THE WEEK IN CHESS 747 2nd March 2009 by Mark Crowther

Sponsored by the London Chess Centre

TWIC Home| The London Chess Centre| Online-Shop

Contact The Week in Chess
Mark Crowther
E-Mail mdcrowth@btinternet.com
Mobile 07971 920016
http://www.chesscenter.com/twic/twic.html

Contents

1) Introduction
2) Topalov - Kamsky World Chess Challenge
3) XXVI Linares
4) Aeroflot Open
5) Bulgarian Championship
6) Bundesliga
7) Estonian Championship
8) 25th Cappelle la Grande
9) Mukachevo Spring
10) 81st Championship of St Petersburg
11) Brazilian Interclubs
12) I Costa del Sol International
13) Tancats de la Societat Coral
14) Amber Blindfold and Rapid
15) 10th Internet Chess Tournament - Ciudad de Dos Hermanas
16) Forthcoming Events and Links

Games Section
Topalov - Kamsky World Chess Challenge2 games
XXVI Linares24 games
Aeroflot Open75 games
Bulgarian Championship157 games
Bundesliga128 games
Estonian Championship92 games
25th Cappelle la Grande80 games
Mukachevo Spring66 games
81st Championship of St Petersburg91 games
I Costa del Sol International52 games
Tancats de la Societat Coral30 games
797 games

Contact the London Chess Centre
E-Mail info@chess.co.uk
Tel: +44 020-73882404 Fax:+44 020-73882407
USA Telephone Orders: 1 561 827 0993
http://www.chess.co.uk/

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

Links:

New Shop: http://www.chess.co.uk/shop

Big Mega

My 60 Memorable Games

ChessBase Now Out

1) Introduction

My thanks to Dennis Monokroussos, Dimitar Iliev, Dirk Jan ten Geuzendam, Michael Rahal, Georgios Souleidis, Philipp Schlosser Miklos Orso, Bela Lengyel, Axel Fritz, Laszlo Nagy, Indrek Turu, Emmanuel Variniac, Luiz Roberto Da Costa Jr, and everyone else who helped with the issue.

Veselin Topalov did eventually put away Gata Kamsky by the apparently reasonably comfortable score of 4.5-2.5 but it was a good deal tougher than that for the Bulgarian with the seventh game being settled in Kamsky's time trouble where he had at least theory very good winning chances for a couple of moves. As it is World Number One Topalov will take on champion Viswanathan Anand later in the year. If the money can be raised in these economically straightened times this should be a great match up.

Anand himself is, whilst not exactly playing dreadfully, having a bit of a struggle at the Linares tournament where he is mid-table. The leader is Alexander Grischuk who I always have the feeling doesn't quite make the best of his great talents at the game. Anyhow, we'll see if he can convert.

Hope you enjoy this issue.

Mark

2) Topalov - Kamsky World Chess Challenge

Veselin Topalov defeated Gata Kamsky in Sofia in an 8 game match for the right to play World Champion Viswanathan Anand later in the year. The match took place 17th-26th February 2009.

Topalov won the match 4.5-2.5, Topalov won games 2, 5 and 7. Kamsky game 4. Game one drawn saw Kamsky draw quite comfortably with Topalov on the black side of a Gruenfeld. Game two saw Topalov defeat Kamsky on the black side of a very complex Berlin Defence. Game three was a Gruenfeld drawn in 37 moves . Game four was a Closed Ruy Lopez that saw extensive manoevering before Kamsky gradually came out on top (You can read Ian Rogers' commentary on this game on the USCF website). Game five was a French Tarrasch where black was left with an isolated d-pawn. Kamsky looked to have pretty much equalised, but miscalculated in exchanging pieces off the board which left him completely lost. (Ian Rogers on game 5 for the USCF) Game 6 was a Caro-Kann where Kamsky didn't make any progress against Topalov's novelty. In the decisive game 7 there was a very messy sequence of moves starting at move 30 where the assessment really changed, 30.d6? b5?! (30...Qb3!) 31.Qb7? (31.Qc7) Reb8? (31...b4!) after which Topalov was much better and 38...b4? ended any possibility of even a draw and Kamsky resigned the game and the match after first time control when with just a couple of better moves he could won and been level in the match. However as pointed out by Mig on his Daily Dirt perhaps the biggest mistake Kamsky made was his half hour think on 25...Ba4 which put him down to a move a minute. Topalov goes on to play Anand for the World Championship later in the year.

Official site: http://www.wccc2009.com/. They have videos of the games and press conferences.

Other coverage at: http://www.chessbase.com and the excellent on the spot material by Ian Rogers on the USCF website.

World Chess Challenge Sofia BUL Results
Topalov, Veselin - Kamsky, Gata ½-½ 36 D86 Gruenfeld Simagin
Kamsky, Gata - Topalov, Veselin 0-1 32 C65 Ruy Lopez Berlin
Topalov, Veselin - Kamsky, Gata ½-½ 37 D81 Gruenfeld Botvinnik
Kamsky, Gata - Topalov, Veselin 1-0 73 C92 Ruy Lopez Chigorin
Topalov, Veselin - Kamsky, Gata 1-0 55 C07 French Tarrasch
Kamsky, Gata - Topalov, Veselin ½-½ 43 B12 Caro Kann Advanced
Topalov, Veselin - Kamsky, Gata 1-0 45 C07 French Tarrasch

World Chess Challenge Sofia (BUL), 17-27 ii 2009
Name Ti NAT Rtng 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Total Perf
Topalov, Veselin g BUL 2796 ½ 1 ½ 0 1 ½ 1 . 2827
Kamsky, Gata g USA 2725 ½ 0 ½ 1 0 ½ 0 . 2694

3) XXVI Linares

The XXVI Linares 2009 tournament takes place only in Spain this year (their co-operation with Morelia in Mexico was ended last year). The tournament takes place 18th February - 8th March 2009 and has 314,000 Euros in prizes. There are no appearance fees for the players. The winner takes 100,000 Euros and the trophy 2nd and 3rd take 75,000 and 50,000 Euros.

World Champion Viswanathan Anand defends the Linares title after winning the event last year. Other players are Vassily Ivanchuk, Magnus Carlsen, Teimour Radjabov, Levon Aronian, Wang Yue, Alexander Grischuk and Leinier Dominguez Perez.

Schedule: Rd1 19th Feb, Rd2 20th Feb, Rd3 21st Feb, Rd4 22nd Feb, Rd5 24th Feb, Rd6 25th Feb, Rd7 26th Feb, Rd8 28th Feb, Rd9 1st Mar, Rd10 2nd Mar, Rd11 3rd Mar, Rd12 5th Mar, Rd13 6th Mar, Rd14 7th Mar.

