The Weekender Vol II No. 39

Here's Mr. Manny Benitez' The Weekender.

The Chess Plaza Weekender
Sunday, 9 March 2008
Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City
Vol. II No. 39


RP eyes Olympiad bid, tough fight looms

THE Philippines will likely face a tough fight if it decides to bid for the 2012 World Olympiad, an idea the National Chess Federation of the Philippines under Prospero Pichay Jr. is said to be seriously considering.

There are five major global events that are up for bidding before the World Chess Federation (Fide), namely, the 2012 Olympiad, 2010 World Junior and Girls Under-20 Championships, 2011 World Women’s Team Championship and the 2008 Topalov-Kamsky Challengers Match.

Deadline for the bids falls on April 11, 2008, Fide has announced.

“Hosting the World Chess Olympiad for the second time since the 1992 Manila Olympiad is one of the major undertakings of the NCFP under my administration,” Pichay had earlier told reader Hector U. Santos Jr.

When interviewed Saturday during the NCR elimination series being held at Kaban ng Hiyas in Mandaluyong, Pichay told The Weekender that no final decision had been made and that it was still under study because of the restrictions imposed by the World Chess Federation.

One condition is for a bidder to post a bond of US$1 million (about P45 million at the current rate of exchange).

Pichay, under whose presidency the NCFP has produced three grandmasters within four months, told Santos that if the Philippines won the bid, it would hold the 2012 Olympiad in the Cebu International Convention Center in Mandaue City, where the Asian Individual Championship was held last September.

Moreover, Pichay said, Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia had expressed interest in hosting the Olympiad.

“For as long as I am NCFP president, I would like to host more international events rather than be sending our players abroad because it will not just be one player who will benefit but many others,” Pichay explained.

It has been reliably learned that there are several other national federations interested in bidding for the 2012 Olympiad (the biennial event will be held in Dresden, Germany in November this year and the next one in 2010 in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia).

Among the countries interested in hosting the event are Turkey, Sweden and England.

Anand captures Linares
Carlsen in 2nd place

ALL four pairings in the 14th and final round of the transatlantic Linares-Morelia Super GM Tournament settled for draws Friday (Saturday in Manila), enabling defending champion Viswanathan Anand to retain the title.

In solo second was 17-year-old Norwegian prodigy Magnus Carlsen, who tried mightily to score a win against his Morelia nemesis, fellow junior player Teimour Radjabov, 20, of Baku, Azerbaijan.

The two battled for 69 moves of an exciting Spanish duel to no avail as Carlsen pressed on for a full point and Radjabov defended accurately.

Anand and his final-round opponent, former world champion Veselin Topalov, fought for only 28 moves of a Sicilian showdown.

The two other pairings that settled for draws were Peter Leko versus Levon Aronian and Alexis Shirov versus Vassily Ivanchuk.

Dejayco, Arroyo lead
in NCR nat’l title series

NON-MASTERS Christopher Dejayco and Christian Arroyo will face each other today in the sixth round of the National Championship elimination series for the National Capital Region.

The two led a 144-player field with a perfect 5.0 points each in the qualifying tournament being held in the Kaban ng Hiyas Bldg. within the MandaluyoNg City Hall compound off Boni Avenue.

A total of 155 players turned up for the first round on Friday, but since then 11 had dropped out.

Another game to watch is between runners-up Jason Salubre and Edmundo Gatus. The two have 4.5 points each.

It has been a closely fought contest among the leading contenders since day one, with 15 trailing behind the runners-up by a mere half point each.

The pairings of the 4.0-pointers: Raymond Salcedo vs Christopher Rodriguez, Noel de la Cruz vs Jan Emmanuel Garcia, Ali Branzuela vs Josy Habla, Allan Macala vs Mardonio Fuentes, Emil Abas vs Rodolfo Panopio Jr., Raymundo Marras vs Carlo Magno Rosaupan, Alcon John Datu vs Christopher Castellano, and Rainier Abay (3.5) vs Albert Rivera.—Ilann Perez

FLASH!
Topao tops FCPL’s UAE Open

FORMER Technological Institute of the Philippines
varsity star Gilbert Topao ran off with the top prize in the United Arab Emirates Open Championship held by the Filipino Chess Players League at the Reef Mall in Deira, Dubai Saturday.

SIMUL EXHIBITIONS BY VISITING R.P. STAR IN L.A., LAS VEGAS
Macmac ties for 6th-11th in US joust

VISITING Filipino GM Mark “Macmac” Paragua defeated Yuri Barnakov of Virginia, USA in the fifth and final round to finish in a tie for sixth to 11th places in the Millennium Festival held last weekend at the Virginia Beach Confront Hotel.

Paragua, whose Elo rating is expected to rise to 2549 as calculated by reader John Manahan on the basis of his landing the first place in Group B of the inaugural leg of the Asean Masters Circuit in Tarakan, Indonesia in January, is in the United States to campaign for super GM status.

Former US champion Joel Benjamin took the top prize in Virginia Beach with IM Lawrence Kaufmann and his son Raymond, a Fide master, in second and third places.

Paragua garnered 3.0 points from three wins and two losses, along with American GM John Fedorwicz, Kasaim Gulamali, Macon Shibut, John Russell Potter, and Erickson Smithy.

Earlier Macmac had landed the seventh place in the 2008 St. John’s Masters at the famous Marshall Chess Club in New York City.

From New York, Paragua flew to the US West Coast to play simultaneous exhibitions organized in Los Angeles, California and in Las Vegas, Nevada by his Filipino fans and friends in America, according to an email to The Weekender by Hugo Villanueva, a former leading national player here who now lives in California.—Marlon Bernardino

FIRST TIME IN YEARS
‘Battle of Grandmasters’ set

FOR the first time in the new millennium, the country’s grandmasters and leading younger players will match wits with each other in an invitational tournament being organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines under chess czar Prospero Pichay Jr.

The NCFP’s “Battle of Grandmasters,” as it is being billed by the federation, will be held from April 19 to 30 and will feature GMs Rogelio Antonio Jr., Eugenio Torre, Wesley So, Jayson Gonzales, Bong Villamayor and Nelson Mariano II.

Media reports also mentioned International Masters John Paul Gomez and Julio Catalino Sadorra, who just came back from the Aeroflot Open in Moscow, along with IM Rolando Salvador, a former outstanding junior player and now a GM candidate who needs only one more norm to earn the title.

Villamayor and Mariano are both based in Singapore where they teach chess while Salvador is currently campaigning for the GM title in Italy from his base in Milan.

Newspaper reports made no mention of GMs Mark Paragua and Darwin Laylo.

Paragua, the country’s No. 3 GM, is currently campaigning for a higher Elo rating in the United States while Laylo has kept himself scarce. The two-time National Open champion ranks No. 5 in the country and was the only Filipino participant in the Fide World Cup held last December in Siberia.

As conceived by Pichay, the country’s titans will be pitted against their younger but fast-rising rivals like IMs Gomez, Sadorra and Salvador.

The chess czar was quoted as saying that the tournament “will give our top players the opportunity to further hone their skills by playing against each other.”

Presumably it will be a rated tournament, both by Fide and the NCFP.

Cash prizes and trophies will be at stake, with the champion getting the lion’s share of P200,000, first runner-up P150,000 and second runner-up P100,000.

The fourth prizewinner will also receive P75,000, fifth P50,000 and P30,000 each for the rest of the top eight finishers.

In Europe, there are events pitting young players against their elders. The format usually is a match-tournament, on the theme “Youth versus Experience.” Usually, members of the same squad don’t play against each other, but it will be a round-robin kind of pairings so that every member of one squad will get a chance to play against every member of the opposite side.

Individual and team prizes are at stake just as in any other team event.

It is to be hoped that the federation will introduce this kind of event to enliven the game further to the benefit of our more promising players.

Meanwhile, the NCFP launched its 2008 calendar of activities last Friday with the holding of the three-day National Championship/NCR preliminaries in Mandaluyong.

According to NCFP executive director Willy Abalos, the ongoing NCR competition, which ends today, is part of a nationwide effort in which similar regional tournaments are being held in other parts of the country. He did not say where.

The top 30 finishers in the NCR tournament are to advance to the National Championship semi-finals along with five qualifiers from each regional contest.

In turn, the top 12 from the semifinals will enter the grand finals along with the 12titled and highly-rated players who had been seeded directly to the finals.

A TOURNAMENT WITH THREE DIVISIONS FOR STUDENTS
‘Sign up for Jose Leviste Memorial’

REGISTRATION is under way for the Dr. Jose P. Leviste Memorial Active Chess Tournament for students in all three divisions—Grade School, High School and College. “Sign up now!”

That’s the message of Ateneo de Manila University’s chess head coach, International Master Idelfonso Datu when he announced that the all-student, non-master Swiss tournament would be held on March 29-30 at the Ateneo Grade School cafeteria on the campus off Katipunan Avenue.

The annual event, which is open to all non-master students in the three levels of education in Metro Manila and its environs, honors Dr. Leviste, a 1933 Ateneo High School and 1935 Associate in Arts alumnus as well as a good chess player.

Champions of the High School and College Divisions will each receive P5,000 and a trophy, the first runners-up will each get P3,000 and the second runners-up (third prizewinners) P2,000 each.

The fourth prizewinners will receive P1,000 and a gold medal each while the fifth prize winners of the two divisions are to receive P500 and a silver medal each.

For the Grade School Division, P3,000 will go to the champion, with the second prizewinner getting P2,000 and the third P1,000. All three winners will also get trophies.

The fourth and fifth finishers will receive P700 plus a gold medal and P400 plus a silver medal, respectively.

Registration for the event began on March 1. Those who register on or before March 28will shell out P250 each while those who pay on the day the tournament opens will have to pay P280 each.

Students must bring their current school IDs to be able to register.

Interested parties may register at the Ateneo University Athletics Office on the second floor of the Blue Eagle Gymnasium.

For further details, they may call 426-6001 local 4193 or 426-5955 and look for Mr. Rodel Cubos or Ms. Marlyn Franco, or text (0922)6920503.

My thanks to IM Idel Datu.

