Click here to look for "chess" with the Google search engine.   Hello friend!     ...............    Welcome to one of the best {private} chess sites around. (Recognized as such by several national chess federations and also "C.J.A." Site of The Year for 2004.)     ................     Check out my School of Tactics!!  ..........  Many improvements and NEW PAGES!!!!   (Be sure to check the T.L.A. in 'Chess Life' for the tournaments in your area.)  Thanks, and have a great day!!!

   A FIDE "Top 100" site.  
  Best site, CJA, for 2004.

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  (This page holds news items archived for the period, 2003-2004.)  

I  don't believe in throwing anything away. Here I will save and/or archive all previous articles. 
Click  here  to go to my "chess news" page. (Current stuff.) 

  NOTE:  Many of these links are NOT valid!!   

   (I feel no need to check these old stories for valid URL's. They could have moved, or they might have been deleted.)  


Are you looking for the latest news on Bobby Fischer? If you are, then please click here.  


   Special announcements for (the year) 2004.  

  ******************************************************************************************************  

  The Super-GM Tournament / Linares, Spain;  2004.    

  This event has its own permanent page.    Click  here  to go there now.    

  ******************************************************************************************************  

  WCC - GM Vladimir Kramnik versus GM Peter Leko    

This event ... now has its own permanent home.  [ Click here to go there now. ]  

  ******************************************************************************************************  

   2004 Russian Championship    

Garry Kasparov played very good chess to win this event, click here to read more.  


Last year all the big boys signed a  RE-UNIFICATION  plan. But all is not peace and harmony at the pinnacle of the chess world. Some players want more money, and now it appears that Ponomariov wants to back out. (See just below.) 

  FIDE vs. Ponomariov – the battle rages on  
13.01.2003  FIDE is putting the screws on their world champion Ruslan Ponomariov. They want him to sign an agreement to play against Garry Kasparov as part of the reunification plan. But the young champion is balking. We bring you some new documents on the "negotiations", including full regulations of the ... World Championship Match 2003.   (From the  ChessBase  web site.) 

(The  ChessBase  web  site  has dozens of articles about this topic.) 

Jan. 20th, 2003. 
It looks like Ponomariov will be dropped from the big reunification plan, (and very soon!); unless he changes his stance in this matter. (More to come!) 

Feb. 06, 2003.  I have lots of reading to do, but will try to update this story today or tomorrow. Stay tuned for more reports. 


   Man vs. Machine   

Starting in October of 2002,  GM Garry Kasparov  was slated to play the computer program, DEEP JUNIOR. (Originally, I believe this match was supposed to have nearly coincided with the  Kramnik vs. Deep Fritz match. But it all did NOT happen the way it was supposed to I guess. In fact, I thought for quite some time that this match would never even happen! Click  HERE  to read more.) 

***

January 26th, 2003:   As I write this, the  Super Bowl  is on TV, and  Garry Kasparov  appears to be 'whupping up' on the  Deep Junior  program.  GREAT STUFF!!!
  (Kasparov won in 27 moves! A VERY quick crush. Click  HERE  to see the moves of the game.) 

(Click  HERE  to go to my page for this match on my "Comps vs. Humans"  website.)  The latest update is that AOL has joined forces with X3D to bring  you the games, this definitely promises to be interesting. (Dozens of news agencies  -  Time.Warner/CNN  -  Spiegel Online  -  and more! are covering this match.) 

I will be watching the games live, probably on the X3D site or on ICC

Visit the X3D site or the USCF web site at  www.uschess.org. Plenty of news on this match on the "ChessBase" web site. (Also visit the FIDE web site.) 

***

January 29th:  Kasparov was BLACK yesterday ... and darn near whupped the computer again. 
(The score should really be 2 - 0 for Garry, he missed at least one win, maybe more.) The text score for BOTH games are already posted on my (chess) "Computers vs. Humans" web site.  (Click here.)

This was an EXTREMELY exciting game to watch, 10,000 watched the game on one European web server, ICC has been running at least 5,000 observers per game. This is great stuff, Kasparov is playing well-prepared and inspired chess!

***

February 06th, 2003:  My computer crashed, (several times) so I missed two of the games. The belated report was that games four and five were drawn. I was unable to watch either game, as my computer was inoperative. But informed sources tell me that the computer sacked unsoundly. (In game five.) Apparently Kasparov was shaken and allowed a perpetual. Game four was a Sicilian, where Garry missed or avoided the best line more than once. The machine was close to winning, but Kasparov eventually fought back to draw.  (More later.) 

Of course now that my computer is working again, I will be updating this site and also my "Computers vs. Humans" chess web site. (Click HERE.)

