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Dark Knight / Le Chevalier Noir
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---- Nous avons besoin d'un traduction français!
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It seems that foreign journalists now have free rein. Egor went to the press gallery and interviewed Peter Doggers of chess.com, Leonard Ootes of chess.com and David Llada, the Spanish photographer.
Peter wrote yesterday: There's been some debate about whether these post-game sessions should really be called press conferences. The players basically go through their games, and then the host (either GM Evgeny Miroshnichenko or GM Ian Nepomniachtchi, who took over from GM Alexandra Kosteniuk) ends the thing with the words: “thank you.”
This looks weird, and it really looked weird after the touch-move incident, when everyone expected a questions about that. But nothing.
German chess journalist Stephan Loeffler wrote this the other day:
- Stop calling the post-game studio appearance by players at the Candidates a “press conference”. The press may not ask questions there.
- Agon has not yet informed Nakamura of his fine for not attending what is not a press conference
- Why is chess24.com’s Colin McGourty not reporting from Moscow? Merenzon revoked his accreditation, so Colin went home after one day.
In spite of charges against it, chess24.com has a transmission today in real time featuring Jan Gustafsson and Loek van Wely as the commentators.
The usual conversations and anecdotes at that site. Someone says Anand has class and Giri has talent and hard work beats talent and the guys discuss these points.
Quiz questions for today:
1) Name the players (2) who have beaten the most World Champions.
2) Recalling that the Soviet Union no longer exists, who won the last Soviet Championship and in what year?
I originally thought the first question was about the players present who had been in the most World Champion matches. We have to wait for the answers to see what the questions were!
_______
Egor has an amusing anecdote. Anish Giri usually walks around thinking, playing with a bishop.
The organizers found that one of the tournament sets was missing a bishop and had to get another set to replace it (remember that the pieces have sensory chips in them). When Anish came in this morning he went over to an official and gave back the bishop he had inadvertently taken back with him to the hotel last night.
________
The first game to finish, just after the time control, is Nakamura-Karjakin. The players shake hands, sign their sheets and Hal Bond signs them too. The players come to the not a press conference.
Hikaru said that he followed his prep up to move 19 but he had not considered the reply 19…Rd8 at all, although it seems the most natural. There were no really bad moves, the evaluation shifted around but it was a draw.
There is a draw between Topalov and Svidler. They call the opening a strange Zaitsev. Peter was losing by force with 32…Bc6 but Topalov didn’t play 32.Be2 but did Bc2 instead.
How will you spend your free day tomorrow, Peter?
Brain Transplant (everyone laughs)
Round 9, March 21, 2016
Topalov, Veselin – Svidler, Peter
C88 Ruy Lopez, Closed, Anti-Marshall
(Dylan McClain) - Anand, who was White, employed the quiet Italian game. He got a slight edge in the opening and then, in his trademark style, he gradually began to improve his pieces while constricting Aronian’s space. Though Aronian wriggled and was able to exchange pieces to alleviate his cramped position, he never was able to fully recover as Anand had locked down the light squares on the queenside. Anand finally engineered a breakthrough on the opposite wing. He was able to create a passed pawn and, in the end, Aronian had to give up his one remaining rook to stop it from promoting, after which he resigned.
Round 9, March 21, 2016
Anand, Vishy – Aronian, Levon
C50 Giuoco Piano
The commentators say that it is a draw but as the game progresses, the Stockfish evaluation for White goes up.
At the ninety-sixth move, Fabiano asks the arbiter if a three-fold repetition has occurred. Giri seems to disagree. The position is checked and a draw declared.
At the press conference, Giri says that he was hoping for a complicated game today and he got his wish. Fabiano seemed well-prepared - at least he moved quickly.
Anish says that Fabiano had no good moves but it was still a draw in the endgame.
Egor does have a taped bit showing where the venue of the Candidates is. The Central Telegraph Building is the digital hub of Moscow and home to many of Russia’s high-tech companies.
It was built in 1927 and designed by Ivan Rerberg, who also designed several other iconic Moscow buildings, including the Kiyevsky railway terminal and the Kremlin Presidium.
The space had fallen into disrepair but was recently restored to its original state.
