Nigel in Iran

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  • Nigel in Iran

    Nigel in Iran

    July 12, 2016

    This announcement on chessdom.com:

    1st Chess Stars Cup LIVE!

    Jul 4, 2016

    The 1st Chess Stars Cup takes place in Anzali Free Zone, Iran from 9th to 21st of July. The event is a 10-round match (in Scheveningen system) between 2 teams consisting of 10 players each.

    There are 13 Grandmasters participating that represent World team (Sargissian Gabriel, Dreev Aleksey, Short Nigel D, Sokolov Ivan, Edouard Romain, Miroshnichenko Evgenij, Lu Shanglei, Mchedlishvili Mikheil, Vakhidov, Jahongir, Ehlvest Jaan) and Iran team (Ghaem Maghami Ehsan, Idani Pouya, Darini Pouria, Pourramezanali Amirreza, Mafgsoodloo Parham, Firouzja Alireza, Lorparizangeneh Shahin, Gholami Aryan, Khademalsharieh Sarasadat, Mousavi Seyed Khalil).
    ________

    Sounds pretty good. Iran is getting its team ready for the Olympiad and is paying for foreign grandmasters to give the team good solid play.

    Bandar-e Anzali (Anzali Port) is a harbour town on the Caspian Sea, close to Rasht. Bandar-e Anzali is one of the most important seaports in the north of Iran. Bandar-e Anzali has the most humid climate of any city in Iran, having a climate somewhat similar in its heavy autumn and early winter rainfall and persistent high humidity and low sunshine to the Sea of Japan coast.
    ________

    Nigel Short is ready to go anywhere to play chess and he is in this tournament. He has posted almost daily to the EC Forum and intends to make his experiences an article in New in Chess. I suspect that they will make him persona non grata with the Iranians.

    From:

    http://www.ecforum.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=8507

    Saturday, July 9, 2016

    I am about to begin a Scheveningen Tournament in this God-forsaken place on the Caspian Sea (getting in some practice for Baku). I have no idea who the players are, what the website is, or why I am here - other than to give my liver a rest. Apparently Karpov and the beleaguered FIDE President will attend the Opening Ceremony.

    The English Chess Forum is one of the few website, which I frequent that isn't blocked. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, the BBC etc. etc. are all no-go areas.

    Sunday, July 10, 2016

    on Friday, when I woke up, I had neither visa nor ticket. I can't say this was ideal, but then again it was not my fault that I didn't receive my official invitation until Monday. My visit to the embassy on Tuesday proved abortive because I didn't have the requisite travel insurance and without it there was no way they were going to let me into the country. The three insurance companies that I had spoken to said they didn't cover travel to Iran and, furthermore, didn't know any company that did. However, the consul informed me that InterAmerican provided cover. His information was accurate and so that was quickly arranged. Unfortunately, the embassy was closed on Wednesday, and so I had to wait until Thursday before submitting all the documents. I collected my my passport, purchased my ticket and travelled all on the next day.

    The flight arrived in Tehran just before 2am. I assumed I would be collected and driven straight to a hotel whence, after sleeping late, we would be driven to Bandar Anzali. Unfortunately the guy who met me was also collecting two other passengers from the Moscow flight, which got in earlier at 01.20. The young Uzbek GM Vakhidov was already there, but there was absolutely no sign of Ehlvest. The baggage collection area is clearly visible from the arrivals area and no passengers from that flight remained at the carousel. Knowing Ehlvest well, I told the Iranian guy that he was probably completely pissed and that we should just proceed without him as God only knew if, or when, he would get through passport control. Unfortunately, this plea fell of deaf ears. After listening to the tedious refrain "Just wait 5 more minutes please" for a further hour and a half, I finally threw a fit. This brought results.

