Congratulations to Winners of Asian Rapid Chess Team Championship

The Asian Rapid Chess Team Championship 2024 has officially come to an end! 🏆 In photo, Asian Chess Federation General Secretary Hisham Al Taher (center) awards the prize of HK$100,000 to the champion team, Schnappi Krokodil of China. Visit chess-results.com for round by round results.
After three exciting days and 11 rounds of chess, the competition showed off amazing talent, hard work, and teamwork. Every move highlighted the players’ skills and passion, making this championship one to remember.
✨ A big congratulations to the top teams:
🏅 Champion: Schnappi Krokodil of China (photo above)
🥈 2nd Place: Jabar Juara of Indonesia
🥉 3rd Place: The Formula of Chess of Russia playing under FIDE flag
4th: Shanghai Chess and Card Sports Management Center of China
5th: The Red Pseudodragon with players from China, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, Philippines, Hong Kong and Singapore
🏅U1800 Champion: Team Sky composed of players from China and Hong Kong.
🏅U2200 Champion: Filipino Chess Club-HK composed of Philippine players
ACF General Secretary Hisham Al Taher (center) and Hong Kong Chess Federation president K.K. Chan with organizers.
This event couldn’t have happened without the hard work of the organizers, the support from our special guests, and the energy of all the participants. Thank you to everyone who helped make the Asian Rapid Chess Team Championship 2024 a huge success. In center is Asian Chess Federation General Secretary Hisham Al Taher flanked by Hong Kong Chess Federation president K.K. Chan (fourth from right).
🌟 As we finish up, we’re already looking forward to what’s next. Don’t forget about the Hong Kong International Open this December—another chance to see top-level chess right here in Hong Kong. Until then, keep practicing and stay excited!

Board 1 medalists receive trophies: (Left to right) VP – Hong Kong Chess Federation Lam, Daniel King Wai, GM Megaranto, Susanto – Jabar Juara, GM Rozum, Ivan – The Formula of Chess, GM Xu, Xiangyu – Schnappi Krokodil and IA Thiagarajoo, Kumaressan

Congratulations to all Individual Board awardees ♟️🎉
1️⃣Board 1
🥇GM Rozum, Ivan (The Formula of Chess)
🥈GM Megaranto, Susanto (Jabar Juara)
🥉GM Xu, Xiangyu (Schnappi Krokodil)
2️⃣Board 2
🥇GM Bai, Jinshi (Schnappi Krokodil)
🥈IM Laohawirapap, Prin (The Red Pseudodragon)
🥉IM Firman Syah, Farid (Jabar Juara)
3️⃣Board 3
🥇IM Lou, Yiping (Shanghai Chess and Card Sports Management Center)
🥈GM Li, Di (Schnappi Krokodil)
🥉WCM Nguyen, My Hanh An (Ho Chi Minh)
4️⃣Board 4
🥇FM Rostovtsev, Dmitry (The Formula of Chess)
🥈Xu, Yi (Shanghai Chess and Card Sports Management Center)
🥉IM Zhao, Yuanhe (Schnappi Krokodil)
5️⃣Board 5
🥇FM Arca, Christina Gian Karlo (The Red Pseudodragon)
🥈IM Kozionov, Kirill (The Formula of Chess)
🥉Zhou, Guoyu (Team Sky)
6️⃣Board 6
🥇Meng, Yihan (Shanghai Chess and Card Sports Management Center)
🥈CM Lam, Chun Yung Samuel (The Rising Tide)
🥉WGM Fominykh, Maria (The Formula of Chess)
7️⃣Board 7
🥇Shen, Delin (Team Sky)
🥈Mao, Yingzhou (Schnappi Krokodil)
🥉Mandryka, Vladislav (The Formula of Chess)
8️⃣Board 8
🥇FM Hafiz, Arif Abdul (Jabar Juara)
🥈Gong, Sunle (Shanghai Chess and Card Sports Management Center)
🥉Fan, Wen Xi (Youth Chess Academy 1)
9️⃣Board 9
🥇Qu, Haoming (The Red Pseudodragon)
🥈WFM Putri, Regita Desyari (Jabar Juara)
🥉Poon, Pak Yu (The Rising Tide)

FIDE 100 Torch Relay Reaches United Arab Emirates

The celebration of FIDE’s 100-year anniversary continues as the FIDE 100 Torch Relay arrives in the United Arab Emirates. This is the last stop of the torch before it reaches its final destination in the Hungarian capital, Budapest, coinciding with the launch of the 2024 Chess Olympiad scheduled from September 10 to 23.

