Closing The Curtains

The year went by fast. Playing so many tournaments did not give much time to take my foot off the gas pedal. Even while not playing, most of my time was spent studying and working on chess. Could be the reason for some bad steering towards the end.

Chess has given me a lot. At the age of 23, I have traveled the world and met people from all walks of life. The last year amplified that. This blog was mainly about chess and might not have captured the full experience. I would do it all over again in a heartbeat!

I now have closure with the game that has been a significant part of my life for 18 years. It is time to leave and pursue other goals. My success in chess should be attributed to many factors, largely a combination of opportunities provided by those around me as well as personal characteristics that have allowed for hard work and relentless determination. I plan to take those qualities elsewhere.

I’d like to thank my wonderful sponsors: Muir Detlefsen & Associates Limited, Front Street Capital, and BMO Capital Markets. It was an honour to be sponsored by these great firms. The sponsorship was great, in large part, due to the intangibles.

There is respect for chess in society. Sponsorship does not come easy, it never will, and the onus should not just be on the organizers to find it. In the end of the day, who is the sponsorship for? The idea that professional chess players expect to be paid to “just” play chess is quite naive in a society where all other professions require social interaction and working with others.

The last year was not a one man show and it would not have been the same without the wonderful people around me. I’d like to thank my family and friends for the support they provided. My dad taught me how to play chess when I was 5 years old. He has always been my biggest fan. Not sure which of the two of us experienced more stress when I played in tournaments. I had a one way ticket to Khanty-Mansiysk (KM) for the World Cup. After getting knocked out, I quickly e-mailed my dad asking him to buy me a ticket back as soon as possible. Internet in KM was very slow. A few hours later, I had my return ticket. Typical of my dad. Doing whatever he can to help out. The women in my family don’t play chess. My mom has always been the calming influence that has kept everybody happy and sane. My sister gave birth to my nephew in July. That is the best memory I have from the last year, not to take anything away from chess.

I’d like to thank Tom Muir and Gordon Ritchie for their help. The two mentored me and provided me with guidance and friendship away from the board. They helped me with sponsorship. Without them, there wouldn’t be any.

From a chess perspective, the team of people I worked with consisted of GM Alexander Huzman, Liam Henry, IM Igor Zugic, IM Raja Panjwani, and a foreign GM who will remain nameless. I am very picky about who I work with, and each member of the team is a good friend, who has my full trust. Thank you to each of you for your contribution. I never had this kind of preparation before. The problem with opening preparation nowadays is that you most often develop a new idea and see it played by somebody else. A perfect example is from the game Morozevich-Svidler, which you can look at in this link. White’s 10th move is an idea that hasn’t been played at a high level but has been sitting in our preparation for about three months prior to this game.

Experiences in the last year have been scattered, ranging from a Hilton to a Monastery (Corsica), and from Tata Steel type of treatment to termites. In retrospect, it was all great. I had an unlimited number of chess stories before this year, and the quality of stories only grew. If you have known me on a personal level, there is a good chance you heard at least a few of them!

It’s time to open a new chapter in life and I look forward to it. I won’t forget where I came from, but it’s time for me to leave chess and pursue other goals. I don’t plan to play chess in the near future.

The blog will be kept up, but posting will stop. I enjoyed sharing my year with you and hope you enjoyed it too!

2011 Chess World Cup – A perspective from the Man from Down Under

I met Zong-Yuan Zhao (Yuan) while playing in the Australian Open Championship in January of 2007. The geography of the situation guaranteed that we would rarely see each other. We had an amusing encounter at the most recent Olymapid. We ran into each other before a game. We had a short chat and discovered that our opponents on that day would be Aronian and Topalov. Living in Canada and Australia has its advantages for chess players too;).

I was very fortunate to spend a lot of time with Yuan at the most recent World Cup. Our backgrounds are very similar – top chess players of great countries but that lack a chess tradition.

I have met a lot of chess players over the years. Yuan is hands down one of my favourite people in the world of chess. His story is an amazing one, as he finished a degree in Pharmacy which he followed up by working a year in the field before deciding to study medicine, his current occupation. Oh yeah, he’s also a Grandmaster rated 2570. When our adventures were coming to an end I asked Yuan to write an article for my blog and he gladly agreed. Enjoy the detailed account, I certainly did!

“My name is Zong-Yuan Zhao, a 25 year old Australian, currently living in Sydney and studying 2nd year post-graduate medicine, having previously completed a bachelors in pharmacy.  I consider myself a complete non-professional when it comes to chess although I am extremely passionate about the game and have worked hard on it for more than 15 years.  This was already my second time representing the Oceania region (this FIDE-designated geographical area includes countries like Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Palau and potentially other Pacific Islands).  I have very pleasant memories of my previous 2007 World Cup sojourn (held in Khanty Mansyisk as well) when I got to face the now “Great Magnus” (current world no.1 Magnus Carlsen from Norway) just before he reached true greatness – after beating me he jumped from something like 2670 – 2720 in one rating list, I must have made the bulk of that Elo contribution right 🙂

That was a great learning experience but it was only the start of my European tour to seek my GM norms and he told me afterwards that he thought I would be able to do it.  I didn’t take the man too seriously as I thought he was merely consoling me after snapping me 2-0 in the match but I can now report he has a future in the soothsaying business, doubtlessly like some of his Nordic ancestors –  I went on to achieve 3 GM norms out of my next 4 tournaments in Europe…

I had the pleasure of meeting Mark Bluvshstein when he visited Australia at the beginning of 2007 in Canberra for the biennial Australian Open held in Australia’s capital, Canberra.  At that time as I recall it he was about to start university and the Australian tour was a small “chess tourist” holiday before he would be more confined to his academic interests.

Fast forward now to 25th September 2011, about 5pm at Moscow Domododevo airport with me wandering around aimlessly inside the gigantic yet quite overcrowded airport.  As I wheeled my baggage past the “Business to Bussiness Cafe” I suddenly recognised the slightly raised, blond crew-cut of a familiar figure.  “Mark” I blurted out, the man looked slightly confused first of all, probably because we were in Russia and very few people would call this name this “English” way.  Eventually we made eye contact and my voyage from Sydney-Khanty Mansyisk for the 2011 Chess World Cup was about to get much better.  My flight from Sydney-Abu Dhabi was cancelled and then rescheduled about 15 hours later which meant I missed my connecting flights from Abu Dhabi-Moscow and Moscow-Khanty Mansyisk.  What was meant to be a 30 hour trip had already turned into the third day on the road (or in the sky since I was mostly flying) for me by the time I reached Moscow Domododevo airport.  I was simply so relieved that I found someone familiar who also spoke English.

Of course, as fellow chess colleagues we quickly started socialising and catching up on the last 5 years since we last saw each other.  Mark offered his English-Russian translation services and valiantly tried to change my air ticket to the same flight as him on the evening of 25th September.  However, it was not quite to be, as I had to spend one more evening at the airport hotel before I could jet-off to my final destination in Khanty Mansyisk.

