THE WEEK IN CHESS 790 28th December 2009 by Mark Crowther

Sponsored by the London Chess Centre

TWIC Home| The London Chess Centre| Online-Shop

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

Contents

1) Introduction
2) Russian Championships 2009
3) Spassky - Korchnoi Match
4) 19th Pamplona tournament
5) 4th Edmonton International
6) Hastings Chess Congress 2009-10
7) Rilton Cup 2009-10
8) 52nd Reggio Emilia Tournament
9) Groningen Chess Festival 2009
10) Asian Team Championship
11) Poltava Open
12) North American Open 2009
13) 18th Donau Open
14) Czech Chess Christmas 2009-10
15) Nice Christmas Open
16) Bethune Christmas Open
17) Zurich Open
18) Pan American Intercollegiate
19) 19th Radisson Blu Christmas Festival
20) 25th Post Open
21) 26th Travemuender Open
22) 6th Open and 18th IPCCC Paderborn
23) Boeblinger Open
24) Baroque Chess Open
25) Hamburg Christmas Open
26) Geneve Christmas Open
27) 7th Schwalbacher Christmas Open
28) Vietnam Master Men's and Women's Championships
29) 2nd Dragon Capital
30) Open Championship of Skopje
31) 3rd Asian Indoor Games
32) Vandoeuvre Open
33) 35th Anniversary of ALEX
34) Norwegian Chess Olympiad
35) Harry Lyman Memorial
36) Forthcoming Events and Links

Games Section
Russian Championships 200960 games
Spassky - Korchnoi Match4 games
19th Pamplona tournament40 games
4th Edmonton International10 games
Hastings Chess Congress 2009-1028 games
Rilton Cup 2009-1020 games
52nd Reggio Emilia Tournament5 games
Groningen Chess Festival 2009157 games
Asian Team Championship193 games
Poltava Open265 games
North American Open 200924 games
Pan American Intercollegiate2 games
Vietnam Master Men's and Women's Championships170 games
2nd Dragon Capital171 games
Open Championship of Skopje163 games
3rd Asian Indoor Games167 games
35th Anniversary of ALEX42 games
1521 games

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

Links:

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

Kasparov vs Karpov 3

UK Shop - US Shop

1) Introduction

My thanks to Luiz Roberto Da Costa Jr, Miklos Orso, Attila Csonka, Dave Clayton, Ivan Kocovski, Joaquim Deus Filho, George Mirijanian and everyone else who helped with the issue.

The Russian Championships is heading towards a conclusion. Alexander Grischuk has a one point lead with just a round to go. He needs just a draw with black against Evgeny Alekseev to assure himself of the title, Peter Svidler, the only player who can catch him also has black, against Evgeny Tomashevsky. Boris Spassky who hasn't played seriously in many years managed to hold Viktor Korchnoi 4-4 in their match in Elista, he rather surprised me at the level of chess he managed and if he hadn't have horribly blundered away a favourable position may very well have won. The Christmas period is always busy, I list a huge number of events below, only a few have games selections at the moment but I imagine files will emerge for most of them at the end. It only remains for me to wish everyone the best for 2010 and in a year of economic turmoil that we can put 2009 behind us. This has been a tough year of studying for me, I hope that improved computing skills will eventually translate into a vastly improved website and format for TWIC. TWIC has been very much in transition all year as I have tried to introduce things I think are important, and have plans for further improvements. Best wishes to everyone.

Hope you enjoy this issue.

Mark

2) Russian Championships 2009

The Russian Championships run 20th-30th December 2009. Both men's and women's events are 10 player round robins. Peter Svider, Alexander Grischuk and Dmitry Jakovenko star in the men's tournament.

The venue is the Central Chess House on Gogolevsky Boulevard in Moscow. The prizefund is $100,000.

After eight of the nine rounds Alexander Grischuk is a point clear of Peter Svidler.

Official site: http://tal.russiachess.org/

62nd ch-RUS Moscow (RUS), 20-29 xii 2009 cat. XVIII (2691)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
1. Grischuk, Alexander g RUS 2736 * ½ ½ . ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 6 2875
2. Svidler, Peter g RUS 2754 ½ * ½ ½ 1 . 1 ½ 0 1 5 2776
3. Vitiugov, Nikita g RUS 2694 ½ ½ * ½ . ½ 1 1 0 0 4 2696
4. Alekseev, Evgeny g RUS 2715 . ½ ½ * ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 4 2682
5. Khismatullin, Denis g RUS 2643 ½ 0 . ½ * ½ 0 ½ 1 1 4 2696
6. Tomashevsky, Evgeny g RUS 2708 0 . ½ ½ ½ * ½ ½ 1 ½ 4 2681
7. Timofeev, Artyom g RUS 2651 ½ 0 0 ½ 1 ½ * ½ ½ . 3½ 2656
8. Jakovenko, Dmitry g RUS 2736 0 ½ 0 1 ½ ½ ½ * . ½ 3½ 2652
9. Sjugirov, Sanan g RUS 2612 0 1 1 ½ 0 0 ½ . * 0 3 2608
10. Riazantsev, Alexander g RUS 2661 0 0 1 0 0 ½ . ½ 1 * 3 2612

Round 3 (December 22, 2009)
Grischuk, Alexander - Khismatullin, Denis ½-½ 18 D37 QGD 5.Bf4
Svidler, Peter - Riazantsev, Alexander 1-0 41 B12 Caro Kann Advanced
Timofeev, Artyom - Tomashevsky, Evgeny ½-½ 60 C88 Ruy Lopez Closed
Jakovenko, Dmitry - Alekseev, Evgeny 1-0 45 A33 English Symmetrical
Sjugirov, Sanan - Vitiugov, Nikita 1-0 83 C81 Ruy Lopez Open Keres Variation
Round 4 (December 23, 2009)
Svidler, Peter - Grischuk, Alexander ½-½ 30 C89 Ruy Lopez Marshall
Vitiugov, Nikita - Timofeev, Artyom 1-0 84 A32 English Symmetrical
Khismatullin, Denis - Sjugirov, Sanan 1-0 40 E63 King's Indian 6...Nc6
Tomashevsky, Evgeny - Jakovenko, Dmitry ½-½ 22 E46 Nimzo Indian Rubinstein
Riazantsev, Alexander - Alekseev, Evgeny 0-1 46 D38 QGD Ragozin
Round 5 (December 24, 2009)
Grischuk, Alexander - Riazantsev, Alexander 1-0 31 B04 Alekhine's Defence
Alekseev, Evgeny - Tomashevsky, Evgeny ½-½ 54 A62 Benoni
Timofeev, Artyom - Khismatullin, Denis 1-0 62 B52 Sicilian Rossolimo
Jakovenko, Dmitry - Vitiugov, Nikita 0-1 64 D12 Slav Defence
Sjugirov, Sanan - Svidler, Peter 1-0 23 B12 Caro Kann Advanced
Round 6 (December 26, 2009)
Grischuk, Alexander - Sjugirov, Sanan 1-0 32 B90 Sicilian Najdorf Variation
Svidler, Peter - Timofeev, Artyom 1-0 40 C10 French Rubinstein
Vitiugov, Nikita - Alekseev, Evgeny ½-½ 51 A19 English Opening
Khismatullin, Denis - Jakovenko, Dmitry ½-½ 28 D11 Slav Defence
Riazantsev, Alexander - Tomashevsky, Evgeny ½-½ 28 E18 Queens Indian
Round 7 (December 27, 2009)
Alekseev, Evgeny - Khismatullin, Denis ½-½ 60 B53 Sicilian Hungarian
Tomashevsky, Evgeny - Vitiugov, Nikita ½-½ 55 A29 English Four Knights
Timofeev, Artyom - Grischuk, Alexander ½-½ 58 B92 Sicilian Najdorf with 6.Be2
Jakovenko, Dmitry - Svidler, Peter ½-½ 20 C88 Ruy Lopez Closed
Sjugirov, Sanan - Riazantsev, Alexander 0-1 59 C07 French Tarrasch
Round 8 (December 28, 2009)
Grischuk, Alexander - Jakovenko, Dmitry 1-0 44 C67 Ruy Lopez Berlin
Svidler, Peter - Alekseev, Evgeny ½-½ 39 C42 Petroff's Defence
Khismatullin, Denis - Tomashevsky, Evgeny ½-½ 30 A62 Benoni
Sjugirov, Sanan - Timofeev, Artyom ½-½ 37 B81 Sicilian Keres Attack
Riazantsev, Alexander - Vitiugov, Nikita 1-0 32 D45 Anti-Meran Variations
59th ch-RUS w Moscow (RUS), 20-29 xii 2009 cat. VIII (2439)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
1. Galliamova, Alisa m RUS 2460 * ½ . ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 7 2771
2. Kosintseva, Nadezhda m RUS 2518 ½ * 1 . 1 1 ½ ½ 1 1 6½ 2669
3. Gunina, Valentina wf RUS 2446 . 0 * ½ 0 1 1 1 1 1 5½ 2576
4. Kosintseva, Tatiana m RUS 2522 ½ . ½ * 1 0 1 ½ 1 ½ 5 2513
5. Zaiatz, Elena m RUS 2390 0 0 1 0 * ½ . 1 1 0 3½ 2393
6. Bodnaruk, Anastasia wg RUS 2372 0 0 0 1 ½ * 0 1 1 . 3½ 2402
7. Pogonina, Natalija wg RUS 2501 0 ½ 0 0 . 1 * 1 0 1 3½ 2393
8. Manakova, Maria wg SRB 2344 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 0 * . 1 2 2264
9. Stepovaia, Tatiana wg RUS 2384 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 . * 1 2 2264
10. Romanko, Marina m RUS 2449 0 0 0 ½ 1 . 0 0 0 * 1½ 2194

Round 3 (December 22, 2009)
Galliamova, Alisa - Pogonina, Natalija 1-0 37 A58 Volga Gambit
Kosintseva, Nadezhda - Zaiatz, Elena 1-0 39 C96 Ruy Lopez
Kosintseva, Tatiana - Gunina, Valentina ½-½ 66 B12 Caro Kann Advanced
Bodnaruk, Anastasia - Stepovaia, Tatiana 1-0 66 B48 Sicilian Paulsen
Manakova, Maria - Romanko, Marina 1-0 55 B60 Sicilian Rauzer
Round 4 (December 23, 2009)
Zaiatz, Elena - Bodnaruk, Anastasia ½-½ 56 E73 King's Indian Averbakh
Pogonina, Natalija - Kosintseva, Nadezhda ½-½ 56 C89 Ruy Lopez Marshall
Manakova, Maria - Galliamova, Alisa 0-1 20 B01 Centre Counter
Stepovaia, Tatiana - Kosintseva, Tatiana 0-1 38 B26 Sicilian Closed
Romanko, Marina - Gunina, Valentina 0-1 41 B19 Caro Kann
Round 5 (December 24, 2009)
Galliamova, Alisa - Romanko, Marina 1-0 38 E72 King's Indian with g2-g3 and Nge2
Kosintseva, Nadezhda - Manakova, Maria ½-½ 69 B32 Sicilian Labourdonnais
Gunina, Valentina - Stepovaia, Tatiana 1-0 36 A85 Dutch
Kosintseva, Tatiana - Zaiatz, Elena 1-0 65 C96 Ruy Lopez
Bodnaruk, Anastasia - Pogonina, Natalija 0-1 37 C48 Four Knights Rubinstein
Round 6 (December 26, 2009)
Galliamova, Alisa - Kosintseva, Nadezhda ½-½ 77 E06 Catalan
Zaiatz, Elena - Gunina, Valentina 1-0 52 D16 Slav Lasker/Smyslov
Pogonina, Natalija - Kosintseva, Tatiana 0-1 78 C95 Ruy Lopez Breyer
Manakova, Maria - Bodnaruk, Anastasia 0-1 56 B90 Sicilian Najdorf Variation
Romanko, Marina - Stepovaia, Tatiana 0-1 55 B48 Sicilian Paulsen
Round 7 (December 27, 2009)
Kosintseva, Nadezhda - Romanko, Marina 1-0 78 B22 Sicilian Alapin
Gunina, Valentina - Pogonina, Natalija 1-0 68 E11 Bogo Indian Defence
Kosintseva, Tatiana - Manakova, Maria ½-½ 103 B30 Sicilian Rossolimo
Bodnaruk, Anastasia - Galliamova, Alisa 0-1 72 B80 Sicilian Scheveningen
Stepovaia, Tatiana - Zaiatz, Elena 0-1 56 C65 Ruy Lopez Berlin
Round 8 (December 28, 2009)
Galliamova, Alisa - Kosintseva, Tatiana ½-½ 52 E02 Catalan
Kosintseva, Nadezhda - Bodnaruk, Anastasia 1-0 59 B22 Sicilian Alapin
Pogonina, Natalija - Stepovaia, Tatiana 0-1 0
Manakova, Maria - Gunina, Valentina 0-1 80 B12 Caro Kann Advanced
Romanko, Marina - Zaiatz, Elena 1-0 80 C46 Four Knights

3) Spassky - Korchnoi Match

Boris Spassky vs Viktor Korchnoi is an 8 game Match Elista, Russia, 17th-27th Dec, 2009. 400th Aniversary Kalmykia - Russia. Prize Fund US$ 20.000. Time control 90 minutes + 30 seconds per move.

