Coming in March: Carlsen in Brazil

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.

Caxias do Sul

This is a city in Rio Grande do Sul, Southern Brazil, situated in the state's mountainous Serra Gaúcha region. It was established by Italian immigrants on June 20, 1890. Today it is the second largest city in the state of Rio Grande do Sul.

The history of Caxias do Sul starts before the arrival of the Italians, when the region was being roamed by cattlemen and occupied by Indians. The Italian immigrants' occupation, mostly farmers from the Veneto region (northern Italy), started taking place in 1875 in Nova Milano. Nowadays, Caxias do Sul is an important city, and home to vast vineyards, wineries, a varied industrial park, and a rich and dynamic market. They are the reason why Caxias do Sul is called the "pearl of the colonies" and is the center of the Italian presence in Southern Brazil.

The city is located in the mountains of the Serra Gaucha, 2000 feet above sea level (scroll for panorama).

Regarding historical architecture one can find a few houses built for rich families, public buildings and Neo-Gothic churches, like as the Cathedral and the Chapel of Santo Sepulcro (Sacred Tomb). The first houses of the immigrants, made of stone, and later traditional wooden buildings, nearly all disappeared as the city developed, but some survive in the rural area, as well as many old chapels. The city has many intensely active museums and cultural centers, both private and official, and a great university which sponsors an art gallery, a museum, a huge library and a symphonic orchestra.

II “Recreio da Juventude” GM Chess Tournament

The four player rapid chess knockout tournament will take place on the weekend: the semifinals will be played on Thursday, March 6th, at 15.00h; the finals on Friday, March 7th, at 14:00h. Participants:

Before the start of the first round, at 10:00 a.m. on March 6th, Magnus Carlsen will give a blindfold simul against visually impaired players, and on the evening after the round, at 21:00h, he will hold a chess conference. On Friday, March 7th at 16:00h there will be a a press conference in the “Festa da Uva” Pavilion, and at 19:00h Magnus will give a simul with 35 players at Shopping Iguatemi – Rodovia RSC 453. The seats are already sold out, in spite of a 130 Euro price tag per board.

Carlsen has also agreed to take part in the XIII International Open Chess Tournament "Festa da Uva" (Grape Festival) on Saturday March 8 and Sunday March 9, in Recreio da Juventude. Prize: R$ 20,000 (equivalent to U$ $8,200). The organisers expect 400 participants from all over the country, plus foreign GMs. Already signed in are GM Sergey Tiviakov (Netherlands), GM Rafael Leitao, GM Henrique da Costa Mecking, GM Gilberto Milos, GM Felipe El Debs, GM Everaldo Matsuura and GM Krikor Mekhitarian (Brazil), GM Diego Flores, GM Sandro Mareco (Argentian), GM Neuris Delgado , GM José Cubas (Paraguay), GM Andres Rodriguez (Uurgay), IM Luis Paulo Suppi , IM Rodrigo Disconzi, IM Herman Claudius Van Reimsdijk, IM Roberto Molina (Brazil), Dragan Stamenkovic (Serbia), IM Álvaro Valdés (Chile), IM Nahuel Diaz Hollemaert and WGM Carolina Lujan (Argentian), among others.

The venue is the “Festa da Uva” Pavilion. Free accommodation is available for participants at the Country Club "Recreio da juventude", near to the tournament venue. Player must bring bed sheets and towels. Due to the large number of participants, players are expected to bring their own chess sets and clocks.

The first two rounds of the Open will be played at the rate of 16 minutes per player, rounds three and four at the rate of 30 minutes per player, rounds five to nine will be played with the time control 60 minutes per player. In the last two rounds draws are not allowed. In case of a tie, an Armageddon game (six minutes for White, five minutes for Black, White has to win) will settle the score.