THE WEEK IN CHESS 236 - 17th May 1999 by Mark Crowther

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Contents

1) Introduction
2) Category 19 in Sarajevo
3) Category 14 in Israel
4) Lausanne Young Masters
5) Capablanca Memorial
6) Junior Exhibition game in Israel
7) Dutch Team Championship playoff
8) Dubai Open
9) Israeli League
10) First Saturday, May
11) Forthcoming Events


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Games section

Category 19 in Sarajevo              5 games
Category 14 in Israel               30 games
Lausanne Young Masters              25 games
Capablanca Memorial Elite           21 games
Capablanca Memorial Premier 1       21 games
Capablanca Memorial Premier 2       21 games
Capablanca Memorial Mixto           21 games
Junior Exhibition game in Israel     9 games
Dutch Team Championship playoff     40 games
Dubai Open                         182 games
Israeli League                     250 games
First Saturday, IM May              91 games
First Saturday, IM May              30 games

1) Introduction

My thanks to Stéphane Mouchel of Europe Echecs, Dmitry Tyomkin, Robert Klomp, Rolf Sander, Francisco Acosta of the Cuban Chess Federation and all those who helped with this issue.

The Sarajevo tournament has started and got off to a cracking start with 4 of the 5 games being decisive. Ironically the favourite for the event Kasparov was held to a draw by Bareev. This week there is a lot of high quality and category chess, from Israel, Cuba, and Switzerland aswell as the Sarajevo event. On a sad note it is reported today that Estonian GM Lembit Oll has committed suicide. I find this especially shocking news as Oll was only a few months older than myself being born in April 1966. A very fine chess player he will be missed.

The TWIC CD is currently being pressed and should be available very shortly.

Hope you enjoy this issue

Mark

2) Category 19 in Sarajevo

There has been a very lively start to the Category 19 tournament in Sarajevo starting Monday 17th May. The players include Kasparov, Short, Shirov, Morozevich, Adams, Topalov, Leko, Bareev, Timman and Sokolov. Although Kramnik withdrew (for, it is said, "political reasons") to be replaced by Short the event promises to be one of the highlights of the year. The decisive start to the event with Bareev-Kasparov being the only draw shows this. Alexander Morozevich having missed out on playing in Wijk aan Zee due to illness got off to a winning start in his return to top flight tournament play. This is Kasparov's last scheduled major tournament (he hopes for a World Championship match towards the end of the year) for this year. After his dominant performances at Wijk aan Zee and Linares he will surely aim for a huge result here.

Round 1 (May 17, 1999)

Adams, Michael         -  Short, Nigel D         1-0   39  C03  French; Tarrasch
Morozevich, Alexander  -  Sokolov, Ivan          1-0   41  C58  Two knights
Bareev, Evgeny         -  Kasparov, Gary         1/2   21  D80  Gruenfeld indian
Leko, Peter            -  Shirov, Alexei         0-1   44  B90  Sicilian; Najdorf
Timman, Jan H          -  Topalov, Veselin       0-1   37  D15  Slav defence


Sarajevo BIH (BIH), v 1999                          cat. XIX (2704)
-------------------------------------------------------------------
                                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 
-------------------------------------------------------------------
 1 Adams, Michael         g ENG 2716 * . . . . . . 1 . .  1.0      
 2 Morozevich, Alexander  g RUS 2723 . * . . . . . . 1 .  1.0      
 3 Shirov, Alexei         g ESP 2726 . . * . . . 1 . . .  1.0      
 4 Topalov, Veselin       g BUL 2700 . . . * . . . . . 1  1.0      
 5 Bareev, Evgeny         g RUS 2679 . . . . * = . . . .  0.5  2812
 6 Kasparov, Gary         g RUS 2812 . . . . = * . . . .  0.5  2679
 7 Leko, Peter            g HUN 2694 . . 0 . . . * . . .  0.0      
 8 Short, Nigel D         g ENG 2697 0 . . . . . . * . .  0.0      
 9 Sokolov, Ivan          g BIH 2624 . 0 . . . . . . * .  0.0      
10 Timman, Jan H          g NED 2670 . . . 0 . . . . . *  0.0      
-------------------------------------------------------------------

3) Category 14 in Israel

IM Dmitry Tyomkin reports: The 1st Israeli Supertournament is underway. The event is organized by the Israeli Chess Federation and is taking place in the Sol and Sisi Mark Center and Garry Kasparov Chess Academy building in Tel Aviv 10th-19th of May. The participants are the ten top Israeli grandmasters. 5 of them qualifed to play the event by rating, (Gelfand, Smirin, Alterman, Sutovsky and Avrukh) four (Mark Tseitlin, Huzman, Psahis, Zilberman) by their results in the Israeli Open Championship that was held in April this year, and finally the Champion of Israel in 1998 Liss was also invited.

The idea and a major part of the organization was down to GM Boris Alterman. The event is a 9 round single round robin tournament. The time control is 100 minutes for first the 40 moves, then 50 minutes for next 20 moves, and 10 minutes for the rest to each player. There is a 30 second increment for each move played. This time control is equivalent to the old 2h/40,1h/20,1/2h. 9 players in the event were born in former Soviet Union. This is the debute of Boris Gelfand in a serious closed event in Israel as an Israeli citizen.

Round by round

After three rounds Boris Gelfand (ranked 1st in the event) and Psakhis (twice former champion of Soviet Union!) share first. Gelfand beat the underdog Zilberman in the first round by exploiting the odd opening setup chosen by Zilberman in Queens Gambit Accepted. In his second game he outplayed the biggest Israeli hope Avrukh with black pieces in his favorite Meran. The main surprise of the tournament was his draw with white pieces against Liss (Boris actually got a little present from Liss who gave perpetual in the position where Liss had significient advantage!). Psakhis has outplayed Tseitlin and Zilberman, who are the lowest rated in the event, and has drawn against Alterman in solid style with black. 3rd place is shared by one of main favorites Smirin, and the only player who is not a professional (also he is the only Israeli native), Eran Liss, who produced a very interesting opening novelty in Sicilian-B35 in beating Emil Sutovsky in round 2. Emil Sutovsky who is known for his sharp uncompromising style,so far is the only player in the tournament, without a single draw. The Olympiad gold medalist Boris Avrukh has had a disappointing perfomance so far and is sharing the last place.

Round 4, comments by GM Arthur Kogan and Dima Tyomkin.