Batangas City to stage Rapid Chess Festival on March 16

ALL roads lead to Batangas City on March 16 when it holds its Rapid Chess Festival at the Event Center of SM Batangas.

Up for grabs is a total prize fund of P27,500 plus trophies and medals.

It will be a Swiss event for non-masters sponsored by the Art A. Borjal Good Samaritan Foundation, Inc., in cooperation with Malampaya Foundation, Inc.

The competition is expected to attract players, young and old alike, from Batangas City itself and neighboring cities like Tanauan and Lipa as well as the surrounding towns.

There will be sections for Kiddies (12 years old and younger), Juniors (aged 20 and younger) and an Open for players with a maximum rapid chess rating of 2050.

The event will be run by the PACD Youth and Sports Division of the Provincial Government of Batangas.

For further details, interested parties may contact Lito Castro at (043) 723-256 / (043)723-4246. They may also call up Alex Dinoy at (02) 744-1664.—Marlon Bernardino

Xavier School captures plum in Inter-School Invitational joust

TRUE to its winning tradition, the high school team of Xavier School captured the top prize in the XS Inter-School Invitational Tournament held last month at Father Cortina Sports Center.

Xavier School A-team coached by National Master/International Arbiter Erwin Carag collected 17 points to claim the title.

In second place was La Immaculada Concepcion School (LICS) A-team with 16 points, followed by La Salle Greenhills in third with 14.5 game points.

Xavier School had earlier also won the First Inter-Schools Sports Association (ISSA) Tournament with a wide margin.

Coaches Carag and IA Rolly Yutuc announced that Xavier School will be holding a summer chess clinic for beginners and intermediate players.—Marlon Bernardino

AT MERALCO CHESS CLUB: ‘ONE VERSUS 25’ ON MARCH 15
Olympic gold medalist to do a simul

VISITING Syrian International Master Husari Satea will stage a simultaneous exhibition against 25 young members of the Meralco Chess Club at the power firm’s headquarters on Ortigas Avenue, Pasig City on Saturday, March 15.

IM Satea won the gold in the 1990 Olympiad held in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia, and has served as chess coach at Harvard University.

He has also helped organize chess clubs and run chess programs in the Greater Boston area in Massachusetts on the US East Coast.

According to Rolly J. Sol Cruz, IM Satea’s simul exhibition has been billed as “One vs 25” in imitation of the ABS-CBN game show, “One vs 100,” hosted by Edu Manzano on Channel 2.

All of IM Satea’s 25 opponents are children of Meralco employees who attended a recent seminar cum workshop conducted by Asia’s first IM, Rodolfo Tan Cardoso, the only Filipino who has beaten the late chess legend Bobby Fischer.

Most of them also played at a memorial tournament held in January by Meralco in honor of the late Rosendo Balinas Jr., a lawyer and the country’s second grandmaster (next only to Asia’s first GM, Eugene Torre) and former employee of the power company’s legal department.

The tournament was won by NM Rolando Andador.

IM Satea’s simul exhibition will be held at the canteen of the Lopez Building within the Meralco compound. The games will start at 9 a.m., according to Sol Cruz.

All these activities are part of the 105th anniversary celebration of the country’s oldest power company.

Meralco pioneered in promoting the royal game in the country by financing the trip of the first Philippine team to the Moscow Olympiad in the mid-fifties and holding several major international tournaments in the sixties.

‘HAPPY HUNTING GROUND’
Joey, 12 others to play in Bangkok

THIRTEEN Filipinos led by former champion Joey Antonio have signed up for the cash-rich Bangkok Open to be held from April 1 to 6 at the Thai capital city’s Century Park Hotel.

It will be a two-tier standard chess tournament, with time control of 90 seconds per player per game plus a 30-second increment per move. There will be two groups, the Open main event and the Challenge, which will have players rated 2100 and below or non-rated.

Antonio, the country’s current No. 1 player with an Elo rating of 2529, is just one of eight foreign grandmasters that include the top seed, Varushan Akobian (2599) of the United States, and Li Shilong (2502) of China.

The Filipino star, however, is seeded No. 4 only in the Bangkok Open. Besides Akobian, the two others are both from Myanmar, GM Zaw Win Lay (2574) and Wynn
Zau Htun (2542).

Among the leading Filipino players who will go with Antonio to Bangkok are National Masters Hamed Nouri (2404) and Rhobel Legaspi (2334) and Fide Master Roderick Nava (2333).

Nouri, Legaspi and Nava have to win a GM or an IM norm.

Among the lesser lights who have registered with the Bangkok Chess Club are Anthony Makinano (2320), Nelson Villanueva (2239) and Christian Arroyo (2162).

Six of the 13 Filipinos are relatively unknown and rated in the 1900s and 1800s, most likely young non-masters. They are Eric Calaoday, Wilster Lloyd Libato, Noel Pinic, brothers Paulliandro and Alexander Elauria, and Lyncon Simbalon.

They will play in the Challenge, their “happy hunting ground.”

The Open event has attracted 104 and the Challenge 35 players from all over Asia and the Pacific. It is being organized by the Bangkok Chess Club.

My thanks to John Manahan.

Sales 3rd in Sydney Rapid Grand Prix; big open tilt set

FILIPINO Fide Master Jesse Noel Sales has won the third prize in the Sydney Grand Prix held recently in the New South Wales capital city in Australia.

Australian IM George Xie and untitled player Jason Hu shared the first prize and untitled player Blair Mandla went home with the third prize.

Xie (2484) and Hu (2153) had 6.0 points each from seven games while Sales and Mandli had 5.5 each.

Sales, who grew up in the US, used to play in the Philippine National Championships and was considered to be one of the country’s most promising players. He migrated to Australia three or four years ago.

Meanwhile, preparations are under way for the Sydney Open to be held next week, according to reader Lorenzo Escalante, a Filipino computer programmer who works in Sydney.

Escalante and another Filipino, Leonardo Tenorio, won the second prize in the Under 1900 section of the Sydney Rapid Grand Prix.

A computer science graduate from the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila, Escalante migrated to Australia before the new millennium and first worked in Perth before moving on to Sydney, Australia’s largest and most famous city.

He is the reader who donated his Adobe Acrobat 5 pdf converter to The Weekender during his latest visit to his homeland in January.

Sydney has the largest Filipino community whose chess players are mostly members of the suburban Rootyhill Chess Club.

IN THE POST-FISCHER ERA
Chess alive and well in Reykjavik

IT SEEMS STRANGE that over the past three years, when Bobby Fischer was living there quietly in exile, I don’t recall ever getting any chess news reports emanating from Reykjavik, the Icelandic city that saw him make history in 1972 and gave him sanctuary from prosecution and life in prison in 2005, sheltering him until his death in January.

Over the past week, just over a month since Fischer’s death from renal failure, I came to know about two major chess events hosted by Iceland’s famous capital city.

The first was a team event among chess clubs in Iceland that ended only last week. Some of the clubs reinforced their teams with grandmaster imports from other countries, the most prominent of whom was reigning world champion Ahmed Adly of Egypt, the nemesis of our youngest GM, 14-year-old Wesley So.

GM Adly and his second, Bessem Amin, played for Hellir A team, but it was the Taflfélag Reykjavikur led by Icelandic GM Hannes Stefansson and reinforced by French GM Igor-Alexandre Nataf that won the team crown with 14 match and 53 game points.

Hellir A took second place with 12 match and 40 game points, followed by Haukar A, led by Lithuanian GM Aloyzas Kveinys, in third spot with 10 and 35.

GM Adly of Hellir A and two local IMs, Arnar Gunnarsson of Taflfélag and Gunnar Bjornsson of Hellir B topped the individual scores percentage-wise—100 per cent each. The junior champion edged out his rivals on tiebreak.

In solo fourth was another Lithuanian GM, Malisauskas Vidmantas of Haukar A, followed by his compatriot and teammate, GM Kveinys, and GM Nataf of the champion team Taflfélag.

The champion’s board one player, GM Stefansson, came in last at 71.4 per cent. Stefansson was one of four players who played seven games. The three others were Kveinys, Nataf, Czech GM Tomas Oral of fourth-finisher Fjolnir A, and his teammate, Icelandic IM Hedin Steingremsson.

Meanwhile, the 23rd Reykjavik Open got under way last Monday with a major upset rocking the first round—a win by tournament organizer FM Bjorn Thorfinsson (2364) of Iceland over the top seed, GM Wang Yue (2699) of China.

After three rounds, three players still had perfect scores—15-year-old Italian champion GM Fabiano Caruana, GM Stelios Halkias of Greece and IM Inna Gaponenko of Ukraine.

Snapping at their heels were nine rivals with 2.5 each—IM Elisabeth Paethz of Germany, Tania Sachdev of India, GMs Kveinys and Ahmed Adly, IM Jon Ludvig Hammer of Norway, FM Nils Grandelius of Sweden, GM Stefansson, GM Luis Galegos of Portugal, and IM Stefan Kristjansson of Iceland.

Among those trailing behind them with 2.0 points each were GM Kietil A. Lie and IM Espen Lie of Norway, GMs Wang Hao of China, Dizdar Goran of Croatia, and FM Ray Robson of the USA.

The open event, which will end on Thursday, March 13, attracted 24 grandmasters and 18 international masters along with scores of players from Iceland and abroad.

It was open to foreign players rated 2200 and above and Icelandic players 2000 and below.

Time control was 90 minutes per player per game with an increment of 30 seconds per move.

Iceland is a volcanic island surrounded by icy waters from the Arctic Ocean.

Most of its inhabitants—they numbered only 313,376 as of last year when Fischer was still alive—are descendants of the Vikings.

FIGHTING CHESS IN LINARES
Superstars on a rollercoaster ride

EXCEPT for defending champion Viswanathan Anand of India, who has been sailing on a steady keel since wresting the solo lead back in Mexico, almost all eight superstars in the Linares-Morelia Super GM have been on a rollercoaster ride.

The most dramatic performance yet since the “Tournament of Superstars” moved from Mexico across the Atlantic Ocean to Spain has been that of 17-year-old Norwegian prodigy Magnus Carlsen, who has had a win-win-draw-loss-win record.

