowdrops' team was leading the Oldhands by three points (7.5:4.5). In round four the legends had the white pieces on all boards and were expected to try and change the adverse course of the match.

The game Dorfman-Kashlinskaya followed a hot theoretical dispute. Czech grandmaster Smejkal revealed that the French GM had been preparing mainly for the King's Indian Defence, but Alina opted for 1...d5 and a razor sharp line of the Slav gambit resulted. Dorfman failed to recall the best continuation on move 16 and Black managed to equalize by means of active play (18...e5!). The result was a draw in 19 moves.

The game Ivkov-Muzychuk was rather calm: Black managed to execute the important push d6-d5 in the English Opening and equalize. Then she sharpened the position by means of a brave advance e5-e4. However, the subsequent complications resulted in a mass simplification and a subsequent draw agreement.

The encounter Gulko-Cmilyte was filled with interesting ideas. The American grandmaster opted for a fashionable 5.h4 line in the Gruenfeld Indian. This allowed him to bring the game to unexplored territory. Black sacrificed a pawn but did not receive sufficient compensation. White then returned material in order to achieve the advantage of a bishop pair. Still, the Lithuanian GM confirmed her strength and saved a dangerous position through by means of a precise play.

The encounter between Wolfgang Uhlmann and the Belarusian hope Nastassia Ziaziulkina was the longest one. The German grandmaster soon gained a bishop pair and gradually eliminated his opponent's lead in development. The subsequently transformation led into an endgame with a pair of rooks and opposite-squared bishops on the board. Uhlmann maintained a certain iniciative and increased it after some inaccuracies of his opponent. He could have played 42.Rb6, thus winning a pawn without allowing any counterplay. Later on his tiredness took it toll and White lost his advantage. Uhlmann rejected a draw offer in an equal position, then lost a pawn and finally also the game.

After the first half of the event the Snowdrops are leading with a score 10:6. It is remarkable that all female players have scored one win and three draws, which amounts to two and half points.

Round five

It was high time to erase the four point lead of the Snowdrops, but sadly GM Uhlmann is not in his best form. He had a really good position in the game with Alina Kashlinskaya, having apparently surprised her with his choice of opening.

GM Boris Ivkov is on antibiotics, so he wasn’t in a good condition in his game against Victoria Cmylite. He choose a super strong Dutch Defence and the game ended after 16 moves in a position with lack of chances for both sides. Draw.

The game of Iossif Dorfman and Anastassiya Zjazjulkina was very sharp

Tournament commentator GM Ján Plachetka

In the game Boris Gulko vs Mariya Muzychuk White played a great game and had a better position. The draw agreement, when Gulko had a better position, with twenty minutes on his clock vs just five minutes for his opponent, can as an unpleasant surprise for the spectators. It is possible that GM Bulko overestimated the power of the black pawns, but still he should have continued.

US GM Boris Gulko missed a good chance to shorten the Snowdrops' lead

After five rounds the Snowdrops are leading by five points (12.5-7.5), with all four female players scoring better than their male counterparts:

The event ends on Sunday, with the eighth and final round. We will report on Monday.

Links Official tournament site All games in PGN You can use ChessBase 12 or any of our Fritz compatible chess programs to replay the games in PGN. You can also download our free Playchess client, which will in addition give you immediate access to the chess server Playchess.com.