Chess with Errol

World champions compete in Chess blitz

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Last Thursday and Friday, former world chess champion Garry Kasparov opposed new US champion Fabiano Caruana, and the other two top finishers of the 2016 US championship, namely Wesley So and Hikaru Nakamura, in a sensational blitz contest. One year ago, Kasparov engaged British grandmaster and one time world title challenger Nigel Short in a similar contest and erased him by a 8.5 – 1.5 margin. Kasparov’s current contestants, however, are among the finest active blitz players in the business, and it would be interesting to witness the outcome.

20131103chessBlitz chess is fast and furious. Each player is allowed 5 minutes plus a 3-second delay on his timer. The game is won by checkmate, by resignation or by a loss of time. The blitz behemoths are playing for a prize fund of US$50,000. Kasparov plays chess anonymously on the internet. Did he overcome his opponents?

News coming to hand has specified the first day of the 18-round tournament has been completed. Day one ended with Nakumura and So taking the lead with 5.0/9. While the duo played well, the player of the day was Kasparov who played some scintillating games.

Taffin Khan (right) and Anthony Drayton, two of Guyana’s finest chess players, clashed in the recent ECI classical seven round chess competition. Drayton earned the title of FIDE Candidate Master at the Tromso, Norway, Chess Olympiad in 2014. It is therefore interesting for players to view the games of the two and witness some tested moves of pre-eminent grandmasters.
Taffin Khan (right) and Anthony Drayton, two of Guyana’s finest chess players, clashed in the recent ECI classical seven round chess competition. Drayton earned the title of FIDE Candidate Master at the Tromso, Norway, Chess Olympiad in 2014. It is therefore interesting for players to view the games of the two and witness some tested moves of pre-eminent grandmasters.

At the 2016 Stavanger Chess Tournament in Norway, world champion Magnus Carlsen leads. However, Armenian grandmaster Levon Aronian took a point away from Carlsen and is sitting beside the world champion on the points table with one round left to play. Carlsen has Eljanov as his final opponent while Aronian has Harikrishna. Carlsen defends his world championship chess title against Sergey Karjakin in November.

Chess games

The following games were played at Norway Chess Tournament in Stavanger. World champion

Magnus Carlsen leads. The tournament is ongoing.

White: Magnus Carlsen
Black: Vladimir Kramnik

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Bg5 c6 6.e3 Bf5 7.Qf3 Bg6 8.Bxf6 Qxf6 9.Qxf6 gxf6 10.Nf3 Nd7 11.Nh4 Be7 12.Ne2 Nb6 13.Ng3 Bb4+ 14.Kd1 Na4 15.Ngf5 Kd7 16.Rb1 Ke6 17.Bd3 Rhc8 18.Ke2 Bf8 19.g4 c5 20.Ng2 cxd4 21.exd4 Bd6 22.h4 h5 23.Ng7+ Ke7 24.gxh5 Bxd3+ 25.Kxd3 Kd7 26.Ne3 Nb6 27.Ng4 Rh8 28.Rhe1 Be7 29.Nf5 Bd8 30.h6 Rc8 31.b3 Rc6 32.Nge3 Bc7 33.Rbc1 Rxc1 34.Rxc1 Bf4 35.Rc5 Ke6 36.Ng7+ Kd6 37.Ng4 Nd7 38.Rc2 f5 39.Nxf5+ Ke6 40.Ng7+ Kd6 41.Re2 Kc6 42.Re8 Rxe8 43.Nxe8 Nf8 44.Ne5+ Bxe5 45.dxe5 Kd7 46.Nf6+ Ke6 47.h5 Kxe5 48.Nd7+ Nxd7 49.h7 Nc5+ 50.Ke2 1-0.

