Anand vs Kasparov

The two legends – finally playing each other. #GrandChessTour2017

Images: Twitter

Anand vs Kasparov

Kasparov vs Nakamura

Anand vs Kasparov  1/2-1/2

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Sinquefield Cup Chess 2015

SaintLouis ChessClub ‏@CCSCSL 12m12 minutes ago

Nakamura seems lost: a quick Bf2 will be hard to deal with, his King on g5 is too weak. #SinquefieldCup @GrandChessTour

Source: Please click here to read the article on the site of ‘Business Insider.’

The Sinquefield Cup Chess Tournament is on at the moment in St Louis and I’ve been following some of the games and thought it was high time to blog about a ‘big’ tournament again. The images above are from twitter The link below is game 7 where Anand is playing against Wesley So. You can see the moves up to move 11 by Anand.
Please click HERE to follow the game live.
1 e4 e5
2 Nf3 Nc6
3 Bb5 Nf6
4 d3 Bc5
5 Bxc6 dxc6
6 Nbd2 O-O
7 O-O Re8
8 Nc4 Nd7
9 b3 a5
10 a4 f6
11 Be3 Bb4
12 Rc1 b5

Chess Sinquefield Cup round 7 Anand vs Wesley So

Round 7 – Aronian and Nakamura

Round 7 – Magnus vs Grischuk

Round 7 – Caruana vs Vachier Lagrave

Magnus Carlsen on his way to the playing venue – photo: @CCSCSL   SaintLouisChessClub

The rest of the schedule:

30-Aug	Sunday	1:00 PM	Round 7	Chess Club
31-Aug	Monday	1:00 PM	Round 8	Chess Club
1-Sep	Tuesday	1:00 PM	Round 9	Chess Club
2-Sep	Wednesday	12:00 PM	Playoff

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At the classics – 2012

image-www.hbf.lv

Images: Official site of London Classic/Ray Morris-Hill

Players left  to r: Luke McShane, Hikaru Nakamura, Mickey Adams, Vladimir Kramnik, Viswanathan Anand, Malcolm Pein Tournament Director, Magnus Carlsen, Judit Polgar, Levon Aronian and Gawain Jones

Jason Kouchak – during the Opening Ceremony of the London Classic 2012

Jason Kouchak is a widely-acclaimed concert pianist who plays popular music and jazz as well as classical music. Jason was born in France and studied piano at the Royal College of Music in London, and at Edinburgh University. He has performed in major concert halls in London, Paris, St Petersburg and other venues in Europe and Asia. He has recorded five albums, including his own compositions, and appeared on BBC TV and the Japanese NHK channel. He has made regular guest appearances with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and recorded and performed with Julian Lloyd-Webber. Jason’s tastes and talents underline the long-established link between chess and music. He is a committed and enthusiastic competition chess player, and played in the 2011 London Classic Open and 2009 Gibraltar tournaments as well as in other domestic chess competitions. Visit his site: Jasonkouchak.com 

http://www.londonchessclassic.com/special_events.htm

Anand Images: raymorris-hill.smugmug

It’s the London Chess Classic – again! It started today and I hope to attend it next Saturday, as my favourite – Anand is playing. The link of the official site is on the side bar – with the logo of the London Classic. Today’s games started with a small opening ceremony. There were a couple of musicians to entertain the group of spectators in the auditorium. Chess is free at the classics for children! On this  LINK you can read my entry about the classics in 2009. You can see my photos of the 2009 event. For the 2011 classics I had tickets, but unfortunately fell ill and couldn’t go. How sad.

This is a ‘cento‘ which I wrote a little while ago, by using Shakespeare lines.  A ‘cento’ is a poem written by using lines or passages of other authors in a new form or order. I used different plays of Shakespeare where he quoted something about the game of chess.

A Game of Chess
Sweet lord, you play me false
For a score of kingdoms you should wrangle
and I would call it fair play
How fares the king?
His hour is almost past

A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!
And I have horse – will follow where the game makes way.
I have his horse!
Give me another horse!
So, the good horse is mine.
My day’s delight is past, my horse is gone.
The rascal hath removed my horse.

Are the knights ready to begin their triumph?
A wandering knight?
I am undone! The knight is here!
Great shouts within all cry ‘the mean knight!’
Great is the humour of this dreadful knight.

I dare thereupon pawn
My life I never held but as a pawn
I have not pawn’d to you my majesty?
I pawn’d thee none!
I’ll send some bishop to entreat
The bishop will be overborne by thee
Wat says my bully rook?

There stands my castle!
His queen, it was his queen!
Queen of queens, how far dost thou excel?
Come hither, come! Come, come, and take a queen
Sir your queen must overboard!
Will take your queen
Farewell sweet queen!

I’ll move the king.
The skipping king, he ambles up and down
This may gall him for some check
No mates for you!
We’ll draw!
My lord, your son drew my master
Where’s the master? Play the men!
Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown 

Enjoy a some classical music – Haydn’s symphony nr 101 in D – the clock part 3- one of many favourites and Villar Rides.  Unfortunately, not the whole track, but at least 3/4 of the track.

Another to enjoy

Villa Rides

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Anand – Champion of the Chess World!

Anand – Photo: CNN-IBN News [Twitter]

Tie break: Gelfand vs Anand: 1 1/2 – 2 1/2

These are some of the Tweets  from Twitter about Anand retaining his title – for the 5th time – as World Chess Champion.

Update: 4/6/2012 – Pogonina on Twitter

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World War – India vs Israel

Anand and Gelfand – image: chessdom

Image data: chessbase

It’s again time for the FIDE World Chess Championship – this time Anand vs Gelfand at the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. Follow the link of the official site to read more.The prize fund is 2.55 million US Dollars. The winner gets $1,530,000 (60%) and the loser $1,020,000 (40%)
Chess FIDE Moscow
Anand vs Gelfand –  Official site here.

The World Chess Championship 2012 is a match between the current world champion Viswanathan Anand of India and Boris Gelfand of Israel, winner of the Candidates tournament. The match started on 10 May and is expected to end on 30 May 2012. It is played in the Engineering Building of the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, Russia and will determine the World Chess Champion. The match is held under the auspices of FIDE, the World Chess Federation. The prize fund is 2.55 million US Dollars.

The defending champion is Anand, having held the title since 2007. He last defended his title by winning the World Chess Championship 2010 against Veselin Topalov. The challenger is Gelfand, who won the tournament of eight-player Candidate Matches.- Wikipedia

Schedule – game 3-12

Image: Tretyakov-Gallery

Tretyakov-Gallery – Image:
http://moscow2012.fide.com/en/venue

The Venue

The State Tretyakov Gallery is the national treasury of the Russian fine art and one of the greatest museums in the world. Founded in 1856 by the Moscovite merchant Pavel Tretyakov, the Gallery was donated to the city of Moscow in 1892. Throughout the years, the Tretyakov Gallery developed into not only an immense museum known around the world, but also an important research center engaged in the preservation, restoration and study of its treasures, as well as raising public awareness of them. Today, the Tretyakov Gallery is home to over 170,000 works of art.

The Tretyakov Gallery Engineering Wing which will host the match is designed for large exhibitions, conferences and other cultural events. Source: chessbase

Anand vs Gelfand 1/2 – game 1

[Event “Anand-Gelfand World Chess Championship”]
[Site “Moscow RUS”]
[Date “2012.05.11”]
[EventDate “2012.05.10”]
[Round “1”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[White “Viswanathan Anand”]
[Black “Boris Gelfand”]
[ECO “D85”]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Nf3 c5 8.Bb5+ Nc6 9.d5 Qa5 10.Rb1 a6 11.Bxc6+ bxc6 12.O-O Qxa2 13.Rb2 Qa5 14.d6 Ra7 15.Bg5 exd6 16.Qxd6 Rd7 17.Qxc6 Qc7 18.Qxc7 Rxc7 19.Bf4 Rb7 20.Rc2 O-O 21.Bd6 Re8 22.Nd2 f5 23.f3 fxe4 24.Nxe4 Bf5 1/2-1/2

Gelfand vs Anand: Game 2: 1/2-1/2

Anand vs Gelfand Game 3 – 1/2-1/2

Anand vs Gelfand game 3 – photo: Indianews

Gelfand vs Anand – Game 4 – 1/2-1/2

Anand vs Gelfand – Game 5 – 1/2-1/2

Gelfand vs Anand Game 6 – 1/2-1/2

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Nf3 a6 6.Qc2 c5 7.cxd5 exd5
8.Be2 Be6 9.O-O Nc6 10.Rd1 cxd4 11.Nxd4 Nxd4 12.Rxd4 Bc5 13.Rd1
Qe7 14.Bf3 O-O 15.Nxd5 Bxd5 16.Bxd5 Nxd5 17.Rxd5 Rac8 18.Bd2 Bxe3 19.Bc3 Bb620.Qf5 Qe6 21.Qf3 f6 22.h4 Qc6 23.h5 Rfd8 24.Rxd8+ Rxd8 25.Qxc6 bxc6 26.Re1 Kf7 27.g4 Bd4 28.Rc1 Bxc3 29.Rxc3 Rd4 1/2-1/2

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León Chess 2011

Please click HERE for the official website.

