Bassem Amin wins rapid portion in Abidjan

Ratings matter

GM Bassem Amin has lived up to his reputation as the top player on the African continent and has a comfortable two-point advantage over his nearest rival at the end of the rapid portion of the 2018 CIV Invitational. The 10 players now enter the blitz portion of the event and it will now likely take a minor miracle for anyone to stop Bassem from securing victory.

Bassem had struggled to find his form in the early going and survived scares against both IM Andrew Kayonde and IM Mokhliss El Adnani on the first two days. Both had excellent winning chances in their individual encounters but Bassem’s experience under pressure and resolute defence enabled him to survive both. 

Bassem Amin had a great third day | Photo: Alina l'Ami

He hit his straps on the final day however and recorded a perfect 3/3 to give him an undefeated total of 7.5/9, which is worth 15 points under the GCT style scoring system. In the eighth round, his win over Kenny Solomon included some nice tactics in the middlegame and good endgame technique:

GM Mohamed Haddouche from Algeria has also played solidly and finds himself in sole possession of second place after scoring 6½/9 for 13 points. IM Mokliss El Adnani from Morocco and the talented 17-year-old IM Fy Rakotomaharo from Madagascar are a further two points back in 3rd place with 11 points each.

How I became World Champion Vol.1 1973-1985

Garry Kasparov's rise to the top was meteoric and at his very first attempt he managed to become World Champion, the youngest of all time. In over six hours of video, he gives a first hand account of crucial events from recent chess history, you can improve your chess understanding and enjoy explanations and comments from a unique and outstanding personality on and off the chess board.

Mohamed Haddouche from Algeria finished the rapid portion in clear second place | Photo: Alina l'Ami

Fy Rakotomaharo is a promising player from Madagascar | Photo: Alina l'Ami

Master Class Vol.1: Bobby Fischer

No other World Champion was more infamous both inside and outside the chess world than Bobby Fischer. On this DVD, a team of experts shows you the winning techniques and strategies employed by the 11th World Champion.

Grandmaster Dorian Rogozenco delves into Fischer’s openings, and retraces the development of his repertoire. What variations did Fischer play, and what sources did he use to arm himself against the best Soviet players? Mihail Marin explains Fischer’s particular style and his special strategic talent in annotated games against Spassky, Taimanov and other greats. Karsten Müller is not just a leading international endgame expert, but also a true Fischer connoisseur.

The players now enter the blitz portion of the tournament, which will see them complete 18 games over the weekend at a rate of 5/5 with 3 seconds delay per move. The combined scores will determine who walks away with the biggest share of the prize pool, which totals an impressive US$ 15,000.

The tournament is sponsored by Vivendi SA who also sponsor the annual GCT tournament in Paris. It is being hosted by the Ivorian Chess Federation and is run in conjunction with Kasparov Chess Foundation Africa and Kasparov Chess Foundation Francophone. 

The tournament hall | Photo: Alina l'Ami

Alina l'Ami recorded interviews with all ten participants. Below you can see the one with the leader, but you can enjoy all of them on the Kasparov Chess Foundation Africa youtube channel: 

The St Louis Chess Club is also providing daily coverage of the event by way of a 90-minute highlight show which is hosted by Ben Simon and GM Robert Hungaski. 

Final standings - Rapid

All games - Rapid

Links

• Kasparov Chess Foundation Africa
• Fédération Ivoirienne des Echecs (FIDEC)
• More news by the KCF