Tournament report by Ali Nihat Yazici and Zahir Ahmadov
Baku, Pearl of the Caspian Sea, is so beautiful. For me, each time I visit
this country, Azerbaijan, I feel something in my heart. A country, where I can
speak my own language, lovely Turkish.

Azerbaijan has a very important role in world chess with its strong chess
culture. I remember my first visit, I want to share with you a story showing
the strong chess culture in Azerbaijan.
The year is 2002, European Junior Championships (Under 20) my first time in
Baku. The tournament was organized in the Olympic House, while accommodation
was in Absheron Hotel, Baku. The organizers had provided a shuttle service from
the hotel to the venue, every morning and after the round. One morning, I missed
the shuttle service and I took a taxi from the hotel. Of course originally the
conversation was all in Turkish…
Me: "To the Olympic House, please"
Taxi driver: "Are you a chess person?"
Taxi driver: "Did you see yesterday, the game of our girl Zeinab Mamedyarova?"
Taxi driver: "She made a fantastic novelty in the Sicilian Dragon, and
won!"
Ohmygod, a country where some random taxi driver knows the Sicilian Dragon!
How are we going to catch up with them? On April 27, 2007, the President of
the Azerbaijan Republic, His Excellency Ilham Alieve, instructed the Sport Ministry,
and also the National Education Ministry, to prepare a State Program and Policy
for the years 2008-2014, to be published in official news paper of the Republic,
to develop chess in the country!
Today our topic is the Second International Women Chess Tournament in Baku.
There are so many top level chess tournaments in the world for men, like Linares,
Dortmund, Corus, etc. But for many years now we have neglected women's chess.
Did we provide good conditions for our ladies? Please look at the prize fund
for individual championships, organized for women and men, and see the difference.
Shouldn't we make a positive discrimination for the sake of women's chess?
These questions were answered by the Azerbaijan Chess Federation. They started
last year with a traditional women's round robin top level tournament. The first
one was organized in Shaki in Azerbaijan. I was there. WGM Lela Javakhishvili
(Georgia) won it.

WGM Lela Javakhishvili of Georgia, who won last year's women's tournament
The Second International Women's Tournament in Baku
The Second International Women’s Chess Tournament started on September
3rd in the prestigious UNS Theatre in Baku. It will last until September 12th.
Ten well-known female players from eight countries are competing in this round-robin
tournament. Three of the players, Firuza Valikhanli, Ilaha Kadimova and Nargiz
Umudova, represent Azerbaijan, while seven countries are represented with one
player each. The foreign players invited are Sophie Milliet (France), Antoaneta
Stefanova (Bulgaria), Monika Socko (Poland), Victoria Cmilyte (Lithuania), Lela
Javakhishvili (Georgia), Pia Cramling (Sweden) and Kateryna Lahno (Ukraine).
Here is a table sorted according to their current FIDE ratings.
Player |
Title(s) |
Nation |
Rating |
Pia Cramling |
GM |
SWE |
2533 |
Antoanetta Stefanova |
GM |
BUL |
2481 |
Monica Socko |
IM (+WGM) |
POL |
2479 |
Victoria Cmilyte |
IM (+WGM) |
LIT |
2467 |
Lela Javakhishvili |
IM (+WGM) |
GEO |
2460 |
Katerina Lahno |
GM |
UKR |
2450 |
Sofi Milliet |
WGM |
FRA |
2414 |
İlaha Kadimova |
WGM |
AZE |
2316 |
Friuza Velikhanli |
WGM |
AZE |
2284 |
Nargiz Umudova |
WIM |
AZE |
2213 |
Category seven, Elo average 2409 |
The honorary guests of the tournament are the Honorary President of FIDE Florencio
Campomanes, FIDE Vice President Zurab Azmaiparashvili and the head of the Turkish
Chess Federation, Ali Nihat Yazici.

FIDE Vice President Zurab Azmaiparashvili, Honorary President Florencio
Campomanes
The games start at 16:00 local time (12:00 GMT) and the organizers are providing
live broadcast through their web site.
The time control is 90 minutes for all moves with a 30 seconds increment per
move. The prize fund of the tournament is 16,000 dollars.
The Opening Ceremony
The opening ceremony was held at the UNS theatre at 19:00 (15:00) on
September 3rd. The Youth and Sports Minister Azad Rahimov and the head of the
Azerbaijan Chess Federation and National Bank of Azerbaijan, Elman Rustamov,
delivered speeches and said that this tournament could be realized thanks to
the fact that the chief of the main sponsor, the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan
Republic, Rovnag Abdullayev, was an avid chess enthusiast.

Sports Minister Azad Rahimov speaks to the participants
Florencio Compomanes also delivered a speech and said that he believed the
Baku tournament would have a strong impact on the development of women’s
chess all over the world. Following the speeches, the head of the organizing
committee and vice-president of the Azerbaijan Chess Federation, Mahir Mammadov,
executed the drawing of lots. The artistic part of the event was rich with different
types of national and modern music. A short part from “Hamlet” by
William Shakespeare was staged by the Yugh Theatre.

The audience: on the left GM Pia Cramling, fourth Elman Rustamov, President
of of the ACF, fifth Florencio Campomanes, Honorary President of FIDE, sixth
Azad Rahimov, Sport Minister

An Azeri Classic Ancient Art Music concert

Famous Opera Singer of Azerbaijan, Inara Babayeva

Master class Accordion Music provided by Anvar Sadikhov

Jazz provided by Aypara

The Hamlet presentation by the Yugh Theatre

After the Opening Ceremony there was a delicious banquet in the Azerbaijan Olympic
Yacht Club

With such a wide choice WGM Sofi Milliet of France goes for the best

Antoanetta Stefanova vs Ilaha Kadimova at the start of round one

Former women's world champion Antoanetta Stefanova from Bulgaria

An important round one game that ended 1-0 for White

17-year-old Ukrainian talent Kateryna Lahno

Azeri player WIM Nargiz Umudova, rated 2213

New mother: WGM Friuza Velikhanli of Azerbaijan, rated 2284

The round is under way
The setup on the stage at the Women's International Tournament
Standings after six rounds
1 Stefanova, Antoaneta BUL 2902257 2481 GM 5 10.50
2 Socko, Monika POL 1106619 2479 IM 4.5 10.50
3 Javakhishvili, Lela GEO 13601458 2460 IM 4 12.25
4 Cramling, Pia SWE 1700030 2533 GM 4 8.25
5 Cmilyte, Viktorija LTU 12801259 2467 IM 3 9.00
6 Lahno, Kateryna UKR 14109336 2450 GM 3 6.00
7 Velikhanli, Firuza AZE 13400029 2284 WGM 2.5 5.75
8 Milliet, Sophie FRA 623725 2414 WGM 2 6.50
9 Umudova, Nargiz AZE 13402137 2213 wim 1.5 2.00
10 Kadimova, Ilaha AZE 13400045 2316 WGM 0.5 1.25