It is a short walk down Tverskaya Street to Red Square. The players are staying at the Four Seasons Hotel and, evidently, it is a six-minute brisk walk from there via Okhotnyy Road, Tverskaya Street and Nikitskiy Prospekt to the Central Telegraph playing hall. Some walk and some take the subway. Most arrive with under a minute to get to their boards, which would be a psychological edge if your opponent was there stewing for your arrival but since all players practice this, no player is waiting because they all arrive at the same time!
There is an old joke about it not being fashionable to arrive at a party until everyone else is there.
A prospekt is a broad, multi-lane and very long straight street in urban areas. It is often translated as avenue; however, it can also be interpreted as parkway since it is common that a prospekt is the main city route. The Nevsky Prospekt in St. Petersburg is known throughout the world.
______
Quiz Questions
1) When did the first chess club open in Russia and in what city?
2) At the end of this cycle, the World Chess Championship will be held in New York City. When was the World Chess Championship Match first held in Russia, in what city and with what players?
3) What six-time World Champion has been president of a national chess federation?
_______
Three of the four games open with the English. For a few moments on chessbomb.com, the viewers thought there was a mix-up in the transmission and one game was being repeated on three boards!
In any case, the first game to finish is Karjakin-Giri, which is a Semi-Slav.
(ChessBase) – “The Meran can be very double-edged, but it has also been extensively analyzed, so the chances that either player would be tricked or surprised were fairly minimal. Indeed, both sidestepped any complications and began trading pieces. After only 31 moves, they agreed to a draw, having barely used any time on their clocks.”
Karjakin said at the postmortem that it is useless trying to surprise Giri in the opening because he knows everything.
The analysis was spirited. It seems fairly obvious that there have been orders to the commentators not to be controversial or ask any other questions at the postmortem because, when the analysis finished, there was a dead silence and then Giri said to Nepo, “Do you have any smart questions for us or are you going to let us go?” Nepo just smiled. From the way it was said, I think Giri must have meant to be jocular but I can see how this could rub some people the wrong way. Indeed, some of the viewers tweeted about the disrespect for the commentators but Evgeny and Ian said that they didn’t take Giri’s comments that way, they were fine with them.
_______
Round 10, March 23, 2016
Svidler, Peter – Nakamura, Hikaru
A29 English, Bremen, Smyslov System
(Nakamura) – It certainly unusual to look up at the electronic boards and see three games with the same opening.
(Svidler) – I spent five minutes in the opening on each of two moves trying to figure out what Hikaru was going to play. I have analyzed these lines in the English but I didn’t remember what was in the file. It was unusual to have the same opening in three games and because I was behind by 10 minutes with moves 3 and 5, it looked like I was following Levon’s game, which I wasn’t. The funny thing was that Veselin did not look up once and didn’t know what was happening in the other games. When he finally got up after playing Qe7 and saw the same position, he was surprised.
Round 10, March 23, 2016
Aronian, Levon – Topalov, Veselin
A29 English, Bremen, Smyslov System
(ChessBase) – “The game became a strategic battle, with Aronian expanding on the queenside and Topalov angling toward the kingside. Neither player ever really developed an initiative, however, and after a series of exchanges, they ended up in an endgame in which Aronian was a bit worse, but Topalov had no real prospects to break through. After the pawns became locked and the players exchanged queens, they agreed to a draw.”
Both players seemed displeased with their play and thought they had worse positions at various times. When they found a good line for Veselin at the end, he gave a sunny smile at that bit of good news.
_______
Round 10, March 23, 2016
Caruana, Fabiano – Anand, Vishy
A29 English, Bremen, Smyslov System
(ChessBase) - “The game between Caruana and Anand had the potential to shake up the standings and it did as Caruana won to switch places with Anand. The opening was an English, Four Knights Variation and Caruana employed a well-known pawn sacrifice to take control of the center. For a while, it seemed that Anand would be fine, but then Caruana ripped open his kingside with a piece sacrifice. Anand immediately returned the piece to end the attack, but the damage to his structure was irreversible. He eventually was forced to give up an exchange, but Caruana’s initiative persisted, despite the reduced material. Anand resigned in only 33 moves.”
This must have devastating for Vishy. He was leading the tournament and then got badly beaten. This is why I have no problem with the loser of a game not attending the press conference. Both players came in and Fabiano took the mouse and explained the moves and Anand didn’t say a word. He just sat there and then murmured something to Miro as they left.
