3/22/2019 – Four rounds into the European Championship and we no longer find any perfect scores. Dutch GM Lucas van Foreest was one of the players with 3 points after as many rounds of play, but he lost on Thursday to top seed Vladislav Artemiev. The remaining undefeated players all drew, creating a 19-way tie on 3½. GM DANIEL FERNANDEZ annotates highlights of rounds three and four. Pictured: Benjamin Gledura (right) is one of the leaders, GM Vincent Keymer (left) is only on 50%. | Photo: Patricia Claros
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Israeli GM Tal Baron is currently atop the standings at the European Individual Championship in Skopje. After winning his fourth round game on board 23, he has the highest tiebreak (opponents' rating minus the lowest) score among the 19 players with 3½ points. Of course with seven round still to go at this stage, it means little. With so many strong players, and a lot riding on reaching the top 22 places (for World Cup qualification), it's no surprise that the leaders are cautious.
Trophies are nice, but a ticket to Khanty-Mansiysk is the bigger prize | Photo: Patricia Claros
On the third day of the European Championship, many of the games ended drawn on the top boards. Of the 19 games between players with two points, twelve ended with the point shared. Among them was the game of top seed Vladislav Artemiev, who wound up lucky to escape with a move repetition draw from a Caro-Kann against Samvel Ter-Sahakyan.
The Caro Kann is a very tricky opening. Black’s play is based on controlling and fighting for key light squares. It is a line which was very fashionable in late 90s and early 2000s due to the successes of greats like Karpov, Anand, Dreev etc. Recently due to strong engines lot of key developments have been made and some new lines have been introduced, while others have been refuted altogether. I have analyzed the new trends carefully and found some new ideas for Black.
Ter-Sahakyan vs Artemiev
Position after 23...Kh7
White played 24.♗c2 in this position, which, while not a bad move, did not pose as many problems for Artemiev as 24.gxh6 gxh6 25.♖g2 with the idea of playing Rg3 and doubling rooks on the g-file.
Instead, it was Aremiev who doubled rooks and Ter-Sahakyan bailed out:
Ter-Sahakyan vs Artemiev
Position after 32.Qd3+
32...♚h833.♕e3 ♚h7 34.♕d3+ etc.
Ter-Sahakyan and Artemiev, first of two handshakes | Photo: Patricia Claros
Among the winners was Sergei Azarov, who managed to win this rook ending against Nils Grandelius:
Rook endings are amongst the most frequently encountered endgames there are, and so your training effort will be quickly repaid in the form of half and full points. Knowing even a few rules of thumb and key methods makes life a great deal easier and provides a guiding light even in complex positions. This DVD focuses on the important themes which are to be found in common rook endings.
Azarov-Grandelius
It was a less technical victory in Ivan Cheparinov vs Sebastian Maze:
FM Claus Dieter Meyer has put under the microscope a comprehensive fund of topical and timeless games / fragments. On video Hamburg GM Dr. Karsten Müller has outlined corner points of Meyer's work and created 14 tests plus 10 interactive test sets.
In this position White just played the careless 32.♗b4. After 32...♜c2 the Frenchman gave up immediately. No matter what he does with the queen, there follows 33...♛xg5 with with devastating mating threats.
Cheparinov is in the 3½ score group | Photo: Patricia Claros
Lucas van Foreest worked his way up the leaderboard with a win against Aleksandar Indijic.
Lucas van Foreest vs Indijic
The younger brother of Jorden van Foreest shocked his opponent here with 34.♗h6. Black responded 34...♞h5 (34...♜b7 was forced)and was getting mated after 35.♛g8+.
