Off we go
The biggest celebration of chess in the calendar has begun in Chennai. A record number of participants and incredibly enthusiastic hosts only add to the fun. The 44th edition of the Chess Olympiad is likely to be remembered for years to come, if only for the zeal demonstrated by the Indian organizers, who swiftly jumped in to replace the original plan of having the event take place in Russia — which happened only four months ago.
Pavel Eljanov explains in depth what Gyula Breyer already saw in 1911 and what became an opening choice of the likes of Kasparov, Kramnik, Anand or Carlsen. The Breyer Variation, which is characterised by the knight retreat to b8.
Luckily for chess fans, the praise for the organizers has heavily outweighed news related to the big absences of Russia and China, two of the strongest teams in both sections. As Putin’s invasion sadly continues, strong Ukrainian teams have made their way to India, although there is a player missing in the lineup, one that we would have liked to see showing his inimitable style in Chennai.
There is plenty of Ivanchuk content online though, with the genius from Kopychyntsi actively streaming on Twitch and sharing his videos on YouTube.

Improving quickly — Ukraine’s Kirill Shevchenko | Photo: Lennart Ootes
(Very) few upsets
In this two-volume video course former world-champion and startrainer Rustam Kasimdzhanov shows you the ins and outs of this hugely complex opening.
Remarkably, not a single lower-rated player upset their opponent on the first 57 boards of the open section. To find the first instance of such a result we have to go down to board 58, where Anthony Drayton from Guyana (rated 1928) defeated Jordi Fluvia from Andorra (2451).
In the women’s section, on the other hand, a couple of upsets were seen on the top 20 boards, with Sunwoo Park from South Korea (1773) beating Russian-born Dina Belenkaya from Israel (2256) and Cynthia Obondo from Kenya (1439) defeating Alessia-Mihaela Ciolacu from Romania (2163).
A few draws were seen on the top boards in the open, though, and more importantly, a couple in which the lower-rated player agreed to a draw from a superior position. This is a common occurrence in Chess Olympiads, as once the higher-rated grandmaster gives their opponent a chance to get a half point (and a massive rating gain) the underdog tends to agree.
This was the case in the game between Lebanon’s Faisal Khairallah (2239) and Norway’s Johan-Sebastian Christiansen (2593). The Norwegian misplayed the position out of the rarely seen French Defence with 2.b3. Christiansen began to repeat the position on move 23 and the point was soon split.
Curiously, the same thing happened to the third highest-rated player in the field. In his debut for team USA in an Olympiad, Levon Aronian (2775) gave up an exchange out of a Rossolimo Sicilian and saw his opponent stabilizing the position to cement his advantage in the middlegame. Angola’s David Silva (2315) agreed to a draw on move 41.
Granted, converting the advantage is by no means trivial, as Aronian is an extremely tricky player, and he had the bishop pair.

Team USA — Sam Shankland, Leinier Dominguez, Wesley So and Levon Aronian | Photo: Lennart Ootes
All games mentioned in this section
1.e4 | 1,184,215 | 54% | 2421 | --- |
1.d4 | 958,932 | 55% | 2434 | --- |
1.Nf3 | 286,327 | 56% | 2441 | --- |
1.c4 | 184,722 | 56% | 2443 | --- |
1.g3 | 19,884 | 56% | 2427 | --- |
1.b3 | 14,598 | 54% | 2428 | --- |
1.f4 | 5,953 | 48% | 2377 | --- |
1.Nc3 | 3,906 | 50% | 2384 | --- |
1.b4 | 1,790 | 48% | 2378 | --- |
1.a3 | 1,250 | 54% | 2406 | --- |
1.e3 | 1,081 | 49% | 2409 | --- |
1.d3 | 969 | 50% | 2378 | --- |
1.g4 | 670 | 46% | 2361 | --- |
1.h4 | 466 | 54% | 2382 | --- |
1.c3 | 439 | 51% | 2425 | --- |
1.h3 | 289 | 56% | 2420 | --- |
1.a4 | 118 | 60% | 2461 | --- |
1.f3 | 100 | 47% | 2427 | --- |
1.Nh3 | 92 | 67% | 2511 | --- |
1.Na3 | 47 | 62% | 2476 | --- |
Please, wait...