There were 3 decisive games in the fourth round. The main fight was between Lev (the Lion!) Psakhis and Boris Avrukh. Avrukh tried to score his first win with a pawn sacrifice in King's Indian Samisch. He failed at the experienced hands of the "Lion". Israeli Champion Liss continued his successful start crushing Zilberman with some original aggressive play against the Alekhine Defence. Mark Tseitlin, the most experienced player (the oldest guy in the group-he is 55 years old!) recalled his youth in killing Sutovsky's King by straightforward attack. Smirin and Alterman didn't show too much today with the white pieces against Gelfand and Huzman and were satisfied with draws. [Dima Tyomkin also gives his best wishes to his friends around the World and hopes for more comments from Arthur Kogan tomorrow]

Round 5 Today there was really exciting round! 4 out of 5 games in this category 14 event were decided in round 5. Psakhis kept his leading place in the field with careful draw with black. Boris Gelfand joined the leader craushing Mark Tseitlin in high-level game in the Gruenfeld. He produced a theoretical improvement in the game between his second Huzman and Tseitlin from the 3rd round, and after 16..f6? he easily won. He is real pro! But the discussion of this variation is still open-16…Nc4! Would have kept black alive there. Smirin has a good tournament and beat Zilberman in Smirin's favorite King's Indian and he is certainly in the battle for first place! Another hero of the round was Boris Avrukh! He proved that he is still fighting in the tournament, and beat Liss in his best game from the event until now. As Avrukh's second it brought me some hopes for the rest of the tournament. Tomorrow Smirin will play white against Avrukh. It has to be top game of the round. Sutovsky is continuing his decisive series of games and beat Alterman in a fantastic ending with opposite bishops.This game was over after a seven hour fight and I had no time to collect analyses from players. The tournament has just passed the half way stage, some players are in good shape, some are not, but anyway the finish promises to be very interesting.

Round 6 Round 6 was a much quieter round than round 5. Two games were drawn immediately after the opening phase. Psakhis had worked hard on his home-preparation for his game against Liss. But some how he made the wrong first (!) move, 1.c4 (instead of the prepared 1.Nf3) and then was satisfied with the draw. His challenger-Boris Gelfand produced a new idea with black against Alterman and equalized. As expected, the most interesting game was the game Smirin-Avrukh. Smirin played 1.c4 on the first move instead of his usual 1.e4 and he achieved a big advantage from the opening. He then became confused and in time-trouble Avrukh missed a way of gaining the advantage. Neither player was good enough in this game to get a whole point! There was a crucial game between the "quiet" Huzman and "brave" Sutovsky. One has had all draws in this event, the other all decisive! One of them had to break the sequence! Alexander Huzman had the better knowledge in a sharp variation of Gruenfeld then Sutovsky, and got a winning position out of the opening which turned into the point in the table. Mark Tseitlin like Smirin opened unusually for him with 1.Nf3 and found a very useful setup without playing d2-d4 against the Stonewall. In the middlegame he crushed Yakob Zilberman with active play, who finds himself rooted to the bottom of the table. My guess for tomorrow's top game is that between Liss (with the white pieces) against Smirin. Only the winner will continue to challenge for first place!

Round 1 (May 11, 1999)

Gelfand, Boris     -  Zilberman, Yaacov  1-0   27  D25  QGA;
Huzman, Alexander  -  Liss, Eran         1/2   16  A34  English; 1.c4 c5
Tseitlin, Mark D   -  Psakhis, Lev       0-1   35  B97  Sicilian; Najdorf
Alterman, Boris    -  Smirin, Ilia       1/2   40  E71  Kings indian
Sutovsky, Emil     -  Avrukh, Boris      1-0   25  B63  Sicilian

Round 2 (May 12, 1999)

Psakhis, Lev       -  Zilberman, Yaacov  1-0   42  A92  Dutch defence
Smirin, Ilia       -  Huzman, Alexander  1/2   34  B92  Sicilian; Najdorf
Liss, Eran         -  Sutovsky, Emil     1-0   33  B35  Sicilian
Tseitlin, Mark D   -  Alterman, Boris    1/2   99  B19  Caro-Kann
Avrukh, Boris      -  Gelfand, Boris     0-1   57  D48  Meran Variation

Round 3 (May 13, 1999)

Gelfand, Boris     -  Liss, Eran         1/2   26  D85  Gruenfeld indian
Huzman, Alexander  -  Tseitlin, Mark D   1/2   19  D85  Gruenfeld indian
Alterman, Boris    -  Psakhis, Lev       1/2   39  E21  Nimzo indian
Sutovsky, Emil     -  Smirin, Ilia       0-1   57  B09  Pirc; Austrian
Zilberman, Yaacov  -  Avrukh, Boris      1/2   36  B08  Pirc; Classical

Round 4 (May 14, 1999)

Psakhis, Lev       -  Avrukh, Boris      1-0   40  E81  Kings indian; Saemisch
Smirin, Ilia       -  Gelfand, Boris     1/2   25  A28  English; 1.c4 e5
Liss, Eran         -  Zilberman, Yaacov  1-0   34  B04  Alekhine defence
Tseitlin, Mark D   -  Sutovsky, Emil     1-0   35  A08  Reti (1.Nf3)
Alterman, Boris    -  Huzman, Alexander  1/2   20  E20  Nimzo indian

Round 5 (May 15, 1999)

Gelfand, Boris     -  Tseitlin, Mark D   1-0   31  D85  Gruenfeld indian
Huzman, Alexander  -  Psakhis, Lev       1/2   15  E15  Nimzo indian
Avrukh, Boris      -  Liss, Eran         1-0   38  D85  Gruenfeld indian
Sutovsky, Emil     -  Alterman, Boris    1-0   66  C21  1.e4 e5
Zilberman, Yaacov  -  Smirin, Ilia       0-1   36  E94  Kings indian; Classical

Round 6 (May 16, 1999)

Psakhis, Lev       -  Liss, Eran         1/2   19  A37  English; 1.c4 c5
Smirin, Ilia       -  Avrukh, Boris      1/2   38  E92  Kings indian; Classical
Huzman, Alexander  -  Sutovsky, Emil     1-0   39  D85  Gruenfeld indian
Tseitlin, Mark D   -  Zilberman, Yaacov  1-0   45  A10  English; 1.c4
Alterman, Boris    -  Gelfand, Boris     1/2   14  E21  Nimzo indian


Tel Aviv ISR (ISR), v 1999                      cat. XIV (2583)
---------------------------------------------------------------
                                 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 
---------------------------------------------------------------
 1 Gelfand, Boris     g ISR 2691 * . = . = 1 = 1 . 1  4.5  2758
 2 Psakhis, Lev       g ISR 2564 . * . = = 1 = 1 . 1  4.5  2745
 3 Smirin, Ilia       g ISR 2652 = . * = . . = = 1 1  4.0  2727
 4 Huzman, Alexander  g ISR 2575 . = = * = = = . 1 .  3.5  2631
 5 Liss, Eran         g ISR 2512 = = . = * . . 0 1 1  3.5  2651
 6 Tseitlin, Mark D   g ISR 2490 0 0 . = . * = . 1 1  3.0  2595
 7 Alterman, Boris    g ISR 2616 = = = = . = * . 0 .  2.5  2540
 8 Avrukh, Boris      g ISR 2609 0 0 = . 1 . . * 0 =  2.0  2465
 9 Sutovsky, Emil     g ISR 2612 . . 0 0 0 0 1 1 * .  2.0  2450
10 Zilberman, Yaacov  g ISR 2513 0 0 0 . 0 0 . = . *  0.5  2185
---------------------------------------------------------------

4) Lausanne Young Masters

The Lausanne Young Masters took place 12-16 May. Etienne Bacrot (Elo 2561) of France beat the young star Ruslan Ponomariov (Elo 2609) in the final to win the event. Both players ironically failed in the first part of the event. They both finished bottom of the pools that decided their quarter final pairings of the knockout part of the competition. At first (and in all the pool games) the time-rate was 40 moves in 1 hour 40 minutes + 30 seconds per move. If the game was drawn in the knockout stages of the event then two active games of 25 minutes per side were played, after that two blitz games were played.

