E-Mail mdcrowth@netcomuk.co.uk Tel or fax 01274 882143 [Bradford England] http://www.chesscenter.com/twic/twic.html
1) Introduction
2) Kasparov - Topalov. Sofia Bulgaria
3) President's Cup Elista
4) Argentine Championships
5) Czerniak Memorial
6) Zepter Open
7) Torino Open
8) First Saturday May Tournaments
9) The 29th International Tournament Serbian Chess
Federation
10) Zonal Tournament, Dresden
11) WCC Ranking List, May
Games section
Kasparov - Topalov 4 games Argentine Championships 40 games Czerniak Memorial 45 games Zepter Open 152 games Torino Open 162 games FS IM May 13 games Sabac Tournament 45 games Zonal Dresden 100 games
My thanks to Shahcom, Laszlo Nagy, Lothar Karrer, Uta Buettner, Damir Medak, Adrian Rolden and Ruben Casafus, Dr. Christo Yovev, Chess Planet, Alexander Rusak, Sinisa Joksic, Dan Ostergaard and all those who helped with this issue.
Kasparov's whitewash of Veselin Topalov in a four game 25 minute match in Sofia over the weekend is the highlight of this week's issue. The President's Cup in Elista starts tomorrow with a strong field which means that May will have top chess throughout.
Hope you enjoy this issue
Mark
Topalov, Veselin - Kasparov, Gary 0-1 32 D58 QGD;
Kasparov, Gary - Topalov, Veselin 1-0 39 B90 Sicilian; Najdorf
Topalov, Veselin - Kasparov, Gary 0-1 47 D58 QGD;
Kasparov, Gary - Topalov, Veselin 1-0 37 B43 Sicilian
Sofia BUL (BUL), V 1998
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1 2 3 4
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Kasparov, Gary g RUS 2825 1 1 1 1 4.0
Topalov, Veselin g BUL 2740 0 0 0 0 0.0
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Garry Kasparov completed a 4-0 whitewash in his four game exhibition match in Sofia Bulgaria. 25 minutes per side per game. Report and games from Dr. Christo Yovev. The match took place 2nd - 3rd May 1998.
Background
A rapid chess exhibition match between Kasparov and Topalov in Bulgaria has been on the agenda ever since the previous exhibition match Karpov - Topalov (Varna, 1996, 3:3). It did not take place in 1997 and this year the match was arranged following a couple of months of negotiations. The dates - 2-3 May were finalised only in mid-April.
The rules
The rules of the match are: rapid chess: 25 minutes per game per player. The winner is the player making more than 2 points. The fourth game will be played regardless of the outcome of the first 3 games. Place: National Palace of Culture, Hall 12 (see below).
Schedule: Opening press conference - 1 May, 18:00 Game 1 - 2 May, 16:00 Game 2 - 2 May, 17:00 Press conference - 18:00 Game 3 - 3 May, 16:00 Game 4 - 3 May, 17:00 Press conference - 18:00 Closing ceremony
The National Palace of Culture The National Palace of Culture is Bulgaria's major Congress Centre. It is situated right in the centre of the city of Sofia. Hall 12 has 600 seats and it was almost full. There was live TV coverage by Program 1 of the Bulgarian National TV. There were several dozens of journalists from national and local newspapers, and cable TV stations. The two players were seated on an elevated stage with two big screens on either side of the stage constantly showing an image of the chessboard, the moves, and the times of the two players. In the foyer there was another large screen and a couple of TV monitors, as well as several chess tables, where the spectators analysed the games.
Before the Match The young Bulgarian star - gm Vesselin Topalov arrived in Sofia on Thursday from his residence in Gran Canaria. In an interview to the local "Trud" (Bulgarian for "Labour") newspaper he said that his problem was the relative lack of experience with rapid chess. On the other hand, he said, that he had trained on the Canarias a week with gm Leko "finishing almost equal" (guess who had the upper hand ;-)), and he feels well prepared. "Kasparov is the favourite", he said, "but we are starting from 0:0". "Kasparov was unbeatable", continued Topalov, "but recently he plays too cautiously and this might bring him problems." In a TV interview at the airport Kasparov said: "Topalov is one of the finest chess players in the world today. Recently he has somewhat weakened his play, but I believe that we will have an interesting match."
Press Conference following First Day Below is a recount of the event by R.Damianov With 20-30 journalists attending, both players commented on the first two games of the match. The first to speak, naturally, was Kasparov. "The line of play we followed in the first game occurred 14 years ago in a world championship match. I hoped that my young opponent might be surprised. With this line Black faces difficulties, provided White is active enough. Topalov played hesitatingly and following move 20 my position was more pleasant. On move 27 I could force a win, if instead of 27…d3 I had played 27…gf 28.Rc5 Re2 29.Re2 Bf3 30.gf Qf3 31.Re8+ Re8 32.Qf3 Re1X. Following this lapse White got some counter-play, and had they played 30.Rc4 the outcome would be unclear. At least at the table I did not see any clear winning line. The second game I surprised my opponent again by 11.Nf5, which leads to non-standard positions. I got some initiative, but Black defended well and equalised. Nevertheless, following 26.Rf5 I had the initiative. The Black position might be defensible, but time (9 to 3 minutes in my favour) was decisive for the outcome." Next to speak was Topalov who had little to say: "The first game I played indecisively and outright weakly. In the middle of the second game I had good counter chances but I did not make the most of them. As Kasparov said, at the end of the second game, lacking time, one can hardly defend similar positions."
