Chess Candidates

 Will I be following the Candidates Tournaments? You bet!! The next 3 weeks will be full on. The Candidates events will dominate the chess scene until April 23rd and on the 25th April, a 9-round tournament starts in Hobart that I'd like to play. That runs through until 28th April, which means the whole month in pretty much worked out.

April is officially chess month!!

Although the Candidates will dominate the chess news, it is not the only event on, and as I know none of the Candidates personally, following events with people I know can be just as interesting. I'm of the opinion that the most important event for anyone should be the one they are personally involved in, either as a player, a helper, or a friend of a participant/helper. Currently, the Melbourne International Chess Open is being held at my old club, the Melbourne Chess Club. There are a lot of players that I know personally in this event, as there were in last week's annual Doeberl Cup in Canberra. In that event, there were a bunch of very talented primary school kids playing: Ashwath Kaushik of Singapore who became the youngest player in history to beat a Grand Master late last year; Reyaansh Chakrabarty, who also beat a Grand Master earlier this year at Victoria's annual Ballarat tournament in March; and Rheyansh Annapureddy, who I am glad to say I have beaten when he was probably 7 or 8 years old, and already a tough competitor. This is a scalp that I will have when he becomes a great player in the next few years.

Rheyansh put up an incredible fight in round 1 against top Australian IM James Morris. Both players had to play a difficult rook and bishop vs rook ending with very little time on their clocks. 

As Black, Rheyansh had made 41 of the 50 moves necessary for a draw when the position above was reached. It is a difficult defence, and the youngster had played heroically to last this long, but he finally committed an error that the experienced IM pounced on. 138..Ra7? allowed White to force a win with 139.Bb3+ Ka2 140.Rh1 [142.Rh2 was quicker, but let's not quibble] 140..Rc7+ 141.Bc4, and Black has to give up their rook to avoid immediate mate.

From the position, it was better for Black to keep their rook active, pinning White's bishop so 138..Rc8 was a drawing move, when White has to make their position worse. For example, 139.Rh1 Ka5 140.Rh6 Ra8

[Event "O2C Doeberl Cup 2024"] [Site "Canberra AUS"] [Date "2024.03.28"] [Round "1.6"] [White "Morris,J"] [Black "Annapureddy,Rheyansh Reddy"] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteElo "2418"] [BlackElo "1977"] [EventDate "2024.03.28"] [ECO "B38"] [FEN "8/2r5/8/1R6/k1B5/2K5/8/8 w - - 83 138"] [SetUp "1"] [PlyCount "281"] [BlackFideId "3244806"] [EventType "swiss"] [Opening "Sicilian"] [Variation "accelerated fianchetto, Maroczy bind, 6.Be3"] [WhiteFideId "3205800"] [WhiteTitle "IM"] 138.Rh5 Ra7 $2 ( 138...Rc8 139.Rh1 Ka5 140.Rh6 Ra8 141.Rd6 Ra7 ) 139.Bb3+ Ka3 140.Rh1 ( 140.Rh2 Rc7+ 141.Bc4 Rxc4+ 142.Kxc4 Ka4 143.Ra2# ) 140...Rc7+ 141.Bc4 1-0

Not an April Fool!!

Starting blogging again has been on my mind recently. I used to really enjoy it when I was writing before, and I miss it. I did contemplate a personal written journal, and I might do that too. But for now, I intend to write here about the things that interest me:

Chess: This has been my hobby for 50 years, and I've been working as a chess coach for the past 20 years. I recently won the Tasmanian Championship for the second year in a row and after a big drop in my FIDE rating, I woke today that it had rebounded a little and sits at 2019. This is a long way short of the 2200 I was at my best, and I doubt I'll ever get back close to that again. At the moment, I'm just happy to be above 2000.

It's no coincidence that I am starting writing just before the Candidates tournament starts in Toronto. The tournament promises to be the highlight event of the year with an incredibly interesting field of experience and youth in both the Open and Women's events. I'll be taking an interest in both events.

