The just-concluded World Rapid and Blitz Championship had many twists and turns, leading to some very surprising results. In the Rapids (15m;+10), defending champ Magnus Carlsen managed to overcome a poor start and end up tied for first going into the last round, where a very surprising loss to Russian Alexander Grischuk put him out of contention. There was a three-way tie between Vishy Anand and Russians Ian Nepomniachtchi and Vladimir Fedoseev. Due to technical tie-breaking rules, Nepomniachtchi was eliminated and Anand played Fedoseev in a two-game blitz match, which he won. So the 48-year-old Anand is a world champ yet again.
In the Blitz (3m;+2), we saw one of the strangest forfeit claims ever made. In the first round, Carlsen was playing Russian Ernesto Inarkiev, and put Inarkiev’s king in check. Inarkiev ignored that by checking Carlsen’s king. Carlsen moved his king, instead of claiming the win based on the fact that Inkarkiev had made an illegal move. Inkarkiev then claimed a win based on the fact that Carlsen had made an illegal move as Inkarkiev’s king was still in check. Amazing! Chaos ensued as the board arbiter awarded the game to Inkarkiev. Carlsen then went to the appeals committee, which wanted to continue the game, Inkarkiev refused and they awarded the point to Carlsen. Chess.com has the best detailed description of this very strange incident with a detailed examination of blitz rules. (www.chess.com/news) In any case, Carlsen managed to overcome a poor first day (two losses) to go an amazing 9/10 on the second, becoming, yet again, the blitz world champion.
The annual Pan-Am Intercollegiate Chess Championship was just played over the holidays with the Webster University “A’’ team winning yet again (4.5/5), the school’s 6th Pan-Am championship. In 2nd–4th were St. Louis University, Texas Tech, and Texas Rio Grande Valley “A.’’ These four teams will face off in the College Final Four this coming April at the Marshall CC, NYC. The only New England team was Harvard, which finished 11th. Of the 16+ players on the top four teams, there is only one native-born US player (Ray Robson). Such is the nature of international recruiting at the leading collegiate chess programs.
Coming events: Jan. 13-14, Portsmouth Open, Holiday Inn Portsmouth, N.H. www.RelyeaChess.com; Jan 14, Gus Gosselin/ Massachusetts Grade Championships, Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel, West, Marlborough, Details: www.MassChess.org
Recent results: BCC Herb Healy, 1st-3rd, Steve Winer, Chris Williams, Jake Garbarino. 3.5/4; Wachusett’s George Sturgis Memorial, 1st: Ray Paulson, 4/5.
Answer to today’s problem: 1.Re7! (Interference) Qc6+/Qb7 [or 1...Rxe7 2.Qxf8#; 1...Bxe7 2.Qxh7#; 1...a5 2.Qxh7#] 2.Be4 Qxe4+ 3.Rgxe4 wins.
Chris Chase can be reached at BostonGlobeChessNotes@gmail.com.