Match Kalmykia
Korchnoi, Viktor - Spassky, Boris V 1-0 47 E21 Nimzo Indian 4.Nf3
Spassky, Boris V - Korchnoi, Viktor ½-½ 46 C00 French Defence
Korchnoi, Viktor - Spassky, Boris V ½-½ 50 E21 Nimzo Indian 4.Nf3
Spassky, Boris V - Korchnoi, Viktor ½-½ 22 C14 French Classical
Korchnoi, Viktor - Spassky, Boris V 0-1 26 A28 English Four Knights
Spassky, Boris V - Korchnoi, Viktor 0-1 35 C49 Four Knights Metger
Korchnoi, Viktor - Spassky, Boris V 0-1 46 E11 Bogo Indian Defence
Spassky, Boris V - Korchnoi, Viktor ½-½ 11 C42 Petroff's Defence

Match Kalmykia (RUS), 19-27 ix 2009
Name Ti NAT Rtng 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Total Perf
Korchnoi, Viktor g SUI 2567 1 ½ ½ ½ 0 1 0 ½ 4 2548
Spassky, Boris V g FRA 2548 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 0 1 ½ 4 2567

4) 19th Pamplona tournament

19th Pamplona tournament takes place 21st-29th December 2009. There is a four way tie between Georg Meier, Julio Granda Zuniga, Viktor Laznicka and Kiril Georgiev on 5.5/8 with one round to go.

Official site: http://www.chesspamplona.com/English.html

XIX Magistral Pamplona (ESP), 21-29 xii 2009 cat. XIII (2575)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
1. Meier, Georg g GER 2653 * ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 . ½ 1 5½ 2712
2. Granda Zuniga, Julio E g PER 2640 ½ * 1 . ½ 0 1 ½ 1 1 5½ 2695
3. Laznicka, Viktor g CZE 2637 ½ 0 * ½ 1 1 . ½ 1 1 5½ 2702
4. Georgiev, Kiril g BUL 2672 ½ . ½ * ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 5½ 2695
5. Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel g ESP 2589 ½ ½ 0 ½ * . ½ ½ 1 1 4½ 2626
6. Reinaldo Castineira, Roi m ESP 2488 0 1 0 ½ . * ½ ½ ½ 1 4 2583
7. Mirzoev, Azer g AZE 2617 0 0 . ½ ½ ½ * 1 ½ 1 4 2561
8. Alsina Leal, Daniel m ESP 2523 . ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ 0 * ½ ½ 3 2484
9. Recuero Guerra, David m ESP 2494 ½ 0 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ * . 2 2409
10. Huerga Leache, Mikel m ESP 2435 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ . * ½ 2158

Round 1 (December 21, 2009)
Meier, Georg - Huerga Leache, Mikel 1-0 53 A07 Barcza System
Laznicka, Viktor - Granda Zuniga, Julio E 0-1 73 E05 Catalan
Georgiev, Kiril - Reinaldo Castineira, Roi ½-½ 67 A46 Queen's Pawn Opening
Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel - Alsina Leal, Daniel ½-½ 40 B33 Sicilian Sveshnikov
Recuero Guerra, David - Mirzoev, Azer ½-½ 32 C69 Ruy Lopez Exchange
Round 2 (December 22, 2009)
Meier, Georg - Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel ½-½ 52 E99 King's Indian Classical
Granda Zuniga, Julio E - Recuero Guerra, David 1-0 62 A29 English Four Knights
Reinaldo Castineira, Roi - Laznicka, Viktor 0-1 38 B42 Sicilian Paulsen
Alsina Leal, Daniel - Georgiev, Kiril 0-1 66 C67 Ruy Lopez Berlin
Huerga Leache, Mikel - Mirzoev, Azer 0-1 42 C66 Ruy Lopez Berlin
Round 3 (December 23, 2009)
Laznicka, Viktor - Alsina Leal, Daniel ½-½ 47 D23 QGA
Georgiev, Kiril - Meier, Georg ½-½ 25 D37 QGD 5.Bf4
Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel - Huerga Leache, Mikel 1-0 21 B67 Sicilian Rauzer
Mirzoev, Azer - Granda Zuniga, Julio E 0-1 53 E20 Nimzo Indian
Recuero Guerra, David - Reinaldo Castineira, Roi ½-½ 16 C01 French Exchange
Round 4 (December 24, 2009)
Meier, Georg - Laznicka, Viktor ½-½ 45 D27 QGA
Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel - Georgiev, Kiril ½-½ 87 C65 Ruy Lopez Berlin
Reinaldo Castineira, Roi - Mirzoev, Azer ½-½ 74 B04 Alekhine's Defence
Alsina Leal, Daniel - Recuero Guerra, David ½-½ 21 B45 Sicilian Classical
Huerga Leache, Mikel - Granda Zuniga, Julio E 0-1 32 C12 French MacCutcheon
Round 5 (December 25, 2009)
Granda Zuniga, Julio E - Reinaldo Castineira, Roi 0-1 48 A17 English Opening
Laznicka, Viktor - Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel 1-0 56 C58 Two Knights Defence
Georgiev, Kiril - Huerga Leache, Mikel 1-0 26 A11 Reti Opening
Mirzoev, Azer - Alsina Leal, Daniel 1-0 38 D90 Gruenfeld Flohr
Recuero Guerra, David - Meier, Georg ½-½ 22 B17 Caro Kann
Round 6 (December 26, 2009)
Meier, Georg - Mirzoev, Azer 1-0 52 D27 QGA
Georgiev, Kiril - Laznicka, Viktor ½-½ 23 D27 QGA
Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel - Recuero Guerra, David 1-0 60 B48 Sicilian Paulsen
Alsina Leal, Daniel - Granda Zuniga, Julio E ½-½ 72 B19 Caro Kann
Huerga Leache, Mikel - Reinaldo Castineira, Roi 0-1 59 B03 Alekhine's Defence
Round 7 (December 27, 2009)
Granda Zuniga, Julio E - Meier, Georg ½-½ 19 A13 Reti Opening
Laznicka, Viktor - Huerga Leache, Mikel 1-0 23 D15 Slav Defence
Reinaldo Castineira, Roi - Alsina Leal, Daniel ½-½ 41 A07 Barcza System
Mirzoev, Azer - Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel ½-½ 13 A00 Irregular Openings
Recuero Guerra, David - Georgiev, Kiril 0-1 58 C43 Petroff's Defence
Round 8 (December 28, 2009)
Meier, Georg - Reinaldo Castineira, Roi 1-0 38 A30 English Symmetrical
Laznicka, Viktor - Recuero Guerra, David 1-0 46 D45 Anti-Meran Variations
Georgiev, Kiril - Mirzoev, Azer ½-½ 30 D15 Slav Defence
Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel - Granda Zuniga, Julio E ½-½ 47 C13 French Classical
Huerga Leache, Mikel - Alsina Leal, Daniel ½-½ 52 B90 Sicilian Najdorf Variation

5) 4th Edmonton International

The 4th Edmonton International took place 17th-21st December 2009. In the end there was a 2 way tie for first, but GM Friedel took home the title of the 4th Edmonton International as he beat GM Mikhalevski in their game which was used as the tie-breaker.

Official site: http://edmontonchessclub.org/festival/ - Games: http://www.albertachess.org/EICF2009/EICF_Games.html

4th Int Edmonton (CAN), 17-21 xii 2009 cat. VII (2412)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
1. Friedel, Joshua E g USA 2551 * 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 7 2616
2. Mikhalevski, Victor g ISR 2607 0 * ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 7 2610
3. Esserman, Marc m USA 2408 ½ ½ * 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 6½ 2578
4. Antal, Gergely m HUN 2495 ½ ½ 0 * ½ 1 1 ½ 1 1 6 2528
5. Kraai, Jesse g USA 2509 ½ 0 ½ ½ * ½ 1 1 0 1 5 2444
6. Hansen, Eric f CAN 2409 0 0 ½ 0 ½ * ½ ½ 1 1 4 2369
7. Porper, Edward m CAN 2445 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ * ½ 1 ½ 3½ 2328
8. Haessel, Dale R f CAN 2201 0 0 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ * ½ ½ 2½ 2269
9. MacKinnon, Keith CAN 2125 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 ½ * ½ 2 2224
10. Pechenkin, Vladimir f CAN 2372 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ * 1½ 2143

Round 8 (December 21, 2009)
Friedel, Joshua E - Pechenkin, Vladimir 1-0 27 B01 Centre Counter
Esserman, Marc - Haessel, Dale R 1-0 39 D87 Gruenfeld Botvinnik
Hansen, Eric - Mikhalevski, Victor 0-1 51 D90 Gruenfeld Flohr
Porper, Edward - Antal, Gergely 0-1 32 D87 Gruenfeld Botvinnik
MacKinnon, Keith - Kraai, Jesse 1-0 37 B03 Alekhine's Defence
Round 9 (December 21, 2009)
Mikhalevski, Victor - Esserman, Marc ½-½ 30 D84 Gruenfeld 4.Bf4
Antal, Gergely - Hansen, Eric 1-0 33 C06 French Tarrasch
Kraai, Jesse - Friedel, Joshua E ½-½ 62 D07 Tchigorin Defence
Haessel, Dale R - MacKinnon, Keith ½-½ 12 A50 Queen's Indian (without e7-e6)
Pechenkin, Vladimir - Porper, Edward ½-½ 36 A28 English Four Knights

6) Hastings Chess Congress 2009-10

The Hastings Chess Congress takes place Mon 28th Dec 2009 - Tues 5th Jan 2010.

