tag: Mar del Plata 2012 - Page 1

Mar del Plata 2012 : The banana ate the monkey

10/23/2012 – In the last couple of rounds, fraught with swings and upheavals, Peruvian GM Julio Granda Zuniga came out the great winner, followed by Alexander Shabalov, Diego Flores, Gregory Kaidanov, and Canadian IM Eric Hansen. The five fought for four spots in the round-robin tiebreak and it all came down to the last game. Read what happened and the meaning of the title in the final illustrated report.

Mar del Plata 2012 : A midnight football mob

10/21/2012 – It started with a classic game of football being organized by the players. Usually, this sort of informal affair is lightly attended, but it bears remembering this is South America where football is as much religion as it is sport. As a result, two fields were required to fit the 30-40 players who turned up and played from ten at night until two in the morning.

Mar del Plata 2012 : A leader at last; Hungaski scores two norms

10/20/2012 – With warming weather, excellent seafood, and great wines, it is hard to only consider the tournament, no matter how important it may be in the calendar of events in the Americas. Still, one player managed to grab the podium all to himself: 23-year-old Venezuelan GM Eduardo Iturrizaga. Also, taking advantage of a last-pick chance, IM Hungaski has scored two norms. Report and GM commentary.

Mar del Plata 2012 : A bloodthirsty round at the top

10/18/2012 – If round six saw the leaders caught by others, it was merely a prelude to the cutthroat round to follow. On the top ten boards, there were only two draws and many a head was lopped off. It started top-seed Lazaro Bruzon beating his compatriot in just 22 moves, followed by wins by Leitão, Iturrizaga, and Ortiz. Report, pictures and an annotated game by GM Sergio Slipak.

Mar del Plata 2012 : The going gets tough

10/17/2012 – After round six a group of players merged with the leaders from round five, and eleven heavy guns lead. Though over one third of the players are titled, the ability of the rest has been a source of intense headache for one master after another. The players here are not coming to for a chess holiday, there are here for blood, and it shows. Round six report with GM commentary by Sergio Slipak.

Mar del Plata 2012 : A cooling down

10/16/2012 – The fifth round at the 7th Continental marked a cooling down on all levels. On the one hand, the thermometer took a dive and everyone was greeted by heavy mists, and wet air. In the tournament, seventeen leaders were whittled down to only four at 4.5/5: Granda Zuniga, Iturrizaga, Bruzon Batista, and Valerga. Round five report with pictures and game commentary by GM Sergio Slipak.

Mar del Plata 2012: A day of records

10/15/2012 – For anyone hoping to see the lineup of leaders by the end of four rounds, they have been served. Despite a tough playing schedule with no easy games, and a double-rounder on Sunday, none of the players were able to muster the strength for a perfect 4.0/4 and 100% score, and seventeen are tied at 3.5/4. Nevertheless it was a day for records. Illustrated report with analysis by GM Sergio Slipak

Mar del Plata 2012: The eye of the hurricane

10/14/2012 – The second round of the classic Mar del Plata tournament is considered the last easy round for the stronger players, but as Shabalov would tell you: there are no easy rounds any more. Even so, this allows the higher rated players to get into gear while the lower-rated players still try to be the hero of the next round. Illustrated report with analysis by GM Sergio Slipak.

7th Continental Chess Tournament starts with surprises

10/13/2012 – The 7th Continental Tournament taking place in Mar del Plata, Argentina, is not only a large eleven-round open qualifier for the world championship but is also a rich opportunity for norms. The opening round saw few surprises, but one was the young Arthur Chiari, who held GM Alex Shabalov to a draw. Read how he even questioned Anand's opening choices. Illustrated report by Albert Silver.
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