Suspense all the way

The last two weeks have meant late nights for me again, no thanks to the women's world chess championship match being played in Tirana, Albania. We are seven hours ahead of Albania which means that when China's Hou Yifan and India's Humpy Koneru sit down to play, their games start at 10 o'clock at night over here.

Still, this is women's chess at the top-most level and it is well worth spending the effort to watch them play. It could be a momentous occasion. The match itself is carried live on the official website, http://www.wwcc2011tirana.com, but there are other sources providing better live coverage, such as on Susan Polgar's blog, http://susanpolgar.blogspot.com. 

The 17-year-old Hou is defending her women's world champion's title against Humpy, 24 years old, who became the challenger from the women's chess world cup series.

At the halfway stage of this 10-game match, Hou was holding a slim one-point lead over her rival, but she won again in the sixth game to increase her lead to two points. 

When I see the two ladies battle it out on the chess board, I couldn't but help think how well prepared they have been for this match. So far, each game has been a very intense struggle. 

To me, it seemed that Humpy, yearning to win the women's world championship title for the first time, was the one that kept asking for more in each game, probing for that little weakness in the position where she could press home that miniscule advantage but Hou the defending champion seemed equal to the task. Her defence has been superb.

What can you expect when one kept pressing on and the other kept putting up a solid defence? Why, the pressure would be neutralised till a draw ensued. And that has been what's happened in the first, second, fourth and fifth games.

In the third game, however, Humpy perhaps tried a bit too hard and overlooked a resource by her opponent. The result? The only decisive result in the first five games. 

As I wrote this week's story, the sixth game was being played. Before the game started, it was disclosed that Hou had spent several hours the day earlier in hospital for some severe stomach ailment, and the diagnosis was psychological pressure. 

However during the game itself, she showed no sign of the discomfort. There was a bit of early excitement as the Indian grandmaster went in for a pawn sacrifice in exchange for an enduring pressure against Hou's king. The Chinese player was forced later to give back the pawn. 

But despite holding on to the pair of bishops – theoretically better than a bishop and a knight – there was little that Humpy could do right after that. And once Hou forced the queens off the board and took command of the centre with her pair of rooks, Humpy's game began to become difficult.

By this time, both players were terribly short of time. With only two or three minutes left before reaching the time control, Humpy's game crumbled and Hou launched a final assault on the Indian player's king. Faced with the inevitable checkmate, Humpy threw in the towel and Hou claimed a 4-2 lead in the match.

I would believe that the lead of two points would be enough for the Chinese lass to retain her title. Already, Humpy is faced with the unenviable task of winning back the two lost games and she is fast running out of time and games. Between Tuesday and today, I would presume that nothing much would have changed after two more games.

If by a super-human effort Humpy does manage to catch up on her deficit and equalise the match (the ninth game is tomorrow and the 10th game is on Monday), the two women will go into a series of tie-break games on Nov 30 to determine the title.

Up next

Asian amateur open

The second Asian amateur open and women chess championship starts today at the Crowne Plaza Mutiara in Kuala Lumpur. According to the Malaysian Chess Federation which is organising this continental event on behalf of the Asian Chess Federation, about 100 players have registered for this FIDE-registered tournament which shall run until Dec 1. 

Predictably most of the participants will be Malaysians but there are many foreign players as well, making this event a very interesting mix. The organisers said most of the registered foreigners were from Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, India, Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines and even Nepal. 

Top prizes for the open section are USD1,500 (about RM4,500) for first, USD1,000 (about RM3,000) for second and USD800 (about RM2,400) for third. There are six other minor prizes that go down to USD200 (about RM600). For the women, there are four prizes with the best of them set to win USD400 (about RM1,200). There are also identical prizes for the four best unrated players.

Penang chess league

This year’s Penang Chess League will be held at the SJKC Kheng Tean in Van Praagh Road, Penang, on Dec 3 and 4. The two-day team event is open to teams from four broad categories: public sector, factories, institutions of learning and others. 

Each team shall comprise four players and an optional reserve. Average rating per team during play should not be more than 2100 points. Seven rounds, time control of one hour play-to-finish for each game. Entry fees are RM150 (open category), RM90 (under-18 teams), RM60 (under-12 teams). Closing date is Nov 29. 

More details available from Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

Penang heritage open

The Penang Chess Association (PCA) will organise the Penang heritage city open chess championship at the Tanjung Bungah Beach Hotel, Penang on Dec 6-10. Two separate events: open and challenger sections, both internationally rated. Nine rounds, 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.

Entry fees for the open event: free for Malaysian national masters and all players with FIDE ratings of above 2300 points, RM100 (PCA members) and RM150 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 2000 and 2299 points, RM150 (members) and RM200 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1800 and 1999 points, RM200 (members) and RM300 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1600 and 1799 points, and RM250 (members) and RM350 (non-members) for players without any FIDE rating.

Entry fees for the challenger event: RM50 (PCA members) and RM100 (non-members) for players with a FIDE rating, and RM100 (members) and RM150 (non-members) for unrated players. 

Closing date for all entries is Dec 1 and thereafter, all late entries will be charged double. Direct all inquiries to Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com). More information also at http://penangchess.com

Sarawak open

The Sarawak Chess Association will hold the Sarawak open chess tournament at the Ultimate Professional Centre, opposite the Pullman Hotel, in Jalan Bukit Mata Kuching, Kuching on Dec 12-16. Internationally-rated event played over nine rounds, 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment for each move.

Entry fees: Free for grandmasters and international masters (men and women), RM25 (ladies and all players below 16 years old) and RM50 (all other participants). The closing date for entries is Dec 5.

Details available from Morsin Ahmad (012.8949415, morsinab@sarawaknet.gov.my), Abang Mohd Reduan (019.8887786, reduan_sahari@bsn.com.my) and Lim Kian Hwa (016.8603180, limkhwa@gmail.com). 

 

Imagine that

As expected, there’s no live coverage at all of the nine chess competitions at the SEA Games in Palembang, Indonesia. The only details that are available from the official website are the round-by-round results.

Fortunately, the people running the chess competitions are all experienced international chess arbiters and they have taken a lot of trouble to ensure all the results can be viewed on the Chess-Results.com website. This is the only consolation so far.

The SEA Games are actually already winding down both in Jakarta and Palembang, and accordingly so too are the chess competitions. The men’s and women’s standard chess events and the rapid chess events started yesterday and will end on Monday. A blitz chess competition also on Monday will bring the proceedings to a close.

Earlier this week, the mixed pair standard chess team, the ASEAN chess individual and the blindfold chess individual events have been completed.

Like I mentioned last week, our blindfold chess players – I mentioned only Mok Tze Meng but have discovered subsequently that Jimmy Liew was also playing in the blindfold event – arrived in Indonesia not knowing what to expect from the organisers, only to find out later that during the blindfold games, a player and his opponent would be seated at an empty chess board.

There would be no dramatic blindfolds to cover their eyes. Instead, they were allowed to stare and concentrate on the empty squares of the chess board while their pieces danced and jiggled around in their minds. 

When they decided on a move to make, they would write down that move in long form algebraic notation on a piece of paper that they would pass on to the game controllers who then verified the moves on a normal chess board (with chess pieces) that would be out of the players’ sight. 

And the most newsworthy part was that infractions of the tournament rules, such as making an illegal move or not writing down the moves properly, would lead to the arbiters rendering YELLOW cards to the players after giving them an initial verbal warning. 

After two yellow cards, the third infraction during a game would lead to a RED card, which meant the automatic loss of the game. Very interesting regulation, indeed.

Let’s have a look at one of the games from the third round of the blindfold event. Perhaps by playing through this game, you can appreciate how much the players can compute even without sight of the chess board. Le Quang Liem is Vietnam’s top grandmaster but still, he managed to lose a blindfold game one round later to a Pinoy player.