The event was held at Marina Mall in Abu Dhabiunder the patronage of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council and organized by the Abu Dhabi Chess and Mind Games Club.

The event was attended by His Excellency Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich, His Excellency Sheikh Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Mualla, Vice President of the International Federation, Hussein Abdullah Al Khouri, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Abu Dhabi Chess and Mind Games Club, Mohammed Al Mudahka, President of the Qatar Chess Federation, Viswanathan Anand, five-time World Champion and Deputy President of the International Chess Federation, alongside officials from the Abu Dhabi Sports Council.

His Excellency Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan received the commemorative gold medal from Arkady Dvorkovich on the occasion of the centenary celebration. He also participated in the launch of the exhibition matches on the sidelines of the ceremony. Mohammed Al Mudhahka and the African and Arab champion, Grandmaster Ahmed Adly, played against 15 players simultaneously.

During the ceremony, Arkady Dvorkovich noted that the game of chess is rapidly developing in the UAE, thanks to the support it receives and the increasing interest it holds. He additionally expressed his happiness with the great passion of the participants in the 30th edition of the Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival.

Hussein Abdullah Al Khouri stated that the torch relay event in Abu Dhabi, held to mark the centenary of the International Federation, achieved great momentum. The event was attended by His Excellency Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan and senior officials, further solidifying the UAE and the Emirate of Abu Dhabi’s strong position in organizing and hosting international sporting events.

The torch relay in Abu Dhabi was in sync with the ongoing 30th Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival. Known as the region’s largest chess festival and one of the world’s best, it welcomed more than 2,200 players from 82 countries this year. Its spotlight tournament is the Master’s tournament, which hosted 217 overall players, 200 of whom are titled. In round 7, the Master’s tournament was inaugurated by FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich and five-time world Champion and FIDE Deputy President Viswanathan Anand.

From FIDE 100 Torch Relay reaches United Arab Emirates

Kateryna Lagno Grabs Solo Lead in Russian Women’s Superfinal

The Russian Championships Superfinals have resumed after a rest day. In Round 7, the ceremonial first move in the A. Goryachkina vs D. Voit game was made by Mikhail Dyrov, General Director of the Stroyberg Group.

The Superfinal debutant Rudik Makarian (above left) scored his first win in the open tournament defeating the experienced Aleksey Dreev as Black. In a rook and minor pieces ending, Black managed to grab the initiative, break through to his opponent’s back ranks with the king and outplay him in a technical manner.

The Nesterov vs Artemiev, Grischuk vs Grebnev, Ponkratov vs Matlakov, Esipenko vs Najer, and Timofeev vs Dubov ended in a draw.

Evgeniy Najer (photo above) and Arseniy Nesterov (photo below) are tied for the lead.

Tournament standings after Round 7: 

1-2. Evgeniy Najer, Arseniy Nesterov – 4.5 points
3-5. Vladislav Artemiev, Andrey Esipenko, Alexander Grischuk – 4
6-8. Aleksey Grebnev, Rudik Makarian, Daniil Dubov – 3.5
9. Maxim Matlakov – 3
10-12. Aleksey Dreev, Pavel Ponkratov, Artyom Timofeev – 2.5.

Round 8 pairings:

Najer – Matlakov, Dubov – Ponkratov, Artemiev – Timofeev, Makarian – Nesterov, Grebnev – Dreev, Esipenko – Grischuk.

In the Women’s Championship, Kateryna Lagno (photo above) outplayed Olga Karmanova as Black to become the sole leader as her main competitor Aleksandra Goryachkina (below left) drew with Daria Voit.