February 07, 2003:  The match is currently even, score of 2.5 - 2.5.
The final game is today at 1530 hours, Eastern time.

***

February 08th, 2003. The match was drawn.  This last game was an exciting encounter that was carried LIVE on ESPN, and also all the chess servers. 

See my "Humans vs. Computers" chess web  site  for more details ... and the full story. 

 

January 24th, 2003. 
Not only will  Kasparov  be playing  Deep Junior  (in New York City), but at virtually the same time, (Jan. 28th to Jan. 31st); GM E. Bareev  will be playing  Hiarcs 8.0 in the Netherlands.  (Sponsored by the Maastricht Foundation.) Click  here  to read more. (Or here.)


   Man vs. Machine    (Kasparov versus Deep Junior.)  

February 08th, 2003. The match was drawn.  This last game was an exciting encounter that was carried  LIVE  on  ESPN,  and also all the chess servers. 

See my "Humans vs. Computers" chess web  site  for more details ... and the full story. 

***

   The Aeroflot Open;  February 10th - 20th, 2003    

 Nearly 500 players have come to Moscow to play in the annual Aeroflot Open! 
A really huge tournament ... many players. Several of the chess servers will be  carrying the top games of the day.  (Click  herehere  or  here  to read more.)

***

GM Viktor Bologan  has won the exciting Aeroflot Open. (On tie-break.) I was not able to bring you details of the games, I am recovering from a big computer crash; and also the games of this event were extremely hard to come by. (No games were posted, just fuzzy, cluttered and almost unreadable scans of the original score-sheets.)  (Click here to read more.) 

***

   Hrokurinn - February 18-27. Reykjavik, Iceland.    

A very strong tournament is being held in Iceland. They have some very strong players. Guys like GM M. Adams, GM A. Shirov, GM I. Sokolov, etc. (All the players who were not invited to Linares?) Thus far the biggest story - for me, anyway - has been the defeat of GM Adams at the hands of GM V. Korchnoi. Korchnoi is nearly 73!! Amazing! 

Go to ICC or ChessBase for more details.

<< Iceland's Hrokurinn Chess Club organized a category XV tournament which took 
      place at the Reykjavik Art Museum, February 18th-27th 2003. GM Alexei Shirov 
      took clear first with 7/9. >>  (From the  TWIC  web site.) 

 

   The biggest tourney of the year, LINARES (ESP.); has started.    

The biggest and most exciting tournament of the year is about to start. I will try to update this page on a daily basis while the tournament is being played. 
(See the "ChessBase" web  site  for daily reports and updates.) 

The field consists of maybe the strongest field ever assembled. We are talking about Garry Kasparov, (now the number one-rated-player for close to 20 years!);  Vladimir Kramnik, (generally the player considered to be World Champion); Viswanathan Anand, (The super-strong Indian GM, former FIDE Champ, and the winner of CORUS/Wijk aan Zee.); Ruslan Ponomariov, (the current FIDE Champ); Peter Leko, (A very strong and still relatively young Hungarian GM); a very young Teimour Radjabov, and local player V. Pons Vallejo. (A local/Spanish player.) 

Thus far, Pono has started off with TWO straight losses, and Kaspy has lost to "Rady."
(Click here to read a full report.) I think the latest round was all draws. (*yawn*) 

Saturday; March 08, 2003:  With just one round to go, GM Kramnik and Leko are on top with  'plus two.' GM's Kasparov and Anand are chasing them at plus one. See the CB web site or the FIDE web site for more details. (Or go to the official site for this event.) 

Monday, March 10th, 2003: 
Linares is over. Kramnik and LEKO, were tied for first ... after the dust had settled. 
GM Peter Leko  wins  Linares  ..... on tiebreak!!  Click  HERE  to read more. 

 

  Dos Hermanos.   

Click  here  to go to the  SPANISH  Page for this site.  (Click here for English.) 

Round 4 standings 1st Place: (3.5 points)  GM Vallejo Pons (!) (ESP 2629)  
2 - 5:  (2-5 - 2.5)  GM Dreev, (RUS 2690)GM Epishin(RUS 2626);  
GM A. Khalifman, (RUS 2702)GM A. Shirov, (ESP 2723)
6: (2.0 points)  GM Rustemov, (RUS 2604);  
7:  (1.5 points)  GM Campora, (ARG 2505);  
8 - 10:  (1.0 point)  GM Illescas, (ESP 2595)GM Karjakin, (UKR 2547)
GM Tiviakov, (NED 2635).  (Tuesday;  April 01, 2003.) 