Zaw Win Lay (Myanmar) – Le Quang Liem (Vietnam) 

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nd2 e6 5.Nb3 c5 6.dxc5 Bxc5 7.Nxc5 Qa5+ 8.c3 Qxc5 9.Be3 Qc7 10.Nf3 Nc6 11.Bb5 Nge7 12.Bc5 Bg4 13.0–0 Bxf3 14.Qxf3 Qxe5 15.Rfe1 Qc7 16.c4 0–0–0 17.cxd5 Rxd5 18.Rac1 Nf5 19.a4 Kb8 20.b4 Rhd8 21.Bf1 b6 22.Be3 Nxe3 23.Qxe3 Re5 24.Qc3 Rxe1 25.Rxe1 Nd4 26.Qh3 h6 27.Qg4 Nf5 28.a5 Rd4 29.Re4 Rxe4 30.Qxe4 bxa5 31.bxa5 Qxa5 32.g4 Nh4 33.Qf4+ Qc7 34.Qb4+ Ka8 35.Qf8+ Kb7 36.Qxg7 Qf4 37.h3 Nf3+ 38.Kg2 Ne5 39.Kg1 a5 40.Bg2+ Kc7 41.Qf8 a4 42.Qc5+ Kd7 43.Bf1 Nf3+ 44.Kg2 Nd4 45.Kg1 Ke8 46.Bg2 Kd8 47.Qf8+ Kd7 48.Qc5 Ne2+ 49.Kf1 Qc1+ 0–1

I had also mentioned last week about the start of the women’s world chess championship match between 17-year-old Hou Yifan of China and 24-year-old Humpy Koneru of India in Tirana, Albania.

They are already playing the fourth game of the match today. If the match goes the full distance, it will end on Nov 30 with the tie-break games. You can follow the match live from the official website, http://www.wwcc2011tirana.com. The games start at 10pm Malaysia time.

Up next

Penang age group

The Penang Chess Association is holding this year’s Penang age group chess championship for boys and girls over five Sundays. The final two events, for players under 15 and 17 years old, will be played this Sunday. Venue is the clubhouse of the Residents’ Association of Bayan Baru in Bandar Bayan Baru, Penang. Entry fees: RM15 (PCA members) and RM30 (non-members). For inquiries, contact Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

National scholastics

The Malaysian Chess Federation will organise this year’s national scholastics age group chess championships for boys and girls over two weekends. The under-13 and under-15 group events will be played tomorrow. Seven rounds for each event, time control of 60 minutes per game. Venue is the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre at the Wilayah Complex, Jalan Munshi Abdullah in Kuala Lumpur. Entry fees: RM40 (under-13 and under-15 events). 

The respective age group champions will be selected as the country representatives at the Asian schools chess championships in New Delhi, India on Dec 16-23. For inquiries, contact Zuraihah Wazir (017.2837808) or Najib Wahab (016.3382542).

Asian amateur open

The Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) will organise the second Asian amateur open and women chess championship in Kuala Lumpur from Nov 25 to Dec 1. The tournament is open to only Asian players who are either unrated or with an international rating of not more than 2100 points. Nine rounds with time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.

Entry fees are USD125 for players with international ratings and USD150 for non-rated players. Malaysians wishing to play will be charged at RM412 and RM495 respectively. Closing date for entries is extended to Nov 14. 

Top prizes for the open section are USD1,500 (about RM4,500) for first, USD1,000 (about RM3,000) for second and USD800 (about RM2,400) for third. There are six other minor prizes that go down to USD200 (about RM600). For the women, there are four prizes with the best of them set to win USD400 (about RM1,200). There are also identical prizes for the four best unrated players.

All inquiries and requests for entry forms to the event secretariat (najib.wahab@chess-malaysia.com).

Penang chess league

This year’s Penang Chess League will be held on Dec 3 and 4. Pending confirmation from the Penang Chess Association, there may be a change in the playing venue. The two-day team event is open to teams from four broad categories: public sector, factories, institutions of learning and others. 

Each team shall comprise four players and an optional reserve. Average rating per team during play should not be more than 2100 points. Seven rounds, time control of one hour play-to-finish for each game. Entry fees are RM150 (open category), RM90 (under-18 teams), RM60 (under-12 teams). Closing date is Nov 29. 

More details available from Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

Penang heritage open

The Penang Chess Association (PCA) will organise the Penang heritage city open chess championship at the Tanjung Bungah Beach Hotel, Penang on Dec 6-10. Two separate events: open and challenger sections, both internationally rated. Nine rounds, 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.

Entry fees for the open event: free for Malaysian national masters and all players with FIDE ratings of above 2300 points, RM100 (PCA members) and RM150 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 2000 and 2299 points, RM150 (members) and RM200 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1800 and 1999 points, RM200 (members) and RM300 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1600 and 1799 points, and RM250 (members) and RM350 (non-members) for players without any FIDE rating.

Entry fees for the challenger event: RM50 (PCA members) and RM100 (non-members) for players with a FIDE rating, and RM100 (members) and RM150 (non-members) for unrated players. 

Closing date for all entries is Dec 1 and thereafter, all late entries will be charged double. Direct all inquiries to Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com). More information also at http://penangchess.com

Sarawak open

The Sarawak Chess Association will hold the Sarawak open chess tournament at the Ultimate Professional Centre, opposite the Pullman Hotel, in Jalan Bukit Mata Kuching, Kuching on Dec 12-16. Internationally-rated event played over nine rounds, 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment for each move.

Entry fees: Free for grandmasters and international masters (men and women), RM25 (ladies and all players below 16 years old) and RM50 (all other participants). The closing date for entries is Dec 5.

Details available from Morsin Ahmad (012.8949415, morsinab@sarawaknet.gov.my), Abang Mohd Reduan (019.8887786, reduan_sahari@bsn.com.my) and Lim Kian Hwa (016.8603180, limkhwa@gmail.com). 

 

SEA Games chess starts

By the time you read this, our chess contingent of five men and four women should have arrived in Indonesia for the SEA Games. 

Altogether, there are nine separate competitions and consequently, nine gold medals at stake. First off for our players will be the mixed pair standard chess, the men’s individual ASEAN chess and the men’s individual blindfold tournaments from tomorrow until Wednesday.

Then on Nov 17 to 20, the women’s and men’s individual rapid chess tournaments will be played. Almost concurrently on Nov 17 to 21, there will also be the women’s and men’s individual standard chess tournaments. And finally, wrapping up the chess events will be the women’s and men’s individual blitz chess tournaments on Nov 17.

Our players donning the Malaysian colours at the SEA Games chess competitions are international masters Mas Hafizulhelmi, Lim Yee Weng, Jimmy Liew and Mok Tze Meng, Sumant Subramaniam, woman candidate master Nur Nabila Azman, woman Fide master Nur Najiha Azman, Tan Li Ting and Camilia Johari.

I was rather intrigued by the inclusion of a blindfold chess competition as one of the events. When I asked Malaysian Chess Federation secretary Gregory Lau about this, he professed bafflement as there was very little information how the organizers would be going about with it. 

Would the players actually be blindfolded or would they be staring at a computer screen with a blank chess board or would they be passing their moves on little bits of paper through the arbiters or …?  

Lau could not say but he did confirm with me that Mok would be our representative in this event. “It is already challenging enough to compete in normal games. What more playing without sight of the board or the pieces? Nevertheless, Mok could be our best bet to play blindfold chess,” he told me. 

I would want to wish our national players the best of luck because they will certainly need to play at their best. In South-East Asia, the two formidable chess power houses are Vietnam and the Philippines. And of course, the host country, Indonesia, is not far behind. Traditionally, their players are very strong too.

It will be great if we are able to follow the progress of the SEA Games chess through the Internet but don’t be surprised if we are unable to do so. I’ve seen nothing from the official SEA Games website that would suggest any real-time coverage. If at all, we may have to be satisfied with the final results only.