1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Bd3 Bxd3 6.Qxd3 Qa5+ 7.c3 Qa6 8.Qc2 c5 9.dxc5 Bxc5 10.b4 Be7 11.Be3 Nd7 12.a4 Rc8 13.b5 Qa5 14.0-0 h5 15.Rc1 Nh6 16.Nbd2 Nf5 17.Qd3 Bc5 18.c4 d4 19.Nb3 Qc7 20.Bd2 Nxe5 21.Nxe5 Qxe5 22.Re1 Qf6 23.Nxc5 Rxc5 24.Bb4 Rc7 25.c5 0-0 26.c6 Rb8 27.Ba5 b6 28.Bd2 Re8 29.a5 Ne7 30.axb6 axb6 31.Bb4 e5 32.Bxe7 Qxe7 33.h3 Qd8 34.Ra4 Qd5 35.Rxd4 Qe6 36.Rd6 Qc8 37.Rd7 g6 38.Qd6 1–0
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Park,S | 1773 | Belenkaya,D | 2256 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.19 |
Obondo,C | 1439 | Ciolacu,A | 2163 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.20 |
Silva,D | 2315 | Aronian,L | 2775 | ½–½ | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.2 |
Khairallah,F | 2239 | Christiansen,J | 2593 | ½–½ | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.3 |
Drayton,A | 1928 | Fluvia Poyatos,J | 2451 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.58 |
Please, wait...
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India’s perfect start
On this DVD, well-known Indian WGM Tania Sachdev shows you how to evaluate certain positions and then find the right concepts and plans on the basis of her own games.
Given the lack of upsets in round 1, there were plenty of teams that scored a perfect 8 out of 8 in both sections. But managing to win on every single board is certainly more difficult if the country has registered no fewer than six teams in both categories combined!
The Olympiad rules allow host countries to register an extra team in each section, and one more if the number of teams is odd. Luckily for the Indian hosts, there was an odd number of participants in both sections, which means they were allowed to register three teams per category. And, on opening day, all the proud local representatives collected full points, for an overall 24 out of 24 score.
The last one (out of the 24) to secure a victory was Tania Sachdev (2399). Playing on third board for India 1 in the women’s tournament, she needed 103 moves to take down Tajikistan’s Rukhshona Saidova (1624). Sachdev converted a materially balanced endgame with two bishops (plus an active king) against bishop and knight.
This is how the position looked after 86 moves. Black is winning.

Tania Sachdev | Photo: Stev Bonhage
All 24 games played by Indian teams
Replay and check the LiveBook here |
Please, wait...
1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.d4 0-0 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.d5 Ne7 9.b4 a5 10.bxa5 Rxa5 11.a4 Nd7 12.Nd2 Nc5 13.Nb3 Nxb3 14.Qxb3 f5 15.f3 Kh8 16.Ba3N 16.Bd2 Ng8 17.Nb5 Ra8 18.c5 dxc5 19.Bc3 Bd7 20.Qb2 Bxb5 21.Bxb5 Qd6 22.exf5 gxf5 16...c5 17.dxc6 Nxc6 18.Bd3 Bh6 19.Kh1 Be3 20.Nb5 Bc5 21.Rad1 Nd4 22.Nxd4 exd4 23.Bc2 fxe4 24.Bxe4 Qe8 24...Bf5 25.Bb2± 25...Qxa4 26.Qd3 26.Bxd4+ Bxd4 27.Qxa4 Rxa4= 26...Qe8 26...Be6 27.Rfe1 27.Bxd4+ Bxd4 28.Qxd4+ Qe5± 27...Qf7 28.Bxd4+ Bxd4 29.Qxd4+ Qf6 30.Qxd6 Qxd6 31.Rxd6 Rc5 32.Bd3 Kg7 33.Kg1 Rf6 34.Re7+ Rf7 35.Rxf7+ Kxf7 36.Rb6 Rc7 36...Rc6 37.Rb4 Rd6 37.Kf2! Bd7 37...Be6± 38.Rb4 Bd7 38.Ke3+- Bc6 39.h4 Kf6? 39...Rc8 40.Be4 Bxe4 40.Be4 g5 41.h5 Ke5 41...g4 42.fxg4 Kg5 42.Bxc6 bxc6 43.Ra6 c5 44.Ra5 Kf5 45.g4+ Ke5 46.Ra8 Re7 47.Rd8 Kf6+ 48.Kd3 Re1 49.Rf8+ 1–0 - Start an analysis engine:
- Try maximizing the board:
- Use the four cursor keys to replay the game. Make moves to analyse yourself.
- Press Ctrl-B to rotate the board.
- Drag the split bars between window panes.
- Download&Clip PGN/GIF/FEN/QR Codes. Share the game.
- Games viewed here will automatically be stored in your cloud clipboard (if you are logged in). Use the cloud clipboard also in ChessBase.
- Create an account to access the games cloud.
