FIDE Grand Prix in Elista 2008

The Third FIDE Grand Prix tournament is taking place in Elista from December 13 to 29, 2008. Despite the recent withdrawals (Carlsen, Adams) and the absence of players like Anand, Kramnik and Topalov the tournament is very strong (category 19). The venue, originally due to be Doha, is now "City Chess" in Elista, Kalmykia.

Results

Inarkiev-Cheparinov saw Black pull out a novelty on move 11, only to fall into a spot of trouble:

Inarkiev,E (2669) - Cheparinov,I (2696) [B90]
FIDE Grand Prix Elista RUS (5), 18.12.2008
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e6 7.Be2 Nbd7 8.f4 b5 9.f5 Ne5 10.fxe6 fxe6 11.0-0 Bd7 12.a4 bxa4 13.Nxa4 Be7 14.Nb3 Rb8 15.Nc3 0-0 16.Rxa6 Qc8

White is doing fine and the game could continue with 17.Rxd6 and many very interesting tactical possibilities arise. But Inarkiev chose a more passive strategy: 17.Ra7 Rb4 18.Rf4 Qb8 19.Ra1 Ng6 20.Rf3 Nxe4 21.Nxe4 Rxe4 22.Nc5 dxc5 23.Qxd7 Nh4 24.Rxf8+ Bxf8

White can give up his hopes of winning, and after 25.Bc4? he is on the road to disaster. 25...Rxe3 26.Bxe6+ Kh8 27.Qf7 Bd6. We can only speculate whether Inarkiev overlooked the refutation of 28.Ra7. Black defends with 28...Nf5 and now 29.Bxf5 is impossible owing to 29...Bxh2+ 30.Kf2 Qf4#. The game ended 28.Bd5 Bxh2+ 29.Kf2 Re8 0-1.

Ivan Cheparinov in the press conference after his win over Ernesto Inarkiev

Gashimov,V (2703) - Grischuk,A (2719) [B97]
FIDE Grand Prix Elista RUS (5), 18.12.2008
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 Qb6 8.Qd3 Qxb2 9.Rb1 Qa3 10.f5 Be7 11.fxe6 fxe6 12.Be2 Qa5 13.Bd2 Qc7 14.0-0 0-0 15.Qc4 Qd7 16.Qb3 Kh8 17.Bc4 d5 18.exd5 b5 19.Be2 Bc5 20.Kh1 exd5 21.Be3 Nc6 22.Ne6 Qxe6 23.Bxc5 Re8 24.Bf3 Bb7 25.a4 Na5 26.Qb4 Nc4 27.Rbd1 Ne4 28.Nxe4 dxe4 29.Be2 e3 30.axb5 axb5 31.Qxb5 Ba6 32.Qb4 Rab8 33.Qa4 Ra8 34.Qb4 Nd2 35.Rfe1 Ne4 36.Kg1 Rab8 37.Qd4

This is one for our collection of "my-how-the-tide-can-turn" positions: Black has excellent winning chances with 37...Bxe2 38.Rxe2 Qc6, but he plays a more aggressive looking line and falls into trouble: 37...Nf2 38.Ra1 Bxe2 39.Rxe2 Ng4 40.h3 Ne5. Now, just four moves later it is White who is calling all the shots. 41.Rxe3 Rbd8 42.Qc3 Qc4 43.Qxc4 Nxc4 44.Rxe8+. White has a healthy passed pawn, which Gashimov uses effectively to obtain the full point: 44...Rxe8 45.Ra7 h6 46.Bd4 Ne5 47.c4 Kh7 48.c5 h5 49.Ra6 Nd3 50.Ra3 Nf4 51.Be3 Nd5 52.Kf2 Re4 53.Rd3 Nxe3 54.Rxe3 Rc4 55.Re5 Rc2+ 56.Kf3 h4 57.Ke4 Kg6 58.Kd5 Rd2+ 59.Ke6 Rxg2 60.c6 Rc2 61.Kd6 Kf6 62.Rd5 g5 63.c7 g4 64.Rc5 1-0.

The winner and joint leader: Vugar Gashimov from Azerbaijan

Standings after five rounds

Grand Prix players on Chess doping

During the Grand Prix in Elista the organisers thankfully used the opportunity to poll everyone – well, nine of the fourteen players at any rate – on their opinions regarding doping in chess. Here are their answers:

• Shakhriyar Mamedyarov: I have no idea what doping is because I have never used it. I think doping doesn’t assist chess-players that much and I doubt if anybody uses it at the top-level tournaments. Chess isn’t sport in its original scope, it’s not an Olympic kind of sport like track-and-field or gymnastics. The older players may use something to feel better, to support themselves during the game – say, drink a lot of coffee. Actually I don’t care at all whether there is chess doping or not.

• Ernesto Inarkiev: For me the main chess doping is psychological motivation. There were a couple of cases in my life when I seemed to have exhausted my resources but I overcame myself. In case we speak about doping in its denotative meaning, I think that it is possible if you feel exhausted.

• Alexander Grischuk: The principal doping in our profession is the desire to play, to struggle at the chessboard. It gives me strength, because when you don’t feel like playing but have to, you cannot do everything you could. As for food and beverages… in case of a professional approach it can be very promising. I think some stimulating agents could be suitable for chess. Any doping agent should be applied with care because in the event that you use it on a long-term basis, it can result in severe consequences.

• Evgeny Alexeev: If under the doping one can understand the stimulus for the chess game, as for me, I have only one – it is striving to the victory.

  
  Rustam Kasimdzhanov

• Rustam Kasimdzhanov: In point of fact, as far as I understand, you want to hear something about concrete chemical substances used by chess players? For many chess players alcohol can act as doping during the tough period of their chess career. It helps them to come to life, to organize themselves for the further emotions. I am trying to abstain from any kind of doping lately, including alcohol and coffee during the game. I am trying to play on human resources. And you can see the results now… (Yesterday Kasimdzhanov lost his second straight game). May be, I should stop all this?

  
  Peter Leko

• Peter Leko: I think chess is a more intellectual than physical kind of sport. There is no point in speaking about chess doping.

• Teimour Radjabov: It is difficult to say what you can use in order to win the game. Coffee, tea, cigarettes can’t promote good results. If you have slept well, have come to the game in a good mood – it is not a guarantee of success as well. But if we talk about real doping, in particular, to comment the case at the Dresden Chess Olympiad, when the leader of the Ukrainian team Vasily Ivanchuk has not come to the doping test, it will take a lot of time...

  
  Vladimir Akopian

• Vladimir Akopian: Chess is a job for grandmasters since childhood, though a pleasant one, and the attitude to this profession is serious, as to the real one. Playing at top level, one has to work hard and spend a lot of time on the preparation for the tournaments. A strong tea helps me to be in good shape, while I have never liked coffee. During the game I can drink several cups of tea.

• Vugar Gashimov: Usually during the game I drink only water. Chess, I can say, is a kind of doping itself, even a drug. All grandmasters have become addicts of this wise game since childhood and can’t get rid of it for the rest of their life.

FIDE Grand Prix Elista 2008 – Schedule and results

Links Tournament web site All games in PGN The games are being broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download ChessBase Light, which gives you immediate access. You can also use it to read, replay and analyse the PGN games. Download free PGN reader ChessBase Light