By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
THE talk of the town among chess players is the ongoing duel between Grandmasters Eugene Torre and Joey Antonio in a six-game match last Monday at the Quezon City Hall. The match started with a draw last Monday, followed by a win by Antonio despite having the black pieces in the second game at Tomas Morato last Wednesday.
The match is dubbed as the QC Chess Road Show and is backed by Mayor Sonny Belmonte and QC Majority Floor leader Councilor Ariel Inton and some corporate sponsors.
It will be recalled that Joey defeated Eugene in 1998, 6.5-5.5, in a match that was promoted as the Centennial Chess Duel. Only one game was decided and the rest were draws.
Other venues will be at the La Loma district today, Tandang Sora Shrine (July 28), Pugad Lawin shrine (Aug. 1) and Gateway Mall in Araneta Center (Aug. 4). In case of a tie, a 7th game will be held at the Eastwood, Libis.
Although the total pot has not been divulged to the media and public, P200,000 is being mentioned, though I’m not certain.
Pichay Memorial Chess patron Bogie Lim and Cesar Caturla, personal assistant of NCFP president Prospero Pichay, sent me messages that the Fifth Prospero Pichay Memorial Tournament will be held in Cantilan, Surigao on Aug. 12 to 15 next month. The total prize money is P300,000 with P100,000 going for the first placer, P50,000 for the second placer, and P30,000 for the third placer.
There will also be prizes up to the 25th placer. Registration is only P200 and it is expected that a big delegation from Cebu will be competing together with the country’s top players.
CEPCA. Our monthly tournament was recently held at Deep Blue SM City and the winner was Felix Poloyapoy Jr. with Joe Atillo at 2nd. New member Boy Gallardo and Mike Banebane were tied at third and fourth.
In the Kiddies Category, which was held at the Opascor Bldg., The winner was John Francis Balbona. The other placers were Raymond Abellana, Efren Tonolite, Neil Adrian Gelig and John Kevin Linihan.
The Juniors monthly winner is Nikki Sabiquil with the following placers, Marq Gabrielle Balbona, Godfrey Villamor, Gerald Miral, Justin Misa and Bernardo Ruelo.
The sponsors for the Kiddies and Juniors tournaments were Atty. Tomas Riveral and NM Bombi Aznar.
NEW MEMBERS. We had several new members this month. Boy Gallardo is a businessman whose favorite players are Bobby Fischer and current World Champion Vishy Anand. He also knows how to play Japanese Chess, Shogi, with a playing strength of First Dan.
Joel Sarausad‘s favorite sports are chess and boxing and is in sales and accounting. He says that he hopes to play more competitive chess from now on as he is not getting any younger.
Renerio Baya is a software consultant of Esprint Software, Mandaue City. He is a CPA and a graduate of Ateneo de Zamboanga.
There were two other new members but their application forms are currently not available. I will introduce them next week.
Rose Open Tournament director and arbiter Marvin Ruelan announced that the Rose Open tourney will start tomorrow up to Sunday at the Mabolo Sports Center starting at 1 p.m. Total prizes to be awarded is P8,000. Format is 7 rounds Swiss with time control set at 40 minutes per player, play to finish. Registration is P100.
TALISAY. Their monthly tourney will also start tomorrow 11 a.m. at South Central Square, Lawaan. Format is seven rounds Swiss with time control of 30 minutes. Registration is free for Kiddies, P50 for juniors and P80 for 23 and above.
Sponsors are Cepca members Jojo Paredes, Jongjong Melendez, Richard Abangan and Mer Fernandez. Other sponsors are Baylon Tolentin, Pepsi-Cola and the Rural Bank of Carmen.