Official site: http://www.hastingschess.org.uk

Hastings Chess Congress (ENG), 28 xii 2009 - 4 i 2010
Round 1 (of 9) Standings:
Rank TiName Flags Score Fed. M/F Rating TPR W-We 1
1GM Drozdovskij, Yuri 1.0 UKR M 2625 3031 +0.12 1
2GM Istratescu, Andrei 1.0 ROU M 2624 3009 +0.11 1
3GM Edouard, Romain 1.0 FRA M 2620 3031 +0.13 1
4GM Howell, David W L 1.0 ENG M 2597 2999 +0.12 1
5GM Williams, Simon K i 1.0 ENG M 2550 2993 +0.15 1
6GM Hebden, Mark L 1.0 ENG M 2522 2990 +0.18 1
7GM Gormally, Daniel W 1.0 ENG M 2479 2864 +0.11 1
8GM Arkell, Keith C 1.0 ENG M 2464 2987 +0.23 1
9IM Collins, Sam E. 1.0 IRL M 2431 2975 +0.25 1
10IM Breder, Dennis 1.0 GER M 2427 2962 +0.24 1
11IM Greet, Andrew N 1.0 ENG M 2423 2886 +0.17 1
12IM Bates, Richard A 1.0 ENG M 2383 2929 +0.25 1
13FM Hawkins, Jonathan 1.0 ENG M 2383 2917 +0.24 1
14IM Giffard, Nicolas 1.0 FRA M 2351 2906 +0.26 1
15IM Knott, Simon J B 1.0 ENG M 2348 2905 +0.27 1
16FM Webb, Laurence E 1.0 ENG M 2321 2888 +0.28 1
17WIM Worek, Joanna w 1.0 POL F 2226 3158 +0.75 1
18Mitchell, Martin 1.0 SCO M 2195 3121 +0.75 1
19Griffiths, Ryan Rhys 1.0 IRL M 2148 2753 +0.32 1
20Goodger, Martyn 1.0 ENG M 2147 2749 +0.32 1
21Franklin, Samuel G A 1.0 ENG M 2139 2722 +0.30 1
22Nilsen, Joachim Birger 1.0 NOR M 2126 2704 +0.29 1
23Straub, Peter 1.0 GER M 2122 2699 +0.29 1
24De Coverly, Roger D 1.0 ENG M 2109 2645 +0.24 1
25Tozer, Philip 1.0 ENG M 2106 2654 +0.26 1
26WFM Wilson, Alexandra w 1.0 SUI F 2089 2637 +0.26 1
27Demac, Elias 1.0 NOR M 2084 2563 +0.19 1
28Horn, Stefan 1.0 GER M 2074 2544 +0.18 1
29Sreeves, Clement 1.0 SCO M 2061 2512 +0.16 1
30Foord, Dominic 1.0 ENG M 2051 2488 +0.15 1
31Muheim, Sebastien 1.0 FRA M 2040 2470 +0.14 1
32Atako, Chino 1.0 ENG M 2038 2453 +0.13 1
33WFM Norinkeviciute, Rasa w 1.0 LTU F 2027 2426 +0.12 1
34Spanton, Tim R 1.0 ENG M 2026 2411 +0.11 1
35Brechin, Hugh R 1.0 SCO M 2025 2706 +0.42 1
36Grant, David J 1.0 ENG M 2020 0 +0.00 +
37Williams, Peter A 1.0 ENG M 2012 2881 +0.68 1
38Niloy, Chakraborty 1.0 IND M 1800 * 2805 0 1
39GM Hracek, Zbynek 0.5 CZE M 2624 2276 -0.39 ½
40IM Philippe, Christophe 0.5 FRA M 2430 2236 -0.25 ½
41WGM Zdebskaja, Natalia w 0.5 UKR F 2408 2223 -0.24 ½
42IM Kjartansson, Gudmundur 0.5 ISL M 2391 2219 -0.23 ½
43IM Ansell, Simon T 0.5 ENG M 2387 2209 -0.23 ½
44FM Eggleston, David J 0.5 ENG M 2367 2176 -0.25 ½
45IM Kolbus, Dietmar 0.5 GER M 2355 2174 -0.24 ½
46FM Lorscheid, Gerhard 0.5 GER M 2348 2162 -0.24 ½
47IM Prosviriakov, Vladimir 0.5 USA M 2311 2248 -0.09 ½
48FM Eames, Robert S 0.5 ENG M 2276 2624 +0.39 ½
49CM Kwiatkowski, Feliks J 0.5 ENG M 2248 2311 +0.09 ½
50Grant, Alan G 0.5 SCO M 2236 2430 +0.25 ½
51FM Furman, Boris 0.5 RUS M 2223 2408 +0.24 ½
52Sugden, John N 0.5 ENG M 2219 2391 +0.23 ½
53Anderson, John 0.5 ENG M 2209 2387 +0.23 ½
54Snape, Ian L 0.5 ENG M 2176 2367 +0.25 ½
55Almond, Richard J 0.5 ENG M 2174 2355 +0.24 ½
56Salimbeni, George P W 0.5 ENG M 2162 2348 +0.24 ½
57McKenna, Jason P 0.5 ENG M 2147 2014 -0.18 ½
58FM Cafferty, Bernard 0.5 ENG M 2141 1994 -0.20 ½
59Barton, R Alan 0.5 ENG M 2119 1932 -0.24 ½
60Hansen, Victor 0.5 NOR M 2113 1963 -0.20 ½
61Jackson, James P 0.5 ENG M 2067 1797 -0.33 ½
62Pickersgill, Adrian O 0.5 ENG M 2014 2147 +0.18 ½
63Kirk, Jason 0.5 FRA M 1994 2141 +0.20 ½
64Doran, Chris 0.5 ENG M 1963 2113 +0.20 ½
65Tari, Aryan 0.5 NOR M 1932 2119 +0.24 ½
66Hoare, Amy w 0.5 ENG F 1797 2067 +0.33 ½
67GM Shalnev, Nikolai 0.0 GER M 2450 0 +0.00 -
68IM Martin, Andrew D 0.0 ENG M 2423 1491 -0.75 0
69FM Strunski, Andreas 0.0 GER M 2386 1460 -0.75 0
70IM Rudd, Jack 0.0 ENG M 2296 1885 -0.13 0
71FM Druckenthaner, Andreas 0.0 AUT M 2296 1890 -0.12 0
72Getz, Nicolai 0.0 NOR M 2270 1885 -0.11 0
73WGM Arutyunova, Diana w 0.0 UKR F 2266 0 +0.00 -
74IM Marusenko, Petr 0.0 UKR M 2264 1862 -0.12 0
75Addison, Bret C 0.0 ENG M 2258 1815 -0.15 0
76Mason, Donald J 0.0 ENG M 2255 1787 -0.18 0
77Talsma, Paul 0.0 NED M 2252 1729 -0.23 0
78Martinsen, Stig K 0.0 NOR M 2240 1696 -0.25 0
79FM Ledger, Dave J 0.0 ENG M 2227 1692 -0.24 0
80Chowdhury, Sohel 0.0 BAN M 2194 1648 -0.25 0
81Maduekwe, Chiedu i 0.0 NGR M 2182 1648 -0.24 0
82Jaunooby, Ali R 0.0 ENG M 2171 1616 -0.26 0
83Lock, Gavin R 0.0 ENG M 2170 1613 -0.27 0
84WIM Shalnyeva, Olga w 0.0 GER F 2153 0 +0.00 -
85Rayner, Francis 0.0 WLS M 2153 1586 -0.28 0
86Green, Andrew D 0.0 SCO M 2151 1688 -0.17 0
87O'Toole, George E 0.0 ENG M 2146 1277 -0.68 0
88Hartl, Aldo 0.0 GER M 2136 0 +0.00 -
89Gregory, Stephen J 0.0 ENG M 2126 0 +0.00 -
90Calvert, D Ian 0.0 ENG M 2070 0 +0.00 0
91Obiamiwe, Paul 0.0 NGR M 2046 1661 -0.11 0
92Safarian, Alek 0.0 AUS M 2018 1413 -0.32 0
93McDonnell, James J. 0.0 IRL M 2014 1412 -0.32 0
94Webb, Matthew 0.0 ENG M 1987 1404 -0.30 0
95Young, Mel J i 0.0 ENG M 1971 1290 -0.42 0
96Cumming, Rhys 0.0 ENG M 1969 1391 -0.29 0
97WFM Yurenok, Maria S w 0.0 ENG F 1968 0 +0.00 -
98Gibson, Christopher A 0.0 ENG M 1964 1387 -0.29 0
99Kirk, Ezra 0.0 FRA M 1919 1371 -0.26 0
100Campbell, Eoin 0.0 SCO M 1910 1374 -0.24 0
101Moore, Gillian A w 0.0 ENG F 1902 1354 -0.26 0
102Haria, Ravi 0.0 ENG M 1840 0 +0.00 -
103Lenier, Jude 0.0 ENG M 1828 1349 -0.19 0
104Nomat, Emil-Lion 0.0 IRQ M 1809 1339 -0.18 0
105Sanders, Isaac B 0.0 ENG M 1777 1326 -0.16 0
106Macrae, James S 0.0 SCO M 1753 1316 -0.15 0
107Tarun, Malhotra 0.0 IND M 1735 1305 -0.14 0
108Dean, Michael 0.0 ENG M 1718 1303 -0.13 0
109Devoille, Hugo 0.0 FRA M 1691 1292 -0.12 0
110O'Neil, Tom C 0.0 SCO M 1523 1138 -0.11 0
111Jafari, Mohammad Javad 0.0 IRI M 1500 * 0 0 -

7) Rilton Cup 2009-10

The XXXIX Rilton Cup takes place 27th December 2009 - 5th January 2010.

Official: http://www.rilton.se

XXXIX Rilton Cup Stockholm (SWE), 27 xii 2009 - 5 i 2010
Leading Round 2 (of 9) Standings:
Rk.NameTiFEDRtgPts.TB1
1Rozentalis EduardasGMLTU261123
Ulibin MikhailGMRUS254823
Ivanov SergeyGMRUS253023
Handke FlorianGMGER251323
Akesson RalfGMSWE245423
Richter MichaelIMGER241223
7Wojtaszek RadoslawGMPOL26371.52.5
Mcshane LukeGMENG26151.52.5
Popov ValerijGMRUS25881.52.5
Ionov SergeyGMRUS25451.52.5
Shimanov AleksandrGMRUS25351.52.5
Miezis NormundsGMLAT25301.52.5
Cramling PiaGMSWE25251.52.5
Berczes DavidGMHUN25121.52.5
Lauber ArndIMGER25031.52.5
Karlsson LarsGMSWE24911.52.5
Semcesen DanielIMSWE24601.52.5
Bellon JuanGMESP24351.52.5
Gagarin VasilyIMRUS24221.52.5
Pohjala HenriFIN21531.52.5
21Lysyj IgorGMRUS26091.52
Hammer Jon LudvigGMNOR25881.52
Evgeny GleizerovGMRUS25661.52
Brynell StellanGMSWE24721.52
Yuneev AlexeyIMRUS24281.52
Gorovykh EduardIMRUS24101.52
Lindberg BengtIMSWE24071.52
28Ponkratov PavelIMRUS257512
Grandelius NilsIMSWE254012
Gavrilov AlexeiIMRUS248112
Berczes CsabaIMHUN237912
de Verdier MichaelSWE227012
Svensson LeifSWE219512
34Cramling DanIMSWE240811.5
Markevich IlyaRUS216211.5
36Molchanova TatjanaWIMRUS236811
Jacobsen BoDEN230611
Angskog KentSWE222911
Gromova IuliaWIMRUS222211
Kopasov AlexanderRUS222111
Niemi MikkoFIN221911
Rosenkilde AlexanderDEN220111
Wiander MichaelSWE219511
Nguyen MichaelDEN218711
Agrest InnaWIMSWE218011
Vaarala EricSWE203211
47Andersen MadsFMDEN22940.51
Kauppila OsmoFMFIN22790.51
Jakobsen Kovachev DanielNOR22430.51
Satonen ArtoFIN21770.51
Hobber AndersNOR21320.51
Bryntze StefanSWE20730.51
Grochowalski PawelPOL20720.51
54Nithander VictorFMSWE24340.50.5
Johansson GunnarSWE22340.50.5
Kiuttu RoopeFIN21940.50.5
Mardell JimmySWE21820.50.5
58Von Bahr OskarSWE231600
Glimbrant TorbjoernSWE226300
Loegdahl HaraldFMSWE221400
Koskela NiinaWGMFIN218900
Ask JosefSWE218300
Evertsson LennartSWE215900
Vovk OksanaWIMDEN214500
Janse LoveSWE214100
Adahl MattiasSWE213300
Nordlander SvenSWE189400
Lokander MartinSWE182000

8) 52nd Reggio Emilia Tournament

The 52nd Reggio Emilia Tournament, category XV, takes place 28th December 2009 - 6th January 2010. The tournament consists of 10 players in a round robin at the 4-star Mercure Grand Hotel Astoria in the center of Reggio Emilia. January 1st is a rest day.

