Hastings Congress 2011/12 won by GM Wang Yue

by ChessBase
1/8/2012 – Aside from national championships, the Hastings Congress is the longest running chess tournament in history, with a tradition going back to 1919, won by Capablanca. Over the years, the grand event has seen almost every world champion (except Fischer and Kasparov), and the ultimate who's who of greats. This year Chinese GM Wang Yue added his name to the illustrious list of winners.

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Hastings Congress 2011/12

Aside from national championships, the Hasting Congress is the longest running chess tournament in history, with a tradition going back as far as 1919, won by Capablanca. Of course, the name Hastings brings to mind the incredibly famous tournament of 1895, but the actual yearly tradition really first started in the summer of 1919, and the end-of-the-year event began in 1920/21 with the inaugural victory of Yates.

Over the years, the grand tournament has seen almost every world champion (except Fischer and Kasparov), and the ultimate who's who of great players. Capablanca, Alekhine, Euwe, Flohr, Botvinnik (who played 14-year-old Mecking in the 1966 edition), Gligoric, Keres, Smyslov, Korchnoi, Spassky, Bronstein, Tal, Karpov, Portisch, and the list just goes on and on.

The tournament has attracted fewer top players in the last years most likely for financial reasons, though it is still a favorite and important part of the annual tournament calendar. The British had good reasons to hope for some top spots, even if the very top seemed reserved for the Elo-favorite, Wang Yue (2697), and a healthy contingent of grandmasters came hoping to add their names to the illustrious list of winners.

The brightest British hope was GM David Howell, rated 2633, and the second rating of the tournament. He had an excellent start with 3.5/4, but a road accident against Chinese GM Wang Yue in round five dampened his enthusiasm, after which he slowed down, ending in eighth. Even so, he was the highest-placed English player, ahead of his GM compatriots WIlliams, Pert, and Hebden.

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1.e4 c5 2.c3 d5 3.exd5 Qxd5 4.d4 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bf5 6.Na3 cxd4 7.Bc4 Qe4+ 8.Kf1N The move known to theory is 8.Be3 the idea being that dxe3 is not possible as it loses the queen to 9.Bxf7+ Kxf7 10.Ng5+ 8...e6 9.Nb5 d3 10.Nfd4 Nxd4 11.cxd4 Rc8 12.f3 Better was 12.Nc3 Qxd4 13.Bb5+ Kd8 14.Be3 Qd6 15.Qf3 with an unclear position. 12...Qc6 13.Bxd3 Bxd3+ 14.Qxd3 a6 15.Nc3 Nf6 16.d5?! Despair? It is hard to see what attracted White to this move. Nxd5 17.Nxd5 Qxd5 Black is more than happy to exchange into a pawn-up endgame. 18.Qxd5 exd5 19.Be3 Rc2 20.Re1 Kd7 21.Re2 Rxe2 22.Kxe2 Bd6 23.h3 Rc8 24.Rc1 Re8 25.Kd3 h5 26.Rc2 f6 27.Re2 Be5 28.b3 g5 29.Re1 Rg8 30.Rh1 Ke6 31.Bd2 Bg3 32.Rc1 Kf5 33.Rc5 Rd8 34.Ba5 Rd7 35.Rc8 h4 36.Re8 Bf4 37.Bc3 d4 38.Bb4 Rc7 39.Re4 Rc1 40.Re1 Rc6 41.Re4 Be5 42.Bd2 b5 43.Re2 Rc8 44.Re1 Bf4 45.Re4 Bxd2 46.Kxd2 Rd8 47.Kd3 b4 48.Rg4 Rd5 49.f4 Ra5 50.fxg5 fxg5 51.g3 hxg3 52.Rxg3 Rxa2 53.Rf3+ Kg6 54.Kxd4 Rc2 55.Ke5 Rc5+ 56.Kd4 Rc3 57.Rxc3 bxc3 58.Kxc3 Kh5 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Howell,D2633Wang Yue26970–12012B22Masters 2011-125


GM Wang Yue is the first Chinese player to win the Hasting Congress

The winner was effectively the top-seed, GM Wang Yue, with 2697 Elo, and once top 10, and showed his class. It is risky for such a high Elo to play in a tournament where he has such a large rating advantage because he has almost no margin for error. Just one draw too many can cost him Elo points even should he win the tournament, and Elos are the coin of today's GMs. Wang scored a superb 7.5/9, a half-point ahead of the field, and can proudly add Hastings to his trophy list.

Right behind, with 7.0/9, were Romanian GM Andrei Istratescu, residing in France, followed by two young Indian IMs, 18-year-old Babu Lalith and 19-year-old Sundar Shyam, both of whom scored GM norms in the process.

Also of note was the World Under-12 champion, Murali Karthikeyan, who came in 21st with a performance of 180 Elo above is current rating.

Final standings

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