White: Anish Giri
Black: Pentala Harikrishna

 

Christ Church Secondary School student Nellisha Johnson (left), ponders as she decides on her next best move against University of Guyana graduate and the Ministry of Housing’s Shazeeda Rahim during the Engineering and Construction Incorporated (ECI) chess tournament. Nellisha resides in Orealla, some 60 miles up the Corentyne River and learnt chess in her village four years ago. She won the trophy for the Best Junior Female player in the ECI competition. (Chess photos by Ryan Singh)
Christ Church Secondary School student Nellisha Johnson (left), ponders as she decides on her next best move against University of Guyana graduate and the Ministry of Housing’s Shazeeda Rahim during the Engineering and Construction Incorporated (ECI) chess tournament. Nellisha resides in Orealla, some 60 miles up the Corentyne River and learnt chess in her village four years ago. She won the trophy for the Best Junior Female player in the ECI competition. (Chess photos by Ryan Singh)

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e5 Nfd7 5. f4 c5 6. Nf3 Be7 7. Be3 O-O 8. Qd2 b6 9. Nd1 a5 10. c3 a4 11. Bd3 Ba6 12. O-O Nc6 13. Bxa6 Rxa6 14. f5 b5 15. fxe6 fxe6 16. Qe2 Qb6 17. Nf2 a3 18. b3 b4 19. dxc5 Bxc5 20. Bxc5 Nxc5 21. c4 Ne4 22. cxd5 exd5 23. e6 Ne7 24. Kh1 Nc3 25. Qd3 h6 26. Nd1 Qb5 27. Qxb5 Nxb5 28. Nf2 Rxe6 29. Nd3 Nc6 30. Rfc1 Nc3 31. Nxb4 Nxb4 32. Rxc3 Re2 33. Rc7 Ra8 34. Nd4 Rxa2 35. Rf1 Rd2 36. h3 a2 0-1.

White: Levon Aronian
Black: Pavel Eljanov

20160501chess1. c4 e6 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 dxc4 4. Qa4+ Nd7 5. Qxc4 c5 6. Nc3 Ngf6 7. d3 Be7 8. Nf3 b6 9. Ng5 Rb8 10. O-O Bb7 11. Bf4 Bxg2 12. Kxg2 Rb7 13. Nf3 O-O 14. e4 Qa8 15. a4 Rd8 16. Nb5 Qc8 17. Rac1 Nf8 18. d4 Ng6 19. Bg5 a6 20. Nc3 b5 21. axb5 axb5 22. Qe2 c4 23. Rfd1 h6 24. Bxf6 Bxf6 25. h4 Qb8 26. Ra1 Be7 27. h5 Nf8 28. Ne5 Rc8 29. Ra6 Rb6 30. Rxb6 Qxb6 31. Qf3 f6 32. Ng6 Nxg6 33. hxg6 b4 34. Ne2 Qd6 35. d5 e5 36. g4 Bf8 37. Qf5 Ra8 38. Rc1 Qa6 39. Ng3 Kh8 40. Qe6 Qa2 41. Nf5 c3 42. Rh1 Qa7 43. d6 Qb7 44. d7 Qxe4+ 45. f3 1-0.

White: Vladimir Kramnik
Black: Levon Aronian

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 a6 6. O-O d6 7. a4 Ba7 8. Re1 Ne7 9. d4 O-O 10. h3 Ng6 11. Bd3 Re8 12. Qc2 Bd7 13. Be3 d5 14. Nbd2 exd4 15. cxd4 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Bc6 17. Bg5 Bxe4 18. Bxe4 c6 19. Qb3 Qb6 20. Qxb6 Bxb6 21. Bxf6 gxf6 22. a5 Ba7 23. d5 Rab8 24. Rad1 Bc5 25. Bxg6 Rxe1+ 26. Rxe1 hxg6 27. Rc1 Bb4 28. dxc6 Bxa5 29. Ra1 Bc7 30. cxb7 Rxb7 31. Rxa6 Rxb2 32. Ne1 Bb6 33. Nd3 Rb1+ 34. Kh2 Rb3 35. Nc1 Rb2 36. Nd3 Rb3 37. Nc1 Rb2 1/2-1/2.

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