Le and Kosteniuk winners of the day

At the start of the classical phase, it was not only the decisive games in the Masters and the Generations Challenge that were exciting: both Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus in his game against Matthias Bluebaum and Vaishali Rameshbabu in her duel against Xiao Tong got into time trouble and had to find six precise moves under pressure. Both found good moves and drew – Vaishali even did so with the few seconds she had left to find the decisive move.

In less dramatic encounters, Le Quang Liem in the Masters and Alexandra Kosteniuk in the Generations Challenge section scored victories, both with the black pieces and made big jumps forward in the standings – not least because a win is worth 4 points and a draw only 1½ points in this section of the triathlons.

The Bulletproof 1.b3 Repertoire

This compact course is designed specifically for practical play. Instead of overwhelming you with endless theory, it focuses on the critical lines, typical plans, and recurring tactical ideas.
Looking for an opening that gets your opponents thinking on move one? Grandmaster Andy Woodward has relied on 1.b3 for years in blitz and bullet, using it to defeat strong masters and grandmasters who underestimated its hidden venom. While many players dismiss the opening as harmless, they often find themselves caught in unfamiliar positions, tactical traps, and uncomfortable middlegames. This compact course is designed specifically for practical play. Instead of overwhelming you with endless theory, it focuses on the critical lines, typical plans, and recurring tactical ideas that matter most when the clock is ticking.
Free video sample: Introduction
Free video sample: King's Indian Setup

A view of the playing hall in Biel | Photo: Biel Chess Festival

Masters: Le now second behind Aronian

As the only winner of the day, the Vietnamese player naturally made a significant jump in the Masters standings, moving from penultimate place to second. Against Jose Martinez, Le, playing with black, showed excellent preparation and played his first 22 moves in under a quarter of an hour, while his opponent had already used 80 of his 120 minutes. The advantage Le had built up not only on the clock but also on the board was converted into a win after 36 moves, when his opponent resigned.

Levon Aronian remains at the top of the standings, after agreeing to a quick draw by repetition with Aydin Suleymanli in the duel between the two players who led the standings after the rapid section. Aronian thus retains the lead with 10½ points, while Suleymanli slips to third place on 7½ points. Le moved past him into second place, as he has half a point more than the Azerbaijani.

The remaining game of the day, between Matthias Bluebaum and Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, also ended in a draw, a result that is unlikely to have been fully satisfactory for either player. Erdogmus got into serious time trouble in a position that did not particularly favour him, and had to play 17 moves in 7 minutes - the last 6 of them in under a minute. Nevertheless, he still managed to reach a winning position, but Bluebaum was able to steer the game into a threefold repetition!

Mastering Calculation - Think Clearly, Calculate Precisely, Improve Consistently

Chess is a concrete game. There is no way around training your calculation skills. Improve your visualization, pattern recognition and learn calculation techniques such as reciprocal thinking with this course.
Calculation is at the heart of practical chess. Every chess concept builds on proper calculation technique. Therefore, all chess players should continuosly train the fundamental techniques, concepts and patterns this course will present. The goal isn't only to teach you to calculate, but to give you the tools and insights to keep improving long after the final lesson.
Free sample video: Introduction

Free sample video: Quiet Moves

Le Quang Liem was the only winner at the start of the classical section of the Masters | Photo: Biel Chess Festival

Round one results

All classical games - Masters

Addendum to the rapid tournament: Daniel King analyses Aronian v Bluebaum.

Generations Challenge: Draw at the top, Kosteniuk catches up

There was even more drama in the Generations Challenge: the two youngest players in the Challenge, Marco Materia and Vaclav Finek, agreed to a draw after several pieces had been exchanged – this after 27 moves. It was a satisfactory result for both, as it secured their top places in the standings. But the two youngsters had evidently forgotten the tournament regulations: these state that players may only agree to a draw after 40 moves at the earliest. So the two had to put the pieces back on the board and continue playing – before agreeing to a draw again after 40 moves.

How to Avoid Mistakes and Boost Your Winning Rate

Doesn’t every chess game get decided by mistakes? Absolutely. But most players never truly comprehend that they are making the same kind of mistakes over and over again.

The game between Xiao Tong and Vaishali Rameshbabu was more hectic: on move 29, Vaishali gained a bishop - but she had only 6 minutes left on the clock. The Indian player managed to make it to move 40, but she was unable to convert the position into a win.

The Swiss representative scored an important win with black against Carissa Yip: Alexandra Kosteniuk collected 4 points on Tuesday | Photo: Biel Chess Festival

Alexandra Kosteniuk was able to benefit from the two drawn games. The Swiss representative gradually took control of the game against Carissa Yip in the middlegame and built up a steadily growing advantage. After 58 moves, Yip had to resign. Thanks to this win, Kosteniuk gained ground in the standings and moved closer to the leading trio.

Round one results

All classical games - Generations Challenge

Still 16 players with perfect scores in the MTO

Already in the second round of the Biel Masters Open, some of the highest-rated players were strongly challenged by nominally weaker opponents: Indian GM Gopal G.N. had to settle for a draw against his compatriot WIM Ivana Maria Furtado, while German super-talent IM Christian Gloeckler also drew against CM Ling Chenxuan from the USA, who, born in 2014, is likewise a major promise for the future. Things went better for Gloeckler in his first-round game, which he analyses here for ChessBase:

Understanding Material Imbalances

This DVD focuses on several types of material imbalances, such as Rook vs 2 Pieces, Queen vs 2 Rooks, and Queen vs Pieces.

A local player produced the biggest surprise: WGM Lena Georgescu from Bern defeated grandmaster Krishnan Sasikiran, a player rated almost 300 Elo points higher than her, in 38 moves | Photo: Biel Chess Festival

Standings MTO

Games MTO:

Surya Ganguly, the top seed in the MTO and on 2/2, had a conversation with Arne Kähler. | Video: ChessBase

Triathlons: Masters and Generations Challenge

How to Avoid Mistakes and Boost Your Winning Rate

Doesn’t every chess game get decided by mistakes? Absolutely. But most players never truly comprehend that they are making the same kind of mistakes over and over again.

Schedule