Further details: http://euroipo.ch/ess

Pool A
Lausanne SUI (SUI), v 1999         cat. XIII (2553)
---------------------------------------------------
                                 1 2 3 4 
---------------------------------------------------
1 Sadvakasov, Darmen  g KAZ 2487 * 0 1 1  2.0  2700
2 Bunzmann, Dimitrij    GER 2555 1 * 0 =  1.5  2552
3 Ponomariov, Ruslan  g UKR 2609 0 1 * =  1.5  2534
4 Bacrot, Etienne     g FRA 2561 0 = = *  1.0  2425
---------------------------------------------------

Pool B
Lausanne SUI (SUI), v 1999           cat. XIII (2556)
-----------------------------------------------------
                                   1 2 3 4 
-----------------------------------------------------
1 Asrian, Karen         g ARM 2576 * = 1 1  2.5  2822
2 Leitao, Rafael        g BRA 2559 = * = 1  2.0  2680
3 Pelletier, Yannick    m SUI 2483 0 = * =  1.0  2455
4 Kasimdzhanov, Rustam  g UZB 2606 0 0 = *  0.5  2266
-----------------------------------------------------

After this first stage the positions in the pools
were used to establish the quarter final pairings.

Quarter Finals

Sadvakasov - Kasimdzhanov   1/2  

Tie-break

Sadvakasov - Kasimdzhanov   1-0
Kasimdzhanov - Sadvakasov   1/2

Bunzmann - Pelletier        0-1  
Asrian - Bacrot             0-1  
Leitao - Ponomariov         0-1

Semi-Finals

Ponomariov - Sadvakasov    1-0  

Bacrot - Pelletier  1/2

Tie Break

Pelletier - Bacrot      1-0  
Bacrot - Pelletier      1-0

Blitz

Pelletier - Bacrot      0-1  
Bacrot - Pelletier      1-0

Final

Ponomariov - Bacrot 0-1  
 

5) Capablanca Memorial

The 34th Capablana Memorial is underway. The event runs May 7th - 22nd 1999. In the Category 12 Elite group sees Ivan Morovic, Anthony Miles, Suat Atalik, Alexander Baburin, Michele Godena, Alejandro Hoffman, Luis Comas, Roman Slobodjan, Reinaldo Vera, Jesús Nogueiras, Julio Becerra, Walter Arencibia, Frank de la Paz and Lázaro Bruzón play. After 8 rounds the Elite Group is being led by Tony Miles of England, with 5.5 points, half a point ahead of local GM Walter Arencibia and Suat Atalik of Turkey.

Coverage at: http://www2.cuba.cu/capablanca/

Capablanca Memorial - Elite Group

Round 4 (May 10, 1999)

Miles, Anthony J         -  Godena, Michele          1-0   39  A06  Reti (1.Nf3)
Arencibia, Walter        -  Hoffman, Alejandro       1/2   42  A01  Larsen (1.b3)
Atalik, Suat             -  Morovic Fernandez, Ivan  1/2   19  D56  QGD;
Baburin, Alexander       -  Vera, Reynaldo           1-0   36  D51  QGD;
Slobodjan, Roman         -  De la Paz, Frank         1-0   45  C54  Italian game
Bruzon, Lazaro           -  Becerra Rivero, Julio    1-0   65  B07  Pirc
Comas Fabrego, Luis      -  Nogueiras, Jesus         1/2   28  E09  Nimzo indian

Round 5 (May 12, 1999)

Morovic Fernandez, Ivan  -  Bruzon, Lazaro           1/2   28  D58  QGD;
Becerra Rivero, Julio    -  Comas Fabrego, Luis      1/2   22  B44  Sicilian
Vera, Reynaldo           -  Arencibia, Walter        1/2   24  D07  Chigorin
Nogueiras, Jesus         -  Miles, Anthony J         1/2    9  A31  English; 1.c4 c5
Hoffman, Alejandro       -  Atalik, Suat             1/2   48  A48  Queen's pawn
De la Paz, Frank         -  Baburin, Alexander       0-1   38  B04  Alekhine defence
Godena, Michele          -  Slobodjan, Roman         1/2   46  B07  Pirc

Round 6 (May 13, 1999)

Miles, Anthony J         -  Becerra Rivero, Julio    1-0   34  E97  Kings indian; Main line
Arencibia, Walter        -  Atalik, Suat             1/2   16  B21  Sicilian; English attack
Baburin, Alexander       -  Godena, Michele          1-0   30  D27  QGA;
Slobodjan, Roman         -  Nogueiras, Jesus         1-0   39  B05  Alekhine defence
Vera, Reynaldo           -  De la Paz, Frank         1-0   43  E92  Kings indian; Classical
Bruzon, Lazaro           -  Hoffman, Alejandro       0-1   63  C41  Philidor defence
Comas Fabrego, Luis      -  Morovic Fernandez, Ivan  0-1   21  C47  Four knights

Round 7 (May 14, 1999)

Atalik, Suat             -  Bruzon, Lazaro           1-0   47  D58  QGD;
Morovic Fernandez, Ivan  -  Miles, Anthony J         1/2   16  E15  Nimzo indian
Becerra Rivero, Julio    -  Slobodjan, Roman         1/2   26  E83  Kings indian; Saemisch
Nogueiras, Jesus         -  Baburin, Alexander       1/2   16  D27  QGA;
Hoffman, Alejandro       -  Comas Fabrego, Luis      0-1   41  C00  French
De la Paz, Frank         -  Arencibia, Walter        0-1   22  B99  Sicilian; Najdorf
Godena, Michele          -  Vera, Reynaldo           1/2   16  B50  Sicilian

Round 8 (May 15, 1999)

Miles, Anthony J         -  Hoffman, Alejandro       1/2   21  A46  Queen's pawn
Arencibia, Walter        -  Bruzon, Lazaro           1/2   57  D80  Gruenfeld indian
Baburin, Alexander       -  Becerra Rivero, Julio    0-1   61  E62  Kings indian
Slobodjan, Roman         -  Morovic Fernandez, Ivan  1/2    7  D03  Queen's pawn
Vera, Reynaldo           -  Nogueiras, Jesus         1/2    7  D11  Slav defence
Comas Fabrego, Luis      -  Atalik, Suat             1/2   21  E60  Kings indian
De la Paz, Frank         -  Godena, Michele          1/2   45  C55  Two knights