Vishy Anand, current World Champion and seven times winner of the Magistral, comes back to Leon to face the strongest Spanish player, Alexei Shirov, on the 24th edition. This tournament is already a classic, one of the most prestigious in the chess calendar.

Anand and Shirov will play in Leon with a large audio-visual setting that will allow the public to “see the chess stars thinking”, thanks to big screens and live audio comments (by GM Illescas, eight times Spanish champion) and IM Michael Rahal.

The rules, written by the prestigious arbiter Joaquin Espejo, indicate that Anand and Shirov will play six games (Friday to Sunday, two per day) with 45 minutes per side plus Thirty seconds increment after each move in the magnificent León Auditorium. If needed, there will eventually be a tie-break of several five minute games.

SCHEDULE
Thursday, June 2nd
PLAYERS ARRIVAL – 20.00 Drawing of lots, CONDE LUNA HOTEL.
Friday, June 3rd
GAMES 1 AND 2 (16.30), LEON AUDITORIUM.
Saturday, June 4th
GAMES 3 AND 4 (16.30), LEON AUDITORIUM.
Sunday, June 5th
GAMES 5 and 6 (16.30) and, eventually, tie-breaks, LEON AUDITORIUM.
Monday, June 6th – Prize giving 14:30
Simuls (17.30), LEON UNIVERSITY.

Game 1 Anand vs Shirov:1/2

Game 2- Anand vs Shirov : 1-0
Click HERE to play through their games.

Game 3 – Anand vs Shirov 1-0

Game 4 Anand vs Shirov – 1/2

Game 5- Anand vs Shirov

Game 5 – Anand vs Shirov 1/2

I love this next picture which I put together in Fireworks – it is a combination of about 10 different images.

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Can we settle this now once and for all

Image:Weg.co.za – Anyone for some chess?

 

Magnus Carlsen: Chess is like physical sport

Magnus Carlsen, the highest-ranking chess player in the world, is in London for a tournament which will choose the player to challenge the reigning world champion, the Indian Viswanathan Anand.

On a rest day in the tournament, Magnus Carlsen spoke to the BBC’s Tim Franks, and outlined the similarities between chess and physical sports.

He said: “I think there are many elements of sport in chess. We prepare very seriously for the games, the main objective is winning, the players prepare physically as well as mentally, and it’s very tough – you get seriously tired playing long games.”

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Tuesday 19 March 2013.  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-21840944/magnus-carlsen-chess-is-like-physical-sport

https://sports.ndtv.com/chess/videos/why-fitness-is-important-in-chess-250573

Anand stressed it out to be fit when you play chess.

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I’m in

Here’s the evidence: Two adult tickets – 11th December 2010. Anand, the moment of truth…and yes, this will be my second too. Watch this space for the photos…[click the image for a larger view] Anand is my favourite and I do look forward to seeing him in action. Edit: Sadly, I couldn’t attend the event due to illness!

Viswanathan Anand became the undisputed world chess champion in 2007 and has since defended the title twice in matches with Vladimir Kramnik in 2008 and Veselin Topalov in 2010. In an age when more and more players are playing professional chess, with infinitely more sophisticated training resources and information available to them, his achievement in defending the top spot from all comers is as impressive as any of the successes of his championship predecessors.

Vishy, as he is affectionately known to colleagues and fans, is a hero in his native India, putting him on a par with the nation’s top cricketers. From Tamil Nadu, he was taught the game by his mother when he was six and made rapid progress. His intuitive sight of the board and super-fast speed on the move marked him out as a future champion from his mid-teens. He became national champion in 1985, world junior champion in 1987 and a grandmaster in 1988.

Anand joined the chess super-elite in the early 1990s and he qualified to play Garry Kasparov in the PCA World Championship of 1995. Against all the odds he took the lead in the match in the ninth game but eventually ran out the loser by 7½-10½. Vishy pursued the FIDE version of the title and had a near miss in 1999 against Anatoly Karpov despite some unfortunate tournament scheduling which required him to play the final match immediately after a gruelling qualification event. In 2000 he won the FIDE version of the title in Tehran and held it until 2002.

Following the reunification of the chess world championship in 2006, Anand won a world championship match-tournament in 2007 ahead of the reigning world champion Vladimir Kramnik. Though the latter graciously ceded all claim on the title to his rival, many purists amongst pundits and fans longed to see the championship decided under traditional matchplay rules. Their wish was granted in 2008 when Anand and Kramnik played a match in Bonn. The Indian made no mistake, defeating his Russian opponent fair and square, and thus becoming only the second world champion ever to have won the world title in both tournament and match formats. Anand duly defended his title in a match in 2010 against world number two Veselin Topalov, on his opponent’s home ground in Bulgaria. His next challenge is due in 2012, when it is hoped that the match will be played in London.

Some past world champions have become known to the general public for their off-board eccentricities and personal rivalries but not so Viswanathan Anand. Throughout his career he has shown himself to be the perfect Indian gentleman who dispels attempts to provoke or upset him with a disarming smile. Indeed, one of the major difficulties facing his rivals is that he is simply impossible to dislike! For example, when preparing for his 2010 world title match, his behind-the-scenes assistants included the previous champion Vladimir Kramnik, whom Anand had defeated two years earlier, and Magnus Carlsen. With the charm of Capablanca, the industriousness of Botvinnik and the natural talent of Kasparov, Anand will be a hard man to beat in London in 2010. He lives in Spain with his wife Aruna, who is also his manager.
Please click HERE for the Official site and to read about the other players.
The Players:

Chess is Free for Children at the London Classic 2010 [Read on the link of the Official site more about it – on their homepage]

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London Chess Classic 2010

London Chess Classic 2 – Date: 8-15 December at Olympia. I attended the London Classic I last year in December and will definitely not miss this one too as Anand [my favourite] will be playing!You can read my entry about the 2009 Classic HERE on the 12th December 2009.

Image: londonchessclassic

Heading the line-up is the world chess champion, Viswanathan Anand from India; the teenage sensation who currently outranks him on the world chess rating list, Magnus Carlsen from Norway; and Anand’s immediate predecessor as champion, Vladimir Kramnik from Russia.

Vishy Anand is the one addition to the field that contested the first London Chess Classic in December 2009. Though undisputed world champion, Anand is currently not the highest rated player in the world, but he recently wrested back third place from Kramnik, so is considered the man most likely to stop Carlsen making it two London triumphs in a row. Anand has recently stated that his ambition is to regain his number one status, so it sounds like he already has plans for his clash with the prodigiously talented Norwegian in London.

Kramnik and Anand

London Chess Classic 2010 lineup

Carlsen, Magnus NOR 2826

Anand, Viswanathan IND 2800

Kramnik, Vladimir RUS 2780

Nakamura, Hikaru USA 2733

Adams, Michael ENG 2728

Short, Nigel D ENG 2690

McShane, Luke J ENG 2657

Howell, David W L ENG 2616

Click here for entry forms – to take part in the tournamnet [yes, you can play there too] and here for tickets.

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Anand-Topalov fighting it out

Anand in Sofia – Anand and Topalov are going to fight the mother battle of all battles. [chess of course!] I hope [if you’re a chess player] that you’re going to follow their games with me. Anand is my favourite and my money is on him. Those of you who don’t know anything about these players…they are THE big chess-engines of the world of chess…and they’re playing in Sofia[Bulgaria]. Anand is from India and Topalov from Bulgaria. Anand is the current World Champion and Topalov the challenger.

What is said about Anand- ‘….extreme efficiency, his splendid personality…’ -watch the videos about Anand and Topalov on the official site…

Anand is the fastest thinking chess player

Ah…they look so handsome… – is that what he’s thinking [haha]

Enjoy the music of the Hungarian Rhapsody no2 [unfortunately not the Bulgarian Rhapsody…but let’s pretend lol -also not the complete music file]

Topalov…hmmm…wonder if he’s going to beat me up!..

Press Conference – Sofia

Postal Items devoted to the Anand-Topalov Chess tournament in Sofia [Bulgaria]

Please click HERE to visit the official site of Anand-Topalov to read more or to play through their games. The first game starts on the 24th April. [see the playing schedule] You will also find this link on the sidebar of my blog.[top] Images in this post are all from the Official site of Anand/Topalov. 
 

Click on the image for a larger view…This is the schedule of Anand’s and Topalov’s games.

Map of Bulgaria / Sofia – image: Topnews

The History of Chess…only a few images from the video on the Official site.

See the video on the Official site – link in this post [and on the sidebar of my blog] about the History of Chess. These images are from the video.