Leya Garifullina, who was leading at the start, suffered her second defeat in a row. Playing White against Ekaterina Goltseva (photo below), she voluntarily chose the worst ending and then completely misplaced her dark-squared bishop. Black trapped this bishop and gradually converted her extra piece.

Daria Charochkina (photo below) and Olga Girya opted for the Nimzo-Indian Defence. White’s play out of the opening was overly sharp, and Black, with the advantage of two bishops, overtook the initiative. However, in a mutual time pressure, Girya made a serious mistake, her bishop could never get out of the pin and Black was forced to give up material. Charochkina went on to win with confidence.

The games Pogonina vs Gunina and Shuvalova vs Kovanova ended in a draw.

Tournament standings after Round 7:

1. Kateryna Lagno – 5.5 points
2. Aleksandra Goryachkina – 5
3-4. Leya Garifullina, Daria Charochkina – 4
5-7. Daria Voit, Valentina Gunina, Olga Girya – 3.5
8-11. Natalija Pogonina, Polina Shuvalova, Ekaterina Goltseva, Baira Kovanova – 3
12. Olga Karmanova – 1.

Round 8 pairings:

Gunina – Goltseva, Kovanova – Garifullina, Girya – Shuvalova, Lagno – Charochkina, Voit – Karmanova, Pogonina – Goryachkina.

The Russian Championship Superfinals are played separately for men and women in a round robin system in 11 rounds with one rest day. Game days: August 17-22 and 24-28. All rounds start at 3 PM local time (11 AM Moscow time). In case of a tie for the 1st place, an additional competition will be held.

Five best players of the open event will qualify for the FIDE World Cup, while three best players of the women’s tournament will get the right to play in the FIDE Women’s World Cup.

The Superfinals are organised by the Chess Federation of Russia with support of the Russian Ministry of Sport and Timchenko Foundation in cooperation with the Government of the Altai Territory and the Chess Federation of the Altai Territory.

The CFR general partner is PhosAgro. The CFR partners are Aeroflot and Sima-land.

Tournament on Chess-Results

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Games Live (Open)

Games Live (Women)

Tournament page

Official website

Asian Rapid Chess Team Championship Started in Hong Kong

The Asian Rapid Chess Team Championship 2024 has commenced, bringing together some of the finest chess minds from across the region!

This highly anticipated event stands as a testament to the growing prominence of chess in Asia, attracting attention from enthusiasts and professionals alike.

In a ceremony marking the start of the championship, Professor Herman Hu, Vice President of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee Of Hong Kong, China, was in attendance as the Guest of Honor, with his participation highlighting the tournament’s significance in the sporting arena. Additionally, Mr. Hisham Al-Taher, General Secretary of the Asian Chess Federation, addressed the audience, emphasizing the enduring legacy and importance of this prestigious competition.

As the tournament progresses, it promises to deliver intense matches and strategic brilliance, showcasing the depth of talent within the Asian chess community!

 

Evgeniy Najer, Arseniy Nesterov Lead Men’s, Kateryna Lagno, Aleksandra Goryachkina Lead Russian Women

The ceremonial first move in the B. Kovanova vs D. Charochkina game was made by Lyubov Berezina, Director of the Altai Krai Drama Theatre named after Vasily Shukshin, at Round 6 of the Russian Championship Superfinals on 22nd August in Barnaul.

Three games of the six were decisive in the open championship.

Evgeniy Najer (photo above), playing White against Pavel Ponkratov, managed to seize the opening initiative. Black voluntarily compromised his pawn structure on the kingside in the hope of creating counterplay on that part of the board, but only ended up losing the weak h5-pawn as a result. Then Najer delivered a powerful central blow, won the second pawn and gradually converted his advantage. With this victory the grandmaster from Moscow became one of the tournament leaders.