Havana CUB (CUB), v 1999                                      cat. XII (2550)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                       1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1 Miles, Anthony J         g ENG 2609 * . . 1 = . 1 = . = . = = 1  5.5  2692
 2 Arencibia, Walter        g CUB 2520 . * = 0 1 1 . = = . . = 1 .  5.0  2645
 3 Atalik, Suat             g TUR 2593 . = * . = . = . 1 = = = . 1  5.0  2637
 4 Baburin, Alexander       g IRL 2586 0 1 . * . = 0 1 . = . . 1 1  5.0  2636
 5 Morovic Fernandez, Ivan  g CHI 2613 = 0 = . * = = . = . 1 1 . .  4.5  2589
 6 Slobodjan, Roman         g GER 2536 . 0 . = = * = = . 1 . . 1 =  4.5  2591
 7 Becerra Rivero, Julio    g CUB 2535 0 . = 1 = = * . 0 . = 1 . .  4.0  2564
 8 Vera, Reynaldo           g CUB 2547 = = . 0 . = . * . = = . 1 =  4.0  2547
 9 Bruzon, Lazaro           f CUB 2488 . = 0 . = . 1 . * = . 0 = 1  4.0  2549
10 Nogueiras, Jesus         g CUB 2540 = . = = . 0 . = = * = = . .  3.5  2512
11 Comas Fabrego, Luis      m ESP 2541 . . = . 0 . = = . = * 1 0 =  3.5  2509
12 Hoffman, Alejandro       g ARG 2547 = = = . 0 . 0 . 1 = 0 * . .  3.0  2467
13 De la Paz, Frank         m CUB 2495 = 0 . 0 . 0 . 0 = . 1 . * =  2.5  2406
14 Godena, Michele          g ITA 2552 0 . 0 0 . = . = 0 . = . = *  2.0  2356
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Capablanca Memorial - Premier Group 1

Round 3 (May 9, 1999)

Vilela, Jose Luis           -  Rivera, Alberto             1/2   15  E43  Nimzo indian

Round 4 (May 10, 1999)

Podgaets, Mikhail           -  Otero, Diasmany             1-0   30  D67  QGD;
Hernandez, Roman            -  Szekely, Peter              1/2   12  A36  English; 1.c4 c5
Rivera, Alberto             -  Vallejo Pons, Francisco     0-1   40  D24  QGA;
Herrera, Irisberto          -  Franco Ocampo, Zenon        1/2   19  B49  Sicilian
Roeder, Mathias             -  Delgado, Neuris             1/2   32  D26  QGA;
Pecorelli Garcia, Humberto  -  Matamoros Franco, Carlos S  0-1   31  A57  Benko gambit
Vilela, Jose Luis           -  Abreu, Aryam                1/2   14  D14  Slav defence

Round 5 (May 12, 1999)

Vallejo Pons, Francisco     -  Roeder, Mathias             1-0   33  B54  Sicilian
Abreu, Aryam                -  Rivera, Alberto             1-0   51  C97  Ruy Lopez
Franco Ocampo, Zenon        -  Podgaets, Mikhail           1/2   16  D46  Semi-Slav
Matamoros Franco, Carlos S  -  Hernandez, Roman            0-1   36  E11  Bogo indian
Szekely, Peter              -  Herrera, Irisberto          1/2    9  D76  1.d4 d5 2.c4 g6
Delgado, Neuris             -  Pecorelli Garcia, Humberto  1-0   31  C00  French
Otero, Diasmany             -  Vilela, Jose Luis           1-0   42  B42  Sicilian

Round 6 (May 13, 1999)

Podgaets, Mikhail           -  Szekely, Peter              1-0   29  E94  Kings indian; Classical
Abreu, Aryam                -  Otero, Diasmany             1-0   20  C60  Ruy Lopez
Hernandez, Roman            -  Delgado, Neuris             1/2   15  D28  QGA;
Rivera, Alberto             -  Roeder, Mathias             1-0   56  B52  Sicilian
Herrera, Irisberto          -  Matamoros Franco, Carlos S  0-1   32  B01  Scandinavian
Pecorelli Garcia, Humberto  -  Vallejo Pons, Francisco     1/2   42  D11  Slav defence
Vilela, Jose Luis           -  Franco Ocampo, Zenon        1/2   10  E43  Nimzo indian

Round 7 (May 14, 1999)

Vallejo Pons, Francisco     -  Hernandez, Roman            1-0   30  C59  Two knights
Franco Ocampo, Zenon        -  Abreu, Aryam                1/2   40  A22  English; 1.c4 e5
Matamoros Franco, Carlos S  -  Podgaets, Mikhail           1/2   16  E12  Nimzo indian
Szekely, Peter              -  Vilela, Jose Luis           1/2    8  D26  QGA;
Delgado, Neuris             -  Herrera, Irisberto          0-1   60  B50  Sicilian
Roeder, Mathias             -  Pecorelli Garcia, Humberto  1/2   13  D55  QGD;
Otero, Diasmany             -  Rivera, Alberto             0-1   36  B92  Sicilian; Najdorf

Round 8 (May 15, 1999)

Podgaets, Mikhail           -  Delgado, Neuris             1-0   40  D53  QGD;
Abreu, Aryam                -  Szekely, Peter              1/2   25  B90  Sicilian; Najdorf
Hernandez, Roman            -  Roeder, Mathias             1/2    8  E15  Nimzo indian
Rivera, Alberto             -  Pecorelli Garcia, Humberto  1/2   11  A88  Dutch defence
Herrera, Irisberto          -  Vallejo Pons, Francisco     0-1   52  C11  French; Classical
Otero, Diasmany             -  Franco Ocampo, Zenon        1/2   18  B48  Sicilian
Vilela, Jose Luis           -  Matamoros Franco, Carlos S  1/2   45  A33  English; 1.c4 c5