#Chess can be unpredictable! Mother and son meet at the board in the round 3 of European Individual Chess Championship 2019 in Skopje! #EICC2019pic.twitter.com/YjPktBBGBm
GM Daniel Fernandez looks at a few more highlights of the round:
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1.e4c52.Nf3d63.d4cxd44.Nxd4Nf65.Nc3a66.Be3e57.Nb3Be68.f3h58...Be7is an absolute main line and may be the best order for
delaying White's g48...Nc6!?9.Nd5Bxd510.exd5Nbd711.Qd211.a4Rc812.a5may indeed deprive Black of ...Nb6, but now Black is more
interested in the e5 square and other dark squares and could continueg613.Qd2Bg714.Be2e4!11...g612.0-0-012.Be2Trying to castle short.
While annotating Leko-Saric for this site, I noted the following precedent
game:Bg713.Na513.0-0b614.c40-0=Topalov,V-Vachier Lagrave,M
Paris 201713...Qc714.c40-015.0-0e416.f416.b4!?16...Ng4=Adair,J-Gormally,D Llandudno 201712.Na5is another
long-castling-like move12...Nb612...Qc7!?13.Kb1Bg714.Be20-014...a5!?could be worth considering since White has already committed the
Bf1, and not to b5:15.Bb515.a40-016.g4Nb615...a416.Na10-017.c4Nc515.g4!This was Leko's contribution and I think it gains
an edge.Rfc815...a516.g5Ne817.Qd315...hxg416.fxg4Nb617.h4!16.Rc1a517.g5Ne818.a4Leko,P-Saric,I European Team
Championship 201713.Kb1Nfxd5With this capture, Black discourages Bg5,
so it is definitely worth a look.13...Nbxd5It is still unclear to me
whether this capture equalises.14.Bg5Be715.g3!?was the precedent.15.c4Nb616.Na50-0!?17.h4d5∞is the principled way for both sides
to go15.Bc4Nb6!15...Qc716.Bxd5Nxd517.Bxe7Nxe718.Qxd616.Na50-017.Bxf6Bxf618.Qxd6Kg7=15...0-016.f4a516...Nb6!?
seems to equalise17.Bg217.a417...a4=Leko,P-Giri,A London
201214.Bf2Nf615.Qe115.Na5Nwas what I proposed in my notes to
the Leko game:Qc716.Bh4!Nfd716...Be717.Bxf6Bxf618.Qxd616...Nbd7?17.Nc417.f4Rc818.Be2and practical tests are needed
here15.Bd3=Saric,I-Palac,M Porec 201615.Bh4Be716.Bxf6Bxf617.Qxd6is what the computer says, but despite its initial enthusiasm I'm
not sure that this version of the ending is any better than the others, e.g.Qxd618.Rxd6Bd8=15...Be716.g3?!This line is difficult to play! In
many positions, g3 works just fine; here, though, it is simply too slow.16.f4exf4!?16...e417.f5looks more weakening17.g3fxg318.Bd4Nbd719.hxg3Qc720.g4Ne5∞White probably does have enough for two
pawns, but it is hard to come up with concrete ideas to get through to the
Black king, which is protected by the bulwark on e5.16...Qc717.Bd317.f4Na418.Bg2Rc819.c3b5sees Black commence aggressive operations.17...Rc818.f4Nc419.Nd219.Qe219...b520.h30-021.f521.Bxc4bxc422.Ne4is just a pawn, but White should have done this.21...d5!22.Bxc422.fxg6Nxb2-+22...bxc423.Nf3Bd624.g4Rb8The game is
already almost over.25.gxh5Ne425...Ba3was probably more clinical, and
only after26.b3thenNe4-+26.Qe326.hxg6Ba327.gxf7+Rxf728.Rg1+Kh8-+26...Bc527.Qh6Rxb2+!28.Kxb2Rb8+29.Ka1Qa5Mate is
inevitable. For instance, on Be1 there would follow Nc3.0–1
In round four, Artemiev adopted a very patient strategy against Lucas van Foreest, accepting a slightly passive position with White, exchanging pieces when needed and waiting for an opportunity. It eventually presented itself in the form of a chronically weak and backward c-pawn in the Black camp.