Vladislav Artemiev (above right) defeated Aleksey Dreev as White. In a sharp, dynamic position arising from the Caro-Kann Defence, White gained a spatial edge in the centre, but the passed d4-pawn provided Black with sufficient counter-chances. Black’s idea of immediately simplifying the situation on the queenside proved unsuccessful: with the help of an intermediate move, which his opponent obviously did not take into account, White captured the open c-file, then pushed the enemy knight to the edge of the board and began to hunt for the queen. Black resigned on move 26 in the face of inevitable material losses.

Artyom Timofeev (abov left), playing Black against Maxim Matlakov, opted for a relatively rare line of the Queen’s Gambit Accepted. Bypassing the middlegame, the game transposed into a complex endgame in which White’s initiative was due to his lead in development. As he had done several times in this tournament, Timofeev defended tenaciously and his efforts were rewarded as he managed to level the position completely. Matlakov sacrificed two pawns in reliance on his pair of bishops but made several inaccuracies in the face of severe time pressure. Black consolidated his forces and maintained an overwhelming material advantage. White recognised his defeat on move 39.

The games Makarian – Grischuk, Grebnev – Esipenko, and Dubov – Nesterov ended in a draw.

Tournament standings after Round 6: 

1-2. Evgeniy Najer, Arseniy Nesterov – 4 points
3-5. Vladislav Artemiev, Andrey Esipenko, Alexander Grischuk – 3.5
6-7. Daniil Dubov, Aleksey Grebnev – 3
8-10. Rudik Makarian, Maxim Matlakov, Alexey Dreev – 2.5
11-12. Pavel Ponkratov, Artyom Timofeev – 2.

Round 7 pairings:

Esipenko – Najer, Grischuk – Grebnev, Dreev – Makarian, Nesterov – Artemiev, Timofeev – Dubov, Ponkratov – Matlakov.

In the women’s section, one of the key matchups (photo above) of the entire tournament between Kateryna Lagno and Aleksandra Goryachkina ended peacefully.

A real drama took place in the Gunina – Garifullina encounter (photo above). In the Ragozin Defence, White got a very promising position out of the opening. However, Valentina Gunina then recklessly sacrificed a piece in the hope of getting at her opponent’s king, but Leya Garifullina defended precisely and maintained her material advantage. Gunina would not lose heart and continued to look for elusive ways to keep up the fight. After four hours of intense play, Garifullina began to make mistakes: first she let her advantage go, and then overlooked White’s mating threats altogether. Valentina Gunina won on move 73.

Olga Girya (above right), playing White against Olga Karmanova, gained a significant advantage out of the opening, pushing pawns in the center and on the kingside. Black did not consolidate his forces in time and missed a powerful tactical blow. As early as move 20, White had an overwhelming position already. Girya’s triumph came on move 33.

The games Voit vs Pogonina, Goltseva vs Shuvalova, and Kovanova vs Charochkina ended in a draw.

Tournament standings after Round 6:

1-2. Kateryna Lagno, Aleksandra Goryachkina – 4.5 points
3. Leya Garifullina – 4
4. Olga Girya – 3.5
5-7. Valentina Gunina, Daria Voit, Daria Charochkina – 3
8-10. Polina Shuvalova, Natalija Pogonina, Baira Kovanova – 2.5
11. Ekaterina Goltseva – 2
12. Olga Karmanova – 1.

Round 7 pairings:

Pogonina – Gunina, Goryachkina – Voit, Karmanova – Lagno, Charochkina – Girya, Shuvalova – Kovanova, Garifullina – Goltseva.

Friday, August 23, is a rest day.

The Russian Championship Superfinals are played separately for men and women in a round robin system in 11 rounds with one rest day. Game days: August 17-22 and 24-28. All rounds start at 3 PM local time (11 AM Moscow time). In case of a tie for the 1st place, an additional competition will be held.

Five best players of the open event will qualify for the FIDE World Cup, while three best players of the women’s tournament will get the right to play in the FIDE Women’s World Cup.

The Superfinals are organised by the Chess Federation of Russia with support of the Russian Ministry of Sport and Timchenko Foundation in cooperation with the Government of the Altai Territory and the Chess Federation of the Altai Territory.