Havana CUB (CUB), v 1999                                        cat. VIII (2436)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                          1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1 Vallejo Pons, Francisco     m ESP 2494 * . . 1 . 1 1 = 1 = 1 . = .  6.5  2683
 2 Podgaets, Mikhail           m UKR 2484 . * 0 . = = 1 1 . 1 . 1 . 1  6.0  2615
 3 Abreu, Aryam                m CUB 2410 . 1 * 0 = . 1 = 1 . . 1 . =  5.5  2572
 4 Hernandez, Roman            g CUB 2419 0 . 1 * = 1 . = . = = 1 . .  5.0  2537
 5 Franco Ocampo, Zenon        g ESP 2463 . = = = * . . . = . = = = =  4.0  2430
 6 Matamoros Franco, Carlos S  m ECU 2458 0 = . 0 . * . . 1 = = . 1 =  4.0  2442
 7 Rivera, Alberto             m CUB 2392 0 0 0 . . . * . . 1 1 1 = =  4.0  2435
 8 Szekely, Peter              g HUN 2444 = 0 = = . . . * = . = . = =  3.5  2398
 9 Herrera, Irisberto          m CUB 2450 0 . 0 . = 0 . = * 1 . = . 1  3.5  2392
10 Delgado, Neuris             f CUB 2417 = 0 . = . = 0 . 0 * = . 1 .  3.0  2359
11 Roeder, Mathias             m GER 2448 0 . . = = = 0 = . = * . = .  3.0  2352
12 Otero, Diasmany             f CUB 2403 . 0 0 0 = . 0 . = . . * 1 1  3.0  2343
13 Pecorelli Garcia, Humberto  m CUB 2430 = . . . = 0 = = . 0 = 0 * .  2.5  2298
14 Vilela, Jose Luis           m CUB 2396 . 0 = . = = = = 0 . . 0 . *  2.5  2297
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Capablanca Memorial - Premier Group 2

Round 4 (May 10, 1999)

Garbisu de Goni, Unai      -  Gongora, Maikel            1-0   45  B90  Sicilian; Najdorf
Vazquez, Renier            -  Perez, Rodney              1/2   17  C42  Petroff defence
Garcia Martinez, Silvino   -  Gonzalez, Renier           1/2   32  B15  Caro-Kann
Narciso Dublan, Marc       -  Perez, Luis Manuel         1/2   25  A36  English; 1.c4 c5
Gomez, Felix               -  Dominguez, Lenier          1-0   41  D12  Slav defence
Schussler, Harry           -  Gonzalez, Yuri             1/2   11  E61  Kings indian
Bellon Lopez, Juan Manuel  -  Lesiege, Alexandre         0-1   40  D61  QGD;

Round 5 (May 12, 1999)

Perez, Luis Manuel         -  Vazquez, Renier            1-0   21  B01  Scandinavian
Perez, Rodney              -  Bellon Lopez, Juan Manuel  1-0   36  B15  Caro-Kann
Gonzalez, Renier           -  Garbisu de Goni, Unai      1-0   50  C47  Four knights
Lesiege, Alexandre         -  Schussler, Harry           1-0   37  E11  Bogo indian
Gonzalez, Yuri             -  Gomez, Felix               0-1   40  A16  English; 1.c4
Dominguez, Lenier          -  Garcia Martinez, Silvino   1/2   24  B47  Sicilian
Gongora, Maikel            -  Narciso Dublan, Marc       0-1   43  B01  Scandinavian

Round 6 (May 13, 1999)

Garbisu de Goni, Unai      -  Dominguez, Lenier          1-0   29  B90  Sicilian; Najdorf
Lesiege, Alexandre         -  Perez, Rodney              0-1   33  D11  Slav defence
Vazquez, Renier            -  Gongora, Maikel            1-0   34  B92  Sicilian; Najdorf
Garcia Martinez, Silvino   -  Gonzalez, Yuri             1/2   18  B50  Sicilian
Narciso Dublan, Marc       -  Gonzalez, Renier           1/2   13  A41  Queen's pawn
Schussler, Harry           -  Gomez, Felix               1/2    1  B00  1.e4
Bellon Lopez, Juan Manuel  -  Perez, Luis Manuel         0-1   27  D44  QGD; Botwinnik

Round 7 (May 14, 1999)

Perez, Luis Manuel         -  Lesiege, Alexandre         1-0   32  B22  Sicilian; Alapin (2.c3)
Perez, Rodney              -  Schussler, Harry           1/2   20  C15  French; Winawer
Gonzalez, Renier           -  Vazquez, Renier            1-0   60  B80  Sicilian
Gonzalez, Yuri             -  Garbisu de Goni, Unai      1-0   34  C77  Ruy Lopez
Gomez, Felix               -  Garcia Martinez, Silvino   1/2    1  B00  1.e4
Dominguez, Lenier          -  Narciso Dublan, Marc       1/2   54  B01  Scandinavian
Gongora, Maikel            -  Bellon Lopez, Juan Manuel  1/2   52  B40  Sicilian

Round 8 (May 15, 1999)

Perez, Rodney              -  Perez, Luis Manuel         1/2   19  A37  English; 1.c4 c5
Garbisu de Goni, Unai      -  Gomez, Felix               1-0   18  C63  Ruy Lopez
Lesiege, Alexandre         -  Gongora, Maikel            1-0   37  A67  Modern Benoni
Vazquez, Renier            -  Dominguez, Lenier          1-0   29  B50  Sicilian
Narciso Dublan, Marc       -  Gonzalez, Yuri             1/2   26  B26  Sicilian; Closed
Schussler, Harry           -  Garcia Martinez, Silvino   1/2    8  E63  Kings indian
Bellon Lopez, Juan Manuel  -  Gonzalez, Renier           1-0   38  A42  Queen's pawn


Havana CUB (CUB), v 1999                                       cat. VIII (2436)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                         1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1 Perez, Luis Manuel         f CUB 2402 * = . = 1 1 = = . 1 . . 1 .  6.0  2636
 2 Perez, Rodney              m CUB 2406 = * . 0 1 = = 1 . . = . 1 .  5.0  2537
 3 Gonzalez, Renier           m CUB 2408 . . * 1 . 1 = = 1 = . = 0 .  5.0  2530
 4 Garbisu de Goni, Unai      m ESP 2414 = 1 0 * = . . . 0 1 . 1 . 1  5.0  2531
 5 Lesiege, Alexandre         g CAN 2521 0 0 . = * = . 1 . . 1 . 1 1  5.0  2523
 6 Vazquez, Renier            m CUB 2409 0 = 0 . = * . . . . = 1 1 1  4.5  2486
 7 Garcia Martinez, Silvino   g CUB 2420 = = = . . . * . = = = = . 0  3.5  2385
 8 Narciso Dublan, Marc       m ESP 2469 = 0 = . 0 . . * = . . = = 1  3.5  2391
 9 Gonzalez, Yuri             f CUB 2386 . . 0 1 . . = = * 0 = 0 . 1  3.5  2398
10 Gomez, Felix               f CUB 2463 0 . = 0 . . = . 1 * = 1 . 0  3.5  2380
11 Schussler, Harry           g SWE 2455 . = . . 0 = = . = = * = 0 .  3.0  2354
12 Dominguez, Lenier          m CUB 2479 . . = 0 . 0 = = 1 0 = * . .  3.0  2341
13 Bellon Lopez, Juan Manuel  g ESP 2447 0 0 1 . 0 0 . = . . 1 . * =  3.0  2350
14 Gongora, Maikel            f CUB 2427 . . . 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 . . = *  2.5  2300
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Capablanca Memorial - Mixto Group 

Round 4 (May 10, 1999)