OPEN. Watch for the Cepca Invitational Blitz tournament tentatively scheduled on Aug. 3, next month. Those who will play will be 12 to 15 selected players from Cepca and 20 invited players. Total prize money is P8,000.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Friday, July 11, 2008
Controversies hound RP chess
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
THE national chess scene is being rocked by controversies and it involves the major players of the land. Grandmasters Eugene Torre and Joey Antonio relinquished their participation in the 38th Chess Olympiad in Dresden, Germany on Nov. 12 to 25 by not participating in the grand finals to select the members of the team. It is being held in the Kaban ng Hiyas Bldg. in Mandaluyong and started last July 1.
GM Eugene Torre issued an official statement that he does not have anything against the National Chess Federation of the Philippines’ (NCFP) regulation not to seed top players for the Olympiad. “It’s only fair, let’s give chance to others, especially the young. But if they still need my services, I would be very much willing to play for the country,” said Torre.
“We want all the players, regardless of their titles (GMs, IMs or NMs) to participate in the qualifying tournament and earn their spots in the national team. We will not tolerate the old practice of seeding top players to the team,” said NCFP president Prospero Pichay in a short speech during the opening ceremony.
GMs Mark Paragua and Darwin Laylo returned to the country from the United States to be able to compete in the tournament. Also playing are Dubai Open champion GM Wesley So, GM-elect Jayson Gonzales, GM Buenaventura “Bong” Villamayor and a host of IMs and NMs..
Twelve players, led by top female player Catherine Perena and semifinal round winner Kimberly Jane Cunanan are seeing action in the women’s division.
RATINGS. Fide recently released its July, 2008 ratings and the top Filipino player is 14-year-old Wesley So at 2577. Eugene Torre and Jayson Gonzales are tied for second and third with identical 2524. Paragua is rated 2523, Antonio has 2516 and Laylo is at 2504.
It is very lamentable that Eugene is not playing. Eugene established a record when he made his 19th consecutive appearance in the 2006 Chess Olympiad in Turin, Italy and moves just one short of tying the all-time record for most appearances held by the legendary Lajos Portisch of Hungary.
Another controversy involving the top guns is the opinion issued by Honorary Fide president Florencio Campomanes Thursday questioning “the decision of the NCFP to enter into a contract with a Singapore-based group for the holding of at least four RP Opens in the next two years.”
During the Asean Chess Confederation board meeting in Vietnam, the NCFP, through president Prospero Pichay, signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Singapore-based Intchess Asia to manage all its international competitions in the next two years, including four RP Opens.
“We cannot just give the right to organize such big, national events to a group with no proven expertise in such undertaking,” Campomanes said.
NEW INTERNET CONNECTION. My last three articles were written at the Internet Café of good friend Edmund Suralta as I had no internet connection in the house. To a columnist, having no internet is like a cowboy without a horse or a farmer without a plow. It diminishes the quality of the article, makes it time consuming, expensive and causes anxiety and a lot of hassle.
I finally decided to change my internet provider and now I can play online chess and poker in my favorite websites at the times most favorable. Many thanks to Stella Gran, the Business Specialist of PLDT who delivered what she promised besides being such a nice smart lady and the contractor, Benjo Daraman.
CEPCA. Our monthly tournament will be held this July 13, at the Deep Blue Café in SM starting at 2 p.m. Format is five rounds Swiss and time control will be based on the classification of the member as A,B and C. New members are welcome. I am also requesting all those who will play to bring a 1x1 picture for our new ID.
The venue for the Kiddies and Juniors will be on July 12 at the Opascor Bldg. In front of M. Lhuiller Main office at 1 p.m. Format is seven rounds Swiss
Chessmoso
THE national chess scene is being rocked by controversies and it involves the major players of the land. Grandmasters Eugene Torre and Joey Antonio relinquished their participation in the 38th Chess Olympiad in Dresden, Germany on Nov. 12 to 25 by not participating in the grand finals to select the members of the team. It is being held in the Kaban ng Hiyas Bldg. in Mandaluyong and started last July 1.
GM Eugene Torre issued an official statement that he does not have anything against the National Chess Federation of the Philippines’ (NCFP) regulation not to seed top players for the Olympiad. “It’s only fair, let’s give chance to others, especially the young. But if they still need my services, I would be very much willing to play for the country,” said Torre.