Such an astounding record among players with over 2700 Elo ratings each has pushed up the teenaged chess genius from fifth to second places, just half a point behind solo leader Anand, who had 7.5 points after 12 rounds.

In fact, Carlsen has had the most wins as this is being written—five as against the four wins each posted by Anand and former world champion Veselin Topalov of Bulgaria.

Carlsen’s fifth win was with White against Topalov in the 12th round (the fifth in Linares). The end came after Topalov, who had a material advantage of three pawns in a wide open game, blundered, allowing his young rival to mount an irresistible mating attack.

M. Carlsen (2733) – V. Topalov (2780)
Rd 12, 25th Linares Super GM, Spain 2008
English Opening, Four Knights (A28)

1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.d3 d5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.e4 Nb6 7.Be2 Be7 8.0–0 0–0 9.a4 Be6 10.Be3 Nd7 11.d4 exd4 12.Nxd4 Nxd4 13.Qxd4 c6 14.a5 Nc5 15.Qe5 Nb3 16.Ra4 Bd6 17.Qh5 g6 18.Qh6 Be5 18...Nxa5 19.e5 .Be7 20.Ne4! would give White the winning edge 19.Bg5 Qc7 20.Be3 Nxa5 21.f4 Bg7 22.Qh4 Bb3 Not 22...b5 23.Raa1 b4 24.Nd1! 23.Rd4 23.Raa1 would be bad, e.g., 23…Nc4 24.Bxc4 Bxc4! Rad8 Missing 23...Bxd4!? 24.Bxd4 f5! 24.e5 Rxd4 25.Bxd4 c5 26.Be3 f6 27.Nb5 Qd8 28.f5 28.e6!? should be investigated more closely, says Fritz: 28...Qe7 29.f5 gxf5 30.Rf3 Bxe6 31.Rh3! fxe5 29.Bg5 Qb6 30.f6 c4+ 31.Kh1 Qxb5 32.fxg7 Rxf1+ 33.Bxf1 Kxg7 This stops White’s mating threat via 34.Bh6 and 35.Q8#!, but Fritz says 33...Qd7! was best, e.g., 34.Bh6 Nc6! 34.Bd8 Setting up another mating attack starting with 35.Qf6+ Nc6??

A horrendous blunder that clearly shows Black was not aware of the mating threat. Best, says Fritz, was 34...Kg8! 35.Qe7 Qd5 36.Qe8+ Kg7 37.Bxa5 Qxa5 38.Qe7+ Kh6 39.Qh4+ Kg7 40.Qe7+ Kg8 41.Qe8+ Kg7 42.Qe7+!, and the balance is restored.
35.Qf6+! Kg8 36.Qe6+! Kf8 36...Kg7 won’t save Black, e.g., 37.Bf6+ Kf8 38.Bg5 Kg7 39.Qf6+ Kg8 40.Bh6 c3 41.Qg7#! 37.Bg5! Black resigns, seeing that mate can’t be averted, e.g., 37…Kg7 38.Qf6+ Kg8 39.Bh6 c3 40.Qg7#! 1–0

This loss came as a terrible shock for Topalov who had just a day before thrashed Shirov in a well-conducted attack with White.

V. Topalov (2780) – A. Shirov (2755)
Rd 11, Exchange Gruenfeld, Classical (D89)

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Bc4 0–0 8.Ne2 c5 9.0–0 Nc6 10.Be3 White is in command, Fritz comments Bg4 11.f3 Na5 12.Bd3 Not 12.fxg4 Nxc4 13.Bf2 a6! cxd4 13.cxd4 Be6 14.d5 Bxa1 15.Qxa1 f6 16.Qd4 Bf7 16...Bc8 can be refuted by 17.Qc3! 17.Bh6 Re8 18.Bb5 e5 19.Qf2 Re7 20.Bd3 Rc8 21.f4 Nc4 22.fxe5 Nxe5 23.Qxf6! Threatening immediate mate via Qg7#! Bxd5 Forced so as to clear the way for the rook and queen to protect the squares g7 and f8 24.exd5! Ng4 25.Qf4 Nxh6 26.Qxh6 Qb6+? 26...Qxd5 was best, e.g., 27.Qd2 Rd7 27.Kh1! Qe3 28.Qh4 Re5? 28...Rf8 was better but it could not alter the course of events, e.g., 29.Rxf8+ Kxf8, and White would stil1 be way, way ahead 29.Qf6 Ree8 29...Qg5 offered one last but fast fading hope 30.Qf7+ Kh8 30.Bxg6!

Stripping the enemy king of its defenses.

30...hxg6 31.Qxg6+ Kh8 32.Qf6+ Kh7 33.Qf7+ Kh8 34.Nf4! Black resigns as he would have to sacrifice his queen or rook for the knight in order to stop the inevitable, e.g., 34….Qe4 35.Ng6+ Qxg6 36.Qxg6 1–0

Although chess is not a game of chance and luck therefore does not play any role at all in the outcome, one oftentimes still has to have a lucky break or series of breaks in the course of a game or a tournament in order to win.

In Linares, Lady Luck seemed to smile on both Anand and Carlsen in the first few rounds and since they had had four days of rest, both put their best foot forward in the first round in Linares, Spain—or the eighth of the tournament to include the first seven games in Morelia, Mexico.

For instance, it so happened in the pairings that defending champion Vishy Anand of India was to face his runner-up from the Morelia half of the Super GM Tournament, Alexei Shirov of Spain. This gave Anand a chance to dispose of his closest rival.

In the seventh and final round in Morelia, Carlsen had been lucky enough to defeat Anand’s second-round nemesis, Levon Aronian of Armenia (as featured last week in The Weekender), enabling Shirov to rise to second place by defeating Radjabov, who had beaten Carlsen in the fourth rouind in Morelia.

As fate would have it, Anand, playing White, tore through Shirov’s defenses in a Sicilian Pelikan/Sveshnikov and with judicious mid-game play gobbled up Black’s pawns to carve out a winning advantage during the transition to the endgame.

For his part, Carlsen, buoyed by his seventh-round win over Aronian found the strength as Black to outplay Ukrainian icon Vassily Ivanchuk in a Ruy Lopez/Berlin Defense duel of wits.

And so, right after the initial round in Linares, Anand found himself suddenly enjoying a full-point advantage. He then decided to conserve his strength by just fighting for a draw in the first few games of the second half of the tournament in Spain.

V. Anand (2799) – A. Shirov (2755)
Rd 8, Sicilian Pelikan/Sveshnikov (B33)

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3² Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e5 6.Ndb5 d6 7.Bg5 Not 7.Nd5 Nxd5 8.exd5 Nb8! a6 Black has equalized 8.Na3 b5 9.Nd5! Be7 10.Bxf6 Bxf6 11.c3 Prophylaxis ala Nimzowitsch’s My System Bg5 12.Nc2 0–0 13.a4 bxa4 14.Rxa4 a5 15.Bc4 Rb8 16.b3 Kh8 17.Nce3 g6 18.Qe2 f5 19.h4 Bxe3 20.Qxe3 fxe4 21.h5 g5 22.Qxe4 Bb7 23.Qe3 e4 23...Bc8 24.0–0 was playable 24.0–0 The best, taking a clear advantage. Not 24.Qxe4?? Re8 25.Qe3 Rxe3+ 26.Nxe3 Ne5!, and Black would be ahead Ne5 25.Rfa1 Qe8 26.Rxa5 Not 26.Qxg5 because of 26…Nf3+! 27.gxf3 Rg8!, and Black would pull away fast Qxh5 27.Qxe4 The beginning of the end for Black as White stays ahead in material and position Rbe8 28.Be2 Qh4 28...g4! was better but it would give White the edge via 29.Qd4 Qh4 29.Qxh4! gxh4 30.Ne3 h3 31.gxh3 Nf3+ 32.Bxf3 Rxf3 33.Rh5 Rg8+ 34.Kf1 Rgf8 35.Nd1 Rd3 36.Rh4 Bf3 37.Rd4!

Ensuring that White stays ahead.

37…Rxd4 38.cxd4 Rf4 39.Ne3 Rxd4 40.Ra4 Rd3 41.Rf4 Bh5 42.b4 d5 43.Kg2 [43.Rf5 d4 44.Rd5 Bg6+-] 43...Bg6 44.Nf5 Kg8 45.Ne7+ Kg7 46.Nxg6 Kxg6 46...hxg6!? could be tried, but White would stay on course to victory: 47.Rf3 Rd4 48.Rb3! 47.Rf3 Rd1 48.Rb3 d4 49.Kf3 d3 50.Ke3 Rh1 51.b5 Rxh3+ 52.f3 Rh1 53.b6 Re1+ 54.Kxd3 Re8 55.b7 Rb8 56.Ke4 1–0

V. Ivanchuk (2751) – M. Carlsen (2733)
Rd 8, Ruy Lopez, Berlin Defense (C67)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.0–0 Nxe4 5.d4 Not 5.Qe2 Ng5 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.Nxe5 Be7!, and Black has equalized a6 5...exd4!? 6.Re1 f5 equalizes 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.Qe2 Bf5 8.Re1 Bb4 Instead of 8...exd4 9.Nbd2 Qd5 10.c4! 9.c3 Bd6 10.Qc2 Qd7 11.dxe5 Bc5 12.Rxe4 0–0–0 13.Nbd2 Qd5 14.Kf1 Rhe8 15.b3 15.b4 Ba7 is much stronger g5 16.Bb2 Not 16.Nfxg5 because of 16…Bxe4! g4 17.Nd4 Bxd4 18.cxd4 c5 19.Rae1 If 19.dxc5 Qxd2 cxd4 20.Qc4 20.Qd1!? was more precise, e.g., 20…Bxe4 21.Rxe4 and White keeps the edge Bxe4 Equalizing 21.Rxe4 Rxe5 22.Rxg4 Rde8 22...Qxc4+!? should be investigated more closely, says Fritz: 23.Nxc4 Red5, with equality 23.Nf3 Keeping the edge Qxc4+ 24.bxc4 Re2 25.Bxd4 Rxa2 26.Rg7 a5 27.Rxf7 27.Rxh7 Rc2 28.g4 Rxc4 29.Rxf7 a4 is unclear Rc2! Threatening 28…Rc1+ and mate next 28.g4 a4 29.g5 a3 30.Rxh7 a2! With deadly initiative, Fritz notes 31.Rh8 Rxh8 32.Bxh8 Rxc4 33.h3 c5! Drawing abreast 34.Ne1 Fritz prefers 34.Nd2!?, e.g., 34...Rc1+ 35.Ke2, with equal chances Rc1!