Martinez, Daniel               -  Fierro Baquero, Martha Lorena  1-0   38  A40  Queen's pawn
Arribas, Maritza               -  Duarte, Tatiana                1-0   49  A05  Reti (1.Nf3)
Pina, Sulennis                 -  Fandino, Roquelina             1-0   67  A08  Reti (1.Nf3)
Almeida, Omar                  -  Pazos, Plinio                  1/2   15  D38  Queen's gambit
Delgado Crespo, Mairelys       -  Frometa, Zirka                 1/2   45  B06  Modern defence
Hernandez, Tania               -  Alvarez, Jose                  0-1   37  A08  Reti (1.Nf3)
Sosa, L                        -  Gonzalez, Jorge V              0-1   34  C44  Scottish

Round 5 (May 12, 1999)

Alvarez, Jose                  -  Arribas, Maritza               1/2   42  A53  Benoni
Fierro Baquero, Martha Lorena  -  Pina, Sulennis                 0-1   43  B51  Sicilian
Gonzalez, Jorge V              -  Hernandez, Tania               1/2   42  A01  Larsen (1.b3)
Pazos, Plinio                  -  Delgado Crespo, Mairelys       1-0   42  D53  QGD;
Duarte, Tatiana                -  Martinez, Daniel               0-1   46  C01  French; Exchange
Frometa, Zirka                 -  Sosa, L                        1/2   28  D02  Queen's pawn
Fandino, Roquelina             -  Almeida, Omar                  0-1   54  B22  Sicilian; Alapin (2.c3)

Round 6 (May 13, 1999)

Arribas, Maritza               -  Martinez, Daniel               1-0   40  A65  Modern Benoni
Alvarez, Jose                  -  Gonzalez, Jorge V              1/2   27  E12  Nimzo indian
Pina, Sulennis                 -  Duarte, Tatiana                1-0   51  B26  Sicilian; Closed
Almeida, Omar                  -  Fierro Baquero, Martha Lorena  0-1   47  A41  Queen's pawn
Delgado Crespo, Mairelys       -  Fandino, Roquelina             1/2   60  B08  Pirc; Classical
Hernandez, Tania               -  Frometa, Zirka                 1/2    6  A07  Reti (1.Nf3)
Sosa, L                        -  Pazos, Plinio                  0-1   37  B29  Sicilian; Nimzowitsch

Round 7 (May 14, 1999)

Martinez, Daniel               -  Pina, Sulennis                 1-0   35  A55  Benoni
Fierro Baquero, Martha Lorena  -  Delgado Crespo, Mairelys       1/2    9  A07  Reti (1.Nf3)
Gonzalez, Jorge V              -  Arribas, Maritza               1/2   46  A03  Bird (1.f4)
Pazos, Plinio                  -  Hernandez, Tania               1/2   43  B25  Sicilian; Closed
Duarte, Tatiana                -  Almeida, Omar                  1/2   44  B33  Sicilian; Sveshnikov
Frometa, Zirka                 -  Alvarez, Jose                  0-1   40  E91  Kings indian; Classical
Fandino, Roquelina             -  Sosa, L                        1-0   44  B01  Scandinavian

Round 8 (May 15, 1999)

Arribas, Maritza               -  Pina, Sulennis                 1/2   28  A44  Queen's pawn
Alvarez, Jose                  -  Pazos, Plinio                  1/2   15  A30  English; 1.c4 c5
Gonzalez, Jorge V              -  Frometa, Zirka                 0-1   44  A21  English; 1.c4 e5
Almeida, Omar                  -  Martinez, Daniel               1/2   47  E90  Kings indian; Classical
Delgado Crespo, Mairelys       -  Duarte, Tatiana                1-0   81  B20  Sicilian
Hernandez, Tania               -  Fandino, Roquelina             1/2   14  B85  Sicilian
Sosa, L                        -  Fierro Baquero, Martha Lorena  0-1   20  A43  Queen's pawn


Havana CUB (CUB), v 1999                                              cat. I (2253)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1 Martinez, Daniel                 MEX 2260 * 0 . 1 1 . = 1 . 1 . 1 1 .  6.5  2507
 2 Arribas, Maritza              wm CUB 2322 1 * = = = = . . . 1 1 . . 1  6.0  2422
 3 Alvarez, Jose                  m CUB 2368 . = * . . = 1 = = . 1 1 . 1  6.0  2453
 4 Pina, Sulennis                wm CUB 2241 0 = . * 1 0 . = . 1 . 1 1 .  5.0  2322
 5 Fierro Baquero, Martha Lorena wm ECU 2252 0 = . 0 * . 1 . = 1 . . 1 1  5.0  2351
 6 Gonzalez, Jorge V                CHI 2100 . = = 1 . * 0 . 1 . = 0 . 1  4.5  2321
 7 Almeida, Omar                  f CUB 2344 = . 0 . 0 1 * = . = . 1 1 .  4.5  2276
 8 Pazos, Plinio                  m ECU 2366 0 . = = . . = * 1 0 = . . 1  4.0  2265
 9 Delgado Crespo, Mairelys      wm CUB 2298 . . = . = 0 . 0 * 1 = = = .  3.5  2184
10 Duarte, Tatiana               wf BRA 2146 0 0 . 0 0 . = 1 0 * . . 1 .  2.5  2142
11 Hernandez, Tania              wm CUB 2211 . 0 0 . . = . = = . * = = 0  2.5  2119
12 Frometa, Zirka                wm CUB 2190 0 . 0 0 . 1 0 . = . = * . =  2.5  2118
13 Fandino, Roquelina            wf CUB 2187 0 . . 0 0 . 0 . = 0 = . * 1  2.0  2057
14 Sosa, L                          PUR 2254 . 0 0 . 0 0 . 0 . . 1 = 0 *  1.5  1998
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6) Junior Exhibition game in Israel

Boris Gelfand who now represents Israel lost to the top Israeli computer program Junior (programmed by Amir Ban and Shay Bushinsky and the 15th World Micro Computer Chess Champion) in a two game exhibition match on Monday 10th May in the Sol and Sisi Mark Center and Garry Kasparov Chess Academy building in Tel Aviv. The time rate was be 30 minutes + 20 seconds increment per move per player. The first game was drawn, the second won by Junior. In addition Israeli Olympiad team members Alterman, Psakhis, Avrukh and Kosashvili played games against Junior at 30 minutes for the entire game. Alterman and Psakhis drew, Kosashvili won and Avrukh lost. Events started with a "Baby" Junior game against Israeli Minister for Commerce and Industry Natan Sharansky, which the computer won.

The event played a part in the Israeli Election campaign with Premier Netanyahu visiting the event. General Ehud Barak the opposition leader also appeared at a simultaneous the day before. Chess is very popular with the one million Russian immigrants in Israel. Netanyahu, not really known as a chess player, played very correctly against Sheransky before his game was declared a draw after 45 minutes as his schedule was very busy.

