Year in chess begins with impressive programme

The World Chess Federation has begun its 2016 calendar of events with an impressive programme. Tournament chess is being contested lavishly worldwide, and therefore, it is practically impossible to report on each current event. The column, therefore, follows the world champion and top ten players, development of third world chess, startling chess finds, players who demonstrate abundant chess promise and so on. Local chess is publicized whenever something, anything, occurs.

20131103chessWorld champion Magnus Carlsen and a few of the world’s top ten players, are currently playing the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk-aan-Zee which concludes today. The 14 participants, including a woman Chinese grandmaster, have treated the public to a sumptuous feast of delectable chess games. In one such game — Michael Adams vs Sergey Karjakin — the English grandmaster played the black pieces with dexterity to outdo his Russian counterpart.

Carlsen is leading the tournament with a half point advantage. Fabiano Caruana is hard on his heels with three rounds remaining to be played.

Participating in the 2016 Tradewise Gibraltar Masters Chess Tournament is the untitled player Xu Xianghu, 16, ranked No 34 in China. The tournament boasts 250 participants starring former world champion Vishy Anand, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and last year’s winner Hikaru Nakamura. Xu, ranked 74th in the line-up of participants, drew his first game and is considered another one of China’s chess grandmasters-in-waiting.
Participating in the 2016 Tradewise Gibraltar Masters Chess Tournament is the untitled player Xu Xianghu, 16, ranked No 34 in China. The tournament boasts 250 participants starring former world champion Vishy Anand, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and last year’s winner Hikaru Nakamura. Xu, ranked 74th in the line-up of participants, drew his first game and is considered another one of China’s chess grandmasters-in-waiting.

In Gibraltar, we have former world champion Vishy Anand competing with US grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, France’s highest ranked player Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and 250 competitors from around the world at the Tradewise Gibraltar Masters Tournament. Similar to 2015, the two tournaments which have been mentioned, boast impressive paydays.

The Guyana Chess Federation is off to a grand beginning for its programme of activities for 2016 with a Trophy Stall seven round Swiss system chess tournament which began yesterday at the National Racquet Centre, Woolford Avenue, opposite the Government Technical Institute. Two rounds will be contested today starting from 9.30 am. The time factor is 90 minutes per player to complete the game.

White: Sergey Karjakin

Black: Michael Adams

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 d5 3. e3 e6 4. Nf3 c5 5. c3 Nc6 6. Nbd2 Bd6 7. Bg3 O-O 8. Bd3 b6 9. Ne5 Bb7 10. f4 Ne7 11. Qf3 Nf5 12. Bf2 Be7 13. g4 Nd6 14. g5 Nfe4 15. O-O-O c4 16. Bc2 b5 17. Qh3 b4 18. Nxe4 dxe4 19. Be1 Bd5 20. Rg1 b3 21. axb3 cxb3 22. Bb1 f5 23. gxf6 Bxf6 24. Rg4 Nf5 25. Kd2 Qa5 26. Ke2 Bxe5 27. dxe5 Rad8 28. Kf2 Qa1 29. Bd2 Bc4 30. Qh5 Qxb2 31. Ke1 Rxd2 0-1.

Flashback to 2010: Tournament Director of the Guyana Chess Federation and currently its President, Irshad Mohammed, is seen here at left receiving the cash and trophies from owner of the Trophy Stall Ramesh Sunich in 2010. Since chess restarted its engines in 2007, Sunich has been a principal supporter of the elegant brain game. The Trophy Stall chess tournament for 2016 continues today from 9.30 am at the National Racquet Centre in Woolford Avenue opposite the Government Technical Institute
Flashback to 2010: Tournament Director of the Guyana Chess Federation and currently its President, Irshad Mohammed, is seen here at left receiving the cash and trophies from owner of the Trophy Stall Ramesh Sunich in 2010. Since chess restarted its engines in 2007, Sunich has been a principal supporter of the elegant brain game. The Trophy Stall chess tournament for 2016 continues today from 9.30 am at the National Racquet Centre in Woolford Avenue opposite the Government Technical Institute

Chess games

The games listed hereunder were played at the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk-aan-Zee, Holland. The tournament featured the world chess champion and a few top ten players. It ends today.

White: Wei Yi
Black: David Navara

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. Nbd2
O-O 7. Nc4 Nd7 8. Qe2 Re8 9. Bd2 Bd6 10. h4 c5 11. h5 h6
12. O-O-O Nb8 13. Rdg1 Nc6 14. g4 f6 15. g5 fxg5 16. Nxg5 Nd4
17. Qd1 hxg5 18. Bxg5 Be7 19. Be3 Bf6 20. h6 Re7 21. hxg7 Rxg7
22. Qh5 Be6 23. Bh6 Bf7 24. Bxg7 Bxh5 25. Bxf6+ Kf8 26. Bxd8
Ne2+ 27. Kb1 Nxg1 28. Bxc7 1-0.

