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Weissenhaus Freestyle G.O.A.T. Challenge SF: Caruana wins a thrilling tie-break to set up a clash with Carlsen

15/02/2024 -

Magnus Carlsen (NOR) drew against Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB) to advance to the Finals of WEISSENHAUS Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge. He will face Fabiano Caruana (USA). Caruana won the must-win second game against Levon Aronian (USA) to force tie-breaks. After trading wins in both Rapid and Blitz tie-breaks, Caruana won the sudden death Blitz game to make a fantastic comeback. His first win against the two-time World Cup winner, is undoubtedly the best game of the day. Speaking of comebacks, Gukesh also won a must-win second game against Vincent Keymer (GER). He won the first Rapid tie-break game and drew the next. The teenager will face Alireza Firouzja (FRA) for 5th-6th place match. Finals and 5th - 8th place game 1 starts today at 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. All photos are by Amruta Mokal unless stated otherwise.

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Kunal M conquers CMI Tessellate Rapid Rating Open 2024

14/02/2024 -

Kunal M scored an unbeaten 8.5/9 to win CMI Tessellate Rapid Rating Open 2024. He finished a half point ahead of the field. 11-year-old Sai Abhinav Kuchibhotla scored 8/9 to secure second place. He also remained undefeated. Four players - Joel E, Aadith R, Shravan Sriram and Mohit S scored 7.5/9 each. They were placed third to sixth respectively according to tie-breaks. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹200000. The top three prizes were ₹25000 + trophy, ₹20000 and ₹16000 each. The two-day rapid rating tournament was organized by Lotus Chess Academy and SVA Champions on 26th and 27th January 2024 at Chennai Mathematical Institute in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Kunal won the first rating tournament he played in 2024. Photos: V Rajaraman/Lotus Chess Academy

Bangkok Chess Club invites you to 21st BCC Open 2024

14/02/2024 -

The 21st Bangkok Chess Club Open will take place in Hua Hin, Thailand from 13th to 21st April 2024. The first prize in Open group is 100000 Baht. Top ten and five best players from Thailand Chess Association prizes are there. The op five in the Challengers (Below 2000) will receive a prize each. That's not all, there is a Blitz event on 16th and 17th April which is played in two stages. Join this tournament where utmost care is given to the playing conditions. 11 GMs, 7 IMs and 2 WGMs have already confirmed their participation. The tournament takes place during Songkran festival. So you can enjoy the fantastic tournament along with experiencing the most special festival of Thailand. FM FT IA Peter Long writes about this event. Photo: Bangkok Chess Club

Weissenhaus Freestyle G.O.A.T. Challenge SF: Carlsen grabs full point using 'Grob'

14/02/2024 -

Magnus Carlsen (NOR) played Grob to beat Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB) in the first game of the Semifinals at WEISSENHAUS Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge. How are we calling it a Grob if Chess960 does not have any theory? Well the world no.1 himself wrote it on the scoresheet. He also explained in a post-game interview, why he decided to play 1.g4. Levon Aronian (USA) avenged his Playoff loss against Fabiano Caruana (USA) in what seemed like a game of conventional chess. Caruana's knight got stuck for the better part of the game and he was virtually piece down. Both Abdusattorov and Caruana must win the second game today to force tie-breaks and keep their chances to make it to the Finals. Semifinals game 2 starts today at 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photos: Nils Rohde/ChessBase

Senthil Maran wins 1st Battle Field Rapid Rating Open 2024

13/02/2024 -

FM Senthil Maran K, IM Murali Krishnan B T and WFM Jyothsna L scored an unbeaten 8/9 each at 1st Battle Field Rapid Rating Open 2024. Senthil won the tournament on tie-breaks. Murali and Jyothsna were placed second and third respectively. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹200000. The top three prizes were ₹25000, ₹20000 and ₹16000 along with a trophy each. The two-day rapid rating tournament was organized by Battle Field Chess Academy on 26th and 27th January 2024 at Knowledge Institute of Technology in Salem, Tamil Nadu. This is the second rating tournament Senthil played in 2024 and he won it without losing a single game. Photos: IA Dr. Sathiesh G G