Official site: http://www.ajedrez.ciudaddelinares.es/index.htm

There has been a deal to share half the tournament with a venue in the United Arab Emirates from 2010. http://www.topnews.in/arab-power-buys-linares-wimbledon-chess-2130363

XXVI SuperGM Linares (ESP), 19 ii-7 iii 2009 cat. XXI (2756)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1. Grischuk, Alexander g RUS 2733 * * ½ ½ ½ . ½ . 1 . 1 ½ 1 . ½ ½ 2864
2. Ivanchuk, Vassily g UKR 2779 ½ ½ * * ½ . ½ . 1 . ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ . 2786
3. Carlsen, Magnus g NOR 2776 ½ . ½ . * * 1 . ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ . ½ 1 5 2747
4. Anand, Viswanathan g IND 2791 ½ . ½ . 0 . * * 0 ½ 1 . 1 ½ ½ ½ 5 2748
5. Aronian, Levon g ARM 2750 0 . 0 . ½ 1 1 ½ * * ½ . ½ 0 1 . 5 2762
6. Wang Yue g CHN 2739 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 0 . ½ . * * ½ . ½ . 2723
7. Radjabov, Teimour g AZE 2761 0 . ½ ½ ½ . 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ . * * ½ . 2724
8. Dominguez Perez, Leinier g CUB 2717 ½ ½ ½ . ½ 0 ½ ½ 0 . ½ . ½ . * * 4 2690

Round 5 (February 24, 2009)
Grischuk, Alexander - Carlsen, Magnus ½-½ 34 B33 Sicilian Sveshnikov
Ivanchuk, Vassily - Anand, Viswanathan ½-½ 65 D19 Slav Defence
Wang Yue - Aronian, Levon ½-½ 26 D11 Slav Defence
Dominguez Perez, Leinier - Radjabov, Teimour ½-½ 62 B77 Sicilian Modern Dragon
Round 6 (February 25, 2009)
Grischuk, Alexander - Aronian, Levon 1-0 59 D43 Anti-Meran Gambit
Ivanchuk, Vassily - Dominguez Perez, Leinier ½-½ 47 A04 Dutch System
Carlsen, Magnus - Anand, Viswanathan 1-0 77 D45 Anti-Meran Variations
Wang Yue - Radjabov, Teimour ½-½ 43 E92 King's Indian Classical
Round 7 (February 26, 2009)
Anand, Viswanathan - Grischuk, Alexander ½-½ 32 E84 King's Indian Saemisch
Aronian, Levon - Ivanchuk, Vassily 0-1 44 E92 King's Indian Classical
Radjabov, Teimour - Carlsen, Magnus ½-½ 34 C53 Giuoco Piano
Dominguez Perez, Leinier - Wang Yue ½-½ 57 C42 Petroff's Defence
Round 8 (February 28, 2009)
Grischuk, Alexander - Dominguez Perez, Leinier ½-½ 47 D85 Gruenfeld Defence
Ivanchuk, Vassily - Wang Yue ½-½ 66 C42 Petroff's Defence
Carlsen, Magnus - Aronian, Levon 0-1 93 D45 Anti-Meran Variations
Radjabov, Teimour - Anand, Viswanathan ½-½ 47 D43 Anti-Meran Gambit
Round 9 (March 1, 2009)
Ivanchuk, Vassily - Radjabov, Teimour ½-½ 30 C63 Ruy Lopez Schliemann
Aronian, Levon - Anand, Viswanathan ½-½ 30 E06 Catalan
Wang Yue - Grischuk, Alexander ½-½ 17 D22 QGA
Dominguez Perez, Leinier - Carlsen, Magnus 0-1 54 B78 Sicilian Modern Dragon
Round 10 (March 2, 2009)
Grischuk, Alexander - Ivanchuk, Vassily ½-½ 41 C42 Petroff's Defence
Carlsen, Magnus - Wang Yue 0-1 64 D10 Slav Defence
Anand, Viswanathan - Dominguez Perez, Leinier ½-½ 35 D97 Gruenfeld Russian
Radjabov, Teimour - Aronian, Levon 1-0 56 A07 Barcza System

4) Aeroflot Open

The mega Aeroflot Open took place in Moscow 16th February (the day of arrival) to 27th February 2009 (the day of departure). Etienne Bacrot beat Arman Pashikian in the final round to finish on 6.5/9 alongside Alexander Moiseenko. Bacrot took first place on the basis that he played more games with the black pieces than Moiseenko.

In addition there was a blitz tournament which acted as a qualifier for the Tal Blitz Cup which I have no details on but was held in August last year. Sergey Karjakin won the qualifier. No games available.

The second A2 tournament was won by Alexandre Danin on tie-break from Melikset Khachiyan both of whom scored 7/9.

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

Aeroflot Open Moscow (RUS), 16-27 ii 2009
Leading Final Round 9 Standings:
1Bacrot, EtienneGMFRA27226.527750.62-12607.3
2Moiseenko, AlexanderGMUKR26766.527701.1112602.9
3Zhou, JianchaoGMCHN2612627531.71-12638.9
4Predojevic, BorkiGMBIH2650627060.64-12571.1
5Zhigalko, SergeiGMBLR2587627652.1512655.4
6Kurnosov, IgorGMRUS2602627581.8912642.4
7Potkin, VladimirGMRUS2613627481.6112626.6
8Tomashevsky, EvgenyGMRUS2664627430.9212610.3
9Pashikian, ArmanGMARM2621627291.2912598.9
10Yudin, SergeiIMRUS25625.527061.78-12636.9
11Zhou, WeiqiGMCHN25425.527142.15-12632.9
12Filippov, AntonGMUZB25565.527111.94-12631.9
13Kosintseva, Tatiana wIMRUS24975.527022.52-12621.9
14Sargissian, GabrielGMARM26775.526850.112598.7
15Vitiugov, NikitaGMRUS26875.52672-0.1812591.4
16Zvjaginsev, VadimGMRUS26365.526650.3612571.6
17Aleksandrov, AleksejGMBLR26365.526440.112566.4
18Riazantsev, AlexanderGMRUS26345.526360.0312561.4
19Khairullin, IldarGMRUS2574526711.17-12643.1
20Andriasian, ZavenGMARM2564526891.51-12643.1
21Kotsur, PavelGMKAZ2563526761.37-12632
22Ajrapetjan, YuriyGMUKR2490526421.84-12599.1
23Dreev, AlexeyGMRUS268852607-1.01-12570
24Amonatov, FarrukhGMTJK264752613-0.44-12569.1
25Smirin, IliaGMISR264752602-0.56-12563.4
26Nepomniachtchi, IanGMRUS262852595-0.44-12555.6
27Huzman, AlexanderGMISR260252582-0.26-12533.1
28Zhigalko, AndreyGMBLR2572526951.4812649.4
29Dyachkov, SergejGMRUS2553526741.4612630
30Wen, YangGMCHN2504526561.8312611.4
31Grachev, BorisGMRUS2655526580.0112606.7
32Ehlvest, JaanGMUSA2595526370.5112601.9
33Naiditsch, ArkadijGMGER269352645-0.6112600.4
34Kazhgaleyev, MurtasGMKAZ263052617-0.1812571.9
35Mamedov, RaufGMAZE263852604-0.4412560.9
36Landa, KonstantinGMRUS262652611-0.2312560.7
37So, Wesley jGMPHI262752577-0.6512541.4
38Grigoriants, SergeyGMRUS25654.526471.03-12643.7
78 players