The CFR general partner is PhosAgro. The CFR partners are Aeroflot and Sima-land.

Tournament on Chess-Results

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Games Live (Open)

Games Live (Women)

Tournament page

Official website

Nesterov Maintains Men’s Solo Lead, 3 Share Lead in Women’s Russian Superfinal

The Rector of the Altai State University, Doctor of Economics, member of the Board of Trustees of the Altai Krai Chess Federation Sergey Bocharov, made the ceremonial move in the game A. Grischuk vs V. Artemiev in round 5 of the Russian Championships Superfinals in Barnaul, Russia. He also congratulated all participants and organizers on the 100th anniversary of the Chess Federation of Russia, which is being celebrated on this very day, 21st August 2024.

In the open championship, Andrey Esipenko (photo above) scored his first victory by defeating Rudik Makarian as White. The opponents battled it out in a position typical of the Closed Variation of the Catalan Opening. White prepared and executed a standard centre break, to which Black did not react optimally and lost control of the d-file. Soon good advice was beyond price for Black: Esipenko got the advantage of two bishops over two knights and exploited it in a textbook fashion.

The games Dreev – Dubov, Nesterov – Matlakov (photo above), Timofeev – Ponkratov, Grischuk – Artemiev, and Grebnev – Najer were drawn.

Tournament standings after Round 5: 

1. Arseniy Nesterov – 3.5 points
2-4. Andrey Esipenko, Evgeniy Najer, Alexander Grischuk – 3
5-9. Maxim Matlakov, Vladislav Artemiev, Daniil Dubov, Aleksey Grebnev, Aleksey Dreev – 2.5
10-11. Rudik Makarian, Pavel Ponkratov – 2
12. Artyom Timofeev – 1.

Round 6 pairings:

Najer – Ponkratov, Matlakov – Timofeev, Dubov – Nesterov, Artemiev – Dreev, Makarian – Grischuk, Grebnev – Esipenko.

There are now three leaders in the women’s section: Leya Garifullina was caught up by Kateryna Lagno and Aleksandra Goryachkina.

Natalija Pogonina and Kateryna Lagno (photo above) opened the game into the King’s Indian Defence with a closed pawn centre. White was advancing her pawns on the queenside and Black was looking for her chances in a direct attack on the king. When Black focused all her major pieces on the g2-square, White made a tactical mistake. A spectacular rook sacrifice allowed Kateryna to launch an irresistible attack and win on move 30.

Aleksandra Goryachkina (photo above, standing) and Olga Girya discussed the Anti Berlin. Out of the opening, Black voluntarily walled up her bishop on a7, where it remained until the end of the game. Goryachkina gained a large space advantage, seized the central outposts with her knights and launched a direct attack on her opponent’s king. To avoid being checkmated, Black had to go for serious material concessions. However, she ended up lacking enough resources for a perpetual check.

Playing Black against the Superfinal first-timer Olga Karmanova, the current Russian champion Baira Kovanova (photo above) was looking for a complex battle full of tactics from the very first moves. White had a very promising position out of the opening but then lost her way: she spent many tempi on fruitless kingside manoeuvres and ended up under direct attack on the queenside. Due to heavy material losses, Karmanova resigned immediately after the time control move.

Daria Charochkina (photo above) and Ekaterina Goltseva were engaged in a double-edged battle in a position with opposite castlings. White sacrificed a pawn and got excellent compensation but then began to perform imprecisely, allowing Black to seize the initiative and organise an attack on the enemy king.  Charochkina defended stubbornly, looking for counter-chances, and before the time control move Goltseva began to make mistakes: the fatal blunder came on move 40. Daria delivered a beautiful tactical shot and soon won.

The games Shuvalova vs. Garifullina (photo above) and Voit vs. Gunina ended in a draw.

Tournament standings after Round 5:

1. Aleksandra Goryachkina, Leya Garifullina, Kateryna Lagno – 4 points
3-6. Olga Girya, Daria Voit, Daria Charochkina – 2.5
7-10. Polina Shuvalova, Valentina Gunina, Natalija Pogonina, Baira Kovanova – 2
11. Ekaterina Goltseva – 1.5
12. Olga Karmanova – 1.