Weissenhaus Freestyle G.O.A.T. Challenge QF: Carlsen beats Firouzja three times to advance to the Semifinals

13/02/2024 -

Magnus Carlsen (NOR) won the must-win second game of the Quarterfinals at WEISSENHAUS Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge. The win forced Rapid tie-breaks. The first tie-break game was heading towards a draw. However, Firouzja blundered in the final moments and lost. In the second tie-break game, Firouzja made a strange start 1...h6, 2...Bh7. It was clear that the loss of previous game affected him badly. The world no.1 won the game with ease to advance to the Semifinal and set a clash against Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB). Levon Aronian (USA) made a quick work of Vincent Keymer (GER) in 20 moves to secure his place in the Semifinals. He will face Fabiano Caruana (USA). Semifinals game 1 starts today at 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photos: Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal

Bharath Subramaniyam H perfect at 7th BBCF Rapid Rating Open 2024

12/02/2024 -

GM Bharath Subramaniyam H scored a perfect 9/9 to win 7th BBCF Rapid Rating Open 2024. He finished a half point ahead of the field. Western Asian Junior 2023 Gold and Silver medalist, IM Harshavardhan G B secured sole second place 8.5/9. Four players - IM Srihari L R, Rohit S, Jaivant R and Sridhar C S scored 8/9 each. They were placed third to sixth according to tie-breaks. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹250000. The top three prizes were ₹25000, ₹15000 and ₹12000 along with a trophy each. The one-day rapid rating tournament was organized by Brains Behind Chess Foundation on 3rd February 2024 at Saveetha Dental College and Hospital in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. This is the first tournament Bharath played in 2024 after making a fantastic debut at the World Rapid and Blitz 2023. Photo: Balaji S

Weissenhaus Freestyle G.O.A.T. Challenge QF: Advantage for Abdusattorov, Firouzja and Caruana

12/02/2024 -

Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB), Alireza Firouzja (FRA) and Fabiano Caruana (USA) won their first game of the Quarterfinals at WEISSENHAUS Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge. Abdusattorov once again defeated the classical world champion, Ding Liren (CHN) with the white pieces. The world no.1 Carlsen once again misplayed in the endgame. All three losses of him at this event occurred due to erroneous play in the endgame. Gukesh had advantage against Caruana until he made some strange decisions which went in the world no.2's favor. Liren, Carlsen and Gukesh must win the second game to force tie-breaks. Quarterfinals game 2 starts today at 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photos: Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal

Vyom Malhotra wins 1st SOA Category C Below 1600 Rating Tournament 2024

11/02/2024 -

Vyom Malhotra, Ishan Sinha, Aarit Kapil and Srujan Pranayee Ray scored 8/9 each at 1st SOA International GM Chess Festival Category C Below 1600 Rating Tournament 2024. 10-year-old Vyom won the tournament due to better tie-breaks. The remaining three were placed second to fourth according to tie-breaks. Vyom defeated the sole leader Ishan in the final round to become the champion. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹750000. The top three prizes were ₹75000, ₹50000 and ₹40000 along with a trophy each respectively. The Asian School Under-9 2023 Gold and double Silver medalist, Vyon won his first non-age group rating tournament. The four-day eight round Rating tournament was organized by All Odisha Chess Association at SOA Campus 2 in Bhubaneswar, Odisha from 1st to 4th February 2024. Photos: IA R Anantharam

Weissenhaus Freestyle G.O.A.T. Challenge R5-7: Abdusattorov dominates the Playoffs

11/02/2024 -

Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB) scored an unbeaten 5.5/7 to win the Rapid Playoffs of WEISSENHAUS Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge. He won the Playoffs in an amazin way as he defeated the world no.1, Magnus Carlsen (NOR) in the seventh round. The former World Rapid champion is the only player to remain undefeated in the round-robin event. He will face the reigning world champion, Ding Liren (CHN) in the Quarterfinals. Liren suffered two more losses, before sharing the point with Alireza Firouzja (FRA). Gukesh lost all his games on the second day. He will be up against Fabiano Caruana in the QF. The remaining two matches in the Knockout stage will be - Vincent Keymer (GER) vs Levon Aronian (USA) and Firouzja vs Carlsen. Quarterfinals game 1 starts today at 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photos: Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal

Ojasva Singh prevails at 2nd AFCA Rapid Rating Open 2024

10/02/2024 -

FM Ojasva Singh, FM Aaryan Varshney and Yatin Kumar scored 8/9 each at 2nd AFCA Rapid Rating Open 2024. Ojasva won the tournament due to better tie-breaks. Aaryan and Yating were placed second and third respectively. Both Ojasva and Aaryan remained undefeated. Ojasva defeated the top seed of the event, IM Aaditya Dhingra in the penultimate round. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹400000. The top three prizes were ₹40000, ₹30000 and ₹20000 along with a trophy each. The two-day rapid rating tournament was organized by All Faridabad Chess Association and Prominent Chess Academy on 26th and 27th January 2024 at Amrita Hospital in Faridabad, Haryana. This is Ojasva's first tournament triumph of the year. Photos: Alka Chhikara

Weissenhaus Freestyle G.O.A.T. Challenge R1-4: Gukesh beats Carlsen, Aronian and Liren to make a dream start

10/02/2024 -

D Gukesh has done something which many can only dream about. He defeated the world no.1 Magnus Carlsen (NOR) and the reigning world champion, Ding Liren (CHN), hours apart on the first day of WEISSENHAUS Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge. Not only that, he also won against the only two-time World Cup winner in history - Levon Aronian (USA). Gukesh's win over Carlsen was undoubtedly the most exciting game of the day. He finished the day by outplaying Liren after the latter accepted an exchange sacrifice. Germany no.1 Vincent Keymer has emerged sole leader 3.5/4. He is closely followed by Gukesh and Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB) at 3/4 each. Round 5 starts today from 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photos: Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal

Ding Liren in Hamburg

09/02/2024 -

To the surprise of everyone he won the 2023 World Championship in Astana, but then disappeared from public view. Ding Liren played just a very few games – until the Tata Steel tournament in Wijk ann Zee. There he did not do well at all. We invited him, like so many others, to come to Hamburg to do a refresher course in the use of the ChessBase software, which he did. Frederic Friedel reports. Photos ©Nils Rohde/ChessBase

Harshit Raja shares first place at 56th Liberty Bell Open 2024

09/02/2024 -

IM Alexander Ross Katz (USA), GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez (USA), GM Harshit Raja, GM Mackenzie Molner (USA) and Quan Tran (USA) scored 5.5/7 each at 56th Liberty Bell Open (Major >1900) 2024. All five players shared the first prize. Harshit's sole loss was against Katz. He defeated Quan in the fifth and drew against Fidel in the final round. The total prize fund of the tournament was US$ 25000. The top three prizes were $2500, $1500 and $1000 each. The top five received $1340 each with Alexander receiving more as a first place bonus prize after tie-breaks. This is Harshit's second consecutive triumph after winning Pan-American Intercollegiate Team Championship 2024 for University of Missouri earlier in January.

Gukesh to battle Carlsen and world's best at Weissenhaus Freestyle G.O.A.T. Challenge

09/02/2024 -

A new super tournaments starts in Hamburg, Germany today. But this is not just any other super tournament. This event is introduced by none other than the World no.1 Magnus Carlsen himself. It will not be played in conventional chess rules. It will be in Fischer-Random format or as the World no.1 likes to say, Freestyle. Hence, the name WEISSENHAUS Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge. Carlsen's handpicked opponents for this eight-player tournament are - Fabiano Caruana (USA), Ding Liren (CHN), Alireza Firouzja (FRA), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB), D Gukesh, Vincent Keymer (GER) and Levon Aronian (USA). There will be four rounds of Rapid games played today in Playoffs. Gukesh will face Carlsen in the second round. Round 1 starts today from 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photos: Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal

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