Aeroflot Blitz Moscow (RUS), 26 ii 2009
Leading Final Round 9 (double round) Standings:
PlaceNameTitleFed.FIDETotalMBch.Bch.
1Karjakin, SergeyGMUKR27061580102
2Gashimov, VugarGMAZE272314.582106.5
3Mamedyarov, ShakhriyarGMAZE27241368.589
4Bareev, EvgenyGMRUS2645136889.5
5Tkachiev, VladislavGMFRA265712.576.598.5
6Zhou, JianchaoGMCHN261212.575.596.5
7Naiditsch, ArkadijGMGER269312.57186.5
8Pridorozhni, AlekseiIMRUS251512.57088.5
9Andriasian, ZavenGMARM256412.569.591
10Smirin, IliaGMISR264712.569.588.5
11Yudin, SergeiIMRUS256212.567.588.5
12Ghaem Maghami, EhsanGMIRI260412.566.586
13Yu, YangyiCHN2398127595.5
14Mamedov, RaufGMAZE26381271.593
15Huzman, AlexanderGMISR26021270.588.5
16Milov, VadimGMSUI2669126786
17Bartel, MateuszGMPOL2594126684
18Ponomariov, RuslanGMUKR272611.57394
19Pashikian, ArmanGMARM262111.57193.5
20Van Wely, LoekGMNED262511.56887.5
21Zhigalko, SergeiGMBLR258711.567.587.5
22Predojevic, BorkiGMBIH265011.566.586
23Ponkratov, PavelIMRUS255711.56481
24Li, Chao BGMCHN262811.56079
25Dreev, AlexeyGMRUS2688117697
26Rakhmanov, AleksandrGMRUS25411173.593.5
27Sargissian, GabrielGMARM26771169.590
28Nepomniachtchi, IanGMRUS26281169.588
29Volkov, SergeyGMRUS26271166.587
30Korotylev, AlexeyGMRUS2587116585
31Bacrot, EtienneGMFRA272210.57494
32Lysyj, IgorGMRUS262010.573.594
33Amonatov, FarrukhGMTJK264710.573.594
34Grigoryan, AvetikGMARM250610.57293
35Chadaev, NikolaiIMRUS256810.57290.5
36Petrosian, Tigran L.GMARM262310.571.592
37Riazantsev, AlexanderGMRUS263410.56983.5
38Potkin, VladimirGMRUS261310.56786
39Zvjaginsev, VadimGMRUS263610.56784.5
40Efimenko, ZaharGMUKR268810.566.584
41Ivanov, AlexanderGMUSA254110.56580.5
42Grachev, BorisGMRUS265510.564.583
43Bezgodov, AlexeiGMRUS247510.56381.5
44Chuprov, DmitryGMRUS257110.562.581
45Vitiugov, NikitaGMRUS268710.56078
46Maze, SebastienGMFRA257810.555.571
47Svidler, PeterGMRUS27231083107
48Dvoirys, Semen I.GMRUS2547107895.5
49Maslak, KonstantinGMRUS25411075.595
165 players

5) Bulgarian Championship

The 73rd Bulgarian Championship took place in Blagoevgrad. Dejan Bojkov won the event. The 58th Women's Bulgarian Championship took place in Dupnitsa, WGM Margarita Voiska won for the 10th time. Kiril Georgiev played a simul against 360 opponents finishing in 14 hours and 8 minutes breaking the previous record (report http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=5241). 284 victories, 70 draws and only 6 losses. His scoring percentage was about 88%. It took place at the Levski Chess Club in Sofia. News: Dimitar Iliev.

There was coverage of the Bulgarian Championships at http://www.bulchamp09.chessmix.com/ and http://www.bulchamp09w.chessmix.com/ but it had disappeared by the time I checked. The tables are generated from the games.

73rd ch-BUL Blagoevgrad (BUL), 12-22 ii 2009 cat. VIII (2436)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4
1. Bojkov, Dejan g BUL 2477 * ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 1 ½ 1 1 10.0 2643
2. Chatalbashev, Boris g BUL 2560 ½ * ½ 1 ½ ½ 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 10.0 2637
3. Nikolov, Momchil m BUL 2478 1 ½ * ½ 0 ½ 1 1 1 0 ½ 1 1 ½ 8.5 2542
4. Arnaudov, G. Petar f BUL 2347 ½ 0 ½ * 1 ½ 1 ½ ½ 0 1 1 ½ ½ 7.5 2499
5. Radulski, Julian g BUL 2580 0 ½ 1 0 * 1 1 0 ½ 1 0 ½ ½ 1 7.0 2453
6. Rusev, Krasimir m BUL 2546 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 * 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 7.0 2456
7. Berbatov, Kiprian f BUL 2392 0 1 0 0 0 1 * 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 7.0 2468
8. Vutov, M. Mario BUL 2262 0 0 0 ½ 1 ½ 0 * ½ ½ ½ 1 1 ½ 6.0 2420
9. Filev, Georgi f BUL 2378 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ * 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ 5.5 2383
10. Petkov, Vladimir g BUL 2504 0 0 1 1 0 ½ 0 ½ 1 * 0 ½ 0 ½ 5.0 2343
11. Pantev, Veselin f BUL 2381 0 0 ½ 0 1 0 0 ½ ½ 1 * 1 0 ½ 5.0 2353
12. Lilov, Valeri f BUL 2443 ½ 0 0 0 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ ½ 0 * ½ ½ 4.5 2325
13. Kukov, Velislav f BUL 2373 0 0 0 ½ ½ 0 0 0 0 1 1 ½ * 1 4.5 2330
14. Enchev, Ivajlo BUL 2382 0 0 ½ ½ 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 * 3.5 2265