40-hour ride to defend the title
New Delhi: World champion Viswanathan Anand Tuesday reached Sofia, Bulgaria, after a strenuous 40-hour road journey from Germany as all flights were cancelled due to the volcanic ash floating across European airspace.

The 40-year old world champion had requested a postponement of the World chess championship match against Veselin Topalov, by three days, but his appeal was rejected by the organising committee.

Not used to travelling such long distances on road along with the refusal to grant a three-day postponement could give Anand’s challenger, Topalov, a significant advantage.

Anand had planned to reach the venue on April 16, which is one week before the first game on April 23. But he arrived four days behind schedule due to factors beyond his control.

Anand might miss the press conference but will attend the opening ceremony according to his wife Aruna Anand. Not rescheduling the games will mean Topalov could have the same advantage that Anatoly Karpov enjoyed in the world title match, in Lausanne, in 1998.

“The news from us is that we reached here safely,” said Aruna Anand.

Had Alexander Alekhine been in Anand’s place, he would have sought a postponement of at least a week as world champions ruled and challengers were at the mercy of champions. Sometimes a handicap is a better way to start a match and Anand can turn the disadvantage into a driving force in the 12-game series.

Earlier, the organising committee had received an e-mailed request for a postponement from Anand and also a word from Fide about the situation.

However, the committee said that the press conference could be postponed but not the opening ceremony scheduled on April 21 because invitations to all official guests, sponsors, politicians, television stations and the media was already sent. Also since many commercial contracts have been signed, there would be serious penalties if any changes were made.

The championship is to be formally inaugurated on April 21 with the first of the 14 games to begin on April 23.

Source:

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100421/jsp/sports/story_12362406.jsp

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Azerbaijan vs Fide World

The Old City Wall in Baku

The Maiden Tower – Baku 

Fortress Gate – image: wikitravel – a different view

Image: Wikipedia
 
The two teams’ photos in the glass front of the theatre where they’re playing

Image: Chessbase

Azerbaijan vs Fide World 7-9 May 2009 in Baku

How is it possible to mis good chess! The world’s big champs play in this tournament and Baku is my favourite chess city! Braam…I hope you’re reading this…I know you live in Baku!

Please click here to follow the games LIVE.
For the official site, click here , links will open in new windows. Click on images for a larger view and follow the official site to see more player-info of the players that are taking part in this tournament. All images are from the official site.

The opening ceremony of “President’s Cup” tournament, that is devoted to great national leader Heydar Aliyev’s memory, will hold in “UNS” (creative stage) theatre at 05:00 p.m. in 07 May, 2009, the tournament will also hold there from 07 May till 09 May 2009.

The World champion Vishvanatan Anand (Indian), vice-champion Vladimir Kramnik (Russia), the finalist of the latest World’s Cup – Aleksey Shirov (Spain), and the winner of the latest authoritative tournament Veyk-ann-Zee – Sergey Karyakin (Ukraine) have taken part in the world team which will be hold by the “Sheveningen” system.

Teymur Radjabov, Vugar Hashimov, Shahriyar Mamedyarov, Gadir Huseynov and Rauf Mamedov will compete in the Azerbaijan team against them.
The first day of the biggest chess event in the history of Azerbaijani sport – the Presidential Cup tournament in commemoration of Haydar Aliyev, the National Leader of Azerbaijan, left behind. Two rounds of the match between FIDE’s World picked team and Azerbaijani picked team were played in the building of Uns theater.

The impression from the first round was very positive. Teymur Rajabov tied with Vishvanatan Anand, and Vuqar Hasimov tied with Ex World Champion Vladimir Kramnik. The only win of the day was signed by Shahriyar Mammedyarov. He defeated the Spanish grandmaster Alexei Shirov. Qadir Huseynov who found himself in a very difficult situation has managed to take half point from the Ukrainian Sergey Karyakin due to right moves in the endgame.

The picked team of the world showed itself in the second round. Qadir and Vuqar were defeated by Shirov and Anand respectively. Teymur who played agains Kramnik and Shahriyar who played ahainst Karyakin gained half point each.

There is no doubt that Vishvanatan Anand and and Shahriyar Mammadov were central figures of the first day.

Both players have managed to gain 1.5 points each – more than their colleagues. Shahriyar will also be remembered as the author of our first victory during the first round. He also put his sign under the only victory of our players.

Round 3. Kramnik defeat Huseynov

Round 3 was played today at the ” President’s Cup” international chess tournament dedicated to the memory of nationwide leader Haydar Aliyev. All the opponents, except Gadir Guseynov who lost to Viswanathan Anand, reached an accord amongst each other. Hence, points were shared in the games between World Champion Vishvanatan Anand vs. Shahriyar Mamedyarov, the leader of team of Azerbaijan Teymur Radjabov vs. Aleksey Shirov, and Sergey Karyakin vs. Vugar Gashimov, respectively. After the Round 3 FIDE World Team is leading with the score of 7-5.

Round 4. FIDE improve the margin
FIDE World team increased the points of margin in the round 4 through the performance in the “President’s Cup” international chess tournament dedicated to the memory of nationwide leader Haydar Aliyev. There was a substitution in this round in the team of Azerbaijan. Rauf Mamedov substituted by Gadir Huseynov who shared points equally with Indian Grand Master Vishwanatan Anand. The leader of the team of Azerbaijan Teymour Rajabov lost to the latest winner of the Veyk An Zee tournament –Sergei Karyakin. The same result was destined for Shahriyar Mamedyarov. The hero of the yesterday, Resistance pursued by “Shah” against Kramnik turned out to be a disappointment. The game played between Vugar Gashimov vs. Aleksey Shirov ended with “peace”. Winning by 1-3 in the round 4, FIDE World Team secured the points to 10, totaling 10 – 6. – Report from the official site.

Kramnik – Fide World Team

Anand – Fide World Team

Radjabov – Azerbaijan Team

 

Shirov – Azerbaijan Team

Schedule

Azerbaijan vs Fide World…round 4 – click on chess graphics for a clear view

Round 4: Karjakin vs Radjabov 1-0

Round 4 Gashimov vs Shirov 1/2

Round 4 Mamedov vs Anand 1/2

Round 4 Kramnik vs Mamedjarov 1-0

Results after the 2nd day of the tournament

Round 6: Gashimov vs Anand 0-1

Round 6: Kramnik vs Radjabov 1/2

Round 6: Guseinov vs Shirov End position 1/2

Round 6: Karjakin vs Mamedjarov End position 1/2

Results: Round 6

Anand vs Mamedov round 8 – End position 1-0

Radjabov vs Karjakin Round 8 End Position 1-0

Round 8 : results

Final standings: Fide World Team – 21,5 Azerbaijan Team – 10,5

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Anand is the World Chess Champion – again!

Anand…vs…Kramnik

Please click HERE to play through the games of Anand/Kramnik on the site of nytimes(gambit). The link will open in a new window.

Images: Official site

 

 

 Follow THIS LINK on my blog to see the results of all their games, move-by-move, also to follow many other links to sites with games played previously, including a link to the Official site…and…on THIS LINK ..also on my blog, you can go through annotated movies of their games played through the WCC 2008. Enjoy! Links will open in a new window.

News Article from the BBC:

Anand retains world chess title

Anand said he had given one of his best-ever performances
India’s Viswanathan Anand has retained his FIDE World Chess Championship title by beating Russia’s Vladimir Kramnik in the German city of Bonn.

Anand won three games, drew seven times and lost once en route to winning the competition by 6.5 points to 4.5.

He and Kramnik will share the total prize fund of 1.5m euros ($1.94m).

Anand became FIDE world champion last year by winning a tournament in Mexico, where Kramnik was again runner-up. Anand first won the title in 2000.

Kramnik, the Classical World Chess Champion, had competed in the 2007 World Chess Federation (FIDE) world championship with the understanding that if he lost, he would get a chance to reclaim the title by playing a match against the winner in 2008.

“Vladimir pushed me into giving my all. I’ve given one of my best-ever performances here in Bonn,” Anand, 38, told the AFP news agency after his victory on Wednesday.

“I tried everything, but it just wasn’t enough. Life is like that and defeat is part of it,” Kramnik conceded.

Anand, who was born in the southern Indian city of Madras (Chennai), divides his time between India and Spain.

Known as the “Tiger from Madras”, his achievements have triggered huge interest in the game in India with chess clubs mushrooming in many parts of the country.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7698743.stm

http://gambit.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/29/anand-is-world-champion-again/

http://gambit.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/28/hold-the-coronation-kramnik-draws-game-9-wins-game-10/

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Anand vs Kramnik 2008

 

Anand is Officially the winner of the WCC 2008!