But the main chess emphasis of this blog will be local chess, Tasmanian and Australian. And, of course, anything that interests me in the meantime.

Nature: I also hope to post some stuff about where I live, in particular the natural beauty of Tasmania. I live in the north of the island close to the second city of the state, Launceston. The biggest city, Hobart,  is near the south of the island, about 3 hours drive from me. I recently found out that Tasmania has over 40% of its land considered as forest. And the air is among the cleanest in the world. All in all, it is a great place to walk around with loads of tracks, some of which are accessible to people like a 58 year old like me!

This is a pencil pine that I saw at Cradle Mountain earlier this year. This particular species is endemic to Tasmania, and only grows in the central highlands. It is a slow growing plant that can live up to 1000 years. It is believed that this species is ancient, a remnant of the super continent Gondwanaland. It is believed to have originated in what we now know as South America and then migrated across Antarctica before it split from the rest of the continent, finally landing in Tasmania. I find this kind of thing amazing, and will try to find more of interest about this beautiful and interesting island situated off the south coast of mainland Australia.

Other Crap: Although chess and nature are the two things that mean the most to me at the moment, I am also interested in other things. I live with my wife, Caroline, and two cats Alice and Candy. They might find themselves included here at times. I read a lot and I might use this blog to mention some books I've read both fiction and chess. And I'm interested in social affairs so I might use this as a soapbox from time to time, especially if an issue is important to me.

I should mention that I'm writing this primarily for me. I also will be writing for my friends and family who I lost contact with as I left social media last year. I closed both my Facebook and Twitter accounts, and currently only have a Mastodon account where I know no one personally. If you do want to link up, my account is chestas and I'd be particularly interested in building a chess community on Mastodon if anyone wants to join.

Anyways....Happy April!!!

Chess

 I've been finding my chess fix online recently, as there isn't a lot of chess played where I am. In fact, I'm probably not going to play any over the board chess for the rest of the year, other than a few friendly games down the local club. But playing online can be dangerous, just lots of throw away games. So I've tried to discipline myself to take things a little more seriously, and am studying from the games I play. In my study, I saw this position.

Black has just thrown his knight to h5. What do you think White played?

I'll post the answer later this week!

Chess Victims

 I have written about this subject before on my old blog, though the last post was in 2018 not long before I actually stopped blogging. Before I start again here, a quick proviso. I'm not a woman, I'm a 56 year old heterosexual man. Does this preclude me from having an opinion? No, of course not, though generally speaking, I will try to cite those in a more relevant position to understand the full story.

So first, the issue is about FIDE banning Trans players from their events. There are stories across all the major news outlets, so pick any or a few. I've read articles in The Guardian, AP News, and the BBC. There are also views from the LGBTQ+ community, in for example Pink News. The major chess sites have nothing about it so far, though I'd expect some commentary in the coming days. Saying that, a lot of chess politics tends to be discussed on Facebook and Twitter which I no longer belong to, so I tend to find what chess players and officials have said through news sites nowadays.

This ban of Trans players comes in the wake of sexual harassment cases being brought to light in the chess world. One of the biggest chess playing sites, Lichess, came out last week with a statement which essentially accuses the US Chess Federation and St Louis Chess Club of mishandling the case of sexual harassment against GM Alejandro Ramirez and others. The mega chess site says it will no longer cooperate with the USCF or St Louis CC neither of which has "faced serious scrutiny or accountability" over these issues. 

So where am I going with this post? I'm going back to a severe criticism of FIDE and questioning my desire to be part of the organisation. I've left before, but that really doesn't do anything to stop what I see as blatant corruption and bigotry. Here are a few issues that are a problem for me:

1. Ukraine-Russia War: FIDE have not banned Russian players who play under a neutral flag, and calls for the Russian President of FIDE, Arkady Dvorkovich, to step aside have been ignored. As well as going against the dictates of most other sporting bodies regarding letting Russians compete, there have also been high level cases of Ukrainian players refusing to play in events with Russian players competing. This clearly shows that the victims are being made to pay doubly by FIDE.