58th ch-BUL w Dupnitsa (BUL), 13-22 ii 2009
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2
1. Voiska, Margarita wg BUL 2339 * ½ 1 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 2272
2. Genova, Lyubka wm BUL 2231 ½ * 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 8 2246
3. Videnova, Iva wf BUL 2193 0 1 * 0 1 1 ½ 1 0 1 1 1 2208
4. Nikolova, Adriana wm BUL 2310 0 ½ 1 * ½ 1 ½ 0 1 1 1 1 2197
5. Yordanova, Svetla wm BUL 2202 ½ ½ 0 ½ * 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 2207
6. Chilingirova, Pavlina wm BUL 2155 ½ ½ 0 0 0 * 1 1 ½ 1 1 1 2143
7. Bednikova, Stefi BUL 2087 ½ 0 ½ ½ 0 0 * ½ 1 ½ 1 1 2084
8. Vladimirova, Maria BUL 2062 ½ 0 0 1 0 0 ½ * 1 0 1 ½ 2021
9. Sirkova, Darena BUL 1942 0 0 1 0 1 ½ 0 0 * 0 1 1 2032
10. Krumova, Ani BUL 1812 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ 1 1 * ½ ½ 1976
11. Petkova, Veneta BUL 1964 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ * 1 1786
12. Gradevska, Desislava BUL 1721 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 * 1 1734

6) Bundesliga

The 12th and 13th round of the Schachbundesliga took place on the 28th February and 1st March of 2009. The top teams of Baden-Baden, Eppingen and Bremen met in Eppingen. Bremen held Baden-Baden in round 7 but this looks unlikely to stop Baden Baden who have a three point lead with only two rounds to go.

Official site an entrance site for the live coverage: http://www.schachbundesliga.de

Bundesliga 2008-9 (GER), 2 x 2008 - iii 2009
Home Team: Tegernsee
Round 12 Saturday, 28th February 2009, 2 pm
TV Tegernsee5-3SV Muelheim Nord
Bayern Muenchen4-4SF Katernberg
Round 13 Sunday, 1st March 2009, 10 am
SV Muelheim Nord7.5-0.5Bayern Muenchen
SF Katernberg3-5TV Tegernsee
Home Team: Sonlingen
Round 12 Saturday, 28th February 2009, 2 pm
Aljechin Solingen5-3SC Kreuzberg
SV Wattenscheid6-2USV TU Dresden
Round 13 Sunday, 1st March 2009, 10 am
SC Kreuzberg5.5-2.5SV Wattenscheid
USV TU Dresden1-7Aljechin Solingen
Home Team: Hamburg
Round 12 Saturday, 28th February 2009, 2 pm
Hamburger SK3.5-4.5SC Remagen
SF Berlin3.5-4.5SG Trier
Round 13 Sunday, 1st March 2009, 10 am
SC Remagen4-4SF Berlin
SG Trier3-5Hamburger SK
Home Team: Eppingen
Round 12 Saturday, 28th February 2009, 2 pm
SC Eppingen3.5-4.5Werder Bremen
OSG Baden-Baden7-1Turm Emsdetten
Round 13 Sunday, 1st March 2009, 10 am
Werder Bremen4-4OSG Baden-Baden
Turm Emsdetten2.5-5.5SC Eppingen
Bundesliga 2008-9 (GER), 2 x 2008 - iii 2009
Leading Round 13 (of 15) Standings:
1.OSG Baden-Baden132476,0
2.SG Aljechin Solingen132163,0
3.TV Tegernsee132162,5
4.SC Eppingen132060,0
5.Werder Bremen 132059,5
6.SV Muelheim-Nord131864,0
7.SC Kreuzberg131556,5
8.SV Wattenscheid131455,5
9.Hamburger SK131352,0
10.SC Remagen131050,5
11.SF Katernberg13847,5
12.SK Turm Emsdetten13843,0
13.SF Berlin13840,0
14.SG Trier13442,0
15.FC Bayern Muenchen13435,0
16.USV TU Dresden13025,0

7) Estonian Championship

The Estonian Championships took place in Rakvere, Estonia 20th-26th February 2009. GM Kaido Kulaots and IM Aleksandr Volodin scored 6,5/9. Kulaots won the rapid tie-break and became Estonian champion for the 6th time. In women's section WFM Valeryia Gansvind won the title with 8,5/9. News: Indrek Turu.

Official site: http://www.maleliit.ee

ch-EST Rakvere (EST), 20-26 ii 2009 cat. IV (2349)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
1. Kulaots, Kaido g EST 2573 * ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 ½ 2489
2. Volodin, Aleksandr m EST 2401 ½ * 0 ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 2509
3. Seeman, Tarvo m EST 2401 ½ 1 * 1 ½ 1 0 0 1 1 6 2468
4. Kanep, Meelis g EST 2513 ½ ½ 0 * ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 6 2455
5. Sepp, Olav m EST 2457 ½ 0 ½ ½ * ½ 1 1 1 0 5 2379
6. Shishkov, Andrei f EST 2403 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ * ½ 1 1 1 5 2385
7. Holvason, Juri EST 2108 0 0 1 0 0 ½ * ½ ½ 1 2295
8. Neff, Sergei EST 2239 0 0 1 0 0 0 ½ * 0 1 2195
9. Vovk, Ilja f EST 2283 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ 1 * 1 2190
10. Vorobjov, Pavel EST 2110 ½ 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 * 2102

Kulaots, Kaido - Volodin, Aleksandr 1-0 31 B48 Sicilian Paulsen
Volodin, Aleksandr - Kulaots, Kaido ½-½ 28 D27 QGA

ch-EST Playoff Rakvere (EST), 26 ii 2009
12
Kulaots, Kaido g EST 2573 1 ½ 2594
Volodin, Aleksandr m EST 2401 0 ½ ½ 2380

ch-EST w Rakvere (EST), 20-26 ii 2009
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
1. Gansvind, Valeriya I wf EST 2244 * ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2403
2. Piarnpuu, Leili wm EST 2133 ½ * ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 7 2192
3. Narva, Triin EST 1835 0 ½ * ½ 1 1 1 ½ 1 1 2171
4. Narva, Regina R wf EST 2044 0 ½ ½ * ½ 1 1 1 1 1 2147
5. Vahtra, Tuuli EST 1988 0 ½ 0 ½ * 1 1 1 1 1 6 2113
6. Hanzatjan, Elvira EST ---- 0 0 0 0 0 * ½ 1 1 1 1906
7. Kyrge, Kersti EST 1868 0 0 0 0 0 ½ * 1 ½ 1 3 1876
8. Korban, Katrina EST 1769 0 0 ½ 0 0 0 0 * 1 ½ 2 1792
9. Viikmaa, Karmen EST ---- 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 * 1 1713
10. Narva,Mai EST ---- 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 * ½ 1542

8) 25th Cappelle la Grande

The 25th Cappelle la Grande Open takes place 28th February - 7th March 2009.