I arrived in Khanty Mansyisk early on the morning of 27th of September (2 days later than what I planned, all due to my cancelled flight from Sydney) and having crashed in my room for about 8 hours I went out to get my World Cup player’s accreditation and then pleasantly ran into Mark and his fellow Canadian colleague, Eric Hansen.  In fact this was the beginning of a somewhat short but very meaningful friendship between the three of us as we spent most of our spare time aside from the chess together.  The first thing we did was go off and get some afternoon dessert at a cafe quite close to the Olympiad Hotel (where many participants of the 2010 Chess Olympiad was housed).  Apparently for Eric, there at this puny but beautiful little cafe he had his first flirting (one of many more for sure) with the famous “banana split”.  Funnily enough as Mark explained, despite the Cyrillic-English alphabet differences the pronunciation of this was almost English-like.  We started teasing Eric about his first “banana-split” but I somehow have a feeling this was sort of understood by the pretty waitress who was making Eric’s banana split and she really did make it very special for him, I only wish we had captured it on camera.  Next we went across the road to a little snack bar on wheels and Mark attempted to order two Russian snacks which I would describe as being quite similar to Turkish Pides (like a pizza but in a different shape and the topping is sometimes sealed inside).  They were delicious but the main thing I remember was Mark teaching me the pronunciation and I thought one of them was rather close to what sounded like…”gibberish” 🙂 I am sure Mark will correct my tongue twisting misunderstanding. (Cheburek-MB;))

In the chess scheme of things, this time my opponent in the first match (each match consists of 2 classical games followed by rapid, blitz and armageddon games on an as needed basis) was the 2710 Russian GM Evgeny Tomashevsky.  As I write these passages I checked the latest chess news and he has “cruised” to round 3 of the World Cup where he is facing the top Azeri GM Vugar Gashimov (world no.11).  I say cruised because his victory over me at least was indeed very cruisy as I was dispatched with few chances.  In the first game, I snatched a pawn early on in a Catalan on the black side and got this position:

I have been dismally outplayed and if white had played 23.b4 here I may have soon passed out at the board due to asphyxiation 🙂  Instead my opponent continued his manoeuvres and somehow I managed to improve my position to this:

 

At this point after white’s last move, 35.Qb1 I recall both of us had only about 1 minute left and my opponent was clearly getting very nervous  (first time control at move 40, where each player got an additional 30 minutes, note that there is also a 30 second increment from the start of the game) .  I got very excited as I saw possibilities of moves like 35…c5 or simply just 35…Qb6 but then it hit me.  I played the highly excitable 35…Nb6?? thinking that this wins an exchange since the rook can’t retreat to c2 as then the knight is hanging.  My opponent broke this “logical argument” by playing 36.Rc5! Bxc5 37.Rxc5 and I resigned shortly after, feeling quite depressed.  From a purely chess point of view, 35…c5! which I thought about briefly before “blurting out” my blunder was very strong and ensures black a good game.  What a pity…

Unfortunately Mark and Eric also posted the same dismal result and we shared our woes together that evening at a lovely Russian restaurant which Mark and I went back to together every night for the remainder of our stay in Khanty Mansyisk. (Night City Restaurant-MB)

In the second game, my opponent showed his true colours as he solved my anti-Marshall riddle:

The position comes after 19.Bxc4.  The following phenomenon I am sure is familiar to chess enthusiasts and professionals alike.  Strangely enough I had this position in my analysis on the computer with the evaluation that white is slightly better.  The line the engines gives is something like 19…a5!? (which mortal which think of that? If one does think of it, I would check his DNA and accuse him of cheating by selling his soul to be a silicon) followed by 20…Rb7!.  Okay, the moves are sort of conceivable but the plan as a whole is distinctly without “clear” human logic.  My opponent continued instead 19…Bg4 20.Bf1 Bb4! (forcibly coming in to e1 with his rook) 21.Qb3 Bxf3! (this is the sort of move harder to make for a strong grandmaster than an average 2300 player because one has to see the follow up well in advance, otherwise giving up such a strong bishop would be a grievous sin which condemns one to the chess sin bin) 22.Qxf3 Re1 23.Qd3 leading to the following position:

What would you expect black to play?

Just to keep you in suspense for a moment longer, at this point whilst my opponent was pondering his move, I got up to use the restroom and have a quick bite at the little snack bar they set up for the players.  I was feeling really quite confident as it still hadn’t occurred to me what black was planning.  I am pretty sure Evgeny had already envisaged the following move when he spent a long time pondering his 19th move, truly grandmaster foresight! 23…Qg6! this is a really nice move.  It’s a bit against intuition to initiate a queen exchange but once one realises that exchanging queens is very bad for white due to the back rank pin, it all makes sense 24.Qc4?! (instead 24.Qxa6! Qc2 25.Kg2! seems to be a draw as now black should opt for 25…Qe4+ 26.Kg1 Qc2 with repetition.  If 25…Rxc1 then 26.Rxc1 Qxc1 27.Bc4! seems to be somewhat better for white) 24…Qe4 25.a3 Bc5! (a simple tactic as my opponent described it but one I missed and still quite cute I think) 26.Ra2? (26.b3 Qxd4 27.Ra2 Qxc4 28.bxc4 Rxc1 29.cxd5 cxd5 30.Kg2 a5 31.a4 I saw but dismissed quickly because here I may draw but anyway then the match is lost) 26…Qb1 26.Bd2 Rd1! and I simply have too many awkward pieces and soon I was mercifully knocked out by my opponent.

So after losing 2-0 I enjoyed one more “rest day” as I had originally booked my return flight to Sydney in case I made the rapid/blitz tiebreaks if the match is tied after the first two games.  Instead the Canadian/Australian trio embarked on another wander around Khanty Mansyisk.  We visited a lovely Bavarian style restaurant and had a very nice lunch for only 300 roubles (just over 10 USD) and then we strolled back to the tournament venue and enjoyed the action as other players had to sweat it out in the tiebreaks.  There was a really good computer room/analysis area where each game was broadcast live (actually there were live camera feeds for some of the top games and one could clearly see the player’s facial expressions, simply awesome!) and in addition each computer was equipped with Houdini (no.1 chess engine in the engine rankings and maybe of humanity too!) so that even players like me could instantaneously pick up embarrassing episodes in the games of the greats like Karjakin and co.  For dinner that evening I recall that Eric ordered a gigantic pizza (I think it was larger than “family size” by Australian standards) which took less than 10 minutes to make (really impressive as so called fast food pizza chains I know of take at least 15-20 minutes) and afterwards I believe he even made the acquaintance of a local Russian lady who is about to move to his home town in Canada.  I think Eric is flying home 2 days later than Mark and I but we feel we leave him in good company as we departed home.

Many players ask me about what I think of the World Cup in Khanty Mansyisk.  My answer to the question depends on the emphasis which the person asking the question has: Khanty Mansyisk is a beautiful city with rich customs and very friendly people and the chess events held there, whether it be World Cups or Olympiad are simply very well organised, I would say of top class.  The only down-side, at least for a man from the Land Down Under is that this is simply a place very, very, very…far away! However, my final emphasis would be for the experience and chess it’s well worth it and I would do it again and again and again!

Thank you Mark and Eric! You guys are what made this experience even more memorable as I felt we shared a little bit of our special journey together.  This World Cup really stands out in my memory because of both of you.  May the Canadian/Australian bond grow ever stronger and I hope one day I will get a chance to visit your Northern Lands!”

Game 2

After losing the first game, I needed to win the second one to take the match into overtime. Playing in these all-or-nothing situations is somewhat of an art. Historically, my must-win results are quite good. I clinched my first GM norm by winning the last three games of a Round Robin event. I clinched my last GM norm by beating GM Novikov (at the time rated over 2600) with the White pieces in what must be considered one of my best games ever.

This was a different story. Both players are extremely motivated at the World Cup. The goal was to seriously complicate the matter without going overboard crazy. The first task was choosing the opening. Realistically speaking, it’s more pleasant to play for the win with White than to play for a draw with Black in this situation. Pleasantness is not really a decisive factor though.