“We want all the players, regardless of their titles (GMs, IMs or NMs) to participate in the qualifying tournament and earn their spots in the national team. We will not tolerate the old practice of seeding top players to the team,” said NCFP president Prospero Pichay in a short speech during the opening ceremony.
GMs Mark Paragua and Darwin Laylo returned to the country from the United States to be able to compete in the tournament. Also playing are Dubai Open champion GM Wesley So, GM-elect Jayson Gonzales, GM Buenaventura “Bong” Villamayor and a host of IMs and NMs..
Twelve players, led by top female player Catherine Perena and semifinal round winner Kimberly Jane Cunanan are seeing action in the women’s division.
RATINGS. Fide recently released its July, 2008 ratings and the top Filipino player is 14-year-old Wesley So at 2577. Eugene Torre and Jayson Gonzales are tied for second and third with identical 2524. Paragua is rated 2523, Antonio has 2516 and Laylo is at 2504.
It is very lamentable that Eugene is not playing. Eugene established a record when he made his 19th consecutive appearance in the 2006 Chess Olympiad in Turin, Italy and moves just one short of tying the all-time record for most appearances held by the legendary Lajos Portisch of Hungary.
Another controversy involving the top guns is the opinion issued by Honorary Fide president Florencio Campomanes Thursday questioning “the decision of the NCFP to enter into a contract with a Singapore-based group for the holding of at least four RP Opens in the next two years.”
During the Asean Chess Confederation board meeting in Vietnam, the NCFP, through president Prospero Pichay, signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Singapore-based Intchess Asia to manage all its international competitions in the next two years, including four RP Opens.
“We cannot just give the right to organize such big, national events to a group with no proven expertise in such undertaking,” Campomanes said.
NEW INTERNET CONNECTION. My last three articles were written at the Internet Café of good friend Edmund Suralta as I had no internet connection in the house. To a columnist, having no internet is like a cowboy without a horse or a farmer without a plow. It diminishes the quality of the article, makes it time consuming, expensive and causes anxiety and a lot of hassle.
I finally decided to change my internet provider and now I can play online chess and poker in my favorite websites at the times most favorable. Many thanks to Stella Gran, the Business Specialist of PLDT who delivered what she promised besides being such a nice smart lady and the contractor, Benjo Daraman.
CEPCA. Our monthly tournament will be held this July 13, at the Deep Blue Café in SM starting at 2 p.m. Format is five rounds Swiss and time control will be based on the classification of the member as A,B and C. New members are welcome. I am also requesting all those who will play to bring a 1x1 picture for our new ID.
The venue for the Kiddies and Juniors will be on July 12 at the Opascor Bldg. In front of M. Lhuiller Main office at 1 p.m. Format is seven rounds Swiss
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Campomanes receives highest award
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
I HAD a surprise visitor at Handuraw a few days ago and it was no less than the honorary president of Fide himself, Florencio Campomanes, who has spent most of his life with the game. I consider him to be primarily responsible for the current popularity of the game worldwide and expanding Fide membership that now includes most of the countries in the United Nations and more.
He is eyeing the island countries of the Pacific as the next step to really make chess global. The countries number almost a dozen with Vanuatu, Tuvalu, Tonga and Palau among them.
He recently received the Spirit of Sports award from the General Association of International Sports Association, which comprises all sports under the International Olympic Committee. This is the highest honor that can be awarded to an individual, much like the Nobel Prize, but without any monetary consideration. Among the previous awardees were former IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch and Prince Rainier of Monaco.
Together with the current President of Cepca, Nato Casia, we spent the whole evening playing chess and discussing chess politics.
Also, his contributions and involvement in the development of chess for more than half a century earned him the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Philippine Sportswriters Association.