 

Images: Official site

Kramnik and Anand draw colours…

Annotated Videos of Anand and Kramnik ‘s games can be played through on this link, it is on my blog (the “movies” page) and the link will open in a new window. You can also click on that page (top of my blog)

Game 1…Kramnik and Anand…

Image: Official site…Anand vs Kramnik

The World Chess Championships 2008 has started! Anand vs Kramnik! The two Chess Engines of the World!

1. Please click HERE to play through their 2008 World Chess Championships games on chessgames. The link will open in a new window.
2. Please click HERE if you want to read more about the two players, play through more games or if you want some games in algebraic notation. The link will open in a new window.

3. Please click HERE if you want to play through previous games of Anand and Kramnik on the Official site. The link will open in a new window.

4. On The Official site you can follow the games LIVE. The link will open in a new window. If you click on the top image/logo in this post, it will take you to the Official site’s homepage. The link will open in a new window.
5. If you click HERE you can view a list of games played by Anand/Kramik..it’s a Wiki-link and it will open in a new window. Find similar links in the second link of this post where you can also find some games in algebraic notation.

Games start 2pm for UK local time, 9 am Eastern USA time

Standings: After Game 9
Results of the games between Anand and Kramnik
Game 1 Kramnik vs Anand…1/2

Game 2 Anand vs Kramnik…1/2

Game 3 Kramnik vs Anand…0-1

Game 4 Anand vs Kramnik…1/2

Game 5 Kramnik vs Anand…0-1

Game 6 Anand vs Kramnik…1-0

Game 7 Anand vs Kramnik… 1/2

Game 8 Kramnik vs Anand … 1/2

Game 9 Anand vs Kramnik … 1/2

Game 10 Kramnik vs Anand..1-0

Game 11 Anand vs Kramnik.. 1/2

Kramnik vs Anand…game 1…opening

Kramnik vs Anand…game 1 move 11

Kramnik vs Anand…game 1 move 21

Kramnik vs Anand…game 1 end position

Game 1 move list

GAME/Round 2…Anand vs Kramnik….

Game 2 15th October 2008…move 11

Anand vs Kramnik ….Game 2 move 17

Anand vs Kramnik game 2 move 24

Anand vs Kramnik game 2 Final position…1/2

Kramnik vs Anand..Game 3 move 7

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 14

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 20

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 25

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 30

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 33

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 end position 0-1

Game 3 move list

Anand vs Kramnik…Game 4 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik…Game 4 move 12

Anand vs Kramnik… Game 4 move 19

Anand vs Kramnik…Game 4 move 24

Anand vs Kramnik…Game 4 endposition

Game 4 move list

Kramnik vs Anand…game 5 move 7

Kramnik vs Anand…game 5 move 14

Kramnik vs Anand…game 5 move 21

Kramnik vs Anand…game 5 end position

Game 5 move list

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 14

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 20

 

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 27

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 34

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 39

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 final position

Game 6 move list

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 13

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 19

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 25
 

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 31

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 end position

 
Game 7 move list

Kramnik vs Anand game 8 move 7

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 move 14

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 move 21

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 move 28

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 move 36

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 final position

Game 8 move list

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 14

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 19

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 27

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 32

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 41

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 end position

Game 9 move list

Kramnik vs Anand Game 10 move 7

Kramnik vs Anand Game 10 move 18

Kramnik vs Anand Game 10 move 23

Kramnik vs Anand Game 10 Final position

 
Game 10 move list

Anand vs Kramnik Game 11 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik Game 11 move 13

Anand vs Kramnik Game 11 end position

Anand vs Kramnik Game 11 move list

On this link of Chessgames you can play through Kramnik and Anand’s games where they played one another before. On link 1 in this post you can play through the current games of the championships in Bonn.  A new window will open when you click on the link!

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Kramnik vs Anand World Chess Championship 2008

 

Please click HERE to play through annotated videos of the games of Anand and Kramnik, 2008. The link will open in a new window. It is also the “movies”-link on my blog..top page.

Images: Official site

The big day has arrived! Opening ceremony on today…Monday 13th October

LIVE CHESS…click on the link on the top right of my blog!
Follow this new link with the games I blog and chess graphics about their games….

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/10/14/anand-vs-kramnik-2008/

14th October – 2nd November 2008….Who is going to be the winner?? The battle for the highest Chess Title! You can find the OFFICIAL LINK on my side-bar in the “Admin”-section as well in the “Chess” section…look out for the same image as the image in top of this post…I will be following the Championships and blog about it too…you can also find a link underneath my “welcome” image…on the side bar of my blog..(right hand side- top – the link will open in a new window)
Please click here to look at statistics between the 2 players on Wiki…the link will open in a new window.
Schedule for the World Chess Championship 2008: 

All games start at 3pm! 2pm UK local time and 9am Eastern USA time.
Game 1                      Tuesday                      October 14 —1/2           
Game 2                      Wednesday                  October 15            
Game 3                      Friday                          October 17            
Game 4                      Saturday                      October 18            
Game 5                      Monday                       October 20            
Game 6                      Tuesday                      October 21             
Game 7                      Thursday                     October 23             
Game 8                      Friday                          October 24             
Game 9                      Sunday                        October 26              
Game 10                    Monday                       October 27            
Game 11                    Wednesday                  October 29             
Game 12                    Friday                          October 31             
Tiebreak                     Sunday                       November 02          

On this link of Chessgames you can play through Kramnik and Anand’s games where they played one another. A new window will open when you click on the link! If you slide down to Anand, you will find more games to play through and at the bottom of this post you will find more links on my blog…- with games to play through- that were all played during tournaments.
 

Where: Art and Exhibition Hall of the Federal Republic of Germany in Bonn  

Overall Prize fund: 1,5 Million Euro

The match will consist of twelve games, played under classical time controls, in the period from October 14 to October 30, 2008. If there is a tie at the end of these games a tiebreak will be played on November 02, 2008. The prize fund, which will be split equally between the players, is 1,5 million Euro (approximately 2,1 million US Dollars) including taxes and FIDE licensee fees.

V. Kramnik and V. Anand. World Chess Championship Tournament Sep. 2007, Mexico City
Image: Official Site

Images: Official website…http://www.uep-worldchess.com/
Short history of the World Chess Championships

1886 – 1946
Wilhelm Steinitz (Austria/USA) was the first official World Champion in the chess history. In 1886, he defeated Johannes Hermann Zukertort in the first classical tournament for the World Chess Champion title. They played 20 games against each other – and Steinitz won by 12.5:7.5 points. Steinitz defended his title up to 1894. Emanuel Lasker (Germany) deprived Steinitz of his title and remained champion for 27 years – a unique record in the chess history. The next World Chess Champions were José Raoul Capablanca, Alexander Alekhine and Max Euwe.

1948 – 1993
Since 1948, World Chess Federation (FIDE) started to organize the World Chess Championships. After Alekhine´s death in 1946, the new World Champion had to be determined. Thus, there was a tournament with several players where Mikhail Botvinnik (USSR) became a winner. Since that time, the reigning Champion should defend his title in a match against a challenger. Vassily Smyslov, Mikhail Tal, Tigran Petrossian and Boris Spassky – all of USSR – were the next World Champions. In 1972, Bobby Fischer (USA) broke through the dominance of the Soviet players by defeating Boris Spassky in Reykjavik. In 1975 Fischer refused to fight for his title, and as a result his challenger Anatoly Karpov was appointed as new Champion. Karpov – who played two times against Viktor Korchnoi and once against Garry Kasparov – kept his title until November 1985. Then it was Kasparov, who defeated Karpov by 13:11 points and became the new World Champion. 1986, 1987, and 1990 Kasparov succeeded in reserving his chess crown against Karpov, before he broke away from FIDE in 1993.

1993 – 2006
In 1993 Kasparov refused to defend his title under the conditions provided by FIDE – and together with his challenger Nigel Short (England) the World Champion decided to leave FIDE by holding the Championship match under the auspices of the new founded “Professional Chess Association” (PCA). Kasparov won the match against Short and retained the title of “Classical World Champion”. Two years later he won the next title match against Viswanathan Anand (India) in the New York World Trade Center. Finally it was Thursday, the 2nd November 2000, when Kasparov’s era ran out: with 8.5:6.5 victory Vladimir Kramnik (Russia) dethroned Kasparov, who did not manage to win a single game. Kramnik, at that time 25 years old, became the 14th Classical World Chess Champion. In October 2004 the next Championship took place: In Brissago (Switzerland) Kramnik held out against the attacks of the Hungarian Peter Leko and kept his title. Leko was qualified for this match by having won the Candidates’ tournament in 2002 in Dortmund.

On the other hand, FIDE continued organizing its own World Chess Championships from 1993 on. The FIDE title holders between 1993 and 2006: Anatoly Karpov (1993), Alexander Khalifman (1999), Viswanathan Anand (2000), Ruslan Ponomariov (2002), Rustam Kasimdzhanov (2004) and Veselin Topalov (2005).