While preparing for the match I shortly considered playing 1.e4, but decided against it in consideration that my opponent is a Caro Kahn specialist. I have alternated my first move only once over the last year. Against 1.d4 my opponent usually plays the Nimzo Indian. So preparation should be easy, right? Not so much. It’s important to consider all of the enemy’s cards.

My opponent had been around a lot of Gruenfeld in recent times during his role as Grischuk’s second. Riazantsev used to play the opening himself and I have shown little to demand fear against it. Another potential weakness he could try to exploit was the Queen’s Gambit Declined. Everybody has been playing it recently. Fortunately for the liveliness of chess, Aronian-Harikrishna (2011), as well as some other games that followed succeeded in throwing more wood into the fire. I have shown “softer” preparation against this opening. It was about covering all bases. Considering the match situation, I was quite sure the Gruenfeld was not a serious option.

The Nimzo had more than a 50% chance of appearing on the board. That’s exactly what happened. So what was the plan?

[Event “?”]
[Site “?”]
[Date “2011.08.29”]
[Round “?”]
[White “Bluvshtein”]
[Black “Riazantsev”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[ECO “A00”]
[PlyCount “154”]
[EventDate “2011.08.28”]
[SourceDate “2011.08.29”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Qd3 Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8.
Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 Qb6 10. dxc5 Qxb2 11. Rb1 Qa3 12. Qd4 O-O 13. Bg2 Na6 14. Ne4
Qa5+ 15. Qd2 Qc7 16. Rb5 Rb8 17. Qd4 b6 18. cxb6 Rxb6 19. Rg5 e5 20. Qxe5 Qxe5
21. Rxe5 d6 22. Re7 Be6 23. O-O Bxc4 24. Nc3 Rb2 25. Rxa7 Rc2 26. Bd5 Rxc3 27.
Bxc4 Rxc4 28. Rxa6 Rc2 29. e3 Rb8 30. Rd1 g6 31. Raxd6 Rxa2 32. Rd8+ Rxd8 33.
Rxd8+ Kg7 34. g4 Ra5 35. h4 h5 36. g5 Ra4 37. Rd4 Ra2 38. Kg2 Kf8 39. Kg3 Ra3
40. Kf4 Ra2 41. f3 Ra3 42. Ke4 Ra1 43. Ke5 Ra3 44. Ke4 Ra1 45. Rb4 Kg7 46. Kf4
Ra3 47. Rb1 Ra2 48. e4 Re2 49. Rb7 Ra2 50. Rb3 Rg2 51. Rb1 Re2 52. Kg3 Ra2 53.
Re1 Ra3 54. Kf4 Ra2 55. Re3 Rg2 56. Re1 Ra2 57. Kg3 Ra3 58. Kf2 Ra2+ 59. Re2
Ra1 60. Kg2 Ra3 61. f4 Ra4 62. Kf3 Ra3+ 63. Re3 Ra1 64. Kg2 Ra4 65. Kg3 Rb4 66.
f5 gxf5 67. exf5 Rg4+ 68. Kh3 f6 69. Re6 fxg5 70. Rg6+ Kf7 71. hxg5 Rf4 72.
Rf6+ Kg7 73. Rg6+ Kf7 74. Ra6 Rxf5 75. Kh4 Rf1 76. g6+ Kg7 77. Kxh5 Rf5+
1/2-1/2

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 This was supposed to be a semi-surprise. I played this move in a few games without much success. 4.f3 and e3 have been my main weapons for a lot of years. My opponent did not have many games in this line and I did not know what to expect. He never played the next move before. 4… c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Qd3 Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8. Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 Qb6?! This move was made famous by the game Kasparov-Karpov in 1985. However, it’s dubious. 9…Nc6 has become the main move where 10.dxc5 b6! leads to rather balanced positions, but 10.d5!? Nd4 11.Bg2 Nb3! 12.Rd1 leads to a very interesting position where White sacrifices a pawn or two for optimal piece activity, as in Moiseenko-Bluvshtein, 2004.

I knew that this move is not supposed to be very good and I remember looking at it. Just didn’t remember why. I reacted well. 10. dxc5 Qxb2 11. Rb1 Qa3 Taking the a2 pawn is dangerous because White places his Queen on c3. 12. Qd4 O-O 13. Bg2 This much was all in the notes. 13… Na6 13…Nc6 leaves Black with some serious problems after 14.Bxc6, after which the White Knight gains supremacy over the Bishop. 14. Ne4 Black is running into some difficulties. Even though White’s pawns are scattered, Black’s forces are currently immobile. 14… Qa5+ The greedy 14…f5 15.Nd6 Qxc5 16.Qxc5 Nxc5 17.Rb5! lands Black in trouble 15. Qd2 Qc7 16. Rb5! The Rook will be useful on that square. 16… Rb8 16…f5 17.Nd6 Nxc5 18.Qd4 Na4 19.g4! leaves Black’s forces immobile once again, as White prepares an offensive.

If Black can peacefully play b6 and regroup his position will be fine.17. Qd4 White prepares against b6. 17… b6 18. cxb6 Rxb6 19. Rg5! The idea of it all, the rook lift. Black’s choices are limited. 19… e5 20. Qxe5 Qxe5 21. Rxe5 d6 21…Rb1+ 22.Kd2 Rb2+ 23.Kc3 Rxa2 24.Kb3! traps the Rook, as 24…Rxe2 will be answered by 25.Nf6+ 22. Re7 Gotta keep that Rook active and creating problems. 22… Be6 23. O-O Bxc4 24. Nc3! The ideal square for the Knight, from where it controls everything. 24… Rb2 Black stays aggressive.

25. Rxa7? A rushed decision. Much stronger was 25.Rc1! (stopping Rc2) 25…Bxa2 26.Nxa2 Rxa2 27. Rxa7, where Black will not have any choice but to go for a Rook+Bishop+4 VS Rook+Knight+3 on the same side, giving White good winning chances. I was looking for something more straightforward. 25… Rc2 26. Bd5 Rxc3 27. Bxc4 Rxc4 28. Rxa6 Rc2

This is a tough nut to crack. 29. e3? 29.Rd1! Rxe2 30.Rdxd6 would have offered White better winning chances than the text, but with careful play from Black it feels like the game should still end in a draw. 29… Rb8 30. Rd1 g6 31. Raxd6 Rxa2 32. Rd8+ Rxd8 33. Rxd8+ Kg7 34. g4 White tries to gain a preferable pawn structure, as Black ideally plans to play h5. I will not go into analyzing this endgame in-depth. The position is a draw and Black stays alive with accurate defense. 34… Ra5 35. h4 h5 36. g5 Ra4 37. Rd4 Ra2 38. Kg2 Kf8 39. Kg3 Ra3 40. Kf4 Ra2 41. f3 Ra3 42. Ke4 Ra1 43. Ke5 Ra3 44. Ke4 Ra1 45. Rb4 Kg7 46. Kf4 Ra3 47. Rb1 Ra2 48. e4 Re2 49. Rb7 Ra2 50. Rb3 Rg2 51. Rb1 Re2 52. Kg3 Ra2 53. Re1 Ra3 54. Kf4 Ra2 55. Re3 Rg2 56. Re1 Ra2 57. Kg3 Ra3 58. Kf2 Ra2+ 59. Re2 Ra1 60. Kg2 Ra3 61. f4 Ra4 62. Kf3 Ra3+ 63. Re3 Ra1 64. Kg2 Ra4 65. Kg3 Rb4

