Germany's new Grandmaster: Shredder!?

by ChessBase
8/8/2003 – The Sixth Magistral de la Republica Argentina was won convincingly by the ChessBase program Shredder 7. It's 8.5/10 score was well above the GM norm and two points ahead of the pack of GMs and IMs chasing it. That's a 2752 performance rating! The human side of things was won by Andres Rodriguez of Uruguay. Report and games

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VI Magistral de la Republica Argentina

Chess Tiger and Hiarcs had their turns in the past two years, this time it was Shredder's chance to show its stuff against some of the best players in South America. This sixth edition of the Magistral in a suburb of Buenos Aires, Argentina, brought together players from Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil, and of course, the host nation.

There was also a special guest from Germany, Stefan Meyer-Kahlen's program Shredder, winner of many past computer world championships and current computer rating list leader. This ChessBase program was definitely the little engine that could, scoring an undefeated 8.5/10 against GMs and IMs.

That's a performance rating of 2752, exactly three points less than its current rating estimate of 2755. It surpassed the Grandmaster norm by a point and a half! That Elo would make it the fourth strongest human player in the world after only Kasparov, Kramnik, and Anand. Ah, if it only had a heart. (Cue munchkins singing, "We're off to see the wizard...")

Our thanks to the organizers and the players for having the courage to face this silicon beast. And congratulations to the three players who got half-points. GM Slipak was even completely winning in the final position against Shredder but allowed a repetition of moves instead of risking human error leading to a loss. A draw by reputation for Shredder and a sensational result.


Official siteReportajes en españolAll Shredder games

Of course the super-program was playing hors concours and can live on fame alone. Andres Rodriguez of Uruguay won in the final round to catch long-time leader Sergio Slipak and take the title of the Magistral on tiebreaks. There was also an IM event with Shredder participating and the machine's score was the same 8.5/10 giving up only three draws. The IM tournament was won by IM Jorge Rosito just a point behind Shredder at 7.5/10, an excellent result.


Andres Rodrigues (right), the first Uruguayan GM, is presented with the trophy.

During the tournament the winner took time off to meet and greet its many fans. It took on all comers giving five minutes to one odds on the clock. It was fun for all but the results were predictable: 68 wins, no losses, no draws for Shredder.

Rocio Solsona, a local girl not yet a teenager, put up the stiffest resistance before Shredder finally got the best of her. Felicidades!

Those who found Shredder too tough a challenge could enjoy a session with Fritz & Chesster, our learn-to-play program for kids better known as El Pequeño Fritz in the Spanish-speaking world.

Our thanks to Roberto Alvarez for his photos and reports.


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