Sheransky N. - "Baby Junior" 0-1

Israel Olympic team - Junior 2-2
---------------------------------------------
Alterman B. - Junior 0.5-0.5
Junior - Psakhis L.   0.5-0.5
Kosashvili Y. - Junior 1-0
Junior - Avrukh B. 1-0


Boris Gelfand - Deep Junior 0.5-1.5
-------------------------------------------------
Gelfand B. - Deep Junior 0.5-0.5
Deep Junior - Gelfand B. 1-0

7) Dutch Team Championship playoff

The Dutch Team Championship playoffs took place May 13th and 14th. The favourites were Panfox and HSG with Magnus/BSG and ESGOO being the other two teams.

On the first day Panfox beat ESGOO 8-2 and HSG beat Magnus/BSG 6-4. In the final favourites Panfox beat HSG 6.5-3.5.

There was internet coverage by the hosts, Panfox at: http://www.svpanfox.demon.nl

Semi-Finals May 13th

Panfox                 ESGOO      8.0-2.0 
1  L.van Wely       -  M.Hoffmann   1-0 
2  M.Adams          -  D.Hausrath   1/2 
3  I.Sokolov        -  M.Beulen     1-0 
4  J.Lautier        -  C.Sielecki   1-0 
5  M.Gurevich       -  O.Lemmers    1-0 
6  R.Vaganian       -  D.Hennig     1/2 
7  I.Hodgson        -  K.Konson     1-0 
8  J.vd Wiel        -  F.Kroeze     1/2 
9  A.Blees          -  G.Schebler   1/2 
10 E.vd Doel        -  M.van Wissen 1-0 
            
HSG                    Magnus/BSG 6.0-4.0 
1  J.Piket          -  D.Reinderman 1/2 
2  L.Ljubojevic     -  J.Bosch      0-1 
3  P.vd Sterren     -  I.Glek       1/2 
4  J.Brenninkmeijer -  A.Barsov     0-1 
5  I.Rogers         -  H.Ree        1-0 
6  F.Nijboer        -  K.Langeweg   1-0 
7  S.Polgar         -  E.Rebers     1-0 
8  Xie Jun          -  L.Riemersma  1-0 
9  H.Vedder         -  H.vd Poel    1/2 
10 R.Douven         -  A.vd Heijden 1/2 

Finals 14th May
HSG                    Panfox     3.5-6.5 
1  D.de Vreugt      -  M.Adams      0-1 
2  J.Piket          -  L.van Wely   0-1 
3  L.Ljubojevic     -  J.Timman     1/2 
4  H.Vedder         -  J.Lautier    0-1 
5  Xie Jun          -  I.Sokolov    0-1 
6  P.vd Sterren     -  R.Vaganian   1/2 
7  F.Nijboer        -  M.Gurevich   1-0 
8  S.Polgar         -  E.vd Doel    1/2 
9  I.Rogers         -  J.Hodgson    1/2 
10 J.Brenninkmeijer -  J.vd Wiel    1/2 
            
3rd-4th playoff  

Magnus/BSG             ESGOO      4.5-5.5 
1  I.Glek           -  M.Beulen     1-0 
2  A.Barsov         -  F.Kroeze     1/2 
3  D.Reinderman     -  G.Schebler   1/2 
4  J.Bosch          -  M.Hoffmann   1/2 
5  L.Riemersma      -  D.Hausrath   1/2 
6  H.Ree            -  O.Lemmers    0-1 
7  C.Langeweg       -  C.Sielecki   0-1 
8  H.vd Poel        -  D.Hennig     1/2 
9  A.vd Heijden     -  M.van Wissen 1/2 
10 E.Rebers         -  K.Konson     1/2 

8) Dubai Open

The Dubai Open took place May 1st-9th 1999 reports Stéphane Mouchel of Europe Echecs. The event saw Vladimir Akopian and Alexey Kuzmin finish on 7 points ahead of a reasonably strong field of 54 players (there were 54 players, 19 of whom were GMs including Al Modiahki, Yurtaev, Miezis, Guseinov, Sadvakasov (Junior World Champion), WGM Stefanova and Bouaziz all of whom finished outside the top places.

Leading final standings
Dubai UAE (UAE), v 1999
----------------------------------------------
 1 Akopian, Vladimir          g ARM 2640  7.0
 2 Kuzmin, Alexey             g RUS 2559  7.0
 3 Anastasian, Ashot          g ARM 2529  6.5
 4 Filippov, Valerij          g RUS 2574  6.5
 5 Arkhipov, Sergey           g RUS 2518  6.5
 6 Sharif, Mershad            m FRA 2475  6.0
 7 Sakaev, Konstantin         g RUS 2649  6.0
 8 Magerramov, Elmar          g AZE 2563  6.0
 9 Rausis, Igors              g LAT 2508  6.0
10 Iuldachev, Saidali         g UZB 2517  5.5
11 Kaiumov, Dmitry D          m UZB 2482  5.5
12 Hamdouchi, Hichem          g MAR 2564  5.5
13 Gyimesi, Zoltan            g HUN 2529  5.5
14 Abdennabi, Imed            m EGY 2400  5.5
...54 players

9) Israeli League

Dmitry Tyomkin reports on the conclusion of the Israeli League. The Champions are Elitzur Petach-Tikva. Their players are: Ilia Smirin, Leonid Yudasin, Gadi Rechlis, Dmitry Tyomkin (captain), Michael Oratovsky, Alex Finkel, Ela Pitem (women's board), Yakov Shteinboim (manager of the team). In 2nd place was the University Tel-Aviv and in 3rd Chess Club Beer-Sheva (including 7GM's). Technion Haifa and Chess Club Beer-Sheva "B" were relegated.

There were some novelties in rules of the League: This was the first season,when the teams were allowed to use players without Israeli citizenship. But there were not too many: Eduard Rozentalis played for Maccabi Afek in almost all their games and Chess Club Beer-Sheva "B" used Dmitry Gurevich (USA) and Genady Tunik (Russia) for just a few games.

There was a new bonus system which didn't make any sense. If we compare it with the old one (see my calculations in "Standings") it didn't make any difference. However without the women's board almost all the teams would have taken different places!

The surprising team was University Tel-Aviv (lead by Kanstler, Har-Zvi, Zoler and Liss). The new champions also were ranked 3rd by rating average. The most disappointed team was Hapoel Rishon-Lezion lead by Gelfand, Alterman, Kosashvili and Sofia Polgar on women's board. They finished at 4th place!

The other innovation was the possibility to put the players on the men's boards in any order. The list of players for each round was passed to arbiters by the captains only few minutes before the start of the round. It destroyed home preparation by the players players. The event started in January and finished in May. The games were on Fridays, and the most times it was in Sol and Sisi Mark Center and Chess Academy of Kasparov in Tel-Aviv, where recently most of the bit events in Israel take place.