Round 6 pairings:

Gunina – Garifullina, Goltseva – Shuvalova, Kovanova – Charochkina, Girya – Karmanova, Lagno – Goryachkina, Voit – Pogonina.

The Russian Championship Superfinals are played separately for men and women in a round robin system in 11 rounds with one rest day. Game days: August 17-22 and 24-28. All rounds start at 3 PM local time (11 AM Moscow time). In case of a tie for the 1st place, an additional competition will be held.

Five best players of the open event will qualify for the FIDE World Cup, while three best players of the women’s tournament will get the right to play in the FIDE Women’s World Cup.

The Superfinals are organised by the Chess Federation of Russia with support of the Russian Ministry of Sport and Timchenko Foundation in cooperation with the Government of the Altai Territory and the Chess Federation of the Altai Territory.

The CFR general partner is PhosAgro. The CFR partners are Aeroflot and Sima-land.

Tournament on Chess-Results

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Games Live (Open)

Games Live (Women)

Tournament page

Official website

Ceremony of FIDE 100th Anniversary Set in Abu Dhabi

🚨 Join us tomorrow at 5:30 PM in Marina Mall to celebrate the FIDE Centenary and Torch Relay!

🥇 5 times World Champion, Legendary Grandmaster Viswananthan Anand will be our guest.

Simultaneous with a renowned grandmaster and prizes offered to participants. Free entry

📍 Location: Marina Mall Abu Dhabi, main entrance

Arseniy Nesterov, Leya Garifullina Lead Russian Men’s and Women’s Superfinals

Elena Bezrukova, Minister of Culture of Altai Krai, made the ceremonial first move in the game K. Lagno – D. Voit game at the start of Round 4 of the Russian Championships Superfinals in Barnaul.

Arseniy Nesterov (photo above) grabbed solo lead in the open section with his second win in a row. In a relatively rare line of the Petrov’s Defence, White grabbed space in the centre. However, it was not for free but at the cost of compromising his pawn structure on the queenside. In the position of a dynamic equilibrium, Pavel Ponkratov overestimated his chances and avoided repeating moves by offering an exchange of the light-squared bishops, which objectively favoured Black. “27.e6 f5 28.g4 Rd6! was the beginning of miracles as everything came Black’s way in all lines,” Arseniy Nesterov said. Black dominated the rest of the game; White found it extremely difficult to defend, and soon after the time control move he committed a blunder.

In a position where the worst seemed to be over already, another heroic defence by Artyom Timofeev was ruined by a mistake. This time the 40th move was fatal: 40…Rc6! (instead of 40…Rf8??) would have allowed Black to bail out.

The games Dubov vs Grischuk, Makarian vs Grebnev, Artemiev vs Esipenko, and Matlakov vs Dreev ended in a draw.

Tournament standings after Round 4: 

1. Arseniy Nesterov – 3 points
2-3. Evgeniy Najer, Alexander Grischuk – 2.5
4-10. Vladislav Artemiev, Rudik Makarian, Maxim Matlakov, Daniil Dubov, Aleksey Grebnev, Andrey Esipenko, Aleksey Dreev – 2
11. Pavel Ponkratov – 1.5
12. Artyom Timofeev – 0.5.

Round 5 pairings:

Grebnev – Najer, Esipenko – Makarian, Grischuk – Artemiev, Dreev – Dubov, Nesterov – Matlakov, Timofeev – Ponkratov.

In the women’s race, Leya Garifullina has become the sole leader, defeating Daria Charochkina as White. In the Caro-Kann Defence, Black achieved a full-fledged game but Garifullina kept looking for ways to continue the fight, and her persistence was rewarded. Black’s rook was too optimistic in venturing to the center, where it was trapped. With the help of small tactics, White won the exchange and gradually converted it, repelling all the opponent’s attempts to deliver a perpetual check.