3 May in Sofia
After a spring mourning shower today the weather in Sofia was really warm. Everything is green and the trees are blooming. The fine weather, the holidays, and last but not least yesterday's result had somewhat reduced the attendance of the match. Still there were almost 500 chess fans who started filling the hall about half an hour before the scheduled time to cheer Vesko - their boy.
The Play, Day Two
Kasparov and Topalov had both changed their yesterday's dark suits to light ones. Despite the air-conditioning, this time Kasparov almost immediately took off his jacket. This time the players breezed through the opening closely following the first game of the match with minor move reordering, except that Topalov rather early on exchanged his h4 Bishop for the f6 Knight of Kasparov and made some active moves on the Queen's side. On move 37 the audience was left with the impression that Kasparov would accept a repetition of moves but Topalov evaded it. Then later in the game the position of Topalov seemed pleasanter, but on a few occasions he seemed to favour a neutral move rather than an active one, and Garry gradually turned the tide. Garry blundered a bishop near the end, but Topalov with about half a minute left fell for a mate in two. In the break gm Kiril Georguiev pointed out that a simple 47.f3 would suffice, but the time of Topalov was not enough to finish the game. The chances for a decent outcome seemed rather dim at the start of the fourth game, in which Garry had White. Somewhere in the middle of the game Topalov had a few opportunities to take the e4 pawn and drive toward an endgame with a pawn up, but he did not do that at all, and his position gradually worsened. Near the end it was hopeless. After the end of the fourth game, Kasparov left immediately giving out a few autographs, while Topalov closely followed by a flock of autograph seekers was summoned for a brief interview for the National TV. The press conference was to start any minute in another hall.
The Final Press Conference
The Final Press Conference (attended by R. Damianov) 30-40 journalists attended. The first to speak again was Garry Kasparov. "Because of my 2:0 lead I selected a simplified line of play, which I knew well from my World Cup matches with Karpov. We then played such 5-6 games - all of them equal. Following move 17 I could easily simplify the game, but somehow I decided to play actively. This activity was however temporary and my weaknesses remained. My position became rather unpleasant and had it not been for 26.g3 the Black would face difficulties. Moreover I had less time. Then a comedy of errors followed and Topalov was the last to slip. Following 40…Qe5 I thought that the game was finished. It was not necessary to lose a Bishop. The position however remained rather complex and Topalov overlooked mate in two. The fourth game started rather complexly. In order to have real counter chances Black had to take the e4 pawn. I came out with a pleasant play but on move 15 I committed a severe mistake and Topalov could force an endplay with a pawn up. The correct move was 15.Qd1. After move 20 the White position was technically won." Topalov's comments: "The third game was important to me psychologically. In the midgame my position was more pleasant and I had more time, but I do not why I started to wait. I lost a pawn, and when I had nearly lost hope I could gain a bishop and got a winning positions with only 40 seconds on my clock. With this lack of time I overlooked the mate. In the fourth game I started a risky line of play which I had studied in the past but some important details evaded me. After the mistake of Kasparov on move 15 I should have forced the pawn up endgame regardless of the prospects for gain. Missing that my opponent received an advantage and managed to realise it."
Following these comments there were some questions to be answered. Naturally, most of these were directed to Kasparov. A generalisation of the answers of Garry to these follows: "I am not satisfied with the quality of the games, but I am with the result, of course." "The Soviet totalitarian chess school is already history, but the thinking and decision-making processes in world chess, unfortunately have not changed so radically." "During this year's Olympiad I will probably play a World Championship match with the winner of the Kramnik-Shirov match. If Kramnik is the winner, most probably the Russian team will be lead by Svidler. The Olympiad will see a tough battle for the top places. My favourites are Russia, Armenia, and the USA. Bulgaria has its chances for the top positions but except for gm Topalov and gm Kiril Georgiev there are no experienced players of similar strength to back the team."
The Aftermath
Autograph hunters followed Kasparov and Topalov all over the place. Kasparov put some order to the effort by sitting at a table in the press conference hall and patiently signed numerous booklets, photos and posters for 10 to 15 minutes. Then he left surrounded by his bodyguards for a live participation in a popular TV show, in which he once appeared. So Garry finishes the event $45000 richer, while Topalov has to content himself with $25000. All prize money was raised by local sponsors. Now the Bulgarian chess fans are looking forward to the exhibition match between Kasparov and Topalov in June.
The Day After
A sample of newspaper headlines: "Veni, Vidi, Vici with no effort from Kasparov" (Sport Express), "Topalov didn't take even half a point from the champion" (Sport Express), "After the victory Kasparov relaxed in "Planet 088"" (a fashionable Sofia restaurant) (Trud by night) Further details from the final press conference Kasparov: "The final score does not reflect the ballance of strength. A logical result would be a 3:1 win, since Topalov should have won the third game. After all, this is rapid chess and many mistakes are being committed. My overall performance has been relatively good." Topalov: "I am not satisfied with my play. I am obviously a long way from my best form. Kasparov no doubt is the best player of our time. I had real chances to win the third game, but missed the winning move on a few occasions. I look forward to our next match after a month in Leon."
A strong knockout event starts on May 5th in Elista with $100,000 of prize money. This originally was to have been the Russian Championships (now moved to July in St Petersburg) but the Kirsan Iljumzhinov event still goes ahead but with a stronger field with some players from outside Russia too. Ivanchuk, Salov, Bareev, Gelfand, Georgiev, Rublevsky, Akopian, Khalifman, Zvjaginsev, Azmaiparashvili, Gurevich, Tiviakov, Vaganian, Dreev, Sakeav, Aleksandrov, Ehlvest, Onischuk, Tukmakov, Malaniuk, Sveshnikov, Ibragimov, Bologan, Galkin, Makarov, Chiburdinadze, Fominich, Galliamova and some local players compete.