    Vakhidov and I got in the car whereupon we were driven straight to the hotel - in Bandar Anzali, five hours away!! I didn't get to sleep until after 9am and suffice it to say I was completely wrecked. I feel a bit better today, but it is as if I have massive jet-lag - which is ridiculous considering that Greece and Iran only have a one and a half hour time difference. Let's hope I am fully recovered by tomorrow...
    ______

    Romain Edouard (via Facebook)

    Yay! On my way to Tehran through Istanbul airport. Tomorrow (in fact, later today) will start the biggest event ever organized in Iran: 10 foreigners versus the top10 host players.
    Everything went so smoothly! Tired due to a night transfer I decided to have a drink and relax on my computer before catching my second flight, carefully following the clock.
    One hour before the flight I calmly went to the Gate, which I have to say was not full of people. Indeed, my clock was still set on GMT+1... As a conclusion I get a night to enjoy Istanbul and will miss the opening ceremony and blitz Scheveningen match.
    That's official, I am a true chess player.
    Bravo!
    _____

    (Nigel) - wish I could miss the opening ceremony and blitz tournament.

    Monday, July 11, 2016

    Discovered yesterday that our hotel is about one hour's drive from the playing hall. To say that this came as an unpleasant surprise to the players would be something of an understatement. We will now move, this morning, to what is considered to be the best hotel in the area. Unfortunately it is still very far from the venue but it should (allegedly) slice off maybe 15 minutes travel time each way. It is worth having.

    The opening ceremony was massively delayed because we were supposed to wait for the dignitaries i.e. Kirsan and Karpov. After the inevitable lengthy speeches, a video , presentations etc. we were supposed to start a Scheveningen Team Blitz tournament at 21.00. I abandoned it in protest after one symbolic game and arrived back in time for dinner. The others returned at midnight when, of course, the restaurant was closed. They got kebabs from a fast food joint.

    It took what seemed like an eternity getting to the new hotel, in Rasht - at least an hour and a half by my reckoning. They claim that from here the journey to the venue is a mere 30 minutes, and that it is "only" 35 km away. A quick google search shows the distance to be 41 km and that it takes 54 minutes. I am getting quite used to be being told outrageous porkies by now. Anyway, they are providing plenty of material for my next New in Chess article...

    Tuesday, July 12, 2016

    I forgot to mention that, at the opening ceremony, Kirsan announced that FIDE would look favourably on Iran hosting the Olympiad.

    Forget about the Israelis (I am sure Vice President Gelfer can be persuaded to support the measure) or the gross indignity of forcing hundreds of women to wear the hijab - what about the Bermuda Party? It is just a hunch but I suspect it might not swing that well without alcohol and with the religious police in attendance.
    _________

    Postscript – Nigel drew his first round game. You can see the whole tournament on chessbomb.com under the title Stars Cup 2016. Romain Edouard’s good luck persisted here and he beat Pouria Darini.

    Stars Cup 2016
    Anzali Free Zone, Iran
    Round 1, July 11, 2016
    Short, Nigel – Maghsoodloo, Parham
    A00 Reti (KIA, English)

    1.g3 e5 2.Bg2 d5 3.Nf3 Bd6 4.O-O Nc6 5.c4 dxc4 6.Qa4 Be6 7.Na3 Bxa3 8.bxa3 e4 9.Ne5 Nf6 10.Rb1 O-O 11.Nxc6 bxc6 12.Qxc6 Re8 13.a4 a5 14.Re1 Rb8 15.Rxb8 Qxb8 16.h3 h5 17.Qc5 Qb4 18.Qxc7 Qxa4 19.Bb2 Qxa2 20.Bc3 Nd5 21.Qxa5 Nxc3 22.Qxc3 Rd8 23.Rd1 Qb3 24.Ra1 Qxc3 25.dxc3 f5 26.e3 Rd2 27.Rc1 Kf7 28.h4 Kf6 29.Kf1 g5 30.Ke1 Rb2 31.hxg5+ Kxg5 32.Bf1 h4 33.gxh4+ Kxh4 34.Be2 Kg5 35.Bd1 f4 36.Bc2 Bf5 37.Kd2 Kg4 38.Rh1 Kf3 39.Rh4 Bg4 40.Kc1 Rb5 41.Bxe4+ Kxe4 42.Rxg4 Kd3 43.exf4 Kxc3 44.Rg5 Rb6 45.Rg3+ Kd4 46.f5 Ke5 47.Rf3 Rb3 48.Rxb3 cxb3 49.Kb2 Kxf5 50.Kxb3 Kf4 51.Ka2 Kf3 52.Ka1 Kxf2 1/2-1/2