Official website: http://www.ippogrifoscacchi.it/default.asp

52nd It Reggio Emilia ITA (ITA), 28 xii 2009 - 6 i 2010 cat. XV (2624)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
1. Caruana, Fabiano g ITA 2652 * . . . . . . 1 . . 1
2. Kamsky, Gata g USA 2695 . * . . . . . . . 1 1
3. Safarli, Eltaj g AZE 2592 . . * . . . . . 1 . 1
4. Almasi, Zoltan g HUN 2704 . . . * ½ . . . . . ½ 2537
5. Godena, Michele g ITA 2537 . . . ½ * . . . . . ½ 2704
6. Jobava, Baadur g GEO 2696 . . . . . * ½ . . . ½ 2664
7. Landa, Konstantin g RUS 2664 . . . . . ½ * . . . ½ 2696
8. Bologan, Viktor g MDA 2692 0 . . . . . . * . . 0
9. Brunello, Sabino m ITA 2507 . . 0 . . . . . * . 0
10. Vocaturo, Daniele m ITA 2500 . 0 . . . . . . . * 0

Round 1 (December 28, 2009)
Almasi, Zoltan - Godena, Michele ½-½ 88 C78 Ruy Lopez Moeller Defence
Landa, Konstantin - Jobava, Baadur ½-½ 34 E00 Catalan
Bologan, Viktor - Caruana, Fabiano 0-1 41 C78 Ruy Lopez Moeller Defence
Brunello, Sabino - Safarli, Eltaj 0-1 50 E60 King's Indian without Nc3
Vocaturo, Daniele - Kamsky, Gata 0-1 50 B42 Sicilian Paulsen

9) Groningen Chess Festival 2009

The Groningen Chess Festival takes place 21st-30th December 2009.

There are a number of open events with the A-Group having Vladimir Baklan, Sipke Ernst, Anish Giri, Dmitri Reinderman etc

After Christmas there is a four game challenge match between Jan Timman and Robin van Kampen.

Official site: http://www.schaakstadgroningen.nl

Match Groningen
Timman, Jan H - Van Kampen, Robin 1-0 39 D17 Slav Defence
Van Kampen, Robin - Timman, Jan H 1-0 50 C11 French Defence
Timman, Jan H - Van Kampen, Robin ½-½ 32 D17 Slav Defence

Match Groningen (NED), 26-29 xii 2009
Name Ti NAT Rtng 1 2 3 4 Total Perf
Timman, Jan H g NED 2591 1 0 ½ . 1½ 2470
Van Kampen, Robin m NED 2470 0 1 ½ . 1½ 2591
Open A Groningen (NED), 21-30 xii 2009
Leading Round 7 (of 9) Standings:
No. Name Score WP SB PS rat. Ch+/-
1.Reinderman,Dimitri 5.0 23.5 18.75 19.5 2575 2731 +1.12
Nyzhnyk, Illya 5.0 21.0 17.00 18.0 2494 2685 +1.39
3.Werle, Jan 4.5 24.5 17.25 17.5 2565 2675 +0.86
Swinkels, Robin 4.5 20.0 14.25 16.5 2500 2598 +0.78
Greenfeld, Alon 4.5 20.0 14.25 15.5 2559 2574 +0.16
Chadaev, Nikolai 4.5 20.0 13.25 16.0 2567 2609 +0.29
Nijboer, Friso 4.5 19.0 13.75 16.5 2561 2587 +0.23
Brandenburg, Daan 4.5 18.5 14.00 15.5 2481 2565 +0.74
Giri, Anish 4.5 18.5 13.00 15.5 2585 2611 +0.25
10.Baklan, Vladimir 4.0 20.0 13.25 14.0 2655 2509 -0.94
Meijers, Viesturs 4.0 19.5 11.50 14.5 2488 2480 -0.02
Kantans, Toms 4.0 18.5 11.50 11.5 2281 2565 +2.15
Deviatkin, Andrei 4.0 18.0 11.50 12.0 2608 2432 -0.85
14.Bok, Benjamin 3.5 23.0 12.25 14.5 2337 2520 +1.46
Kleijn, Christov 3.5 22.0 10.75 13.0 2383 2427 +0.40
Ernst, Sipke 3.5 21.0 11.75 13.0 2587 2422 -1.10
Assendelft van,F. 3.5 21.0 10.50 13.0 2325 2476 +1.19
Podzielny,K.-H. 3.5 21.0 9.75 13.5 2456 2393 -0.35
Popilski, Gil 3.5 20.5 9.50 13.5 2441 2452 +0.19
Genov, Petar 3.5 19.5 10.00 14.5 2476 2393 -0.50
Pruijssers, Roeland3.5 19.0 9.75 12.0 2413 2377 -0.18
Pijpers, Arthur 3.5 17.5 7.25 10.0 2201 2334 +1.07
Hoffmann, Michael 3.5 17.0 8.75 12.0 2509 2322 -1.25
Grover, Sahaj 3.5 16.5 7.00 12.5 2372 2440 +0.64
Racherbaumer,Marcel3.5 15.5 7.75 10.0 2301 2349 +0.37
Poetsch, Hagen 3.5 14.0 6.50 11.5 2361 2276 -0.54
27.Burg, Twan 3.0 25.0 11.75 14.5 2460 2427 -0.19
Saravanan, V. 3.0 23.5 10.50 15.0 2356 2454 +0.78
Klein, David 3.0 18.5 7.75 9.0 2262 2334 +0.50
Caspi, Israel 3.0 18.5 6.75 11.5 2423 2314 -0.77
Wiel van der, John 3.0 18.0 7.00 11.5 2475 2353 -0.89
Theulings, P.P. 3.0 17.5 6.50 11.0 2135 2357 +1.62
Berkovich, Mark A 3.0 17.5 6.50 10.0 2406 2234 -1.25
Bijlsma, Nick 3.0 16.5 6.75 9.0 2075 2304 +1.68
Haast, Anne 3.0 15.0 6.00 7.5 2251 2195 -0.51
Efroimski, Marsel 3.0 14.0 5.25 7.5 2150 2249 +0.75
Hirth, Ulrich 3.0 12.0 4.00 6.0 2108 2198 +0.70
38.Genova, Lyubka 2.5 21.0 7.50 9.5 2263 2329 +0.40
Mostertman, Milan 2.5 18.5 7.00 7.5 2169 2289 +0.78
Hertog ten, Hugo 2.5 18.5 6.75 8.5 2159 2283 +0.81
Heemskerk, Wim 2.5 18.5 6.25 9.0 2236 2268 +0.16
Lyell, Mark 2.5 18.0 6.00 8.0 2245 2234 -0.24
Nabuurs, Joep 2.5 17.5 6.75 9.0 2191 2230 +0.21
Hoeksema, Erik 2.5 17.5 6.50 11.0 2331 2208 -1.02
Paulet, Iozefina 2.5 17.5 4.50 8.5 2312 2212 -0.85
Donker, Roel 2.5 17.0 6.75 11.0 2140 2275 +0.77
Piasetski, Leon 2.5 16.5 5.00 7.5 2269 2130 -0.99
Schiffer, Kai Uwe 2.5 15.0 7.50 9.5 2318 2122 -1.25
Groenewold, J.J. 2.5 12.0 2.75 5.5 2145 2189 +0.29
50.Afek, Yochanan 2.0 21.0 6.50 10.0 2285 2284 -0.15
Jellema, Yme Jan 2.0 19.0 5.50 6.5 2193 2127 -0.67
Balje, Jan 2.0 16.5 5.00 7.5 2188 2148 -0.30
Sparenberg, Erik 2.0 16.0 3.50 8.0 2072 2201 +0.84
Rauw, Gert Jan 2.0 15.0 3.25 6.5 2070 2086 +0.12
Cako, Laszlo 2.0 14.5 1.50 6.0 2155 2179 +0.13
Slagter, David 2.0 14.0 3.00 6.0 2108 2103 -0.05
57.Potze, Rudolf 1.5 16.0 2.25 5.0 2132 2126 -0.06
Warmelink, Evie 1.5 14.5 0.75 5.5 1970 1853 -0.50
59.Danielian, Elina 1.0 18.5 9.50 6.0 2499 2364 -0.36
Aginian, Nelly 1.0 17.0 7.00 6.0 2304 2229 -0.14
Vergert ten,Paul 1.0 16.5 2.75 5.5 2071 2007 -0.43
Holm, Sejer 1.0 16.0 0.50 2.0 2256 1939 -2.41
Thompson, Ian D 1.0 13.0 0.25 1.0 2266 1483 -2.87
64.Herwaarden van, A. 0.5 12.5 0.50 0.5 2162 1808 -2.20

10) Asian Team Championship

The Asian Team Championship took place in Kolkata, India 20th-29th December 2009. India took first place from Vietnam in the Men's event and the reverse was the case in the Women's. Iran finished 3rd in both events.

Official site: http://www.asianteamchess09.com

Results Men: http://www.chess-results.com/tnr28559.aspx?lan=1

Results Women: http://www.chess-results.com/tnr28569.aspx?lan=1

Tata Steel TCh-Asia Kolkata (IND), 22-27 xii 2009
Rk.SNoTeamGames + = - TB1 TB2 TB3
11INDIA A770014156,0101,5
22VIETNAM751111145,0102,5
33IRAN751111103,094,5
45INDONESIA7403865,091,5
54INDIA B7403857,087,5
66BANGLADESH7403856,084,0
77SINGAPORE7205442,0102,0
89SRILANKA7115312,096,5
98YEMEN7025218,085,0
1010NEPAL7016112,587,0
Tata Steel TCh-Asia w Kolkata (IND), 22-27 xii 2009
Rk.SNoTeamGames + = - TB1 TB2 TB3
13VIETNAM761013129,595,5
21INDIA A742110120,583,0
34IRAN74129118,580,5
42INDIA B7412989,094,0
56SINGAPORE7322874,583,0
67BANGLADESH7223642,074,5
75INDONESIA7124458,085,5
88SRILANKA7115312,080,5
99NEPAL701610,086,0

11) Poltava Open

The Poltava Open took place in Poltava, Ukraine, 4th-11th December 2009. Anton Korobov edged out Dmitry Kononenko on tie-break after both scored 7/9.

