Carlsen keeps smashing
3/9/2014 – The reigning World Champion continues annihilating competition the rapid events in Brazil. First he won a four-player knockout event, where he did concede a single draw (that qualified him to the final) and he was in trouble in just one game. At the end of the day he took the tournament, no questions asked. The open has started, and he is 5/5 but he is not alone.
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The reigning World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen will play in the International Chess Festival “Festa da Uva” to be held in Caxias do Sul between March 6 and 9, 2014.
The festivities continue in Brazil as Magnus Carlsen won the second event he participated in. The same players as the 4-player round robin, Milos, Carlsen, Leitao and Rodriguez faced each other now in a Knock-Out format, still using the 16 minute time control.
Leitao split his match against Milos after two draws but Milos was the one that took the match on tiebreaks. Carlsen won his first game by easily crushing Andres Rodriguez but the World Champion was in a precarious situation in the second game as the Uruguayan grandmaster had a clear advantage. However he missed how to convert it and with the draws Carlsen was to face off against Milos.
Milos (right) passed on tiebreaker over Leitao
Rodriguez and Leitao played for the third place title
Carlsen had only one little scare in the Knock Out
Carlsen used a reverse dragon in the first game against Milos and was able to outplay the Brazilian. The second game wasn't so clean as his pawn phalanx was blocked by Black's extra bishop, but at the end he managed to trick his opponent and got a 2-0 victory.
Replay Knock Out games
Select games from the dropdown menu above the board – games courtesy of TWIC
Rapid Open
The Open section is now underway and many grandmasters and amateurs have flown to Brazil for the chance to play with the World Champion. Five rounds have transpired and Carlsen leads with a perfect score, but he is not alone.
| Nº. | Nome | FED | Elo | ||
| 1 | GM | CARLSEN Magnus | NOR | 2881 | |
| 2 | GM | NIELSEN Peter Heine | DEN | 2653 | |
| 3 | GM | TIVIAKOV Sergei | NED | 2651 | |
| 4 | GM | LEITÃO Rafael | BRA | 2645 | |
| 5 | GM | SHANKLAND Samuel L. | USA | 2611 | |
| 6 | GM | MECKING Henrique | BRA | 2606 | |
| 7 | GM | DELGADO RAMIREZ Neuris | PAR | 2586 | |
| 8 | GM | MARECO Sandro | ARG | 2585 | |
| 9 | GM | MILOS Gilberto | BRA | 2583 | |
| 10 | GM | FELGAER Ruben | ARG | 2563 | |
| 11 | GM | MEKHITARIAN Krikor Sevag | BRA | 2562 | |
| 12 | GM | FLORES Diego | ARG | 2557 | |
| 13 | GM | PEREZ PONSA Federico | ARG | 2521 | |
| 14 | GM | EL DEBS Felipe De Cresce | BRA | 2511 | |
| 15 | GM | CUBAS Jose Fernando | PAR | 2460 |
An impressive starting list! 383 players showed up to play in the rapid A section, while some others decided to play in the B group. The event has been described as quite chaotic.
Here are the pairings for the sixth round on the top boards:
| Tab. | Nome | Rtg | Pts. | Resultado | Pts. | Nome | Rtg |
| 1 | MILOS Gilberto | 2583 | 5 | 5 | CARLSEN Magnus | 2881 | |
| 2 | MEKHITARIAN Krikor Sevag | 2562 | 5 | 5 | SHANKLAND Samuel L. | 2611 | |
| 3 | CUBAS Jose Fernando | 2460 | 5 | 5 | DELGADO RAMIREZ Neuris | 2586 | |
| 4 | NIELSEN Peter Heine | 2653 | 4½ | 5 | PEREZ PONSA Federico | 2521 | |
| 5 | LEITÃO Rafael | 2645 | 4½ | 4½ | VAN RIEMSDIJK Herman C. | 2349 | |
| 6 | FELGAER Ruben | 2563 | 4½ | 4½ | MOLINA Roberto Junio Brito | 2424 | |
| 7 | UMETSUBO Cesar Hidemitsu | 2348 | 4½ | 4½ | RODRIGUEZ VILA Andrés | 2437 | |
| 8 | DIAS Anderson Tatsch | 2210 | 4 | 4 | TIVIAKOV Sergei | 2651 | |
| 9 | MARECO Sandro | 2585 | 4 | 4 | BORN Carlos Rodrigo | 2199 | |
| 10 | FLORES Diego | 2557 | 4 | 4 | BURGOS Marcelo Alves | 2198 |
Grandmaster Tiviakov flew in to play Carlsen and enjoy the festivities of the Grape Festival. That behind him is called the "wine fountain!"
Pictures by GM Sergey Tiviakov