The turn of the tide.

35.g6 Kd7 36.Bb2 36.Ke2!? looks like a viable alternative, says Fritz: 36...c4 37.Nf3 Ke6 37.h4? c4 38.h5 c3 39.Bxc1 a1=Q! 40.Nd3? Mere momentum and White resigns without waiting for Black’s reply. 0–1

From No. 5 in Morelia, Carlsen quickly positioned himself into second place by posting straight wins in the first couple of rounds in Linares.

I guess youthful exuberance played a part in this: the Norwegian teenager is known to be a very tenacious and ferocious fighter, whether clawing back into the race for the plum or fighting for survival with his back against the wall.

There are also places where Carlsen seems to inspire himself into scaling greater heights of endeavor, like Biel in Switzerland, where he has played some of his greatest games, and Linares in Spain, where he finished second in the Super GM last year.

This early, I have a feeling Carlsen will emerge better than Anand who is more than twice his age. Will the Norwegian wunderkind take the plum this time?

They already have met twice and it all depends now how they will perform in the last two rounds. My bet will be on Carlsen.

With his vast experience and inimitable savvy, Anand has by all accounts the edge. But in chess a lot depends on one’s biorhythm and other factors like mood, etc. Will Lady Luck smile again on Anand who will be facing Topalov and Ivanchuk or on Carlsen who faces Radjabov and Aronian?

Let their games give you a glimpse of their style of play. Here is how Carlsen outwitted Shirov in Linares. Compare it with the way Anand demolished the Latvian-Spaniard earlier on (see page 9). What do you think?

M. Carlsen (2733) – A. Shirov (2755)
Rd 9, Ruy Lopez, Archangelsk/Moller Defenses (C78)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0–0 b5 6.Bb3 Bc5 7.a4 Rb8 Better than 7...Nxe4 8.axb5 Nxf2 9.Qe2, with White way ahead 8.c3 d6 8...Nxe4!? 9.Qe2 d5 should equalize 9.d4 Bb6 10.Na3 If 10.axb5 axb5 11.Qd3 Qe7 0–0 Not 10...Nxe4? 11.Bd5 Nxd4 12.cxd4, and White is way ahead 11.axb5 axb5 12.Nxb5 Bg4 12...Nxe4? won't work: 13.Bd5 Nxd4 14.Nbxd4 exd4 15.Bxe4 dxc3 16.bxc3, and White surges ahead 13.Bc2 Bxf3 14.gxf3 Nh5 15.f4 Nxf4 16.Bxf4 exf4 17.Qg4 Qf6 18.Ra6 Ne7 19.Na3 c6 20.Nc4 Bc7 21.Ra7 Rbc8 22.e5 dxe5 23.dxe5 Qh6 24.Rd1 Nd5 25.Be4 Rfd8 25...Ra8!? may be tried, e.g., 26.Rxa8 Rxa8 26.Rd3 g6 27.Bxd5 cxd5 28.Rxd5! Rxd5 29.Qxc8+ Kg7? Better was 29...Rd8 30.Qg4 Bb8 30.Qg4?? Missing 30.Rxc7!, and White has prevailed, e.g., 30...Qg5+ 31.Kf1 Bxe5 Equalizing 31.h4! Bb8 32.Rb7 Rd8 33.Kg2 Kg8 34.Qg5 Qf8 35.Qf6 Re8 36.b4 Fritz suggests 36.Rd7!? Re6 Keeping the balance 37.Qd4 Qc8 37...Bc7! should equalize 38.Rd7 Qc6+ 39.Qd5 Qxd5+ 40.Rxd5 Rc6 41.Nd2 f3+ 42.Nxf3 Not 42.Kxf3?! Rxc3+ 43.Kg2 Bc7!? Kg7 43.Rd8 Bc7 44.Rd7 Rxc3 45.Ng5 Kg8 46.Ne4 Rc4 47.Nf6+ Kf8 48.Nxh7+ Ke8 49.Nf6+ Kf8 50.Nd5 Be5 51.b5 Rxh4 52.b6 Rd4 53.Kf3 Kg7 54.Ke3 Ra4 55.b7 Ra3+ 56.Ke4 Bh2 57.Nc7 Rb3 58.Ne6+ Kf6 59.Nd8 g5 60.Rxf7+ Kg6 61.Rd7 g4 62.Ne6 g3 63.fxg3 Bxg3 64.Kd5 Rb1 65.Kc6 Rc1+ 66.Nc5 Bb8 67.Rd5 Ba7 68.Kd7 Bb8 69.Ne6 Kf6 70.Rc5 Rb1 71.Nd8 Bh2 72.Rc6+ Ke5 73.Rc1!!

The killing blow.

73...Rb3 74.Rc2 Bf4 75.Kc6 Kf5 76.Rc5+ Kf6 77.Kd7 Rb1 78.Kc8 Bh2 79.Rc6+ Ke5 80.b8=Q+! 1–0

P. Leko (2753) – V. Ivanchuk (2751)
Rd. 9, Classical Caro-Kan (B19)

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bf5 5.Ng3 Bg6 6.h4 h6 7.Nf3 Nd7 8.h5 Bh7 9.Bd3 Bxd3 10.Qxd3 e6 11.Bf4 Qa5+ 12.Bd2 Bb4 13.c3 13.Ne4 Qb6 equalizes Be7 14.c4 Qc7 15.0–0–0 Ngf6 16.Kb1 0–0 17.Rhe1 a5 18.Bc1 Rfd8 19.Qc2 a4 20.Ne5 Nxe5 21.dxe5 This helps Black get strong play along the open d-file Rxd1 22.Qxd1 Nd7 23.f4 Nc5 24.Ne4 Rd8 25.Qc2 Nxe4 26.Rxe4 Qb6 27.Qxa4 Qg1 28.Qc2 Rd1 29.Re2 29.Re3!? may be tried Rf1µ 30.a3 Not 30.Re4 Bc5 31.Qd2 Bb4! Bc5 Missing 30...Rxf4!, e.g., 31.Ka2 Rf1! 31.Qd2 Rd1 32.Qc2 Bd4 33.c5 33.Rd2!? should not be overlooked: 33...Rf1 34.g3! Rf1! 34.Rd2 Rxf4 Better than 34...Bxc5, e.g., 35.Rd8+ Bf8 36.Qd2, and White has the edge 35.Ka2 Rf2 36.Rxf2 Bxf2 [36...Qxf2?! 37.Qxf2 Bxf2 38.b4²] 37.g4 [37.b3 Bxc5 38.Bb2 Bf8µ] 37...Bxc5 38.Bf4 [38.Qc4 Bd4 39.Qa4 Bxe5–+ (39...Qxc1?! 40.Qxd4 Qc2 41.Qd8+ Kh7 42.Qd4µ) ] 38...Qd4 [38...Qxg4 39.Qxc5 Qxf4 40.Qd6–+] 39.Qd2 Qe4 40.Ka1 Bd4 41.Qh2 c5 42.Ka2 b5 43.Qd2 Qd5+ 44.Kb1 b4 45.a4??

White crumbles under pressure. 45.axb4 cxb4 46.Qd3 also loses. 45...b3 46.Qd3 c4 47.Qe2 Qh1+ 48.Bc1 Qa8 0–1


Defending champion Anand posted his fifth draw in a row, against old rival Ivanchuk in the penultimate 13th to keep his half-point lead over young Carlsen entering the 14th and final round in Linares, Spain.

This means that the race for the top prize is still wide open. If, for instance, Anand who has 8.0 should lose to Topalov and Carlsen who has 7.5 should win over Radjabov, the 17-year-old Norwegian would take the plum.

If, however, Anand draws his final game and Carlsen wins, they will have to share the first and second prizes with the title to be won by either under the tournament’s tiebreaking scheme.

Carlsen, however, must win to be sure of landing at least the second prize. If he loses to Radjabov, chances are that Aronian or Topalov or both may overtake him. The two have 7.0 each.

Mathematically speaking, either Aronian or Topalov has a chance to catch up with Anand and that could be a powerful motivation for Topalov, who is known to pull off last-minute stunts, to beat the champion.

But then, both Aronian and Topalov will be playing Black against tough opponents—former world title challenger Leko and reigning world champion Anand.

Radjabov has only 6.0 points and so even if he wins, he will not be able to catch Carlsen, who is now 1.5 points ahead of him.

He appears to have the Indian sign, however, on Carlsen and he proved this in Morelia where he outclassed Carlsen in the fourth round. Here is how he defeated Shirov in the 13th.

T. Radjabov (2735) – A. Shirov (2755)
Rd 13, Sicilian Najdorf (B92)

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Bg5 Be6 9.Bxf6 Bxf6 10.Qd3 Nc6 11.0–0–0 Nd4 11...Bxb3 12.axb3 Bg5+ 13.Kb1 would have equalized 12.Nxd4² exd4 13.Nd5 Bxd5 14.exd5 0–0 15.Qf3 Re8 16.Bd3 Re5 17.Kb1 Qa5 18.g4 18.Be4 Rae8 19.Rhe1 Bg5 is unclear Qxd5 19.Qxd5 Rxd5 20.f4 Bh4 Fritz says 20...g5 was best and it would have led to equality 21.b4!

Threatening to trap the rook with 22.Bc4!