The split of the chess world into two competitive championships ended in 2006. The duel between the Classical World Chess Champion Vladimir Kramnik and FIDE World Chess Champion Veselin Topalov took place in Elista from 23 September to 13 October 2006. In a historic battle this unification match combined both titles in one FIDE World Chess Championship. Having won this important event, Vladimir Kramnik became an undisputed World Chess Champion. Continue to read more on the Official site here:
http://www.uep-worldchess.com/

Image: chessgames.com

VLADIMIR KRAMNIK
(born Jun-25-1975) Russia
Vladimir Kramnik was born in Tuapse, on June 25, 1975. In 1991 he won The World Under 18 Championship, and began a string of international success. At the Manila Olympiad 1992, he achieved a gold medal for best result on reserve board. Major tournament triumphs were soon to follow, such as Dortmund 1995, Tilburg 1997, and Wijk aan Zee 1998. Dortmund became a favorite stop, as Kramnik would go on to win seven more times, either as shared champion, or clear first. In 2000 Kramnik won his first Linares tournament, completing his set of victories in all three of chess’s “triple crown” events: Corus, Linares, and Dortmund. Kramnik would later capture additional Linares victories in 2003 (shared) and 2004.
In 2000 Kramnik reached the pinnacle by defeating long-time champion Garry Kasparov for the World Championship in London by the score of 8 1/2 to 6 1/2. Kasparov was reported as saying, “He is the hardest player to beat in the world.” The year 2002 saw Kramnik play an eight-game match against the program Deep Fritz (Computer) in Bahrain. The match ended in a 4-4 tie, with Kramnik and the computer each winning two games and drawing four. In 2006 the German organization Universal Event Promotion (UEP) would stage a return match of six games, which Kramnik lost, +0 -2 =4.

In 2004, Kramnik successfully defended his title by drawing a 14 game match against Hungarian GM Peter Leko in Brissago, Switzerland. His next title defense was in 2006, in a reunification match with the holder of the FIDE world title, Veselin Topalov. As part of his preparation for the match, Kramnik played first board for Russia in the 37th Chess Olympiad (2006), where he won the gold medal for best performance rating of all participants (2847). He also took part in the Dortmund Sparkassen (2006) supertournament, tying for first place with Peter Svidler.

The $1 million Kramnik-Topalov World Championship Match (2006), was played in Elista from September 21 to October 13, and drew record numbers of online followers on most major chess sites. After much controversy surrounding a forfeit in round 5, Kramnik won in the tiebreak phase, thereby becoming the first unified World Chess Champion since the schism of 1993.

Kramnik lost the unified World Champion title when he finished second to Viswanathan Anand at the Mexico City FIDE World Championship Tournament (2007). Kramnik will exercise his entitlement to a match for the World Championship against Viswanathan Anand in Bonn, Germany, starting 14 October 2008.

NOTABLE GAMES:
   Kramnik vs Leko, 2004 1-0
   Kasparov vs Kramnik, 1996 0-1
   Leko vs Kramnik, 2004 0-1
   Gelfand vs Kramnik, 1996 0-1
   Kramnik vs Kasparov, 1994 1-0
   Kramnik vs Kasparov, 2000 1-0
   Leko vs Kramnik, 2004 1/2-1/2
   Kramnik vs Anand, 2004 1/2-1/2
   Kramnik vs Kasparov, 2001 1-0
   Kramnik vs Morozevich, 2007 1-0

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS:
   Kasparov-Kramnik World Championship Match (2000)
   Kramnik-Leko World Championship Match (2004)
   Kramnik-Topalov World Championship Match (2006)

It is an almost senseless challenge to describe Vladimir Kramnik in only a few lines. His personality has too many facets; his areas of interests are too diverse. What is clear is that Kramnik is not solely fixated on chess. Current affairs interest him just as intensively as numerous sport and cultural activities, several of which he regularly engages in. The cosmopolitan would love to enjoy life ever more intensively, but his drive to succeed holds this inclination within limits. What is it that marks out a world chess champion in him even though he doesn’t focus exclusively on chess?

People close to Kramnik often claim that this has something to do with his creative nature and strategic gifts. Kramnik considers chess less as a sport and more as the art of carrying out a long-term plan. The harmonious interplay of his pieces and the beauty of his game are already legendary. He is always searching for creative and new solutions, particularly when he is playing.

In many games, they say, he sees things that no computer can calculate and no other grandmasters could discover. The ingenious ideas would come to him quite easily, providing him with moments of pure joy. The artistic vein in the 32-year-old Muscovite must have been given to him in his cradle. His father Boris is a well-known sculptor; his mother Irina a music teacher. No wonder that journalists all over the world have dubbed Kramnik an “artist” or “painter”.

Kramnik started to play chess at the age of five. At 12, his enormous talent was recognized in Moscow and encouraged. As a teenager, Kramnik got better and better – at only 16, he won the U18 World Championship. The list of his victories is long. He has already finished all major tournaments in the world as the victor. And he holds a record which made sporting history: Kramnik was unbeaten at the highest level in 86 classical games over 18 months up to July 2000.
World Championship
Thursday, November 2, 2000, London: Vladimir Kramnik became the World Chess Champion with a brilliant 8.5-6.5 result against Garry Kasparov (Russia), who could not win a single game. After Garry Kasparov had congratulated him, the greatest dream of his life became true. Exulting, Kramnik threw his arms up into the air in triumph. The audience’s applause and the subsequent tumult will not be forgotten. It was a historic moment in the history of chess: Kramnik had not only won the lion’s share of the two-million dollar prize money; his victory had ended Kasparov’s 15-year-long reign on the chess throne.

First Challenge
In 2004, he faced off in another World Championship Match, this time in Switzerland : Kramnik successfully defended his title against the Hungarian super grandmaster Péter Lékó. In a complex strategic battle, he pulled off a supreme coup, winning in the 14th game – the last in the match – with a 7:7 tie. Kramnik was lucky because it was agreed before the match that he had to be beaten outright based on points – the challenger Lékó came heart-wrenchingly close to doing so.

2005 was a year of ups and downs for the World Champion. Kramnik was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, entered intense medical treatment, and disappeared from the tournament hubbub for six months. The break seemed to rejuvenate the Russian – at his comeback in the 2006 Chess Olympiad in Turin , he had the best individual score of all 1,000 participants. Kramnik was successful in several tournaments thereafter and on 1 January 2008 he again occupied the no. 1 position in the FIDE world ranking list.
  

The Unification Match

In October 2006, Kramnik faced the biggest challenge: the unification match that would decide who the next unique, absolute World Champion would be. In a historic fight against all sort of adversities, Kramnik defeated the FIDE champion Veselin Topalov ( Bulgaria ) to become the first unified World Champion after 1993, the one and only official World Chess Champion. His win in Elista was one of the most impressive victories in all of sports history.

Highlights:

– World Chess Champion 2000-2007
– Undefeated in three World Championship Matches
– Three-time Olympiad winner as a member of the Russian team
– Russian Honoured Master of Sport
– Current ELO rating: 2788

Source: http://www.uep-worldchess.com/

Please click HERE to play through Kramnik’s games on chessgames.com The link will open in a new window.

VISWANATHAN ANAND
All games on these links will open in a new window.
Please click HERE to play through a ‘Petrov Defence’- game which was played in 2003. This Sicilian game was played in 2001and this Sicilian Najdorf was played in 2003.
(born Dec-11-1969) India
Viswanathan Anand, or “Vishy” as he is known to his fans, became in 1984 the youngest Indian to earn the title of IM at the age of fifteen. At the age of sixteen he became the Indian Champion. In 1987, he became the first Indian to win the World Junior Championship. At the age of eighteen, he became India’s first grandmaster. His prowess at quick-play chess earned him the nickname “The Lightning Kid.”
Anand contested a match with Garry Kasparov for the PCA World Chess Championship in 1995, but lost. Three years later he won a knockout tournament in Groningen to qualify to play for the FIDE title against Anatoli Karpov, but was defeated in rapid tie-breaks. a game by them in 1996 with the Reti-opening.