The third part of the endgame series tackles queen endings, rook against minor pieces, queen against rook and queen against two rooks. Queen endings are not nearly as mysterious as they appear at first sight. Knowing a few rules of thumb and principles will make things very much easier for you. Over 7 hours video training.
Artemiev vs van Foreest
Positon after 40.R1c3
Black can possibly survive this by just defending and staying put, but after van Foreest's 40...♜a4 41.♖xc6 ♜xc6 42.♖xc6 ♚g7 43.♕c2 Artemiev's better major piece coordination gave him a strong edge.
Van Foreest's c-pawn was felled like a tree...in the forest | Photo: Patricia Claros
The lone IM among the leading pack is the 17-year-old Russian Semyon Lomasov who beat one of his trainers, veteran GM Mikhail Kobalia. It was another major piece ending, but this time, there was no drawn out technical conversion required.
Lomasov vs Kobalia
Position after 26...Kh7
Lomasov went for the throat with 27.h5! and Kobalia needed to activate his rook along the 5th rank in defence. But his effort to trade queens instead went down in flames: 27...♛c6 28.♕f7! gxh5 29.♕xh5+ ♚g8 30.♖e7 and Kobalia resigned.
GM Daniel Fernandez examines the other key highlights of the round:
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1.e4c52.Nf3d63.d4cxd44.Nxd4Nf65.Nc3a66.Be3e57.Nb3Be68.f3h58...Be7is an absolute main line and may be the best order for
delaying White's g48...Nc6!?9.Nd5Bxd510.exd5Nbd711.Qd211.a4Rc812.a5may indeed deprive Black of ...Nb6, but now Black is more
interested in the e5 square and other dark squares and could continueg613.Qd2Bg714.Be2e4!11...g612.0-0-012.Be2Trying to castle short.
While annotating Leko-Saric for this site, I noted the following precedent
game:Bg713.Na513.0-0b614.c40-0=Topalov,V-Vachier Lagrave,M
Paris 201713...Qc714.c40-015.0-0e416.f416.b4!?16...Ng4=Adair,J-Gormally,D Llandudno 201712.Na5is another
long-castling-like move12...Nb612...Qc7!?13.Kb1Bg714.Be20-014...a5!?could be worth considering since White has already committed the
Bf1, and not to b5:15.Bb515.a40-016.g4Nb615...a416.Na10-017.c4Nc515.g4!This was Leko's contribution and I think it gains
an edge.Rfc815...a516.g5Ne817.Qd315...hxg416.fxg4Nb617.h4!16.Rc1a517.g5Ne818.a4Leko,P-Saric,I European Team
Championship 201713.Kb1Nfxd5With this capture, Black discourages Bg5,
so it is definitely worth a look.13...Nbxd5It is still unclear to me
whether this capture equalises.14.Bg5Be715.g3!?was the precedent.15.c4Nb616.Na50-0!?17.h4d5∞is the principled way for both sides
to go15.Bc4Nb6!15...Qc716.Bxd5Nxd517.Bxe7Nxe718.Qxd616.Na50-017.Bxf6Bxf618.Qxd6Kg7=15...0-016.f4a516...Nb6!?