21…Rc8 22.a4 Rc3 23.Kb2 Fritz suggests 23.Rc1 to boost White’s lead f5 24.gxf5 Rxd3 25.cxd3 Rxf5 26.Rc1 Rxf4 27.Rhf1 Rxf1 28.Rxf1 Bd8 28...Bg5! was best to cut down White’s lead 29.a5! and Black resigns in the face of certain defeat, e.g., [29.a5 Bg5 30.Rf2! ] 1–0

Having also beaten the Latvian-Spanish veteran, Radjabov could keep his winning momentum when he takes on Carlsen in the final round. However, the Azeri fighter will be playing Black.

Here is how Ivanchuk and Anand battled to a draw.

V. Ivanchuk (2751) – V. Anand (2799)
Rd 13, Sicilian, Sozin Attack (B88)

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bc4 e6 7.0–0 Be7 8.Bb3 Nc6 9.f4 Qc7 10.Kh1 0–0 11.f5 Nxd4 12.Qxd4 b5 13.fxe6 Bxe6 14.Bf4 Qc5 15.Qd3 b4 16.Ne2 d5 17.e5 Ne4 18.Be3 Qc7 19.Nf4 Qxe5 20.Bxd5 Bxd5 21.Nxd5 Rad8 22.Rad1 Bd6 23.Bf4!

White stops the threatened mating attack in its tracks, and Black accepts the offer of a draw. ½–½

Meanwhile, the US$2-million world title fight between Anand and Kramnik will be held from October 14 to November 2 in Bonn, Germany, it was announced by the organizers.

PINOY GEMS WITH A HISTORY
Macmac sets sights on 2600

IT came like a cool sudden shower on a hot steamy afternoon, that email from GM Mark Paragua, telling me he was in New York preparing for a tournament, the first of a series he has lined up for himself. His purpose? To get back his former “super GM” status with an Elo rating of at least 2600 by July 1! Quite a tall order, I must say.

Indeed, it came as a pleasant surprise to me. No wonder he had turned down the offer of chess czar Prospero Pichay that he take part in the Aeroflot Open last January: Macmac, as his friends call him, was at the time secretly preparing for his trip to America.

I have known Macmac since he was 12 when we played three friendly games at the Quezon Memorial Circle Chess Plaza, all three ending in draws. We never played again since then, but I know he will thrash me black and blue now that he is a grandmaster.

Will he achieve his avowed objective? I think so, if he gets the breaks. Let his games confirm this fearless forecast of mine.

Robert Chalker (1930) – M. Paragua (2315)
Rd 4, U.S Open, Reno, Nevada 1999
Sicilian Defense (B22)

1.e4 c5 2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.Bc4 Nb6 6.Bb3 d5 7.exd6 Qxd6 8.0–0 Bf5 9.d4 cxd4 10.Nxd4 Nxd4 11.cxd4 g6 12.Nc3 Bg7 13.Be3 0–0 14.Qf3 Qd7 14...Bxd4? is a blank shot, says Fritz: 15.Nb5 Qe5 16.Nxd4! 15.h3 Bd3 Better than 15...Bxd4 16.Rfd1 e5 17.Ne2 and White has a clear edge 16.Rfe1 Bc4 17.Bg5 Bxb3 18.axb3 Rfe8 18...Qxd4? loses to 19.Bxe7 Qd7 20.Bxf8 Bxf8 21.Ne4! 19.Na4 19.d5!? could be tried for equality Nxa4 20.bxa4 Rac8 21.Rac1 Rxc1 22.Rxc1 Bxd4 23.b3 Bg7 Not 23...e5 24.Be3! 24.Qf4 24.Qd1!? Qd6 25.Be3 should lead to a draw Qd5 25.Qe3 Bd4 26.Qg3 Be5 27.Qe3 f6 28.Bh6 Kf7 29.Rc5??

The losing moment.

29...Qd1+! White resigns because it’s mate next move: 30.Qe1 Qxe1#! 0–1

Macmac was only 15 when he won the above. In the next game he downs a contemporary who is today one of the world’s top superstars.

Mark Paragua - Levon Aronian
Rd. 6, Linares Anibal Open, Spain 2000
Reti Opening (A05)

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.g3 g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.0–0 0–0 5.d3 c5 6.e4 Nc6 7.Nbd2 h6 8.c3 e5 9.Nc4 d6 10.a4 Be6 11.Nfd2 Re8 12.Ne3 d5 13.exd5 Nxd5 14.Ne4 b6 15.Nc4 Re7 16.Re1 Rd7 17.Qe2 Nde7 18.Bxh6 Bxc4 19.dxc4 Bxh6 20.Nf6+ Kf8 21.Nxd7+ Qxd7 22.b4 cxb4 23.cxb4 Rc8 24.b5 Na5 24...Nd4!? must be considered, and now, if 25.Qxe5 Rxc4, with equal chances 25.Qxe5!

25…Nxc4 26.Qh8+ Ng8 27.Rad1 Qf5 28.Qd4 Bg5 29.Bc6 Qc5 30.Qg4 Rb8 31.Rd5 Qb4 32.Red1 Bf6 33.Rc1 Bc3 34.Qf4 Rc8 35.Rd3 g5? 36.Qf5 36.Qxg5 and White has it in the bag, says Fritz Ne7 37.Qh7 Bg7? 38.Qe4 Qxa4 39.Rxc4 Qa1+ 40.Kg2 a5 41.bxa6 1–0

Here he downs a much higher rated English grandmaster.

Mark Paragua (2425) - Julian Michael Hodgson (2659)
Rd 2, World Open, Philadelphia 2000
Caro-Kann Defense (B15)

1.e4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.Nc3 c6 4.Be3 d5 5.f3 5.Nf3 Nf6 6.e5 Nfd7 is unclear Qb6 6.Rb1 e5 6...Nf6 7.Qd2 would have equalized 7.Nge2 Better than 7.exd5 exd4 8.Bf2 Ne7! Ne7 8.Qd2 exd4 9.Bxd4 Bxd4 10.Qxd4 0–0 10...Qxd4 11.Nxd4 dxe4 12.Nxe4 11.Qxb6 axb6 12.exd5 cxd5 13.a3 Nbc6 14.Rd1 Mounting pressure on the isolated pawn Ra5 15.Nd4 Nxd4 16.Rxd4 Rd8 17.Rb4 Bf5 18.Kd2 d4 19.Ne4 Bxe4 20.fxe4 Rd6 21.Bb5 Kg7 22.Re1 Ra8 23.Kd3 Rc8 24.Re2 Rc5 25.a4 g5 26.Rxd4 Rh6 27.b4 Rc7 28.g3 Rf6 29.c4 Rf3+ 30.Kc2 Nc6 31.Bxc6 Rxc6 32.Kb2 Rc8 33.e5 Rc6 34.b5 Rc7 35.e6 fxe6 36.Rxe6 Rf2+ 37.Kb3 Rxh2 38.Rxb6 Rh3 39.Rd3 h5 40.Rbd6 Rf7 41.c5 h4 42.gxh4 g4 43.Rxh3 gxh3 44.Rd2 Rf4? 45.b6 Rxh4 46.c6!

Black resigns. If 46….h2 47.Rg2+ Kf6 48.Rxh2 Rxh2 49.cxb7! 1–0

MY FAVORITES
Carlsen on the rampage

NORWEGIAN super GM Magnus Carlsen appears to be on the rampage in Linares where at this time of writing he has climbed to a close second to defending champion Viswanathan Anand of India.

At the rate he is progressing, one can safely predict this early that the 17-year-old chess hotshot from the edge of the Arctic Circle will someday be the world champion.

I believe it was The Weekender that first spotted him as a potential champion when it started playing up his exploits in almost every tournament he joined as early as mid-2006, when he was only going on 15. Back issues of this paper will bear me out.

Today he is a real force to reckon with, ending up often among the top three in any given tournament he has entered over the past year.

By devoting full time to chess, he already has gained experience and the resulting Elo ratings far greater and higher than those of his contemporaries or even grandmasters twice his age.

M. Carlsen (2581) - Nigel Short (2687)
Rd 3, Essent, Hoogeveen, NED 2004
Queen’s Gambit Declined (D37)

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bf4 0–0 6.e3 c5 7.dxc5 Bxc5 8.cxd5 Nxd5 9.Nxd5 exd5 10.a3 Nc6 11.Bd3 Bb6 12.0–0 d4 13.e4 13.exd4!? Nxd4 14.Be5 is also playable Bg4 14.h3 Bh5 15.g4 Bg6 16.Nd2 f6 17.Rc1 Kh8 18.Nc4 Not 18.Nf3 Rc8, and Black has equalized Bc7! 19.Bxc7 Qxc7 20.f4 Rae8 21.Qf3 Qe7 22.Rce1 Bf7 23.Nd2 g5 Better was 23...a6!, with equal chances 24.Bb5 a6 24...Qd6!? should be investigated more closely, Fritz urges 25.Bxc6 bxc6 26.fxg5 fxg5 27.Qf6+ Kg8 28.Qxd4 c5 29.Qf6 Qxf6 30.Rxf6 Rb8 31.Nf3 Rxb2 32.Nxg5 Ba2 33.Rxf8+ Not 33.Rxa6?! Rff2 34.Ra8+ Kg7, and Black equalizes Kxf8 34.Nxh7+ Ke7 35.Ng5 c4 36.Rc1 Rb3 37.Kf2 c3 38.e5 Rxa3 39.Ne4 c2 40.Rxc2 Rxh3 41.Rc7+ Better than 41.Rxa2 Rh2+ 42.Kf3 Rxa2 Kd8 42.Ra7 Bc4 42...Ra3 43.Nc5 Rc3 44.Nxa6 favors White 43.g5 Rh4 44.Nd6 Be6 45.g6 Rg4 46.g7 a5 47.Kf3 Rg1 48.Nb7+ Ke8 49.Nc5 Bf7 50.Ne4 Rxg7 50...Bd5 won’t alter the course of the game: 51.Kf4 Kd8 52.Ng5 Rf1+ 53.Kg4 Rg1+ 54.Kf5 Rf1+ 55.Kg6, and White surges ahead 51.Nd6+ Kf8 52.Ra8+ Ke7 53.Nf5+!

53…Kd7 54.Ra7+! Black resigns. If 54…Kc6 55.Nxg7 Bd5+ 56.Kf4! 1–0

Here is how Carlsen outwitted the former world champion in Wijk aan Zee earlier this year.

