World Blitz Championship – pictorial impressions from Moscow
11/17/2009 – The Tal Memorial and the World Blitz are tremendously exciting events, followed with great enthusiasm by fans all over the world. But both have been characterised by an unusual dearth of pictures on our news pages. Put it down to the flu. But with our photographers recovered we can return to normal reporting and present you with a big photo report by Misha Savinov.
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World
Blitz Championship
This event is being held on November 16, 17 and 18 in the showroom of the Red Square mall GUM. Time controls are three minutes for the whole game + two seconds increment per move.
The event is a 22-player double round-robin, i.e. it has a total of 42 rounds, which are played on three days. The participants include the players from the Tal Memorial, plus twelve invitees:
Impressions from day one in Moscow
By Misha Savinov
Exit from "Teatral'naya" Metro station – you want this one
if you go to GUM
Restraunt Godunov Gate
Then you have to go straight into the arch in the wall
Other directions are guarded by mounted policemen
Technicians in surgical white wheel a plasma panel into the hall
You go through the archway, turn right and then left. GUM is the huge building
on your right
Inside, we go to the second floor and wander around until we find the familiar
logo
GMs Bolat Assanov and Anatoly Vaisser meet us at the entrance
FIDE Vice President Geoffrey Borg and GM Vlad Tkachiev in discussion
The chief arbiter and chief organizer welcome the participants and spectators
Drawing of lots: World Champion Vishy Anand picks a box...
... followed by Women's World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk...
... and by last year's World Blitz Champion Leinier Dominguez
Anatoly Karpov and Vladimir Kramnik – aren't we missing another
"K"?
The usual suspects: Ivanchuk, Dominguez, Anand, Kosteniuk, Grischuk, Aronian,
Leko
Judit Polgar with her husband Gustaf
The venue is packed – people love blitz chess
Two of the favorites, with the Kremlin wall behind: Alex Grischuk and Shakh
Mamedyarov
Grischuk in action, Mamedyarov in the background
Ivanchuk vs Carlsen in round one: the young Norwegian won this game
Ready to rumble: Sergey Karjakin, Ukrainian GM now living in Russia
Last year's winner Leinier Dominguez about to lose against Morozevich in
round two
Great interest in the Kramnik vs Carlsen match (Magnus won in 22 moves)
So far so good: Pjotr Svidler started off well with 3-0 in the first three games
Grischuk grinds down Mamedyarov; Karjakin vs Morozevich, Dominguez vs Svidler
in the back
Vladimir goes down against Judit in round four. Shocking!
Anatoly Karpov holds Peter Svidler to a 50-move draw in round five
Vishy Anand quietly taking the lead prior to the first break
His round six opponent Evgeny Bareev scored 2.5/7 before dinner, and 5.5/7
afterwards. Food really helps!
Out-of-form Vugar Gashimov – his blunder rate was unusually high
Dmitry Jakovenko is not a blitz specialist, but likes to play strong opponents
anwyay
A fantastic day for Anatoly Karpov (here playing Grischuk in round seven):
a single
loss in 14 games and third place after the first third of the tournament
Ivanchuk and Gelfand in the ring
Live commentary provided by Alexander Motylev, Mark Gluhovsky...
...and Sergey Rublevsky, whom Kramnik helps to get into the players' area
Night falls inside GUM
At the end of day one Vishy is in the lead, by two full points
Standings after 14 rounds (day one)
| No. | Sd. | Player | Nat. | Rtng. | Pts |
wins |
SB |
| 1 | 20 | Anand, Viswanathan | IND | 2788 | 12.0 |
10 |
79.00 |
| 2 | 19 | Carlsen, Magnus | NOR | 2801 | 10.0 |
9 |
70.00 |
| 3 | 17 | Karpov, Anatoly | RUS | 2619 | 9.0 |
5 |
56.50 |
| 4 | 5 | Kramnik, Vladimir | RUS | 2772 | 8.5 |
7 |
55.75 |
| 5 | 12 | Grischuk, Alexander | RUS | 2736 | 8.5 |
6 |
52.50 |
| 6 | 16 | Karjakin, Sergey | UKR | 2723 | 8.0 |
6 |
49.75 |
| 7 | 8 | Bareev, Evgeny | RUS | 2634 | 8.0 |
7 |
53.50 |
| 8 | 11 | Ponomariov, Ruslan | UKR | 2739 | 8.0 |
5 |
54.25 |
| 9 | 4 | Ivanchuk, Vassily | UKR | 2739 | 7.5 |
7 |
47.00 |
| 10 | 10 | Svidler, Peter | RUS | 2754 | 7.5 |
6 |
46.00 |
| 11 | 1 | Aronian, Levon | ARM | 2786 | 7.5 |
6 |
40.25 |
| 12 | 3 | Leko, Peter | HUN | 2752 | 7.0 |
4 |
46.75 |
| 13 | 9 | Morozevich, Alexander | RUS | 2750 | 6.5 |
5 |
44.75 |
| 14 | 6 | Gashimov, Vugar | AZE | 2758 | 6.5 |
4 |
45.25 |
| 15 | 21 | Polgar, Judit | HUN | 2680 | 6.0 |
5 |
39.75 |
| 16 | 18 | Naiditsch, Arkadij | GER | 2689 | 6.0 |
5 |
36.75 |
| 17 | 15 | Dominguez Perez, Leinier | CUB | 2719 | 5.5 |
3 |
36.25 |
| 18 | 2 | Jakovenko, Dmitry | RUS | 2736 | 5.0 |
3 |
29.75 |
| 19 | 14 | Tkachiev, Vladislav | FRA | 2642 | 4.5 |
3 |
27.00 |
| 20 | 22 | Gelfand, Boris | ISR | 2758 | 4.5 |
3 |
27.75 |
| 21 | 13 | Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar | AZE | 2719 | 4.0 |
4 |
23.50 |
| 22 | 7 | Kosteniuk, Alexandra | RUS | 2517 | 4.0 |
3 |
30.50 |
Links
The games are being broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download the free PGN reader ChessBase Light, which gives you immediate access. You can also use the program to read, replay and analyse PGN games. New and enhanced: CB Light 2009! |
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