Results, games and live coverage at: http://www.cappelle-chess.fr

25th Open Cappelle la Grande (FRA), 28 ii-7 iii 2009
Leading players:
Miroshnichenko, Evgenij g UKR 2667
Graf, Alexander g GER 2643
Baklan, Vladimir g UKR 2627
Kuzubov, Yuriy g UKR 2626
Burmakin, Vladimir g RUS 2623
Gelashvili, Tamaz g GEO 2622
Korobov, Anton g UKR 2613
Malakhatko, Vadim g BEL 2610
Mamedov, Nidjat g AZE 2607
Drozdovskij, Yuri g UKR 2607
Balogh, Csaba g HUN 2605
David, Alberto g LUX 2602
611 players

9) Mukachevo Spring

The Mukachevo Spring tournament took place 23rd February - 2nd March 2009. Vitaliy Bernadskiy took clear first with 9½/11.

Official site: http://www.chess32x64.org/tournaments/2009/MukSpring/MukSpring2009.aspx?id=2

Spring Mukachevo (UKR), 23 ii-2 iii 2009
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2
1. Bernadskiy, Vitaliy f UKR 2276 * ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2541
2. Kostromin, Mikhail m ISR 2378 ½ * ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 8 2397
3. Sevostianov, Pavel m RUS 2257 ½ ½ * ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 2298
4. Zambor, Norbert f SVK 2308 ½ 0 ½ * ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 6 2265
5. Karalkin, Maksim f RUS 2190 0 ½ ½ ½ * 1 ½ 0 1 0 1 ½ 2240
6. Boricsev, Oleg m HUN 2287 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 * ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 2231
7. Bunda, Viktor f UKR 2267 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ * ½ ½ ½ 1 1 2233
8. Molnar, Peter SVK f SVK 2285 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 0 ½ * ½ ½ 1 0 5 2195
9. Guivan, Vasily UKR 2210 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ * 1 ½ 1 5 2202
10. Polyakov, Maxim f UKR 2281 0 0 ½ 0 1 ½ ½ ½ 0 * 1 1 5 2195
11. Fediv, Alexandr UKR 2079 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ 0 * ½ 2039
12. Kristofori, Attila UKR 2012 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 0 1 0 0 ½ * 2 1994

10) 81st Championship of St Petersburg

The 81st Championship of St Petersburg took place 16th February - 1st March 2009. Spartak Vysochin won with 10/13.

Official site: http://chigorin.ru/2009/81CSPb/

81st ch-StP St Petersburg (RUS), 16 ii-1 iii 2009 cat. VIII (2428)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4
1. Vysochin, Spartak g UKR 2526 * 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ½ 1 10.0 2631
2. Goganov, Aleksey f RUS 2385 1 * 0 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 ½ ½ 1 1 9.5 2606
3. Matlakov, Maxim m RUS 2487 ½ 1 * ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 9.5 2598
4. Rozum, Ivan m RUS 2451 ½ 0 ½ * 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 0 ½ 1 1 1 8.0 2513
5. Kislinsky, Alexey g UKR 2468 ½ ½ ½ 0 * 1 0 ½ 1 0 1 1 1 1 8.0 2512
6. Lovkov, Roman m RUS 2430 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 * ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 1 1 ½ 7.5 2485
7. Trushelyov, Victor AZE 2354 0 ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ * ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 7.5 2490
8. Solovjov, Sergey I m RUS 2410 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ * ½ 1 1 1 1 1 7.5 2486
9. Khruschiov, Alexey g MDA 2498 0 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ * 1 ½ ½ 1 1 6.0 2393
10. Kosov, Ivan f RUS 2383 0 0 0 1 1 ½ ½ 0 0 * ½ 1 ½ ½ 5.5 2374
11. Levin, Evgeny A m RUS 2484 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ * 0 ½ 1 4.5 2313
12. Shchukin, Dmitry m RUS 2385 0 ½ 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 1 * ½ 1 3.5 2256
13. Mikkelsen, Nikolaj m DEN 2426 ½ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ * 0 2.0 2132
14. Pogosian, Vladimir ARM 2308 0 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 0 0 ½ 0 0 1 * 2.0 2141

11) Brazilian Interclubs

The Brazilian Interclub Championship takes place 28th February - 8th March 2009.

Official site: http://www.fpx.com.br/

12) I Costa del Sol International

The I Costa del Sol International takes place 22nd February - 29th March 2009. Abel Carrascoso Morales and Antonio Naranjo Moreno lead on 5.5/6. Details: http://es.geocities.com/clubajedrezsanpedro/

13) Tancats de la Societat Coral

The Tancats de la Societat Coral Colon Grup GM takes place 23rd January - 20th March 2009.

Official site: http://chess-results.com/tnr18677.aspx

Tancats de la Societat Coral C Sabadell (ESP), 23 i-20 iii 2009 cat. IX (2466)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
1. Moskalenko, Viktor1 g UKR 2538 * 1 ½ ½ . 1 . 1 . 1 5 2723
2. Alsina Leal, Daniel m ESP 2510 0 * 0 ½ 1 . . . 1 1 2515
3. Cruz, Filemon f PER 2411 ½ 1 * . . 0 ½ 0 1 . 3 2479
4. Aloma Vidal, Robert m ESP 2399 ½ ½ . * ½ . ½ . 0 1 3 2487
5. Almeida Quintana, Omar g CUB 2521 . 0 . ½ * ½ ½ 1 . ½ 3 2461
6. Perpinya Rofes, Lluis Maria f ESP 2381 0 . 1 . ½ * . 1 0 0 2425
7. Rodriguez, Amador g ESP 2479 . . ½ ½ ½ . * ½ ½ 0 2402
8. Cruz, Cristhian m PER 2545 0 . 1 . 0 0 ½ * 1 . 2402
9. Panelo, Marcelo m ARG 2425 . 0 0 1 . 1 ½ 0 * . 2397
10. Fluvia Poyatos, Jordi m ESP 2454 0 0 . 0 ½ 1 1 . . * 2414

14) Amber Blindfold and Rapid

The 18th Amber Blindfold and Rapid tournament takes place March 14th (first round) - March 26 (last round) at the five-star hotel Palais de la Mediterranee, splendidly located on the famous Promenade des Anglais in Nice, France. The event is organised by the Association Max Euwe in Monaco.

The total prize-fund is - 216,000 Euros.

This year's field is stronger than ever with all the world's best players taking part.