seems to equalise17.Bg217.a417...a4=Leko,P-Giri,A London
201214.Bf2Nf615.Qe115.Na5Nwas what I proposed in my notes to
the Leko game:Qc716.Bh4!Nfd716...Be717.Bxf6Bxf618.Qxd616...Nbd7?17.Nc417.f4Rc818.Be2and practical tests are needed
here15.Bd3=Saric,I-Palac,M Porec 201615.Bh4Be716.Bxf6Bxf617.Qxd6is what the computer says, but despite its initial enthusiasm I'm
not sure that this version of the ending is any better than the others, e.g.Qxd618.Rxd6Bd8=15...Be716.g3?!This line is difficult to play! In
many positions, g3 works just fine; here, though, it is simply too slow.16.f4exf4!?16...e417.f5looks more weakening17.g3fxg318.Bd4Nbd719.hxg3Qc720.g4Ne5∞White probably does have enough for two
pawns, but it is hard to come up with concrete ideas to get through to the
Black king, which is protected by the bulwark on e5.16...Qc717.Bd317.f4Na418.Bg2Rc819.c3b5sees Black commence aggressive operations.17...Rc818.f4Nc419.Nd219.Qe219...b520.h30-021.f521.Bxc4bxc422.Ne4is just a pawn, but White should have done this.21...d5!22.Bxc422.fxg6Nxb2-+22...bxc423.Nf3Bd624.g4Rb8The game is
already almost over.25.gxh5Ne425...Ba3was probably more clinical, and
only after26.b3thenNe4-+26.Qe326.hxg6Ba327.gxf7+Rxf728.Rg1+Kh8-+26...Bc527.Qh6Rxb2+!28.Kxb2Rb8+29.Ka1Qa5Mate is
inevitable. For instance, on Be1 there would follow Nc3.0–1
1.e4c62.d4d53.Nd2dxe44.Nxe4Nf65.Nxf6+exf66.c3Bd67.Bd30-08.Qc2Re8+B15: Caro-Kann: 3 Nc3: 3...g6 and 3...dxe4 4 Nxe4 Nf6 5 Nxf6+ exf69.Ne29.Be3h610.Ne2Na611.0-0Nc712.c4Bg413.h3Bxe214.Bxe2Ne615.Rad1Qc716.Bg4Rad817.Rfe1Bf418.Bxf4Nxf419.Rxe8+Rxe8½-½ (58) Svidler,P (2756)-Carlsen,M (2839) Porto Carras 20189...h510.0-0h4White is slightly better.11.h3Nd712.Be3Nf813.Rad1
13...Ne6NPredecessor:13...Bc714.c4Qd615.Bf4Qd816.Bxc7Qxc7½-½ (36) Schreiner,P (2480)-Buhmann,R (2574) Austria 201814.c4Ng515.Rfe1Bc716.a3Bd717.Nf4Qc818.Bf1Bf519.Qc1Be420.d5Black must now prevent d6.Qb820...Rd8=keeps the balance.21.b421.Be2±21...a621...cxd5=remains equal.22.Nxd5Nxh3+23.Kh1Bxd524.Rxd5Ng522.c5Hoping for d6.cxd523.Nxd5Nxh3+24.Kh1Qc825.Nxc7Qxc726.Rd4Qe5
27.Rxe4!Qxe4=28.f3Qf5And now ...Ng5 would win.29.gxh3Qxf3+30.Bg2Qg331.Bd231.Re231...Rad832.Rxe8+32.Kg1=32...Rxe833.Qf1Rd834.Bf4Qxa335.Qe1Qa4!Strongly threatening ...Rd1.36.Kh236.Bd636...Re8?Black should play36...a5!-+37.c6bxc637.Qd2=Qb538.Bf3?38.Be3=38...Qf1-+39.Qg2Qc439...Qd3-+40.Qf2g540.Qd2
40...Qf140...a5!41.c641.bxa5Qxc541...bxc642.bxa5g541.Qg2-+Qd3!42.Qf2g543.Bd2Kg744.Qg2?44.Kg2was worth a try.44...Kh644...Re545.Kh1a5!46.bxa5Rxc545.Qf2
45...Kg6!46.Qg2Re747.Bc1?47.Qf247...Qd4Threatens to win with ...Qe5+.Black is clearly winning.48.Qb2Qxb2+49.Bxb2Re350.Kg2Rb3!51.Ba351.Bc1Rxb452.Kf251...Rxa352.Bxb7Kf5Accuracy: White = 49%, Black = 65%.0–1
Macauley PetersonMacauley served as the Editor in Chief of ChessBase News from July 2017 to March 2020. He is the producer of The Full English Breakfast chess podcast, and was an Associate Producer of the 2016 feature documentary, Magnus.
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