Hoogeveen 2016: Sokolov strikes first
10/17/2016 – The Hoogeveen Festival has started, and brings a number of fun events to watch. The eye-catcher is of course the match between Hou Yfan and ‘old git’ Nigel Short played over six games, with a second match between Dutch talent Jorden van Foreest and Ivan Sokolov. There is also a strong open with a large contingent of Dutch and Indian players. The first match games were fascinating struggles, and Sokolov was the first to draw blood.
The Hoogeveen Chess Tournament starts on Saturday, October 15 (opening ceremony) and ends on Saturday, October 22 2016. The tournament consists of the Hoogeveen Matches, the Hoogeveen Open and two amateur tournaments. All tournaments will take place in the attractive town hall of the Dutch city of Hoogeveen. In the chess café, well-known commentators will analyse the games with the audience. The games can also be followed live on Playchess and on the official website.
Hoogeveen Matches: Hou Yifan vs Nigel Short, Jorden van Foreest vs Ivan Sokolov.
Hoogeveen Open: Nine rounds will be played, with space for approximately 84 players who must have a minimal rating of 2000. The Hoogeveen Open is an international tournament, and consequently (grand-) master norms can be achieved. There is a total prize fund of €7,500 with a 1st prize of €3,000.
Amateur toernaments: Group I (= afternoon group): for players with a rating up to 2100. Group II (= morning group): also for players with a rating up to 2100. Each group can contain a maximum of 84 players. They play eight rounds. 1st prize for both groups is €250 each.
Rate of play: 40 moves in 90 minutes, 30 minutes extra time + an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move one.
Venue: Town Hall Hoogeveen, Raadhuisplein 1, 7901 BP Hoogeveen.
Hoogeveen Chess Tournament
All photos by Lennart Ootes
Opening
Nigel Short is introduced by Loek van Wely, the tournament director
Informal and always with good humor, the first match is announced
Although the gloves will be off for the match, Hou Yifan and Nigel Short are friends off the board
Jorden van Foreest has certainly been the Dutch talent on the rise
Matches
Finally the games are underway in the elegant playing hall
The first game saw a good opening for Nigel Short, but that he was unable to convert
Nigel Short - Hou Yifan (game one)
The game between Jorden van Foreest, playing black in the first bout, and Ivan Sokolov, was a dynamic affair that swung both ways as is befitting of a King's Indian. In the end, Sokolov had the last word.
Ivan Sokolov - Jorden van Foreest (game one)
Falling back to more traditional options, the display is a manual one
The Open
Among the Indian players is GM Kidambi Sundararajan
GM Jan Werle is also playing
Mees Van Osch - Jan Werle
White seems to have covered all of the danger squares: the rook controls c1, the bishop has the a8-h1 diagonal, and the queen has secured e1. There is just one problem.... Black to play and win.
35...Bc6+!! 36. Rxc6 (if 36.Bxc6 Qc1+ leads to mate) Qf3+ 37. Kg1 Qd1+ 38. Kf2 Re2# 0-1
GM Ernst Sipke is from Holland
Tournament Schedule
| Date | Matches | Hoogeveen Open | Amateur | Analysis |
| Sat. 15 Oct. | opening | Round 1 (14.00) | R1 (10.00/14.30) | |
| Sun. 16 Oct. | Round 1 (14.00) | Round 2 (14.00) | R2(9.30/14.00) | Jop Delemarre |
| Mon. 17 Oct. | Round 2 (14.00) | Rround 3 (14.00) | R3 (9.30/14.00) | Gert Ligterink |
| Tues. 18 Oct. | Round 3 (14.00) | Round 4 (14.00) | R4 (9.30/14.00) | Hans Bohm |
| Wed. 19 Oct. | Rest day | R5 (9.00) + R6 (15.00) | R5 (9.30/14.00) | |
| Thurs. 20 Oct. | Round 4 (14.00) | Round 7(14.00) | R6 (9.30/14.00) | Cor van Wijgerden |
| Fri. 21 Oct. | Round 5 (14.00) | Round 8 (14.00) | R7 (9.30/14.00) | Robert Ris |
| Sat. 22 Oct. | R6 (12.00), closing | Round 9 (12.00) | R8 (9.30/14.00) | Joris Brenninkmeijer |
LinksThe games will be broadcast live on the official web site and on the server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download a free Playchess client there and get immediate access. You can also use ChessBase or any of our Fritz compatible chess programs. |
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Discussion and Feedback
Join the public discussion or submit your feedback to the editors
Is the tournament director the highest rated player in the hall?
The analysis completely overlooked the fact that Hou Yifan had seconds left on the clock and erred at move 40. Nigel missed the win with 41. Na7!
Manual display boards look so much classier than the electronic ones.
Nice report with cool pics.
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