Vladimir Kramnik (2799) – M. Carlsen (2733)
Rd 12, Corus Super GM, Wijk aan Zee, NED 2008
Symmetrical English, Double Fianchetto/Hedgehog (A30)

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4.g3 b6 5.Bg2 Bb7 6.0–0 Be7 7.d4 cxd4 8.Qxd4 d6 9.Rd1 a6 10.Ng5 Bxg2 11.Kxg2 Nc6 12.Qf4 0–0 13.Nce4 Ne8 14.b3 Ra7 15.Bb2 Rd7 16.Rac1 Nc7 17.Nf3 f5 18.Nc3 g5 18...Bf6 19.Qe3 b5 20.cxb5 axb5 21.a4 bxa4 22.Nxa4 Bxb2 23.Rxc6 could favor White 19.Qd2 19.Qe3 g4 20.Nd2 Bg5 21.Qxb6 Qa8 leads to equality 19...g4 Equalizing 20.Ne1 Bg5 21.e3 Rff7 22.Kg1 Ne8 23.Ne2 Nf6 24.Nf4 Qe8 25.Qc3 Rg7 26.b4 Ne4 27.Qb3 Rge7 28.Qa4 Ne5 29.Qxa6 29.Qa3!? would have equalized, says Fritz Ra7 30.Qb5 Qxb5 31.cxb5 Rxa2 32.Rc8+ Kf7 33.Nfd3 Not 33.Bxe5 dxe5 34.Nfd3 Bf6! Bf6 33...Nxd3 34.Nxd3 Bf6 35.Bxf6 Kxf6 36.Rc6 34.Nxe5+ dxe5 35.Rc2 Rea7 36.Kg2 Ng5 37.Rd6 e4 Black now has overwhelming advantage 38.Bxf6 Kxf6 39.Kf1 Better but not enough to change the trend was 39.Rdc6 Ra1!

Threatening a mating attack starting with 40…Nf3!

40.Ke2 Rb1 41.Rd1 Rxb4 42.Ng2 Rxb5 43.Nf4 Rc5 44.Rb2 b5 45.Kf1 Rac7 46.Rbb1 Rb7 47.Rb4 Rc4 48.Rb2 b4 49.Rdb1 Nf3 50.Kg2 Rd7 51.h3 e5 52.Ne2 Rd2 53.hxg4 fxg4 54.Rxd2 Nxd2 55.Rb2 Nf3 56.Kf1 b3! 57.Kg2 Rc2! Black surrenders, e.g., 58.Rxb3 Rxe2! 0–1

GAMES OF GIFTED KIDS
Magnus’ Magnificent Mates

BEFORE he reached the age of puberty, Magnus who, like Veselin Topalov had learned the game at the age of eight, played like any other kid as shown by his recorded games. But then, like Bobby Fischer before him, his play vastly improved when he was going on 13.

This is because he came under the wing of Norwegian champion Simen Agdestein, who trained him in the art of winning chess at the start of the new millennium. He was such an adept pupil that in 2003, at the age of 12 Magnus became an international master, the youngest in his country.

In 2004, he became the world’s youngest grandmaster at 13 years, four months and 27 days, second only to Sergey Karjakin of Ukraine. This was broken, however, by Parimarjan Negi of India, who earned the title four days younger than Magnus in June 2006, shortly after the advent of The Weekender.

One very interesting fact about Magnus as a wunderkind is that he has probably scored the most checkmates as an adolescent. Here are three that I have chosen.

Oivind Hagberg – M. Carlsen (2064)
Rd 1, Norway Open, Oslo 2001
Petroff Defense (C42)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.d3 3.d4 exd4 4.e5 Ne4 leads to equality d6 3...Nc6 4.Be2 would have equalized 4.c3 g6 4...Nc6 5.d4 equalizes 5.Bg5 Bg7 6.Be2 0–0 7.d4 h6 8.Bxf6 Qxf6 9.dxe5 dxe5 10.0–0 Nd7 11.Nbd2 Nc5 12.Qc2 Bg4 13.Rfe1 Rfe8 14.b4 Ne6 15.h3 Bxf3 16.Nxf3 Nf4 17.Bc4 17.a4!?= should be considered, Fritz notes Nxh3+!An early sacrifice to breach White’s pawn shield18.gxh3 Qxf3 19.Re3 Qh5 19...Qf6 20.Qe2 may be good for White 20.Qb3 20.Qd1 Qg5+ 21.Rg3 Qf4 allows Black to equalize Rf8 21.Rd1 Qg5+ 21...Kh8!? was more precise 22.Rg3 Restoring the balance Qf6 23.Rdd3 g5 24.Rgf3 Qe7 25.Rf5 Kh8 26.Bxf7 Rad8 27.Rdf3 Rd6 28.Kf1 Qd8 29.Bh5 Rxf5! 30.Rxf5 Rc6 31.Rf3 Rd6 32.Rf5 [32.Bg4 b6=] 32...Rd2 33.Rf7 Qd3+ 34.Kg2 34.Kg1!? Qxe4 35.Qe6 keeps the balance Qxe4+! 35.Bf3 Qh4 36.Bxb7 g4 37.Qe6?? Qxh3+ 38.Kg1 Rd1#!

A beauty. 0–1

Magnus himself considers the following as his best game—at that time.

M. Carlsen (2356) – Dennis Rylander (2348)
Rd 8, Salongernas IM Tmt, Stockholm 2003
Dutch Defense, Leningrad System(A89)

1.d4 f5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.0–0 0–0 6.c4 d6 7.Nc3 Nc6 8.d5 Ne5 9.Nxe5 dxe5 10.e4 f4 10...e6 11.Qb3 equalizes 11.gxf4 exf4 12.e5 Ng4 13.e6 Ne5 14.c5 f3 15.Bh3 g5 15...b6 16.Qa4 16.Kh1 16.Qa4 Nd3 17.Bxg5 Nxb2± 16...g4= 17.Qd4 gxh3?! This gives White a lot of play 18.Bh6 Bxh6 19.Qxe5 Threatening a mating attack via Rg1 Rf6 20.Rg1+ Rg6 21.Qh5 Kg7 22.Rxg6+ hxg6 23.Rg1 Qe8 24.Ne4 c6 25.Qe5+ Kg8 26.Ng5 Bxg5? 27.Qxg5 Kg7??. 27...Bxe6 28.dxe6 Kg7 29.Qe5+ Kg8 also gives White the advantage 28.Rg4 Missing his best shot, 28.Qe5+! Bxe6 29.Qe5+ Kg8 30.Rh4 Bxd5 30...Qf8 hardly improves anything 31.Rh8+ Kf7 32.Rh7+ Kf8 33.Qg7#!

The trap snaps shut. 1–0

M. Carlsen (2528) – Atle Groenn (2394)
Rd 9, Norwegian Ch, Sandnes, Norway 2005
Semi-Slav Defense (D43)

1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.c4 c6 4.Nc3 e6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 Qb6 7.Qc2 Ne4 8.e3 8.Nxe4 dxe4 9.Nd2 leads to equality Bb4 Black has equalized 9.Bd3 Qa5 10.0–0 Nxc3 11.bxc3 Bxc3 12.Rab1 dxc4 13.Bxc4 Bb4 14.Ne5 Bd6 15.f4 Qc7 Black is behind in development 16.Qe4 b6 16...0–0 was the equalizer 17.Nxf7 Qxf7 18.f5 Qh5?? 19.Bxe6 Nd7 20.f6 Nxf6 20...Qxh4 won’t work, says Fritz 21.Rxf6! Qxh4 Not 21...gxf6 because of 22.Bg4! 22.Qxc6+ Ke7 23.Rf7+ Kxe6 23...Kd8 doesn't do any good 24.Qc4#!

Mating the enemy right in the middle of the battlefield! 1–0

CHESS MAGIC
Carlsen’s Risky Combinations

BEING a highly creative player with a robust will to win, Magnus Carlsen often resorts to risky combinative play whenever the opportunity for an attack or counterattack arises at any time during a game.

He takes risks and at times improvises, but this does not mean that he departs from well-trodden paths in favor of unusual byways in the opening.

In fact, Magnus apparently favors well-established lines, but digresses sharply during the transition to the middle game. Treading his way boldly through a boggling maze of complications to victory seems to be his forte.

But once his opponent makes a dubious or even just a passive or tentative move early on, he does not hesitate to swerve sharply into uncharted territory where his memory and calculating powers can serve him in good stead.

As the first game, which he won at the age of 13, will show, Carlsen doesn’t hesitate to threaten mate as part of his arsenal of tactical weapons.

Jon Ludvig Hammer (2074) – M. Carlsen (2450)
Rd 1, WYCC U-14 Boys, Halkidiki 2003
Pirc Defense (BO7)

1.Nf3 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nbd2 g6 4.e4 Bg7 5.Bd3 0–0 6.0–0 Nc6 7.c3 e5 8.h3 Controls g4 8...Nh5 9.dxe5 Nf4 10.Bb5 Nxe5 11.Nxe5 Qg5! Threatening 12…Qxg2#! 12.Ng4 Qxb5 13.Nb3 Ne2+ 14.Kh1 Bxg4 15.hxg4 Rae8 16.Be3?? Fritz notes that 16.a4 had to be tried to avoid defeat, e.g., 16...Qc4 17.Be3 Rxe4 18.Re1 Rxe3 19.fxe3 Ng3+ 20.Kg1! Rxe4 17.Re1 Not 17.g3 Nxg3+! 18.fxg3 Rxe3! Qh5+!!

If 18.gxh5 Rh4#! 0–1

In the next game a year later, Carlsen follows the main classical lines of the Caro-Kann, but chooses to castle Q -side. This sparks early fireworks as he launches a flank attack spearheaded by a knight and followed by the combined powers of queen and rook leading to checkmate.

