Chess (#688)

The last time Colonel Gaddafi appeared in public, he played chess with his buddy Kirsan Ilyumnzhinov. Apparently the Libyan strongman is still in touch with Ilyumnzhinov, who has assured everyone that the colonel is alive and well.

It wasn’t a big chess week and it was a big week for the West African-Arab nation. So that gossip overshadowed a (probable) cheating scandal in St Petersburg, and the French championships. The International Chess Festival in St Petersburg was dedicated to the 100th birth anniversary of “Mr Soviet Chess”, Mikhail Moiseyvich Botvinnik.

Botvinnik (1911-1995) was a native of the city and the poster boy of the USSR as the first strong player to emerge after the October Revolution. In-between work as a computer scientist and electronics expert, MMB won the world title in 1948 and held it with two breaks until 1963. He also trained Anatoly Karpov and Garry Kasparov.

The Open was won by seven players including Khismatullin, Alexandrov, Ponkratov, Dvoirys, Jakov Geller, Yakovich and Neverov, who all scored 7 from 9 rounds. As expected in any Russian Open, it was a very strong field of 166, including many unknown youngsters.

The scandal revolved around Yuri Klimentiev, a 42-year-old with a 1,698 rating, which translates to near-beginner. After six rounds, he was 4/6 with a TPR of roughly 2,200, which is close to master-level. It’s unusual for a middle-aged amateur to jump that much. From round 7-9, the organisers confiscated his briefcase and “lucky” pen and he scored 0/3 and reverted to playing like a beginner.

In Caen, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave won the French title. After 10 rounds, Vachier Lagrave and Laurent Fressinet were tied for first with 6.5. In the final 11th round, Vachier Lagrave was dead-lost against Etienne Bacrot who blundered into a draw. Fressinet was slaughtered by Christian Bauer. The French Federation has received kudos for its willingness to prosecute cheats. This championship went through without a breath of scandal.

The Diagram, WHITE TO PLAY (Bacrot Vs Vachier Lagrave, French Chps, 2011) is from the critical last game. The first move is not difficult. 19.Nd6! exf3 20.g3 e4 21.Nxe8 Rcxe8 22.0-0 Bxa1 23.Qxa1 Bc4 24.Rc1 Bd3 25.Qd4 Ne5 White has an advantage with more material and a dark-square attack. In an “anything wins” situation, a super GM find a move that doesn’t! Play continued 26.b5? Bxb5 27.Qxe4 Nd3 28.Qd5+ Rf7 29.Rb1 Nxf2! The draw is assured since 30. Kxf2 Re2+ wins for black. Bacrot avoided that indignity with 30.Rxb5 Ng4 31.Rb1 Re2 32.Qd8+ Rf8 33.Qd5+ Rf7 34.Qd8+ Rf8 35.Qd5+ (0.5-0.5). Allowing 35. -Rf7 36. Rf1 Rg2+ 37. Kh1 Rxh2+ 38. Kg1 f2+ would be horrible.

Devangshu Datta is an internationally rated chess and correspondence chess player