______
There were interviews with IA Werner Stubenvoll and a discussion about the heights of the players. Werner said that besides making sure the laws of chess were enforced, his other important function is to make sure the players are not disturbed.
As for the heights – Svidler and Topalov are probably the tallest. Egor estimated them to be 189 cm. which I make to be 6 foot 2.5 inches. Everyone else is 170 cm. or 5 feet, 8 inches.
_______
Answers to the Quiz Questions
1) The first chess club was opened in St. Petersburg in 1880.
A couple of viewers were sure that the answer is The Chess Lovers Society’s Club in Kushelev-Bezborodko’s in 1853.
2) The first World Championship Chess Match held in Russia was Emanuel Lasker – Wilhelm Steinitz, Moscow, 1897.
3) No one had sent in a correct answer for this by the end of the broadcast but online I saw that someone had said Nona Gaprindashvilli.
She was World Champion at least five times but whether she headed the Georgian Chess Federation, I do not know.
Other people opined Emanuel Lasker and, the most surprising:
Steve Davis 6 times snooker world champion was a president of the British Chess Federation.
That is a very tough question and we shan’t know the answer until tomorrow. I suppose I would bet on Steve Davis.
I have been having very bad luck trying to explain the quiz answers. My main fear is that someone will ask the differences between snooker and billiards and pool!
______
The official site was down for a while. It is good that we have Jan Gustafsson at chess24 and the moves at chessbomb as alternatives.
These tweets came out of worldchess during this period:
- The journalists following the games from the media centre at the Candidates are in uproar. It appears we have run out of biscuits...
- More biscuits have arrived in the media centre at the Candidates - phew, it was all getting slightly Lord of the Flies in here...
What amuses me is that yesterday the site had a blurb that started this way:
“Our VIP program sponsor Beluga Vodka, set up the VIP lounge at the venue for hosting special events, such as tournaments between grandmasters and businesspeople, politicians and famous athletes, as well as meetings and special hospitality events.”
Ah, to be in that lounge! Probably vodka and caviar..journalists however, get biscuits in the media centre!
_______
Quiz Questions
1) Who won the first USSR Championship and when and where?
2) Who has the most consecutive wins against masters?
_______
(ChessBase) – Svidler executed his strategy to play solidly and trade off some pieces, but somehow Aronian still got a dangerous attack against Svidler’s castled king. Svidler tip-toed around some mine fields and seemed to solve his problems, but then he sacrificed a pawn for little compensation. Just as he seemed to have taken control, Aronian started to play badly — simply retreating and allowing Svidler to infiltrate White’s position with his queen. Aronian then erred, allowing Svidler’s rook to join the attack. Faced with having to lose his queen, Aronian resigned.
- Every single Candidates Aronian seems to lose stamina.
- Thank you Aronian for your good games. Good days will come!
Round 11, March 24, 2016
Giri, Anish – Nakamura, Hikaru
C50 Giuoco Piano
Anish had a winning position with 50.Re5 but instead, sacrificed his knight with Nxg7 for the draw. Clearly upset, he would hardly let anybody talk in the press conference. These comments on chess bomb:
- Now Anish can win the game post-mortem in the press conference. Much better!
- giri is always right, even when he's wrong
- Stunning knight sac to find the genius draw!
- Giri on youtube: "I'm glad to draw against Hikaru. It was difficult to find the drawish move as I was really winning."
- The knight sac in the end is a move of genius - Giri genius, to be exact
Round 11, March 24, 2016
Anand, Vishy – Karjakin, Sergey
C65 Ruy Lopez, Berlin Defence
- Well-played, Anand. Reminded me of Karpov at his best. Cheers!
- Karjakin will have to go all-in now in every game
- Anand's subtle moves with his bishop were out of this world.
- Incredible play from both
- take a bow, Anand
- my worst nightmare is starting to come true... a THIRD Carlsen-Anand wipeout..
- Maybe Anand has not yet reached his prime - Kasparov
- Don't worry. Caru still has better tiebreaks than Anand.
- What an insane Candidates Tournament. Six players are within one point of each other!