M. Carlsen (2484) - Sipke Ernst (2474)
Rd 12, Corus C, Wijk aan Zee, NED 2004
Classical Caro-Kann (B19)

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bf5 5.Ng3 Bg6 6.h4 h6 7.Nf3 Nd7 8.h5 Bh7 9.Bd3 Bxd3 10.Qxd3 e6 11.Bf4 Ngf6 12.0–0–0 Be7 13.Ne4 Qa5 14.Kb1 0–0 Missing 14...Nxh5 15.Bd2 Qf5 16.Nd6+ Bxd6 17.Qxf5 exf5, and Black equalizes 15.Nxf6+ Nxf6 16.Ne5 Rad8 17.Qe2 c5 18.Ng6 fxg6 19.Qxe6+ Kh8 20.hxg6 Ng8?? 20...Qb6 was better as it would reduce White’s lead 21.Bxh6! gxh6 22.Rxh6+ Nxh6 23.Qxe7 Nf7 24.gxf7 Kg7 25.Rd3 25.Qe5+ seems even better, Fritz notes: 25...Kxf7 26.Rd3 Qe1+ 27.Qxe1 Rd6 26.Rg3+ Rg6 27.Qe5+ Kxf7 28.Qf5+! Rf6? 29.Qd7#!

Yet another gem of a mate! 1–0

M. Carlsen (2528) - Geir Sune Tallaksen (2349)
Rd 5, Norwegian Ch, Sandnes, Norway.2005
Queen’s Indian Defense (E15)

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.d4 b6 4.g3 Ba6 5.b3 b5 6.cxb5 Bxb5 7.Bg2 d5 8.0–0 Nbd7 9.Nc3 Ba6 10.Re1 Bd6 11.Bb2 0–0 12.e4 Nxe4 13.Nxe4 dxe4 14.Rxe4 Bb7 15.Rh4 Be7 16.Rh3 Nf6 17.Qe2 Bd5 18.Re1 Qb8 19.Ne5 Qb7 20.Bxd5 Qxd5 21.Qc2 c5 Fritz suggests 21...Rfc8!? 22.Ng4 Threatening:23.Nxf6+ and mate next h6 23.Re5 Qf3? If 23...Qd7 24.Nxh6+! gxh6 25.Rxh6 24.Nxh6+!

24…gxh6 25.Rxh6 Kg7 26.Rg5+! Kxh6 27.Bc1! cxd4 28.Rg4+ Qe3 29.Rh4+ Nh5 30.Rxh5+! Kxh5 31.Qh7+ Kg4 32.fxe3 Rac8 33.Kg2 Rxc1 34.h3+ Kg5 35.Qg7+ Kf5 36.g4+ Ke4 37.Qxd4#! 1–0

BOBBY ANG’S BUSINESSWORLD COLUMN, CHESS PIECE(1)
Let’s move!

I LOOKED up the World Chess Federation page for events scheduled in 2008 and came up with the following list of tournaments which, hopefully, the Philippines will be participating in.

You will notice that most FIDE events are held in the second half of the year. That is precisely to allow member federations to organize their own qualifiers and training tournaments in the first half. It is already March and there are three months left to shape up.

World Juniors and Girls Championships 2008.

The Turkish Chess Federation will organize this event from 2-16 August in Ankara, Turkey.

2008 World Youth U-16 Chess Olympiad.
The event shall be held in Ankara, Turkey from 15 to 24 August 2008.

These two events, together with the World Youth Championships to be held 19-31 October in Vung Tau, Vietnam require that the Philippine Age Group Competitions be held soon.

Youth tournaments are some sort of cliché. Everybody talks about how important youth chess is and how it develops our future superstars. But the proof of the pudding is in the tasting. During my term as Executive Director of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP), it was always a cause of amazement to me to hear our top players talk about the future of the Philippines being at stake in youth chess, but in the same breath demand that funds for youth tournaments be re-routed so that they can be sent abroad to play.

My solution then was to appoint two directors to handle youth chess (National Masters Tony Calvo and Erwin Carag), and the Philippine National Age Group Championships was born.

This HAS to be done. And we shouldn’t just go through the motions. We need professional tournament managers who will be tasked to make the events a pleasure to participate in – enough arbiters, stewards, scoresheets, demo boards, and spacious tournament halls so that the public can go around and watch the games.

World Mind Games 2008

The event shall be held in Beijing, China from 3 to 18 October 2008.

There will be bridge, chess, draughts and Go with the format for teams, pairs (man + woman) and individual (all rapid and blitz).

79th FIDE Congress 2008 and 38th Chess Olympiad 2008.

The FIDE Olympiad and Congress will take place in Dresden from 12 to 25 November 2008.
If we intend to make a good showing in these tournaments, we have to start preparing NOW!

The official FIDE time control is 90 minutes plus 30 minutes for the rest of the game after 40 moves with an increment of 30 seconds per move, starting from move 1. The only exceptions are World Championship matches, which have longer time controls.

The NCFP has to purchase more digital timers so that training games and matches can be held using the same time controls as in the official competitions.

A full-time Training Director will have to be appointed to oversee the training regimen of our representatives. We are not talking about a coach, for different people have different needs. A coach for our youth players will necessarily have to teach them opening and endgame theory, but such training will be completely useless for our Olympiad team members – more often than not they know the theory better than the coach!

The most important of all is that we get serious about this – we make up our minds to all cooperate and really make a go of this.

In closing, I present to you the most crucial game of Joseph Sanchez in the just-concluded Festival of Games in Cannes, France. It is the last round and he faced the tough Bulgarian national master Doncea. Joseph needed a win to get the GM norm. Look at this battle royale!

Doncea, Vladimir (2444) - Sanchez, Joseph (2492) [A22]
Cannes Festival des Jeux (1), 11.02.2008

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e5 3.g3 Bb4
This position and the one after 1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.g3 Bb4 are both popular. However, there is a big difference between them - in the present game Black hasn't developed yet his Queen's Knight, and this makes the thematic Nc3-d5 less attractive for White, as Black can simply take and play c7-c6. Also, with the c6 square vacant Black can plan c7-c6 followed by d7-d5.
4.Bg2 0–0 5.Nf3 Re8 6.0–0 c6
Other tries in this position are 6...Nc6 and 6...e4, but the text move is the most aggressive. The threat of ...d7-d5 is quite real.
7.Qb3
Susan Polgar tried 7.d3 against Torre in 1991, but Eugene outplayed her with 7...h6 8.Ne4? (8.Bd2) 8...Nxe4 9.dxe4 a5 10.b3 d6 11.Bb2 Be6 12.Nh4 Bc5 13.a3 Nd7 14.e3 Nf6 15.Qd3 Qb8! followed by ...b7-b5 with the better game. Polgar ,Z (2510)—Torre, E (2530)/ San Francisco 1991 0–1 (42).
7...Bc5 8.d3 h6 9.e3 Bb6 10.Na4 Bc7 11.c5 b6 12.d4 e4 13.Nd2 d6 14.cxd6 Qxd6 15.Nc3 Bf5
White has got to start some action to get his central pawns rolling, otherwise Black has ...h6-h5-h4 followed by ...Ng4 and ...Qh6.
16.f3!
Right on time.
16...exf3 17.Nxf3 Nbd7 18.e4 Be6 19.Qa4 b5 20.Qd1 Bb6 21.Kh1
[21.e5?? Nxe5]
21...Qb4 22.e5 Nd5 23.Ne4 Bg4 24.a3 Qe7 25.Nd6 Rf8 26.h3 Bh5 27.g4 Bg6 28.Bd2?!
No time for passivity! White has to continue his offensive with 28.g5 hxg5 (28...h5 29.Nh4) 29.Bxg5 Qe6 30.Nh4 followed by Nhf5 with a good position. This inaccuracy allows Joseph to strike back immediately.
28...c5 29.Ne1
Doncea was counting on this move, winning at least the exchange. On the other hand Black's pieces become very active.
29...Nc7 30.Nf5 Qe6 31.Nd3 cxd4 32.Nf4 Qxe5 33.Nxg6 fxg6 34.Bf4 Qf6 35.Bxa8 gxf5 36.Bg2 Ne6 37.gxf5?
[37.Bd6 Rd8 38.Rxf5 is much stronger]
37...Nxf4
Joseph does not miss his chance of destroying his opponent's dark-squared bishop. Now he starts to assert himself.
38.Rxf4 Qd6 39.Qb3+ Kh8 40.Raf1 Nf6 41.Qe6 Qd8 42.Rd1 Qc7 43.Rf3 Re8 44.Qb3 Re2 45.Rg3?
45...Rxb2! 46.Qxb2 Qxg3
With ...Bc7 coming up Black already has serious mating threats.
47.Qe2 Bc7 48.Kg1 Bf4 49.Qxb5 Kh7 50.Qa6 Qh2+ 51.Kf1 Be3 52.Qc6 Qg1+ 53.Ke2 Qf2+ 54.Kd3 Qa2 55.Bf3 Qxa3+ 56.Kc4 a6!
With the idea of ...Qc3 mate.
57.Rd3 Qa2+ 58.Rb3 Qc2+ 59.Kb4 d3 60.Qc4
[60.Qxc2 dxc2 61.Rc3 Bd2 wins easily]
60...Bd2+ 61.Kc5 Be3+ 62.Kb4 Bd2+ 63.Kc5 Nd7+ 64.Kd5
[64.Kd4 Be3+ 65.Kd5 Nf6+ wins the queen]
64...Be3 65.Qxd3
[65.Qxc2 dxc2 66.Rc3 c1=Q]
65...Nf6+ 66.Ke6 Qc8+ 67.Ke5 Qc7+ 68.Ke6 Qc8+ 69.Ke5 Qe8+ 70.Kd6 Qd7+ 0–1
White resigns rather than face 71.Ke5 Qe7 mate.

Reader comments and/or suggestions are urgently solicited. Email address is bangcpa@gmail.com.

This column was first published in BusinessWorld on Monday, March 3, 2008.

Almeida Quintana wins Malaga Open

CUBAN Grandmaster Omar Almeida Quintana captured the title in the 11th Malaga Open held in the Spanish city from February 23 to March 1.

Almeida Quintana won on tiebreak over six other rivals led by Swedish GM Pontus Carlsson in the popular event which had attracted 161 players from both sides of the Atlantic.