This is a Category XVI (16) event, that has already seen some good, tough, 
hard-hitting chess. (And NO! ... it is NOT an April Fool's joke!) 

Stranger still, after 4 rounds is that  ChessBase,  London's  Chess Centre,  and 
many other sites that normally have great news coverage ...  make NO mention 
of this tournament at all. How is this possible? (Something I don't know here?) 

*****************************************

Dos Hermanos has concluded. After leading most of the way, local hero Vallejo Pons lost to Russian GM A. Dreev in the penultimate round and thus lost out on his possible share of first place.  GM A. Rustemov  was declared the  winner  on tiebreaks over Dreev. Rating favorite, GM A. Shirov finished only one point back in a tie for 5th and 6th places  ...  due almost entirely to a loss to GM Campora. 
 (Who finished next-to-last.) 

***

Click  here  to read the report of this tournament by  LCC's  TWIC

Click  here  to read the  ChessBase  report of this whole tournament. 


  The year in chess, 2004.  

*****************************************

  CORUS / Wijk ann Zee.    

India's incredible Vishy Anand racked up "plus five" and in the final analysis, no other player could catch him ... even after a late round loss to Topalov. (See just below.) 

*****************************************

January, 2004:  CorusWijk aan Zee  is being played this month, with a stellar field. The list of players includes:  Kramnik, Anand, Svidler, Shirov, Topalov, Leko, Adams, Bareev, Sokolov, Akopian, Bologan, van Wely, and Timman. Already many interesting games have been played, although there was a ton of draws at the start of this event. (January 16th, 2004.) 

  ---> A ChessBase story  *  Chess Center's  coverage of this event  *  Go get the games  

*****

  NEWS FLASH!! - Anand loses. (January 24th, 2004.) Just when I was ready to   crown Anand "The People's Champion,"  ...  just when I was ready to say the  Indian Phenom  was unbeatable ... just when it looked like Anand was ready to run away with one of the strongest tournaments of the last 10-to-20 years ... Anand proves he is human, and loses to the ever-dangerous Veselin Topalov.  [ more ]  [ replay all round 12 games & download the games in PGN format ]  [ where is this place?]   [ a pictorial report ]   

******************************************************************************************************

Despite a loss in the penultimate round to Topalov, Anand took a rather quick - and for me, disappointing - draw in the last round of Wijk aan Zee. The players who were in a position to try and move up and try to catch Anand, apparently did not have the backbone to try and "go for it." This means that Anand won his second straight Wijk aan Zee!  

[ Read  the full (CB) story.  (Cross-table of the top section is included.) ]    
[
Read  the Chess Center report by Mark Crowther.   (Cross-table of ALL 3 sections.)  ]  

******************************************************************************************************

  --->  To me, some of the more interesting stories did NOT occur in the top section. 

*******

 Cuba's  GM  Lazaro  Bruzon  won the  "B" section  of the  Wijk aan Zee  tournament. This magnificent victory, (7 wins, 2 losses, & only 4 draws!); qualifies him for the top section of next year's "A" event. Some of his games were really scintillating. 
[ more ]  [ His schedule of games. ]  
[
Download more
{chess} games - in virtually any format. ]  

When I went on the Internet to about 5 or 6 of the most popular chess-playing servers, most of the players there had never even heard of Bruzon. (I knew very little of him myself.) 

This is what I was able to find out about this player: He is relatively young, only 21 years old. (He will be 22 on the second day of May, 2004.) As a very young player he drew attention to himself, apparently he had both a lot of talent and a good teacher. In the year 2000, he apparently tied for first in the World Junior Championships. [ story ]  And while perhaps not a prodigy in the sense of Mozart, Fischer, or Kasparov, this player's development has been continuous and very steady. Look for him in future events, and of course he will be playing in the top section of 'Wijk' next year. 
(You heard it here, first!)
 

*******

The winner of the "C" section of this tournament was 13-year old Magnus Carlsen. 

  The young "Mozart of Chess."  (carlsen01.jpeg, 04 KB)

The Mozart of Chess
27.01.2004  That is the title conferred by GM Lubomir Kavalek of the  Washington Post  on Magnus Carlsen, a 13-year-old Norwegian who made his first grandmaster norm and won the Corus C-group in Wijk aan Zee. We bring you a portrait and the games of this remarkable young lad whom you will definitely want to watch carefully in the future. 


******************************************************************************************************

    The Super-GM Tournament /  Linares, Spain;  2004.    

  This event has its own permanent page.    Click  here  to go there now.    