No more progress can be made before advancing the f-pawn. 66. f5 gxf5 67. exf5 Rg4+! 68. Kh3 f6! Black forces the fixing of the pawns. 69. Re6 fxg5 70. Rg6+ Kf7 71. hxg5 71.Rxg5 Rf4 72.Rxh5 Kf6 is drawn as well. 71… Rf4! 72. Rf6+ Kg7

White is in zugzwang. 73.Kh2 Rh4+ 74.Kg3 Rg4+ allows Black to take the pawn. The rest is just an attempt at a fighting spirit. 73. Rg6+ Kf7 74. Ra6 Rxf5 75. Kh4 Rf1 76. g6+ Kg7 77. Kxh5 Rf5+ 1/2-1/2

Wrap-up

I lost my match to GM Riazantsev by a score of 1.5-0.5. I won both opening battles but lost the fight in both games. In the first game I equalized with Black and was crushed in the middle game. In the second game I gained an advantage with White and failed to convert. I out-prepared my opponent but was outplayed over the board, which is what is most important in the end of the day…

In general, results are not everything. The process is very important. In my scenario, however, results are everything. I can’t say that I will dwell on the result for too long. Other things await. Non-chess related things.

The World Cup continues. In the second round, my opponent drew both games against GM Nepomniachtchi (rated 2718) but then lost the playoffs in active games.

A very positive note on the tournament is GM Moiseenko, who used to be an annual visitor to the Canadian chess scene. His current rating is 2725 and he is on to the third round. I had a brief chat with him during the tournament and he appears to be extremely determined. Good luck to him for the rest of the tournament!

Another interesting note, there is an open tournament in KM for those eliminated in the first round. I have still not seen the tournament advertised, but one hears rumors.

Below are some more photos from the event. Next article will be a concluding article on my year as well as general thoughts.

Not all signs from the 2010 Olympiad are down

Local old-fashioned restaurant

Eric and Yuan

Friendly ogre in a mall

We really looked like tourists here

Favourite restaurant in KM: “Night City Restaurant”. If you are in the area, stop by. Probably not worth 30 hours of traveling though

 

Game 1

An important factor in playing at the World Cup is general fatigue from the travel, as well as jet lag. A good night’s sleep usually does the trick for me when it comes to fatigue. I’ve benefited from good sleep during my chess travels. Research says that one needs a day to adjust for every hour of time difference. KM represents a 10 hour time difference with Toronto. We do what we can to deal with the situation. The simple task of staying well hydrated and eating well helps. My own advice is to try to adjust on the first night by not listening to your body and instead listening to the clock. Then there is game day. I try to get into my pre-game rhythm with the usual 1.5-2 hour nap, followed by a shower. I’m not sure how jet lagged I was going into the first round.  Either way, jet lag is just another factor players need to deal with.

I was to play with Black in the first game. I had been preparing for my opponent for about three weeks before the match started. GM Alexander Riazantsev is known as one of the best theoreticians out there. As a second, he made a big contribution to Grischuk’s opening resurrection and his fine performance at the Candidates Matches earlier this year. A decision needed to be made in regards to openings.

I had become rather easy to prepare for, playing the Nimzo, Queen’s Indian and Benoni structures almost exclusively against 1.d4. The lazy way to play this match would be to just continue this streak and see how it goes. This would also be extremely dangerous, since it would be my opponent who chooses the specific line in the opening. Testing his preparation while not really knowing what he would go for was dangerous, especially considering my opponent’s reputation. On the other hand, this was to be my last tournament. Preparing and playing a new opening with Black seemed like a very time consuming activity.

A lot of my opponent’s games were studied in an attempt to find weaknesses. A weakness was found – the Queen’s Gambit Accepted (QGA). The hard-working route was chosen. The new opening also created a new interest in the game, as opposed to just playing some old systems that would generate a lot of repetition. The new opening generated freshness in ideas. It also created more risk and more potential for reward. Most of all, I wanted to play some interesting chess, which has been lacking the last few tournaments. New openings also create motivation.

I had been flirting with other openings, against both 1.e4 and 1.d4 at different times. By flirting I don’t mean thinking about it. I mean actually preparing those openings for a week or longer. The time never seemed right and the short-term risk seemed to be greater than the long-term reward with those new openings. Here, the case was different. With time to prepare, an opponent can really bust the usual opening.

A lot of preparation was done in the QGA. All lines needed to be analyzed, not just those recently played by my opponent. It was a lot of work. On with the game.

[Event “?”]
[Site “?”]
[Date “2011.08.28”]
[Round “?”]
[White “Riazantsev”]
[Black “Bluvshtein”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “D20”]
[PlyCount “75”]
[EventDate “2011.08.28”]
[SourceDate “2011.08.28”]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. e4 Nf6 4. e5 Nd5 5. Bxc4 Nb6 6. Bb3 Nc6 7. Ne2 Bf5 8.
Nbc3 e6 9. O-O Qd7 10. Be3 O-O-O 11. a3 Kb8 12. Qc1 f6 13. exf6 gxf6 14. Rd1
Bd6 15. Ng3 Bxg3 16. hxg3 Ne7 17. Bh6 Rhg8 18. a4 Nbd5 19. a5 Nxc3 20. bxc3 Be4
21. Re1 Bd5 22. Rb1 Nf5 23. c4 Bc6 24. d5 exd5 25. cxd5 Bxd5 26. Rd1 Ne7 27.
Be3 Qe6 28. Qc5 b6 29. Bf4 Ka8 30. Qxc7 Rd7 31. Qc3 Rc8 32. Bxd5+ Rxd5 33. Qf3
Qc6 34. axb6 Rxd1+ 35. Qxd1 axb6 36. Qe2 Qd7 37. Ra1+ Kb7 38. Qa6+ 1-0

1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. e4 Nf6 4. e5 Nd5 5. Bxc4 Nb6 6. Bb3 Nc6 7. Ne2 Bf5 8. Nbc3 e6 9. O-O Qd7 10. Be3 O-O-O 11. a3 Kb8 12. Qc1 One of several playable moves here. 12… f6!?  

All preparation so far. My last move is a novelty that attempts to improve on Illescas-Karjakin from 2005. I was aiming at a position like this, where the two sides castle in opposite directions. I was looking for a highly dynamic position with the Black pieces that can end in all three outcomes. 13. exf6 13.Rd1 was the main move analyzed. 13… gxf6 14. Rd1 Bd6 15. Ng3 This is the first move that made me think during the game. 15… Bxg3 15…Bg6!? was a very playable alternative, where the h-pawn will later advance. 16. hxg3 Ne7 Black aims to become very solid by placing a Knight on d5 and fully consolidating against White’s two Bishops.

17. Bh6!? A creative idea that stops the h-pawn from advancing, threatens Bg7, and prepares a4. 17…  Rhg8 18. a4 Nbd5 19. a5 Things have been quite natural up to this point.

