

5th
Kings Tournament 2011 in Medias, Romania
ROMGAZ and the Chess Club Society "Elisabeta Polihroniade” of Bucharest
are staging a double round robin tournament with six top GMs: the world's second
highest ranked player, Magnus Carlsen of Norway, who at the age of 20 has an
Elo rating of 2815. Ukrainian GM Vassily Ivanchuk, currently the world's number
five, rated 2776; Sergey Karjakin, former child prodigy and youngest GM of all
time, now playing for Russia, rated 2776; top US grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura,
clear winner of this year's Wijk aan Zee tournament; Teimour Radjabov, at 2744
one of Azerbaijan's top GMs, and Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu, the best Romanian player,
currently rated 2659. The competition is taking place from June 11th to 22nd
2011 in Medias, Romania.
Impressions from the Opening Ceremony
By Frederic Friedel

The Natural Gas Documentation and Information Centre where the event will
be staged

Hikaru Nakamura (right) with his permanent second Kris Littlejohn

Top seed and favourite Magnus Carlsen

Former child prodigy Sergey Karjakin

Romania's top GM Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu

Teimour Radjabov with his mother (really!)

The Mayor of Medias Teodor Neamtu

Lucian Stancu, Vice General Director of Romgaz

FIDE representative Nigel Freeman, who held his greeting speech in Romanian!

Henrik Carlsen, father of the top seed, speaks for his son...

... who must then speak to the visitors himself


Speaking for his boss: Vassily Ivanchuk's second Šarūnas Šulskis of
Lithuania.
Ivanchk was on his way from the airport, after a delayed flight.

King's Tournament President Elisabeta Polihroniade speaks...

... and then introduces a full-fledged World Champion

Ognean Mihnea-Ionut, reigning World School Champion under seven

Kings' Tournament director Emil Danut Gabar

Magnus with his sister, 14-year-old Signe Carlsen

The chief arbiter Faik Gasanov

The players with Tournament President Elisabeta Polihroniade and RomGAZ
top brass

Florin Opriscan, Assistant of the General Director, Mihai Opriscan, PR director,
Eleonora Patrui, Chief Assistant of the General Director

After the ceremony the TV and radio journalists beleaguer one of the players

Liviu Dieter Nisipeanu and his wife Nicoleta

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