*******

   Round # 14     (3/05/2004):  (This was the final round!) 
    GM Garry Kasparov
1/2 - 1/2  GM Francisco Vallejo-Pons
;  
    GM Veselin Topalov  1/2 - 1/2  GM Vladimir Kramnik;  
    GM Alexei Shirov 1/2 - 1/2  GM Peter Leko;  

    Descansa: GM Teimour Radjabov (bye)      

Kramnik drew in a big hurry, he must have been thirsty and needed a drink. 
(Beer ... or champagne? I guess the outcome of Garry's game would determine whether he truly had something to celebrate or not.)  

Shirov seemed to try to win, (he used a fair amount of time on his clock); but after about 25 moves a very simplified position was reached ... it became obvious that the only person who even remotely could hope for a win was Leko.  So ... draw.  

Kasparov valiantly tried to win, and for a while it looked like he just might succeed. But deep into the second time control, Garry had to call it a day.  

This means Kramnik wins the event at "plus two," clear first.  [ more ]  

*******

A.J.'s "Game of The Day" was Garry's all-out winning attempt against the local boy, GM Francisco ("Paco") Vallejo-Pons. This game was a wild and very torrid affair, I thought Pons did extremely well to draw. It was a long game too, going 54 moves. 


 Aeroflot Festival   -  Hundreds of chess players converge for this event. 
18.02.2004
  The 3rd Aeroflot (chess) Festival has started in Moscow, lasting from February 17 to 26. Well over 500 participants, amongst them 120 grandmasters have collected for this massive tournament in the Hotel Rossija. The prize fund is $150,000!  [ more ]  
  (I can find almost NONE of these games online!  ICC  has a few of the top boards.) 

***************

The Aeroflot Chess Festival  concluded February 26th. The top section, (Group "A") with over 200 titled/rated players, was a huge success. (All prizes were paid out, according to several on-line sources.) Many players were successful in obtaining title norms. (There were also a "B" and "C" section!!! How many players attended???) 

The top section, (Group "A")  ended  in a 3-way tie.  GM's  Sergey RublevskyRafael A. Vaganian,  and  Valerij Filippov  all finished with seven points, (7.0 out of 9); to tie for first. A huge group (13) players all finished with six-and-a-half (6.5) points. Another large group, (about 13) finished with six points. (6.0) A group of around 25 players finished with 5.5, including "The Mozart of Chess," 13-year-old Magnus Carlsen. (His second GM Norm!!) The number of titled players is really too large to name. (Unbelievable!) 

ICC has a few of the games, although I am sure many were transmitted incorrectly. No one - including TWIC or ChessBase - has been able to get more than a handful of the games in PGN format. ChessBase has a nice pictorial report of the tournament. 
 [ more ]  

******************************************************************************************************

  Several big tournaments are coming up. I will post news and results - as I get them. 
   (March, 2004.) 

******************************************************************************************************

   The 2004 Reykjavik Open     (The official web site
This annual event is coming up, (March 07th - 16th); and looks to be stronger than ever.   A bevy of GM's (25 to 30), many IM's, FM's and titled lady players will compete. There are also a whole truckload of young players (ISL, NOR, SWE, DEN) who are competing for a chance to shine and perhaps make a title norm. A few names are GM's: A. Dreev, E. Sutovsky, L. Aronian, V. Epishin, M. Krasenkow, X. Bu, (China); J. Ehlvest, I. Rogers, Jan Timman and T. Luther. (ICC's "Hawkeye" is also there.) Looks to be fun!  

  As usual, you can watch the games live on  "The Internet Chess Club."  (ICC)  
  {You have to download and install their software, 'Blitzin,' as well.} 

******************************************************************************************************

   The Tigran Petrosian Memorial    
  (Held March 9th thru the 18th. The official web site.)  

The event is a Category 13 closed tournament with some of the best players from Europe and the region.  {former}  World Champion Boris Spassky will comment on the games as they are played. Games will be transmitted live - or watch them on ICC. 

******************************************************************************************************

   34th 'Bosna GM' Tournament    - May 18th through May 27th, 2004. 

  Recently a large tournament was concluded in Sarajevo, Bosnia. (BIH) This was no mean tournament, all the participants were GM's rated at least 2500 or above. Alex Shirov was on fire - he had six wins and only three draws to win this event. GM Nigel short, after a very impressive run of victories, had a rather dismal result. Placing second was the strong, relatively young (25) GM, Sergei Movsesian. 