Coverage by the Russian Chess Pages: http://www.ruschess.com/
There shock winner of the 71st Championships of Argentina, a Category 9 all play all event, which started on April 15th in Buenos Aires was fm Guillermo Malbran rated 2355. He held on to win in spite of losing 2 games in the final 5 rounds to win on tie break from Alejandro Hoffman an equally surprising challenger on ten points. Maxim Sorokin (3rd with 9.5 points) and Hugo Spangenberg (2590 7th with 8 points and who lost to the winner in the 13th round) were the pre-event favourites. The organiser was the Club Athletico Boca Juniors.
Daily internet coverage by Adrian Rolden and Ruben Casafus at Ajedrez Argentino, address: http://www.adrian-roldan.com 15th April - May 1st 1998.
Round 11 (1998.04.27)
Malbran, Guillermo - Dolezal, Cristian 1/2 62 B08 Pirc; Classical
Sorokin, Maxim - Giaccio, Alfredo 1-0 32 E01 Nimzo indian
Gomez Baillo, Jorge H - Ricardi, Pablo 1-0 33 B85 Sicilian
Ginzburg, Maximiliano - Slipak, Sergio 1/2 47 C44 Scottish
Soppe, Guillermo - Hoffman, Alejandro 1/2 48 A64 Modern Benoni
Fiorito, Fabian - Zarnicki, Pablo 1/2 16 C32 Kings gambit
Szmetan, Jorge - Spangenberg, Hugo 1-0 65 A07 Reti (1.Nf3)
Seminara, Juan Pablo - Alonso, Salvador 1-0 54 B17 Caro-Kann
Round 12 (1998.04.28)
Ricardi, Pablo - Fiorito, Fabian 1-0 54 A04 Reti (1.Nf3)
Zarnicki, Pablo - Soppe, Guillermo 1-0 48 C26 1.e4 e5
Spangenberg, Hugo - Hoffman, Alejandro 0-1 42 D63 QGD;
Slipak, Sergio - Seminara, Juan Pablo 1-0 39 E61 Kings indian
Giaccio, Alfredo - Ginzburg, Maximiliano 1/2 43 C42 Petroff defence
Dolezal, Cristian - Sorokin, Maxim 1/2 45 C47 Four knights
Szmetan, Jorge - Malbran, Guillermo 1-0 45 E62 Kings indian
Alonso, Salvador - Gomez Baillo, Jorge H 0-1 42 C16 French; Winawer
Round 13 (1998.04.29)
Malbran, Guillermo - Spangenberg, Hugo 1-0 49 B31 Sicilian
Hoffman, Alejandro - Zarnicki, Pablo 1-0 27 E12 Nimzo indian
Sorokin, Maxim - Szmetan, Jorge 1-0 24 B07 Pirc
Gomez Baillo, Jorge H - Slipak, Sergio 1/2 31 B18 Caro-Kann
Ginzburg, Maximiliano - Dolezal, Cristian 1-0 40 B42 Sicilian
Soppe, Guillermo - Ricardi, Pablo 0-1 46 D24 QGA;
Fiorito, Fabian - Alonso, Salvador 1/2 37 D85 Gruenfeld indian
Seminara, Juan Pablo - Giaccio, Alfredo 0-1 35 C00 French
Round 14 (1998.04.30)
Malbran, Guillermo - Sorokin, Maxim 0-1 40 B51 Sicilian
Ricardi, Pablo - Hoffman, Alejandro 1/2 56 A14 English; 1.c4
Spangenberg, Hugo - Zarnicki, Pablo 1/2 12 B12 Caro-Kann
Slipak, Sergio - Fiorito, Fabian 1/2 17 E97 Kings indian; Main line
Giaccio, Alfredo - Gomez Baillo, Jorge H 0-1 52 B12 Caro-Kann
Dolezal, Cristian - Seminara, Juan Pablo 1/2 20 B25 Sicilian; Closed
Szmetan, Jorge - Ginzburg, Maximiliano 1/2 36 A04 Reti (1.Nf3)
Alonso, Salvador - Soppe, Guillermo 1-0 33 B15 Caro-Kann
Round 15 (1998.05.01)
Hoffman, Alejandro - Alonso, Salvador 1/2 40 A16 English; 1.c4
Sorokin, Maxim - Spangenberg, Hugo 1/2 44 A29 English; 1.c4 e5
Zarnicki, Pablo - Ricardi, Pablo 1/2 17 D27 QGA;
Gomez Baillo, Jorge H - Dolezal, Cristian 1/2 7 B08 Pirc; Classical
Ginzburg, Maximiliano - Malbran, Guillermo 1/2 56 B02 Alekhine defence
Soppe, Guillermo - Slipak, Sergio 1/2 11 A48 Queen's pawn
Fiorito, Fabian - Giaccio, Alfredo 1/2 11 C30 Kings gambit
Seminara, Juan Pablo - Szmetan, Jorge 1/2 13 B05 Alekhine defence
Buenos Aires ARG (ARG), IV-V 1998 cat. IX (2453)
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1234567890123456
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1 Malbran, Guillermo f ARG 2355 *=011111===1=0=1 10.0 2584
2 Hoffman, Alejandro m ARG 2510 =*==1=1=1=1=110= 10.0 2573
3 Sorokin, Maxim g RUS 2555 1=*=0======1=111 9.5 2540
4 Ricardi, Pablo g ARG 2555 0==*=0==0111=111 9.0 2517
5 Zarnicki, Pablo g ARG 2515 001=*1===1==1=== 8.5 2498
6 Gomez Baillo, Jorge H m ARG 2440 0==10*0====1=111 8.5 2503
7 Spangenberg, Hugo g ARG 2530 00===1*=11===01= 8.0 2468
8 Slipak, Sergio m ARG 2510 0======*===1011= 8.0 2469
9 Ginzburg, Maximiliano m ARG 2470 =0=1==0=*01=1==1 8.0 2472
10 Soppe, Guillermo m ARG 2455 ===00=0=1*101100 6.5 2402
11 Fiorito, Fabian m ARG 2455 =0=0====00*=1=1= 6.5 2402
12 Giaccio, Alfredo m ARG 2460 0=00=0=0=1=*1=1= 6.5 2402
13 Dolezal, Cristian f ARG 2300 =0==0==10000*1== 5.5 2367
14 Szmetan, Jorge m ARG 2420 1000=010=0==0*=1 5.5 2359
15 Seminara, Juan Pablo ARG 2320 =100=000=100==*1 5.5 2366
16 Alonso, Salvador ARG 2390 0=00=0==01===00* 4.5 2307
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Willy Iclicki (details on his Chess Planet site http://www.chessweb.com/ ) reported the results of the 14th Czerniak Memorial in Tel Aviv April 9-18.