White: Evgeny Tomashevsky
Black: Yifan Hou

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 c5
7. O-O cxd4 8. exd4 dxc4 9. Bxc4 b6 10. Bg5 Bb7 11. Qe2 Bxc3
12. bxc3 Nbd7 13. Nd2 Qc7 14. Rac1 Nd5 15. f3 e5 16. Rfe1 Rae8
17. Bxd5 Bxd5 18. c4 Bb7 19. d5 f5 20. Be3 Rc8 21. a4 a5
22. Qd3 Rf6 23. Qa3 Ba6 24. Bf2 Rh6 25. h3 Rg6 26. Qe7 h5
27. h4 Qd8 28. Qxd8+ Rxd8 29. Kh2 Kf7 30. Rc3 Re8 31. Bg3 Nc5
32. Rxe5 Rxe5 33. Bxe5 Nxa4 34. Ra3 Nc5 35. Bd4 Nd7 36. Kg1
Rh6 37. Kf2 Rh8 38. Re3 Rc8 39. d6 Re8 40. Rxe8 Kxe8 41. Bxg7
Kf7 42. Bb2 f4 43. Ke2 b5 44. cxb5 Bxb5+ 45. Kd1 Ke6 46. Ne4
Nb6 47. Bc1 1/2-1/2.

20160131chessWhite: Magnus Carlsen
Black: Michael Adams

1.e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O d6 5. c3 Nf6 6. d3 h6 7. a4 a5 8. Na3 O-O 9. Nc2 Re8 10. Re1 Ba7 11. Be3 Be6 12. Bb5 Bd7 13. Bxa7 Nxa7 14. Bc4 Be6 15. Bxe6 Rxe6 16. Ne3 Nc8 17. Nf5 Ne7 18. d4 exd4 19. N3xd4 Re5 20. Ng3 Ng6 21. Qc2 c6 22. Rad1 Qc7 23. Ndf5 Rd8 24. Qd2 Kh7 25. f4 Qb6+ 26. Kh1 Ree8 27. h3 Rd7 28. Nxd6 Rxd6 29. Qxd6 Qf2 30. Qd3 Nxf4 31. Qf3 Nxh3 32. Re2 Qxf3 33. gxf3 Ng5 34. Kg2 Ne6 35. Red2 g6 36. Nf1 h5 37. Ne3 h4 38. Nc4 g5 39. Nxa5 g4 40. Nxb7 g3 41. Nd6 Rg8 42. Nf5 Nf4+ 43. Kh1 h3 44. a5 N6h5 45. a6 Ne6 46. a7 Ra8 47. Ra1 Ng5 48. Nh4 Nf4 49. b4 g2+ 50. Nxg2 hxg2+ 51. Rxg2 Nxg2 52. Kxg2 Ne6 53. c4 Nc7 54. Kg3 Kg6 55. Kf4 Kf6 56. e5+ Ke7 57. Ke4 f6 58. f4 fxe5 59. Kxe5 Ne8 60. f5 Nd6 61. f6+ Kd7 62. Rd1 Re8+ 63. Kd4 Kc7 64. Re1 Nf5+ 65. Kc3 Ra8 66. f7 1-0.

White: Yifan Hou
Black: Loek van Wely

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be3 e6
7. g4 h6 8. Qf3 Nbd7 9. Qg2 g5 10. O-O-O Ne5 11. Be2 b5 12. h4
Rg8 13. hxg5 hxg5 14. Nf3 Nexg4 15. Bd4 Bb7 16. Ne1 b4
17. Bxg4 bxc3 18. Bxc3 Rc8 19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. Nd3 Qd4 21. f3
Bg7 22. Kb1 Ke7 23. Qd2 Bf6 24. Rh6 Qb6 25. a3 a5 26. Qh2 Bg7
27. Rh5 Ba6 28. Qd2 Bc3 29. Qc1 Bd4 30. Qd2 Bxd3 31. cxd3 Rc3
32. Rh2 Rxa3 33. Qc1 Rb8 34. Rc2 Rb3 35. Rdd2 Be3 36. Qd1 Bxd2
37. Qxd2 Qg1+ 38. Qc1 Qxc1+ 39. Kxc1 R8b7 40. d4 a4 41. Bh5
R3b4 42. d5 exd5 43. exd5 Rd4 0-1.