The position is about equal. Black is very solid, controls some important squares and has no weaknesses. However, White has the two Bishops and some potential for an attack. Black needs to play 19… a6!  20. Na4 Qd6 21.Nc5 Rg4 where the position remains approximately equal. I decided to go in a different way. 19… Nxc3? The most gentle way I can describe this move is as “anti-positional”. In a more emotional state, I have to describe it as idiotic. Black changes White’s pawn structure in an attempt to place the Bishop on the long diagonal. But those pawns get rolling. This makes White’s life much easier. I just shot myself in the foot. 20. bxc3 Be4 21. Re1 Bd5 22. Rb1 Nf5 I had underestimated what was coming. 23. c4 Bc6

White’s pieces are well placed and he goes for the kill. 24. d5! After this move, White is close to winning. 24… exd5 25. cxd5 Bxd5 26. Rd1 Ne7 26…c6 27.a6 b6 28.Qf4+ Ka8 29.Rxd5! cxd5 30.Ba4 creates unstoppable threats. 26…Qe6 37.Bf4 Rg7 38.Qc5 is winning easily. 26…Qf7 27.Rxd5 Rxd5 28.Qc6! Rgd8 29.a6!! wins the house.

27. Be3 Qe6 28. Qc5 b6 29. Bf4! White leaves his Queen under attack 29…bxc5 30. Bxd5+ wins easily. 29… Ka8 Black’s position is lost and he plays some desperate moves in time trouble. 30. Qxc7 Rd7 30…Rc8 31.Qxe7! would have been another pretty finish. 31. Qc3 White’s attack is just too much. 31… Rc8 32. Bxd5+ Rxd5 33. Qf3 Qc6 34. axb6 Rxd1+ 35. Qxd1 axb6 36. Qe2 Qd7 37. Ra1+ Kb7 38. Qa6+ 1-0

I won the opening battle. My opponent then played extremely well to first create the initiative and then take home the point. My mistake on the 19th move cost me the game. This was a self-inflicted loss. Would this cost me the match? The next game would be all or nothing.

World Cup Part I

I qualified for the World Cup with my result in Mexico, back in April. I was looking forward to playing in the tournament but was certainly not looking forward to the process getting there. The travel is horrible. Khanty-Mansiysk (KM) is in the middle of nowhere. I left home at about noon on the 24th. Flew into Moscow on the morning of the 25th.  Waited there for 14 hours and then flew to KM to arrive at my hotel at, 5am KM time, on the 26th. 31 hours total after leaving my house. What a trip. Something tells me that the Moscow players who arrived at their KM hotel 7 hours after leaving home were not as grumpy;).

I didn’t sleep much on the way there. Some choppy sleep on planes and in the Moscow airport. Passed out at 6am at the hotel. Next thing I know, it’s 7pm. I vaguely recall turning off my alarm clock at 2pm. The bad stuff was over.

The above wasn’t even such a bad journey. Hal Bond had a similar travel time. Eric Hansen traveled for about as many hours from Calgary. His luggage was lost on the way. He got his luggage right before his second game.  Zong-Yuan Zhao is Australia’s best chess player. His flight was much worse. I actually ran into him at the Moscow airport. He was originally supposed to make it to KM on the 25th, but only got there on the 27th (a day after me)! Yuan agreed to be a guest-writer on this blog and he will give you some more details on that. The good thing is that after trips like these, a short travel to Europe is a joke;). Chess players build resilience.

Eric got to KM on the morning of the 27th. We went to buy him a shirt. Delayed luggage takes time to get to KM. Then we went to see the city. My experience is not that of most Canadians. I speak Russian and feel very comfortable with the people. People in KM are very nice, especially by comparison to those in Moscow. This might sound strange to you if you have never been to Russia. Hotel staff generally has poor English, but you can’t find any English off the hotel grounds. This was my second time in KM, both as a player and a translator. I already knew the city well. We were staying beside a grocery store which I visited last year and very close to the bank.

The formalities started with the Player’s Meeting. The meeting stated the obvious: the tournament is not organized for the players. No tolerance on lateness. You must sit at the board when the game starts. No excuses. No electronic communication devices allowed. To a question on whether players were allowed to take photos, the chief arbiter replied by going around in many circles to finally let us know that we are not allowed to have cameras in the playing hall. There is professional media for that. Something that should also be clarified is the living arrangements. There were four hotels for the event. As usual, the FIDE officials and arbiters were placed in the best one, while the players were spread among the other ones.

Then came the opening ceremony, which was beautiful. It also included the drawing of lots – the only thing the players cared about. A lot of the players left right upon hearing their colour for the first game to go on and prepare. This was followed by a small reception.

The first round was to take place the next day. Below are some photos. Game one to come in the next post.

The room

Watch your step as you enter the washroom

Entrance to Victory Park

Ummm… this looks familiar from 2010

What used to be Olympic Hotel. No longer operating

Theater where Opening Ceremony took place

A local park

Memories of childhood?

KM is quite modern but still has places like this

World Chess Cup sign

IM Eric Hansen in front of the tournament hall

The Players Meeting

French GMs Fressinet and Vachier-Lagrave at the Opening Ceremony

FIDE President Ilyumzhinov and Mayor of KM

One of the beautiful performances at the Opening Ceremony

The reception

Off to the World Cup

I’m sitting at the Pearson Airport, with some time to kill before flying to Russia. Second time to Khanty-Mansiysk in less than a year, this time for the World Cup.

I will be playing against GM Riazantsev, ranked 50th in the world, in the first round. I don’t know when I will be coming back. Hopefully not too soon. It’s somewhat ridiculous that chess players (including myself) hope to qualify for the World Cup, to go to Khanty-Mansiysk, and half the players will be gone within a week. But such is life.

From a spectator’s point of view, the World Cup is great. People getting knocked out every round, there is always action. It’s the playoffs, with round robin tournaments being the regular season. More is on the line.

For the players, the first round can resemble a boxing match. We know the enemy and we prepare for him for an extended period of time. Prepared for every jab, we are preparing our own hooks.

This is an exclusive tournament. I will report back when I am home. Time for work. Game one is on Sunday.

2011 World Cup

The World Cup will start at the end of this month. The event is a 128 player knock-out that will once again take place in Khanty-Mansiysk. The city held the 2005, 2007 and 2009 World Cups, as well as the 2010 Olympiad. You can dig up my reports on the Olympiad from September and October 2010.

Khanty-Mansiysk is in Western Siberia. It’s easy to be skeptical. However, there are advantages to having events in “remote locations”. It’s a big event for the locals. Everybody knows about it, and the city does everything to accommodate it. This might have been more true with the Olympiad, where we had police officers directing traffic and NEVER making our buses wait on a left turn, but I expect good treatment once again. It’s a big event for the community, as their Wikipedia page shows.

Are there better places to go than Khanty Mansiysk? Well, I’ll ignore my own rhetorical question. It takes a very long time get there. There is also a 10 hour time difference with Toronto.

You can check out the tournament website here. There will be three Canadians taking part in the World Cup. Only one is certain of when he will leave, and that is IA Hal Bond. Hal will be one of the arbiters at the event.

The players do not have much stability. Elimination is the name of the game. 128 players. Matches include two serious time control games. A tie leads to rapid games. Another tie leads to blitz games. A final tie leads to Armageddon.

Simple math states that 50% of players are gone after the first round (maximum of 3 days), 75% gone after two rounds (6 days). I bought a one way ticket. I’ll figure out how to get back when the time comes.

Canadian IM Eric Hansen is paired against Super-GM Gashimov from Azerbaijan, rated 2760. I will be playing against GM Riazantsev from Russia, rated 2688. You can see the full first round pairings here. The pairings have already been changed once. No surprises are expected at this point.

The event is a lottery in a way, but also a very good way to test the nerves of the players. There are a lot of “approximately equal” players the the top. Take the 2009 World Cup as an example. GM Gelfand came out victorious. Not a fluke. At the 2011 Canadidates Matches, Boris beat GMs Mamedyarov, Kamsky and Grischuk to become the next challenger in the World Championship Match.