Apart from the SEA Games, one other international chess event looming next week is the start of the women’s world chess championship match between 17-year-old Hou Yifan of China and 24-year-old Humpy Koneru of India in Tirana, Albania, from Nov 14 until Nov 30.

Hou is the reigning women’s world champion, having won the title last year in a 64-player knock-out event. The regulations of the World Chess Federation (FIDE) required her to defend the title this year against the winner of the FIDE women’s grand prix cycle 2009-2011 but since Hou herself had won the chess grand prix, runner-up Humpy Koneru became the challenger instead.

According to the world standings, Humpy Koneru is rated higher than Hou and as such, hopes are running high in India that their player may be able to wrest the title from the Chinese girl. If this does happen, India will be in a unique position to boast of two world chess champions – both the men’s and the women’s chess titles – at the same time. 

However, having a higher ranking does not automatically mean that winning the match is a certainty for the Indian. Neither does past success guarantee new success in the future. This is something that the Chinese player is fully aware of. In previous head-to-head encounters at classical time control, Hou holds a six-game margin over Humpy Koneru, having beaten her in eight games while losing only two games and drawing six others. However, chess fortunes can easily change in this match which is contested over 10 games.

Unlike the SEA Games chess, it will be possible for us to follow the games of the women’s world chess championship match live from the official website, http://www.wwcc2011tirana.com

Last week, I showed one Malaysian game from the world youth under-16 chess Olympiad. Here is another interesting game from the last round of the event. It has a nice display of tactics and Black was probably lost by the 17th move.

Roshan Singh (Malaysia) – Egor Procop (Moldova)

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 d6 4. Nc3 g6 5. e4 Bg7 6. f4 O-O 7. Nf3 a6 8. a4 e6 9. Bd3 exd5 10. cxd5 Re8 11. O-O Nbd7 12. Nd2 Rb8 13. Nc4 Nb6 14. e5 dxe5 15. fxe5 Nfxd5 16. Nxd5 Nxd5 17. Nd6 Rf8 18. Bc4 Bxe5 (see diagram) 19. Nxf7 Bxh2+ 20. Kxh2 Qh4+ 21. Kg1 Qxc4 22. Nh6+ Kg7 23. Rxf8 Kxf8 24. Qf3+ Ke7 25. Bg5+ Kd7 26. Rd1 Kc6 27. Nf7 Kb6 28. a5+ Ka7 29. Rxd5 Be6 30. Rxc5 Qb4 31. Qe3 Ka8 32. Nd8 Bf5 33. Rc7 h6 34. Nc6 1-0

Up next

Penang age group

The Penang Chess Association is holding this year’s Penang age group chess championship for boys and girls over five Sundays. Six rounds, time control of 15 to 40 minutes per game, depending on the age group. The fourth of the six events, for players under 13 years old, will be played this Sunday. On Nov 20, the under-15 and under-17 events will wrap up the championship.

All the events are played at the clubhouse of the Residents’ Association of Bayan Baru in Bandar Bayan Baru, Penang. Entry fees: RM15 (PCA members) and RM30 (non-members). For inquiries, contact Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

National scholastics

The Malaysian Chess Federation will organize this year’s national scholastics age group chess championships for boys and girls over two weekends. The under-seven, under-nine and under-11 age group events will be played tomorrow and on Sunday, while the under-13 and under-15 events are scheduled for Nov 19-20. Seven rounds for each event, time control of 60 minutes per game. 

Venue will be the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre at the Wilayah Complex, Jalan Munshi Abdullah in Kuala Lumpur. Entry fees: RM35 (under-seven, under-nine and under-11 events) and RM40 (under-13 and under-15 events). Closing date is Nov 6 after which, entry fees will double. 

The respective age group champions will be selected as the country representative at the Asian schools chess championships in New Delhi, India on Dec 16-23. For inquiries, contact Gregory Lau (012.2577123, msianchess2010@gmail.com), Zuraihah Wazir (017.2837808) or Najib Wahab (016.3382542).

Giant Tampoi chess

The Johor Bahru Chess Association, The Giant Hypermarket Tampoi and the Rakan Muda Johor Bahru are jointly organizing their second Giant Tampoi junior chess tournament for under-16 and under-12 category players this Sunday. 

Venue is the Giant Hypermarket at Tampoi, Johor. Seven rounds, 25 minutes time control. Entry fees are RM15 (under-16 players) and RM12 (under-12 players). Closing date is Nov 11. Call Narayanan Krishnan (013.7717525, jb_chess_association@yahoo.com) for more details.

 

Asian amateur open

The Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) will organize the second Asian amateur open and women chess championship in Kuala Lumpur from Nov 25 to Dec 1. The tournament is open to only Asian players who are either unrated or with an international rating of not more than 2100 points. Nine rounds with time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.

Entry fees are USD125 for players with international ratings and USD150 for non-rated players. Malaysians wishing to play will be charged at RM412 and RM495 respectively. Closing date for entries is extended to Nov 14. 

Top prizes for the open section are USD1,500 (about RM4,500) for first, USD1,000 (about RM3,000) for second and USD800 (about RM2,400) for third. There are six other minor prizes that go down to USD200 (about RM600). For the women, there are four prizes with the best of them set to win USD400 (about RM1,200). There are also identical prizes for the four best unrated players.

All inquiries and requests for entry forms to the event secretariat (najib.wahab@chess-malaysia.com) or the Malaysian Chess Federation (msianchess2010@gmail.com).

Penang chess league

This year’s Penang Chess League will be held on Dec 3 and 4. Pending confirmation from the Penang Chess Association, there may be a change in the playing venue. The two-day team event is open to teams from four broad categories: public sector, factories, institutions of learning and others. 

Each team shall comprise four players and an optional reserve. Average rating per team during play should not be more than 2100 points. Seven rounds, time control of one hour play-to-finish for each game. Entry fees are RM150 (open category), RM90 (under-18 teams), RM60 (under-12 teams). Closing date is Nov 29. 

More details available from Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

 

Our boys in Turkey

I spent the better part of last fortnight watching the live games from the world youth under-16 chess Olympiad that was taking place in Izmit, Turkey. Malaysia had entered a team in this competition which attracted 26 participating teams from 20 countries.

That’s not too many countries participating, unfortunately, but many nations with a long chess-playing tradition were there. As expected, the teams from Russia, Azerbaijan, Armenia and India were seeded above the Malaysian team but the greater surprise was to find England, Georgia and Slovakia seeded below our team. 

As the rounds progressed, I could see our team of five players – Wong Jianwen, Yeoh Li Tian, Elgin Lee, Yeap Eng Chiam and Roshan Singh – were settling down well into their games. There were fortunate victories but there were also unfortunate losses. But overall, I could sense the boys’ confidence level rising with every round.

The highlight for them was the ninth round. The team was paired against top-seeded Russia. It was a good fight but tellingly, the Russian players’ techniques were better. Still, our boys avoided a whitewash and came away with a precious draw in one of the games.

Everything now depended on their results in the 10th and final round of the competition. A strong result was required against the Moldova team, just in case some of the other competing teams happened to catapult above the Malaysians.

Our boys won but unfortunately, the win was very narrow. So despite the satisfaction of winning the match, the frustration was in seeing England, Switzerland and Slovakia putting away their weak opponents and eventually ending ahead of Malaysia in the standings. 

Nevertheless, I really believe that the Malaysian boys can hold their heads up high. Imagine scoring a 2-2 draw against Syria, losing only narrowly by 1½-2½ to Kazakhstan, drawing 2-2 with Switzerland, and beating both Georgia and Moldova by similar 2½-1½ results. Very respectable performances, I should say so.

Finally this week, I would like to share with you one of the Malaysian games. This was played in the eighth round against Georgia.

