tag: Shamkir Chess 2015 - Page 1

Shamkir Recap

4/29/2015 – Without a doubt the Vugar Gashimov Memorial in Shamkir will be one of the strongest tournaments of the year. The quality of the games was very high, and the mix of players gave us some excellent rounds of chess. We bring you a recap with an analysis of the play by each player, their highlights, and some impressions from the short but sweet closing ceremony.

Shamkir Final Round: Undisputed Winner

4/26/2015 – Wesley So started crushing the field with 3.5/4. Viswanathan Anand had a wonderful performance, a fantastic near 2900 TPR that will put him on second place in the in the next rating list. However, at the end of the day, it is still all about Magnus Carlsen. A near 3000 performance, a full point ahead of second place, the best player in the World won again.

Shamkir R8: Anand #2 in World

4/25/2015 – It is only by a fraction, but after today's victory against Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Vishy Anand regains the post of second best player in the World, at least in the live rating lists. He surpasses Fabiano Caruana, who drew his game against Rauf Mamedov. Meanwhile Mickey Adams destroyed Anish Giri and Big Vlad ended his losing streak with a clean sweep of Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.

Shamkir Rd7: Three wins!

4/24/2015 – A bloody and exciting round seven. Fabiano Caruana won a very nice game against Wesley So, the second consecutive win for the Italian and the second consecutive loss for the American. Speaking of consecutive losses, Kramnik "long-castled" (0-0-0) with his loss against Carlsen. Meanwhile Adams lost to Anand, who gains in the ranking and currently sits in second place.

Shamkir Rd6: Caruana only winner

4/23/2015 – Fabiano Caruana was the only winner of today's round in Shamkir. Vladimir Kramnik was a little overeager with his position, and his breakthrough in the center backfired badly. Black sacrificed an exchange and won a pretty game. The other players seemed to want a solid day after the rest day, which resulted in draws on all the other boards. Carlsen still leads.

Shamkir R5: A day of beauty

4/21/2015 – What an amazing day in Shamkir! Three decisive games, all three absolutely beautiful. Carlsen played with unbelievable technique from start to end against MVL. Mamedyarov somehow tricked Kramnik in an equal position and then played perfectly to wrap up the endgame. Anand came with a brutal new idea in the Spanish, sacrificed a piece and won beautifully against So.

Shamkir R4: 3.5/4!

4/20/2015 – Wesley So continues his rampage in Shamkir. What a recovery after the "worst tournament of his life"!. The American beat Rauf Mamedov, who had managed to hold all his games until round four. The other games were draws, some more interesting than others, with Magnus Carlsen pushing against Michael Adams and Vladimir Kramnik playing a crazy sacrificial line against Vishy Anand.

Shamkir R3: Carlsen, So win

4/19/2015 – Already we have two people that are clear leaders. With an amazing start with 2.5/3, both Wesley So and Magnus Carlsen won today, against Mickey Adams and Fabiano Caruana. Both players did it in pretty different styles, but in both games the ultimate winners were always in control. Kramnik is trailing them by only half a point. Anand almost joined him, but Giri survived.

Shamkir R2: Carlsen, of course

4/18/2015 – Today's round was certainly duller than the one we started out with, and the day ended with four solid draws. None of the players seemed to be in any danger of losing, or even of falling a significantly worse position, and the results seemed like logical conclusions. The one decisive game went to Magnus Carlsen, who wiped Shakhriyar Mamedyarov off the board. Round two report.

Shamkir R1: Sweating Blood

4/17/2015 – An awesome way to start the 2015 Shamkir Tournament. It seemed as if most of the players with white today were pressuring their opponents from the get-go. Giri cracked soon and So devastated his position. Adams lasted longer, but also fell to Kramnik. Meanwhile Carlsen and Caruana had monumentally difficult problems set in front of them, but somehow they both managed to hold.

Shamkir Chess starts tomorrow

4/16/2015 – Top level chess is about to be difficult to follow: three major tournaments start within the next few days! Tomorrow the closed tournament in Shamkir will start. Headlined by Carlsen, Caruana, So, Kramnik, Anand, Giri, MVL, Adams plus two of the top Azerbaijani players, it promises to be one of the best events of the year, and of course, we bring you World-class live commentary.
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