Quiz Answers
1) Alekhine won the All Russian Championship in Moscow, in October, 1920. The Soviet Union wasn’t founded until 1922. The All Russian retrospectively became the first USSR Championship.
2) Wilhelm Steinitz – 25 consecutive games.
Wilhelm Steinitz won his last 16 games at Vienna 1873, including a two-game playoff against Blackburne at the end. He played no serious chess until an 1876 match against Blackburne that Steinitz swept 7–0. After a long period of inactivity, Steinitz played at Vienna 1882, where he won his first two games before finally ending his winning streak with a draw. Steinitz's 25-game winning streak over nine years has never been equaled
This record of 20 consecutive wins is held by Bobby Fischer. (Some commentators give this as 19, electing not to count Fischer's game against Oscar Panno, who resigned after Fischer's first move as a protest). Fischer won his last seven games at the 1970 Palma de Mallorca Interzonal (including the one-move game against Panno). In the quarter-finals of the Candidates Matches leading to the world championship, Fischer swept Grandmaster Mark Taimanov 6–0. In the semi-finals, Fischer swept Grandmaster Bent Larsen by the same score. In the Candidates Match final, Fischer beat former World Champion Tigran Petrosian in the first game before Petrosian snapped the streak by beating Fischer in the second match game.
I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, it is great to see Anand, one of the truly great modern champions, more than holding his own, tied for the lead with today's win over co-leader Karjakin. On the other, it would perhaps be good for the game for the next generation to take over, with a Karjakin-Carlsen shootout. Either way, this is proving to be a wonderful Candidates' Tournament.
Wayne Komer has done yeoman's service by posting so much material on the tournament! Thank you! :)
With the last three rounds now upon us, I am hoping for some Sicilians and King's Indians, as they have been few and far between so far. One would think it is time to take some risks!
I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, it is great to see Anand, one of the truly great modern champions, more than holding his own, tied for the lead with today's win over co-leader Karjakin. On the other, it would perhaps be good for the game for the next generation to take over, with a Karjakin-Carlsen shootout. Either way, this is proving to be a wonderful Candidates' Tournament.
I agree completely Gordon. I love the way Anand is putting it out there, the grand old lion winning twice as many games as anyone else! A third Carlsen-Anand match, however well deserved, is not everyone's first choice. I was surprised to see Caruana take the draw with Topalov yesterday although some GMs said the game was indeed level at that point. One has to give Topalov his due - still willing to upset the material balance for activity and interesting games.
Does Karjakin have another gear in his transmission? Does Caruana have the luck of a champion or will he get tagged the next time he is defending? When plus 2 is the leading score anything can happen.
Just when you thought it could not get wilder, Nakamura takes down Anand in under 30 moves today. This tournament could be a real cliff-hanger. As Hal says, with the winner on +2, anything can happen.
Topalov is a gamer. He played the Sicilian for a fight.
"I always get good positions after this opening but then go on to lose the games!"
He is animated at the press conference and even cracks a joke. One really feels bad that the two older guys, Anand and Topalov are getting manhandled in this tournament.
________
In an interview on the show, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov hinted that the World Championship in November might take place in the Trump Tower in New York!
Consider the following scenario: Donald Trump is elected President on November 8. The World Championship starts in Trump Tower on November 11. Just before the first game starts, President-Elect Trump comes down and says, “How are you doing?” and shakes the hands of both contestants..
Can today get any worse?
(to be continued in next posting)
Last edited by Wayne Komer; Sunday, 3rd April, 2016, 03:03 PM.
Under time pressure, Aronian played 38…Qc5. The spectacular move would have been 38…Rxd3! 3 passed pawns are stronger than a rook if the queens are off the board.
An excellent position to discuss in a chess class with young students
The position after 38. Ra1
Last edited by Wayne Komer; Thursday, 31st March, 2016, 01:18 AM.
1) What is the most number of players tied for first place in a tournament, when and where?
2) What is the longest decided game ever played? Give the players, the number of moves and the year.
3) Name the person who participated in the most Candidates tournaments and how many did he play in?
______
Dylan McClain comes on. He is the Editor in Chief of worldchess.com. He has reddish hair and beard, an American born in 1966. An IM, in 2007 he took over the position of the editorial chess column of the New York Times from GM Robert Byrne, which ran until October 13th, 2014.