The tournament is one of a kind. We all prepare, play hard, and hope for the best.

The Decision

The decision was not last-minute. It was an easy one for me to make. The decision was made in April after winning the Pan-American Championships in Mexico. I knew it would only be a year of professional chess. The World Cup is a perfect final stop.
I have met a lot of professional chess players over the years and have always tried to absorb as much information as possible. This year did not throw any curve balls. It was just as advertised and the way I saw it before.
It would have been a shame to not have any results that stand out during this year. My results in Mexico and Cuba are certainly something to be proud of.
An important thing was the “last tournament”. Qualifying to the World Cup was big because it seems like the best way to end the year: with a big international event.
So why leave the world of chess? A much harder questions would be: “why stay in it?” Before this year, it was clear to me that I did not want to be a professional chess player. This year was, in part, about not having regrets and getting my chess fix. A big part of my early life was spent playing chess and it just made sense to do it full time for a year before starting a career elsewhere.
The world of chess is not a thriving one for the chess professionals. The situation in certainly not getting any better. The top 20 in the world make a good living, with the top five making a very good living. It pays to be a chess professional in India, China and Cuba due to government support. Eastern European countries also offer different opportunities. But this is Canada, where career opportunities are endless. It never made sense to be a professional chess player.
While young, the life style could be exciting. If there is a family to support, excitement turns into a desire to make ends meet and see the family more. There is no stability.
The more logical way to make a living in chess while living in North America is by giving lessons or starting a chess school. But that turns into a completely different ball game.
I will not be leaving chess completely. Not yet sure to what extent. The game has benefited me in many ways. At the age of 23, I have traveled the world and have been fortunate enough to experience things that only few get a chance to. Chess has taken me to 10 countries, outside of Canada, this last year alone. It is time to move on and think about the future.
I will change gears after the World Cup and pursue a career in investment banking. Until then, there is still work to be done…
Next is a post on the World Cup.

Canadian Open- Overview

#

Name

Rtng

Post

Rd 1

Rd 2

Rd 3

Rd 4

Rd 5

Rd 6

Rd 7

Rd 8

Rd 9

Tot

Prize

1

GM Joel Benjamin

2641

2646

+70

=27

+45

+21

=10

+9

+18

=3

=2

7.0

$4,200.

2

GM Dejan Bojkov

2544

2550

-95

+104

=136

+74

+67

+26

+31

+29

=1

7.0

$4,200.

3

GM Walter Arencibia

2537

2556

+96

+49

=34

+33

+16

+4

=29

=1

=7

7.0

$4,200.

4

IM Leonid Gerzhoy

2647

2645

+113

+37

+13

=10

+15

-3

=14

+21

=9

6.5

$255.

5

GM Mark Bluvshtein

2634

2634

+93

+46

+22

-11

+44

=12

+13

=7

=10

6.5

$255.

6

GM Alexander Shabalov

2618

2613

+71

=47

=39

+48

+25

+20

=10

=12

=13

6.5

$255.

7

GM Eduardas Rozentalis

2614

2619

+136

+106

+44

=29

=20

=11

+16

=5

=3

6.5

$255.

8

IM Nikolay Noritsyn

2597

2594

+72

+48

=16

=14

+88

-13

+25

=10

+30

6.5

$255.

9

GM Vitali Golod

2576

2577

+73

+89

=33

+34

=14

-1

+45

+28

=4

6.5

$255.

10

IM Artiom Samsonkin

2532

2549

+74

+90

+67

=4

=1

+17

=6

=8

=5

6.5

$255.

11

GM Eugene Perelshteyn

2532

2543

+75

+63

+25

+5

-29

=7

=21

=14

+31

6.5

$255.

12

FM Bindi Cheng

2500

2514

+77

+51

-29

+42

+37

=5

+32

=6

=17

6.5

$255.

13

IM Tomas Krnan

2470

2486

+78

+110

-4

+51

+38

+8

-5

+18

=6

6.5

$255.

14

GM Luis Manuel Perez Rodriguez

2467

2488

+114

+52

+17

=8

=9

=19

=4

=11

+35

6.5

$255.

15

IM David Cummings

2459

2461

=56

+115

+47

+50

-4

=40

+48

=19

+41

6.5

$255.

16

FM Shiyam Thavandiran

2447

2461

+57

+66

=8

+27

-3

+43

-7

+46

+29

6.5

$255.

You can find the full final standings here. When it was all said and done, GMs Benjamin, Bojkov and Arencibia tied for first place with 7/9. They were followed by a thirteen way tie for 4th place.

6.5/9 was not a good result for me. Prior to the tournament, I decided to play very sharp/risky chess. I felt like I could play every game, with both colours, for the win. This resulted in a lot of tactical and imbalanced positions. In my fourth round loss, I ran into serious problems after the opening. Just fell apart early on. I did not play that game well. When the position is extremely sharp, the price of every move goes up. The price for mistakes was very high in that one.

In rounds 6 and 8 I let my opponents out alive when the win was close. I let them slip at crucial points just when my advantage was becoming very clear. The killer instinct was missing towards the end. Could not squeeze the points when they were needed most. The 8th round could have ended differently, and with it a different story would be told. This was also true in rounds 3 and 7, even though resilience pulled out those wins in the end. But chess and life are not about “what ifs”. I did not maximize on points and fell half a point short.

You can see lots of photos from the event on the Monroi site.

I’d like to thank the organizing committee for running a great event. During the tournament, I found out that Victoria (BC) will organize next year’s Canadian Open. This is great news. I know a lot of members of their organizing crew and look forward to seeing them take on the challenge. Their CYCCs in 2005 and 2009 were very memorable ones. I was present at both.

It was also a great surprise to find out that the Toronto team is planning on having an annual international tournament in Toronto, called the Toronto International, to continue the tradition of good annul tournaments that started in 2009.

Next on my blog is my own version of “The Decision”. More chess or no chess after the World Cup? As well as why. I promise that I am not going to Miami.

Canadian Open- Part III

Round 7

I was paired against IM Tomas Krnan, rated 2390. Tomas played on the Canadian Olympic Team some years ago but has not been very active outside of Canada due to his studies. Tomas is an aggressive player who likes to attack so I did not mind something of the more “positional” type.

[Event “?”]
[Site “?”]
[Date “2011.07.15”]
[Round “?”]
[White “Krnan”]
[Black “Bluvshtein”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “A00”]
[PlyCount “96”]
[EventDate “2011.07.10”]
[SourceDate “2011.07.15”]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 a6 6. a4 d6 7. h3 Be6 8. Bxe6
fxe6 9. c3 O-O 10. Re1 d5 11. Nbd2 Bb6 12. b4 d4 13. cxd4 Bxd4 14. Nxd4 Qxd4
15. Nb3 Qd6 16. Be3 b6 17. b5 axb5 18. axb5 Na7 19. d4 Nxb5 20. Qd3 Rxa1 21.
Rxa1 Nxd4 22. Bxd4 exd4 23. Qxd4 Qxd4 24. Nxd4 c5 25. Nc6 Nxe4 26. Rb1 c4 27.
Rxb6 Nxf2 28. Rb4 c3 29. Rc4 Nd1 30. Nd4 Rd8 31. Nxe6 Rd2 32. Rc8+ Kf7 33. Ng5+
Ke7 34. Ne4 Rc2 35. Rc7+ Kf8 36. Rc8+ Kf7 37. Rc7+ Kg6 38. g4 Rc1 39. Kh2 c2
40. Rc6+ Kf7 41. Kg2 Ne3+ 42. Kf2 Rf1+ 43. Kxe3 c1=Q+ 44. Rxc1 Rxc1 45. Kf3 h6
46. Nd6+ Kf6 47. Ne8+ Kg6 48. h4 Rc6 0-1