FIDE banned Sergey Karjakin for openly supporting Putin and the war in Ukraine, but have subsequently done very little. In fact, they did nothing to sanction chess commentator Sergey Shipov for basically the same thing.

2. Cheating in chess: The infamous case of alleged cheating by American GM Hans Niemann by Magnus Carlsen and others. FIDE basically did nothing in this case, and seem to have done little in regards to cheating in chess. They wiped their hands of involvement instead of disciplining either side for bringing the game into disrepute, which is essentially what happened. 

3. Sexual assault: In my opinion, the biggest scandal to hit the chess world in the past few years is the sexual assault case brought to light by 8 women against GM Alejandro Ramirez. Unfortunately, this case represents just the tip of iceberg, and I don't see FIDE doing anything to address this major problem in chess. Women's only chess tournaments have been promoted for helping encourage more girls and women into the game officially. But in reality, they provide a safe space for women to play, because open tournaments aren't being policed properly. Misogyny and assault were the reason International Master Sabrina Chevannes stopped playing. Meanwhile, Tallulah Roberts was assaulted at the Reykjavik Open in 2022. The takeaway from these reports is that chess environments are not safe places for women, and that not a lot is being done to change that.

"It's the reason I stopped playing chess. It's completely prevalent, it's something that has been sat on and suppressed on for many years. I guess they don't want to ruin the image that chess is a gentleman's game." - Chevannes

“The chess world isn’t a safe place for us, and it’s time to stop pretending these issues are in the past or that people are only sexist online. It’s 2022 and this happens.” - Roberts

4. Trans Player ban: I'm really not sure what FIDE is doing here, as more often than not they tend to sit on the fence and do nothing. So for FIDE to actually ban Trans players is a statement by them. I have trans friends who play chess and I know that some of them struggle with their position in society, suffering depression, anxiety and even having suicidal thoughts. Every time they are victimised will only make matters worse for a minority that only want to be accepted for who they are. The most high profile trans chess player, French master Yosha Iglesias said on her Twitter account, “If you want to help women in chess, fight sexist and sexual violence, give women in chess more visibility and more money, don’t use trans women players as scapegoats. We contribute to the development of women in chess. We are women in chess.” This is a position I fully agree with. As an example of disparity, at the current World Cup tournament, the winner of the Open section will receive $US 110,000, whereas the winner of the Women's section will get $US 50,000, or less than half. The total prize money pool in the Open section is $US 1,843,000 whereas in the Women's section the total prize pool is $US 676,250, or about 1/3. And this works its way through the whole spectrum of the chess world, even at local level. The current State Championship in Victorian, Australia sees a total prize pool of $2000 where the winner will get $1000. The Women's Championship has a total prize pool of $1000 and the winner will get $500.

So victims are not being taken seriously by chess authorities at the International, National and Local levels and until they do the chess environment will only be safe for first world white hetero males. This most recent attack on Trans Players shows that chess is subject to ingrained bigotry at the organisational level, but I don't see where the necessary change is going to come from. Reading the comments at the end of any of the articles I've cited, especially from the chess sites, will show how deeply embedded bigotry is in the chess world.

Local Chess While I'm Away

 I'm writing a lot about travelling around Tasmania at the moment, because, funnily enough, I'm travelling around Tasmania. But while I'm away, I'll miss the Tasmanian Rapid Championship where I'm the defending Champion. The tournament is being held in Burnie in the north of the state, while I'll be over on the east coast at that time. To be honest, I didn't have much choice with timing because of my house renovation, it's just a little sad that the two things coincided. Ah well, never mind.

And I'm still following the Victorian State Championship with interest. Top seed, IM Stephen Solomon took 2 half point byes in the first two rounds, but then has since been held to two draws leaving him well off the pace after 4/9 rounds. He'll probably need a clean sweep of 5/5 in the second half if he wants a chance at first place. It will be interesting, as he is definitely capable of that sort of run. There are still two players on 4/4 and surprisingly neither of them are hot favourites for the event. Both are untitled with Cheng Dai being the 8th seed and Tejas Datar 11th. But they are just two of a bunch of talented young players who are really taking it to the established elite.

