Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

[Hans Jung]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

I hope there are archives somewhere of this very important event.

[Sam Sharpe]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

It hurt me to scan through the twitch video to see a multi-blade cart being used to take off the whiskers. A straight would take it all off nice and quick; other than that, a beard trimmer to clip it right down was needed.

[Gordon Ritchie]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Well done, Aman! Congratulations from your friends at Ottawa's RA Chess Club.

[Wayne Komer]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

January 1, 2018

On New Year’s Eve, Aman with his friends gathered for the beard cutting. Eric Hansen, Fabiano Caruana and Robin van Kampen were among them.

First, two bottles of champagne were opened and the friends drank and snipped off parts of the beard with scissors.

Then, Aman lathered up and took a razor to the beard. But it didn’t come off easily. And, the people on chat had all sorts of suggestions about clippers, about shaving against the grain; some said he should have hired a pro for the job.

A selection of comments:

- I think aman forgot how to shave after 8 months
- Can go against the grain at the very end, but not before that
- Try an electric razor
- Use wax and rip if off!
- 1000 people watching somebody poorly shave
- I’m spending my New Year’s Eve watching a guy shave, wtf
- I can see a face appearing
- His shaving ELO is 900
- I’m growing a beard just watching this
- You were a lumberjack, use an ax to shave
- Eric! Get this man the clippers
- It is taking longer to shave your beard than to get the GM title
- Aman looks five years younger already
- Bloody brilliant
- Baby face

Finally, two hours before midnight, the beard was off - after an hour of shaving and viewers sent in their congratulations and subscriptions.

You can see it all at:

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/214274294

[Hans Jung]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

https://en.chessbase.com/post/sitges-sunway-previa-2017 Just a reminder for the beard shaving on New Years eve. Watch on chessbrah. Congratulations Grandmaster Aman!

[Neil Frarey]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Thanks everyone :)

Making GM has been a goal of mine for awhile... anyone who has been following the Chessbrah channel knows I've been working at it since I became an IM back in 2013. Achieving this title has been, by far, one of the hardest things I've ever had to do.

Not a bad way to end off 2017, we'll see what 2018 has in store!

Congrats Aman! Bobble head worthy!!!

Former Boston Bruin (greatest hockey team in the known universe btw) Joe Thornton should find encouragement in your accomplishment!!!

[Frank Dixon]

Re: Re : Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Congratulations, Aman!!! Determination, talent, focus, pressure performance -- all came together!!
I knew you were a talented young player to watch when I annotated one of your wins from CYCC 2004 in Kapuskasing for the magazine! :)

[Bernard Ouimet]

Re : Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Very nice Aman, and congratulations !

[Egidijus Zeromskis]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Yanofsky and Biyiasas?

Ivanov?

()

[Tom O'Donnell]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

...

An alert reader wrote:

Re: "10th Canadian GM" leaves out:

Duncan Suttles, Pascal Charbonneau and Thomas Roussel-Roozmon

Yanofsky and Biyiasas?

[Emil Smilovici]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Congratulations GM Aman Hambleton!

[Wayne Komer]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

December 24, 2017

There is a picture of the beard at:

https://www.chess.com/news/view/sunway-sitges-aravindh-wins-hambleton-to-shave-beard

Peter Doggers says this at the chess.com site:

Aravindh Chithambaram Vr. won the Sunway Sitges Festival's main tournament as the only player to score 7.5/9. It was also the tournament where IM Aman Hambleton scored his final GM norm, so that he can finally shave his beard.

On social media Arvindh didn't get as much attention as one other player: IM Aman Hambleton of Canada. Most fans know him as one of the "Chessbrahs," a group of strong chess playing friends who have been quite successful making fun video streams on Twitch and YouTube. Other "brahs" include GMs Eric Hansen and Robin van Kampen.

When playing in the Reykjavik Open in April of this year, he shared with everyone that he had decided not to shave until he would be a grandmaster. "I was having a bad event in Sweden in March earlier this year and decided to make this bet with myself," he told Chess.com. "A bit for fun, but also to motivate me."

Hambleton immediately scored his second norm in Reykjavik, but after that, things didn't work out in subsequent tournaments. His beard grew bigger and bigger.

In Sitges everything went well. He scored 6/9 and a 2649 performance rating, which included wins against GMs Victor Bologan and Alexandr Predke.

Hambleton, looking back on the beard story: "In the end it did its job, and it made a lot of people follow me on my journey to GM to it turned out to be great publicity. happy"

The 25-year-old player will be Canada's 10th GM, alongside Evgeny Bareev, Mark Bluvshtein, Anton Kovalyov, Eric Hansen, Bator Sambuev, Kevin Spraggett, Alexandre Lesiege, Razvan Preotu, and Dimitri Tyomkin.

He plans to shave his beard during an online Chessbrah stream on New Year's Eve.

An alert reader wrote:

Re: "10th Canadian GM" leaves out:

Duncan Suttles, Pascal Charbonneau and Thomas Roussel-Roozmon

[Vlad Drkulec]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Congratulations Aman! You seem to be one of the most active top Canadian players this year both in Canada and internationally. Its great to see you close out 2017 on an especially high note.

[Halldor P. Palsson]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Congratulations! A GM title for Aman Hambleton is great way to close out 2017.

I hope to see you play in Ottawa in 2018.

[Garland Best]

Re: Hambleton at Sunway Sitges 2017

Congrats Aman! We would love to see you again at the RA Chess Club.