THE WEEK IN CHESS 485 23rd February 2004 by Mark Crowther

TWIC Home | The London Chess Center | | Shop

Sponsored by the London Chess Center

Contact The Week in Chess
Mark Crowther
E-Mail mdcrowth@netcomuk.co.uk

Tel or fax 01274 882143 [Bradford England]
Mobile 07971 920016
http://www.chesscenter.com/twic/twic.html

Contents

1) Introduction
2) Linares 2004
3) 3rd Aeroflot Chess Festival
4) Jakarta GM
5) 2nd Fraenkische Grossmeistertage
6) 2nd Breizh Masters
7) First Saturday February
8) Swedish Teams
9) X Coria del Rio Open
10) VII Malaga Open
11) 2nd Nancy International
12) 53rd Bulgarian Women's Championships
13) 26th Bulgarian Open Championship
14) Comunic Masters
15) Rostov Region Championships
16) Andrew Martin Simul Record
17) FIDE Championships in Libya
18) Forthcoming Events and Links


TWIC CD

Contact the London Chess Center

Contact the London Chess Center email: info@chess.co.uk Call 1-561-714-0828 in the USA or Canada Call +44 (0) 207 388 2404 or Fax +44 (0) 207 388 2407 in the UK and ROW

Great New Software: Order from: http://www.chesscenter.com/software2003.html

Join Chess Express and receive all the latest chess news straight into your inbox. Simply click here to start receiving chess express

Have you seen our Special of the Week? Check this link regularly for great discounts on books and software. Savings of 50-75%! http://www.chess.co.uk/specialweek.html

Garry Kasparov on my Great Predecessors, Part 1 Garry Kasparov £25/$ $35 The first part of Garry Kasparov's history of the World Chess Championships. http://www.chesscenter.com/kasparovgreats.html. Part 2 can now be ordered also. http://www.chess.co.uk/kasparovgreatsvol2.html

E-Bay Auctions

Bid for these books on E-Bay. 200 Open Games - David Bronstein and A Contemporary Approach to the Middle Game - Aleksei Suetin

Tiger 15.0 Is Here! £39.95 / $49.50 Chess Tiger 15.0 runs under the original Fritz interface. There are plenty of functions for beginners, club players and grandmasters: blitz and tournament chess, handicap levels, analysis. It also includes free one-year access to the chess server Playchess.com, one of the largest and most attractive Internet chess clubs in the world. http://www.chesscenter.com/software2003.html

Fritz 8 £39.95 $49.95. Offer details: http://www.chess.co.uk/fritz.html

Chess Endgame Training Chess Assistant. £24.95/$30

A program designed to teach you different endgame methods. Includes: More than 2450 endgame exercises • A built-in playing program to analyze or train with • While solving exercises, you are shown refutations of wrong moves as well as numerous hints to help and find the correct answer • The program also keeps track of your rating and adjusts it after each exercise • No additional software required Also new from Chess Assistant: Botvinnik World Champion, Chess School for Networks, Mikhail Tal, and Total Chess Training.

For these and other products check out the Chess Assistant Shophttp://www.chesscenter.com/chessassistant

Red Letters by Harding & Grodzensky – Unknown classics of Soviet correspondence chess, the games and stories. CD-ROM included!

Play 1.d4! by Palliser – A practical guide to the main lines after 1.d4 2.c4. The Indian Defenses, Benoni/Benko, QGD and QGA.

Gambit Play by Dunnington – An in-depth look at the gambits of the modern era. Plenty of examples and recommendations

Winning Chess Strategies by Seirawan Back in print! The fantastic "Winning.." series is now available in low-priced new editions.

New Books: Order from: http://www.chess.co.uk/books2003.html

Games section

Linares 2004                       15 games
3rd Aeroflot Chess Festival       184 games
Jakarta GM                         21 games
2nd Fraenkische Grossmeistertage   20 games
2nd Breizh Masters                 48 games
First Saturday February            70 games
Swedish Teams                     336 games
X Coria del Rio Open               56 games
VII Malaga Open                    46 games
2nd Nancy International            45 games
Bulgarian Women's Championships    30 games
Comunic Masters                   135 games
1006 games

1) Introduction

My thanks to Gary Suffield, Klaus Steffan, Andrew Martin, Michael Yeo, Christophe Philippe, Kristianus Liem, Laszlo Nagy, Miklos Orso, Francisco Javier Rubio Doblas, Peter Kartal, John Henderson, Gabor Pali, Miklos Orso, Nigel Freeman, Alexander Zyuzginov, Ravi Abhyankar, Leontxo García, Michael Rahal, Pablo Sierra and everyone else who helped with the issue.

The Linares tournament has, by and large been a big disappointment so far. With only one decisive game and perhaps no more than half a dozen really interesting other games the event hasn't taken off yet. On the good side round 5 showed a lot more content as all three games made it past the first time control so perhaps that bodes well for the rest of the event. Part of the problem I think is the lack of World Championship cycles which have traditionally provided the motivation for improvement from players. FIDE are reported to be on the verge of organising their World Championships in Libya and along with the announcement that the Kramnik - Leko match is to go ahead we might see some movement at the very top of international chess.

Hope you enjoy this issue.

Mark

2) Linares 2004

The 21st Linares tournament takes place February 19th - March 5th 2004. The event is again a 7 player double round robin category 20 event (ave 2731).

After 5 rounds there has been just one decisive game, Leko's round 1 win against Radjabov.

Dates are as follows: February 18th (draw of lots) Rd1 Feb. 19th Round 14 (Final) March 5th - Rest days Feb. 24th and March 1st.

Official coverage by the Spanish paper Diario Marca: http://www.marca.com/ - http://www.marca.com/indices/ajedrez.html

Round 1 (February 19, 2004)

Vallejo Pons, Francisco  -  Kramnik, Vladimir        1/2   18  C45  Scotch Game
Shirov, Alexei           -  Kasparov, Garry          1/2   35  B90  Sicilian Najdorf Variation
Radjabov, Teimour        -  Leko, Peter              0-1   45  D00  Queen's Pawn Game

Round 2 (February 20, 2004)

Kramnik, Vladimir        -  Shirov, Alexei           1/2   21  C99  Ruy Lopez Chigorin
Kasparov, Garry          -  Radjabov, Teimour        1/2   42  B30  Sicilian Rossolimo
Topalov, Veselin         -  Vallejo Pons, Francisco  1/2   35  D43  Anti-Meran Gambit

Round 3 (February 21, 2004)

Leko, Peter              -  Kasparov, Garry          1/2   41  B90  Sicilian Najdorf Variation
Shirov, Alexei           -  Topalov, Veselin         1/2   53  E11  Bogo Indian Defence
Radjabov, Teimour        -  Kramnik, Vladimir        1/2   23  C42  Petroff's Defence

Round 4 (February 22, 2004)

Kramnik, Vladimir        -  Leko, Peter              1/2   18  B30  Sicilian Rossolimo
Vallejo Pons, Francisco  -  Shirov, Alexei           1/2   20  C88  Ruy Lopez Closed
Topalov, Veselin         -  Radjabov, Teimour        1/2   39  B33  Sicilian Sveshnikov

Round 5 (February 23, 2004)

Leko, Peter              -  Topalov, Veselin         1/2   50  B90  Sicilian Najdorf Variation
Kasparov, Garry          -  Kramnik, Vladimir        1/2   44  E12  Queens Indian Petrosian
Radjabov, Teimour        -  Vallejo Pons, Francisco  1/2   43  D45  Anti-Meran Variations


XXI SuperGM Linares ESP (ESP), 19 ii-5 iii 2004            cat. XX (2731)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                       1  2  3  4  5  6  7 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Leko, Peter              g HUN 2722 ** =. =. .. .. =. 1.  2.5 / 4  2844
2 Kramnik, Vladimir        g RUS 2777 =. ** =. =. =. .. =.  2.5 / 5  2721
3 Kasparov, Garry          g RUS 2831 =. =. ** .. =. .. =.  2.0 / 4  2722
4 Vallejo Pons, Francisco  g ESP 2663 .. =. .. ** =. =. =.  2.0 / 4  2726
5 Shirov, Alexei           g ESP 2736 .. =. =. =. ** =. ..  2.0 / 4  2751
6 Topalov, Veselin         g BUL 2735 =. .. .. =. =. ** =.  2.0 / 4  2694
7 Radjabov, Teimour        g AZE 2656 0. =. =. =. .. =. **  2.0 / 5  2673
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

3) 3rd Aeroflot Chess Festival

The 3rd Aeroflot Festival takes place in Hotel Rossija in Moscow, 17th-26th February 2004. Valerij Filippov leads with two rounds to go on 6/7.