Official site: http://www.ukrchess.org.ua/turnir/t212.html

Poltava Open (UKR), 4-11 xii 2009
PlNameFedTratingtotRcNWW-We
1 Korobov, Anton UKR GM 2642 7.0 2470 9 7 +0.56
2 Kononenko, Dmitry UKR GM 2566 7.0 2426 9 7 +0.98
3 Zubarev, Alexander UKR GM 2535 6.5 2435 9 6.5 +0.89
4 Gasanov, Eldar UKR GM 2530 6.5 2403 9 6.5 +0.59
5 Zinchenko, Yaroslav UKR GM 2526 6.5 2493 8 5.5 +1.17
6 Maximov, Dmitry UKR GM 2513 6.0 2336 8 5 -0.67
7 Kovalenko, Igor UKR IM 2507 4.5 2344 8 3.5 -2.11
8 Pavlov, Sergey UKR IM 2477 5.5 2346 8 4.5 -0.69
9 Matjushin, Gennady UKR GM 2466 6.5 2372 7 5 +0.73
10 Kislinsky, Alexey UKR GM 2446 6.5 2347 7 4.5 +0.22
11 Kurochkin, Valery UKR IM 2397 5.5 2255 7 3.5 -1.22
12 Tverdohlebov, Viktor UKR 2383 6.0 2361 8 5 +0.88
13 Alexikov, Alexander UKR IM 2364 6.5 2297 7 4.5 +0.44
14 Boroday, Sergey UKR 2362 5.5 2289 6 3 -0.47
15 Shtanko, Dmitro UKR 2346 5.0 2274 7 3.5 -0.54
16 Polyakov, Maxim UKR FM 2343 5.5 2381 6 3.5 +0.83
17 Odnorozhenko, Evgenyi UKR IM 2315 5.5 2271 6 3 -0.30
18 Solovchuk, Alexey UKR 2294 5.0 2297 8 4 +0.11
19 Bilokha, Sergey UKR 2244 4.5 2291 6 1.5 -1.20
20 Kamenets, Anatolij UKR IM 2227 6.0 2396 5 2 +0.49
21 Padalka, Artem UKR 2170 5.0 2291 5 1 -0.86
22 Matjushin, Oleg UKR 2167 5.0 2319 3 1 +0.05
23 Muhtarov, Leonid UKR 2165 5.5 2429 4 1.5 +0.76
24 Varchenko, Grigory UKR 2165 4.5 2280 5 1 -0.80
25 Romaniv, Dmytro UKR 2131 5.5 2267 4 2.5 +1.13
26 Bondar, Wladimir UKR 2128 4.5 2253 5 0.5 -1.25
27 Chumachenko, Alexander UKR 2106 5.0 2276 5 1.5 -0.01
28 Gorbatenko, Kateryna UKR WFM 2099 4.0 2176 4 1.5 -0.14
29 Naboka, Sergey UKR 2087 5.5 2305 6 2.5 +1.12
30 Andreev, Volodymyr UKR 2017 4.5 2231 2 0 -0.50
31 Petrova, Irina UKR WFM 2010 4.0 2228 4 0.5 -0.48
32 Romaniv, Mykola UKR 2005 4.0 2282 5 0 -0.87
33 Kol`ba, Anastasiya UKR 1996 5.0 2294 4 1 +0.38
34 Tantsiura, Marja UKR 1995 4.0 2245 6 2 +0.78
35 Bilozer, Leonid UKR 0000 3.5 0 1 0 0
36 Bogdanovsky, Svyatoslav UKR 0000 4.5 0 2 0 0
37 Brailko, Julia UKR 0000 5.0 2158 7 3 2108
38 Dzyuban, Alexey UKR 0000 2.5 0 1 0 0
39 Gnitko, Vladislav UKR 0000 5.0 2217 5 1.5 2068
40 Guseynov, Ulvi UKR 0000 4.0 2251 4 0 1516
41 Ilyashyk, Semen UKR 0000 3.5 0 2 0 0
42 Kuvenev, Boris UKR 0000 4.0 0 2 0 0
43 Litvinenko, Oleg UKR 0000 4.5 2213 5 0.5 1847
44 Lobach, Vladimir UKR 0000 4.5 2156 7 2.5 2054
45 Mikhaylichenko, Dmitry UKR 0000 2.5 0 2 0 0
46 Minenko, Andrey UKR 0000 4.0 2129 4 0 1394
47 Nestorenko, Dmitry UKR 0000 2.5 0 2 0 0
48 Olukuvatyy, Volodymyr UKR 0000 3.5 0 2 0 0
49 Palazhenko, Valentin UKR 0000 3.5 2078 3 0 1343
50 Perepelitsa, Natalia UKR 0000 2.5 0 2 0 0
51 Plyushko, Alexey UKR 0000 4.0 2160 3 0 1425
52 Radevich, Yuriy UKR 0000 0.5 0 1 0 0
53 Shelukhin, Maxim UKR 0000 2.5 0 1 0 0
54 Tsushko, Volodymyr UKR 0000 4.0 2130 6 2 2005
55 Vashchenko, Dmitry UKR 0000 3.5 0 1 0 0
56 Velichko, Alexander UKR 0000 3.5 0 2 0 0
57 Yurchishyn, Nikolay UKR 0000 5.0 2193 6 3 2193
58 Zhurba, Valery UKR 0000 2.5 0 1 0 0
59 Zuykov, Oleg UKR 0000 4.5 0 2 0 0
60 Andrusenko, Pavel UKR 0000 3.5 0 2 0 0
61 Nayda, Olga UKR 0000 3.0 0 2 0 0
62 Golovko, Vladimir UKR 0000 3.0 2044 3 0.5 1771
63 Doyanovskaya, Zinaida UKR 0000 2.5 0 1 0 0
64 Lobintseva, Larisa UKR 0000 3.5 2227 3 0 1492

12) North American Open 2009

The North American Open takes place 26th-29th December 2009. Varuzhan Akobian, Alexander Shabalov, Victor Mikhalevski, Sundarajan Kidambi, Alex Yermolinsky, Lev Milman and Mesgen Amanov are amongst the leading players.

Official site: http://chesstournamentservices.com/cca/north-american-open/

North American Open Las Vegas (USA), 26-29 xii 2009
Leading Round 3 (of 7) Standings:
# Name TiRtng Tot
1Varuzhan Akobian GM 26903
2Alex Yermolinsky GM 25833
3Daniel Naroditsky FM 23753
4Alexander Shabalov GM 26692½
5Victor Mikhalevski GM 26662½
6Mesgen Amanov GM 24482½
7Charles R Riordan FM 24112½
8Michael Lee FM 23992½
9Steven C Zierk FM 23872½
10Jim H Dean FM 22632½
11Sundararajan Kidambi GM 26162
12Joshua Ed Friedel GM 26092
13Lev Milman IM 25102
14Sidd Ravichandran 24892
15Alexander Kretchetov FM 24442
16Mark Ginsburg IM 24272
17Anatoly Y Lein GM 23552
18Robby Adamson FM 23372
19Khamroev Ravshan 22982
20Alex Cherniack 22802
21Gregory Young 22722
22Cornelius Rubsamen 22632
23Vadim Kudryavtsev 22612
24Renard W Anderson FM 22492
25Andrew Karklins FM 22472
26Giovanni Carreto 22372
27Yian Liou 22262
28Vincent Huang 21882
29Ryan J Moon 21882
30Joseph Kruml 21812
31Dereque D Kelley 21472
32Aldo F Lopez 21192
75 players

13) 18th Donau Open

The 18th Donau Open takes place in Aschach, Austria, 26th-31st December 2009.

Details: http://www.aschach.at/schach/

14) Czech Chess Christmas 2009-10

The Czech Chess Christmas Open takes place in Litomysl (CZE) 26th December - 2nd January 2010.

11th christmas chess FIDE tournament, swiss system of 9 round, rate of game 2 x 1,5h + 30s/move, prize fund 64.000 CZK.

Official site: http://www.a64.cz/tournaments/litomysl2009/

15) Nice Christmas Open

The Nice Christmas Open takes place 26th December - 30th December 2009. Vladimir Epishin is the top seed.

Official site: http://echiquiernicois.centerblog.net/

16) Bethune Christmas Open

The Bethune Christmas Open takes place 26th-30th December 2009. Boris Grachev, Tigran Gharamian, Vladimir Burmakin, Vladimir Malaniuk, Jean-Marc Degraev etc play.

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

17) Zurich Open

The 33rd Zurich Open takes place 26th-30th December 2009. Rainer Buhmann and Yannick Pelletier top the listings.

Official site: http://www.kradolfer-informatik.ch/schach/wop/

18) Pan American Intercollegiate

The Pan American Intercollegiate takes place on South Padre Island, Texas December 27th-30th 2009.

Official site: http://www.utb.edu/sa/chess/Pages/standings.aspx

19) 19th Radisson Blu Christmas Festival

The 19th Radisson Blu Christmas Festival takes place in Efurt 26th-30th December 2009. Thomas Luther is the top seed.

Official site: http://www.schach-info.de/erfurt/

20) 25th Post Open

The 25th Post Open takes place in Duesseldorf 26th-31st December 2009. Top seed Daniel Hausrath is the top seed.

Official site: http://www.post-sv-duesseldorf.de/schach/default.htm

21) 26th Travemuender Open

The 26th Travemuender Open takes place 27th-30th December 2009. Jiri Stocek is the top seed.

Official site: http://schachopen.com/open/

22) 6th Open and 18th IPCCC Paderborn

The 6th Open and 18th IPCCC (International Paderborn Computer Chess Championships) take place in Paderborn, Germany, for the Schachtuerken-Cups 27th-30th December 2009. 7 Round Swiss System.

Official site: http://www.schachtuerken-cup.de/

23) Boeblinger Open

The Boeblinger Open takes place 26th-30th December 2009. Top seed Vladislav Borovikov.

Official site: http://www.boeblinger-open.de/einzelseiten/ergebnisse/2009/ergebnisse_2009.htm

24) Baroque Chess Open

The Baroque Chess Open takes place in Buchen 26th-31st December 2009. Mihajlo Stojanovic is the top seed.

Official site: http://www.schachclub-buchen.de/

25) Hamburg Christmas Open

The 6th Hamburg Christmas Open takes place 27th-30th December 2009. Michael Kopylov is the top seed.

Official site: http://www.ani-cup.de/

26) Geneve Christmas Open

The Geneve Christmas Open takes place 26th-30th December 2009. Igor Khenkin, Andrei Sokolov, Vladislav Vorotnikov etc play.

Official site: http://www.fge-echecs.ch/

27) 7th Schwalbacher Christmas Open

The 7th Schwalbacher Christmas Open takes place 26th-30th December 2009. Fred Berend is the top seed.

Official site: http://www.frajos.org/

28) Vietnam Master Men's and Women's Championships

The Vietnam Master Championships for men and women took place in Chi Minh City, 10th-16th December 2009. Duong The Anh took the men's title and Hoang Thi Bao Tram the women's.

Official site: http://www.vietnamchess.com.vn/component/content/article/131-natevent/275-vnmaster-ch2009

Results Men: http://chess-results.com/tnr28083.aspx - Women: http://chess-results.com/tnr28096.aspx

ch-VIE Men Masters Ho Chi Minh City (VIE), 10-16 xii 2009
Rk.TiNameFEDRtgPts. TB1 TB2 TB3
1IMDuong The AnhVIE24267,037,050
2IMNguyen Van HuyVIE24056,534,550
3IMNguyen Thanh SonVIE24416,534,540
4IMNguyen Huynh Minh HuyVIE24756,031,540
5Tran Quoc DungVIE21985,528,550
6CMNguyen Hoang NamVIE23685,026,530
7Nguyen Thanh NghiaVIE21915,025,540
8CMTran Thanh TuVIE23105,024,530
9Phan Trong BinhVIE20725,024,040
10Nguyen Manh TruongVIE21405,024,030
11CMNguyen Van HaiVIE22835,019,530
12Pham Xuan DatVIE21804,524,530
13FMPham Duc ThangVIE22564,524,030
14Vo Thanh NinhVIE23504,524,020
15Doan Van DucVIE20994,521,020
16FMTon That Nhu TungVIE22724,520,010
17GMTu Hoang ThongVIE25094,519,530
18Phan Anh SonVIE21164,020,530
19CMHuynh Lam Binh NguyenVIE20274,017,020
20Dang The NamVIE20983,516,0120
21Tong Thai HungVIE03,516,0121
22Nguyen Sy HungVIE20512,511,510
23Nguyen Anh TuanVIE19871,07,000
ch-VIE Women Masters Ho Chi Minh City (VIE), 10-16 xii 2009
Rk.TiNameFEDRtgPts. TB1 TB2 TB3
1WGMHoang Thi Bao TramVIE22867,035,050
2WFMHoang Thi Nhu YVIE21506,535,540
3WFMPham Bich NgocVIE21456,526,060
4WFMNguyen Thi Mai HungVIE22446,031,040
5WIMLe Kieu Thien KimVIE22215,531,040
6WGMNguyen Thi Thanh AnVIE23345,530,040
7Huynh Mai Phuong DungVIE20935,526,540
8Huynh Thi Hong SuongVIE18305,021,048
9WFMNguyen Thi Diem HuongVIE19935,021,049
10WIMNguyen Thi Tuong VanVIE22274,522,520
11Nguyen Hoang AnhVIE04,522,030
12Le Thi Thu HuongVIE04,519,530
13WIMBui Kim LeVIE21704,022,530
14Ho Thi Anh TienVIE03,519,010
15Nguyen Thi Thu HuyenVIE21312,515,000
16Do Thi Diem ThuyVIE19202,514,010
17Tran Le Tu UyenVIE02,513,510

29) 2nd Dragon Capital

The 2nd Dragon Capital Vietman Chess Open tournament took place in Ho Chi Minh City 3rd-8th December 2009. Le Quang Liem won the event with 8/9.