Guga Burduli (Georgia) – Yeap Eng Chiam (Malaysia), Round 8

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 a6 3. c4 Qc7 4. Nc3 e6 5. d4 d6 6. Be2 Nf6 7. O-O Be7 8. Bg5 Nbd7 9. h3 h6 10. Be3 e5 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Nd5 Nxd5 13. exd5 f5 14. Ne1 O-O 15. f4 Bd6 16. fxe5 Nxe5 17. Nf3 Bd7 18. Bd2 Rae8 19. Bc3 Ng6 20. Bd3 Re3 21. Qd2 Bf4 22. Qc2 Bg3 23. Bd2 Re7 24. Kh1 Nf4 25. Bxf4 Qxf4 26. Ng1 Qg5 27. Ne2 Bd6 28. Rf3 Rfe8 29. Raf1 Re3 30. Qd1 g6 31. Rxe3 Rxe3 32. Rf3 Rxf3 33. gxf3 Kf7 34. Qc1 Qh4 35. Qf1 Qe7 36. Qc1 g5 37. b3 Qe5 38. Qg1 Qb2 39. Qb1 Qd2 40. Kg2 Kf6 41. Qc2 Qe3 42. Qd1 h5 43. Ng3 Qe5 44. Nf1 Qd4 45. Bc2 Qe5 46. Qc1 Qe2+ 47. Kg1 Qxf3 48. Qe3 Qxe3+ 49. Nxe3 f4 50. Nd1 Bxh3 51. Nf2 Bf5 52. Bd1 g4 53. Kg2 Kg5 54. a3 f3+ 55. Bxf3 gxf3+ 56. Kxf3 a5 57. Ke3 h4 58. Kd2 h3 0-1

Up next

Penang age group

The Penang Chess Association is holding this year’s Penang age group chess championship for boys and girls over five Sundays. Six rounds, time control of 15 to 40 minutes per game, depending on the age group. 

The third of the five events, for players under 11 years old, will be played this Sunday. On Nov 13, the under-13 event will be played; and on Nov 20, the under-15 and under-17 events will wrap up the championship.

All the events are played at the clubhouse of the Residents’ Association of Bayan Baru in Bandar Bayan Baru, Penang. Entry fees: RM15 (PCA members) and RM30 (non-members). For inquiries, contact Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

National scholastics

The Malaysian Chess Federation will organize this year’s national scholastics age group chess championships for boys and girls over two weekends. The under-seven, under-nine and under-11 age group events will be played on Nov 12-13 while the under-13 and under-15 events are scheduled for Nov 19-20. Seven rounds for each event, time control of 60 minutes per game. 

All the events will be held at the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre at the Wilayah Complex, Jalan Munshi Abdullah in Kuala Lumpur. Entry fees: RM35 (under-seven, under-nine and under-11 events) and RM40 (under-13 and under-15 events). Closing date is Nov 6 after which, entry fees will double. 

The respective age group champions will be selected as the country representative at the Asian schools chess championships in New Delhi, India on Dec 16-23. For inquiries, contact Gregory Lau (012.2577123, msianchess2010@gmail.com), Zuraihah Wazir (017.2837808) or Najib Wahab (016.3382542).

Giant Tampoi chess

The Johor Bahru Chess Association, The Giant Hypermarket Tampoi and the Rakan Muda Johor Bahru are jointly organizing their second Giant Tampoi junior chess tournament for under-16 and under-12 category players on Nov 13. 

Venue is the Giant Hypermarket at Tampoi, Johor. Seven rounds, 25 minutes time control. Entry fees are RM15 (under-16 players) and RM12 (under-12 players). Closing date is Nov 11. Call Narayanan Krishnan (013.7717525, jb_chess_association@yahoo.com) for more details.

 

Asian amateur open

The Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) will organize the second Asian amateur open and women chess championship in Kuala Lumpur from Nov 25 to Dec 1. The tournament is open to only Asian players who are either unrated or with an international rating of not more than 2100 points. Nine rounds with time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.

Entry fees are USD125 for players with international ratings and USD150 for non-rated players. Malaysians wishing to play will be charged at RM412 and RM495 respectively. Entries will close on Nov 4. 

Top prizes for the open section are USD1,500 (about RM4,500) for first, USD1,000 (about RM3,000) for second and USD800 (about RM2,400) for third. There are six other minor prizes that go down to USD200 (about RM600). For the women, there are four prizes with the best of them set to win USD400 (about RM1,200). There are also identical prizes for the four best unrated players.

All inquiries and requests for entry forms to the event secretariat (najib.wahab@chess-malaysia.com) or the Malaysian Chess Federation (msianchess2010@gmail.com).

Penang chess league

This year’s Penang Chess League will be held at the Dewan Sri Pinang in George Town, Penang on Dec 3 and 4. The two-day team event is open to teams from four broad categories: public sector, factories, institutions of learning and others. 

Each team shall comprise four players and an optional reserve. Average rating per team during play should not be more than 2100 points. Seven rounds, time control of one hour play-to-finish for each game. Entry fees are RM150 (open category), RM90 (under-18 teams), RM60 (under-12 teams). Closing date is Nov 29. 

More details available from Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

Penang heritage open

The Penang Chess Association (PCA) will organize the Penang heritage city open chess championship at the Tanjung Bungah Beach Hotel, Penang on Dec 6-10. Two separate events: open and challenger sections, both internationally rated. Nine rounds with time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.

Entry fees for the open event: free for Malaysian national masters and all players with FIDE ratings of above 2300 points, RM100 (PCA members) and RM150 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 2000 and 2299 points, RM150 (members) and RM200 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1800 and 1999 points, RM200 (members) and RM300 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1600 and 1799 points, and RM250 (members) and RM350 (non-members) for players without any FIDE rating.

Entry fees for the challenger event: RM50 (PCA members) and RM100 (non-members) for players with a FIDE rating, and RM100 (members) and RM150 (non-members) for unrated players. 

Closing date for all entries is Dec 1 and thereafter, all late entries will be charged double. Direct all inquiries to Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com). More information also at http://penangchess.com

Sarawak open

The Sarawak Chess Association will hold the Sarawak open chess tournament at the Ultimate Professional Centre, opposite the Pullman Hotel, in Jalan Bukit Mata Kuching, Kuching on Dec 12-16. Internationally-rated event played over nine rounds and time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment for each move.

Entry fees are RM25 (ladies and all players below 16 years old) and RM50 (all other participants). The closing date for entries is Dec 5.

Details available from Morsin Ahmad (012.8949415, morsinab@sarawaknet.gov.my), Abang Mohd Reduan (019.8887786, reduan_sahari@bsn.com.my) and Lim Kian Hwa (016.8603180, limkhwa@gmail.com).

 

Vicious lies

THE CHESS community in Malaysia is a tolerant lot but we are not amused about the way the royal game has been thrust unfavourably into the limelight in the past fortnight by some blog writers in the country.

I wouldn’t want to repeat all the nonsense that has been bandied about in their blogs but I want to state that the use of an image of a totally unrelated person to further the bloggers’ agenda is really irresponsible and unwarranted. 

How or why they selected a picture of an innocent woman chess grandmaster is beside the point – it could have been any other picture they picked up from the Internet – but all the same, I would wish that it had not happened at all to anybody especially when it is without basis. Such lies are bound to be found out at the end.

As it stands, I know that the family of Anya Corke is distressed over the whole matter and rightfully too as they have no connection to and no roots in this country. 

The only brief occasion she was ever in Malaysia was in September 2005 when the Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) organized the Asian zone 3.3 chess championship and she took part as the representative from Hong Kong.

In a statement which was forwarded to the local press here last week, she registered shock and dismay over the way that her name was dragged into the matter.

“I have never met or even heard of any of the people involved. I have never been physically assaulted in any way. I have never been victimised in any way by this boy or his family. The only way in which my ‘modesty was outraged’ has been by the publication of my picture in connection with these scurrilous and unfounded rumours,” she said.