The twelve participants are (in alphabetical order): World Champion Viswanathan Anand (India), Levon Aronian (Armenia), Magnus Carlsen (Norway), Vasily Ivanchuk (Ukraine), Gata Kamsky (United States), Sergey Karjakin (Ukraine), Vladimir Kramnik (Russia), Peter Leko (Hungary), Alexander Morozevich (Russia), Teimour Radjabov (Azerbaijan), Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria) and Wang Yue (China).

Every day four sessions will be played, two blindfold sessions and two rapid sessions. The first session starts at 14.30 hrs. The fourth session finishes around 20.00 hrs. (Note: the final round on March 26 starts at 12.30 hrs. March 18 and 23 are rest days.)

Official website: http://www.amberchess2009.com

15) 10th Internet Chess Tournament - Ciudad de Dos Hermanas

This year, one of Spain’s most famous chess cities celebrates the tenth anniversary of its Internet Chess Event. The 10th Internet Chess Tournament "Ciudad de Dos Hermanas" (Spain) will be held on the ICC Internet Chess Club playing zone (http://www.chessclub.com).

This event is the most important Internet chess tournament in the world. In last year’s edition, 2282 players took part. For the second year running, former prodigy child and under-10 World Champion IM Jorge Sammour-Hasbun defeated all the big names to take the 2000 Euros first prize. Other finalists were GM’s Hikaru Nakamura (2670), Baadur Jobava (2643) and Zhang Zhong (2617).

This year the prize fund is 7.500 euros, again with 2.000 euros for the winner. In addition, there are many class prizes and special cash prizes for amateur players.

The playing system remains unchanged: twelve 12-round Swiss qualifiers with 3/0 games. Qualifiers will be held twice a day from March 13th to 18th, and the finals are held on March 20th and 21st.

Entry is completely free for all ICC members. The Dos Hermanas website: http://www.doshermanas.net/ has the rules and registration page.

16) Forthcoming Events and Links

First Saturday March

The First Saturday tournaments (GM, IM and FM) take place 7th-20th March in Budapest. Contact: Laszlo Nagy firstsat@hu.inter.net if you wish to play as there are a couple of places left.

Official site: http://www.firstsaturday.hu/

FSGM February March (HUN), 7-20 iii 2009
Players so far:
IGMVARGA, ZoltanHUN2488
IGMKOSIC, DraganMNE2521
IGMILINCIC, ZlatkoSRB2555
IMBALOGH, ImreHUN2431
IMAGOPOV, MikaelFIN2433
FMFODOR, TamasHUN2400
IMGALYAS, MiklosHUN2456
FMKJARTANSSON, GudmundurISL2365
FMARNGRIMSSON, DagurISL2404
IMPAP, GyulaHUN2468
IMNGUYEN Huynh Minh HuyVIE2465
IMDOUNG, The AnhVIE2418
FMRAPPORT, RichardHUN2371
PASCHALL, WilliamUSA

Varna Chess Festival

The 1st International Chess Festival Varna, takes place at the Grand Hotel Varna 11th-20th June 2009. Contact: seahorse@abv.bg for more details.

Website: http://euroschoolchess.org/ (although I couldn't find the event myself)

Tournament of Young Talents

The 30th annual Tournament of Young Talents takes place 9th - 13th April 2009 in Frydek-Mistek, Czech Republic. It is a festival of three tournaments: Tournament of young talents - several groups for youth players under 14 years Up to 8 years children championship - open Czech Championship under 8 years Pobeskydi - FIDE open and at least one round-robin with the possibility to achieve IM/WGM norm.

Further details: http://www.chessfm.cz

European Youth Championships

The European Youth Championships (U10 - U18) takes place in Fermo/Italy 30th August - 10th September 2009.

Details: http://www.euroyouth2009.com

European Senior Championships

The European Individual Senior Championship takes place in Rogaska Slatina/Slovenia 22nd - 31st July 2009. For the first time just before the event a European Senior Rapid Championship will be organised. The dates are 19th - 21st July.

Further details are published under http://www.sahohlacnik.com/eu-sen/

European Union Website

The European Chess Union Website ECU website has changed address to http://www.europechess.org

Szombathely IM

There is an IM tournament in Szombathely (HUN) 26th March - 3rd April 2009 9-11 rounds 100 minutes/40 moves + 30 minutes , 30 sec addition after each move Chief Arbiter: PERGEL Laszlo International Arbiter Accomodation: Pansion (tv, bathroom, wifi) 40 Eur/night/room/2 person Entry Fee: 120 euro Schedule: Opening Ceremony: 26th March 2009 15.30 Rounds: 26th March - 3rd April every day 16.00 Information: CSONKA Attila 0036-70-200-4233 attila_csonka@hotmail.com PERGEL Laszlo 0036-70-775-4901 pergell@citromail.hu

Dutch Teams

The Dutch Team Championship takes place 27th September 2008 - 10th May 2009. Round 6 on 7th March ( Schrijvers Rotterdam - BSG, Homburg Apeldoorn - Hotels.nl, LSG - HMC Calder, HSG - Utrecht and Voerendaal - ESGOO ) I think there may be playoffs after that.

Great coverage at: http://www.schakers.info/ and also the http://www.schaakbond.nl/wedstrijdschaak/knsb-competitie/

Alushta Diary 2009

Alushta Diary 2009:

GM Norm events: 23.05 - 1.06, 2.06 - 12.06, 15.06 - 25.06, 2.09 - 12.09, 14.09 - 24.09, 26.09 - 6.10, IM Norm: 23.05 - 1.06, 2.06 - 12.06, 15.06 - 25.06, 2.09 - 12.09, 14.09 - 24.09, 26.09 - 6.10, Rating tournament: 4.06 - 12.06, 22.06 - 27.06, 5.09 - 13.09, Open tournament (under 16 years) 3.06 - 11.06, 13.06 - 21.06, Alushta Swiss 9 rounds Open tournament First prize - 1000$ First prize (woman) - 500$ 28.06 - 6.07, 10.07 - 18.07, 20.07 - 28.07, 22.08 - 30.08, Alushta Swiss 9 rounds Blitz tournament 7.07, 19.07, 29.07, Alushta Swiss 9 rounds Open tournament (rapid chess) 8.07 - 9.07, 30.07 - 31.07, Alushta Session of school of Gennadi Kuzmin 21.06 - 27.06, 15.07 - 24.07. Individual and group studying Further information: http://www.kaissa.com.ua phone +38 (06560)5-05-32, +380505828911 (for Russian speaking), + 380506692604 (for English speaking) e-mail: info@kaissa.com.ua

21st Lenk International Chess Festival

After a great jubilee with the 20th Lenk Chess Festival, last year has come the shock news that the, 21st Lenk International Tournament, April 9th-13th 2009 will be the last chess event in the Simmental region, a very attractive tourist area. "Beochess" with "Swiss Chess Tour" this year close all their chess activity. During 21 years Lenk became very popular in chess world and it will be pity if nobody keeps on the tremendous tradition.

