Key Concepts of Chess - Pawn Structures Vol.1 and 2
In this two-part course the emphasis will be on typical pawn-structures.
This episode focuses on the Bulgarian Veselin Topalov. His career is notable for the fact that, almost out of nowhere, he entered the top 20 of the world FIDE list in 1993 with a rating of 2635. He earned these rating points in a series of open tournaments in Spain, and when he was invited to top tournaments, it became clear that this rating was by no means inflated. For instance, in 1993, he won a strong tournament in Madrid, sharing first place with Vladimir Kramnik and Viswanathan Anand. From that point on, he was consistently invited to elite tournaments, including the prestigious Tata Steel tournament in Wijk aan Zee, the Spanish Linares, and Dortmund, among others.
In 1996, Topalov had an exceptionally successful year, with first-place finishes in Amsterdam (VSB tournament), Dos Hermanas, Madrid, León, Novgorod, and Vienna. Around this time, he also began to actively compete for the world title. He participated in the controversial World Championship Knockout tournament held in Tripoli, Libya, where Uzbek player Rustam Kasimdzhanov later claimed the FIDE world title after defeating, among others, Topalov in the semifinals. Simultaneously, Topalov also took part in the qualification tournament organized by the PCA (Professional Chess Association, founded by Garry Kasparov and Nigel Short) to determine the challenger for the reigning world champion, Vladimir Kramnik. Topalov advanced far but was ultimately defeated by Hungarian Grandmaster Peter Leko, who later played a match for the PCA title against Kramnik.
The year 2005 was an extremely successful one for Topalov. He won the highly competitive tournament in Linares, sharing first place with Garry Kasparov, whom he defeated in the final round. This victory turned out to be a symbolic moment in chess history because, right after the tournament, Kasparov announced his retirement from classical chess. In a way, Kasparov passed the torch to Topalov, the player who had just beaten him in the final round and who would go on to become world champion a year later.
After winning the top tournament in Sofia, the Bulgarian capital, and finishing second in Dortmund, Topalov traveled to San Luis, Argentina, where FIDE had decided to determine the world champion through a double round-robin tournament with eight participants. Topalov won this tournament in great style, becoming the FIDE World Champion. His success didn’t stop there, as in January 2006, he also won the Corus tournament (now known as the Tata Steel Tournament), sharing first place with Viswanathan Anand.
However, Topalov lost the FIDE world title in October 2006 to Vladimir Kramnik (a topic covered in previous episodes). Nevertheless, from April 2006 to January 2007, he remained at the top of the FIDE rating list. Although Topalov continued to win many tournaments, his loss to Kramnik in 2006 left him out of the subsequent world championship cycle. This felt like a major setback, but FIDE made an effort to give him another chance to compete for the world title. In 2009, he played a ‘challenger match’ against Gata Kamsky, the winner of the 2007 World Chess Cup. Topalov won the match 4½–2½, earning the right to challenge Anand for the world championship.
This match took place in 2010, but Topalov narrowly lost, 5½–6½, and was unable to qualify for the world title again after that.
Topalov is known for his aggressive playing style. After Black's final move (...Nf6-e4), Topalov bravely initiates a sacrifice, trying to seize the initiative. White might consider Rxe4, but can you explain why this exchange sacrifice is justified?
Power Play 20: Test Your Attacking Chess
Grandmaster Daniel King presents ten exemplary attacking performances. At key moments he stops and asks you to play a move. King then gives feedback on the most plausible continuations. It’s the next best thing to having your own personal trainer!
This week’s show (for Premium Members only)