He co-hosts with Miro and Nepo for a while. He looks very much like their boss. But is he?
_____
Egor has an interview with Stanislav Zhelezny, a journalist for Red Star newspaper about chess then and now:
Stanislav: I am an old man and I have been following chess competitions since 1944. At first I went to tournaments as a spectator and then as a journalist – 70 years.
For decades I compare the present with the past and I can say that the difference is tremendous.
Computerization has played a big role in modern chess.
In particular, at this tournament, a lot of work is done in preventing prompts or hints to the participants or coaches.
The second big difference is that the spectators prefer watching the games on the Internet.
In the tourneys of the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s, we could see halls full of people discussing the games and so on. Nowadays, there are only dozens of people here, mostly professionals.
People get most of the information about the tournament on the Internet.
Maybe you notice that I come here every day. Such tournaments are really a great holiday for me.
______
Zhelezny is a well-known journalist and in recent years has talked about his memories of Tigran Petrosian and Yury Razuvaev.
Some Swedes are interviewed about their favorites. One hopes that Caruana wins and gets to play Carlsen in New York City.
Another says, “I am from Sweden and hope that Carlsen will lose!”
______
The games Nakamura – Anand and Karjakin – Topalov have both been given previously in this thread.
Caruana – Aronian was discussed extensively because of the chances that Aronian missed. It must be admitted that he was in time trouble and there was not time to figure out all the moves. In the chess conference they discuss the complexities of the game, most lines going to a draw. I understand that Mark Dvoretsky is in the building. Have him called to go on camera!
Peter was not satisfied with his opening. Peter says there is something written in his file about this but he doesn’t remember what.
Anish says there is nothing written in his file on this variation!
There is a lot of amusing banter between the players. Peter says he has made so many inaccuracies that he should be disqualified from making any comments on the play.
Both Svidler and Giri remain at 50 percent, which almost mathematically eliminates them from winning.
Tomorrow is a rest day.
Standings After Round Twelve
In the press conference to this game, Naka says that he found 10…d4 attractive. Topo is very upbeat. Dylan gives some suggestions. 34.Ra1 was a bad move.
Topalov is just waiting for the tournament to be over. He said that in London he had a similar disaster. Hikaru said his tournament started off badly. He said he would have liked to win his games against Aronian and Caruana. He said he had, like Veselin, a mediocre six months.
(to be continued)
Last edited by Wayne Komer; Thursday, 31st March, 2016, 01:19 AM.
The commentators are Dylan McClain and Ian Nepomniachtchi.
Games have been played on both Good Friday and today, Easter Sunday. I suppose that if Easter is observed in Russia it is on the Greek Orthodox date of May 1.
When I tried to log in to the official site, it asked for my password. I gave it but it wasn’t accepted. I had to get a new one and I entered it and fifteen minutes later I was in. I really dislike password protection on a tournament site!
Quiz Questions
1) Who is the youngest player ever to beat a grandmaster and how old was he when he did it?
2) What was the greatest number of chess games ever played simultaneously and when and where did it occur?
These were posed very clearly by Dylan. The second has a drop of poison in I think. I believe it refers to an event or match with hundreds of boards – not the simultaneous play by a grandmaster.
3) What famous player was arrested and nearly shot for treason in June, 1919 and where di it happen?
_______
This is the penultimate round. One would feel that the players would go out. There was a question of Egor yesterday that went something like this: Should players use all of their opening prep in the last two rounds or should they save something for the World Championship Match? Of course, the answer is, what is the use in saving your best and never reaching it because you have not won the Candidates.
______
Topalov-Nakamura is the first game to finish and its discussion is given in a previous post.
The other participants have made the time control and the games enter the fourth hour.
The panel discusses Anand’s enormous contributions to Indian chess. He is said to be the first Indian grandmaster. Was Sultan Khan really the first? No, he was not granted the GM title. Was Manuel Aaron a grandmaster – the great player of 60s to 80s? No, he was an IM. He did publish a great big book with Vijay Pandit called Indian Chess History, 570 AD to 2010 AD.
It took six years to research and is hard bound, with 600 pages, published in 2014. It is filled with photographs, sketches and games of all the Indian masters from Sultan Khan to Vishy Anand, records all National Championships in all categories. I wish we had a similar massive volume for Canadian chess.