 FINAL STANDINGS, Bosnia 2004 Super-GM 

1 Shirov, Alexei 2713 ESP   ½ ½ 1 1 1 ½ 1 1 1 7.5
2 Movsesian, Sergei 2647 SVK ½   ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 ½ 1 6.0
3 Sokolov, Ivan 2690 NED ½ ½   1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 5.5
4 Bologan, Viktor 2665 MDA 0 ½ 0   ½ 1 1 ½ 1 1 5.5
5 Kozul, Zdenko 2627 CRO 0 ½ ½ ½   ½ ½ 1 1 ½ 5.0
6 Dizdarevic, Emir 2528 BIH 0 ½ ½ 0 ½   ½ ½ 1 ½ 4.0
7 Short, Nigel 2712 ENG ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ ½   ½ ½ ½ 3.5
8 Predojevic, Borki 2503 BIH 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ ½   ½ ½ 3.0
9 Atalik, Suat 2558 BIH 0 ½ ½ 0 0 0 ½ ½   ½ 2.5
10 Kurajica, Bojan 2528 BIH 0 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½   2.5

  More information on this event.   [The CB report of this tournament.]   


FIDE World Championships (2004) 

(June, 2004)  Antoaneta Stefanova (is the) new Women's World Champion  

According to one story, (on the CB web site); the Chinese player Zhu Chen is the Women's World Champion. 

But according to this {older}  story,  Bulgaria's top lady player, Ms. A. STEFANOVA  ...  
is the new (women's chess) World Champion. 

It goes without saying that this is a grand achievement. Hats off {and a bow} to all the spirited ladies who competed ferociously for this honor. (I watched a few of the games - on the Internet, of course.) 

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******************************************************************************************************

   kasim-adams01.jpg, 44 KB

   kasim-adams02.jpg, 38 KB

(July 14th, 2004)   GM Rustam Kasimdzhanov is the new (FIDE) World Champion!!!   
(Call me  "Quosimjonov."   Say  --->  KWOH' - sim - `zhwah - noff.)  

   *******************************************************************  

For quite some time ... I have been getting a ton of e-mails ... most ask the same question. 
("WHO THE HECK IS THIS GUY?" I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF HIM!")  

Of course you could have predicted it. Really. First there was Korchnoi  and Karpov, later there came along ... some fellow named Kasparov. And later - much later - came Kamsky. Then, out of the blue, a guy named Alexander KHALIFMAN won the title in the first FIDE knock-out event. Now ... the winner is Rustam Kasimdzhanov. Are we starting to see a pattern here?  (He was the only player in the final bracket that began with the correct letter!)  

   *******************************************************************  

After several consecutive upsets, (by the young player from Uzbekistan);  ...  GM Michael Adams  and  GM Rustam Kasimdzhanov  faced off in the finals of FIDE's big shoot-out in Tripoli, LBA. The first game was a rather quick and somewhat uninspiring draw ... perhaps both players were taking the measure of their opponent. 

The Russian struck with the first win in game two, but Mickey fought back to win game three

Couldn't we say we had seen enough action ... and expect the players to simply draw the rest of the games of this match? But it was NOT to be so ... and I, for one, am eternally grateful. 

Down - but not out - Rustam summoned the courage to win game four, and Adams responded with his own brilliant victory, in game number five. I had to pinch myself ... was I dreaming? 

Surely the player with the White pieces, (Kasimdzhanov); held the edge ... and would win the last game?  [more] (At least this is what I predicted.) But the game turned out to be a real  "comedy of errors,"  with both sides swinging for the fences  ...  but ultimately coming up a fuzz short. 

This set up a RAPID play-off ... for the World Crown. (That stinks in my book, but it is certainly better than a coin toss or a roll of the roulette wheel. And a heck of a lot more exciting!)  

The play-off turned out to be something of a let-down ... Kasimdzhanov won the first game, and held off a determined Adams in the second game to win the match .... AND THE TITLE. 
(I watched many of the games - live - on the FIDE web site. Click on the games tab.) 

While it is hard to think of a World Championship Match as only six games ... you certainly have to salute this 24-year-old player Uzbekistan. He met all the challenges head-on ... and seemingly unafraid. He played very good slow chess and phenomenal chess in the tie-breakers ... when all the pressure was on, and many of the older, more experienced players began to lose their nerve. 

The King (Ponomariov) is dead ... long live the (new) KING!!  (GM R. Kasimdzhanov) 

I now have a  download  for this match ... It is ready right now!!!   
(I have already analyzed the final  {regular}  game of the match in some detail.) 