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 a6 6. a4 d6 7. h3 Be6 8. Bxe6 fxe6 9. c3 O-O 10. Re1 d5 11. Nbd2 Bb6 12. b4

I played d5 a bit early and e5 could become a weakness soon. I had gone for this position considering my next move. 12… d4!? An attempt to complicate the pawn structure and take control of the d4 square. 13. cxd4 Bxd4 14. Nxd4 Qxd4 15. Nb3 Qd6 This is a crucial position. d3 and b4 are weaknesses, but Black’s doubled e-pawns are not something to be proud of. 16. Be3? 16.Ba3 b5 led to very unclear positions. Now, White is in trouble. 16… b6! Killing White’s Bishop. 17. b5 axb5 18. axb5 Na7 19. d4 Better was 19.Nd2 Qxd3 20.Qb1 Qxb5 21.Ra2, where White has strong pressure on Black’s extra pawns and might just be able to liquidate to a draw. 19… Nxb5 20. Qd3 Rxa1 21. Rxa1 Nxd4 22. Bxd4 exd4 23. Qxd4 Qxd4 24. Nxd4 c5! Trying to force 25.Nxe6 Re8 25. Nc6

I went for this endgame from far away. Black is up a pawn and if he can start pushing those pawns, things will turn out well. White hopes to pressure those pawns with the help of the Rook and Knight. 25… Nxe4 26. Rb1 c4! Passed pawns need to be pushed if possible. 26…Nxf2 is undesirable because of 27.Rf1, where Black needs to sacrifice the Knight on h3. 26…Rxf2 27.Rxb6 h6 was also possible 27. Rxb6 Nxf2?! 27…c3!? 28.Rb4 Nd2 29.Nd4 Rc8 30. Nc2 Ra8 would have been at least as strong as the text 28. Rb4 c3 29. Rc4 Nd1 30. Nd4 Rd8? Taking the wrong route with the Rook. 30…Rb8 31.Nxe6 Rb1 32.Kh2 Kf7 would have given Black a bigger advantage. 31. Nxe6 Rd2 32. Rc8+ Kf7 33. Ng5+ Ke7 34. Ne4 Rc2 I had originally gone for this position, believing that once I get Rc1 and c2 going the win would be easy. 35. Rc7+ Kf8 36. Rc8+ Kf7 37. Rc7+ Kg6 38. g4 Rc1

39. Kh2? The losing move. White should have played 39.Kf1! Ne3+ 40.Ke2 Nd5 41.Rc5 Nf4+ 42.Ke3 Nxh3 43.Rc6+ Kf7 43.Rc7+ Kf8 44.Nxc3, which would have given White good drawing chances. 39… c2 40. Rc6+ Kf7 41. Kg2 Ne3+ 42. Kf2 Rf1+ 43. Kxe3 c1=Q+ 44. Rxc1 Rxc1 The extra exchange is easy to convert. 45. Kf3 h6 46. Nd6+ Kf6 47. Ne8+ Kg6 48. h4 Rc6! Trapping the Knight and finishing the battle immediately. Otherwise, the Rook and King would have to work together to contain the Knight while pushing the White King back. 0-1

A high intensity game. Once again, I felt like I gave my opponent too many chances after getting a winning advantage, almost letting the win slip. This was an important win. Now it’s all about the last two rounds.

Round 8

I was paired against GM Rozentalis, rated 2571 in this round. I have known Eduardas for many years as he comes to Canada every summer. This was my first time on the White side of the board against him. Eduardas is known as a great technician, who excels in maneuvering and endgames. Of course, you don’t roam around 2600 for over 10 years by having serious weaknesses, but everybody has their specialty.

[Event “?”]
[Site “?”]
[Date “2011.07.16”]
[Round “?”]
[White “Bluvshtein”]
[Black “Rozentalis”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[ECO “E20”]
[PlyCount “125”]
[EventDate “2011.07.10”]
[SourceDate “2011.07.16”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 7. Nf3 O-O 8. Bd3
b6 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Qe2 Bb7 11. O-O Qc8 12. c4 dxc4 13. Bxc4 Ba6 14. Bxa6 Qxa6
15. Qxa6 Nxa6 16. Bb2 Rac8 17. Rfc1 Ne4 18. Kf1 f6 19. Ke2 Kf7 20. Ne1 Ke7 21.
Nd3 Kd7 22. a4 Rc7 23. Rxc7+ Nxc7 24. f3 Nd6 25. Rc1 Rc8 26. e4 Nce8 27. Rxc8
Kxc8 28. Nf4 Kd7 29. Kd3 b5 30. axb5 Nxb5 31. Kc4 Nbd6+ 32. Kb4 Nc7 33. g4 Nf7
34. Nd3 Ng5 35. Ne1 g6 36. Bc1 Nf7 37. Nd3 Na6+ 38. Ka5 Nb8 39. Be3 Nd6 40.
Nc5+ Ke7 41. Kb4 Nc6+ 42. Kc3 a5 43. Nd3 Kd7 44. h3 Ke7 45. Bf2 Kd7 46. Kb3 f5
47. e5 Nb5 48. Kc4 Nc7 49. Bh4 Nb4 50. Nc5+ Kc6 51. Bd8 fxg4 52. fxg4 Nbd5 53.
Bxc7 Nxc7 54. g5 Kb6 55. Nd7+ Kc6 56. Nf6 a4 57. Kb4 a3 58. Kxa3 Nb5+ 59. Kb4
Nxd4 60. Kc3 Nf3 61. Nxh7 Kd5 62. Nf8 Nxe5 63. Kd2 1/2-1/2

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 7. Nf3 O-O 8. Bd3
b6 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Qe2 Bb7 11. O-O Qc8 12. c4 dxc4 13. Bxc4 Ba6 14. Bxa6 Qxa6

My opponent offered me a draw after his last move. In a way, I lost the opening battle. My opponent got the type of a position that he wanted. White’s position might still be a bit more comfortable, but nothing tangible. I did not think about the draw offer very long and tried to create as many problems for my opponent as possible. 15. Qxa6 Nxa6 16. Bb2 Rac8 17. Rfc1 Preparing a route for the King. 17… Ne4 Black prepares f6 followed by a King march. 18. Kf1 f6 19. Ke2 Kf7 20. Ne1 There is not enough poison in the position to try to win after 20.Nd2 and the exchange of Knights. 20… Ke7 21. Nd3 Kd7 22. a4 Rc7 23. Rxc7+ Nxc7 24. f3 Nd6 25. Rc1 Rc8 26. e4 Nce8 27. Rxc8 Kxc8 It was clear to me from far away that it would get to this. Black is rock solid. How to break through? Well, there is no direct way to break through, just need to improve the place of the pieces, one at a time. 28. Nf4 Kd7 29. Kd3 b5 This is a tough position to play for Black as well, as there is no clear plan. My opponent decides to create a passed pawn, but at the price of weakening some squares. 30. axb5 Nxb5 31. Kc4 Nbd6+ 32. Kb4 It’s not clear where the King is going just yet, but it is clear that he might be powerful “around that area”. 32… Nc7 33. g4 A bit loose. 33.Nd3 would have been preferred. I wanted to force some sort of a weakening of the King-side. 33… Nf7 34. Nd3 Ng5 35. Ne1 g6 I finally got that weakening. 36. Bc1 Nf7 37. Nd3 Na6+ 38. Ka5 Nb8 39. Be3 Nd6 What now? I decided to bring the King back. 40. Nc5+ Ke7 41. Kb4 Nc6+ 42. Kc3?! a5?! The text is not a bad move, but Black could have forced a draw with 42…e5 43.d5 Nd4 44.Bxd4 Nb5+ 45.Kd3 Nxd4 46.Ke3, where the game will very soon end in a draw. 43. Nd3 Kd7