Vidit,S | 2714 | Makoto,R | 2346 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.1 |
Narayanan.S.L | 2659 | Mushore,E | 2153 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.1 |
Masango,S | 2170 | Erigaisi Arjun | 2689 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.1 |
Zhemba,J | 2162 | Sasikiran,K | 2638 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.1 |
Nihal Sarin | 2651 | Sultan,I | 2108 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.11 |
Sadhwani,R | 2611 | Abdulrahman Mohammad,A | 2029 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.11 |
Al Hosani,O | 2215 | Gukesh D | 2684 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.11 |
Mohamed Saeed Laily | 2030 | Adhiban,B | 2598 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.11 |
Sethuraman,S | 2623 | Rehan,D | 2105 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.16 |
Karthikeyan,M | 2613 | Gong Thon Gong | 2176 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.16 |
Peter Majur Manyang | 2095 | Puranik,A | 2612 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.16 |
Ajak Mach Duany | 2029 | Gupta,A | 2627 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Open 2022 | 1.16 |
Vaishali R | 2442 | Abrorova,S | 1799 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.1 |
Kulkarni Bhakti | 2373 | Hotami,M | 1846 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.1 |
Antonova,N | 1832 | Koneru,H | 2586 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.1 |
Saidova,R | 1624 | Tania,S | 2399 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.1 |
Soumya,S | 2335 | Chong,K | 1741 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.11 |
Divya Deshmukh | 2319 | Bagga,K | 1328 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.11 |
Smith,O | 2038 | Vantika Agrawal | 2371 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.11 |
Ray,H | 1586 | Gomes,M | 2324 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.11 |
Karavade,E | 2339 | Kannappan,S | 1914 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.16 |
Sahithi Varshini M | 2312 | Li,J | 1386 | 1–0 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.16 |
Deng,J | 1914 | Nandhidhaa,P | 2312 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.16 |
Lam,K | 1223 | Pratyusha,B | 2310 | 0–1 | 2022 | | 44th Chess Olympiad Women 2022 | 1.16 |
Please, wait...
Select an entry from the list to switch between games
Round 2 pairings - Open
1 |
48 |
|
MDA |
Moldova |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
India *) |
IND |
|
2 |
2 |
1 |
|
USA |
United States |
3½ |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Paraguay |
PAR |
|
47 |
3 |
3 |
|
NOR |
Norway |
3½ |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
3 |
Uruguay |
URU |
|
49 |
4 |
50 |
|
BEL |
Belgium |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Spain |
ESP |
|
4 |
5 |
5 |
|
POL |
Poland |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Colombia |
COL |
|
51 |
6 |
52 |
|
PHI |
Philippines |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Azerbaijan |
AZE |
|
6 |
7 |
7 |
|
NED |
Netherlands |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Portugal |
POR |
|
53 |
8 |
54 |
|
ALB |
Albania |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Ukraine |
UKR |
|
8 |
9 |
9 |
|
GER |
Germany |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Finland |
FIN |
|
55 |
10 |
56 |
|
SGP |
Singapore |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
England |
ENG |
|
10 |
11 |
11 |
|
IND2 |
India 2 |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Estonia |
EST |
|
57 |
12 |
58 |
|
AND |
Andorra |
3 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Armenia |
ARM |
|
12 |
13 |
13 |
|
IRI |
Iran |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Ireland |
IRL |
|
59 |
14 |
60 |
|
FAI |
Faroe Islands |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Uzbekistan |
UZB |
|
14 |
15 |
15 |
|
FRA |
France |
3½ |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
North Macedonia |
MKD |
|
61 |
...92 boards
Round 2 pairings - Women
1 |
1 |
|
IND |
India *) |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
3½ |
Argentina |
ARG |
|
40 |
2 |
41 |
|
TUR |
Turkey |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Ukraine |
UKR |
|
2 |
3 |
3 |
|
GEO |
Georgia |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Lithuania |
LTU |
|
42 |
4 |
43 |
|
CRO |
Croatia |
3½ |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Poland |
POL |
|
4 |
5 |
5 |
|
FRA |
France |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Egypt |
EGY |
|
44 |
6 |
45 |
|
FIN |
Finland |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Azerbaijan |
AZE |
|
6 |
7 |
7 |
|
USA |
United States |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Uzbekistan |
UZB |
|
46 |
8 |
47 |
|
DEN |
Denmark |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Germany |
GER |
|
8 |
9 |
9 |
|
ARM |
Armenia |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Norway |
NOR |
|
48 |
10 |
49 |
|
BEL |
Belgium |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Kazakhstan |
KAZ |
|
10 |
11 |
11 |
|
IND2 |
India 2 |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Latvia |
LAT |
|
50 |
12 |
51 |
|
IRL |
Ireland |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
3½ |
Hungary |
HUN |
|
12 |
13 |
13 |
|
ESP |
Spain |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Malaysia |
MAS |
|
52 |
14 |
53 |
|
MDA |
Moldova |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Cuba |
CUB |
|
14 |
15 |
15 |
|
BUL |
Bulgaria |
4 |
2 |
|
: |
|
2 |
4 |
Mexico |
MEX |
|
54 |
...78 boards
*) This team is assigned to a fixed board.
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