Corke was the Hong Kong national chess champion four times in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008. Her talent was very clear from a young age and she was included as a member of the Hong Kong national men’s team at the Chess Olympiad in Calvia, Spain in 2004. It was there that she earned the woman grandmaster title.

When the MCF held the zonal championship in 2005, she was the only woman participant among the other 43 players. She secured 3½ points from the nine games and finished the competition tied in 32nd to 37th positions.

Corke is presently an undergraduate student at the prestigious Wellesley College in Massachusetts, USA.

UP NEXT

Penang age group

The Penang Chess Association is presently holding this year’s Penang age group chess championship for boys and girls over five Sundays. Six rounds, time control of 15 to 40 minutes per game, depending on the age group. 

The second of the five events, for players under nine years old, will be played this Sunday. On Nov 6, the under-11 event will be played; on Nov 13, it will be the under-13 tournament; and on Nov 20, the under-15 and under-17 events will wrap up the championship.

All the events are played at the clubhouse of the Residents’ Association of Bayan Baru in Bandar Bayan Baru, Penang. Entry fees: RM15 (PCA members) and RM30 (non-members). For inquiries, contact Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

Frank Goon Cup

The Johor Chess Association will organize their Johor chess open tournament for the Frank Goon Cup this Sunday. Venue will be the Level 35 of the Office Tower City Square in Johor Bahru. Depending on the number of players, there will be either six or seven rounds. Time control is 25 minutes per game.

Entry fees: RM20 (open), RM10 (players below 16 years old). For more details, contact Steven Cheong (016.7202272, steven52s@gmail.com) or Dinesh (014.6115256).

RSC rapid play

The chess section of the Royal Selangor Club will hold their annual RSC rapid play open tournament at their club premises in Bukit Kiara, Kuala Lumpur. Seven rounds, with the first three rounds this Sunday and the final four rounds on Nov 6. Apart from the prizes in the open section, there are also other prizes for the best under-13, under-11, under-9, veteran and lady players. Time control is 25 minutes per game, subject to final confirmation. 

Entry fees for RSC members: RM30 (single player), RM25 (family discount for two or more family members). For non-RSC members: RM40 (single player), RM30 (family discount for two or more family members). For junior players: RM25. Entries will close by today. For more information, contact Wahid (016.3283160, awkarim@gmail.com) or Joseph Toh (016.6784648).

Giant Tampoi chess

The Johor Bahru Chess Association, The Giant Hypermarket Tampoi and the Rakan Muda Johor Bahru are jointly organizing their second Giant Tampoi junior chess tournament for under-16 and under-12 category players on Nov 13. 

Venue is the Giant Hypermarket at Tampoi, Johor. Seven rounds, 25 minutes time control. Entry fees are RM15 (under-16 players) and RM12 (under-12 players). Closing date is Nov 11. Call Narayanan Krishnan (013.7717525, jb_chess_association@yahoo.com) for more details.

 Asian amateur open

The Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) will organize the second Asian amateur open and women chess championship in Kuala Lumpur from Nov 25 to Dec 1. The tournament is open to only Asian players who are either unrated or with an international rating of not more than 2100 points. Nine rounds with time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.

Entry fees are USD125 for players with international ratings and USD150 for non-rated players. Malaysians wishing to play will be charged at RM412 and RM495 respectively. Entries will close on Nov 4. 

Top prizes for the open section are USD1,500 (about RM4,500) for first, USD1,000 (about RM3,000) for second and USD800 (about RM2,400) for third. There are six other minor prizes that go down to USD200 (about RM600). For the women, there are four prizes with the best of them set to win USD400 (about RM1,200). There are also identical prizes for the four best unrated players.

All inquiries and requests for entry forms to the event secretariat (najib.wahab@chess-malaysia.com) or the Malaysian Chess Federation (msianchess2010@gmail.com).

Penang chess league

This year’s Penang Chess League will be held at the Dewan Sri Pinang in George Town, Penang on Dec 3 and 4. The two-day team event is open to teams from four broad categories: public sector, factories, institutions of learning and others. 

Each team shall comprise four players and an optional reserve. Average rating per team during play should not be more than 2100 points. Seven rounds, time control of one hour play-to-finish for each game. Entry fees are RM150 (open category), RM90 (under-18 teams), RM60 (under-12 teams). Closing date is Nov 29. 

More details available from Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

Penang heritage open

The Penang Chess Association (PCA) will organize the Penang heritage city open chess championship at the Tanjung Bungah Beach Hotel, Penang on Dec 6-10. Two separate events: open and challenger sections, both internationally rated. Nine rounds with time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.

Entry fees for the open event: free for Malaysian national masters and all players with FIDE ratings of above 2300 points, RM100 (PCA members) and RM150 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 2000 and 2299 points, RM150 (members) and RM200 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1800 and 1999 points, RM200 (members) and RM300 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1600 and 1799 points, and RM250 (members) and RM350 (non-members) for players without any FIDE rating.

Entry fees for the challenger event: RM50 (PCA members) and RM100 (non-members) for players with a FIDE rating, and RM100 (members) and RM150 (non-members) for unrated players. 

Closing date for all entries is Dec 1 and thereafter, all late entries will be charged double. Direct all inquiries to Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com). More information also at http://penangchess.com

Sarawak open

The Sarawak Chess Association will hold the Sarawak open chess tournament at the Ultimate Professional Centre, opposite the Pullman Hotel, in Jalan Bukit Mata Kuching, Kuching on Dec 12-16. Internationally-rated event played over nine rounds and time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment for each move.

Entry fees are RM25 (ladies and all players below 16 years old) and RM50 (all other participants). The closing date for entries is Dec 5.

Details available from Morsin Ahmad (012.8949415, morsinab@sarawaknet.gov.my), Abang Mohd Reduan (019.8887786, reduan_sahari@bsn.com.my) and Lim Kian Hwa (016.8603180, limkhwa@gmail.com). 

Busy days ahead

I made just some cursory mention of the Penang Heritage City open chess championship and the Sarawak open championship here in last week’s column without giving any details. 

In order that readers may start preparing themselves to participate in one or possibly both of these internationally-rated tournaments, here are some salient points that would-be participants should take note of.

First, the Penang Chess Association will hold the Penang Heritage City open at the Tanjung Bungah Beach Hotel in Penang on Dec 6 to 10. There will be two rounds daily except for the final day which will see only one round. This is therefore a nine-round event with a time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment for each move.

The championship will be separated into the open and the challenger tournaments, with the challenger event limited to players with FIDE ratings of not more than 2000 points or Malaysian ratings of 1750 points or below. 

There are altogether 26 prizes for the open tournament which include minor prizes for the best lady and five best PCA players. The top three prizes are RM5,000, RM2,500 and RM1,500 respectively. The challenger event will have 14 prizes with a RM500 winner’s purse. The first and second runners-up will receive RM300 and RM250 respectively. Medals are also awarded to the top five players in the under-eight, under-10 and under-12 age groups.

Entry fees for the open tournament: free for Malaysian national masters and all players with FIDE ratings of above 2300 points, RM100 (PCA members) and RM150 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 2000 and 2299 points, RM150 (members) and RM200 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1800 and 1999 points, RM200 (members) and RM300 (non-members) for players with FIDE ratings between 1600 and 1799 points, and RM250 (members) and RM350 (non-members) for players without any FIDE rating.

For the challenger tournament, entry fees are RM50 (members) and RM100 (non-members) for players with a FIDE rating, and RM100 (members) and RM150 (non-members) for unrated players. 

Closing date for all entries is Dec 1 and thereafter, all late entries will be charged double. All inquiries should be directed to Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com). There is also more information at http://penangchess.com

As for the Sarawak open, this internationally-rated event will be played at the Ultimate Professional Centre, opposite the Pullman Hotel, in Jalan Bukit Mata Kuching, Kuching on Dec 12-16. This is also a nine-round event with a time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment for each move.