Aleksandra Goryachkina, (photo above) playing Black against Baira Kovanova, solved her opening problems in the Exchange Variation of the French Defence with confidence. After numerous exchanges a draw seemed inevitable, especially with the opposite-coloured bishops on the board. However, on move 37 White made a positional error that weakened the light squares and allowed Goryachkina to grab the initiative. Kovanova’s attempt to counter by activating her king was unsuccessful: Black broke through in the centre and gained a decisive material advantage.

Ekaterina Goltseva (photo above) once again showed excellent opening preparation and got a very promising position as White against Olga Karmanova. The young debutant of the Superfinal tried to untangle her position with the help of tactics but overlooked her opponent’s strong intermediate move, after which she was left a pawn down and her king had to leave the safe haven. Goltseva’s precise attack was decisive and she won on move 36.

The games Girya vs Pogonina, Lagno vs Voit, and Gunina vs Shuvalova were drawn.

Tournament standings after Round 4:

1. Leya Garifullina – 3.5 points
2-3. Aleksandra Goryachkina, Kateryna Lagno – 3
4. Olga Girya – 2.5
5-6. Daria Voit, Natalija Pogonina – 2
7-10. Polina Shuvalova, Valentina Gunina, Ekaterina Goltseva, Daria Charochkina – 1.5
11-12. Baira Kovanova, Olga Karmanova – 1.

Round 5 pairings:

Voit – Gunina, Pogonina – Lagno, Goryachkina – Girya, Karmanova – Kovanova, Charochkina – Goltseva, Shuvalova – Garifullina.

The Russian Championship Superfinals are played separately for men and women in a round robin system in 11 rounds with one rest day. Game days: August 17-22 and 24-28. All rounds start at 3 PM local time (11 AM Moscow time). In case of a tie for the 1st place, an additional competition will be held.

Five best players of the open event will qualify for the FIDE World Cup, while three best players of the women’s tournament will get the right to play in the FIDE Women’s World Cup.

The Superfinals are organised by the Chess Federation of Russia with support of the Russian Ministry of Sport and Timchenko Foundation in cooperation with the Government of the Altai Territory and the Chess Federation of the Altai Territory.

The CFR general partner is PhosAgro. The CFR partners are Aeroflot and Sima-land.

Tournament on Chess-Results

Photo gallery

Games Live (Open)

Games Live (Women)

Tournament page

Official website

Evgeniy Najer

Join Asian Schools Chess Championships 1-11 December 2024 in Bangkok, Thailand

The Thailand Chess Association, under the auspices of the Asian Chess Federation (ACF) and the International Chess Federation (FIDE), has the honor to invite all Asian National Chess Federations to participate in the 17th Asian Schools Chess Championships to be organized in Bangkok, Thailand from 1st (arrival) to 11th December (departure) 2024.

The event will be held at the Pathumwan Institute of Technoloy in Bangkok.

Download 18th Asian Schools Chess Championships 2024

Download Registration Form Asian Schools 2024

Direct titles shall be awarded for Standard Chess in accordance with FIDE handbook https://handbook.fide.com/chapter/B01DirectTitles2024

Gold medalists of U13, U15 and U17 Open/Girls groups shall be awarded the FM / WFM titles. The Silver & Bronze Medal winners shall be awarded the Candidate Master (CM) / Woman Candidate Master (WCM) title.

Gold, Silver & Bronze Medal winners of the U7, U9 & U11 Open/Girls groups shall be awarded the CM/WCM title.

Schedule:

Grischuk and Nesterov Lead Russian Men, Garifullina and Lagno Lead Women

Round 3 of the Russian Championships Superfinals took place 19 August in Barnaul. The participants were welcomed by Sergey Karlov, Deputy General Director of Alttrans, representative of the Board of Trustees of the Altai Krai Chess Federation;

Sergey Karlov, Deputy General Director of Alttrans made a symbolic first move in the P. Ponkratov vs. A. Dreev game.