I assumed that my opponent will just stay in one place from now on. Once again, I need to focus on baby steps. Cannot try to win this immediately. Can I improve my position in any way? 44. h3! Any way you look at it, my pawn is better placed on h3. No rush. Moves like this can also give an opponent a headache. 44… Ke7 45. Bf2 Kd7 46. Kb3!? Thinking about playing Ka4 next. 46… f5 Pressure is building and Black has trouble staying still. 47. e5!? A practical decision, trying to complicated matters. 47.Nc5+ Ke7 48.gxf5 gxf5 49.Ka4 fxe4 50.fxe4 leaves very little material on the board to try to win. 47… Nb5 48. Kc4 Nc7? White would be unable to find a good plan after 48…Na3+ 49.Kc5 Nc2 49. Bh4 Now White has access to a lot of important squares. 49… Nb4 49…Na6, trying to contain White would have been stronger. 50. Nc5+ Kc6? 50…Ke8, leaving the c6 square for the Bishop would have still been hard to crack.

51. Bd8? I had completely miscalculated the endgame that is to come. 51.Be1! Nbd5 52.Bxa5 would have left White up a pawn with good winning chances. 51…Nba6 52.Nxa6 Nxa6 53.Bxa5 would have also left Black in serious trouble. A missed opportunity. 51… fxg4 52. fxg4 Nbd5 53. Bxc7 Nxc7 54. g5 Kb6 For some reason, I had calculated that White is winning in this endgame. However, there is not even a hint of a win on the horizon. The rest is straightforward. 55. Nd7+ Kc6 56. Nf6 a4 57. Kb4 a3 58. Kxa3 Nb5+ 59. Kb4 Nxd4 60. Kc3 Nf3 61. Nxh7 Kd5 62. Nf8 Nxe5 63. Kd2 1/2-1/2

I played this game well up until the 51st move. Black was forced to deal with a lot of over the board problems and made some mistakes due to this. This one got away.

Round 9

Last round morning games are not great for professional chess players. It’s not about being lazy or liking to sleep in. Chess players get into a routine that helps them perform best at the time of the round. This can include meals, naps, preparation, walks, etc. The early last round has become a tradition in a lot of tournaments. The above is really about something more important than morning rounds. If you are serious about playing chess, then your tournament lasts 24/7, as you do everything you can to perform your best during your game by developing an optimal daily routine. Morning rounds can throw it off.

I was paired against IM Samsonkin, rated 2378, in the final round. I knew that I needed to win to try to catch up to the leaders. I was also informed that Artiom needed a win to get a GM norm so I thought he would play aggressively. Things got interesting early on.

[Event “?”]
[Site “?”]
[Date “2011.07.16”]
[Round “?”]

[White “Samsonkin”]
[Black “Bluvshtein”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[ECO “A00”]
[PlyCount “63”]
[EventDate “2011.07.10”]
[SourceDate “2011.07.16”]

1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. f4 d5 4. fxe5 Nxe4 5. Qf3 Nxc3 6. dxc3 Be6 7. Bf4 Nc6 8.
Qg3 Ne7 9. Nf3 Qd7 10. Nd4 Nf5 11. Nxf5 Bxf5 12. Bd3 Be6 13. O-O-O O-O-O 14.
Kb1 h6 15. Rhf1 Be7 16. Be3 c5 17. Be4 g5 18. Bxd5 Bxd5 19. c4 Qe6 20. cxd5
Rxd5 21. Rxd5 Qxd5 22. Qh3+ Kb8 23. Qh5 Rf8 24. Qxh6 Qxe5 25. Bf2 Qe2 26. Bg3+
Kc8 27. Rc1 Qxg2 28. Re1 Qd5 29. a3 Qd7 30. Qg7 Rd8 31. Qxf7 Bd6 32. Qf6
1/2-1/2

1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. f4 d5 4. fxe5 Nxe4 5. Qf3 Nxc3 6. dxc3 Be6 7. Bf4 Nc6 A rare move. 8. Qg3

My opponent’s last move is a novelty. 8… Ne7? A strange move. I had originally intended to play 8…d4! 9.0-0-0 Qd5, where it is White who needs to focus on equalizing. Not sure what I saw to deter me from this. 9. Nf3 Qd7 10. Nd4 Nf5 11. Nxf5 Bxf5 12. Bd3 The last few moves have been very natural. White has more space and more potential for his pieces. White also has more weaknesses. 12… Be6 A very positionally sound move, as this Bishop needs to hold Black’s position together. Black is very solid. 13. O-O-O O-O-O 14. Kb1 h6 A bit slow. On a second look, the more aggressive 14…h5 shows more potential. 15. Rhf1 Be7 16. Be3

16… c5?! Creating weaknesses unnecessarily. 16…Kb8 is more sound. I had underestimated my opponent’s reply. 17. Be4! This move puts Black on his heels, as Bxd5 followed by c4 is a threat. 17…Qc6 18.Bf5 is exactly what White wants-to exchange the light squares Bishops. 17… g5! Good reaction, keeping the position very dynamic. 18. Bxd5 Bxd5 19. c4 Qe6 A part of me wanted to play 19…Bxc4 20.Rxd7 Rxd7 and sacrifice the Queen. However, there was a consensus within me that I would have to fight hard and only in the hopes of a draw in what would follow. 20. cxd5 Rxd5 21. Rxd5 Qxd5 This has all been forced. Now the position is very dynamic but still close to equal. 22. Qh3+ Kb8 23. Qh5 We had both spent a lot of time on 23.Qf5 Qxg2 24.e6 f6 and both thought that it is White who is on the ropes there. 23… Rf8 24. Qxh6 Qxe5 25. Bf2

The moment of truth. 25… Qe2 I should have probably played 25…f5 26.Re1 Qd6, where the position is dead equal. I was playing for more. 26. Bg3+ Kc8 There is nothing pleasant about 26…Ka8 27.Re1 Rd8 28.b3! 27. Rc1 After 27.Re1 Rd8 White needs to find 28.Qh3+ g4 29.Qh6! with an equal endgame. When I went for this position from far away, I thought it would be only me who is playing for a win. As it turns out, the Black King compensates for everything that is bad in White’s camp. 27… Qxg2 28. Re1! Now Black needs to be careful. 28… Qd5 29. a3 Qd7 30. Qg7 Black is all tied up and has to give the pawn back. 31.Qe5 is a deadly threat. 30… Rd8 31. Qxf7? 31.Qe5 Bd6 32.Qxg5 would have given White a slight edge which he can try to convert. 31… Bd6 32. Qf6 1/2-1/2 My opponent offered me a draw which I accepted. Neither side can seriously fight for a win after 32…Bxg3 33.hxg3 Qg4, but it is certainly White who is not risking anything at all here.

I needed to win this last round to tie for first place, which makes the result a disappointing one. I should have taken my chances on the 8th move. After that the fight seemed to balance off. Overall, my opponent played well and didn’t let the position slip in dangerous times.

Next is a review of the tournament as a whole.