Standings: Datar, Dai 4/4; FM Wallis 3.5; Rozuwiecka, FM Ilic 3; Ilic, FM Soo, CM Bassig, Gibson, FM Nemeth, IM Rujevic, Annapureddy, Zafirakos, J. Li, Raine 2.5...36 players.

It seems I'll also miss the next Australian Championships which is being held in Adelaide from 2-14 January 2024. I have apparently qualified as Tasmanian State Champion. but won't be able to play. I can't see a website for it, but it is another event to look forward to. the last time I played in the Australian Championship was 2016, when I scored a creditable 5/11 including Draws with FM Nakauchi, IM Tan, Choong, Puccini, Nemeth and a win against IM Andrew Brown. I also scored a draw with my dear friend Malcolm Pyke who I remember fondly...

I had some fortune along the way, including the draw against Jack Puccini who wasn't an FM then, but is now a strong FM.

As Black I'd been fighting a losing battle for some time, until Jack just took one pawn too many with this swindle that I'd set. 1.Rxc6? Rd2 with a miracle draw 4 pawns down. Black will play Nh2-f3-h2-f3 and White can do little to stop it. The game finished 2.Ne2 Nxh2+ 3.Kf1 Nf3+ and Jack accepted the draw by moving his king back to e1. 

Victorian Chess Championship 2023

The Victorian Chess Championship started yesterday as a 9-round, one game per week, elite swiss event for the top 36 rated players entered. Now I know organisers have a hard time of it, but I have a few issues with this event. First, if this is an elite event, then why are none of the top 5 active players in the state playing? GM Bobby Cheng is currently overseas and will be playing in the World Cup at the end of July so there is a clash for him (although I'm not actually sure he's resident in Victoria at the moment), but GM Johansen, IM's Morris and Dale, and FM Puccini could play. 

FM Chris Wallis is the highest rated player on the active list who is playing, and good on him as Chris rarely misses the chance to play in this event. In fact, the first time I played in the Victorian Championship I had to play against Chris when he was still a junior, a very strong one, but still a junior. Back then, in 2006 the tournament was arranged as round robin events where each round was played at different clubs in metro Melbourne. As the clubs meet on different days and at different times, it was a cumbersome event, but the top division was always strong, with the lowest rated players rarely dropping below 2000. I came equal first with Chris in the 2006 challengers event, so we both qualified for the 2007 Championship and both played regularly thereafter. This format was the brainchild of Victorian President Gary Wastell, but when he took over the mantel of Australian Chess Federation President and Leonid Sandler became Victorian President, the tournament format changed.

The first change was that the Victorian Championship stopped being shared around the clubs and found a single venue to host. While this is less inclusive and representative of the Melbourne chess scene, it is certainly more convenient for players who can fix a regular time and day and place in their calendar. Box Hill Chess Club has been the regular host of the event for a number of years. As one of the bigger and stronger clubs, this has meant the event has a good turn out, though it certainly favours players who live on the east of the city. I think it is safe to say that no venue will be perfect for all players! The second change was that the event morphed from being a round robin to an elite swiss tournament of 24 players and this year has expanded to 36 players. While this gives more chance for more players to compete, it makes the event less elite. It also makes the tournament less unlike other events that clubs run through their calendar year in Melbourne and Victoria. I'm looking at the field and seeing a strongish open field, but nothing that much stronger than the top events that the stronger clubs are running.