The Israeli League 1999:
Final Standings :            total    +w,-b     +b,-w      -b,-w        old b
1."Elitzur" Petach-Tikva      50.4    41.5       41.9       33.0         47.5
2.University Tel-Aviv         48.1    38.5       40.6       31.0 (2-4)   44.5
3.Chess Club Beer-Sheva "A"   46.5    37.0       40.5       31.0 (2-4)   43.0
4."Hapoel" Rishon-Lezion      44.2    35.0 (4-5) 35.7 (7)   26.5 (7)     39.0
5."Hapoel" Hertzlia           43.6    35.0 (4-5) 39.6 (4)   31.0 (2-4)   42.0
6."Hapoel" Kfar-Saba          43.2    34.0       38.2 (5)   29.0 (5-6)   38.0
7."Maccabi" Afek              39.5    32.0 (7-8) 38.0 (6)   29.0 (5-6)   37.0
8."Bikurei Haitim" Tel-Aviv   35.5    32.0 (7-8) 28.0 (11)  24.5 (10)    34.0
9."Hapoel" Petach-Tikva       35.0    30.5       30.5 (9)   26.0 (8-9)   33.5  
10."Elitzur" Jerusalem        34.8    30.0       28.3 (10)  23.5 (11)    31.0
11.Chess Club Beer-Sheva "B"  34.0    29.0       31.0 (8)   26.0 (8-9)   32.0
12.Technion Haifa             25.6    20.5       22.6 (12)  18.5 (12)    20.5 

Notes: The 1st column has the actual results
The 2nd column has the standings without bonus (a team gets a bonus for wins on men’s boards: on the 1st-0.6; 2nd- 0.5;3rd-0.4;4rd-0.3;5th-0.2)
3rd is without women’s board
4th is without bonus and women
5th is the old bonus system 1point for each win on the men’s boards.
( )- are the standings after the change.

Best player results in each of the teams:
1.Elitzur Petach--Tikva-Smirin-7.5/10 Pitem[w]-8.5/11
2.University Tel-Aviv--Kanstler-8/10,Botvinnik,I[w]-7.5/11
                                   Har-Zvi-7/11
3.Chess Club Beer-Sheva "A"--Huzman-7/11,Golod-8/10
4.Hapoel Rishon-Lezion--Gelfand-5.5/6;Polgar,S[w]-8.5/11
5.Hapoel Hertzlia--Zifroni-6/10
6.Hapoel Kfar-Saba--Shachar,E-3.5/5
7.Maccabi Afek--Stisis-6.5/9,Rozentalis-6/9
8.Bikurei-Haitim Tel-Aviv--Segal,A[w]-7/9
9.Hapoel Petach-Tikva--Ravia-6/8
10.Elitzur Jerusalem--Gruenfeld,Y 6.5/10;Tsesarsky-7/11
11.Chess Club Beer-Sheva "B"-- Shevelev,A 5.5/10
12.Technion Haifa--Uritzky-6/11

10) First Saturday, May

Laszlo Nagy reports: The main May First Saturday tournament was a FIDE Category II. IM-closed, with 14 participants. The IM norm from 13 games was 9½ points, + 6. The events started May 1st. Blazimir Kovacevic scored a 13 round norm on the way to winning the event. Robert Markus scored a 9 round norm and Yelena Dembo scored her 2nd WIM norm from 10 games.

The next First Saturday events start 5th of June. My thanks to Mrs. Nadezhda Fokina for entering the games.

Budapest HUN (HUN), v 1999                                  cat. II (2296)
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                                   1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 
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 1 Kovacevic, Blazimir  f CRO 2429 * = 1 = = 1 1 1 = 1 = = 1 1  10.0  2496
 2 Markus, Robert         YUG 2302 = * 0 1 = 1 = 1 = = = = 1 1   8.5  2405
 3 Krutti, Valer        m HUN 2354 0 1 * = = 0 = 1 = = 1 = 1 =   7.5  2348
 4 Gladyszev, Oleg      m RUS 2388 = 0 = * = = 1 1 = = 1 1 0 0   7.0  2318
 5 Bromann, Thorbjorn     DEN 2250 = = = = * 0 = = = 1 = = 1 =   7.0  2328
 6 Brumen, Dinko        f CRO 2309 0 0 1 = 1 * 0 0 = = = 1 1 1   7.0  2324
 7 Hera, Imre jr          HUN 2272 0 = = 0 = 1 * = = = 1 = 0 1   6.5  2298
 8 Vukovic, Ivo         f CRO 2295 0 0 0 0 = 1 = * = 1 = 1 = 1   6.5  2296
 9 Vadasz, Laszlo       g HUN 2287 = = = = = = = = * = 0 = = =   6.0  2267
10 Dembo, Yelena          ISR 2180 0 = = = 0 = = 0 = * 0 1 1 1   6.0  2276
11 Sedlak, Nikola       f YUG 2349 = = 0 0 = = 0 = 1 1 * = = 0   5.5  2235
12 Carstensen, Jacob      DEN 2157 = = = 0 = 0 = 0 = 0 = * = 1   5.0  2219
13 Olszewski, Piotr       CAN 2349 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 = = 0 = = * =   4.5  2182
14 Kjetzae, Johnny        GER 2225 0 0 = 1 = 0 0 0 = 0 1 0 = *   4.0  2160
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FSELO Closed
Budapest HUN (HUN), v 1999
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                                   1  2  3  4  5  6 
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1 Balogh, Csaba          HUN 2135 ** =1 1= =1 1= 11  8.0  2384
2 Berces, Csaba          HUN 2146 =0 ** 1= 1= 11 11  7.5  2335
3 Stupar, Slavoljub      CRO 2200 0= 0= ** == 1= 11  5.5  2167
4 Travaglini, Alberto    ITA 2196 =0 0= == ** =1 =1  5.0  2132
5 Hegedus, Istvan        HUN 2108 0= 00 0= =0 ** 10  2.5  1957
6 Pongo, Istvan          HUN 2074 00 00 00 =0 01 **  1.5  1861
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You can contact Laszlo Nagy about his First Saturday events. E-mail: firstsat@elender.hu webpages: http://www.elender.hu/~firstsat and http://www.illawarra.net.au/chesscentral/ Tel-fax: (361)-263-28-59

11) Forthcoming Events

Russian Club Championships

The Russian Club Championships have started in St. Petersburg. GMs such as Rublevsky, Kharlov, Dreev, Malaniuk, Khalifman, Sakaev, Zvjaginsev, Pigusov will play in the event.

Further information at: http://www.gmchess.spb.ru

Hamburg City Championships

Rolf Sander reports: This year's Hamburg City Chess Championships will see a nine round swiss system tournament from 22th of May to 30th of May.. Several invited Masters (among them GM Nisipeanu, GM Ftacnik, GM Rogozenko, GM Kempinski, IM V. Georgiev) are competing with most of the top players from Hamburg. 30 players in all will play. There may be some internet coverage at the site of the Hamburg Chess association: http://members.aol.com/HHSchV/index.htm

Dutch Junior Championships

Coverage of the Dutch Junior championships has finished now results and games are available at http://www.schaakbond.nl full coverage in twic next week.