There will be two rounds every day except for the last day when only a single round is played. There are 10 main prizes with the champion set to receive RM2,500 and a trophy. The runners-up will receive RM1,500 and a trophy, while the third prize is RM800 and a trophy. In addition, the Sarawak Chess Association is offering special prizes for players in the under-16, under-14, under-12, under-10 and under-eight age groups.

Entry fees are RM25 (ladies and all players below 16 years old) and RM50 (all other participants). The closing date for entries is Dec 5.

More details are available from Morsin Ahmad (012.8949415, morsinab@sarawaknet.gov.my), Abang Mohd Reduan (019.8887786, reduan_sahari@bsn.com.my) and Lim Kian Hwa (016.8603180, limkhwa@gmail.com). 

Up next

Penang age group

The Penang Chess Association will hold this year’s Penang age group chess championship for boys and girls over five Sundays. Six rounds, time control of 15 to 40 minutes per game, depending on the age group. 

The first of the five events, for players under seven years old, will be played this Sunday. On Oct 30, the under-nine event will be played; on Nov 6, it will be the under-11 tournament; and on Nov 13, the under-13 event is scheduled. The under-15 and under-17 events on Nov 20 will wrap up the championship.

All the five events will be played at the clubhouse of the Residents’ Association of Bayan Baru in Bandar Bayan Baru, Penang. Entry fees are RM15 (PCA members) and RM30 (non-members). For inquiries, contact Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

Frank Goon Cup

The Johor Chess Association will organize their Johor chess open tournament for the Frank Goon Cup on Oct 30. Venue will be the Level 35 of the Office Tower City Square in Johor Bahru. Depending on the number of players, there will be either six or seven rounds. Time control is 25 minutes per game.

Prizes are offered to winners in the open, under-16, under-12 and ladies categories. Entry fees: RM20 (open), RM10 (players below 16 years old). Closing date is Oct 24. For more details, contact Steven Cheong (016.7202272, steven52s@gmail.com) or Dinesh (014.6115256).

RSC rapid play

The chess section of the Royal Selangor Club will hold their annual RSC rapid play open tournament at their club premises in Bukit Kiara, Kuala Lumpur. Seven rounds, with the first three rounds on Oct 30 and the final four rounds on Nov 6. Apart from the prizes in the open section, there are also other prizes for the best under-13, under-11, under-9, veteran and lady players. Time control is 25 minutes per game, subject to final confirmation. 

Entry fees for RSC members: RM30 (single player), RM25 (family discount for two or more family members). For non-RSC members: RM40 (single player), RM30 (family discount for two or more family members). For more information, contact Wahid (016.3283160, awkarim@gmail.com) or Ajeet (012.2121372, ajeet@pc.jaring.my) before Oct 28.

Penang chess league

This year’s Penang Chess League will be held at the Dewan Sri Pinang in George Town, Penang on Dec 3 and 4. The two-day team event, organized by the Penang 

Chess Association, is open to teams from four broad categories: public sector, factories, institutions of learning and others. 

Each team shall comprise four players and an optional reserve player. Average rating per team during play should not be more than 2100 points. Seven rounds, time control of one hour play-to-finish for each game. Entry fees are RM150 (open category), RM90 (under-18 teams), RM60 (under-12 teams). Closing date is Nov 29. 

More details available from Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@yahoo.com or estan64@gmail.com) or visit http://penangchess.com for more information.

Giant Tampoi chess

The Johor Bahru Chess Association, The Giant Hypermarket Tampoi and the Rakan Muda Johor Bahru are jointly organizing their second Giant Tampoi junior chess tournament for under-16 and under-12 category players on Nov 13. 

Venue is the Giant Hypermarket at Tampoi, Johor. Seven rounds, 25 minutes time control. Entry fees are RM15 (under-16 players) and RM12 (under-12 players). Closing date is Nov 11. Call Narayanan Krishnan (013.7717525, jb_chess_association@yahoo.com) for more details.

 

Asian amateur open

The Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) will organize the second Asian amateur open and women chess championship in Kuala Lumpur from Nov 25 to Dec 1. The tournament is open to only Asian players who are either unrated or with an international rating of not more than 2100 points. Nine rounds with time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.

Entry fees are USD125 for players with international ratings and USD150 for non-rated players. Malaysians wishing to play will be charged at RM412 and RM495 respectively. Entries will close on Nov 4. 

Top prizes for the open section are USD1,500 (about RM4,500) for first, USD1,000 (about RM3,000) for second and USD800 (about RM2,400) for third. There are six other minor prizes that go down to USD200 (about RM600). For the women, there are four prizes with the best of them set to win USD400 (about RM1,200). There are also identical prizes for the four best unrated players.

All inquiries and requests for entry forms to the event secretariat (najib.wahab@chess-malaysia.com) or the Malaysian Chess Federation (msianchess2010@gmail.com).

 

Spot-on for amateurs

Normally at about this time, I would be counting down the number of weeks before the end of the year. I would be rather glad to see the start of a new year and hence, the start of a new cycle of chess activities for the amateur chess players in the country. 

Right at about this time, local chess activities would be at their lowest level as if they have fallen off a cliff completely. 

Could it be that local chess organizers are taking a breather to recoup their energies? Or maybe, is it because working chess players are conserving their annual leave for bigger events to come? But one fact for sure: many junior chess players are just not playing because of their end-of-year examinations.

Whatever the reason, chess players would normally stir themselves out of their slumbers from December onwards. That’s when the important internationally-rated events such as the Penang Heritage City open tournament and the Sarawak open tournament are scheduled. 

But this year is different. Earlier this week, I received an email from the Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) to tell me that they would be organizing the second Asian amateur open and women chess championship in Kuala Lumpur from Nov 25 to Dec 1. 

This came as a surprise because earlier, the word was out that the event would be played in Yemen. However, seeing that Yemen is presently in the midst of some political instability and the safety of participants is not completely assured, the Asian Chess Federation had asked the MCF to step in and play host.

So if all things go according to plan, we should see players from the 40-plus countries in the Asian region descend on Kuala Lumpur for this competition. But these will only be the amateur players, mind you, and not the international masters or the grandmasters. 

The scope of this event confines it to only Asian players who are either unrated or with an international rating of not more than 2100 points. Hey, this may even exclude a whole lot of Asian Fide masters and titled women chess players from participating!

And that’s the whole fun of the competition because it leaves the real chess amateurs – people like you and I – to fight out among ourselves for the full spoils of the game. Don’t have to worry about the top prizes slipping out of our hands. 

Here, the winner of the open section will stand to win USD1,500 (about RM4,500). Even the second and third prizes are a hefty USD1,000 (about RM3,000) and USD800 (about RM2,400) respectively. There are six other minor prizes that go down to USD200 (about RM600). For the women, there are four prizes with the best of them set to win USD400 (about RM1,200). There are also identical prizes for the four best unrated players.

According to the MCF’s president, Tan Sri Datuk Seri Diraja Ramli Ngah Talib, the tournament is expected to attract a sizeable number of players from the neighbouring Asian chess power houses such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Indonesia. 

“Obviously, we are delighted. With such a prestigious event coming to Malaysia, the event will also open doors for many amateur players in our country to experience an Asian level chess event and provide opportunities for them to excel on an Asian continental platform,” he added.

Entry fees are USD125 for players with international ratings and USD150 for non-rated players. Malaysians wishing to play will be charged at RM412 and RM495 respectively. Entries will close on Nov 4.

All inquiries and requests for entry forms should be directed to the event secretariat (najib.wahab@chess-malaysia.com) or the Malaysian Chess Federation (msianchess2010@gmail.com). 

Up next

Mind chess open

The Penang Chess Association will hold the Mind Chess open tournament at their clubhouse in Bayan Baru on Oct 16. Seven rounds, 25 minutes per game. Entry fees: RM15 (PCA members), RM20 (non-members). This event is open to players with a national rating of at least 1200. No cash prizes, but players will receive certificates and winners will get a combination of trophies or chess books. Entries close tomorrow. For details, contact Loo Swee Leong (017.4722472, mindchessnet@yahoo.com) or Tan Khai Boon (016.4613580). 