Official site: http://www.aeroflotchess.com

Leading Round 7 of 9 Standings:
----------------------------------------------
Aeroflot Open Moscow RUS (RUS), 17-25 ii 2004
----------------------------------------------
  1. Filippov, Valerij       g  RUS 2609  6.0 
  2. Dreev, Alexey           g  RUS 2682  5.5 
  3. Lautier, Joel           g  FRA 2676  5.5 
  4. Van Wely, Loek          g  NED 2617  5.5 
  5. Motylev, Alexander      g  RUS 2640  5.5 
  6. Berkes, Ferenc          g  HUN 2602  5.5 
  7. Sasikiran, Krishnan     g  IND 2654  5.5 
  8. Tregubov, Pavel V       g  RUS 2628  5.5 
198 players

4) Jakarta GM

The Jakarta tournament in Indonesia takes place February 16th-25th 2004. 6 players double round robin: GM Utut Adianto, IM Danny Yuswanto, IM Susanto Megaranto GM Zhu Chen, GM Antoaneta Stefanova, IM Hoang Than Trang. Prize money $12,500 sponsored by Santoso Wirya boss of Makita and Lakoni products.

Internet coverage: http://www.ruddylantangchess.com

Makita-Lakoni GM Jakarta IND (IND), 16-25 ii 2004 cat. X (2496)
---------------------------------------------------------------
                                    1  2  3  4  5  6 
---------------------------------------------------------------
1 Adianto, Utut         g INA 2591 ** 1. 0= =1 =. 1.  4.5  2585
2 Stefanova, Antoaneta  g BUL 2478 0. ** == 1. =. 11  4.5  2594
3 Zhu Chen              g CHN 2495 1= == ** 0. =. 1.  4.0  2556
4 Juswanto, Denny       m INA 2505 =0 0. 1. ** 11 =.  4.0  2551
5 Hoang Thanh Trang     m VIE 2447 =. =. =. 00 ** 01  2.5  2396
6 Megaranto, Susanto    m INA 2458 0. 00 0. =. 10 **  1.5  2261
---------------------------------------------------------------

5) 2nd Fraenkische Grossmeistertage

The 2nd Fraenkische Grossmeistertage tournament takes place in the Hotel Pulvermuehle near Bayreuth.

Official site: http://www.pulvermuehle2004.steffans-schachseiten.de/

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
II GM-Tage Pulvermuehle GER (GER), 19-28 ii 2004         cat. XI (2516)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
                                       1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Gustafsson, Jan       g GER 2572  * = 1 . . = . 1 . . .  3.0  2700 
 2. Skripchenko, Almira  wg FRA 2456  = * . . = . . . = . 1  2.5  2633 
 3. Bezold, Michael       g GER 2456  0 . * . 1 . . . = 1 .  2.5  2641 
 4. Baramidze, David      m GER 2456  . . . * . = . = . . 1  2.0  2661 
 5. Bischoff, Klaus       g GER 2561  . = 0 . * = 1 . . . .  2.0  2493 
 6. Conquest, Stuart      g ENG 2543  = . . = = * . . . . =  2.0  2519 
 7. Hector, Jonny         g SWE 2518  . . . . 0 . * . 1 = .  1.5  2537 
 8. Naiditsch, Arkadij    g GER 2576  0 . . = . . . * . . 1  1.5  2505 
 9. Doettling, Fabian     g GER 2532  . = = . . . 0 . * = .  1.5  2400 
10. Prusikin, Michael     m GER 2519  . . 0 . . . = . = * .  1.0  2377 
11. Stellwagen, Daniel    m NED 2489  . 0 . 0 . = . 0 . . *  0.5  2185 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

6) 2nd Breizh Masters

The 2nd Breizh Masters took place in Guingamp, France 12th-21st February 2004. The 6 player double round robin was won by Vladimir Baklan with 7.5/10.

Internet coverage: http://echiquierguingampais.free.fr/

2nd Breizh Masters Guingamp FRA (FRA), 12-21 ii 2004cat. XI (2510)
---------------------------------------------------------------
                                    1  2  3  4  5  6 
---------------------------------------------------------------
1 Baklan, Vladimir      g UKR 2606 ** 1= 1= == 11 =1  7.5  2683
2 Istratescu, Andrei    g ROM 2590 0= ** == =1 1= ==  5.5  2529
3 Bagheri, Amir         g IRI 2534 0= == ** 1= 00 11  5.0  2504
4 Wirig, Anthony        m FRA 2418 == =0 0= ** 1= ==  4.5  2492
5 Le Roux, Jean-Pierre  f FRA 2480 00 0= 11 0= ** 1=  4.5  2479
6 Gozzoli, Yannick      m FRA 2430 =0 == 00 == 0= **  3.0  2376
---------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Breizh Masters B Guingamp FRA (FRA), 13-21 ii 2004  cat. IV (2334)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
                                        1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 
----------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Inkiov, Ventzislav      g BUL 2461  * = 1 = = = = 1 1 1  6.5  2485 
 2. Velikov, Petar          g BUL 2447  = * = 0 1 1 1 1 = =  6.0  2446 
 3. Laurent, Bruno          f BEL 2363  0 = * = 1 0 = 1 1 1  5.5  2410 
 4. Vandevoort, Pascal      f BEL 2379  = 1 = * 0 0 1 0 1 1  5.0  2371 
 5. Parmentier, Xavier      f FRA 2335  = 0 0 1 * 1 = = 1 =  5.0  2376 
 6. Mullon, Jean-Baptiste   f FRA 2325  = 0 1 1 0 * 0 1 = 1  5.0  2377 
 7. Dourerassou, Jonathan     FRA 2276  = 0 = 0 = 1 * 1 = 1  5.0  2383 
 8. Alanic, Xavier            FRA 2164  0 0 0 1 = 0 0 * 1 =  3.0  2227 
 9. Berthelot, Yannick      f FRA 2327  0 = 0 0 0 = = 0 * =  2.0  2114 
10. Terrieux, Kevin           FRA 2262  0 = 0 0 = 0 0 = = *  2.0  2121 
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Alongside the masters was the 8th Guingamp Open which took place 14th-21st February 2004. No games available.

8th Guingamp Open 2004
Leading Round 9 Standings:
 1  g SULYPA Alexandre     UKR 2479 7,0 2543 53,5 57,0 2566 
 2  m KASPAROV Sergey      BLR 2486 6,5 2568 56,5 58,5 2561 
 3  m SOLODOVNICHENKO Yuri UKR 2474 6,5 2528 56,0 58,5 2523 
 4  f CALISTRI Tristan     FRA 2295 6,5 2474 52,5 55,5 2467 
 5  g BADEA Bela           ROM 2509 6,5 2463 53,0 56,5 2440 
 6    COLIN Vincent        FRA 2368 6,5 2425 52,5 56,0 2450 
 7  m RADULSKI Julian      BUL 2492 6,5 2423 50,5 56,0 2446 
 8    COURSAGET Nicolas    FRA 2316 6,5 2327 50,0 53,0 2320 
 9    MOLTCHANOV Roman     FRA 2395 6,0 2408 52,5 56,5 2412 
10  m MARHOLEV Dimitar     BUL 2412 6,0 2345 50,5 54,0 2328 
11  m DOBREV Nanko         BUL 2402 6,0 2334 50,0 54,0 2324 
12  g SPIRIDONOV Nikola    BUL 2341 6,0 2326 49,5 54,5 2323 
13 gf COSMA Elena Luminita ROM 2426 6,0 2307 51,5 54,5 2290 
14    ALANIC Mickael       FRA 2139 6,0 2280 49,0 53,5 2277 
15  m COLOVIC Aleksandar   MKD 2409 6,0 2249 47,5 52,0 2202 
16    LUCO Alain           FRA 2135 6,0 2232 48,5 53,0 2229 
17    GUEZENNEC Franck     FRA 2121 6,0 2222 46,0 49,5 2232 
112 players

7) First Saturday February

The First Saturday February GM-IM-FM closed tournament for norms took place in Budapest, 7th-20th of February 2004. Levente Vajda won the GM event with 9/13 half a point clear of Istvan Almasi. Dimo Werner won the IM event with 9/13 half a point clear of Miklos Galyas with 8.5/12. Csaba Varga left the IM event after round 6.