  • #2
    Re: Nigel in Iran

    Nigel in Iran

    July 14, 2016

    (Nigel) I have 2.5/3 after beating Mousavi (2432) yesterday. The 16 year-old, Maghsoodloo, who I barely survived against in the first round, beat Mchedlishvili and Edouard in the following rounds, so he is more than on track for a GM norm - although who cares about that these days? Our team is so far exporting 41 Elo points to the Islamic Republic, although I will wager (outside of the God-fearing Republic, naturally) that there is a lot more to come.

    Stars Cup 2016
    Anzali, Iran
    Round 3, July 13, 2016
    Short, Nigel – Mousavi, Seyed Khalil
    B40 Sicilian-KIA

    1.Nf3 c5 2.e4 e6 3.d3 Nc6 4.g3 g6 5.Bg5 Qc7 6.Bg2 Bg7 7.Qc1 h6 8.Be3 Nge7 9.O-O Nd4 10.Re1 d6 11.c3 Nxf3+ 12.Bxf3 e5 13.b4 b6 14.a4 Bb7 15.a5 h5 16.Nd2 O-O 17.Qb2 Rab8 18.axb6 axb6 19.Reb1 Bc6 20.Bg2 d5 21.Qc2 d4 22.cxd4 cxd4 23.Bxd4 exd4 24.b5 Qd7 25.bxc6 Nxc6 26.Bh3 Qxh3 27.Qxc6 Rfc8 28.Qd5 Rc3 29.Nf3 Qe6 30.Qb5 Rbc8 31.Kg2 Qc6 32.Qa6 Rb8 33.Rb4 b5 34.Qxc6 Rxc6 35.Rab1 Rcb6 36.Nxd4 Rd6 37.Nf3 Rxd3 38.Rxb5 Re8 39.Rb8 Rdd8 40.Rxd8 Rxd8 41.Rc1 Re8 42.Rc4 Bf6 43.Nd2 Rd8 44.Rc2 h4 45.g4 Rd3 46.h3 Rd4 47.f3 Bg5 48.Nc4 Bf4 49.Nb6 Kg7 50.Nd5 Bg3 51.g5 Rd3 52.f4 Rd4 53.Re2 Rd3 54.Rc2 Rd4 55.Rc8 Rd2+ 56.Kf3 Rf2+ 57.Ke3 Rg2 58.e5 Ra2 59.Kd3 Ra3+ 60.Kc2 Bxf4 61.Nxf4 Rf3 62.e6 fxe6 63.Nxe6+ Kh7 64.Rc3 Rf2+ 65.Kd3 Kg8 66.Ke4 1-0

    Round 4, July 14, 2016
    Short, Nigel – Firouaja, Alireza
    B07 Benko-Pirc, g3