*******

  (Click on the links below to replay these games on the FIDE web site.)  
  Game No. # 1   Game No. # 2   Game No. # 3   Game No. # 4   Game No. # 5   Game No. # 6    TB_Gm. One   TB_Gm. Two  

  *********************************************************************************************************   

 *********************************************************************************************************  


 Bobby Fischer 

Friday; July 16th, 2004:  According to several reports, [one];  {former}  Chess World Champion,  GM Bobby Fischer  was detained in Japan today. It is unclear at this point if he will be extradited. In any case ... it seems that his days of living in the shadows ... are over. 

There are also a few more links on the bottom of my page devoted to the great brilliancy, Donald Byrne - Bobby Fischer; 1956.  

 [Second CB story.]   [Third CB story.]   [Fourth CB story.]   [CB story - Fischer's appeal rejected.]  
 [Spassky speaks out.]  [The TWIC Story]   [ Latest ChessBase Story ]  [Fischer stories on About.] 
 

The latest news {Aug. 29} is that Fischer is still in Japan - news of his deportation turned to be premature. For more details see the ChessBase web site.  [Fischer does phone interviews.]  

 *** 

Monday,  July 19th, 2004:  They just aired a piece on TV [CNN - channel 35] on the show, "Paula Zahn, Now." (live) They talked about Bobby Fischer. (at length) They also had two guests,  GM Larry Evans,  (Reno NV); and  Don Schultz,  (FL). They discussed the history of Fischer's life, his chess accomplishments, and his current status as well. 

Normally - I avoid politics like the plague on my [chess] websites. But here, for the record, I want to state that I must agree completely with my friend, Don Schultz. (Don is a well-known chess figure. He was - for many years - THE FIDE REPRESENTATIVE for the US, and also has served in various chess capacities over the years.) The current administration, facing a strong challenge from Kerry, it does not need any more headaches.  Fischer would probably never stand trial, his sanity is definitely questionable.  Perhaps the smartest thing that this administration could do is dismiss the charges - and allow Fischer to crawl back into the woodwork, (of obscurity).  (I also want it to be known that no one finds what Fischer has said more objectionable than I do!! But the last time I checked, the constitution guaranteed free speech. While I might find most of Fischer's statements to be gross and EXTREMELY offensive ... you cannot put someone in jail for making asinine, stupid, or silly comments.) 

***

August 07th, 2004:  The last I heard - I saw a story on the news last night and I read a news story on the Internet yesterday, Fischer is still in Japan, and he is still fighting extradition. More updates later, as the news appears. 

 *** 

August 29th, 2004:  The latest news is that Fischer is still in Japan - news of his deportation turned to be premature. (His lawyers are fighting the extradition ... natch!) 

 *** 

February 24th, 2005:  It has been rumored for some time now that Fischer will be granted asylum in many different countries. The most persistent one was/is that he would wind up in Iceland.  [more]  

 *** 

March 08th, 2005:  Fischer was thrown into solitary confinement?  [more

March 16th, 2005:  Will Bobby Fischer be brought low   ...   by  "The Al Capone Gambit?" 

March 23rd, 2005:  Unless some unforeseen snag develops, Fischer will soon leave for Iceland. 

March 25th, 2005:  Fischer is in Iceland now ... he received a very warm welcome upon his arrival. 

  •   Search Google for more results on Bobby Fischer.  (Latest news results on Fischer.)  


  Biel Super-GM, 2004.     

As reported by TWIC and ChessBase, the Biel Grandmaster Tournament took place from July 19th until 29th, 2004. The event was extremely strong, (Category 18!); with many 'young guns' participating. (Aside from the winner, the other participants were: R. Ponomariov, E. Bacrot, K. Sasikiran, L. McShane, and Y. Pelletier.)  [The official website.] 

As reported by CB,  GM Alexander Morozevich  won clear first ... for the second straight year. Of course, this is a fantastic result, he dominated this event from start to finish. (He won the event with a round to spare!)  GM Krishnan Sasikiran, (2660); had a very fine result to finish clear second in this tournament.  Read  the excellent ChessBase story on this event. 


  Dortmund Super-GM ('Sparkassen') Tournament, GER/2004.   

As reported by both TWIC and ChessBase, there was a very strong chess tournament in Germany from July 22nd to August 1st. (The list of the participants here was also VERY impressive. S. Karjakin, V. Bologan, S. Rublevsky, A. Naiditsch, P. Leko, P. Svidler, V. Kramnik, and - of course! - Indian #1, GM V. Anand.)  [The official website.]  

I watched a few of the games on the Internet, it was a little boring. (Too many draws!) 

In the end, after {naturally!} drawing the slow games, the tournament's fate came down to a rapid play-off. Here GM Vishy Anand and GM Vladimir Kramnik went head-to-head ... with Anand taking top honors. (Anand might be the world's best player at fast chess.) 