Tel Aviv ISR (ISR), IV 1998 cat. IX (2457)
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
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1 Zifroni, Dov m ISR 2500 * = = = 1 1 = = 1 1 6.5 2617
2 Bykhovsky, Avigdor g RUS 2395 = * = = = = = 1 1 = 5.5 2543
3 Kaspi, Alexander m ISR 2525 = = * = 1 0 = 1 = 1 5.5 2528
4 Polgar, Sofia m HUN 2485 = = = * 0 = 1 0 1 1 5.0 2496
5 Rabinovich, Alexander ISR 2425 0 = 0 1 * = 0 1 1 1 5.0 2503
6 Skripchenko-Lautier, Almira wg MDA 2400 0 = 1 = = * 1 = 0 = 4.5 2462
7 Manor, Ilan g ISR 2530 = = = 0 1 0 * = 1 = 4.5 2448
8 Elbilia, Jacques f MAR 2360 = 0 0 1 0 = = * 0 = 3.0 2342
9 Gofshtein, Leonid D g ISR 2520 0 0 = 0 0 1 0 1 * = 3.0 2324
10 Kundin, Alexander f ISR 2425 0 = 0 0 0 = = = = * 2.5 2294
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Alexander Rusak reports on the II Zepter Open which finished on 3 May. IM K.Asrian (ARM) and GM V.Malakhov (RUS) finished in first equal with an additional coefficiente giving first place to Asrian.
Internet coverage at: http://www.fortunecity.com/olympia/unitas/184/zepter2.html.
Ranking after round 9 of MINSK-98 "ZEPTER WORLD OPEN"
No. PNo. Name Score WP SB PS rat. TPR W-We
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1. 5 Asrian,Karen 7.5 57.5 47.25 41.0 2555 2746 +2.01
9 Malakhov,Vladimir 7.5 48.5 40.00 38.0 2535 2690 +1.56
3. 7 Volkov,Sergey 7.0 53.0 39.00 37.0 2545 2657 +1.15
6 Burmakin,Vladimir 7.0 51.0 38.50 35.5 2550 2642 +0.97
10 Neverov,Valeriy 7.0 49.0 36.75 34.0 2535 2604 +0.64
20 Popov,Valerij 7.0 49.0 36.00 34.0 2505 2513 +0.10
7. 8 Voitsekhovsky,Stanislav 6.5 56.5 39.25 37.5 2540 2617 +0.92
15 Berelovich,Aleksander 6.5 54.5 37.75 37.0 2515 2620 +1.28
12 Fominyh,Alexander 6.5 54.0 37.00 36.5 2530 2572 +0.47
3 Korneev,Oleg 6.5 52.5 36.50 36.5 2560 2586 +0.29
31 Yegiazarian,Arsen 6.5 52.0 35.25 33.5 2455 2546 +0.86
1 Malaniuk,Vladimir 6.5 49.0 34.25 31.0 2600 2550 -0.52
17 Rashkovsky,Nykhim 6.5 49.0 33.75 35.5 2505 2585 +0.92
25 Krivoshey,Sergei 6.5 49.0 32.00 33.5 2475 2538 +0.65
27 Korotylev,Alexey 6.5 47.5 32.75 31.0 2470 2485 +0.14
29 Aronian,Levon 6.5 46.5 30.75 34.0 2455 2569 +1.18
17. 22 Nikolenko,Oleg 6.0 51.0 32.00 34.5 2495 2519 +0.20
2 Kharlov,Andrei 6.0 50.0 31.00 33.0 2560 2544 -0.21
37 Chernuschevich,Alexei 6.0 49.0 28.50 32.5 2435 2467 +0.20
21 Shariyazdanov,Andrey 6.0 48.5 30.00 32.5 2495 2486 -0.12
60 Salinnikov,Denis 6.0 48.0 32.25 31.5 2370 2623 +2.41
14 Bezgodov,Alexei 6.0 48.0 30.00 33.5 2520 2524 +0.06
19 Notkin,Maksim 6.0 48.0 29.00 31.0 2505 2427 -0.84
185 Zhuck,Sergei 6.0 48.0 28.25 30.5 0000 2529 +1.00
62 Litvinov,Vladimir 6.0 47.5 28.75 29.0 2355 2459 +1.08
13 Zakharevich,Igor 6.0 47.5 28.50 31.0 2530 2466 -0.75
92 Novitskij,Dmitrij 6.0 46.5 28.25 31.0 2215 2533 +3.24
43 Shishkin,Vadim 6.0 44.5 27.25 31.0 2415 2501 +0.85
4 Sherbakov,Ruslan 6.0 44.0 28.50 31.5 2555 2517 -0.48
26 Potapov,Alexander 6.0 44.0 28.00 31.0 2475 2451 -0.28
48 Beshukov,Sergej 6.0 43.5 26.50 29.0 2405 2431 +0.30
38 Mochalov,Evgeny V 6.0 43.0 27.50 31.5 2430 2534 +0.94
40 Kochetkov,German 6.0 37.5 22.50 27.0 2420 2396 -0.20