The distinctive honor was awarded to the 80-year-old gentleman last Jan. 18, 2007. “Mr. Campomanes deserves this Lifetime Achievement Award,” said PSA ‘s Jimmy Cantor of Malaya.
Along the way, Campo has his share of controversies on all fronts, local, national and international.
Here are some excerpts from an article in Chessbase by the webmaster of Fide, Casto Abundo, who knows him very well.
“Graduating cum laude from the University of the Philippines in 1948, Florencio Campomanes was among the first Fulbright Scholars from the Philippines and was taking his Masters Degree in Political Science from Brown University and Doctoral Studies in Georgetown University, both in America, when he heard of the World Chess Federation. It was auspicious that his thesis was on the nascent United Nations.
Campo was a habitué at the Manhattan and Marshall Chess Clubs. He was exposed to organized chess and on his return to Manila co-founded the Philippine Chess Federation and affiliated with FIDE in 1956.
In 1967, Campo invited Bobby Fischer for a series of matches in the Philippines. Years later when Fischer opened the first Philippines International Chess Tournament in Manila in 1973, he was asked why he turned down all other official invitations after he became World Champion and accepted only the one from the Philippines. “I was there in ‘67. I was not champion then, but they treated me like a champion,” Fischer explained.
Campo was the first chess columnist in major Philippine dailies, the Manila Times (1954-56) and Manila Chronicle (1956-1961). He also produced and hosted the first daily TV program “Chess Today” from 1973 to 1982. He was the Philippine Delegate to Fide from 1956 to 1982, Asian Zone President 1960-1964, Deputy President 1974-1982 and Fide President from 1982 to 1995, Fide Chairman 1995-1996 and Honorary President since 1996.
An avid player, Campo was Philippine champion in 1956 and 1960, and tied for second with Edmar Mednis in the 1954 New York State Championship.”
A case was filed against Campo in Manila due to the hosting of the1992 Manila Chess Olympiad. Last December, the Supreme Court unanimously cleared him of all charges. “I took no short cuts and kept my sanity and my sense of humor for 10 years. It was only a matter of a fine of around 100 Euros, but I refused to accept the verdict,” Campo said.
Chessmoso
I HAD a surprise visitor at Handuraw a few days ago and it was no less than the honorary president of Fide himself, Florencio Campomanes, who has spent most of his life with the game. I consider him to be primarily responsible for the current popularity of the game worldwide and expanding Fide membership that now includes most of the countries in the United Nations and more.
He is eyeing the island countries of the Pacific as the next step to really make chess global. The countries number almost a dozen with Vanuatu, Tuvalu, Tonga and Palau among them.
He recently received the Spirit of Sports award from the General Association of International Sports Association, which comprises all sports under the International Olympic Committee. This is the highest honor that can be awarded to an individual, much like the Nobel Prize, but without any monetary consideration. Among the previous awardees were former IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch and Prince Rainier of Monaco.
Together with the current President of Cepca, Nato Casia, we spent the whole evening playing chess and discussing chess politics.
Also, his contributions and involvement in the development of chess for more than half a century earned him the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Philippine Sportswriters Association.
The distinctive honor was awarded to the 80-year-old gentleman last Jan. 18, 2007. “Mr. Campomanes deserves this Lifetime Achievement Award,” said PSA ‘s Jimmy Cantor of Malaya.
Along the way, Campo has his share of controversies on all fronts, local, national and international.
Here are some excerpts from an article in Chessbase by the webmaster of Fide, Casto Abundo, who knows him very well.
“Graduating cum laude from the University of the Philippines in 1948, Florencio Campomanes was among the first Fulbright Scholars from the Philippines and was taking his Masters Degree in Political Science from Brown University and Doctoral Studies in Georgetown University, both in America, when he heard of the World Chess Federation. It was auspicious that his thesis was on the nascent United Nations.
Campo was a habitué at the Manhattan and Marshall Chess Clubs. He was exposed to organized chess and on his return to Manila co-founded the Philippine Chess Federation and affiliated with FIDE in 1956.