Congratulations to  GM Viswanathan Anand!  (This is his second win - in a major event - of the year!!)  And be sure to read the excellent final  report  on the ChessBase website


 ANAND  ... wins Mainz!!    India's GM V. Anand, (The People's Champion!); has won yet another event. Apparently this was a combination of different types of chess, and featured mostly rapid chess matches of some of the very best players in the world. Anand continued his {chessic} domination of the calendar year by winning yet another event.  [ Read more. ] 


Seven players  tie for first  at the U.S. Open, according to the latest issue of TWICGM Alexander Onischuk  leads the top group that finished with 7.5 points.  (R. Vaquez, A. Wojtkiewicz, I. Ibragimov, A. Matikozyan, R. Gonzalez, & M. Martinez also had the same point total.)  [ The official web site. ]  [ more


  Desafio de Xadrez, August / 2004     (Sao Paulo, Brazil, South America)  

India's exceptional GM, Viswanathan Anand, ("The People's Champion!");  has won his THIRD tournament in just over a month. In fact, it has gotten just plain silly. No one seems to be able to give this guy a decent game anymore. Headlines: "Anand wins!! [again]"  People yawn, look bored ... and flip the page of the newspaper - trying to find something a little more interesting. 

In a rapid event held in Brazil, Anand scored an almost inhuman 8.5 out of 10. It was more of an exhibition than a real tournament ... Anand simply buried a super-strong field of GM's. (GM I. Morovic was a distant three points back. Former World Champion, GM Anatoly Karpov ... at one time considered one of the best rapid players on the PLANET  ...  was  MINUS TWO!!!!!! The more you look at it, the more improbable it seems. I keep waiting for someone to pinch me so I will wake up. OR - maybe I have slipped into ... The Twilight Zone?)  

Anyway, congratulations to the run-away locomotive. (Anand) And also congratulations are due to GM Ivan Morovic ... amongst mere mortals, his score and play were very good. (Normally strong rapid players, GM's G. Vescovi and G Milos ... BOTH FIDE 2600+ super-players in their own right ... lost BOTH games to Anand!!! My advice? Hey guys, next time you play him  -  carry a piece of KRYPTONITE  in your pocket!)  

  [The ChessBase story.]   [The story in TWIC.]   [The tournament's official website.]    


  WCC - GM V. Kramnik versus GM P. Leko     

This event ... now has its own permanent home.  [ Click here to go there now. ]   

[ Where did all the excerpts go? ] 


   The 36th (FIDE) Team Tournament  ... commonly known as  THE OLYMPIAD.    

The thirty-sixth (FIDE) Olympiads have begun! So far the play was not that interesting, the top teams have - for the most part - completely wiped their opponents off the map. More fun is definitely coming! 

  [ The official web site. ]    [ The ChessBase Report - on the opening ceremonies. ]   
  [ The About Report ] 

***

Current reports have the Ukraine running away with the Men's section, and the Chinese are destroying everyone in the women's competition.  (Monday; October 25th, 2004.) 

  *******  

The 36th World Team Championships, (more commonly known as the FIDE Olympiad); are now over. This was an extremely hard-fought contest, many games were contested to the last pawn. 

The team from the Ukraine ... defeated practically everyone to finish clear first ... a shock to everyone, I am sure. (Especially to the Russians, who used to win this event every year - just like clockwork!). The Ukraine Team, behind powerhouse GM Vassily Ivanchuk, dominated from start to finish. They won their first ever Gold Medal ... and have every right to be proud of their entire team!!!  

The race for second was very close, in the end it was a tie, and only a superior tie-break gave the Russian Team the Silver Medal over Armenia. [Bronze]  The (men's) team from the USA finished very strong, and while probably never in serious medal contention, they managed to finish in fourth place; ahead of Israel, India, and Cuba. The American Men made an excellent showing, and are to be congratulated!  

The (women's) team from China also put on a show, dominating their event as well, to capture their THIRD Gold Medal in a row!!! Even after a stumble in the middle of the tournament, the Chinese ladies were never in any serious trouble. The Silver in the ladies goes to America, and the Bronze Medal goes to Russia, (who must be somewhat disappointed with this result). 

Congratulations to ALL the medal winners, I watched many of the games, some were exquisite! 

    [ The official website. ]      [ The ChessBase Report of the Final Round. ]    


  The Corsica Masters     

For the fifth time in a row, Anand - "The People's Champion" - plays again and  wins again

Anand has been completely unstoppable in this event, {Corsica Masters, 2004}; rolling over the other strong players in this event like a tank squashing a chicken coop.  Rapid  is Anand's forte, perhaps they should let a computer play. (Only a box has a chance of stopping Anand, or so it would seem.) Congrats to GM V. Anand!!  [more]  [official website]  [official site, #2]  

[ Yet another victory in 2004 in a Rapid Tournament for Vishy Anand! ]  


From the U.S. chess scene ...  