In the open championship, Arseniy Nesterov (photo above) and Artyom Timofeev created a real thriller. The game opened calmly to a symmetrical line of the Queens Gambit Accepted. However, White went on to grab space in the centre and created dangerous threats to the enemy king. Being in extreme time pressure, Nesterov made an imprecise move, after which Timofeev practically equalised the position with a resourceful defence. The game transposed into a knight ending with a small initiative for White, in which Black committed a blunder. Black ended up down a pawn, and his kingside counterplay came to a deadend. Arseniy Nesterov won the game on move 53.

The games Esipenko – Dubov, Dreev – Ponkratov, Grebnev – Artemiev, Grischuk – Matlakov, and Makarian – Najer ended in a draw.

Tournament standings after Round 3:

1-2. Alexander Grischuk, Arseniy Nesterov – 2 points
3-11. Pavel Ponkratov, Maxim Matlakov, Evgeniy Najer, Vladislav Artemiev, Rudik Makarian, Aleksey Grebnev, Andrey Esipenko, Daniil Dubov, Aleksey Dreev – 1.5
12. Artyom Timofeev – 0.5.

Round 4 pairings:

Najer – Timofeev, Ponkratov – Nesterov, Matlakov – Dreev, Dubov – Grishuk, Artemiev – Esipenko, Makarian – Grebnev.

The women’s round was very competitive with four out of six games decisive. Kateryna Lagno (above, left) defeated Valentina Gunina (above right). In the Caro-Kann Defence, White took space on the queenside, while Black looked for her chances in the middle and on the kingside. Shortly before the time control, sharp tactical complications ensued with Black committing the last mistake. Lagno won the game on move 44.

Leya Garifullina (above) outplayed Olga Karmanova as Black in the rook and knight ending, where she achieved a spatial edge. Leya advanced her central pawns far, gradually pushed her connected passers to the third rank and won.

Aleksandra Goryachkina (above) scored her first tournament victory by defeating Ekaterina Goltseva as White. In a complex, dynamic position shortly before the time control, Black went for a tactical complications and miscalculated, sustaining heavy material losses.

Polina Shuvalova, playing Black against Daria Charochkina (playing white above), made a tempting but risky sacrifice of a piece for two pawns and the initiative out of the opening. Daria carefully defended, gradually bringing her forces into the battle and exchanging the opponent’s active pieces. Compensation for the sacrificed piece proved insufficient, and eventually Charochkina gained a big advantage. Nevertheless, the struggle continued (a total of 115 moves were played), with both sides making inaccuracies: sometimes it seemed that White’s victory was just around the corner, and sometimes it seemed that Black would escape. Nevertheless, Daria managed to win in what was a long struggle full of drama.

The games Pogonina – Kovanova and Voit – Girya were drawn.

Tournament standings after Round 3:

1-2. Leya Garifullina, Kateryna Lagno – 2.5 points
3-4. Olga Girya, Aleksandra Goryachkina – 2
5-7. Daria Voit, Daria Charochkina, Natalija Pogonina – 1.5
8-11. Valentina Gunina, Baira Kovanova, Polina Shuvalova, Olga Karmanova – 1
12. Ekaterina Goltseva – 0.5.

Round 4 pairings:

Gunina – Shuvalova, Garifullina – Charochkina, Goltseva – Karmanova, Kovanova – Goryachkina, Girya – Pogonina, Lagno – Voit.

 

The Russian Championship Superfinals are played separately for men and women in a round robin system in 11 rounds with one rest day. Game days: August 17-22 and 24-28. All rounds start at 3 PM local time (11 AM Moscow time). In case of a tie for the 1st place, an additional competition will be held.

Five best players of the open event will qualify for the FIDE World Cup, while three best players of the women’s tournament will get the right to play in the FIDE Women’s World Cup.

The Superfinals are organised by the Chess Federation of Russia with support of the Russian Ministry of Sport and Timchenko Foundation in cooperation with the Government of the Altai Territory and the Chess Federation of the Altai Territory.

The CFR general partner is PhosAgro. The CFR partners are Aeroflot and Sima-land.

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