BOBBY ANG’S BUSINESSWORLD COLUMN, CHESS PIECE (2)
Dino writes

ONE of the discoveries of the past year is Dino Ballecer, the 22-year old who came out of nowhere to suddenly rank as the 15th strongest player from the Philippines.

I invited Dino to write a bit about himself and his games, and he startled me with two great contributions. You’ve really got to go over the following games with their notes – wonderful!

Nadera, Barlo A (2405) - Ballecer, Dino [D11]
National Open, Mandaluyong (4), 2006
[Ballecer, D.]

THE Philippine National Open in 2006 was my first FIDE-rated tournament. Surprisingly, I did rather well and after this event, when I looked up my name in the FIDE rating list, I was elated to find out that my ranking in the Philippines was No. 32 with Elo 2374!

The next year, after a long break, I participated in the 2nd PGMA Cup. That was my 2nd FIDE rated tournament and luckily I did well again, adding 60 points and bringing my rating up to 2434 – No. 15 in the country.

The following game in the 4th round of the National Open gave me the confidence to play hard in every round. IM Barlo Nadera, one of the Philippines' top players, was my opponent (both of us had 2.0 points out of 3.0) and also known as a very tough and solid player. When I managed to win with Black against him I started thinking to myself ... kaya ko pala!

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.c4 c6 4.Qc2 a6 5.Bg5 e6 6.Nbd2
I remember that Glenn Bordonada once said that Nadera was one player who likes to do nothing, but does it very well. During the 1998 Yangon Zonal GM Utut Adianto got a big advantage over him but was so frustrated at his inability to penetrate that he sacrificed unsoundly and lost the game. White’s maneuver in this game is typical for the "chess personality" of such a solid player – he doesn't play to win in the opening and patiently waits for his opponent to make a mistake.

6...Nbd7 7.a3 Be7 8.e3 0–0 9.Be2 c5!?
After long analysis. At first I wanted to play 9...b5 but then I realized that the e-pawn cannot be pushed anymore because of his queen bishop on g5-f4. Sooner or later his f-pawn would continue my difficulties on e5. Another possibility, 9...dxc4, is not playable, either, because his knight will be brought to life and White would have all the play.

10.dxc5 Nxc5 11.Bxf6 Bxf6 12.cxd5
If I take the pawn with the queen White has Rc1, b4, etc - he will gain control of the center and c-file and soon the d-file.
12...b6!?
Sacrificing a pawn.
13.Rd1
My idea was that, after 13.dxe6 Bxe6 14.Rd1 Rc8, Black has full compensation for the sacrificed pawn due to the activity of his two bishops and rooks. Even then, I believe that would have been the best course for White. However, one thing I can reveal is that solid players won't take pawns if this will lead to a very complicated game. That's why I played 12...b6!? I did not expect White to accept my gambit and instead settle on a slightly inferior position.
13...exd5 14.b4 Ne6 15.Nb3 Bb7 16.0–0 Rc8 17.Qb1?! Rc3 18.a4? Qe7 19.b5 a5
Nadera was playing very quickly and allowed me to grab the key squares in the queenside. White's game gets progressively worse.
20.Qa2 Rfc8 21.Rd2 Nc5 22.Nxc5 bxc5?
[22...Qxc5 was of course much stronger. However, even after I realized the error my confidence level was still high that I will win the game.]
23.Bd1 Rd8 24.Rb2 h6 25.h3 d4 26.exd4 cxd4 27.Re1 Qc5 28.b6 Ra3!
Fatal!
29.Qb1 d3 30.Rb5 Qc3 31.Bb3 d2! 32.Rd1 Bc6
This wins material.
33.b7 Bxb5 34.Rxd2 Ra1 0–1

Ballecer, Dino - Nolte, Rolando (2372) [B82]
La Union Open, 2006
[Ballecer, D.]

THE annual La Union Open never fails to attract the top Filipino players due to its eye-catching cash prizes. In 2006 there was a preliminary Swiss system event where you have to finish in the top 13 to get to the next level, which is a knockout system among 16 players. GMs Torre, Antonio and Paragua were seeded into the finals. At the time of this game Nolte had just earned the International Master title, having earned his last IM norm in the Indonesia Asean Masters Circuit.

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6
I have studied the games of Paragua, Cabe and Nolte in the Sicilian Najdorf and Scheveningen openings. I managed to defeat GM Mark Paragua in our first encounter during an active tournament organized by Mila Emperado in Nov 4, 2005. It was not a convincing victory, though, as Mark blundered in an equal position. In that tournament, Nolte emerged as champion and I tied for third with Paragua and Bitoon. Now is my chance to get back at the winner of that event.

6.f4 e6 7.Qf3 Qb6 8.Nb3 Qc7 9.g4 b5 10.Bd3 Bb7 11.g5 Nfd7 12.Qh3!?
The other moves 12.Be3 and 12.Bd2 are played far more frequently. I especially prepared this move for our game and it had the desired effect – Nolte thought for almost an hour and then committed a mistake.
By the way, Wesley So also picked up on this move. He used it against the Russian GM Vladimir Belov in the 1st GMA Cup and against Vietnamese GM Le Quang Liem in the 2007 Asian Zonals in Phu Quoc. Wesley got a winning position in both games but lost to Belov and could only draw against Le Quang.
12...Nc6?
A mistake. 12...g6 is correct, and you are about to see why.
13.g6! Nf6
[13...fxg6 14.Qxe6+ Be7 (14...Ne7 15.Bxb5!) 15.Nd5 Qd8 16.Be3 White has a tremendous bind on the position without having given up any material.]
14.gxf7+ Qxf7 15.f5 e5?
Best is 15...exf5 16.Qxf5 Be7 and after he castles Black has good chances for survival. Nolte is a tactical player and has a weakness not uncommon to attackers – they forget that their opponents also know how to attack and sometime do not pay enough attention to king safety.
16.Be3 Nb4 17.0–0–0 Rc8 18.Kb1 Be7 19.Rhg1 Nxd3 20.cxd3 Bd8 21.Ne2
Made with an idea that others would find funny but dead serious for me.
21...a5
22.Nbd4! exd4
During the game my calculation ran: 22...exd4 23.Nxd4 Qd7 24.Ne6 Rg8 25.Bd4 Rc6 26.Rde1 with a very complicated game, which would have been very uncomfortable for Nolte due to his time shortage.

After the game I analyzed this position together with IM Chito Garma and National Master Suelo and they were both unconvinced with the sacrifice. According to them it is only a matter of finding the right time to give back the material and Black will wind up with the advantage. After some calculating we came up with the variation 22...exd4 23.Nxd4 Nxe4 24.dxe4 Bxe4+ 25.Ka1 Bf6! 26.Qg4 d5 27.Ne6 Rc2 28.Bd4! As I pointed out to them, the position is unclear, but White would have good winning chances because of Black's king being in the center and time trouble.
23.Nxd4 Nd7
To make space for his bishop on f6.
24.Nxb5 Rc6 25.Qg3 Bf6 26.Nxd6+ Rxd6 27.Qxd6 Qe7 28.Bf4 Qxd6 29.Bxd6 Kf7 30.Rc1 Rc8 31.Rxc8 Bxc8 32.Kc2! Bd4 33.Rd1 Ba6 34.b4! a4 35.Rb1 Bb5 36.Bc5 Bf6 37.d4 Bc6 38.Kd3 Bb5+ 39.Kc3 Bc6 40.e5 Nxc5 41.bxc5 Bd8 42.Kc4 Bf3 43.d5 1–0

Reader comments and/or suggestions are urgently solicited. Email address is bangcpa@gmail.com.

This column was first published in BusinessWorld on Friday, March 7, 2008.

FROM MY SWIVEL CHAIR
‘Happy days are here again!’

WITH the National Championship preliminaries launched last Friday in Mandaluyong City Hall’s Kaban de Hiyas (Treasure Chest), our players should now sing that cheerful song of old, “Happy days are here again, / Blue skies above / Are clear again, / Let us sing a song / Of cheer again. / Happy days are here again!”

You can be sure that, despite being a monotone, I will also join in the singing and ululating.

Indeed, a number of tournaments have started proliferating all over the country, with the NCFP under Butch Pichay setting the pace. From Cagayan up north to Zamboanga down south, the various regions are supposed to hold their own regional elimination series for the National Championship finals this weekend.

Yesterday the Pampanga Open for players with 2000 Elo ratings and below was held at the Robinson’s Plaza in Balibago, according to Marlon Bernardino.

Prizes at stake included P6,000 for the champion, P4,000 as the second prize, P2,000 as the third and P1,000 as the fourth as well as special category prizes of P500 each.

Journalist Iggy Dee says that the La Union Open will be held shortly but in a much more modest circumstance. I must say, “Better smaller than never!”

Happy days are here again!
—0—

I HOPE chess czar Butch Pichay will seriously consider the hiring of experienced foreign trainers to bolster the country’s chess development program. I say this with the current visit of Syrian IM Husari Satea in mind.

Satea, a gold medalist in the 1990 Novi Sad Olympiad, is in town as a guest of Engr and Mrs Uly Nazario, parents of child prodigy Mark Christian who has been taking chess lessons from him. I guess that the best proof of IM Satea’s effectiveness as a tutor/trainer would be Mark’s performance in next month’s National Youth and Junior championships.

In any event, I am impressed with the credentials of Satea as a trainer. He has served as coach at Harvard University in Boston and has handled clinics as well as tutorials in the Greater Boston area for the past five years.

He is also a soccer player and teaches the game in America.

We played skittles and although he says he is not too good at rapid as he prefers the classical version of the game, he mauled me badly. He specializes in a few pet opening systems and does analysis quite clearly and accurately.

I understand that local IMs tested him not in his training ability but in blitz. It’s just like testing a marathon runner in a 100-meter sprint. Oh well…

It’s high time we adopted a more flexible program that would include the hiring of more trainers.

I maintain that setting up a National Chess Academy staffed by our GMs is still the best and most viable idea.

The Weekender
Quezon Memorial Circle
Quezon City
Manuel O. Benitez
Editor & Publisher
Alfredo V. Chay
Circulation Manager
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