Candidates – Magnus Carlsen (2872 – World #1)

Magnus Carlsen (2872 – World #1)

Like a raging inferno of Norwegian cheese, Carlsen has held the world in rapt attention since his arrival on the scene. Upon the conclusion of Biel in 2006, the victor, Morozevich, was asked: “How do you judge Magnus Carlsen, your executioner in Biel?” His response was telling: “He is a free spirit; he calculates and plays fast. If he continues on this path, he can go far, very far.” Some might consider Magnus’ accomplishments to date to be “very far,” but the World Championship is the one title he needs to secure in order to silence the doubters.

"He can go far, very far" – Magnus back in 2005

In response to Fischer’s voiced outrage over possible Soviet collusion following the 1962 Candidates tournament, the traditional round-robin format was dispensed with in favour of match-play, which made its debut at the 1965 Candidates tournament. The years have progressed, the nature of the game has changed and rapidplay tiebreaks have become increasingly more commonplace; therefore, in no small part thanks to Carlsen, the chess world has now come full circle, with round-robin play being the format of choice for the 2013 Candidates tournament. That said, it remains to be seen whether this format is truly to be preferred.

Carlsen’s rise has been shocking, even more so when one considers that he is still only 22 years old. The heights he has reached are stratospheric, leaving the oxygen thin, but one can assume he has done a great deal of training leading up to this event, seeking to push himself to the mesosphere. Ignoring his varied accomplishments, which are many and well-documented over the past few years, it goes without saying that Carlsen is top-of-mind and heavily favoured to win this event. At stake is his ability to match Kasparov in securing the World Champion’s title at the age of 22.

The world in his hand – Magnus in 2008

Magnus’ previous World Cup and FIDE Knockout World Championship experiences came at a very young age, starting in 2004 when he was defeated by Aronian. He met with a similar fate at the 2007 Candidates tournament, which was quickly redeemed by a semi-final appearance at the 2007 World Cup. Since that time, he has been a hold-out, but no longer!

Allow us now to explore what Magnus’ fellow candidates have in store.

Boris Gelfand (2740 – World #18)

Overall: 2 Wins, 8 Draws, 1 Loss
White: 2 Wins, 5 Draws, 1 Loss
Black: 0 Wins, 3 Draws, 0 Losses

Although they may not yet have faced often, Gelfand has proven a fairly difficult opponent for Carlsen over the years. Their most recent two encounters, however, have both ended in victory for Magnus, so the momentum is in his corner. Neither player has scored victory as black, which may remain a theme. Expect the Slav to be played and to be punished.

Carlsen's opponents at the Candidates

Peter Svidler (2747 – World #14)

Overall: 0 Wins, 9 Draws, 2 Losses
White: 0 Wins, 4 Draws, 1 Loss
Black: 0 Wins, 5 Draws, 1 Loss

Svidler is one of the few players among the world’s elite who can say that he has never lost a classical game against Carlsen. Moreover, he has managed two victories against the young Norwegian, one as each colour. Magnus will seek to restore the cosmic balance when they face-off again. Expect some opening surprises.

Vassily Ivanchuk (2757 – World #13)

Overall: 8 Wins, 13 Draws, 2 Losses
White: 5 Wins, 3 Draws, 1 Loss
Black: 3 Wins, 10 Draws, 1 Loss

Ivanchuk is a favourite customer of Carlsen’s, with four of their last eight encounters ending in victory for the Norwegian, the other four ending in draws. The Ukrainian has had similar woes with either colour, but is quite capable of shocking the World #1, given the opportunity. Expect sharp struggles, as both players seek to shake things up.

Alexander Grischuk (2764 – World #10)

Overall: 1 Win, 6 Draws, 0 Losses
White: 1 Win, 1 Draw, 0 Losses
Black: 0 Wins, 5 Draws, 0 Losses

In the few games played between Grischuk and Carlsen, caution has generally been the prescribed medicine, which has netted Magnus but one win as white. Expect the Norwegian to drop all pretenses here and to land some crushing blows with either colour. Careful play will be met with harsh rebuke. The Sicilian may be tried again between these two.

Teimour Radjabov (2793 – World #4)

Overall: 6 Wins, 16 Draws, 1 Loss
White: 4 Wins, 8 Draws, 0 Losses
Black: 2 Wins, 8 Draws, 1 Loss

Radjabov was a young star a few short years before Carlsen’s rise. Since that time, the Azerbaijani has become another customer, dropping three of their last eight encounters, while stealing no points of his own. The English and French may both make appearances between these two, as Radjabov seeks to get a handle on his archrival.

Levon Aronian (2809 – World #3)

Overall: 7 Wins, 21 Draws, 4 Losses
White: 6 Wins, 9 Draws, 2 Losses
Black: 1 Win, 12 Draws, 2 Losses

Carlsen has declared Aronian to be his main threat in this event. Games between these two have been consistently hard-fought, with Aronian taking a point off the Norwegian as recently as 2009. For his part, however, Magnus bookended 2012 with victories against Aronian at both Wijk aan Zee and the London Classic. Expect an attempt for nothing less here. The games will be extremely sharp and unpredictable.

Vladimir Kramnik (2810 – World #2)

Overall: 3 Wins, 10 Draws, 4 Losses
White: 1 Win, 5 Draws, 1 Loss
Black: 2 Wins, 5 Draws, 3 Losses

Kramnik is another elite player who can proudly point to a plus record against Carlsen in classical time controls. There is obviously some question as to whether this can last, but Kramnik is still capable, spry, and ambitious. One can bet that, Aronian aside, Kramnik is on Carlsen’s mind. Back-to-back victories by the Russian in 2010 were answered by a lone victory from Carlsen in 2011. Plenty has been left unresolved. Magnus may face the English again as black.

Overall Stats Against Field

Repertoire white

Despite his career stats, Carlsen can be said to be relatively comfortable in any opening, making him difficult to be prepare against. This is only accentuated by the fact that he now has Peter Heine Nielsen in his camp. Perhaps expect a shift away from his e4 repertoire.

Repertoire black

Carlsen is no less dangerous on the black side of the pieces than he is on the white side. Expect him to play anything and everything as black.

The Candidates Tournament in London

The London Candidates 2013 will be the strongest tournament of its kind in history. The Prize Fund to be shared by the players totals €510,000. The winner of the Candidates will become the Challenger to Viswanathan Anand who has reigned as World Champion since 2007.

Full information on the Candidates – pairings and commentary schedule

Links

• World Chess Web Site
• FIDE Web Site