In 1967, Campo invited Bobby Fischer for a series of matches in the Philippines. Years later when Fischer opened the first Philippines International Chess Tournament in Manila in 1973, he was asked why he turned down all other official invitations after he became World Champion and accepted only the one from the Philippines. “I was there in ‘67. I was not champion then, but they treated me like a champion,” Fischer explained.
Campo was the first chess columnist in major Philippine dailies, the Manila Times (1954-56) and Manila Chronicle (1956-1961). He also produced and hosted the first daily TV program “Chess Today” from 1973 to 1982. He was the Philippine Delegate to Fide from 1956 to 1982, Asian Zone President 1960-1964, Deputy President 1974-1982 and Fide President from 1982 to 1995, Fide Chairman 1995-1996 and Honorary President since 1996.
An avid player, Campo was Philippine champion in 1956 and 1960, and tied for second with Edmar Mednis in the 1954 New York State Championship.”
A case was filed against Campo in Manila due to the hosting of the1992 Manila Chess Olympiad. Last December, the Supreme Court unanimously cleared him of all charges. “I took no short cuts and kept my sanity and my sense of humor for 10 years. It was only a matter of a fine of around 100 Euros, but I refused to accept the verdict,” Campo said.
Simul games and the worst record
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
SIMULTANEOUS exhibition (often abbreviated to “simul”) is an event where a very strong player (commonly a grandmaster) plays multiple games at the same time with selected players, usually below master strength and club members.
In Cepca, thru the years, we have invited several masters to play with us and here are some of them (al lGMs); Eugene Torre, James Sunye-Neto of Brazil, Walter Arencibia of Cuba, Jorge Hickl of Germany, Ye Rong Guang of China, the late Edmar Mednis of the US and the late Alexander Wojtkiewiez of Poland.
Edmar Mednis was a respected American author of several books and was born in Riga, Latvia. He migrated to the US after the war and was the first person to beat Bobby Fischer in the US Open. He became famous during the 1972 Spassky vs. Fischer “Match of the Century” when he served as analyst of the games which was televised in the US and some countries that propelled chess to new heights. He suffered a fatal heart attack in 2002 at Woodside, Queens, New York.
He was our guest in Cebu in 1996.
GM Alexander Wojtkiewiez was born in Latvia, but was Polish by nationality. He was a great chess talent in his teens, but his career was interrupted when he was imprisoned for refusing to join the Soviet Army. In 1986 he moved to Poland and later took residence in the US, becoming one of the most active tournament players in the world. He died on July 14, 2006. He was our guest in 1998 and was a regular guy, fond of the ice cold beer and karaoke.
Walter Arencibia is from Cuba who won the 1986 World Juniors. He become a grandmaster in 1990 and was our guest in the same year after the Inter-Zonals in Manila.
He has also represented his country at several Olympiads from 1986 to 2006. His current rating is 2555 which places him third in Cuba and 306th in the world. I have very fond memories of him together with Alex Tolentino.
In a regular simul, no chess clocks are used. The exhibitor walks from board to board in a fixed order. Usually the boards are arranged in a large circle or square. The opponents are expected to make a move when the exhibitor arrives at the board.
In clock simuls all the games are played as normal tournament games, timed by a clock, apart from the fact that the exhibitor is playing on all boards.
Time pressure can become quite severe in such simuls. The most famous Clock Simul was when World Champion Garry Kasparov played the Olympiad team of Germany, who were all strong grandmasters.
The new world record is by GM Susan Polgar for 326 Simultaneous Games Played with a 96 percent win rate in Palm Beach, Florida on Aug. 1, 2005.
Her opponents ranged from 4-year-old Hannah Boshell, who lasted one more round than her older sister, Hunter, to 95-year-old Jona Lerman, who’s been playing the game for more than eight decades.