Internet coverage: http://www.firstsaturday.hu

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FSGM February Budapest HUN (HUN), 7-19 ii 2004                 cat. VII (2419)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                        1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Vajda, Levente          g ROM 2482  * = = = = 0 = = 1 1 1 1 1 1  9.0  2555 
 2. Almasi, Istvan          m HUN 2425  = * = = 1 = = = = = = 1 1 1  8.5  2528 
 3. Seres, Lajos            g HUN 2496  = = * 1 0 0 1 1 = = = = 1 1  8.0  2500 
 4. Belezky, Sasha          m UKR 2405  = = 0 * = = = = = 1 1 = 0 1  7.0  2449 
 5. Papp, Gabor               HUN 2420  = 0 1 = * 0 0 = = 1 0 1 1 1  7.0  2447 
 6. Livshits, Gaby          m ISR 2400  1 = 1 = 1 * = 0 0 = = 0 1 0  6.5  2420 
 7. Antal, Gergely          m HUN 2498  = = 0 = 1 = * 0 1 = 1 = = 0  6.5  2412 
 8. Fogarasi, Tibor         g HUN 2477  = = 0 = = 1 1 * = = = = 0 =  6.5  2414 
 9. Wittmann, Walter        m AUT 2326  0 = = = = 1 0 = * 0 = = = 1  6.0  2397 
10. Nguyen Ngoc Truongson   f VIE 2436  0 = = 0 0 = = = 1 * = = 1 =  6.0  2388 
11. Porat, Shi              f ISR 2386  0 = = 0 1 = 0 = = = * = = =  5.5  2364 
12. Szeberenyi, Adam        m HUN 2450  0 0 = = 0 1 = = = = = * = =  5.5  2359 
13. Banusz, Tamas           f HUN 2372  0 0 0 1 0 0 = 1 = 0 = = * 1  5.0  2335 
14. Kahn, Evarth            m HUN 2292  0 0 0 0 0 1 1 = 0 = = = 0 *  4.0  2287 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
FSIM February Budapest HUN (HUN), 7-19 ii 2004              cat. I (2271)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Werner, Dimo         m GER 2349  * = = = 1 1 = 1 = = 1 1 1  9.0  2457 
 2. Galyas, Miklos       m HUN 2436  = * = = 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 .  8.5  2464 
 3. Dub, Zeev            f ISR 2270  = = * = = = 1 1 0 1 1 = 1  8.0  2396 
 4. Farago, Sandor       m HUN 2299  = = = * = = 1 1 = 1 1 = .  7.5  2398 
 5. Pap, Gyula             HUN 2226  0 0 = = * 1 1 1 = 1 = 1 .  7.0  2374 
 6. Steiner, Bruno         AUT 2254  0 0 = = 0 * 0 1 1 1 1 1 .  6.0  2305 
 7. Szabo, Krisztian       HUN 2348  = 1 0 0 0 1 * = 1 0 = 1 .  5.5  2261 
 8. Fodor, Tamas jr      f HUN 2130  0 0 0 0 0 0 = * = 1 1 1 .  4.0  2179 
 9. Juhasz, Bela         f HUN 2263  = 0 1 = = 0 0 = * = 0 0 =  4.0  2146 
10. Brustkern, Juergen   f GER 2246  = 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 = * 1 = 0  3.5  2115 
11. Vajda, Albert I        ROM 2201  0 0 0 0 = 0 = 0 1 0 * 1 =  3.5  2118 
12. Rudolf, Anna           HUN 2199  0 0 = = 0 0 0 0 1 = 0 * .  2.5  2063 
13. Varga, Csaba         f HUN 2303  0 . 0 . . . . . = 1 = . *  2.0  2193 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

8) Swedish Teams

Peter Kartal sends news of the Swedish Premier League which has reached its 7th round. Games from the first 7 rounds are available. Round 8 is on the 28th Feb. rounds 9-11 - 12-14 March in Gothenburg.

Further details: http://www.schackcentralen.com/elit0304.asp and http://www.Chess2Chess.com

Round 7 Standings:
 1 SK Rockaden    43.5 14 
 2 Sollentuna SK  41.5 14 
 3 Limhamns SK    39.0 14 
 4 Skara SS       33.0 10 
 5 Södra SASS     25.0 6 
 6 SK Kamraterna  22.0 5 
 7 LASK           32.0.5 4 
 8 SK Passanten   22.0.5 4 
 9 Farsta SK      21.0 3 
10 Schack 08      19.0.5 3 
11 SS Manhem      22.0 2 
12 Solna SS       14.5 1 

9) X Coria del Rio Open

The X Villa de Coria del Rio Open took place 11th-19th February 2004. Oleg Korneev, Ivan Cheparinov and Carlos Matamoros Franco finished on 7/9.

Internet coverage: http://www.fsajedrez.com/torneos/coria04/coria04.htm

----------------------------------------------------------------
X Open Coria del Rio ESP (ESP), 11-19 ii 2004
----------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Korneev, Oleg                     g  RUS 2566  7     41.0  
 2. Cheparinov, Ivan                  m  BUL 2550  7     38.5  
 3. Matamoros Franco, Carlos S        g  ECU 2490  7     37.5  
 4. Del Rio Angelis, Salvador G       g  ESP 2504  6.5   38.5  
 5. Barria, Daniel                    f  CHI 2351  6.5   37.5  
 6. Ivanov, Jordan                    m  BUL 2406  6.5   35.0  
 7. Paunovic, Dragan                  m  SCG 2517  6     41.0  
 8. Campora, Daniel H                 g  ARG 2503  6     40.5  
 9. Razmyslov, Alexander                 UKR 2337  6     38.0  
10. Lopez Gonzalez, Daniel               ESP 2113  6     36.0  
11. Barrero Garcia, Carlos               ESP 2339  6     33.5  
12. Martin Perez, Javier                 ESP 2280  6     32.5  
13. Salido Monge,Joaquin                 ESP ----  6     31.0  
14. Khamrakulov, Ibragim S            m  UZB 2452  5.5   39.0  
15. Teran Alvarez, Ismael             m  ESP 2382  5.5   38.5  
16. Perez, Rodney                     m  CUB 2458  5.5   38.0  
17. Carrabeo Garcia, Manuel              ESP 2105  5.5   36.5  
18. Nieto Gonzalez, Ismael               ESP ----  5.5   30.5  
19. Fernandez Quintero,Jose A            ESP ----  5.5   28.0  
75 players

10) VII Malaga Open

The VII Malaga Open takes place 21st-28th February 2004. After 3 rounds Roberto Cifuentes Parada leads on 3/3. The time limit is 90 minutes + 30 seconds per move.