In 1998, he won the strongest Linares tournament ever, with an average rating of 2752, making it a category 21 event. In 2000, he beat Alexey Shirov to become the FIDE World Chess Champion. He is a four-time winner of the Chess Oscar award and the 2003 FIDE World Rapid Chess Champion. In spring of 2006, following a record-extending fifth victory at Corus Wijk aan Zee (2006), Anand became only the fourth player ever to crack the 2800-Elo mark in FIDE ratings, following Kasparov, Vladimir Kramnik, and Veselin Topalov.
2007 was a year of two memorable milestones for Anand. First, he finally achieved his longtime goal of becoming world #1 in ratings. After winning his second victory at Linares-Morelia (2007), he overtook Topalov to claim first place on FIDE’s April list. His second great success came at the FIDE World Championship Tournament (2007). Leading throughout the event, Anand captured the unified World Chess Champion title with an undefeated +4 score. A few months later, he won the Morelia-Linares (2008) outright for the third time.
Anand’s first title defense will be in a match against challenger Vladimir Kramnik in October 2008.
Please click HERE to play through the games of Anand. The link will open in a new window.
NOTABLE GAMES:
   Karjakin vs Anand, 2006 0-1
   Anand vs Topalov, 2005 1/2-1/2
   Anand vs Lautier, 1997 1-0
   Anand vs Bologan, 2003 1-0
   Anand vs Kasparov, 1995 1-0
   Anand vs Ponomariov, 2002 1-0
   Radjabov vs Anand, 2002 0-1
   Kramnik vs Anand, 2004 1/2-1/2
   Anand vs Karpov, 1996 1-0
   Anand vs Kramnik, 2005 1-0

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS:
   Kasparov-Anand World Championship Match (1995)
   Karpov-Anand World Championship (1998)
   FIDE World Championship Knockout Tournament (2000)
   FIDE World Championship Knockout Tournament (2001)

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS:
   Kasparov-Anand World Championship Match (1995)
   Karpov-Anand World Championship (1998)
   FIDE World Championship Knockout Tournament (2000)
   FIDE World Championship Knockout Tournament (2001) 

 

Acclaimed as the Fastest Brain in the world, Viswanathan Anand is the World Number one and World Champion. It is his success in the world scene that has made this ancient Indian game, a mass sport in India.The critics rate him as one of the  biggest natural talents ever  in the history of chess. His hallmark lightening speed and intuitive play came to be recognised when he became the first Indian Grandmaster in 1987.

On 29th September 2007 Anand became World Champion for the second time in his career. By winning the event in Mexico Anand becomes the Undisputed Champion, ending many years of schism in the chess world. An feat that is unique as he achieved it while being the World No.1. A honour shared by a select few. Anand became the first Asian to win the World Championships in 2000. In 2007 Anand  reached the number one spot on the world ranking lists by winning the prestigious Linares tournament. He becomes the seventh person in modern chess history to reach the coveted spot. This is the first for an  Indian and Asian . He won the prestigious Melody Amber, Blind & Rapid chess in Monaco in 2003, 2005, 2004(Rapid), 2006, 2007(Rapid). The Leon Magistral for the seventh time, Corsica Masters five times & the Mainz Classic a staggering ten times. His results in rapid chess make him one , if not the  greatest player  ever in chess history . If his talent as a Rapid chess player is legendary, his records in classical chess have been superlative. In January 2006, he became the only player in chess history to win the Corus Chess event 5 times in the tournament’s 70-year history. He has won the prestigious Corus event 5 times (1989,1998,2003,2004 & 2006),  Linares Super Tournament 3 times (1998 , 2007 and 2008), Dortmund Sparkassen 3 times (1996,2000 & 2004) and other important events like, Madrid Masters,  Biel etc.

One of the few non-Soviet players in the sport, Viswanathan Anand has been feted with many international awards. He is the proud recipient of the Chess Oscars  given for the best player of the year . He received this award four times. (1997,1998, 2003,2004) (An unique distinction he shares with Bobby Fischer).In India he has received the civilian awards, Padma Vibhushan,Padma Bhushan, the Padmashree and the Arjuna Award. He is the first recipient of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award. He has received   other prestigious awards from private organisations .

Having travelled to close to 50 countries, Anand is also fluent in Spanish and German. One of the projects closest to heart is the NIIT Mind Champions Academy which aims at taking chess to over 1 million children from both  Government and Private schools in India . Known as the Gentleman Champion in the chess world, Anand is a spokesperson  for   Vidyasagar, a NGO that crusades for the Inclusion of children with cerebral palsy and  he also represents Avahan, the Bill& Melinda Gates Foundation initiative on AIDS. Anand is a keen follower of  current affairs, world business and astronomy. Source: http://www.uep-worldchess.com/

[Event “Amber Rapid”]
[Site “Nice FRA”]
[Date “2008.03.15”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Kramnik,Vladimir”]
[Black “Anand,Viswanathan”]
[Result “0-1”]
[EventDate “2008.03.15”]
[ECO “E15”]
[MastersGameID “3707810”]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.g3 Ba6 5.b3 Bb4+ 6.Bd2 Be7 7.Bg2 c6 8.Bc3 d5 9.Ne5 Nfd7 10.Nxd7 Nxd7 11.Nd2 O-O 12.O-O f5 13.Rc1 Nf6 14.Bb2 Bd6 15.Nf3 Qe7 16.Ne5 Rac8 17.Nd3 Rfd8 18.Re1 Qe8 19.e3 g5 20.Rc2 g4 21.Qc1 Qe7 22.Rd1 Ne4 23.c5 bxc5 24.dxc5 Bb8 25.Ne5 Ng5 26.Qa1 Nf7 27.Nxf7 Kxf7 28.a4 h5 29.b4 h4 30.b5 Bb7 31.Rdc1 Kg6 32.Be5 Bxe5 33.Qxe5 Qf6 34.Qd4 e5 35.Qb4 hxg3 36.hxg3 Rd7 37.Qa5 Rh8 38.Qxa7 f4 39.exf4 exf4 40.gxf4 Rdh7 41.Qb6 Qxf4 42.bxc6 Qf3 43.cxb7+ Kf5 0-1

[Event “Amber Blindfold”]
[Site “Nice FRA”]
[Date “2008.03.16”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Kramnik,Vladimir”]
[Black “Leko,Peter”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[EventDate “2008.03.15”]
[ECO “B10”]
[MastersGameID “3707801”]

1.e4 c6 2.d3 d5 3.Nd2 e5 4.Ngf3 Bd6 5.d4 exd4 6.exd5 cxd5 7.Nxd4 Ne7 8.Bd3 Nbc6 9.N2b3 Ne5 10.O-O O-O 11.Bg5 a6 12.Re1 Nxd3 13.Qxd3 Qc7 14.h3 h6 15.Bd2 Bd7 16.a3 Nc6 17.Nf3 Ne5 18.Nxe5 Bxe5 19.Ba5 b6 20.Bxb6 Bh2+ 21.Kh1 Qxb6 22.Kxh2 Qxf2 23.Qxd5 Qxc2 24.Rac1 Qf5 25.Qxf5 1/2-1/2

[Event “Corus A”]
[Site “Wijk aan Zee NED”]
[Date “2008.01.26”]
[Round “12”]
[White “Kramnik,Vladimir”]
[Black “Carlsen,Magnus”]
[Result “0-1”]
[EventDate “2008.01.12”]
[ECO “A30”]
[MastersGameID “3693740”]

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4.g3 b6 5.Bg2 Bb7 6.O-O Be7 7.d4 cxd4 8.Qxd4 d6 9.Rd1 a6 10.Ng5 Bxg2 11.Kxg2 Nc6 12.Qf4 O-O 13.Nce4 Ne8 14.b3 Ra7 15.Bb2 Rd7 16.Rac1 Nc7 17.Nf3 f5 18.Nc3 g5 19.Qd2 g4 20.Ne1 Bg5 21.e3 Rff7 22.Kg1 Ne8 23.Ne2 Nf6 24.Nf4 Qe8 25.Qc3 Rg7 26.b4 Ne4 27.Qb3 Rge7 28.Qa4 Ne5 29.Qxa6 Ra7 30.Qb5 Qxb5 31.cxb5 Rxa2 32.Rc8+ Kf7 33.Nfd3 Bf6 34.Nxe5+ dxe5 35.Rc2 Rea7 36.Kg2 Ng5 37.Rd6 e4 38.Bxf6 Kxf6 39.Kf1 Ra1 40.Ke2 Rb1 41.Rd1 Rxb4 42.Ng2 Rxb5 43.Nf4 Rc5 44.Rb2 b5 45.Kf1 Rac7 46.Rbb1 Rb7 47.Rb4 Rc4 48.Rb2 b4 49.Rdb1 Nf3 50.Kg2 Rd7 51.h3 e5 52.Ne2 Rd2 53.hxg4 fxg4 54.Rxd2 Nxd2 55.Rb2 Nf3 56.Kf1 b3 57.Kg2 Rc2 0-1