So what is the answer? Actually, is there an answer? I personally feel that if the top players don't want to compete, then tough for them and good luck for those who bothered to turn out. Liren Ding is the current World Champion because he was the best player who bothered to show up for the event. In this respect, and seeing the format if becoming more like open swiss tournaments, I can't see why it isn't a weekend tournament, or perhaps held over 2 weekends. There could even be a minimum rating requirement, like in the Doeberl Cup, and if numbers allowed, a second division could be held. I think Queensland holds an under 1600 event, or something like that. Would top players play in a weekend event? IM and Victorian number 2 played in the recent Victorian Open Championship at the Melbourne Chess Club in June. I would mention an increased prize fund, but the Victorian Open didn't have a significantly larger prize fund than the Victorian Championship has....

This year's Championship isn't bad. It has 2 IM's Stephen Solomon and Mirko Rujevic, and 4 FM's Chris Wallis, Kai Jie Soo, John Nemeth and Nick Ilic. There are 12 players rated over 2000 on the ACF rating list and 11 on the FIDE list, but a lot of the players are young and probably under rated. Because it is a swiss event, the organisers have allowed players to take byes and in the first round, top seed Solomon took advantage of this. Of the games that were played only 3 of the 16 went against the ratings in the first round. IM Mirko Rujevic was held to a draw by Marcus Raine and under rated players Anna Rozuwiecka and Douglas Dias upset Hamish Bassig and James Hartley respectively. Otherwise the top seeds came through, though not always with ease. Top seed Chris Wallis lost a pawn early on to Randheer Thogata, but played on as if nothing had happened until the following position was reached.

Castling on opposite sides means that the pawn deficit isn't so pronounced, and Chris as White has just lost another pawn on f4, though this was a greedy grab by Black that was punished efficiently by the top seeded FM. White played the exchange sacrifice 22.Rxf4! opening the long diagonal and after 22..exf4 23.Ne4 White's knight and bishop combination cutting into Black's weakened dark square complex was too much to defend. Black resigned just 10 moves later!

[Event "Vic Ch"] [Site "?"] [Date "2023.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Wallis, C."] [Black "Thogata, R"] [Result "1-0"] [EventDate "2023.??.??"] [ECO "B23"] [PlyCount "65"] 1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nc6 5.Qd2 g6 6.b3 Bh6 7.f4 Nf6 8.Bb2 O-O 9.O-O-O e5 10.g3 Bg4 11.Nge2 Bf3 12.Rg1 Nxe4 13.Nxe4 Bxe4 14.Bg2 Bxg2 15.Rxg2 Qb6 16.Nc3 Ne7 17.Kb1 Rfd8 18.Re2 Rac8 19.Qd3 a6 20.Rf1 Qc7 21.g4 Bxf4 22.Rxf4 exf4 23.Ne4 Nc6 24.Nf6+ Kf8 25.Nxh7+ Kg8 26.Nf6+ Kf8 27.Qh3 Ne5 28.Qh6+ Ke7 29.Nd5+ Kd7 30.Nxc7 f3 31.Rxe5 dxe5 32.Bxe5 Ke7 33.Qf4 1-0

I hate the term "Bucket List"

I'm currently following the news about Iceland with thousands of earthquakes leading to volcanic activity that has been kicking off near Reykjavik today. I'm fascinated by Iceland, its amazing scenery, including volcanoes, and the great chess culture there. I have to admit, that it the number 1 destination for me in the World at the moment.

I've never been to Iceland, and living in Tasmania, I couldn't be much further away. But I've dreamt of going to Iceland, combining my love for chess with my love for wildlife. The Reykjavik Chess Open is one of the great annual open tournaments and has a history going back to the 1960's. It is usually held around March/April, and would be a great event to attend. After the chess a roadtrip around the Island Ring Road would be amazing, perhaps spending a week to 10 days just basking in the glory of the wonders of Iceland's scenery.

Will I get to Iceland before I kick the bucket? Hopefully! Do I consider it part of my bucket list? No!! This term has not long started working its way through to my circle of friends and I really can't stand it. I don't make a list of "must-do's" or "wouldn't-that-be-greats" and then pressure myself to make them happen, or get cut up about them not happening. Yes, I'd like to go to Iceland. Yes, I'll try to make it happen. But No, it's not something I HAVE TO DO before I die.