    1.g3 g6 2.Bg2 Bg7 3.e4 d6 4.d4 Nf6 5.Ne2 O-O 6.O-O c6 7.a4 e5 8.Nbc3 a5 9.h3 Na6 10.Be3 Qe7 11.Re1 Nb4 12.Qd2 Nd7 13.Rad1 f5 14.exf5 gxf5 15.Bg5 Qf7 16.d5 e4 17.Nf4 Ne5 18.Qe2 Qc7 19.Rd2 Na6 20.Red1 Nf7 21.Bh4 Nc5 22.Nh5 Be5 23.Bf6 Nd7 24.Bxe5 Ndxe5 25.Kh1 Kh8 26.b3 Qe7 27.dxc6 bxc6 28.Qe3 Qa7 29.Rd4 Qc5 30.Ne2 Ra7 31.R1d2 Re7 32.Nef4 Ng6 33.Bf1 Nge5 34.Be2 Qa7 35.Rd1 Ba6 36.c4 Bc8 37.Nf6 Qb6 38.g4 Rb7 39.Rb1 Qd8 40.N4h5 Qe7 41.Rg1 fxg4 42.hxg4 Nd8 43.g5 Bf5 44.Ng3 Bg6 45.Ngxe4 Ndf7 46.Bd1 c5 47.Rd2 Nd7 48.Qc3 Bxe4+ 49.Nxe4+ Nfe5 50.Qe3 Ng6 51.Nxd6 Qxe3 52.fxe3 Rc7 53.Nb5 Rb7 54.Bh5 Nde5 55.Rd5 Re7 56.Nd6 Nh4 57.e4 Rf2 58.Nf5 Nxf5 59.exf5 Rxf5 60.Rxc5 Rf2 61.Re1 Rf5 62.Rxa5 Rxg5 63.Ra8+ Kg7 64.Rg1 Rxg1+ 65.Kxg1 Rb7 66.Ra5 Kf6 67.Rb5 Rd7 68.a5 Rd2 69.Kf1 Kf5 70.Be2 Ke4 71.b4 Nc6 72.a6 Ra2 73.Rb6 Nd4 74.Bh5 Nf5 75.Ke1 Ne3 76.c5 Nc2+ 77.Kf1 Ne3+ 78.Kg1 Nd5 79.b5 Kd4 80.Rc6 Ra1+ 81.Kf2 Ra2+ 82.Kg3 Ne7 83.Rc7 Nd5 84.Rd7 1-0

    ________

    Pit the ten best Iranian players against ten invited internationals. Play a 10-round tournament, give all your players experience and ELO points, and then pick your team for the Olympiad.

    The only problem I can see with this is that the names of the players for the team have to be in to FIDE by tomorrow and this tournament will not be over until the 20th.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Nigel in Iran

      Nigel in Iran

      July 16, 2016

      From the EC Forum:

      Friday, July 15, 2016

      (Leonard Barden) - Congratulations Nigel, you have made it back to oldest player in the world top 100 (92nd to be precise). Eat your heart out, Sam Collins.

      (Nigel Short) - Thank you, Leonard. To be honest, I would be happier with a much larger cushion, though. Knowing that just one bad move will ensure that you are sent scurrying from the exalted top 100 list is not exactly comforting.

      Talking of bad moves: yesterday's game against the 12 year old (!!) Iranian Champion was pretty awful. I missed two separate elementary tactics that would have decided the game immediately. The exhausting conditions here are starting to catch up with me. I didn't return back to the hotel until 23.15.

      (Leonard Barden) - Never mind, as my friend Jonathan once told me, always squash 12-year-olds. And as of round 4 you are the top individual scorer of the event.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Nigel in Iran

        Nigel in Iran

        July 20, 2016

        I started this thread in a light-hearted way to show yet again Nigel’s vicissitudes of fortune in a foreign country.

        It became quite serious during the one-day military coup in Turkey, when Nigel’s son was in the Istanbul Airport at the height of the take-over. Fortunately, it turned out all right for him.

        Leonard Barden came on to the chat on the EC Forum to fill out the story.
        I shall continue up to the end of the tournament:

        Saturday, July 16

        (Nigel) - 4.5/5 so far. But after seeing my son’s terrified messages from Istanbul Airport, this all seems pretty pointless…

        (Leonard) – Istanbul’s main Ataturk airport is now under army control and flights – which had been interrupted for some hours were due to resume from 03:00 GMT.

        Eyewitness, quoted by the BBC

        The past night was a real nightmare and chaos here, with sounds of jet fighters shaking the building and also with supporters of Erdogan entering the airport territory. One thing that has shocked everyone here is the absolute lack of any member of Turkish Airlines personnel. They all left last night and the tourists were all here alone with zero information; it was truly scary. Today we were hoping to get info on flights but still no personnel around. It’s just unbelievable. Security is completely forgotten as well. Total chaos.

        Sunday, July 17

        (Leonard) – The 16-year old Maghsoodloo, who Nigel singled out for praise earlier in this threat and who gave him trouble in round one, is only half a point behind on 5.5/7. The pair have broken a point clear of the field.