[Event “Corus A”]
[Site “Wijk aan Zee NED”]
[Date “2008.01.23”]
[Round “10”]
[White “Kramnik,Vladimir”]
[Black “Gelfand,Boris”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[EventDate “2008.01.12”]
[ECO “E15”]
[MastersGameID “3693722”]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.g3 Ba6 5.b3 Bb4+ 6.Bd2 Be7 7.Bg2 c6 8.O-O d5 9.Qc2 Nbd7 10.Rd1 O-O 11.a4 c5 12.Na3 Bb7 13.Qb2 Rc8 14.Rac1 Ne4 15.Be1 Bf6 16.b4 Ba8 17.e3 cxd4 18.exd4 dxc4 19.Ne5 Bg5 20.f4 Be7 21.Naxc4 f5 22.Ne3 Rxc1 23.Qxc1 Ndf6 24.Nc6 Qc7 25.b5 Nd5 26.Nxd5 exd5 27.Nxe7+ Qxe7 28.Qb2 Rc8 29.Rc1 Rc4 30.Bf1 Nd6 31.Qa3 Qe4 32.Bf2 Rxc1 33.Qxc1 Nc4 34.Qd1 Bb7 35.Bd3 Qe6 36.Qh5 Nd6 37.Qe2 Qxe2 38.Bxe2 Kf7 39.Be1 Bc8 40.Kf2 Nc4 41.Bb4 g6 42.Ke1 a6 43.bxa6 Bxa6 44.Bc3 Bb7 45.Kf2 Bc6 46.Bd1 Nd6 47.Ke3 Ke6 48.Bb3 1/2-1/2

[Event “Corus A”]
[Site “Wijk aan Zee NED”]
[Date “2008.01.20”]
[Round “8”]
[White “Kramnik,Vladimir”]
[Black “Polgar,Judit”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[EventDate “2008.01.12”]
[ECO “A15”]
[MastersGameID “3692699”]

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 b6 3.g3 Bb7 4.Bg2 e6 5.O-O Be7 6.Nc3 O-O 7.Re1 d5 8.cxd5 exd5 9.d4 Nbd7 10.Bf4 Ne4 11.Qc2 Bd6 12.Nxe4 dxe4 13.Ng5 Bxf4 14.gxf4 Nf6 15.Nxe4 Bxe4 16.Bxe4 Nxe4 17.Qxe4 Re8 18.Qd3 Qf6 19.e3 Rad8 20.Qc2 Rd5 21.Rad1 g5 22.Qxc7 gxf4 23.exf4 Rxe1+ 24.Rxe1 Rxd4 25.Re3 h5 26.Qe5 Qxe5 27.fxe5 Rd2 28.Rb3 Kg7 29.Kg2 Kg6 30.Ra3 Rxb2 31.Rxa7 b5 32.Kg3 h+ 33.Kf3 b4 34.h3 Rc2 35.Ra4 Rb2 36.Ra7 Rc2 37.Rb7 Rb2 38.Kg2 Rxa2 39.Rxb4 Kf5 40.Rxh4 Kxe5 41.Rg4 Kf5 42.Kg3 Ra3+ 43.f3 Ra1 44.Rf4+ Kg6 45.Rb4 Rg1+ 46.Kf2 Rh1 47.Rg4+ Kf6 48.h4 Ra1 49.Kg2 1/2-1/2

[Event “Amber Rapid”]
[Site “Nice FRA”]
[Date “2008.03.17”]
[Round “3”]
[White “Kramnik,Vladimir”]
[Black “Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar”]
[Result “0-1”]
[EventDate “2008.03.15”]
[ECO “A52”]
[MastersGameID “3707822”]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Nc3 Nc6 5.e3 Ngxe5 6.a3 a5 7.f4 Ng6 8.Bd3 Bc5 9.Qh5 d6 10.Nf3 a4 11.Bd2 O-O 12.Ne4 Qe8 13.O-O-O f5 14.Nxc5 dxc5 15.Kb1 Nge7 16.Qh4 h6 17.Bc3 Be6 18.Rhg1 Rd8 19.Ka1 Rxd3 20.Rxd3 Bxc4 21.Bxg7 Kxg7 22.g4 Ng6 23.gxf5 Rxf5 24.Rc3 Bf7 25.Qf2 Qe6 26.b3 axb3 27.Nh4 Rh5 28.Kb2 Qf6 29.Nxg6 Bxg6 30.e4 c4 31.Qd2 Qd4 32.Qxd4+ Nxd4 33.Rcg3 Rxh2+ 34.Kb1 Kf7 35.Rxg6 c3 36.Rg7+ Ke8 37.R7g2 Rxg2 38.Rxg2 Nf3 39.Kc1 Nd2 0-1

[Event “Amber Blindfold”]
[Site “Nice FRA”]
[Date “2008.03.18”]
[Round “4”]
[White “Kramnik,Vladimir”]
[Black “Morozevich,Alexander”]
[Result “1-0”]
[EventDate “2008.03.15”]
[ECO “E51”]
[MastersGameID “3709268”]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.e3 O-O 6.a3 Bxc3+ 7.bxc3 c6 8.Bd3 b6 9.cxd5 cxd5 10.Qe2 Bb7 11.Bb2 Nc6 12.O-O Na5 13.Nd2 Rc8 14.f3 Re8 15.e4 e5 16.Rae1 exd4 17.cxd4 Nh5 18.g3 g6 19.Qe3 Qd7 20.Qh6 Ng7 21.exd5 f5 22.d6 Bd5 23.g4 Rcd8 24.Re5 Qxd6 25.gxf5 gxf5 26.Qxd6 Rxd6 27.Rxe8+ Nxe8 28.Bxf5 Nc4 29.Nxc4 Bxc4 30.Re1 Ng7 31.Be4 Ne6 32.Kf2 Nxd4 33.Rg1+ Kf7 34.Bxh7 Ne6 35.Ke3 Rd5 36.Bc3 Rb5 37.Bg6+ Ke7 38.Bb4+ Kf6 39.f4 a5 40.Bc3+ Ke7 41.f5 Rb3 42.Kd2 Nc5 43.f6+ Kd6 44.Rg4 Be6 45.f7 Bxf7 46.Bxf7 Rxa3 47.h4 b5 48.h5 b4 49.Bg7 Rh3 50.Bf8+ Kc6 51.Rc4 Rf3 52.Be8+ Kd5 53.Rxc5+ Kd4 54.Be7 Rf2+ 55.Kc1 b3 56.Rxa5 Kc3 57.Rc5+ 1-0

[Event “Amber Rapid”]
[Site “Nice FRA”]
[Date “2008.03.20”]
[Round “5”]
[White “Kramnik,Vladimir”]
[Black “Topalov,Veselin”]
[Result “1-0”]
[EventDate “2008.03.15”]
[ECO “E94”]
[MastersGameID “3709299”]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O 6.Be2 e5 7.O-O Na6 8.Be3 Ng4 9.Bg5 Qe8 10.Re1 exd4 11.Nd5 d3 12.Bxd3 c6 13.Ne7+ Kh8 14.Nxc8 Rxc8 15.Bf1 Nc5 16.Qxd6 Nxe4 17.Qa3 f5 18.h3 Ne5 19.Bf4 Nd7 20.Qxa7 Bxb2 21.Rab1 Bg7 22.Qxb7 Ndc5 23.Qb6 Rf7 24.Ng5 Rb7 25.Qxb7 Nxb7 26.Rxb7 Kg8 27.c5 h6 28.Bc4+ Kh8 29.Be5 hxg5 30.Bxg7+ Kh7 31.Bf8+ Kh8 32.Be7 Rb8 33.Rxe4 1-0

Anand’s games

[Event “XXI Magistral Rapid Final”]
[Site “Leon ESP”]
[Date “2008.06.01”]
[Round “3”]
[White “Anand,Viswanathan”]
[Black “Ivanchuk,Vassily”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[EventDate “2008.06.01”]
[ECO “B47”]
[MastersGameID “3726239”]

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Qc7 6.Be2 a6 7.O-O Nf6 8.Be3 Be7 9.f4 d6 10.Qe1 O-O 11.Qg3 Nxd4 12.Bxd4 b5 13.a3 Bb7 14.Rae1 Rad8 15.Bd3 Rfe8 16.Kh1 Rd7 17.Nd1 g6 18.Bc3 Nh5 19.Qh3 Bf6 20.e5 dxe5 21.fxe5 Bg5 22.Qg4 Qd8 23.Nf2 Bh4 24.Re2 Qg5 25.Qxg5 Bxg5 26.Ne4 Bxe4 27.Rxe4 Rc8 28.g4 Ng7 29.a4 Rd5 30.axb5 axb5 31.Ra1 Be7 32.Ra7 b4 33.Bxb4 Bxb4 34.Rxb4 Rxe5 35.Rbb7 Rf8 36.b4 Ne8 37.Rb8 Nf6 38.Rxf8+ Kxf8 39.b5 Nxg4 40.b6 Nf2+ 41.Kg1 Nxd3 42.b7 Re1+ 43.Kg2 Rb1 44.cxd3 Kg7 45.Kf3 Rb4 46.d4 g5 47.Ke4 Kf6 48.Kd3 h5 49.Kc3 Rb1 50.Kc4 g4 51.Kc5 h4 52.Kc6 Rc1+ 53.Kd6 Rb1 54.Kc6 Rc1+ 55.Kd6 Rb1 56.Kc6 1/2-1/2

[Event “XXI Magistral Ciudad de Leon”]
[Site “Leon ESP”]
[Date “2008.06.01”]
[EventDate “2008.06.01”]
[Round “4”]
[Result “1-0”]
[White “Vassily Ivanchuk”]
[Black “Viswanathan Anand”]
[ECO “E55”]
[WhiteElo “2740”]
[BlackElo “2803”]
[PlyCount “31”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 c5
7. O-O dxc4 8. Bxc4 Nbd7 9. Qe2 cxd4 10. exd4 b6 11. d5 Nc5
12. Rd1 Qe8 13. Nb5 exd5 14. Nc7 Qe4 15. Rd4 Qg6 16. Nh4 1-0

On all of these links – on my blog – you will find games of Kramnik or Anand which you can play through — games they played during different tournaments.