Results: http://chess-results.com/tnr27690.aspx

Official site: http://www.vietnamchess.com.vn/component/content/article/130-interevent/273-vieopen-ch2009

2nd Dragon Capital Ho Chi Minh City (VIE), 3-8 xii 2009
Rk.TiNameFEDRtgPts. TB1 TB2 TB3 nwwew-weKrtg+/-
1GMLe Quang LiemVIE26248,047,538,041,75986,951,051010,5
2GMDao Thien HaiVIE25246,049,537,530,50965,810,19101,9
3GMTu Hoang ThongVIE25096,047,036,029,50965,820,18101,8
4WIMPham Le Thao NguyenVIE22956,045,033,525,75963,992,011530,1
5IMNguyen Thanh SonVIE24416,041,031,527,25966,48-0,4810-4,8
6IMTu Hoang ThaiVIE23805,548,537,027,5095,54,471,031010,3
7IMSharma Dinesh KIND23295,546,039,025,7595,53,801,7000,0
8IMNguyen Huynh Minh HuyVIE24755,546,035,527,5095,55,89-0,3910-3,9
9GMNguyen Anh DungVIE24475,545,033,526,5095,55,69-0,1910-1,9
10IMMas HafizulhelmiMAS24195,544,035,025,5095,55,420,08100,8
11IMAshwin JayaramIND24485,049,537,524,25955,12-0,1210-1,2
12IMNguyen Van HuyVIE24055,044,533,020,50955,50-0,5010-5,0
13FMPham ChuongVIE23715,044,033,020,50955,10-0,1015-1,5
14FMTon That Nhu TungVIE22725,041,533,022,0084,53,151,351520,3
15IMLim Yee-WengMAS23365,039,531,021,75955,63-0,6300,0
16IMDuong The AnhVIE24265,038,530,020,75956,34-1,3410-13,4
17Le Quang LongVIE22865,037,531,017,25954,420,58158,7
18FMLo Kin Mun DominicSIN21744,543,534,020,0094,52,771,731526,0
19FMOtte MarijnNED23004,542,032,520,5083,53,410,09151,4
20CMNguyen Hoang NamVIE23684,542,032,519,7594,55,58-1,0815-16,2
21FMFernandez Daniel HowardSIN22304,541,032,020,0083,52,740,761511,4
22FMChan Wei Xuan TimothySIN23844,540,531,017,5094,55,90-1,4015-21,0
23WIMLe Kieu Thien KimVIE22214,538,031,515,2594,53,560,941514,1
24FMNguyen Duc HoaVIE23574,535,027,016,2583,55,69-2,1915-32,8
25CMNguyen Van HaiVIE22834,039,032,013,75833,41-0,4115-6,2
26WGMNguyen Thi Thanh AnVIE23344,035,529,011,50945,72-1,7215-25,8
27Vo Dai Hoai DucVIE21754,035,028,511,50843,680,32154,8
28WIMBui Kim LeVIE21704,029,524,09,50944,48-0,4815-7,2
29WIMNguyen Quynh AnhVIE21483,543,034,013,2593,53,200,30154,5
30Bao KhoaVIE22073,543,033,516,2593,52,790,7100,0
31WIMNguyen Thi Tuong VanVIE22273,538,529,512,2593,53,95-0,4515-6,8
32Dang Hoang SonVIE20403,534,028,511,2593,52,271,2300,0
33Tan WeiliangSIN21683,533,527,08,2593,54,29-0,7915-11,9
34Tong Thai HungVIE03,531,526,08,0093,5
35WFMHoang Thi Nhu YVIE21503,531,525,06,7582,53,66-1,1615-17,4
36Nguyen Minh TuanVIE20823,044,034,014,25931,711,2900,0
37Wolfaardt FrancoisRSA18021,032,026,02,25810,910,09252,3
38Do Hoang LamVIE20170,532,526,50,5080,52,70-2,2000,0

30) Open Championship of Skopje

The Open Championship of Skopje took place 12th-20th December 2009. Orce Dancevski took the title on tie-break from Marjan Mitkov, Robert Veleski and Riste Menkinoski after all scored 6.5/9. My thanks to Ivan Kocovski for the news.

Official site: http://chess.com.mk

Open Ch-Skopje Skopje (MKD), 12-20 xii 2009
PlSBr.TiNameRtgFEDPtsBK.
14IMDancevski Orce2418MKD6½40½
25IMMitkov Marjan2395MKD6½40
39Veleski Robert2280MKD6½38½
46FMMenkinoski Riste2326MKD6½37½
52IMStojanovski Dejan2436MKD640½
63GMJacimovic Dragoljub2429MKD639½
710FMAndonovski Ljubisa2278MKD638
87FMOrgandziev Oliver2317MKD636½
913Vladimirov Vladimir2217MKD628½
101IMPancevski Filip2439MKD5½39
1118Glavinac Goran2175MKD5½33
1212Simjanovski Saso2249MKD537½
1311FMIlic Ljubomir2257MKD534½
1424Petrovski Igor2016MKD533
1514Stosevski Ilija2201MKD532½
1621Kukov Tode2072MKD532
1723Kostadinovski Zoran2040MKD532
1828Tausanov Mihail1948MKD531½
1919FMKacakovski Dimitar2139MKD531½
2029Bejatovic Bojana1833MKD529
2127Tairi Asip1972MKD4½29½
2220Hristovski Srdzan2132MKD437
2332Atanasovski Blazhe0MKD433
2431Ajrula Adnan0MKD431
2525Dimov Daniel2008MKD429½
2626Atanasov Sande1986MKD426½
2715Radicevski Ljupco2199MKD3½32
2817Demirov Ajrus2176MKD3½30½
298FMMitkovski Krume2283MKD3½28
3030Tairi Krenar1619MKD3½22½
3137Nikolovski Nikola0MKD328
3235Konstantinov Aleksandar0MKD327
3336Kostov Kosta0MKD324½
3439Zigic Gjuro0MKD323½
3538Peev Kosta0MKD2½24½
3616FMPetkovski Vlatko2181MKD229
3733Dimov Trajce0MKD225½
3834Gjeorgjievski Done0MKD220½
3922Markovski Velo2043MKD028

31) 3rd Asian Indoor Games

The 3rd Asian Indoor Games took place in Ha Long, Vietnam at the start of November. There were a number of chess events. Vietname won the Blitz Team event. China the individual men and women's events and also the rapid team tournament. I could only find the rapid games from the team event.

Results: http://www.chess-results.com/tnr26722.aspx (with links to the other results). - Report: http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=6000

32) Vandoeuvre Open

The Vandoeuvre Open took place 19th-23rd December 2009. Thorsten Michael Haub took first place on tie-break from Boris Grachev and Vladimir Epishin after all finished on 6.5/7. No games available.

Official site: http://www.vandoeuvre-echecs.com/tournois.php

Vandoeuvre Open (FRA), 19-23 xii 2009
Final Round 7 Standings:
Pl NameTi FEDElo Pts Tr. Bu. Perf.
1HAUB Thorsten Michael m GER 24786.540482617
2GRACHEV Boris g RUS 26526.539.5492625
3EPISHIN Vladimir g RUS 26136.53846.52577
4DGEBUADZE Alexandre g BEL 2533642512594
5MARZOLO Cyril m FRA 2465641.5492581
6BAUER Christian g FRA 2594638.5472590
7GENZLING Alain f FRA 2368638.5452528
8TERRIEUX Kevin m FRA 2418636.5442517
9KARPATCHEV Aleksandr g RUS 249663440.52443
10MALANIUK Vladimir P g UKR 25755.54251.52547
11PRIE Eric g FRA 24965.541502520
12WIRIG Anthony m FRA 24845.539.548.52538
13DONCEA Vladimir m ROM 24935.538452477
14BEDOUIN Xavier f FRA 23515.537442464
15CORNETTE Matthieu g FRA 25775.536.543.52456
16NOVIKOV Stanislav g RUS 2562540492495
54 players

33) 35th Anniversary of ALEX

The 35th Anniversary of ALEX took place in Rio de Janeiro 16th-20th December 2009.

News: Joaquim Deus Filho.

Official site: http://maiakowsky.blogspot.com/2009/12/479-fide-35-anos-de-fundacao-da-alex.html

IRT 35th Ann ALEX Rio de Janeiro (ARG), 16-20 xii 2009
Rank SNo. TiName Rtg FED Pts
1 1 FM Rodi Luis Ernesto 2364 ARG 5
2 2 FM Dumont Sadi Glasser 2321 BRA 4½
3 3 FM Guimaraes Wagner Peixoto 2265 BRA 4
4 7 Chauca Jose 2057 PER 4
5 9 Rodrigues Nei Jorge 2042 BRA 4
6 5 Santos Celso da Silva 2145 BRA 4
7 4 FM Mascarenhas Alberto Pinheiro 2206 BRA 3
8 6 Ferreira Kleber Victor 2112 BRA 3
9 11 Farias Jose Carlos Mesquita 2012 BRA 3
10 12 Mano Leonardo 2001 BRA 2½
11 10 Junior Braulio dos Santos 2040 BRA 2½
12 13 Rabello David Sousa 1976 BRA 2½
13 14 Pereira Armando Scharlau 1707 BRA 2
14 8 Chaves Jorge Antonio Torres 2056 BRA 2
15 15 Leite Tarcísio Dantas Frota 0 BRA 1

34) Norwegian Chess Olympiad

Press Release

12 million USD in governmental support to the Norwegian Chess Olympiad bid

The Minister of Sports and culture in Norway, Mrs. Anniken Huitfeldt has announced that the Norwegian government will support The City of Tromso’s bid for the Chess Olympiad in 2014.

Chairman of the Board of the Bidding Committee, Mr. Henrik Andenaes, states:

"The governmental support for the 2014 olympiad of NOK 70 million (USD 12 million) represents a fundamental foundation to the further enhancement of winning the international bidding competition in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, October 2010. This grant from the Minister of Culture secures sufficient financial and political support. With the City of Tromso as applicant city, we will deliver a high quality application in compliance with the FIDE (World Chess Federation) bidding conditions by the end of April 2010."

Former Vice President in FIDE and now international advisor for the Norwegian Bidding Committee, Mr. Morten Sand says:

The governmental support is very important. We are not sure which other countries will bid for the 2014 Chess Olympiad. Regardless of this, we will increase our efforts during the months to come, to make sure that the decision makers and the world of chess knows what Norway and the City of Tromso has to offer - being elected as host for the 41st Chess Olympiad in 2014.

For questions or comments to the bidding organization contact: · Henrik Andenaes, Chairman of the Board , 004795143830, henrik.andenas@dht.no · Borge Robertsen, General Manager, 004791647329, borge.robertsen@tromso2014.no

Homepage: http://www.tromso2014.no.

35) Harry Lyman Memorial

George Mirijanian reports: The Harry Lyman Memorial took place 19th December 2009 at the Boylston Chess Club in Somerville, Massachusetts, USA. IM David Vigorito, 39, of Somerville tallied 3.5-0.5 to win first place. Tying for 2nd-4th place with 3-1 scores were GM Alexander Ivanov, 53, of Newton, Mass., who drew Vigorito in the third round; U.S. Chess Federation-rated expert Alan Price, 46, of Cambridge, Mass., who held Ivanov to a draw in the final round; and fellow expert Zongyuan Yuan, 11, of Brookline, Mass. The tournament drew 29 players in two sections and was directed by Bernardo Iglesias of Stoughton, Mass., one of New England's most experienced TDs. The event honored the memory of Henry "Harry" Lyman (1915-1999), who was considered the Dean of New England Chess and viewed by many as the "Maecenas" of the Boylston Chess Club, whose monetary contributions to the club were numerous for more than five decades.

36) Forthcoming Events and Links

World Team Championship

The World Team Championship takes place Bursa, Turkey 3rd-14th January 2010.

