Fagernes Open: Crowded at the top

Beautiful scenery

Valdres is a traditional district in central, southern Norway, situated between Gudbrandsdalen and Hallingdal. Valdres has about 18,000 inhabitants and is known for its excellent trout fishing and the local dialect.

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The district is located approximately midway between Oslo and Bergen. The valley is protected to the west and north by the Jotunheimen mountains (Valdresflye) and to the south by the Gol mountain ridge (Golsfjellet). Historically, Valdres has had an agricultural economy, but tourism has grown in prominence in later years.

Nord-Aurdal is one of eight municipalities in Valdres, and it has the village of Fagernes as its administrative centre. Fagernes is the largest settlement in the valley of Valdres, with a population of around 2,000. Certainly a peaceful environment to hold a chess tournament.

The valley of Valdres | Photo: Sigve Kjønnøy

The tournament has become a fixture of the chess calendar since 2011. This year’s edition is taking place at the Scandic Valdres Hotel and has Hans Olav Lahlum as its main organizer.

A total of 71 players registered to participate in the main event, dubbed the GM Swiss Group, including 15 grandmasters. The lineup is headed by three Indian players: Arjun Erigaisi (rated 2675), Krishnan Sasikiran (2650) and Nihal Sarin (2648). They are closely followed by Alexander Donchenko from Germany, Aram Hakobyan from Armenia and S.P. Sethuraman, also from India.

The strongest woman participant in the field is Zhansaya Abdumalik from Kazakhstan, currently ranked 14th in the world among women. Abdumalik won the 2021 Women’s Grand Prix in Gibraltar with a round to spare.

Zhansaya Abdumalik facing Olga Dolzhikova in the first round | Photo: Tom Eriksen

After five rounds, no fewer than eight players are tied for first place on 4/5 points. Among them is veteran Kaido Kulaots from Estonia, who impressed the chess world three years ago by winning the extremely strong Aeroflot Open.

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In round 3, Kulaots defeated two-time Turkish champion Vahap Sanal. The turning point in the game came on move 45, when the 46-year-old grabbed the initiative decisively.

 

Sanal, Vahap2601

0–1

Kulaots, Kaido2527

Fagernes GM 2022 12.04.2022

1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 d6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.d4 cxd4 5.Nxd4 a6 6.a3 e5 7.Nf3 h6 8.Bc4 Be6 9.Ba2 Nc6 10.0-0 Rc8 11.Re1 Be7 12.Nd5 0-0 13.h3 Na5 14.c3 Nxd5 15.Bxd5 Bxd5 16.Qxd5 Qc7 17.a4 Nc4 18.Qd3 Qb6 19.Qc2 Na5 20.Nd2 Bg5 21.Ra2 Qc6 22.Ra1 d5 23.Nf3 f6 24.h4 Bxc1 25.Raxc1 dxe4 26.Rxe4 Nc4 27.Rce1 Rfd8 28.h5 Qd5 29.Rg4 Qf7 30.Nh4 Nd6 31.Qe2 Rd7 32.Rd1 Rcd8 33.Rd3 Qe6 34.Ng6 Nf5 35.Rxd7 Qxd7 36.Qe4 Nd6 37.Qd5+ Qf7 38.Qa5 Rd7 39.Qc5 Rd8 40.Rb4 Qd7 41.f3 b5 42.axb5 axb5 43.Rb3 Ne4

Black opens the d-file for his major pieces while attacking the queen with his knight. 44.Qb6 Grabbing the knight loses quickly: 44.fxe4 Qd1+ checking while attacking the rook on b3 and the pawn on h5. Only one move kept the balance for White, e.g. 44.Qe7 Qd1+ 45.Kh2 Ng5 and a tense dynamic equilibrium has been reached. 44...Ng3 45.Rxb5 Kh7 46.Nxe5 White was already in deep trouble, but this move allows Black to get a winning attack quickly. 46.Rb4 Nxh5 47.Nh4 was a better defensive attempt. 46...Qd1+ 47.Kh2 Nf1+ 48.Kh3 Qe1!

The king cannot hide on the corner anymore. 49.Kg4 Ne3+ 50.Kf4 fxe5+ White resigned. A single inaccuracy by his opponent was duly punished by the Estonian grandmaster. 0–1

Kaido Kulaots | Photo: Tom Eriksen

Standings after round 5

...71 players

All available games

Links

• Official site
• First Fagernes Chess Festival – Chess in the fjords