34. 34 Kovalev,Andrei 5.5 51.5 28.75 33.5 2440 2461 +0.26
175 Toldaev,Sergei 5.5 49.5 27.75 29.5 0000 2477 +1.00
11 Vaulin,Alexander 5.5 48.5 28.75 28.5 2535 2414 -1.24
53 Nadanian,Ashot 5.5 48.5 26.25 30.5 2390 2451 +0.56
35 Minasian,Ara 5.5 47.5 26.00 30.0 2440 2399 -0.30
42 Gagarin,Vasilij 5.5 47.0 25.75 28.5 2415 2324 -0.84
50 Tihonov,Jurij 5.5 47.0 25.25 28.5 2400 2418 +0.18
28 Tunik,Gennady 5.5 47.0 25.00 31.5 2470 2386 -0.84
102 Azarov,Sergei 5.5 47.0 25.00 25.5 2150 2472 +3.22
18 Markowski,Tomasz 5.5 46.5 25.25 32.0 2505 2409 -0.91
16 Volzhin,Alexander 5.5 45.5 26.25 32.0 2510 2473 -0.44
24 Lobzhanidze,Davit 5.5 45.5 24.75 31.0 2485 2424 -0.55
33 Yagupov,Igor 5.5 45.0 26.25 28.5 2450 2311 -1.25
46 Romanov,Oleg 5.5 44.5 25.00 27.5 2410 2231 -1.25
61 Drogoon,Alexey 5.5 44.0 23.75 26.0 2360 2351 -0.04
75 Maljush,Andrej 5.5 43.5 23.50 28.0 2290 2390 +0.76
79 Surma,Dmitry 5.5 42.5 24.00 27.5 2270 2376 +0.82
56 Alekseev,Vadim 5.5 42.5 23.00 26.0 2380 2296 -0.55
57 Begun,Sergei M 5.5 42.5 22.00 27.5 2375 2333 -0.30
87 Mihajlovskij,Sergej 5.5 42.0 22.00 26.0 2245 2389 +1.33
185 players
180 players in all sections including 7 strong GMs took part in this event in Turin which was won by Miso Cebalo..
Coverage at:http://www.portfolioitalia.com/scaccomatto
Pt Buh s v
----------------
1. CEBALO Miso GM CRO 7.5 46.0 4.0 6
2. ROMANISHIN Oleg GM UKR 7.0 47.5 5.0 5
3. DORFMAN Josif GM FRA 6.0 46.5 4.0 3
4. LUTHER Thomas GM GER 6.0 45.0 3.5 3
5. DAVID Alberto GM LUX 6.0 42.5 3.0 6
6. SARNO Spartaco IM TO 6.0 41.0 3.5 4
7. ARLANDI Ennio IM MI 5.5 46.0 3.0 3
8. SULAVA Nenad IM CRO 5.5 41.0 3.5 4
9. CACCO Christian CM VE 5.5 40.0 3.0 4
10. SEDINA Elena WG UKR 5.5 39.0 1.5 4
11. VELIKOV Petar GM BUL 5.0 45.5 4.0 3
12. ALDROVANDI Costantino M BO 5.0 44.0 3.5 4
13. LANZANI Mario FM MI 5.0 43.0 3.5 3
14. ROSSI Carlo FM PD 5.0 40.5 3.5 4
15. FARAONI Enrico CM TO 5.0 39.5 3.0 4
16. SEBASTIANELLI Diego FM AN 5.0 39.0 2.0 5
17. CASTALDO Folco M TO 4.5 37.0 3.0 3
18. RAGNI Paolo CM AO 4.5 34.5 3.0 4
19. RAVAGNANI Tiziano CM SS 4.5 33.0 2.0 4
20. BURLANDO Alessandro CM TO 4.5 29.5 2.0 3
21. SPINELLI Doriano M TO 4.0 39.0 3.0 4
22. VALENTI Giuseppe M MI 4.0 38.0 1.5 3
23. RANIERI Fabrizio M TO 4.0 34.5 2.0 3
24. MALANO Francesco CM TO 4.0 32.0 2.0 3
25. MOLLERO Michele CM GE 4.0 31.5 2.5 2
26. DUBOIS Martine WM FRA 4.0 29.0 0.0 2
27. RACIOPPO Paolo M TO 3.5 36.5 2.5 2
28. CREA Vincenzo CM ME 3.5 36.0 2.5 1
29. ASTENGO Corrado M MI 3.5 34.5 2.0 1
30. MASTRORILLI Nicola CM MI 3.5 33.0 0.0 2
31. MAGNIFICO Giuseppe CM TO 3.5 31.5 2.5 2
32. LAMPIC Teo M TO 3.0 36.0 2.0 2
33. MORDIGLIA Riccardo CM TO 3.0 34.0 3.0 2
34. BARBISO Tiziana 1N TO 3.0 29.5 0.0 2
35. SQUARCI Franco CM GE 2.5 30.5 1.5 0
36. SACCHINI Michele CM PE 2.0 31.5 1.5 2
37. FITTANTE Giuliana 1N TO 1.5 14.0 0.0 1
Laszlo Nagy sends news of the May IM international tournament as part of the First Saturday series. The event started on May 2nd in the halls of the Hungarian Chess Federation. The ELO-average is 2286, the IM-norm 9 and a half points. There is another ELO-Scheveningen tournament paralel with the other event, with 13 pairs of players.