Internet coverage: http://www.malagajedrez.org/open/04open/04open.htm

-------------------------------------------------------------
VII Malaga Open Campillos ESP (ESP), 21-28 ii 2004
-------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Cifuentes Parada, Roberto       g  ESP 2505  3    4.0 6.0
 2. Cheparinov, Ivan                m  BUL 2550  2.5  4.5 5.5
 3. Del Rio Angelis, Salvador G     g  ESP 2504  2.5  4.5 5.5
 4. Matamoros Franco, Carlos S      g  ECU 2490  2.5  4.5 5.5
 5. Collas, Didier                  m  FRA 2436  2.5  4.5 5.5
 6. Tissir, Mohamed                 m  MAR 2436  2.5  4.5 5.5
 7. Saldano, Horacio                m  ARG 2424  2.5  4.0 5.5
 8. Khamrakulov, Ibragim S          m  UZB 2452  2.5  4.0 5.0
 9. Fernandez Romero, Ernesto       m  ESP 2425  2.5  3.5 5.5
10. Yeo, Michael J                     ENG 2244  2.5  3.5 5.5
11. Rodriguez Guerrero, Enrique     m  ESP 2391  2.5  3.5 5.0
12. Adnoy, Hallvard V                  NOR 2211  2.5  3.5 5.0
13. Paunovic, Dragan                m  SCG 2517  2.5  3.0 5.0
14. Bellon Lopez, Juan Manuel       g  ESP 2429  2    5.0 5.0
15. Korneev, Oleg                   g  RUS 2566  2    4.5 4.5
16. Gonzalez Rodriguez, Jorge A     m  COL 2349  2    4.5 4.0
17. Parfjonov, Pavel                   RUS 2250  2    4.5 4.0
18. Alonso, Rene                    m  CUB 2371  2    3.5 4.5
19. Ivanov, Jordan                  m  BUL 2406  2    3.5 4.0
20. Collas, Silvia                  wg FRA 2330  2    3.5 4.0
21. Nava Baro, Enrique                 ESP 2207  2    3.5 4.0
22. Kirkebo, Carl Peter                NOR 2199  2    3.5 4.0
23. Buijs Martin,Urtzi                 ESP ----  2    3.0 3.0
24. Blanco Villalba, Jose Francisco    ESP ----  2    3.0 3.0
25. Gutierrez Castillo, Paloma      wf ESP 2114  2    2.5 4.0
26. Perez Candelario, Manuel        m  ESP 2504  2    2.5 3.0
27. Teran Alvarez, Ismael           m  ESP 2382  1.5  5.0 4.0
28. Suba, Mihai                     g  ROM 2522  1.5  4.5 4.0
29. Gamundi Salamanca, Antonio      m  ESP 2448  1.5  4.0 3.5
30. Bolle, Leendert                    ESP 2042  1.5  4.0 2.0
31. Naranjo Moreno,Antonio             ESP ----  1.5  3.5 2.5
32. Villalobos Luque, Jose Manuel      ESP ----  1.5  3.5 2.5
33. Garcia Guitian, Angel              ESP ----  1.5  3.5 2.0
34. Ladron De Guevara Pinto, Fermin    ESP ----  1.5  3.5 2.0
35. Cramling, Pia                   g  SWE 2488  1    5.0 3.0
63 players

11) 2nd Nancy International

The 2nd international Chess Festival in Nancy (France) took place 16th-22nd February 2004. Vladimir Okhotnik won the Category III top event with 7/9. This was one of 7 round robin tournaments with a total of 70 players. The B Tournament was average elo 2132 and won by the young German hope Martin Becker (Elo 2261) with 7/9.

Internet coverage: http://echiquier.nanceien.free.fr

--------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd IM Nancy FRA (FRA), 16-22 ii 2004                cat. III (2307)
--------------------------------------------------------------------
                                      1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 
--------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Okhotnik, Vladimir   m UKR 2445  * = = 1 1 1 1 = = 1  7.0  2511 
 2. Gouliev, Namig       m AZE 2453  = * = 0 1 = 1 1 = 1  6.0  2415 
 3. Nguyen Chi Minh        FRA 2375  = = * = 0 1 = 0 1 1  5.0  2342 
 4. Spielmann, Alain     f FRA 2257  0 1 = * = = 0 1 = 1  5.0  2355 
 5. Prakken, Gerrit      f NED 2272  0 0 1 = * = 1 1 = =  5.0  2353 
 6. Adrian, Claude       m FRA 2318  0 = 0 = = * = 1 1 1  5.0  2348 
 7. Stark, Lars            GER 2229  0 0 = 1 0 = * = = 1  4.0  2272 
 8. Milliet, Sophie     wm FRA 2326  = 0 1 0 0 0 = * = 1  3.5  2224 
 9. Chau, Olivier          FRA 2153  = = 0 = = 0 = = * 0  3.0  2198 
10. Paci, Cedric           FRA 2240  0 0 0 0 = 0 0 0 1 *  1.5  2041 
--------------------------------------------------------------------

12) 53rd Bulgarian Women's Championships

Rumen Angelo of the Bulgarian Chess Federation sends news of the 53rd Bulgarian Women's Championships which take place 17th-27th February 2004. Margarita Voiska leads the event.

Bulgarian Chess Federation: http://chessbg.com/

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
53rd ch-BUL w Sofia BUL (BUL), 17-27 ii 2004
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Voiska, Margarita          wg BUL 2358  * . = . . . 1 1 . 1 . 1  4.5  2574 
 2. Chilingirova, Pavlina      wm BUL 2201  . * . . = . 0 1 . 1 1 .  3.5  2315 
 3. Djingarova, Emilia         wg BUL 2344  = . * = . . 1 0 . . . 1  3.0  2272 
 4. Jordanova-Besheva, Svetla     BUL 2165  . . = * = . = = . 1 . .  3.0  2294 
 5. Savova, Stefka             wm BUL 2163  . = . = * = . . = . 1 .  3.0  2246 
 6. Velcheva, Maria            wg BUL 2317  . . . . = * . . = 0 1 1  3.0  2205 
 7. Georgieva, Liubka          wm BUL 2245  0 1 0 = . . * . . . . 1  2.5  2232 
 8. Raeva, Eiitsa                 BUL 2141  0 0 1 = . . . * = . . .  2.0  2166 
 9. Zlatanova, Emilia          wm BUL 2126  . . . . = = . = * = 0 .  2.0  2109 
10. Gocheva, Rumiana B         wm BUL 2219  0 0 . 0 . 1 . . = * . .  1.5  2084 
11. Doncheva, Marinela            BUL 2065  . 0 . . 0 0 . . 1 . * 0  1.0  1940 
12. Shtereva, Slaveja             BUL 2095  0 . 0 . . 0 0 . . . 1 *  1.0  2025 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

13) 26th Bulgarian Open Championship

Rumen Angelo of the Bulgarian Chess Federation sends news of the 26th Bulgarian Open Championship "Georgi Tringov" which took place in Plovdiv, Novotel Plovdiv, 16th-22nd February 2004. Zsivko Bratanov won the event with 7.5/9. A selection of games should follow.

26th Bulgarian Open Championship "G.Tringov", 
Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 16-22.02.2004 
Final Round 9 standings	
  1   Bratanov, Zsivko    m  BUL 2398 7.5  40.0
  2   Petkov, Vladimir       BUL 2345 7    36.5
  3   Nikolov, Sasho      m  BUL 2407 6.5  40.0
  4   Nikolov, Momchil       BUL 2359 6.5  39.5
  5   Ermenkov, Evgeni    g  PLE 2449 6.5  38.5
  6   Janev, Evgeni       g  BUL 2403 6.5  35.0
  7   Genov, Petar        g  BUL 2499 6    41.0
  8   Iotov, Valentin        BUL 2321 6    41.0
  9   Dimitrov, Vladimir  g  BUL 2456 6    40.5
 10   Drenchev, Petar        BUL 2415 6    36.0
 11   Bonev, Todor           BUL 2135 5.5  41.0
 12   Rusev, Krasimir        BUL 2412 5.5  37.5
 13   Evstatiev, Georgi      BUL      5.5  36.5
 14   Petrov, Marijan     m  BUL 2441 5.5  36.0
 15   Kozhuharov, Spas       BUL 2373 5.5  36.0
 16   Cheparinov, Nedelcho   BUL      5.5  36.0
 17   Tadic, Branko       m  SCG 2473 5.5  35.0
 18   Lilov, Valeri          BUL 2098 5.5  34.5
 19   Ljangov, Petar         BUL 2161 5.5  34.0
 20   Dochev, Dimitar     m  BUL 2369 5.5  33.5
 21   Angelov, Angel         BUL 2229 5.5  31.0
 22   Petkov, Hristo         BUL      5.5  27.5
64 players

14) Comunic Masters

3 Fide rated tournaments were held at the Clube de Xadrez São Paulo club this month, two of them valid for IM titles. The 4th Comunic Masters, a 10 players, category 4, round robin, took place February 4th-10th 2004. This event was won by Uruguayan GM Andrés Rodríguez. Alongside was the 1st Comunic IRT, also a 10 players round robin, won by local Luciano Maia (who won his last round game over Braghini by default). The 5th Comunic Masters took place February 12th-18th 2004, this one was a category 5 event, won by the Cuban international master Aryam Abreu. The tournaments, held in São Paulo Chess Club, were organized by the national arbiter Mauro Amaral. News: Herman van Riemsdijk.