Apparently Sam Sloan is suing the USCF and its board members. While I may not support everything the staff of the national chess organization has done over the last few years, this is an erratic, irresponsible and unwarranted move on Mr. Sloan's part. It could also wind up costing the USCF thousands of dollars in legal fees!! Feel free to visit his website and be sure to make your voice heard! Discover the facts for yourself, and then either let the board members know, or communicate to SS your opinion. (Be sure to let him know what you think!)  11/16/2004   


  2004 Russian Championship     

Currently the SUPER-Russian Championships are going on right now in Moscow.  
(Sunday, November 21st, 2004.)  

With names like Kasparov, Svidler, Morozevich, Bareev, Dreev, Grischuk, etc; the tournament is extremely strong. (However, both Kramnik and Karpov dropped out at the last minute ... just before the tournament began.) Currently Grischuk and Dreev lead the tournament with "PLUS-Two" ... after round five. (Kasparov has "plus-one" ... but has missed a win in at least one other game.)  [more]  

 ******* 

(11/27/2004) Garry Kasparov has won the Super-Russian National Championship (Final) ... even though play has not yet concluded. Despite missing wins in at least two games ... Garry was clearly the class of this tournament and won ... FOUR GAMES IN A ROW at one point! Congrats to Garry!! [ more ]    [ The TWIC report. ]   


  The U.S. Championships   

The 2005 U.S. Championships took place from November 23rd, to December 5th, 2004. 
 The tournament was played in San Diego, California. 

Apparently ... sadly, strangely, ... this is the U.S. Championships for 2005. (No 2004 Champ?) 

Many of the games were VERY hotly and closely contested, I watched a few of the games on the Internet. It was a very strong tournament, most of the games were fought hard. Gata Kamsky made his return to chess, but apparently he is NOT as strong as he used to be! (Maybe we got better?)

Congratulations to the winners!  

 [ The CB Introductory Story ]   [ Second CB Story ]   [ Final CB Story ]  

 [ The official website ]   [ The TWIC Report ]  

   **********************************************************   

In the February 2005 issue of 'Chess Life' magazine, (pg. # 9) there is some good coverage of the recent  U.S. Championships.  There are games, some pictures, and a great deal of coverage as well.  (The main sponsor's web site.) I just wanted to congratulate the winners, (again). R. Goletiani happens to be not only a pretty lady, but also plays a tremendous game of chess as well!  (The U.S. Chess, Hall of Fame.)   


  Kasparov vs. Kasimdzhanov  (2004)    

The on again, off again, match between Kasparov and Kasimzhanov is apparently on again ... although I am not holding my breath. There are many drawbacks to this approach by FIDE: they were very tardy in coming up with the guarantees, they pick questionable locales, and seem to be unable of securing top corporate sponsorship. (They seem to prefer dictators and third world countries, who have deep pockets but come up short on little things like human rights.)  [more]   

 *** 

Tuesday; December 14th, 2004:  I keep hearing different things ... first the match is a "go," then somebody else nixes that by turning on the red light. (I sent an e-mail to a FIDE representative ... he referred me to the following article. BUT, this article is extremely old.)  ChessBase reported - in several different articles - that the match was indeed on. However, the latest CB article only confirms that FIDE has terminated negotiations with Dubai. LCC/TWIC has {also} reported - in issue # 527 - << As intimated last week the Kasparov vs Kasimdzhanov has been cancelled in Dubai and FIDE are looking for new sponsors. Without this match FIDE and Kasparov are in danger of being locked out of any reunification process. The possibility of the match prevented Kasparov playing in Wijk aan Zee. >> - Mark Crowther.  

Once more - FIDE, at least under its current leadership, has showed complete incompetence - and the inability to stage any match or tournament that is not sponsored by third world despots. Once more I suggest to the chess world, that FIDE is an unworkable body ... and should be scrapped. 

Meanwhile, if this match does not come off, Kasparov may not be included in the reunification process. Further - we have been denied the appearance of the world's most exciting player at one of the year's MOST interesting tournaments. 


 This page will end with the end of the calendar year of 2004. 
  (News events for 2005 will be archived on a new page ... the next page in this series.)  


  (More saved stuff goes here.)  


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  Copyright (©) A.J. Goldsby, 1995 - 2008. 
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