XXII
Ciudad de León Masters
June 4th to 8th Friday to Sunday in León, Spain
The participants of the XXII Ciudad de Leon Masters Chess Tournament, one of
the most prestigious classics in the international chess calendar, were Vassily
Ivanchuk (Ukraine) defending champion (Leon 2008 winner); Magnus Carlsen, (Norway),
at the age of 18 the world number three ranked player; Alexander Morozevich
(Russia), currently number eight in the world; and the new sensation, Wang Yue
(China), 21 years old, number 14 in the current rankings and the all-time strongest
Asian grandmaster after Vishy Anand.
The time controls were 20 minutes per player for the whole game, plus ten seconds
increment after each move. Each match was played to the best of four games,
and tie-breaks, if required, were five minute blitz games, to be played immediately
after the regular games. The venue was the Auditorium of the Concert Hall.
The games were broadcast live on Playchess.
Day three – Carlsen beats Ivanchuk
Waiting for the final to begin: Magnus chats with his father Henrik Carlsen...
... while Vassily Ivanchuk paces the floor behind the stage
At last it can begin: Natalia Rodriguez Picallo, councilor of the Municipality
of Leon Sports, makes the first move in the Ivanchuk vs Carlsen final. Behind
her are chief organiser Marcelino Sión and Spanish Chess Federation President
Javier Ochoa de Echagüen.
The first moves of the final are played
Vassily Ivanchuk, currently one of the most active top grandmasters in the
world
Magnus Carlsen in a typical thinking pose
Maybe it is the secret of top-level chess: both players use very similar
thinking postures
Carlsen,M (2770) - Ivanchuk,V (2746) [A70]
XXII Rapid KO Leon ESP (3.1), 07.06.2009
The final position of the final Armageddon blitz game (White has to win):
Carlsen has trapped Ivanchuk's knight
| |
Nat. |
Rtng. |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
Tot. |
Perf |
| Magnus Carlsen |
NOR |
2770 |
½ |
½ |
0 |
1 |
½ |
½ |
1 |
4.0 |
2796 |
| Vassily Ivanchuk |
UKR |
2746 |
½ |
½ |
1 |
0 |
½ |
½ |
0 |
3.0 |
2720 |
After the match the press conference with Leontxo Garcia
Magnus is grilled by Leontxo on what happened in the games...
...while Vassily Ivanchuk wants to know what the computer thinks of some key
positions
Photos by Nadja Woisin and Leontxo Garcia
Sponsors
Support