_______
The next game to finish is Anand-Giri:
Round 13, March 27, 2016
Anand, Vishy – Giri, Anish
C50 Giuoco Piano
“Here I thought I was winning but I didn’t see how” said Giri at the press conference. What does that mean? Anand felt he was losing out of the opening, 11.Nh4 was a mistake.
On chessbomb, one kibitzer says:
Giri is like when you throw a cat on its back.
I suppose he means that Giri always lands on his feet (and draws). Another kibitzer takes this to the next level with this posting:
Curious question, if a cat always lands on it's feet, and a buttered piece of toast always lands on the buttered side, would a cat hover above the ground if you tie a piece of buttered toast to it's back?
Anand finds a cute draw at the end and everyone laughs when it is demonstrated. It is good to see Anand laughing again after the tournament he has had up until now.
Neither player is satisfied with the result. Anand points out a line where Giri is losing and the latter cannot believe it. He says that by all the laws of chess, he should be winning there. We must see a full analysis of this game and ending.
Anish: “I got a lot of good positions in the tournament but screwed them up. It is a scientific miracle!”
- Draw number 13 in a row for Giri who can't find a way past Anand. Can't say he didn't give it a good go today though!
________
There is an interview with Egor and Ilya Merenzon. Ilya talks about the logo for the Candidates and about producing chess memorabilia. He says at the end that he would like to open a pop-up shop in Manhattan during the World Championship selling chess memorabilia.
One is reminded that during the NBA All Star game in Toronto that a pop-up shop popped up in Dundas Square one morning selling Air Jordan sneakers 24 hours a day.
The second last game to finish is Aronian-Karjakin:
Levon (instigated by Dylan) likened his game to a man painting a masterpiece and then throwing the brush at the almost completed painting (turning it into a Jackson Pollock splatter work).
(to be concluded)
Last edited by Wayne Komer; Thursday, 31st March, 2016, 01:19 AM.
Ian demonstrates that the R+B vs R endgame is drawn. Caruana obviously does not hear this and continues to try for a win.
Finally, the Arbiter is called over and the draw signed. But the players don’t leave the board but go through their game again. After all the time they have already spent!
The opponents come in to the press conference but first have to sign postcards for the quiz winners.
There is an animated discussion, which goes on and on. It is hard to follow. Some comments on chess bomb:
- I don’t understand this endgame
- Will watch the video later, maybe that helps
- After the blunder 102..Ka4, with perfect play from both sides, the black rook is captured in move 113, before the 50-move rule can be applied. White mates in 20 moves after Ka4.
- 50-move rule is not as simple as the unwashed masses here seem to be thinking.
The guys go to get some sleep.
Quiz Questions Answers
1) On July 28, 2012, Awonder Liang, aged 9 years, 3 months, and 20 days, beat Grandmaster Larry Kaufman in the Washington International tournament.
2) 20,480 games at the University of Gujarat in India on the 24 December 2010.
3) In June 1919, after the Russians forced the German army to retreat from Ukraine, Alexander Alekhine was charged with links with White counter-intelligence and was briefly imprisoned in Odessa's death cell by the Odessa Cheka. Rumors appeared in the West that he had been killed by the Bolsheviks.
________
Quiz Notes
In the first question, it was not entirely clear that the win was in a regular tournament. Some people answered David Howell at eight years of age.
Leonard Barden in The Guardian of August 30, 1999:
"Even in a game known for its prodigies it was a momentous achievement. British chess was hailing a new child star yesterday after a boy aged eight took on England's number five grandmaster and won.
In the most sensational result of the Mind Sports Olympiad in London, David Howell, British under-10 champion of Seaford, Sussex, defeated John Nunn, 44, player and author of world renown."
It was a blitz game at the Mind Sports Olympiad.
Gujarat Record – Vishy Anand remarked after: This is a historic day for Indian Chess, and I feel proud to be part of it.
The venue layout of the record-breaking event was a visual delight. The Gujarat University grounds of Ahmedabad had been turned into a giant chess board with 64 alternating black and white squares. The players were segregated equally within the squares, which were either black or white, just as in a chess board. The imposing 29,000 square meters of chess board, created through perfect colour coordination could be viewed even from the air.
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