        (Nigel) – Some kind Iranian installed some software, which enables me to bypass the censorship. Unfortunately it makes a slow internet connection even slower. I can’t always get online.

        Monday, July 18

        (Leonard) – Nigel has crushed Iran’s No. 1 Ghaem Maghami in 31 moves this afternoon to take his score to 7/8. The Iranian 16-year old appears to be losing so Nigel will probably be 1.5 points ahead with two rounds to go.
        _______

        The final standing in the Stars Cup Tournament:

        1. Short, Nigel 8.5
        2. Maghsoodloo, Parham 8
        3. Edouard, Romain 7
        4. Mchedlishvili, Mikhail
        5. Sargissian, Gabriel 6.5
        6. Dreev, Aleksey 6.5
        (and fourteen others)
        ________
        I look forward to Nigel’s New in Chess column about the events around this tournament!

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Nigel in Iran

          Originally posted by Wayne Komer View Post
          Nigel in Iran

          _____

          The final standing in the Stars Cup Tournament:

          1. Short, Nigel 8.5
          2. Maghsoodloo, Parham 8
          3. Edouard, Romain 7
          4. Mchedlishvili, Mikhail
          5. Sargissian, Gabriel 6.5
          6. Dreev, Aleksey 6.5
          (and fourteen others)
          ________
          I look forward to Nigel’s New in Chess column about the events around this tournament!
          This has to be one of the greatest ever performances by a 16-year old. His PR was about 2860!
          "Tom is a well known racist, and like most of them he won't admit it, possibly even to himself." - Ed Seedhouse, October 4, 2020.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Nigel in Iran

            Nigel in Iran

            July 21, 2016

            The Last Word

            Wednesday, July 20, 2016

            (Nigel Short) - Finished with 8.5/10 - a 2790 performance - collecting 14.2 rating points. I am writing this from Imam Khomeini Airport. I can't wait to leave. It was an absolutely knackering experience.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Nigel in Iran

              Originally posted by Wayne Komer View Post
              Nigel in Iran

              July 21, 2016

              The Last Word

              Wednesday, July 20, 2016

              (Nigel Short) - Finished with 8.5/10 - a 2790 performance - collecting 14.2 rating points. I am writing this from Imam Khomeini Airport. I can't wait to leave. It was an absolutely knackering experience.
              Tournament report on Chessbase

              http://en.chessbase.com/post/the-1st-stars-cup-in-iran

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Nigel in Iran

                Originally posted by Tom O'Donnell View Post
                This has to be one of the greatest ever performances by a 16-year old. His PR was about 2860!
                From chessbase http://en.chessbase.com/post/the-1st-stars-cup-in-iran

                15-year-old Parham Mahhsoodloo(2501) was Iran’s most successful player, finishing the event with 8.0/10 and an incredible performance of 2862. This earned him his third grandmaster norm and thus the title.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Nigel in Iran

                  Nigel in Iran

                  September 28, 2016

                  The latest New In Chess has been left by the postman (2016#6). The two main features are Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Gyula Breyer. But, the anticipated article by Nigel Short on his tournament in Iran is there too.

                  It is entitled Caspian Capers and, as usual, vigorously written.

                  It starts off with this paragraph:

                  In 2006-7, I enjoyed a brief and fairly successful stint as national coach of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Professional satisfaction notwithstanding, I nevertheless felt immensely relieved when my tenure ended. It was lovely to have made some friendships, but when working in a theocracy, one also inevitably crosses paths with bigots – like the religious police. Their overbearing intolerance, unpleasantness and stupidity can test the patience of far more emollient characters than mine.

                  Despite these reservations. I was pleased to be invited by my dear old buddy Mehrdad Pahlevanzadeh, the recently appointed president of the federation, to a Scheveningen System tournament.
                  _______

                  Despite criticizing some of the arrangements, Nigel is lavish in his praise for the young Iranian players – Maghsoodloo (16), Firouzja (13), Gholami(15) and Lorparizangeneh (17).

                  A good article but his next contribution is to be on his personal security check, during a game, in the Baku Olympiad! I can hardly wait.

                  Comment

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