Teams: Russia, Brazil, Egypt, India, Armenia, Israel, USA, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Greece.

Official site: http://wtcc2009.tsf.org.tr/

13) Dutch League

The Dutch League takes place 26th September 2009 - 18th April 2010. Round 4 took place on the 12th December 2009, the games are now available.

Rounds: Round 1 - 26th September, Round 2 - 31 October, Round 3 - 21st November, Round 4 - 12th December 2009. Round 5 - 9th January Round 6 - 6th February, Round 7 - 6th March, Round 8 - 27 March, Round 9 - 18 April 2010.

Official site: http://www.schaakbond.nl/wedstrijdschaak/knsb-competitie.

Further info: http://www.schakers.info/

Dutch League (NED), 26 ix 2009 - 18 iv 2010
Round 3 Standings:
PlTeam Mp Bp 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 Groningen 1/Hotels.nl 8 24½ x . 6 . . . 6 6 6.5 .
2 HSG 6 28½ . x . 8.5 7 8.5 . . 4.5 .
3 Schrijvers Rotterdam 6 23½ 4 . x . . 5.5 6.5 . 7.5 .
4 Utrecht 5 21 . 1.5 . x 5 . . . 7.5 7
5 LSG 5 21 . 3 . 5 x . . 7.5 . 5.5
6 Homburg Apeldoorn 4 22 . 1.5 4.5 . . x . 8 . 8
7 HMC Calder 2 16½ 4 . 3.5 . . . x 3 . 6
8 Braceland ESGOO 2 15½ 4 . . . 2.5 2 7 x . .
9 SMB 2 14 3.5 5.5 2.5 2.5 . . . . x .
10 HWP Sas van Gent 0 13½ . . . 3 4.5 2 4 . . x
Dutch League (NED), 26 ix 2009 - 18 iv 2010
Round 3 Standings:
Round 1 - 26 September
01 SMB - Schrijvers Rotterdam 2½ - 7½
02 Groningen 1/Hotels.nl - Braceland ESGOO 6 - 4
03 HMC Calder - HWP Sas van Gent 6 - 4
04 Homburg Apeldoorn - HSG 1½ - 8½
05 LSG - Utrecht 5 - 5
Round 2 - 31 October
01 Utrecht - SMB 7½ - 2½
02 HSG - LSG 7 - 3
03 HWP Sas van Gent - Homburg Apeldoorn 2 - 8
04 Braceland ESGOO - HMC Calder 7 - 3
05 Schrijvers Rotterdam - Groningen 1/Hotels.nl 4 - 6
Round 3 - 21 November
01 SMB - Groningen 1/Hotels.nl 3½ - 6½
02 HMC Calder - Schrijvers Rotterdam 3½ - 6½
03 Homburg Apeldoorn - Braceland ESGOO 8 - 2
04 LSG - HWP Sas van Gent 5½ - 4½
05 Utrecht - HSG 1½ - 8½
Round 4 - 12 December
01 HSG - SMB 4½ - 5½
02 HWP Sas van Gent - Utrecht 3 - 7
03 Braceland ESGOO - LSG 2½ - 7½
04 Schrijvers Rotterdam - Homburg Apeldoorn 5½ - 4½
05 Groningen 1/Hotels.nl - HMC Calder 6 - 4
Round 5 - 9 January
01 SMB - HMC Calder -
02 Homburg Apeldoorn - Groningen 1/Hotels.nl -
03 LSG - Schrijvers Rotterdam -
04 Utrecht - Braceland ESGOO -
05 HSG - HWP Sas van Gent -
Round 6 - 6 February
01 HWP Sas van Gent - SMB -
02 Braceland ESGOO - HSG -
03 Schrijvers Rotterdam - Utrecht -
04 Groningen 1/Hotels.nl - LSG -
05 HMC Calder - Homburg Apeldoorn -
Round 7 - 6 March
01 SMB - Homburg Apeldoorn -
02 LSG - HMC Calder -
03 Utrecht - Groningen 1/Hotels.nl -
04 HSG - Schrijvers Rotterdam -
05 HWP Sas van Gent - Braceland ESGOO -
Round 8 - 27 March
01 Braceland ESGOO - SMB -
02 Schrijvers Rotterdam - HWP Sas van Gent -
03 Groningen 1/Hotels.nl - HSG -
04 HMC Calder - Utrecht -
05 Homburg Apeldoorn - LSG -
Round 9 - 18 April
01 LSG - SMB -
02 Utrecht - Homburg Apeldoorn -
03 HSG - HMC Calder -
04 HWP Sas van Gent - Groningen 1/Hotels.nl -
05 Braceland ESGOO - Schrijvers Rotterdam -

II Genset Cup

The II Genset Cup IM Tournament takes place 26th March - 3rd April 2010 Szombathely.

9 -11 round Robin 90 minutes/40 moves + 30 minutes , 30 sec addition after each move

INFORMATION: CSONKA Attila 0036-70-200-4233 attila_csonka@hotmail.com PERGEL László 0036-70-775-4901 pergell@citromail.hu

9th Czech Tour 2009/2010

13-20.2. 2010 1st NOVY BOR OPEN (the Prazak Grandhotel) http://www.czechtour.net/novy-bor-open/

8.-15.1. 2010 9th PRAGUE OPEN (TOP HOTEL Praha) http://www.czechtour.net/prague-open/

16.-23.1. 2010 9th MARIENBAD OPEN (the Kossuth hotel) http://www.czechtour.net/marienbad-open/

Dates of the first tournaments of the 10th jubilee CZECH TOUR 2010 / 2011 Series:

15.-22.5. 2010 1st HRADEC KRALOVE OPEN (the Cernigov hotel)

15.7.-1.8. 2010 21st CZECH OPEN (Pardubice, CEZ Arena)

4.-12.8. 2010 13th OLOMOUC CHESS SUMMER (the Sigma hotel)

Official site: http://www.czechtour.net/news/

Anand - Topalov World Championship is in Sofia in April/May 2010

The World Chess Championship takes place in Sofia, Bulgaria 23 April (1st round) to 12 May 2010 (possible tiebreaks). The match is between World Champion Viswanathan Anand and Veselin Topalov. An agreement was signed by FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and the President of the Bulgarian Chess Federation Stefan Sergiev on the 16th December 2009. This was in the presence of the Prime Minister of Bulgaria Mr Boiko Borisov who is guaranteeing the match.

Linares 2010

The Linares tournament takes place in Spain (a pairing with Dubai fell through) 12th-25th February 2010. Players invited so far are: Veselin Topalov, Levon Aronian, Alexander Grischuk, Francisco Vallejo Pons and for the first time in a super-tournament Vugar Gashimov who deserves his chance in this company. (Source ChessDom who also speculate that Boris Gelfand will make up the field).

International Correspondence Chess Federation

The International Correspondence Chess Federation has announced the Preliminary Sections of the World Correspondence Chess Championship will start on March 10th. 2010.

Also Slovenia's 15 Years Membership of ICCF tournament semi-finals.

Details on the ICCF Official site: http://www.iccf.com/content/index.php

Reykjavik Open

The Reykjavík Open 2010 takes place 24th February - 3rd March 2010.

Details: http://www.chess.is and the contact e-mail of the organize commitee is reykjavikopen2010@gmail.com.

FIDE World Amateur Chess Championship

FIDE World Amateur Chess Championship - an Official FIDE World Chess Championship! 9R-SS G/90 + 30/sec increment. Holiday Inn Hotel: 5300 W Touhy Ave Skokie, IL 60077. 847.679.8900. $20,000 Guaranteed. Open to players with no FIDE title and rated under 2000 FIDE. All players compete in a single section. Please see tournament website for more detailed rating regulations.

Prizes: Overall: $3000-2000-1600-1400; Top Women: $1000-600-400-200; (1799-1600): $1000-600-400-200; (1599-1400): $1000-600-400-200; (U1400): $1000-600-400-200; (Unrated): $1000-600-400-200;

EF: $120 by 6pm 02/15, $150 by 6pm 03/15; $200 thereafter and onsite. No re-entries allowed. No half-point byes allowed (zero point byes only). Onsite registration from 3-5pm 03/19.

Rds: 3/19 - 6:30pm; 3/20-21 - 12pm and 6:30pm per day; 3/22-25 - 6:30pm per night.

Mail entries with registration information to: North American Chess Association (make checks payable to) 4957 Oakton Street, Suite 113, Skokie, IL 60077.

More information and online registration available at: http://www.worldchesschamps.com. Questions via email only: sevan@worldchesschamps.com

Schachbundesliga 2009-10

The Schachbundesliga in Germany is the strongest league in the world.

Rounds 8 and 9 are on 6th and 7th of February 2010. Baden-Baden are the only team left on 100%.

Official site: http://www.schachbundesliga.de/

Bermuda open

2010 BERMUDA INTERNATIONAL OPEN 5th-7th February 2009, Cocktail party & Blitz on the 4th Fairmont Southampton Resort & C.C.

FIDE event with FIDE ratings available; 60 GP pts. PRIZES: 1st $1,000; 2nd $800; 3rd $600; 4th $400; 5th $200; U2200, U2000, U1800, U1600: $250, $150, $100 each group

Also airfare from NY area and hotel for 2011 to 1st overall and 1st untitled player Trophy for first place in each category. Entry fee $100 on site only. Rds. Fri 8pm, S&S 9 & 3 Sunday evening free dinner buffet & bar for all players and spouses Hotel 1-800-441-1414; $179+tax

Contacts: Nigel Freeman nigelfreeman@fide.com, C. Jarecki carolj10280@yahoo.com

South Lakes Congress

The South Lakes Congress is taking place on w/e of 11-13th June 2010 at The Grand Hotel, Grange-over-Sands. The contact for the event is: Trevor Blower, 18 Blackbutts Lane, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria LA14 3AP. email: trevor.blower@talktalk.net, Phone No 01229 472100.

Austrian Bundesliga

The first weekend of the Austrian Bundesliga (11 rounds) took place 6th-8th November 2009 in Jenbach, Austria.

Time control: 100 minutes for 40 moves an additional 50 minutes with 30 seconds per move starting from move 1.

Remaining fixtures: 14th-17th January 2010 in Graz and 27th-30th March 2010 in Baden.

Official site: http://www.chess.at/staatsligen/stl_a.htm

Results: http://www.chess-results.com/tnr21147.aspx

Two Hungarian events

1. 26th of Nov until 4th of Dec.Tenkes Cup, Harkany, Link to: http://baranyasakk.hu/index.php?cat=naptar&id=3&age=0&vid=15&lang=en&det=12 - Open 9 rounds Swiss, 250 km West from Budapest, free thermal bathes, Organizer: Mr. Fulop, Csaba e-mail address: fulopcsa@invitel.hu First rize: bruttó 1800 Euros (in HUF)

2,5th-16th of December Budapest, First Saturday GM-IM-FM ELO tournaments, 9...11 rounds, Org: Nagy Laszlo, e-mail: firstsat@hu.inter.net - link to: http://www.firstsaturday.hu

Czech Tour 2009-10

5.-12.12. 2009 1st PILSEN OPEN (Central hotel) - http://www.czechtour.net/pilsen-open/

8-15.1. 2010 9th PRAGUE OPEN (TOP HOTEL Praha) - http://www.czechtour.net/prague-open/

16-23.1. 2010 9th MARIENBAD OPEN (Kossuth hotel) - http://www.czechtour.net/marienbad-open/

13-20.2. 2010 1st NOVY BOR OPEN (Grandhotel Prazak) - http://www.czechtour.net/novy-bor-open/

The registration deadline for 3rd SOUTH BOHEMIA OPEN, which takes place 14.-21.11. 2009 in the town of Cesky Krumlov (http://www.czechtour.net/south-bohemia-open/), which is one of the most beautiful places in the Czech Republic, has been prolonged without extra fee for the late enrolment till 9.11. 2009.

Preliminary starting lists on 4.11. 2009 should be found at http://www.czechtour.net/news/.