DATCC team open

The first round of the fourth DATCC team open team chess tournament will be played at the Wilayah Complex in Kuala Lumpur starting Oct 22. Thereafter, the next seven rounds will be played on consecutive Tuesdays, and the final round on Dec 24. Entry fee is RM400 per team with a maximum of 10 players in each team. Total prize money is RM6,000. More information available from http://datcchess.blogspot.com. 

Frank Goon Cup

The Johor Chess Association will organize their Johor chess open tournament for the Frank Goon Cup on Oct 30. Venue will be the Level 35 of the Office Tower City Square in Johor Bahru. Depending on the number of players, there will be either six or seven rounds. Time control is 25 minutes per game.

Prizes are offered to winners in the open, under-16, under-12 and ladies categories. Entry fees: RM20 (open), RM10 (players below 16 years old). Closing date is Oct 24. For more details, contact Steven Cheong (016.7202272, steven52s@gmail.com) or Dinesh (014.6115256).

RSC rapid play

The chess section of the Royal Selangor Club will hold their annual RSC rapid play open tournament at their club premises in Bukit Kiara, Kuala Lumpur. Seven rounds, with the first three rounds on Oct 30 and the final four rounds on Nov 6. Apart from the prizes in the open section, there are also other prizes for the best under-13, under-11, under-9, veteran and lady players. Time control is 25 minutes per game, subject to final confirmation. 

Entry fees for RSC members: RM30 (single player), RM25 (family discount for two or more family members). For non-RSC members: RM40 (single player), RM30 (family discount for two or more family members). For more information, contact Wahid (016.3283160, awkarim@gmail.com) or Ajeet (012.2121372, ajeet@pc.jaring.my) before Oct 28.

Giant Tampoi chess

The Johor Bahru Chess Association, The Giant Hypermarket Tampoi and the Rakan Muda Johor Bahru are jointly organizing their second Giant Tampoi junior chess tournament for under-16 and under-12 category players on Nov 13. 

Venue is the Giant Hypermarket at Tampoi, Johor. Seven rounds, 25 minutes time control. Entry fees are RM15 (under-16 players) and RM12 (under-12 players). Closing date for entries is Nov 11. More details available from Narayanan Krishnan (013.7717525, jb_chess_association@yahoo.com).

 

Only the fittest

The recent Chess World Cup tournament in Khanty-Mansiysk qualified easily as one of the longest chess tournaments ever organized this year. 

When the schedule of this event was announced earlier this year, I felt a bit dizzy just to think that here was a tournament that would span 24 playing days, from Aug 28 until Sep 20.

Don’t ever think of chess as a game of ease and leisure, that everything a player does is to sit down at the chessboard and (a) flex his brain cells, and (b) move his arm muscles only. No, playing chess requires one to be fit both mentally and physically. Just ask any of the good chess players, even our local ones, and they will tell you that they do require a measure of physical fitness. 

Maybe it doesn’t mean that much when one plays in one-day chess events but when you have a tournament that spans anything from five to eight days, boy, there is already the physical strain which can set in rather quickly. 

But I’m digressing a bit. As for the Chess World Cup, anyone taking part in this event would not only have to be fit but the player must be super-fit to survive the course of 24 days.

Of course, I’m only referring to the ones that progressed through this knock-out event from Round One right until the final Round Seven, and there were only four of them that survived till this stage of this marathon event. The rest dropped out along the way as they were eliminated.

When the Chess World Cup began in late August, it began with 128 players from throughout the world. Many had qualified from the World Chess Federation’s zonal tournaments or the continental chess championships that had been organized some time earlier. Some had qualified by virtue of their international ratings or their positions as losing finalists in the last Chess World Cup or women’s world champion or world junior champions.

In any case, this event began as a huge potpourri of chess players of all race and creed, old and young, the very strong and the not-so-strong. The regulations were simple. In each of the first six rounds, the paired players would play two games at normal regulation time control and if the results were tied, they would proceed to play two games at rapidchess time control followed by blitz games, if necessary. For the final round, there would be four normal regulation games instead of two, followed by the play-off games.

So the field was halved to 64 players at the end of the first round, halved again to 32 players at the end of the second round, and further reduced to 16 players by the time the third round ended.

By this time, the real contest in the Chess World Cup could be considered to have really started. These were the remaining 16 players who were now seriously eyeing the three qualification spots for the World Chess Federation’s Candidates stage of the 2013 world chess championship: Lazaro Bruzon, Leinier Dominguez, Vugar Gashimov, Alexander Grischuk, Vassily Ivanchuk, Dmitry Jakovenko, Gata Kamsky, David Navara, Peter Heine Nielsen, Judit Polgar, Ruslan Ponomariov, Vladimir Potkin, Teimour Radjabov, Peter Svidler, Bu Xiangzhi and Yaroslav Zherebukh.

The fourth round saw the field whittled down to eight when Bruzon, Dominguez, Jakovenko, Kamsky, Nielsen, Potkin, Bu and Zherebukh were eliminated and already, the favourites to qualify were beginning to emerge. 

Of the eight, the firm favourites to progress further in the competition were Svidler, Ponomariov, Ivanchuk and Grischuk and they did this by beating Polgar, Gashimov, Radjabov and Navara respectively in the fifth round or the quarterfinals round.

The sixth round or the semifinals round saw Svidler paired against Ponomariov and Ivanchuk paired against Grischuk. These were very tense contests because the winners of the two matches would of course qualify for the Candidates stage regardless of how they played in the seventh round. The losers would have to fight it out for the last remaining place and the pressure on them would be BIG.

Svidler was the first to qualify after having disposed of Ponomariov in two games. Grischuk took longer, having to beat Ivanchuk in six games. The highlight of this round was Ivanchuk’s shock blunder in the third play-off game. 

Grischuk, who was in his customary time trouble, had allowed his clock to run down to the last three seconds before he executed his move. Ivanchuk thought that he was almost on the verge of winning and walked right into the trap that his opponent had laid for him. His first blunder was to lose a knight and then the second blunder was to lose his rook. All in two consecutive moves.

When Grischuk captured the rook, Ivanchuk was so shocked and distressed that he resigned the game immediately and left the table with his face hidden by his hands. This was clearly a man in great shock.

And so finally, the seventh round or the final round arrived. However, there was no big drama this time. It was like an anti-climax. Svidler wrapped up the Chess World Cup by winning the first game and then giving Grischuk no chance at all of equalising the match. The fight for third and fourth places was more intense but Ivanchuk had by then recovered sufficiently to beat Ponomariov and secure the last qualifying position. 

Up next

DATCC Blitz Sunday

The DATCC will hold a blitz tournament at the Wilayah Complex this Sunday. A prize fund of RM500 is on offer, More information available from Kaber Azzad (012.6178624, info@chess-malaysia.com).

 

DATCC team open

The first round of the fourth DATCC team open team chess tournament will be played at the Wilayah Complex in Kuala Lumpur starting Oct 22. Thereafter, the next seven rounds will be played on consecutive Tuesdays, and the final round on Dec 24. Entry fee is RM400 per team with a maximum of 10 players in each team. Total prize money is RM6,000. More information available from http://datcchess.blogspot.com.

 

Doyen of local chess

Last week, I was writing about the youngest faces that had come to play, and perhaps to make a name for themselves, in the main event of this year’s Malaysian Chess Festival, the Arthur Tan Malaysian open chess championship.

It then struck me that if I want to do a similar story on the oldest player in the festival, I would have to look not at this same event but instead, I would have to cast my eye at the Lee Loy Seng seniors open chess championship for inspiration. 

But then again, everybody – and by “everybody”, I mean all of us in the chess circle – knows for a certainty that currently, the oldest active chess player in the country is none other than Datuk Tan Chin Nam himself.