So, last time, Hotel Kreuz will be venue, Lenk 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). The prizes: 1.500 SF, 1.200, 800, 600, 400, 2x300 and 3x200 SF. Special prizes: Ladies, senior (1948), junior(1989-92), schoolboy (1993) and amateur (under 2000) for all: 200 CHF. Entry fee 130 SF, FMs and juniors 60 SF, at the door 20 SF more, GMs and IMs free. Venue: Hotel "Kreuz". Time table: Round 1st 18.00-23.00 April 9,; Rounds 2/3 10.00-15.00 and 16.00-21.00 April 10,; Round 4 14.00-19.00 April 11,; Rounds 5/6 10.00-15.00 and 16.00-21.00 April 12,; Round 7 10.00-15.00 April 13. Closing ceremony April 13 at 16.00.

Info: Beochess +41+62+965-46-50 (Robert Spoerri) or event@beochess.ch or site http://www.beochess.ch for more details.

Zuerich Chess Club 200th Anniversary

Dr. Christian Rohrer reports: The world's oldest chess club celebrates its 200th year with spectacular jubilee events, including World Champions Spassky, Kasparov and Anand.

The Schachgesellschaft Zuerich celebrates 200th anniversary with spectacular jubilee events

The Schachgesellschaft Zuerich, the world's oldest chess club, celebrates its 200th year in 2009 with spectacular jubilee events. To mark the anniversary, some of the greatest masters of the last five decades, including World Champions Spassky, Kasparov and Anand, will play at the event. Highlights will be a simultaneous exhibition and a rapid chess tournament on the 22nd and 23rd of August, held in Zurich Main Railway Station. With generous sponsor support from Credit Suisse the Schachgesellschaft Zuerich continues its long standing tradition of world class chess tournaments.

On Saturday the 22nd of August, in simultaneous games 200 amateurs will be honoured to face eight word-class chess players, who have made historical contributions to world chess over the last 50 years: Viswanathan Anand, Anatoly Karpov, Garry Kasparov, Viktor Korchnoi, Vladimir Kramnik, Boris Spassky, Ruslan Ponomariov and Veselin Topalov. On Sunday the 23rd of August, these champions will compete against each other in an exciting rapid chess format. Judit Polgar, the strongest female chess player ever, and Werner Hug of Schachgesellschaft Zuerich, former world junior chess champion, will replace Kasparov and Spassky, who have retired from competitive chess.

A huge number of spectators, from enthusiasts to the generally curious, is expected for the events at Zurich Railway Main Station. And no one need miss it: All commemorative events will be streamed live via Internet.

The jubilee commences with an open tournament; certain to be one of the most exciting open chess tournaments of 2009. Players of every skill level, from beginners to the elite world class, are expected and will be welcomed at the Zurich Kongresshaus from August 9th to the 15th, 2009. They will compete in two tournaments, 9 rounds each, for CHF 100.000 guaranteed prize money and many attractive prizes.

To further honour the occasion, Richard Forster, reputable chess historian, will release his comprehensive book, researched in great detail, on the unique history of the Schachgesellschaft Zuerich. Entitled "Schachgesellschaft Zuerich: 1809 bis 2009", Forster's work will analyze the development of the Schachgesellschaft Zuerich from the times of Napoleon to the present day.

Details: http://www.sgzurich2009.ch

5th Thessaloniki Games Festival

The 5th Thessaloniki Games Festival takes place 26th April - 4th May 2009.

Official site: http://www.gamesfestival.com/ (wasn't working when I checked) and a full listing of the event.

32nd Ikaros Chess Festival 2009

The traditional 32nd Ikaros Chess Festival 2009 takes place on Ikaria island.

The main event of the festival, the International Aegean Open Championship takes place 11th-19th July 2009. It is a 9 round swiss event with prize fund 3600 Euros in total (1st prize 1000 Euros, special money prizes for ladies and veterans). Special conditions for GMs/IMs and WGMs/WIMs are provided, special discounts for families and club teams are also offered (more information will be available in the official announcement of the festival that will be out soon on the official webpage.

Contact info: ikaros@chess.gr while to contact us on the phone one can try: +30 6932 478386 or +30 210 5010871 (Mr. Savas Kyriakou). For general information about the island of Ikaria one can also check at: http://www.island-ikaria.com

Official site: http://www.chess.gr/ikaros

32nd San Sebastian Open

32nd San Sebastian International Open, takes place 5th-12th April 2009 in the Spanish northern city of San Sebastian (near french border).

Info: http://www.fgajedrez.org/open/open.htm

Pula Open 2009

The 23rd International Chess Tournament "Pula Open 2009" takes place 27th June - 4th July 2009 in Pula, Croatia. Official site: http://www.skpula.hr and contact e-mail: pulaopen@globalnet.hr.

Hungarian Chess Tournaments March-October 2009

1. 7th-19th of February, FIRST SATURDAY GM-IM-FM Budapest FIRST SATURDAY Budapest, GM-IM-FM round robins (BERGER), 9-13 games, GM-IM norm possibilities in Budapest, venue: Hungarian Chess Federation, Falk Miksa Str.10. 2nd floor. Organisation: Nagy Laszlo, FIDE International Chess Organizer /NL/, E-mail: firstsat@hu.inter.net Website: http://www.firstsaturday.hu Phone-fax: +(361)-2632859, cellphone: +(36)-30-230-1914 /From 12:00 a.m. until midnight - Central European Time = GMT+1/

2.20th-28th of February IM-Rating Caissa, Kecskemet, org: Dr.Erdelyi, Tamas, cellphone: +36-30-271-33-38, Landline phone-fax: +36-76-481-685 e-mail: postmaster@caissa.t-online.hu Website: http://www.caissachessbooks.hu Usually also in the second half of the month IM and rating tournaments in Kecskemet, a city 80 km South-East from Budapest.

3.7th-19th of March, First Saturday, Budapest, GM-IM-FM, org Nagy L.

4.20th-28th of March, 25th BUDAPEST SPRING FESTIVAL 9 rounds Swiss Open, org: Nagy L. - e-mail: firstsat@hu.inter.net

5.4th-16th of April First Saturday Budapest, org.Nagy L.

6.18th-26th of April Caissa, IM + rating Kecskemet, Org.Erdelyi,

7.2nd-14th of May, First Saturday GM-IM-FM Budapest, org Nagy L.