Full details: http://200.246.90.112/HiperChess/

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
IV Comunic Masters Sao Paulo BRA (BRA), 4-10 ii 2004        cat. IV (2345)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                            1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Rodriguez, Andres           g URU 2485  * = 1 = 1 = 1 1 1 1  7.5  2601 
 2. Tsuboi, Edson Kenji         f BRA 2344  = * 1 = 1 = 1 = 1 1  7.0  2564 
 3. Abreu, Aryam                m CUB 2424  0 0 * 1 1 1 1 = 1 1  6.5  2501 
 4. Giaccio, Alfredo            m ARG 2470  = = 0 * = 1 1 1 = 1  6.0  2455 
 5. Benares, Ricardo            f BRA 2298  0 0 0 = * 1 = 1 = 1  4.5  2349 
 6. Dumont, Sadi Glasser        f BRA 2341  = = 0 0 0 * 0 1 1 1  4.0  2301 
 7. Vera, I Jorge                 PAR 2338  0 0 0 0 = 1 * 0 1 1  3.5  2265 
 8. Madeira, Wagner Martins       BRA 2215  0 = = 0 0 0 1 * = =  3.0  2233 
 9. Gonzalez, Bolivar Ribeiro     BRA 2286  0 0 0 = = 0 0 = * 1  2.5  2185 
10. Cruz, Alfredo BOL             BOL 2244  0 0 0 0 0 0 0 = 0 *  0.5  1911 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
V Comunic Masters Sao Paulo BRA (BRA), 12-18 ii 2004         cat. V (2354)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                            1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Abreu, Aryam                m CUB 2424  * = = 1 1 1 1 1 1 1  8.0  2697 
 2. Giaccio, Alfredo            m ARG 2470  = * = 1 1 1 = 1 1 1  7.5  2614 
 3. Rodriguez, Andres           g URU 2485  = = * 0 1 1 1 1 = 1  6.5  2505 
 4. Benares, Ricardo            f BRA 2298  0 0 1 * 1 0 1 0 1 =  4.5  2360 
 5. Dumont, Sadi Glasser        f BRA 2341  0 0 0 0 * 1 = 1 = 1  4.0  2312 
 6. Santos, M.V.M                 BRA 2311  0 0 0 1 0 * = = 1 1  4.0  2315 
 7. Tsuboi, Edson Kenji         f BRA 2344  0 = 0 0 = = * 1 0 1  3.5  2275 
 8. Gonzalez, Bolivar Ribeiro     BRA 2286  0 0 0 1 0 = 0 * 1 1  3.5  2281 
 9. Vera, I Jorge                 PAR 2338  0 0 = 0 = 0 1 0 * =  2.5  2189 
10. Cruz, Alfredo BOL             BOL 2244  0 0 0 = 0 0 0 0 = *  1.0  2015 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
I Comunic IRT Masters Sao Paulo BRA (BRA), 4-10 ii 2004
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
                                         1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Maia, Luciano               BRA 2273  * = = 1 1 1 1 1 = 1  7.5  2374 
 2. Aranha Filho, Alvaro Z      BRA 2275  = * = 0 = 1 1 1 = 1  6.0  2225 
 3. Moyses Fo., Joao            BRA 2067  = = * 0 = 0 1 1 1 1  5.5  2203 
 4. Alonso, Nickolas            BRA 2109  0 1 1 * = 0 0 = 1 1  5.0  2162 
 5. Braghini, Erlon Cezar       BRA 2130  0 = = = * 1 = = = 1  5.0  2159 
 6. Carvalho, Herbert Abreu     BRA 2175  0 0 1 1 0 * = 0 1 1  4.5  2111 
 7. Da Silva,Saulo Tarso        BRA 2031  0 0 0 1 = = * = = =  3.5  2047 
 8. Dias, Joao Batista          BRA 2100  0 0 0 = = 1 = * = 0  3.0  1995 
 9. Jukemura,Leandro            BRA ----  = = 0 0 = 0 = = * 0  2.5  1965 
10. Vera, G Jorge L             PAR 2022  0 0 0 0 0 0 = 1 1 *  2.5  1962 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

15) Rostov Region Championships

The Championships of the Rostov Region 2004 too place in Rostov-on-Don (Russia). 31st January - 8th February 2004. Time limit: 2 hours for 40 moves and 1 hour for end. Alexander Petrushin won with 7.5/9. New from Alexander Zyuzginov.

Further details: http://www.fanchess.ru/turnir.php?flag=1&id=8

Leading Final Round 9 Standings: 
1st - Petrushin Alexander   m 2434 - 7,5
2nd - Khlian Eduard         m 2442 - 6,5
3rd - Isaev Yury              2371 - 6,5
4th - Zakhartsov Vjacheslav m 2525 - 6,5
5th - Pushkov Nikolay       g 2475 - 6,0
48 players

16) Andrew Martin Simul Record

IM Andrew Martin set a new World Record last Saturday, 21st February, at Wellington College Crowthorne, when he played 321 chess players all at the same time. The previous world record for the highest number of simultaneous chess games was 310, achieved 8 years ago in Sweden. To qualify for the world record Andrew had to beat at least 80% of his opponents. His score on the day was 294 wins, 26 draws and just one loss. The only opponent to beat Andrew was Talal Shakerchi, an executive with one of the event’s sponsors, Meditor Capital Management Ltd.

The attempt proved to be both mentally and physically demanding for the Chess Master. Andrew started the record attempt at 09.27 and did not finish until 02.18 next day. During this 16 hour 51 minute marathon, he walked over 5 miles and played over 7,000 moves in total. Andrew recorded his first win at 10.45, reached his 80% target wins at 00.55 and the final opponent to be beaten was Crowthorne Chess Club veteran, pensioner Gordon Ironside. One boy, 6 years old, was one of the last to be beaten at 02.05. Players came from all over England, Scotland and one lady, Charlotte Richardson, flew in from Minnesota USA just to play in the event.

Commenting on the day, Andrew Martin said, "With the degree of concentration I required, I lost all sense of time. It is almost like losing a day out of my life. But it was worth it for the wonderful sense of fulfillment and achievement. Every single opponent seemed to be playing at their very best and there were hundreds of difficult games."

Challengers were asked to raise sponsorship money as their entry into the world record attempt and all received a tee-shirt and certificate to commemorate the part they played in setting the new world record. In addition, schools and junior chess clubs that entered 10 or more players received £150 towards books. Early indications are that over £6,000 will have been raised for local charities and youth activities.

The event would not have been possible without the generous support of Fujtsu, Baxter Newman, British Chess Federation, Meditor Capital Management, Wellington College & Sports Club, Virgin Retail, UCI, Chess & Bridge Ltd, Eversley Cricket Club and Camberley Chess Club.

Further details: http://www.chessworldrecord.co.uk

17) FIDE Championships in Libya

FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov was interviewed by Yuri Vasilev in Sport Express 16th February 2004. In it Ilyumzhinov gave the background to his meeting with Col. Moammar Gaddafi a week ago.

Ilyumzhinov is hoping to hold the 17th FIDE World Championships (a knockout) in Tripoli, Libya, 8 May 2004 to 2 June 2004. A final decision on this will be taken at the Presidential Board, 28th-29th February 2004 in Kotor. The sponsor will be the Libyan Government.

There will be 1,508,000 USD in prizes and 700,000 USD for the organisation The Fide Champion to receive 100,000 USD. There are some problems with Libya as a venue. In the last few months they have made a lot of effort to return to the World community, they have paid compensation for their involvement in the Lockerbie bombing to the victims and there have been meetings with amongst others the British Government (the revealing of the murderer of PC Yvonne Fletcher by a member of the Libyan embassy staff in London, April 1984 has not been resolved). Some may say its a bit soon to be organising major international events there.