He is the doyen of Malaysian chess, all 85 years of him. Although he was perhaps frailer than when I last saw him about a year ago, his mind was still as keen as ever. “Still up to playing chess,” he reminded me when we sat across the chessboard in the second round.

Tan, however, for all his enthusiasm, soon found out to his dismay that results still favoured the more, ahem, younger seniors as he finished the event with a modest 1½ points that he collected from nine games.

But despite the setback, he still took pride in his final game of the tournament. He lost but for much of that game he showed that he could still mix it up as well as his opponent. He absorbed the attack in a complicated game and then simplified the position to a point where he held a piece advantage. It was only a gross blunder in the critical last hour of play when tiredness had crept into both players’ game that spoilt everything for Tan. 

A draw would have been an equitable result in that game, seeing that both he and his opponent had fought and defended well.

Readers may remember that at last year’s Malaysian Chess Festival, Tan had announced that he intended to take a two-year sabbatical from sponsoring the festival so that he could enjoy playing the game for once without thinking about pumping money into organizing it. 

There could be other reasons and I would think that one of them was that he wanted to see how the organizers would rise to the challenge and continue with this chess festival with only his moral support.

Well, I would believe that he was encouraged by what he saw: the hard work put in by the organizers in the last two to three months to get their acts together. At the closing ceremony of the festival, he promised to end his sojourn and make next year’s edition the grandest Malaysian Chess Festival of all.

By the way, perhaps I should also mention that as the most senior chess player at the festival, Tan was at least 10 years older than the next most senior competitor, Thailand’s 74-year-old Pricha Srivatanakul.

   

 

Up next

National rapidchess

The Universiti Teknologi Petronas in Tronoh, Perak will organize the second national rapidchess championship at their university campus tomorrow and on Sunday on behalf of the Malaysian Chess Federation and the Perak International Chess Association. Eight rounds, with a time control of 25 minutes and 10-second increment per move. First prize for the open category is RM1,000. Entry fees are RM30 (players under 12 years old), RM35 (players under 16 years old) and RM40 (all others). For enquiries, contact Ariana (019.5451813), Nabilah (014.9045157), Thakshna Moorthy (016.9950070) or Khairil Anwar (013.3533720). More information also from http://nrcc2011.blogspot.com 

DATCC events

The Dato Arthur Tan Chess Centre (DATCC) at the Wilayah Complex in Kuala Lumpur is now open daily to chess players. Operating hours: Mondays to Fridays (1pm to 8pm), Saturdays and Sundays (9am to 5pm). 

DATCC Blitz Sunday

The DATCC will hold a blitz tournament at the Wilayah Complex on Oct 9. A prize fund of RM500 is on offer, More information available from Kaber Azzad (012.6178624, info@chess-malaysia.com).

 

DATCC team open

The first round of the fourth DATCC team open team chess tournament will be played at the Wilayah Complex in Kuala Lumpur starting Oct 22. Thereafter, the next seven rounds will be played on consecutive Tuesdays, and the final round on Dec 24. Entry fee is RM400 per team with a maximum of 10 players in each team. Total prize money is RM6,000. More information available from http://datcchess.blogspot.com. 

 

The future of chess

Truth be told, the Malaysian Chess Festival wasn’t a holiday for any player taking part in any of the events. After all, there wasn’t time to take things easy. As a player, I was struggling with my own personal demons during almost every round, be it the position on the chessboard or the remaining time on the chess clock as it ticked away.

There was only one round where my game ended relatively early and it gave me the only odd pleasure to walk around the tournament hall to look at the other games and take note of my fellow strugglers, especially those playing at the main event, the Arthur Tan Malaysian open championship.

Some of those in chess agony or chess ecstasy were very familiar, having seen them almost year in and year out, but by and large, fresh faces made up a significantly large proportion of the faces.

While wandering around the tables, I couldn’t help but noticed that at this main event, the average age of the players could be rather young.

It was a very intriguing thought which was later proven correct when I badgered the organizers to let me take a look at the details of the participants. Of the 98 players in the Malaysian open tournament, 44 of them were aged 21 years old or younger. That constituted almost 45 percent of the field. Add a further five players who were born in 1989 and exactly half the field were below 22 years old.

As I was scrolling through the participants’ details on the computer, I could almost hear my editor bellowing down on me that this would be a good angle for this column. So I decided to start off in search of the youngest participants in the Malaysian open.

There were three, all born in 1999 which would make them at the most, 12 years old. I gulped. Twelve years “young” and already taking part in a chess event where they would sit as equals across the chessboard with players possibly twice or thrice their age, or perhaps even older!

The most successful of the trio was Bai Jinshi from China. Born in May 1999, he finished eventually overall in 28th position. Nobody would have thought much of this player if not for him creating a sensation by beating Ju Wenjun, the Chinese woman grandmaster who weeks earlier had won a strong international tournament in Hangzhou ahead of reigning women’s world champion Hou Yifan. But there was more to come from Bai in the Malaysia open when two rounds later, he added the experienced grandmaster from Uzbekistan, Saidali Yuldashev, to his list of victims. 

Zachary Loh and Karl Zelesco, both hailing from Melbourne in Australia, were the other two players who were born in 1999. Loh, who was born in April and who had a precious experience playing overseas at the world youth championship for under-12 players last year, was the oldest of the trio while Zelesco turned out to the youngest.

“I’m not 12 yet,” Zelesco told me shyly when I asked him his age. I turned to look at his mother and she told me that he would be celebrating his 12th birthday on Aug 30. So technically, the boy was still 11 years old when he sat at the table to trade blows with his opponents. When I enquired further, she added that her son had been playing actively in Melbourne tournaments for the past year or so. 

This Malaysian open was to be his first international chess competition out of his home country and he even got a chance to play against – and lose to – a grandmaster. But what also interested me was that young Zelesco also played with two other opponents – William Lee Kah Howe and Tan Li Ting – who weren’t that much older than him. In fact, both Lee and Tan were just a year older. Nevertheless, Zelesco took 1½ points from them. 

Satisfied with his 58th position at the Malaysian open? “No,” he sighed, “I could have played better but it was a good experience for me to meet with good chess players from other parts of the world. I want to improve and I’m sure I will.”

Such confidence. It’s incredible what the youngsters, with the correct parental support, can get themselves up to today at the chessboard. Yes, anywhere in the world, they really are the future of chess.

 

Up next

National rapidchess

The Universiti Teknologi Petronas in Tronoh, Perak will be organizing the second national rapidchess championship at their university campus on Oct 1 and 2 on behalf of the Malaysian Chess Federation and the Perak International Chess Association. Eight rounds, with a time control of 25 minutes and 10-second increment per move. First prize for the open category is RM1,000. Entry fees are RM30 (players under 12 years old), RM35 (players under 16 years old) and RM40 (all others). For enquiries, contact Ariana (019.5451813), Nabilah (014.9045157), Thakshna Moorthy (016.9950070) or Khairil Anwar (013.3533720). More information also from http://nrcc2011.blogspot.com 

DATCC events

The Dato Arthur Tan Chess Centre (DATCC) at the Wilayah Complex in Kuala Lumpur is now open daily to chess players. Operating hours: Mondays to Fridays (1pm to 8pm), Saturdays and Sundays (9am to 5pm). 

The second session of DATCC chess classes for beginners of all ages will start tomorrow at 10am. Please view the class schedule and topics covered at http://datcchess.blogspot.com. More information also from Najib Wahab (016.3382542, najib.wahab@chess-malaysia.com).

First DATCC Super Kids weekend tournament for children below the age of 12 will be played tomorrow beginning 9am. Six rounds, 25-minute games. Entry fee: RM10 per player. Details available from Najib Wahab (016.3382542), Kaber Azzad (012.6178624) or Jax Tham (013.3232280) or visit http://datcchess.blogspot.com to download entry form.