We worked late into the night

by ChessBase
12/26/2024 – After he was crowned the world champion, Gukesh named Vincent Keymer as one of the players who was a part of his back-room team. In The the SPIEGEL news magazine Vincent revealed behind-the-scenes preparation that led to World Championship win. At the same time GM Efstratios Grivas looks at some games of the German super-talent. | Photo: Marcus Brandt/dpa

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Vincent Keymer is the best German grandmaster and, at the age of 20, has ambitions of becoming world champion himself one day. Nevertheless, the 19th-ranked player in the world joined Gukesh's team.

‘During the Grand Chess Tour in Warsaw in June, Gukesh asked me to be part of his team for the World Championship,’ Keymer wrote to SPIEGEL. Several training camps were organised in preparation for the World Championships.

Now, after the World Cup, Keymer posted a photo from Spain with two colleagues, Polish grandmaster Radosław Wojtaszek and Indian grandmaster Pentala Harikrishna.

"During the World Cup itself, I was in Manilva, Spain, together with Pentala Harikrishna and Radoslaw Wojtaszek, from where we supported Gukesh's opening preparations," writes Keymer: "The work itself was intense and exhausting, especially during the match we often worked late into the night. I was all the more pleased that all the efforts of everyone involved were ultimately crowned with success."

Unusual collaboration

"It is rare for chess players to work as seconds for direct competitors," Der Spiegel writes. "It is usually players who no longer harbour any major World Championship ambitions themselves who then work for the World Championship participants."

One reason for this is that the opening repertoire of chess grandmasters is a well-guarded treasure. If they share this treasure with other players, they could have an advantage in direct duels because they can better prepare for their opponent's game. "I myself saw it as an opportunity to gain experience of working at the absolute highest level," Keymer wrote. He did it among other things with a view to qualifying for the 2026 Candidates Tournament.

Last February Keymer found a sponsor for this enterprise: multimillionaire Jan Henric Buettner, who founded the Weissenhaus Chess Academy. "The top priority for us is Vincent Keymer with the world championship mission," Buettner told SPIEGEL.

We at ChessBase have known Vincent since he was ten years old and visited our office in Hamburg. Frederic Friedel has told us all about the visit and how he took Vincent to meet and spend a few hours analysing with Garry Kasparov in Berlin.

Grivas looks at Vincent Keymer

Vincent Keymer is nowadays the strongest German GM, holding a FIDE rating between 2730 and 2740. The young GM (borne 15.11.2004) recently played Champions Chess Tour Finals 2024 (Oslo, Norway - Rapid 10+2), and started with all his three first games entering the endgame phase.