There is the complication of Israeli players competing in the event. Ilyumzhinov hopes to pursuade Libya to grant visas for them but that might not resolve the issue and so half the event may be held in nearby Malta. The winner of the event will be contracted to play Garry Kasparov likely in spring 2005. The next FIDE championship is likely to be held in in Saigon, Vietnam.

(My thanks to Ravi Abhyankar for a summary of the article). None of this has been confirmed on the FIDE website.

Source: http://www.sport-express.ru/art.shtml?81747

18) Forthcoming Events and Links

1st Riviera del Corallo Open

1st 'Riviera del Corallo' International open tournament in Alghero (Sardegna- Italy) takes place 8th-12th April 7 round Swiss.

Further details: http://www.algherovacanze.com

Brno Events

The Duras Chess Club in Brno is organising Closed GM and IM events and the Duras international open 3rd-11th July 2004.

Details: http://www.volny.cz/skduras/indexe.htm

TWIC Messageboard

With the Linares tournament about to start it seems a good time to launch a new discussion forum. Vote on your prediction of the winner of Linares. The TWIC message board. You need to register to post and vote. Address: http://www.chesscenter.com/messageboard

Reykjavik Rapid 2004

Garry Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov, Nigel Short, Alexei Dreev, Emil Sutovsky and Peter Heine Nielsen will play in the Reykjavik Rapid 2004 which takes place 17th-21st March 2004. The 16 player knocokout event takes place at NASA by Austurvöllur, a popular spot in Reykjavik very close to the parliament building.

The first three spots at the Reykjavik open 2004 (Reykjavikopen.com) which takes place in the Reykjavik city hall 7th-16th March 2004 will earn a place in Reykjavik rapid 2004.

The format of the tournament is rather unusual the the 16 players will engage in a blitz tournament, 5 3 on the 17th of March. The result will determine the seeding. An idea taken from Formula 1. The first round will start on the 18th, The 1st seeded player will play nr. 16, nr. 2 avs. 15 etc. Time allotted is 25 5. In case of a tie there will be a sudden death game.

The main sponsor of the Reyjavik rapid 2004 is Atlantsal.

Internet coverage: http://www.ruv.is/skak

Dos Hermanas

The IV Dos Hermanas international open tournament takes place 25th March - 2nd April 2004.

Players: 
 1  Vladimir Epishin         GM  2633  RUS
 2  Vadim Milov              GM  2632  SUI
 3  Miguel Illescas Córdoba  GM  2616  ESP
 4  Oleg Korneev             GM  2566  RUS
 5  Sergey Karjakin          GM  2566  UKR
 6  Mladen Palac             GM  2566  CRO
 7  Izer Mirzoev             GM  2551  AZE
 8  Ivan Cheparinov          GM  2550  BUL
 9  Kevin Spraggett          GM  2536  CAN
10  Daniel Cámpora           GM  2530  ARG
11  Javier Moreno            GM  2525  ESP
12  Alekxa Strikovic         GM  2524  SCG
13  Zenón Franco             GM  2524  PAR
14  Mihai Suba               GM  2522  ROM
15  Bogdan Lalic             GM  2518  ENG
16  Dragan Paunovic          IM  2517  SCG
17  Roberto Cifuentes        GM  2505  ESP
18  Gabriel del Río          GM  2504  ESP
19  Karen Movsziszian        GM  2497  ARM
20  Carlos Matamoros         GM  2490  ECU
21  José Luis Fernández      GM  2478  ESP
22  Alexander Veingold       IM  2460  EST
23  Rodney Pérez             IM  2458  CUB
24  Ibrahim Khamrakulov      IM  2452  UZB
25  Ruslan Pogorelov         GM  2451  UKR
26  Davor Komljenovic        GM  2441  CRO
27  Mohamed Tissir           IM  2436  MAR
28  José Candela             IM  2435  ESP
29  Ernesto Fernández        IM  2425  ESP
30  Jordan Ivanov            IM  2406  BUL
31  Enrique Rodríguez        IM  2391  ESP
32  Ismael Terán             IM  2382  ESP
33  Javier Sanz              IM  2379  ESP
34  Carlos Barrero           FM  2339  ESP
35  Alexander Razmyslov      FM  2337  UKR
36  Adalberto Villavicencio  FM  2331  ESP
37  Joaquín Durao            IM  2200  POR

V Dos Hermanas Internet

V Internet Chess Tournament "Ciudad de Dos Hermanas" IM Michael Rahal (EDAMI) reports that the Dos Hermanas City Council and the Municipal Foundation for Sport of Dos Hermanas in conjunction with ICC (http://www.chessclub.com) and EDAMI (http://www.edami.com) are holding their fifth Internet Chess tournament between the 6th and the 14th of March 2004. The event will take place on ICC and has cash prizes totalling 6.100 Euros (1st: 1.800 euros, 16th 150 euros) as well as other special prizes (25% more than last year). There will be 12 Swiss System qualifiers (two per day) with the winner of each event progressing to the final. Last years field included 67 GM and 103 IM over 1.117 participants from 75 countries (GM Vladimir Potkin took first place, other top ten players included GM Dreev, GM Grischuk, GM McShane, GM Sakaev).

If you wish to take part there are further details, rules and entry forms available at: http://www.doshermanas.net/

Oslo Easter Chess Festival 2004

The Oslo Easter Chess Festival 2004 takes place 3rd-11th April 2004.

The main events are The Open Norwegian Championships 3rd-11th April (Swiss tournament with chances for IM norms) and Oslo Young Masters 3rd-9th April (international junior tournament).

Side events are rapid tournament 8th-9th April, blitz tournament 10th April and team blitz tournament 4th April.

Further details: http://home.online.no/~vichan/paske04/eng/indexa.html

Or contact: Victor Hansen email victorh@online.no, phone 0047 957 99 891.

Czech Tour 2004-2005

4th International Chess Festivals Series

15.-23.5. 2004 4th OPEN ZNOJMO (FIDE open, Open Women Championship of the Czech Republic in active chess ?Znojemska kralovna ? The Znojmo Queen?, tournament for girls up to 14 years of age, active chess tournament)

15.7.-1.8. 2004 15th CZECH OPEN ? Pardubice (5 FIDE opens, one of them with GM and IM norm, Open European Amateurs Championship, Open Championship of the Czech Republic of 4-member team tournament, in active chess, blitz tournament, bughouse and Fischerandom chess, 14 tournaments altogether)

4.-12.8. 2004 7th OLOMOUC CHESS SUMMER (FIDE open, closed GM and IM tournaments, Open Seniors Championship of the Czech Republic, open tournament of youngsters)

18.-26.9. 2004 1st OPEN HIGHLANDS ? Havlickuv Brod (Men Championship of the Czech Republic - semifinals, FIDE open)

23.-30.10. 2004 5th OPEN LIBEREC (FIDE open)

14.-21.1. 2005 4th OPEN PRAHA (2 FIDE opens, one of them with IM norm)

22.-30.1. 2005 4th OPEN MARIANSKE LAZNE (FIDE open and 1-2 closed IM tournaments)

More details e-mail: j.mazuch@avekont.cz and http:/www.czechtour.net

20th Budapest Spring Festival

The 20th Budapest Spring Festival is a 9 rounds Swiss Open Chess Tournament 18th-27th March 2004. Organizer: Laszlo Nagy e-mail:firstsat@hu.inter.net

Further details: http://www.firstsaturday.hu

Brussels 12 Hours

Brussels 12 Hours a 5 minute blitz tournament takes place on 27 March 2004. 1st prize 300 Euros and prizes for all categories.

Entry fees: 10 Euros. GMs/IMs Free, Under 16 years old 5 Euros.