Corus Wijk aan Zee 2010

The field for the 2010 Corus tournament in Wijk aan Zee has been announced. Dates Friday 15th January 2010 - Sunday 31st January 2010.

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

The A-Group is category XIX and once again is a pretty exciting field.

Corus A Wijk aan Zee (NED), 15-31 i 2010 cat. XIX (2720)
TiPlayerNATElo SeptWRkDoB
GMViswanathan AnandIND278821969
GMMagnus CarlsenNOR277241990
GMVladimir KramnikRUS277251975
GMPeter LekoHUN276261979
GMVassily IvanchukUKR275681969
GMHikaru NakamuraUSA2735161987
GMAlexei ShirovESP2730181972
GMSergey KarjakinRUS2722201990
GMLeinier Dominguez PerezCUB2719221983
GMNigel ShortENG2706291965
GMSergey TiviakovNED2670571973
GMFabiano CaruanaITA2662711992
GMLoek van WelyNED2650861972
GMJan SmeetsNED26421011985

The B-Group is a not too shabby category 16 and once again they have a mixed field of youth and experience that should provide some real entertainment.

Corus B Wijk aan Zee (NED), 15-31 i 2010 cat. XVI (2627)
TiPlayerNATElo SeptDoB
GMNi HuaCHN26921983
GMArkadij NaiditschGER26851985
GMEmil SutovskyISR26761977
GMPentala HarikrishnaIND26731986
GMLiviu-Dieter NisipeanuROM26641976
GMWesley SoPHI26441993
GMVaruzhan AkobianUSA26371983
GMDavid HowellENG26241990
GMParimarjan NegiIND26151993
GMTomi NybackFIN26151985
GMErwin l'AmiNED26061985
GMDimitri ReindermanNED25721972
GMAnish GiriNED25521994
WGMAnna MuzychukSLO25331990

There will also be a C-Group, the field will be announced later.

Gibtelecom Masters 2010

The Gibtelecom Masters takes place 26th January - 4 February 2010.

Contact details: hotel conf.banq@caletahotel.gi; technical stewartreuben@aol.com.

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

Gibtelecom Masters (ENG), 26 i - 4 ii 2010
Leading Entries
Zhu Chen QTR GM2473
Al-Modiahki Mohamad QTR GM2570
Cmilyte Victorja LTU IM2475
Zhukova Natalia UKR WGM2465
Skripchenko Almira FRA IM2450
Fressinet Laurent FRA GM2667
Zatonskih Anna USA IM2466
Fridman Daniel GER GM2665
Dzagnidze Nana GEO GM2536
Krush Irina USA IM2458
Zozulia Anna BEL IM2341
Malakhatko Vadim BEL GM2573
Cramling Pia SWE GM2531
Bellon Juan ESP GM2430
Sachdev Tania IND IM2410
Muzychuk Mariya UKR IM2441
Houska Jovanka ENG IM2380+
Roiz Michael ISR GM2662
Golod Vitali ISR GM2592
Calzetta Monica ESP WGM2344
Koneru Humpy IND GM2611
Siebrecht Sebastian GER GM2456
Hoffmann Michael GER GM2513
Stefanova Antoaneta BUL GM2522
Dronavalli Harika IND IM2449
Kruttika Nadig IND WGM2264
Karavade Eesha IND WGM2391
Mohota Nisha IND WGM2336
Speelman Jon ENG GM2525
Agdestein Simen NOR GM2570
Arakhamia Ketevan SCO GM2500
Sedina Elena ITA IM2335
Adams Michael ENG GM2682
Romain Edouard FRA GM2622
Istratescu Andrei ROU GM2624
Movsesian Sergey CZE GM2711
Kosteniuk Alexandra RUS GM2516
Gopal Naravanyan IND GM2586
Sandipan Chandra IND GM2585
Vitiugov Nikita RUS GM2689
Romanov Evgeny RUS GM2591

Moscow Non-Stop Chess Events of the World Chess Tour

Following round-robin tournaments (GM. IM. rating) of the "World Chess Tour 2009/10" series. Autumn / Winter 2009/10:

2009: 18-28.11, 29.11-10.12, 13-22.12.

2010: 2-13.01, 17-28.01, 9-19.02, 20.02-3.03 etc.

Since November 2009 also "Non-stop" events are available. in different formats (depending of participant's wish: 1) 5-6 days 2) 7-8 days 3) 9-11 days 4) 12-15 days 5) 16-21 days 6) 22-31 days 7) more than 1 month.

Contact: GM Igor Glek. Phone mobile: Russia: (7)903-5593052, (7)926-0523889 Germany: (49)152-04014194 Phone/Fax (Russia): (7)495-4336634 Skype: Prinzflorisel E-mail: wlct06@gmail.com, worldchesstour@gmail.com

Official site: http://www.chess-events.org/

Official site: www.chess-events.org/en_US/rr-tur.html

II World Chess Open In Leon

The II WORLD CHESS OPEN in Leon (Spain) takes place 1st-3rd January 2010, from Friday to Sunday.

31st December 2009 sees a special dinner and a party, which will be of course optional for the players and companion and which will have an special price. We hope that all chess legends invited by the organisation will come and enjoy this celebration.

1st day of January first game starts at 17.00 pm and ches players who cannot arrive in time can ask 2 byes for both games of 1st of january (2 half points).

Total Prizes are around 30.000€, and first is 5000€. Prizes for players below 2350 ELO FIDE (10 prizes and 1st is 1000 €), below 2200 ELO FIDE, and below 2000 ELO FIDE.

TIME CONTROL: Players will have 35 minutes plus 3 additional seconds per move so they are not so rapid games as usual.

Amongst the players who can be invited by the organisation this time are Nigel Short, Robert Hubner, Mark Taimanov, Vlastimil Hort, Henrique Mecking, Bent Larsen, Eugene Torre, Jan Elhvest, Borislav Ivkov, Svetozar Gligoric, Maia Chiburdanidze, Oleg Romanishin, Lev Psakhis, Gyula Sax, Gheorguiu, Uhlmann, Sveshnikov, Smejkal, Vasiukov, Vaganian, Unzicker, Kurajica, Suba, Lilienthal…We will invite 8-10 players.

Official web page, http://www.openmundialdeleon.com

Contact: GM Alfonso Romero Holmes, Tournament Director aromero64@yahoo.es

8th Nancy Chess Festival

The 8th Nancy (France) Chess Festival takes place 22nd-28th February 2010.

Website (with english informations page) : http://echecs54.free.fr Contact : philippe.chr@free.fr

Serie of closed tournaments round-robins 10 players each : Group A for GM-norm (in 2009 : category 13, average 2557, winner Harikrishna), group B for IM-norms, group C for 10 players over 2200 elo, group D for 10 players over 2100 elo, group E for 10 players over 2000 elo, group F for 10 players over 1900 elo ...etc...18 groups with 174 players in 2009. 9 rounds 90min/40moves+30min(+30sec). Entry fee : adult 56 euros young 28 euros. Possibilities of hotels with special chess prices : see tournament website.

Icelandic Teams

The Icelandic Team Championship takes place 25th September 2009 - 3rd March 2010. Rounds 1-4 have taken place.

Results: http://chess-results.com/tnr25745.aspx

Official site in Icelandic: http://www.skaksamband.is

4NCL

The 4NCL starts Sat 24th Oct - Sun 25th Oct. 2009.

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

Live games: http://www.bcfservices.org.uk/livechess/4ncl/0910/index.htm

Sydney International and Doeberl Cup

Entries are invited for the 2010 Sydney International Open and Challengers Chess Tournaments, to be held 7-11 April 2010.

The organisers have received financial support from a variety of sources and the principal sponsor for 2010 is GM Murray Chandler.

The venue is again the historic Parramatta Town Hall in Western Sydney and free hotel accommodation (twin share room) is offered to International Chess Grandmasters. There are two nine-round FIDE-rated swiss tournaments, the Sydney International Open (SIO) and the Sydney International Challengers (SIC). Cash prizes exceed A$16,000 and visas can be arranged on request for overseas players (please provide passport details). More Information is available at http://www.chessaustralia.com.au/index.cfm?site=open

For those players that want even more chess, the Doeberl Cup will be held in Canberra from 1-5 April 2010. See http://www.doeberlcup.com.au Transport from Canberra to Sydney on Tuesday 6 April 2010 will be provided free of charge for all overseas players.

Cappelle-la-Grande 2010

The 26th International Open of Cappelle-la-Grande will take place 13th-20th February 2010.

For every players wishing to be invited, please contact Mr GOUVART at the following address: stephanegouvart@gmail.com phone: +33671624629

Official site : http://www.cappelle-chess.fr/

Hungarian Tournaments October 2009 - April 2010

First Saturday chess tournaments, GM-IM-FM sections, 50-60-70 players usually out of 10-15 countries, for 9...14 days here.

Upcoming tournaments:

1. 3rd-15th of October, GM-IM-FM First Saturday Budapest, org: Nagy Laszlo, firstsat@hu.inter.net,

2. 23rd-31st of October, GM tmt, Pecs, 250 km West from Budapest,

3. 7th-19th of November, GM-IM-FM, First Saturday, Budapest, 4. 26th of Nov-3rd of Dec, Harkany Open, 250 km South-West from Budapest, org: Mr.Fulop, e-mail to: fulopcsa@invitel.hu

5. 5th-17th of December, GM-IM-FM, First Saturday, Budapest,

6. 8th-16th of January 2010 Perenyi memorial Open, 9 rounds Swiss, Budapest, info: Nagy Laszlo,

7. 6th-18th of February 2010 FS GM-IM-FM, Budapest,

8. 6th-18th of March 2010, FS GM-IM-FM Budapest,

9. 19th-28th of March 2010 26th Budapest Spring Festival, 9 rounds Swiss Open, org: Nagy Laszlo

10.3rd-16th of April 2010 FS GM-IM-FM Budapest

Contact: Nagy, Laszlo International chess organizer, member of the FIDE organizers' committee, "GENS UNA SUMUS" ET "PACTA SUND SERVANDA" http://www.firstsaturday.hu

Possible in the website online chat also... Mobile: +36-30-230-19-14 Phone-fax: +36-1-263-28-59 E-mail: firstsat@hu.inter.net ICC, SKYPE, YAHOO, MSN, www.chess.com nickname: mrfirstsaturday

Mundial Chess Internet Tournament

The organising Committee Mundial Chess invites all the players (from the amateurs to Grandmasters) to take part in the 1st Internet tournament with the prize fund of more than 130.000 EUR in cash and many special prizes. The 1st prize in the main tournament will be not less than 10.000 EUR.

Registration (and information in English) in the tournament is possible following the link - http://www.mundialchess.com/chess-online/en/zvfdxt6 Registration and information in Spanish - http://www.mundialchess.com/chess-online/es/zvfdxt6 Registration and information in Russian - http://www.mundialchess.com/chess-online/ru/zvfdxt6

Ajedrez 21 English site

Ajedrez 21 now has an English site: http://www.ajedrez21.com/en/

Kingpin Magazine

The humourous and satirical chess magazine Kingpin has a new website.

New website address: http://www.kingpinchess.net

Torch Real Estate Cup

The Chinese team competition the Torch Real Estate Cup started in Chengdu China on 4th May 2009. I'm hoping for a full game file.

Live games: http://live.chinaqiyuan.com/chess/tfd.htm

Official site: http://chess.sport.org.cn/

Results: http://chess-results.com/tnr21650.aspx

Historical Elo Ratings

http://www.shakki.net/history/elotop.htm has a list of historical top ten FIDE lists. The text is in Finnish but is understandable anyhow.

Reno Far West Open

The Far West Open Chess Tournament took place April 10th-12th 2009 in Reno Nevada. Sergey Kudrin edged out Enrico Sevillano and Gergerly Antal who finished on 5/6. Games should follow.

Official site: http://www.renochess.org/fwo/index.html

European Union Website

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

Alushta Diary 2009

Alushta Diary 2009:

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

Chess Study

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

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

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

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