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1.Nf3 d5 2.e3 Nf6 3.b3 c5 4.Bb2 g6 5.Bb5+ Bd7 6.Bxf6 exf6 7.Bxd7+ Qxd7 8.c3 Nc6 9.d4 cxd4 10.cxd4 Bb4+ 11.Nfd2 Rc8 12.0-0 0-0 13.a3 Bd6 14.Nc3 Ne7 15.Ne2 Rc6 16.b4 Rfc8 17.Rc1 Rxc1 18.Nxc1 Qc7 19.g3 Qc2 20.Ncb3 Qd3 21.Qb1 Qa6 22.Qb2 b6 23.Rc1 Rxc1+ 24.Nxc1 h5 25.Qb3 Qc8 26.Ne2 h4 27.Nc3 Qf5 28.Qb1 Qg4 29.Kg2 hxg3 30.hxg3 Kg7 31.Qd1 Qxd1 32.Nxd1 f5 (D)
White’s opening play can be described as at least ‘unimpressive’… Well, it seems that there is nothing wrong with Black's position; this should be dead equal! But M.Carlsen loves to play-on in such nothing-to-do positions! 33.Nc3 Kf6 34.Nf3 g5 35.Kf1 g4 36.Ne1 Ke6 37.Nd3 Ng8 38.Ke2 Nf6 39.Kd2 Ne4+ 40.Kc2 Nf6 41.a4 Ne4 42.Kb3 Nd2+ 43.Kb2 Ne4 44.Kc2 a6 45.Ne2 Kd7 46.Nec1 Kc6 47.Nb3 Kc7 48.Nbc1 Kc6 49.Na2 Kd7 50.Nc3 Ke6 51.a5 (D)
A critical position, where Black has to make a crucial decision; to exchange or not to exchange on a5? 51...b5?! Althouhg still not losing, Black had to opt for 51...bxa5 52.bxa5 52.Nxe4 fxe4 53.Nc5+ Ke7 54.Nxa6 axb4 55.Kb3 Ke6= 52...Nxc3 53.Kxc3 Kd7 54.Kb3 (D)
54...Kc7= , or 54...Kc6 55.Ka4 Kc7= , where he would have nothing to afraid of.
52.Nd1 Kd7 53.Nc5+ (D)
53...Bxc5! Black's hand is forced, as after the wrong 53...Nxc5? 54.dxc5 Be5 55.Kd3 Kc7 56.Nc3! Kc6 56...Bxc3 57.Kxc3 Kd7 58.Kd3 Kc6 59.Kd4 f6 60.Kd3! , is similar to the game 57.Ne2+- , White wins. 54.dxc5 (D)
White has achieved a passed & protected passed pawn, which, as usual, it will be used as a 'decoy' in most cases, rather than queen. Still Black can defend. 54...Kc7? But that's a real mistake. Black should seek counterplay at any cost, so he should start by relocating his knight in a more useful square, by 54...Ng5! 55.Kd3 Nf3 , when he should preserve the balance: 56.Nc3 Ne5+ 57.Kc2 Nc6 58.Nxd5 Ke6 59.Nf4+ 59.Nc7+ Kd7 60.Nd5 60.Nxa6? Kc8-+ 60...Ke6 59...Ke5 60.Kc3 Ke4 61.Ne2 Ne7 62.Nd4 Nd5+ 63.Kb3 Ke5 , as it is not easy to find improvements for White here. 55.Kd3 Kc6 56.Kd4 f6 (D)
Black cannot really allow the penetration of the white king: 56...Nd2 57.Ke5 Nc4+ 58.Kxf5 Nxa5 59.bxa5 Kxc5 60.Kf6 Kb4 61.Kxf7 Kxa5 62.Ke6+- . 57.Nc3! And now White wins! Nxc3?! Pawn endings can be quite easy for the side with the advantage, so Black should opt for 57...Nxf2 , although he wouldn't survive after 58.Nxd5 Ne4 59.Ne7++- . But, as knights are still in the board, White can go wrong somewhere... 58.Kxc3 Kc7 59.Kd3 Kd7 (D)
Probably Black thought that White cannot penetrate in his position, but with a nice and forced exchange, the job can be finished. 60.Ke2! 60.Kd4 Kc6 , is going nowhere for White, as the white king’s entrance is not possible, while there is not any central pawn break - except the one played in the game. 60...Kc7 (D)
61.f3! This is the trick - now Black will have to deliver critical squares of his camp. Kd7 61...gxf3+ 62.Kxf3 Kd7 , loses to 63.Kf4 Ke6 64.c6!+- , when White will exchange his c-pawn for the black kingside pawn structure. 62.fxg4 fxg4 63.Kd3! (D)
Coming back to the centre, which is now not fully controlled by Black. 63...f5 Waiting with 63...Kc7 , doesn't solve Black's problems after 64.Kd4 Kc6 65.e4! dxe4 66.Kxe4+- , when Black's kingside pawn structure is falling. But now the e5-square is handed to White... 64.Kd4 Ke6 (D)
Or 64...Kc6 65.Ke5+- . 65.c6! It is time for the 'decoy' to act! Kd6 65...Kd6 And Black resigned, due to 66.c7 Kxc7 67.Kxd5+- , when again the black kingside pawn structure is falling.
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Carlsen,M2831Keymer,V27331–02024A06CCT Final-RR1
Lazavik,D2578Keymer,V27331–02024D35CCT Final-RR2
Aronian,L2747Keymer,V27330–12024C50CCT Final-RR3
Keymer,V2733Aronian,L2747½–½2024E15CCT Final-RR3
Keymer,V2733Carlsen,M2831½–½2024E25CCT Final-RR1

Attack like a Super Grandmaster

In this Fritztrainer: “Attack like a Super GM” with Gukesh we touch upon all aspects of his play, with special emphasis on how you can become a better attacking player.



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