Venue: CREB, Palais du Midi Rue Roger Vander Weyden,3 1000 Brussels

Entry: 09.30 - 10.30 - Tournament start 11h00 Prize ceremony 23h30 Information: Benny Åsman 02/512.48.43 e-mail: bennyasman@skynet.be Joachim Demoulin 0475/33.22.87 jo.demoulin@wanadoo.be

Organised by Caïssa Woluwé, Chess Club Anderlecht, Fous du Roy et CREB

3rd Saturday Tournament

A 3rd Saturday Tournament will take place in Novi Sad, 20th-27th March 2004. Improved Elo ratings, IM and maybe GM norms (depending on interest), Semi Open. More info in few days on www.drazic.co.yu. Venue NSK, the oldest club in all of the former Yugoslavia, center of Novi Sad, Serbia, no visa needed now for European and USA citizens.

Cogas Energy Timman vs Van Wely Match

The Cogas Energy Match will take place 8th-10th April 2004. The 4 game match will be between Jan Timman and Loek Van Wely. Alongside the match will be a 6 round Swiss Grandmaster tournament with a prizefund of several 1000 Euro.

More information Albert Vasse +31 (0)6 53871200 or e-mail schaken@cogas.nl

The event will be broadcast live at http://www.cogas.nl

CFC Cup

Correspondence Chess server of Chessfriend.com has a new free competition. The CFC Cup 2004 allows interested players to test the server without entry fees by playing a real tournament where ELO and titles are available.

More details: http://www.chessfriend.com

Jón Þorsteinsson Memorial Tournament

The Jón Þorsteinsson Memorial Chess Tournament takes place in Reykjavík, Iceland 28th-29th February 2004, in honour of his 80th birthday. Jón Þorsteinsson was a Member of Parliament, a lawyer and a widely respected chess player in Iceland. The weekend tournament features prizes totalling ISK600,000 (US $8,600).

The Memorial Tournament is organized by The Reykjavík Chess Club (Taflfélag Reykjavíkur) and Hellir Chess Club (Taflfélagið Hellir), together with Jón Þorsteinsson's family. The tournament, which will be staged one week prior to the bi-annual 2004 Reykjavík Open is expected to attract Iceland's strongest players as well as several international players.

The format of the tournament is highly innovative. The participants will begin each game from a position selected by a special tournament committee and disclosed at the beginning of each round.

There will be nine (9) rounds, Swiss System, in the tournament, each comprising of two 15-minute games where participants play each consisting of position with both white and black.

The positions will be selected to test the versatility and positional skills of the players rather than their knowledge of opening theory.

Leading players Helgi Ólafsson 2530 Þröstur Þórhallsson 2470 Jón Viktor Gunnarsson 2425 Stefán Kristjánsson 2410 Bragi Þorfinnsson 2410 Arnar Gunnarsson 2355 Sigurður Daði Sigfússon 2335

Website: http://www.chess.is/memorial/index_e.html

IM Silman vs The Rest of the World

IM Silman vs The Rest of the World ChessWorld.net hosting a "Rest of the World" match against IM Jeremy Silman. This is a voting game where the "Rest of the World" (ROW) votes for the moves against Silman, and the highest voted move played after five days. Kasparov played a ROW game a few years back. IM Jeremy Silman is the author of the one chess book that everyone raves about, How to ReAssess Your Chess.

The match has inspired the largest ROW team ever at ChessWorld, well over 300 players at last count. IM Silman opened the game with 1. d4 and the voting is underway. You can get in on the game at http://www.chessworld.net - head for Play!..World team games after logging in.

The up to date position is also available on the TWIC front page.

17th Ciudad de Leon 2004

The 17th Ciudad de Leon 2004 will again be a knockout event taking place June 3rd-7th 2004 in Leon, Spain.

Players: Alexei Shirov (Spain), Peter Svidler (Russia), Teimour Radjabov (Azerbajan) and Francisco Vallejo (Spain).

Official site: http://www.advancedchessleon.com and http://www.elajedrezdelfuturo.com

Lenk Chess Festival

Lenk International Chess Festival is a Swiss Chess Tour event 2004. The 16th "Kreuz-Open" takes place April 8th-12th 2004.

The Hosts will be the Hotel "Kreuz", "Grande" Open, Swiss system, 7 rounds and the games will last a maximum of 5 hours (40 moves for 2 hours and 30 minutes till the end).

Prize are: 1.500 SF, 1.200, 900, 700, 500, 400, 300, 250, 200 and 150 SF. From 11.- 20. places natural prizes. Special prizes for best Lady, senior (1944), junior(1984-87), schoolboy (1988) and best local player. Entry fee 130 SF, FMs and juniors 60 SF, at the door 10 SF more, GMs and IMs free.

Time table: Round 1st 18.30-22.30 April 8,; Rounds 2/3 09.30-14.30 and 15.30-20.30 April 9,; Round 4 13.30-18.30 April 10,; Rounds 5/6 09.30-14.30 and 15.30-20.30 April 11,; Round 7 10.00-15.00 April 12. Closing ceremony April 12 at 16.00.

Info: Beochess +41+34+424-01-06 (Robert Spoerri) or info@beochess.ch or site http://www.beochess.ch for more details.

5th Montenegro International Open

5th Open International Chess Championship of Montenegro "Sozina 2004" Hotel "Topolica" Bar, February 18-26th, 2004

Further details: http://www.sozina2004.com/

5th Annual MILLENNIUM CHESS FESTIVAL

APRIL 2 - 4, 2004 (the weekend before Foxwoods!) is the date for the next Millennium Chess Festival. Come play chess on the beach!...

PRIZES: $18,000 in 5 sections. Open Section prizes are guaranteed -- $2500-1200-800-600-400-300-200 U2400/Unr: $500-200 U2200: $500-200 Upset Prize: $150. Class Sections have large prize funds based on 55 per section.

HOTEL: Ramada Plaza Beach Oceanfront Hotel, Virginia Beach, USA. COMPS: GM, WGM, and IM Comps are available.

Our popular GM "Dinner/Exhbition" Match again scheduled for Saturday Night. (Details soon.)

WEBSITE: http://www.geocities.com/millenniumchessfestival/
QUESTIONS: eschlich@aol.com

Shirov's New Website

Alexei Shirov has a new webpage which includes an online school project (together with GM Alfonso Romero and IM Javier Sanz both from Spain) and a personal page within. The address is http://www.shirovonline.com, at the moment everything is in Spanish although the English version should follow soon.

IX Cesenatico International Open

The IX Cesenatico International Chess Open takes place in Cesenatico (Italy) 4th-12th September 2004.Open A 9 rounds. Open B 8 rounds.

Organiser Jean Christophe Pirini email info@antiquascom.it Fax +39547681217 # mobile phone +39335.6615956.

Further details: http://www.antiquascom.it/scacchi.htm

IV Savaria Summer Open

IV Savaria Summer International Chess Open takes place in Szombathely, Hungary 19th-26th July 2004. 9 round Swiss 90 minutes + 30 seconds/move.

Further Information:

KORPICS Zsolt H-9700 Szombathely, Rohonci 13. +(36)-30/951-0063 korpicschess@axelero.hu

PERGEL László H-9700 Szombathely, Tátra 2. +(36)-30/530-4904 a_mester@freemail.hu

Hungarian chess tournaments March-August 2004

1.FIRST SATURDAY GM-IM-FM, 6th-18th of March, org. NL. , Organizer: Nagy Laszlo, e-mail: firstsat@hu.inter.net Webpage: http://www.firstsaturday.hu Internet Chess Club nickname: MrFirstSaturday ICQ#: 44805877 Cell phone: +(36)-30-2301914 Tel-fax: +(36-1)-2632859

2. SAVARIA-IM-1 closed tournament, Szombathely /250 km West from Budapest/, 22nd March-1st of April, organizer: FM Korpics,Zsolt, e-mail: korpicschess@axelero.hu

3. 20th BUDAPEST SPRING FESTIVAL, 9 rounds Swiss Open, 18th-27th of March, Org.Nagy Laszlo

4. FIRST SATURDAY GM-IM-FM, 3rd-16th of April, org.NL.

5. SAVARIA-IM-2 closed, Szombathely, 19th-29th of April, org: Korpics Zsolt;

6. FIRST SATURDAY GM-IM-FM, 1st-13th of May,

7. ELEKES memorial, Budapest GM-IM round robin, 15th-25th of May, organizer: IM Zsinka, Laszlo, +(36)-20-9219197 e-mail: zsinkala@axelero.hu or: zsinka@budapest.hu

