Sensation: Dubai Open won by Wang Hao

by ChessBase
4/14/2005 – Wang Who?? The question and the question marks are justified. The clear first place winner is a Chinese player who left 53 GMs and 30 IMs gasping for air. We say player because Wang has no FIDE title. It gets worse: he turned 16 during round five of the event. Clearly we are going to have to watch this lad. Full report with games, results and lots of pictures.
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The 7th Dubai Open, which ran from April 3rd to 13th, 2005, was organised by the Dubai Chess & Culture Club under the auspices of H.H.Sheikh Rashid Bin Hamdan Al Maktum. The prize fund was US $40,000, with special prizes for local players of US $5,000. The rate of play in the nine-round Swiss tournament is one hour 30 minutes for the whole game with an incremental time of 30 seconds per move.

The tournament ended with a surprise win by Wang Hao of China, who celebrated his 16th birthday on April 8th, during round five. The lad is rated 2484, but still has no FIDE title. Here are the top results of the Dubai Open.


The sensational winner: Wang Hao of China

Rk. Name FED Rtg Pts.
1 Wang Hao CHN 2484 7.0
2 GM Gagunashvili Merab GEO 2547 6.5
3 GM Iordachescu Viorel MDA 2609 6.5
4 GM Guseinov Gadir AZE 2573 6.5
5 GM Zhang Zhong CHN 2599 6.5
6 GM Miroshnichenko Evgenij UKR 2628 6.5
7 GM Zhang Pengxiang CHN 2583 6.5
8 GM Anastasian Ashot ARM 2574 6.5
9 GM Efimenko Zahar UKR 2620 6.5
10 GM Bu Xiangzhi CHN 2630 6.5
11 GM Solak Dragan SCG 2582 6.5
12 Zhou Jianchao CHN 2473 6.0
13 GM Kacheishvili Giorgi GEO 2597 6.0
14 GM Burmakin Vladimir RUS 2552 6.0
15 GM Georgiev Kiril BUL 2666 6.0
16 GM Motylev Alexander RUS 2680 6.0
17 GM Mamedyarov Shakhriyar AZE 2646 6.0
18 GM Neverov Valeriy UKR 2566 6.0
19 GM Al-Modiahki Mohamad QAT 2569 6.0
20 GM Navara David CZE 2647 6.0
21 GM Wang Yue CHN 2576 6.0
22 GM Mchedlishvili Mikheil GEO 2518 6.0
23 GM Kotsur Pavel KAZ 2599 6.0
24 GM Vladimirov Evgeny KAZ 2623 6.0
25 GM Areshchenko Alexander UKR 2595 6.0
26 GM Djuric Stefan SCG 2459 6.0
27 GM Adly Ahmed EGY 2484 5.5
28 IM Ibrahimov Rasul AZE 2511 5.5
29 GM Sturua Zurab GEO 2530 5.5
30 IM Wang Rui CHN 2457 5.5
31 GM Sandipan Chanda IND 2558 5.5
32 GM Aleksandrov Aleksej BLR 2635 5.5
33 GM Koneru Humpy IND 2508 5.5
34 GM Kunte Abhijit IND 2561 5.5
35 GM Ni Hua CHN 2638 5.5
36 IM Kayumov Sergey UZB 2400 5.5
37 WGM Xu Yuhua CHN 2478 5.5
38 GM Sargissian Gabriel ARM 2630 5.5
39 GM Volkov Sergey RUS 2634 5.5
40 GM Minasian Artashes ARM 2597 5.5
41 IM Al Sayed Mohamad N QAT 2476 5.5
42 GM Fedorchuk Sergey A UKR 2577 5.5
43 GM Ramesh R B IND 2466 5.5
44 GM Sulskis Sarunas LTU 2545 5.5
45 GM Sorokin Maxim RUS 2599 5.5

Report and picture gallery

By Andreas Albers

"Mr .Andreas, don't ask why, just come to the lobby at 10 a.m." I wondered what this invitation by Mohamed Ali Maghawry could be about. Mohamed, a young Egyptian, is the chief organiser of the tournament, and the expression on his face revealed nothing.


Meeting in the lobby, with Anastasia Sorokina, Mohamed Alie Maghawry, Mrs Navabi and Shirin

Naturally I was there at the specified time, together with Shirin Navabi, the Iranian player, with her mother, GMs Alexander Motylev, Merab Gagunashvili and Mihail Kobalia, Tea Lanchava, Anastasia Sorokina, Alisa Maric and her friend, Yugoslav FM and journalist Josip Asik.


We drive through the city of Dubai, still unaware of where Mohamed is taking us


Chess players in the minibus of the organiser


Then it looms up ahead of us, Burj Al-Arab, the only seven-star hotel in the world


Mohamed has arranged that we can visit this famous hotel


The lobby of the Burj Al-Arab


One of the restaurants


Relaxing in a lobby filled with scents of roses and incense


Alisa Maric


Josip Asik, the Yugoslav journalist, dares to look up


And this is what he sees


Mihail Kobalia is fascinated by the carpets


A group photo in the most beautiful and expensive hotel in the world

The tournament


Young Wang Hao (left) in action


Another strong Chinese player: Zhang Zhong, in the runner-up field (2–11)


Zhang Pengxiang vs. Moradiabadi


Boo! A few years ago Bu Xiangzhi was the world's youngest GM


YASUCP: yet another strong untitled Chinese player (Zhou Jianchao)


12-year-old Indian chess talent Parimarjan Negi


Yes, there were Arab players in Dubai: Nabil Saleh of UAE

Links

Official web site (with live games and results)

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