Round 1 (1998.05.02)
Yoos, John C - Farago, Sandor 1-0 53 B78 Sicilian; Dragon
Eperjesi, Laszlo - Gruzmann, Boris 1/2 44 E61 Kings indian
Hoang Thang Trang - Karatorossian, David 1/2 51 E74 Kings indian
Toth, Andras - Goczo, Melinda 1-0 39 C12 French; Macutcheon
Hera, Imre jr - Pinter, Gabor * Postponed
Arnold, Ferenc - Dudas, Janos 1/2 7 D14 Slav defence
Krits, Leonid - Skorna, Ullrich 1/2 22 C15 French; Winawer
Round 2 (1998.05.03)
Dudas, Janos - Krits, Leonid 1-0 63 A31 English; 1.c4 c5
Hera, Imre jr - Arnold, Ferenc 1-0 41 B07 Pirc
Farago, Sandor - Toth, Andras 1/2 48 E63 Kings indian
Gruzmann, Boris - Yoos, John C 0-1 71 B77 Sicilian; Dragon
Skorna, Ullrich - Eperjesi, Laszlo 0-1 29 B17 Caro-Kann
Pinter, Gabor - Karatorossian, David 0-1 37 A08 Reti (1.Nf3)
Goczo, Melinda - Hoang Thang Trang 0-1 34 A81 Dutch defence
Budapest HUN (HUN), V 1998 cat. II (2286)
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4
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1 Yoos, John C CAN 2365 * . . . . . . . 1 1 . . . . 2.0 / 2
2 Dudas, Janos m HUN 2405 . * . . . . . = . . 1 . . . 1.5 / 2 2443
3 Eperjesi, Laszlo m HUN 2365 . . * . . . . . . = . 1 . . 1.5 / 2 2435
4 Hoang Thang Trang m VIE 2350 . . . * = . . . . . . . . 1 1.5 / 2 2465
5 Karatorossian, David ARM 2375 . . . = * . . . . . . . 1 . 1.5 / 2 2435
6 Toth, Andras HUN 2325 . . . . . * . . = . . . . 1 1.5 / 2 2420
7 Hera, Imre jr HUN 2245 . . . . . . * 1 . . . . . . 1.0 / 1
8 Arnold, Ferenc f HUN 2315 . = . . . . 0 * . . . . . . 0.5 / 2 2132
9 Farago, Sandor m HUN 2285 0 . . . . = . . * . . . . . 0.5 / 2 2152
10 Gruzmann, Boris RUS 2290 0 . = . . . . . . * . . . . 0.5 / 2 2172
11 Krits, Leonid RUS 2185 . 0 . . . . . . . . * = . . 0.5 / 2 2107
12 Skorna, Ullrich GER 2195 . . 0 . . . . . . . = * . . 0.5 / 2 2082
13 Pinter, Gabor HUN 2135 . . . . 0 . . . . . . . * . 0.0 / 1
14 Goczo, Melinda HUN 2170 . . . 0 . 0 . . . . . . . * 0.0 / 2
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Sinisa Joksic reports on this tournament was played in Sabac, town 80 km west from Belgrade, on river Sava. Sabac with his 80.000 inhabitants hosted a Category 9 tournament (2465).(Norms g=9,5; m=6,5.) Many years ago this tournament was playing in Vrnjacka Banja, but nowadays Vrnjacka Banja has lost interest in hosting tournament, and now the tournament moves every year in different place. It wasn't bad tournament. The younger players dominate. Players who like short draws should not play this type of tournament. Short draws are not popular anywhere in chess world. It was interesting the performance of the new Yugoslav Champion, Miroslav Markovic. He played well but could not do enough for his final GM norm. The winner Dejan Antic was only half point away from the norm, but his games weren't that impressive. In the penultimate round the game Matulovic-Antic, saw white claim a draw. Miodrag Marjanovic, FIDE arbiter, accepted this , but some players convinced him, that it was not a drawn position, and he changed his decision. When he order to continued the game, Matulovic, lost on time, after only two further moves. Matulovic lodged a complaint to The Appeals Committee, and they declared the game as the draw. There were good performances from young players David Marciano (FRA), Artur Kogan (ISR) and especially Bojan Vuckovic (JUG), who made anI.M.-norm.