8. FIRST SATURDAY GM-IM-FM, 5th-17th of June, Budapest, org.Nagy L.

9. BALATON OPEN and GM-IM closed about 20th-30th of June, org: IM Rigo, e-mail: me-ri@axelero.hu /150 km West from Budapest/,

10. FIRST SATURDAY GM-IM-FM, 3rd-16th of July, Org: Nagy Laszlo,

11. Open EGER 9 rounds Swiss, 17th-25th of July /100 km North-East from Budapest/ and GM-IM closed tmt, organizer: Rauch Ferenc, cell phone: +(36)-30-326-3692, e-mail: rauch@freemail.hu, other organizer: Vajda, Albert Sr. e-mail: avajda@udv.topnet.ro More info: Nagy Laszlo, e-mail: firstsat@hu.inter.net

12. FIRST SATURDAY GM-IM-FM, 7th-19th of August 2004, org: NL.

13. Cat.XI. GM-closed, 10 participants, Budapest, 18th-27th of Aug. Org: PALI, Gabor, e-mail: gaborpali@freemail.hu Mobile: +/36/-20-470-50-37

14. TALENTUM CUP Open 19th-27th of Aug. BALATONZAMARDI /200 km West from Budapest/, organizer: MR VALIS, Janos e-mail: husi-sc@hu.inter.net

15. FIRST SATURDAY GM-IM-FM, 4th-16th of September, Org: NL.

2nd Annual Western Pacific Open

2nd Annual Western Pacific Open. Burbank, CA, April 2-4, 2004. 5-SS. $10,000 based on 200 players, $6000 guaranteed. Top section FIDE rated.

Further details: http://www.westernchess.com

Lina Grumette Memorial Day Classic

The Lina Grumette Memorial Day Classic 2004. Glendale, CA, May 29-31, 2004. 6-SS. $20,000 based on 300 players, $10,000 guaranteed. Top section FIDE rated.

Further details: http://www.westernchess.com

Calcutta International Open

The Alekhine Chess Club will be holding the CALCUTTA INTERNATIONAL OPEN CHESS TOURNAMENT, 2004, from 27th Feb to 7th March, 2004. Previously the event was known as the GOODRICKE INTERNATIONAL OPEN CHESS TOURNAMENT, CALCUTTA.

The total prize fund will be $12000. Boarding & lodging will be provided to all GMs, WGMs, IMs, WIMs. For details contact: Mr. Soumen Majumder, Gorky Sadan, 3, Gorky Terrace, Calcutta - 700 017, Telephone: 091 033 2280 3858, Fax: 091 033 2247 9559 / 2283 2746 E-mail: gnca@vsnl.com

65th Square Website

There is a new Turkish website: http://www.65thsquare.org (note the change of address). I have given an interview to the webmaster Alper Efe Ataman.

Swiss Chess Tour 2004

The Swiss Chess Tour starts in Basle in the New Year (1.-4.1.2004.). The 6th Hilton Open features with Vlastimil Hort, Yannick Pelletier, Andrei Sokolov and Florian Jenni. They will play each other, one game on classic time control and the other in rapid. Timetable of the 6th Hilton Open: 1.1.2004. registration 10.00-12.00; 1.01.2004. Blitz open 21.00-23.00; 9 rounds, 5 minutes. 1.-4.1.2004. Fujitcu Siemens – Junior’s Open; 7 rounds, 4 hours. 1.-4.1.2004. Hilton Open; 7 rounds, 5 hours (40 moves-120 minutes, 30 minutes till the end.) 1.-4.1.2004. Baloise Open; 7 rounds, 4 hours (30 moves-90 minutes, 30 minutes till the and.) 1.-4.1.2004. Senior Open; same as Baloise Open. 1.-2.1.2004. ITAG Tele-Rapid; with Hort, Pelletier, Sokolov, Jenni; 15 minutes per game. 1.-4.1.2004. ITAG Masters (Hort, Pelletier, Sokolov, Jenni); classic time control, 6 hours. 2.1.2004. Fujitsu Siemens PC-Challenge (men&computer) 20.00-22.00. 4.1.2004. Closing ceremony 16.30-17.00.

Prizes: Hilton Open: 2000/1500/1200/800/600/500/2x400/2x300/2x200 Fr. Special prizes (200 Fr. each): Best Lady, Senior (1944), Basler, Junior (1984-87), Pupil (1988). Entry fee: 130 Fr. (FM & Juniors) GM & IM free. At the door 10 Fr. Baloise Open: 500/400/2x300/2x200/4x150 Fr. Entry fee: 110 Fr. (Juniors 50 Fr.) At the door 10. Senior Open: 400/300/200 Fr. + natural prizes Entry fee: 60 Fr. At the door 10 Fr. Fujitsu Siemens-Junior Open: 400/300/200 + natural prizes for all participants. Entry fee: 50 Fr. At the door 10 Fr. Blitz Open: 300/200/150/2x100/2x50 Fr. Entry fee: 20 Fr. (Junior 5 Fr.) Venue Hotel Hilton Basle. More information and registration: Robert Spoerri tel. +41+34+424-01-06, fax +41+34+424-01-07 E-mail info@beochess.ch

Further information: http://www.beochess.ch

33rd International Rapid Chess Tournament Herford

Herford, 19th-20th June 2004 33rd International Rapid Chess Tournament 2004. Grand-Prix of Sparkasse Herford. Qualification tournament for the German Rapid Championships. 11 Rounds. Guaranteed Prize fund: € 1.500. 1st Prize € 500.-, Info: http://www.schach.com/herford/turnier/2004/herford2004ausschreibung.htm Homepage: http://www.schach.com/herford/

Western Canadian Open

The Western Canadian Open takes place July 9th-18th, 2004. The FIDE rated event is organised by the British Columbia Chess Federation.

Further details: http://www.chessbc.com

Narender Nath Memorial Chess Tournament

The 3rd Annual Narender Nath Memorial Chess Tournament commemorating a man who died in the World Trade Center on September 11th 2001 is underway. The event raises money for charity.

Details: http://www.nathchesstournament.com/

28th Kings Head Rapidplay

The 28th Kings Head Rapidplay will take place on Saturday 13 March 2004,

6-round Swiss rapidplay (30 minutes), prize fund £650, entry fee £17

Further info: http://www.khcc.org.uk

Chess Exhibition in Cleveland Ohio

The Worlds of Chess Champions exhibition contains items including Egyptian chess pieces, commemorative stamps, autographed material, rare books and original manuscripts.

The event is in Cleveland OH. The Cleveland Public Library’s John G. White Chess and Checkers Collection is currently exhibiting an installation titled, Worlds of Chess Champions. This temporary exhibition is located in the third floor exhibition hall of the Main Building, 325 Superior Ave., N.E. The Library exhibition is free and open to the public. Paid parking is available on Rockwell, one block north of Superior Ave.

Worlds of Chess Champions puts chess into context through the lives of chess experts, authors, and champions. This exhibition sets the historical stage of chess champions from the 19th Century to the present. To illustrate the context of chess in the world, the earliest items displayed feature chess pieces from Egypt dating back to 1300 B.C. Other early items on display from the John G. White Chess and Checkers Collection include original manuscripts from the 16th, 17th, and 18th Centuries. Other rare and interesting items include a death mask photograph of an early 19th-century player, commemorative chess stamps, hand-written letters by and about world-famous chess champions, autographed material, and published books by chess champions.

Some of the materials in Worlds of Chess Champions have never before been exhibited. The John G. White Chess and Checkers Collection is the world’s largest and most comprehensive chess collection. The collection contains chess sets and pieces as well as material related to chess. Many stamps commemorating chess champions are in the exhibition. Newspaper and magazine clippings, chess championship programs, score sheets from games, and other rare items will be on display through June 12, 2004.

New York Masters

Regular competition for players in New York Rated 2200 and above.

Further details: http://www.newyorkmasters.com/