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/06/27/dortmund-chess-2008/

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/09/04/chess-grand-slam-bilbao/

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/01/27/anand-polgar-van-wely-ea-in-corus-rounds-12-and-13/

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/01/23/corus-rounds-9-and-10/

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/01/15/aronian-vs-leko-and-mamedyarov-vs-kramnik-round-3/

 

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Chess Queen Alexandra

Click on the images for a larger view.

Please click HERE to play through chess games of Alexandra. The link will open in a new window.

10 January 2009: News article about Alexandra…the link will open in a new window.

http://www.miamiherald.com/277/story/847451.html

On this link on my blog, http://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/09/12/alexandra-kosteniuk-winner-of-nalchik/ you can follow the games played in the  World Women’s Chess Championships in  between Kosteniuk and Yifan. There’s also more pictures of her to see.

Alexandra Kosteniuk is one of the beauties in the world of Chess! In this video you can see the game she played against GM Zoltan Almasi. It’s a blitz. Fast chess, also known as, blitz chess, lightning chess, bullet chess and rapid chess, is a type of chess game in which each side is given less time to make their moves than under the normal tournament time controls of 60-150 minutes (1-2½ hours) per player.
Read HERE more about blitz chess.

Please click HERE for the official site of Alexandra Kosteniuk.

Alexandra Kosteniuk comments in detail her blitz game played in Moscow at the World Blitz Championships Qualifiers against one of the world’s top experts on the Berlin Wall defence.
 

Image…NYtimes

The model Carmen Kass in a five-minute blitz match against Viswanathan Anand in 2004.

Image:chessbase


Read the review of this book here at the link at the bottom of this post….or click on the image to order the book.

Many of us, even those of us who don’t play either well or often, are familiar with chess. Some of us will be aware that some pieces are differently represented in different parts of the world, but I wonder how many of us are aware of the comparatively recent introduction of the queen?

Marilyn Yalom attempts three objectives in this interesting book. Firstly, and of most interest to me, she outlines a history of the game of chess and its likely spread across the world. Secondly, Dr Yalom explains the development of the piece currently known as the queen in most European chess play both in terms of its replacement of earlier pieces, and its emerging power. Finally, Dr Yalom makes a case for parallels between the emergence of the power of the chess queen and the rise of powerful female sovereigns in Europe.

While I am attracted to the notion of the role of the chess queen as a reflection of the rise of strong queens (such as Isabella of Castile), and a possible association with the cult of the Virgin Mary, this is of peripheral interest to me. What I did find fascinating was the history of the development of the game, especially the differences between cultures and countries. Dr Yalom advises that the chess queen did not appear on the board until about 1000: some 200 years after the game had been introduced to southern Europe. Yet, by 1497, the queen had developed from a weak piece (moving one square at a time on the diagonal) to the more formidable force that she is today.

Dr Yalom presents a wealth of information in this book. Whether you share her conclusions, her enthusiasm for the subject combined with her capacity to present a variety of interesting data in a readable and accessible way will make this an enjoyable read.

Those who are serious chess players may find some of the facts interesting. Those of us interested in the evolution of institutions of power and who choose to explore parallels between games of strategy and political realities should also enjoy this book.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060090650/ref=cm_rdp_product

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Linares round 13

Please click HERE to play through games from Linares round 13 as well as other rounds…

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Linares 2008 round 12

Image: Chessvibes

Click here to see the game of Carlsen and Topalov on Susan Polgar’s site.
If you click on THIS LINK you can play through the games of the players of rounds played so far. Click on the name on the top-menu to see the rounds of a particular player.

Click HERE to read about Shirov/Aronian’s game. 
Please click HERE to read more about Radjabov/Ivanchuk’s game…
and on THIS LINK about Anand/Leko’s game.

Wednesday is a day of rest…no games and the schedule for the rest of the week:

Round 13 6th March 2008
Ivanchuk, Vassily	vs.	Anand, Viswanathan
Radjabov, Teimour	vs.	Shirov, Alexei
Aronian, Levon	vs.	Carlsen, Magnus
Topalov, Veselin	vs.	Leko, Peter
Round 14 7th March 2008
Anand, Viswanathan	vs.	Topalov, Veselin
Leko, Peter	vs.	Aronian, Levon
Carlsen, Magnus	vs.	Radjabov, Teimour
Shirov, Alexei	vs.	Ivanchuk, Vassily

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Linares Round 8

Official site here….The annual Linares chess tournament, usually played around the end of February, takes its name from the city of Linares in the Jaén province of Andalusia, Spain, in which it is held. It is sometimes described as the Wimbledon of chess. It is one of the strongest annual tournaments held on the chess tour, along with the Corus chess tournament and Dortmund chess tournament.
Read more about LINARES here on Wikipedia…Anand outplays Shirov in Linares chess

LINARES, February 29:   

Viswanathan Anand once again showed excellent technique to outplay Alexei Shirov in the eighth round of the Morelia-Linares chess as the second leg got underway in Linares.Anand’s fourth win in eight rounds took his tally to 5.5 points and extended his lead to a full point. Anand is now one point clear of his nearest rivals Lev Aronian and Magnus Carslen, who have 4.5 points each. Anand also benefited from the win against Shirov as Magnus Carlsen lost a seemingly winning game against Vassily Ivanchuk.In his game against Shirov, whom he beat for the FIDE World title back in 2000, Anand made the Latvian-born Spaniard pay for not being able to get adequate counter play. In Sveshnikov Sicilian, Shirov’s pawn weaknesses ultimately cost him the game. It took Anand 57 moves and some fine technique to bring in the full point.Vaselin Topalov, trying to press too hard for a win, saw the effort backfire as he lost to Aronian. The game was balanced for a long time, but Topalov overpressed and Aronian responded with a defensive exchange sacrifice. That ultimately resulted in a superior endgame for Aronian, who converted it in 65 moves.Ivanchuk squandered a winning chance against Carlsen and made a wrong choice of move on the 20th turn, which ran him into serious time trouble. Carlsen soon won the race between the opposing sides’ passed pawns and grabbed a full point.The game between Teimour Radjabov and Peter Leko was drawn, but it was as exciting as any of the decisive games.Anand finished the first leg in Morelia, Mexico with 4.5 points from seven rounds. The players had four days rest but traveled more than 24 hours and the time difference between Mexico and Spain is seven hours, resulting in considerable jet lag.  
 

Original Report can be read here ….

Read on the US-chess site HERE more about the standings after round 7! There are also games to play through of the Grandmasters participating in this tournament. More chess news…..

Aronyan resumes in Spain from fourth position Morelia/Linares resumed in Spain on Thursday (February 28), with Armenian grandmaster Levon Aronyan (with white) beating Bulgaria’s Veselin Topalov in the opening game.Aronyan finished the Mexican part of the super chess tournament in the fourth position (with 3.5 points in seven games) among eight grandmasters. The 2006 Morelia/Linares winner let Spain’s Alexey Shirov and Bulgaria’s Veselin Topalov (4 points) outstrip him after losing to Norway’s Magnus Carlsen in the last round on Sunday. India’s Vishy Anand, the reigning world champion who is defending his last year’s tournament win, was a clear leader with 4.5 points.On Friday, February 29, Aronyan, with white pieces, was due to play Anand.The Linares part of the tournament is due to end on March 7.Meanwhile, Armenian chess-player Movses Movsisyan, representing the United States, scored 5.5 points out of 7 and took the first prize in the Winter Open held in Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA. Forty chess-players participated in the tournament, according to http://www.armchess.am.And Armenian GM Varuzhan Hakobyan (also from the USA) scored 5.5 points out of 7 and shared the 2nd-6th places in the 3rd Open held in Morelia, Mexico. Hakobyan was behind the winner GM Ramirez (Costa Rica) with only half a point. Ninety-five chess players participated.

The “Magnicificent Eight” lined up in Spain, the players in this chess tournament.

On THIS LINK you can follow some of the results of round 10.

Peter Leko and his wife….

Vishy Anand and his wife…

Levon Aronian

More pictures/images : ….chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=4450
Game…round 1……Topalov against…Aronian……

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