Kecskemet Caissa IM + rating tournaments more: 16th-25th of May, 20th-28th of June, 18th-27th of July, 15th-24th of August, 19th-28th of September. FIRST SATURDAY Budapest GM-IM-FM tournaments more: 6th-18th of June, 4th-16th of July, 1st-13th of August, 5th-17th of September.

4NCL

The 4NCL takes place 4th October 2008 - 4th May 2009. Rounds 7-8 took place 21st-22nd March 2009 in the Barcelo Hotel, Hinckley Island.

Official site: http://www.4ncl.co.uk

Fixtures 2008-9

Rounds 1 and 2: 4th/5th October 2008 De Vere Venues, Sunningdale Divisions 1-2

Rounds 3-4: 6th/7th December 2008 Barcelo Hotel, Hinckley Island Divisions 1-3

Rounds 5-6: 17th/18th January 2009 De Vere Venues, Sunningdale Divisions 1-2

Rounds 7-8: 21st/22nd March 2009 Barcelo Hotel, Hinckley Island Divisions 1-3

Rounds 9-11: 2nd-4th May 2009 De Vere Venues, Staverton Park Divisions 1-2

Novi Sad Open

1) Open turnir , 10-11 jan. 2009 , Srpska Nova g. u N. Sadu , 5 kola , rejtinguje se !!, fide tempo http://www.drazic.co.rs

2) IM , berger, 10-18.jan.2009. , 10 rounds, fide tempo, Novi SAd, for elo and norms fide, http://www.drazic.co.rs

3) Open turnir , 16-18 jan.2009, Novi Sad "Zima u Novom Sadu", 5 kola , rejtinguje se !!, fide tempo http://www.drazic.co.rs

4) cuger turnir , Olimpik, 12. jan.2009, Novi Sad, start 20 h , http://www.drazic.co.rs

5) program of chess edukation, every day from 12-15 jan. 2009 chess lessons with varius GM and Im (available in 3 languages),,,, some of teachers GM Kosanovic G. , GM SEdlak Nikola, GM Kovacevic A , GM DRazic Sinisa etc...

6) Open t. , "Dunav-Drava -Sava" , Banja Junakovic(87km from N.Sad), 9 rounds, fide tempo, possible norms fide and elo, date - 21-25.01.2009., special package , only 130 eur, 4 days full board with available swiming pool, and include also entry fee !! more http://www.drazic.co.rs Special discount for people who take part in more than one events.

Luis Scalise

Luis Scalise's chess pages have moved to: http://scalise.fortunecity.com/

Grand Slam Masters Final

The 2nd edition of the Grand Slam Masters Final will be played in Bilbao, September 2-15th 2009. The winners of Corus-Wijk aan Zee, Ciudad de Linares and Mtel Masters-Sofia tournaments will qualify directly for the Masters Final in Bilbao, where the first edition (played at a central square, inside a glass cube) was a very big success last September.

More details on the 2009 tournament (number of players, system of play, etc) will be announced at the end of the Corus tournament in Wijk aan Zee. The Grand Slam is in negotiations to include one more high level tournament in the 2009 circuit.

Grand Slam Chess Association (GSCA)

Dresden, 23 November 2008

Austrian Team Championship

The Austrian team championship started in St Veit 7th-9th November 2008, the 11 round competition has further rounds 22nd-25th January and 19th-22nd March 2009. Players in the first three rounds included: Sergei Movsesian, Hikaru Nakamura, Emil Sutovsky, Jan Gustafsson and Alexander Beliavsky.

Official site: http://www.chess.at/ and results: http://www.chess-results.com/tnr12353.aspx

Chess Study

Dr Robert Howard is making a study of rated chess players.

The full article: http://education.arts.unsw.edu.au/fidestudy/results

If you would like to participate, please go to this website: http://education.arts.unsw.edu.au/fidestudy/

For any queries, please contact Dr Robert Howard, University of New South Wales, on rwh@unsw.edu.au

Bundesliga

The Schachbundesliga season 2008/09 runs 3rd-5th October and runs until March 2009. 16 Teams compete with team rosters of 16-18 players but only eight play each weekend. There will be live coverage of all the games.

Dates: 4th-5th October 2008 25th-26th October 2008 29th-30th November 2008 12th-14th December 2008 (Here the official seventh round will be played. Although some will be played at other times) 31st January 2008 - 1st February 2009. 28th February - 1st March 2009. 28th-29th March 2009.

Official site of the Schachbundesliga (http://www.schachbundesliga.de/index.aspx) Further information (in German) and the entrance site for the live coverage: http://www.schachbundesliga.de/index.aspx

European Youth U-16 winners Texas Scholarships

The University of Texas at Dallas (USA) has offered scholarships to the winners of the U-16 European Youth Chess Championships since 2007. The agreement with the European Chess Union has been extended for another three years. The total value of the scholarships during this five-year period will be approximately 1 million USD, said James A. Stallings, Director of the UTD chess program.

Interview on the ECU website: http://www.europechess.org/home518.aspx?art=ft

27th Elba Island Festival

The 27th International Chess Festival of Elba Island "Luigi Amalfi", takes place at the Hotel Lacona 10th-17th May 2009.

Details: http://www.tuscanhotels.it/en/cmsx.asp?IDPg=23

Icelandic Team Championship

Icelandic Team Champ 1st div first half took place 3rd-5th October 2008. The 2nd set of games are March 21st-22nd March 2009 if I understand the website correctly. A small number of games are available.

Official site: http://www.skaksamband.is/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=5982&Itemid=499# and results: http://chess-results.com/tnr16443.aspx

Doeberl Cup and Sydney International 2009

The 2009 Doeberl Cup is in Canberra 9th-13th April 2009. See http://www.doeberlcup.com.au/

The 2009 Sydney International Open takes place 15th-19th April 2009. See http://www.chessaustralia.com.au/index.cfm?site=open

Free entry to GMs, IMs, WGMs and WIMs.

Free accommodation for selected GMs and WGMs.

For further information, please contact Brian Jones info@chessaustralia.com.au

GM Boris Alterman's Chess Lessons

GM Boris Alterman has a blog with free chess lessons on it.

Website: http://chesslessons.wordpress.com/

Etienne Bacrot's Website

Etienne Bacrot has a website at: http://www.chess22.fr/ with his analysis and news. Very worth while, especially when he's playing.

ICC and FICS client for mobile phones

Mats Luthman has written a program that connects to ICC and FICS, compatable with many modern mobile phones. I've been looking for something like this for a while for watching live tournaments if I'm out and about. Its a nice free solution, you can also play but I haven't tried that.

Website: http://www.luthman.nu/Mobi/Mobi.html