Sabac YUG (YUG), IV-V 1998 cat. IX (2465)
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4
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1 Antic, Dejan m YUG 2460 * = = 1 0 = 1 = = 1 1 1 = 1 9.0 2606
2 Markovic, Miroslav m YUG 2540 = * = = 1 = 0 1 = = = 1 1 1 8.5 2568
3 Marciano, David m FRA 2485 = = * 0 = 1 1 = = = = 1 1 1 8.5 2573
4 Tosic, Miroslav m YUG 2505 0 = 1 * = 0 = 1 1 = = 1 1 1 8.5 2571
5 Zontakh, Andrey g UKR 2545 1 0 = = * = 1 = 1 = 1 = = = 8.0 2545
6 Kogan, Artur m ISR 2505 = = 0 1 = * 0 0 1 = 1 = 1 = 7.0 2490
7 Vuckovic, Bojan YUG 2320 0 1 0 = 0 1 * = = = = = 1 = 6.5 2475
8 Popchev, Milko m BUL 2455 = 0 = 0 = 1 = * = 1 = 0 = = 6.0 2436
9 Matulovic, Milan g YUG 2420 = = = 0 0 0 = = * = = = 1 = 5.5 2411
10 Simic, Radoslav g YUG 2435 0 = = = = = = 0 = * = 0 = = 5.0 2379
11 Arsovic, Goran m YUG 2475 0 = = = 0 0 = = = = * = = = 5.0 2376
12 Relange, Eloi m FRA 2490 0 0 0 0 = = = 1 = 1 = * 0 = 5.0 2375
13 Solak, Dragan YUG 2380 = 0 0 0 = 0 0 = 0 = = 1 * 1 4.5 2361
14 Cabrilo, Goran g YUG 2490 0 0 0 0 = = = = = = = = 0 * 4.0 2321
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April, 28th - May 9th sees zone 1.2 in Dresden Germany. Players from Israel, Germany, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Switzerland, Slovenia, Austria, Lichtenstein etc compete. There are many strong GMs and only a little information about the goal of the competition. It seems that they are playing 11 rounds Swiss system with the first 7 men qualifying for the World Championship in Las Vegas (if it takes place). There is also a women's zonal. Ivan Sokolov and Ilia Smirin lead with 4.5/6.
There is internet coverage at: http://www.dsc-schach.de/
Standings after 6 rounds
Men's Zonal
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Dresden GER (GER), IV-V 1998
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1 2 3 4 5 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Sokolov, Ivan g BIH 2625 =28 +16 +19 +11 = 3 = 2 4.5 2756
2 Smirin, Ilia g ISR 2590 +30 = 4 = 5 +20 +11 = 1 4.5 2771
3 Dautov, Rustem g GER 2600 =23 +14 =12 +17 = 1 = 5 4.0 2681
4 Dizdar, Goran g CRO 2530 +29 = 2 =20 = 6 +12 =11 4.0 2685
5 Jussupow, Artur g GER 2630 =17 +28 = 2 = 9 +24 = 3 4.0 2648
6 Wahls, Matthias g GER 2605 =22 =10 +33 = 4 =13 +21 4.0 2630
7 Zelcic, Robert g CRO 2540 +31 - 8 =24 =26 +30 +20 4.0 2600
8 Sutovsky, Emil g ISR 2595 +26 + 7 -11 =12 = 9 =15 3.5 2621
9 Dizdarevic, Emir g BIH 2540 +21 =20 =18 = 5 = 8 =13 3.5 2622
10 Cvitan, Ognjen g CRO 2560 =24 = 6 =26 =22 =14 +17 3.5 2547
11 Korchnoi, Viktor g SUI 2625 +33 +15 + 8 - 1 - 2 = 4 3.5 2625
12 Milov, Vadim g SUI 2635 +25 =19 = 3 = 8 - 4 +26 3.5 2607
13 Lutz, Christopher g GER 2595 =14 =24 =22 +28 = 6 = 9 3.5 2555
14 Mohr, Georg g SLO 2455 =13 - 3 =34 +29 =10 +25 3.5 2567
15 Psakhis, Lev g ISR 2565 +32 -11 =23 =21 +22 = 8 3.5 2552
16 Gallagher, Joseph G g SUI 2490 =18 - 1 -28 +34 +32 +24 3.5 2567
17 Sermek, Drazen g SLO 2510 = 5 =22 +30 - 3 +18 -10 3.0 2555
18 Huzman, Alexander g ISR 2610 =16 =23 = 9 =25 -17 +30 3.0 2497
19 Kurajica, Bojan g BIH 2580 +27 =12 - 1 =23 -21 +29 3.0 2470
20 Alterman, Boris g ISR 2615 +34 = 9 = 4 - 2 +23 - 7 3.0 2530
21 Soln, Primoz f SLO 2350 - 9 +34 =25 =15 +19 - 6 3.0 2550
22 Ekstroem, Roland m SUI 2490 = 6 =17 =13 =10 -15 =23 2.5 2496
23 Stanec, Nikolaus m AUT 2485 = 3 =18 =15 =19 -20 =22 2.5 2519
24 Nedev, Trajce m FRM 2405 =10 =13 = 7 +33 - 5 -16 2.5 2496
25 Pelletier, Yannick m SUI 2515 -12 +27 =21 =18 =26 -14 2.5 2436
26 Jacimovic, Dragoljub m FRM 2480 - 8 +31 =10 = 7 =25 -12 2.5 2469
27 Jelen, Igor m SLO 2430 -19 -25 -29 =32 +31 +33 2.5 2383
28 Uhlmann, Wolfgang g GER 2495 = 1 - 5 +16 -13 -29 =31 2.0 2366
29 Burovic, Ismet f BIH 2295 - 4 -30 +27 -14 +28 -19 2.0 2364
30 Rogic, Davor m CRO 2445 - 2 +29 -17 +31 - 7 -18 2.0 2351
31 Atlas, Dimitry f LIE 2315 - 7 -26 +32 -30 -27 =28 1.5 2277
32 Rogulj, Branko m CRO 2430 -15 -33 -31 =27 -16 +34 1.5 2273
33 Pavasovic, Dusko m SLO 2505 -11 +32 - 6 -24 =34 -27 1.5 2305
34 Baumegger, Siegfried m AUT 2495 -20 -21 =14 -16 =33 -32 1.0 2201
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Women's Zonal
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Dresden GER (GER), IV-V 1998
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1 2 3 4 5 6
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1 Pitam, Ela wg ISR 2320 = 6 +12 +15 + 2 + 5 = 4 5.0 2497
2 Klinova, Masha wg ISR 2355 +11 +16 + 4 - 1 + 8 = 3 4.5 2429
3 Lematschko, Tatjana wg SUI 2275 +13 =15 = 8 + 9 = 4 = 2 4.0 2353
4 Koglin, Anke wm GER 2205 +19 + 9 - 2 + 8 = 3 = 1 4.0 2347
5 Grosar, Kiti wm SLO 2225 +17 - 8 +13 +10 - 1 = 6 3.5 2273
6 Puljek-Salai, Zorica wm CRO 2195 = 1 =10 - 9 +18 +16 = 5 3.5 2269
7 Olbrich, Marina wm GER 2330 - 8 +20 =16 =15 =11 +10 3.5 2250
8 Koskoska, Gabriela wm FRM 2200 + 7 + 5 = 3 - 4 - 2 = 9 3.0 2269
9 Werner, Veronika GER 2225 +14 - 4 + 6 - 3 =12 = 8 3.0 2184
10 Medic, Mirjana wm CRO 2275 =12 = 6 +11 - 5 +15 - 7 3.0 2220
11 Mihevc, Narcisa wf SLO 2205 - 2 +19 -10 +13 = 7 =12 3.0 2188
12 Paehtz, Elisabeth GER 2160 =10 - 1 +17 =16 = 9 =11 3.0 2228
13 Djeno, Mara wm CRO 2180 - 3 +14 - 5 -11 +17 +20 3.0 2160
14 Borek, Jutta wf AUT 2070 - 9 -13 +19 -17 +20 +18 3.0 2050
15 Heinatz, Gundula wm GER 2205 +18 = 3 - 1 = 7 -10 =16 2.5 2181
16 Werner, Isabel GER 2215 +20 - 2 = 7 =12 - 6 =15 2.5 2160
17 Schmid, Shahanah SUI 2130 - 5 =18 -12 +14 -13 =19 2.0 1981
18 Janevska, Aleksandra FRM 2015 -15 =17 =20 - 6 =19 -14 1.5 1892
19 Manjlovic,B ---- - 4 -11 -14 =20 =18 =17 1.5 1921
20 Rodic-Kures, Gordana BIH 2060 -16 - 7 =18 =19 -14 -13 1.0 1796
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WCC WORLD CHESS RANKINGS
Produced by the World Chess Councel
Luis Rentero Suarez, Linares
Ken Thompson, New Jersey
Calculated by Vladimir Dvorkovich, Moscow
Results up to May 1,1998
1. Kasparov,Garry RUS 2808 143
2. Anand,Viswanathan IND 2775 158
3. Kramnik,Vladimir RUS 2756 153
4. Shirov,Alexei ESP 2708 189
5. Ivanchuk,Vassily UKR 2705 174
6. Kamsky,Gata USA 2701 181
7. Svidler,Peter RUS 2699 173
8. Karpov,Anatoli RUS 2687 151
9. Adams,Michael ENG 2683 161
10. Topalov,Veselin BUL 2673 187
11. Bareev,Evgeny RUS 2666 158
12. Gelfand,Boris BLR 2661 125
13. Leko,Peter HUN 2658 142
14. Krasenkov,Mikhail POL 2653 162
15. Sadler,Matthew ENG 2652 176
16. Short,Nigel ENG 2648 181
17. Beliavsky,Alexander SLO 2648 182
18. Salov,Valery RUS 2645 188
19. Lautier,Joel FRA 2639 181
20. Georgiev,Kiril BUL 2638 153
21. Rublevsky,Sergei RUS 2637 177
22. Onischuk,Alexander UKR 2635 171
23. Polgar,Judit (GM) HUN 2635 180
24. Azmaiparashvili,Zurab GEO 2634 130
25. Dreev,Alexey RUS 2633 160
26. Andersson,Ulf SWE 2633 155
27. Almasi,Zoltan HUN 2631 170
28. Seirawan,Yasser USA 2629 188
29. Akopian,Vladimir ARM 2626 144
30. Tiviakov,Sergei RUS 2626 160
31. Zvjaginsev,Vadim RUS 2626 136
32. Timman,Jan NED 2625 184
33. Granda Zuniga,Julio PER 2624 212
34. Adianto,Utut INA 2620 179
35. Oll,Lembit EST 2615 146
36. Yusupov,Artur GER 2615 148
37. Khalifman,Alexander RUS 2613 151
38. Vaganian,Rafael ARM 2612 160
39. Milov,Vadim SUI 2611 193
40. Vladimirov,Evgeny KAZ 2611 163
41. Baklan,Vladimir UKR 2608 188
42. Kosashvili,Yona ISR 2607 196
43. Yermolinsky,Alexey USA 2606 142
44. Nikolic,Predrag BIH 2605 156
45. Morozevich,Alexander RUS 2605 207
46. Magerramov,Elmar AZE 2604 188
47. Georgadze,George GEO 2604 139
48. Sakaev,Konstantin RUS 2603 165
49. Korchnoi,Viktor SUI 2602 171