The Worst Performance ever is by Joe Hayden, 17, who challenged 180 persons to play simultaneous games against him at a shopping center in Cardiff, N.J. in August, 1977. Only 20 showed up, of whom 18 beat him, including Stowell Fulton, 7, who needed only a few moves. Hayden’s two wins were against a man who grew tired of waiting between moves and withdrew—and Hayden’s own mother.
In 1910 the Austrian master, Josef Krejcik, gave a simultaneous display at Linz on 25 boards and lost every single game.
Cepca results. Lawyer Gaudioso “Jongjong” Melendez won the June edition of the Club with five straight wins at the Deep Blue Café SM City last weekend. Second placer was Miguel Banebane with 4 points. Tied at third and fourth spots were Joe Atillo and Nic Cuizon. Mandy Baria and Felix Balbona each scored 3 points to tie at fifth to sixth.
Chessmoso
SIMULTANEOUS exhibition (often abbreviated to “simul”) is an event where a very strong player (commonly a grandmaster) plays multiple games at the same time with selected players, usually below master strength and club members.
In Cepca, thru the years, we have invited several masters to play with us and here are some of them (al lGMs); Eugene Torre, James Sunye-Neto of Brazil, Walter Arencibia of Cuba, Jorge Hickl of Germany, Ye Rong Guang of China, the late Edmar Mednis of the US and the late Alexander Wojtkiewiez of Poland.
Edmar Mednis was a respected American author of several books and was born in Riga, Latvia. He migrated to the US after the war and was the first person to beat Bobby Fischer in the US Open. He became famous during the 1972 Spassky vs. Fischer “Match of the Century” when he served as analyst of the games which was televised in the US and some countries that propelled chess to new heights. He suffered a fatal heart attack in 2002 at Woodside, Queens, New York.
He was our guest in Cebu in 1996.
GM Alexander Wojtkiewiez was born in Latvia, but was Polish by nationality. He was a great chess talent in his teens, but his career was interrupted when he was imprisoned for refusing to join the Soviet Army. In 1986 he moved to Poland and later took residence in the US, becoming one of the most active tournament players in the world. He died on July 14, 2006. He was our guest in 1998 and was a regular guy, fond of the ice cold beer and karaoke.
Walter Arencibia is from Cuba who won the 1986 World Juniors. He become a grandmaster in 1990 and was our guest in the same year after the Inter-Zonals in Manila.
He has also represented his country at several Olympiads from 1986 to 2006. His current rating is 2555 which places him third in Cuba and 306th in the world. I have very fond memories of him together with Alex Tolentino.
In a regular simul, no chess clocks are used. The exhibitor walks from board to board in a fixed order. Usually the boards are arranged in a large circle or square. The opponents are expected to make a move when the exhibitor arrives at the board.
In clock simuls all the games are played as normal tournament games, timed by a clock, apart from the fact that the exhibitor is playing on all boards.
Time pressure can become quite severe in such simuls. The most famous Clock Simul was when World Champion Garry Kasparov played the Olympiad team of Germany, who were all strong grandmasters.
The new world record is by GM Susan Polgar for 326 Simultaneous Games Played with a 96 percent win rate in Palm Beach, Florida on Aug. 1, 2005.
Her opponents ranged from 4-year-old Hannah Boshell, who lasted one more round than her older sister, Hunter, to 95-year-old Jona Lerman, who’s been playing the game for more than eight decades.
The Worst Performance ever is by Joe Hayden, 17, who challenged 180 persons to play simultaneous games against him at a shopping center in Cardiff, N.J. in August, 1977. Only 20 showed up, of whom 18 beat him, including Stowell Fulton, 7, who needed only a few moves. Hayden’s two wins were against a man who grew tired of waiting between moves and withdrew—and Hayden’s own mother.
In 1910 the Austrian master, Josef Krejcik, gave a simultaneous display at Linz on 25 boards and lost every single game.
Cepca results. Lawyer Gaudioso “Jongjong” Melendez won the June edition of the Club with five straight wins at the Deep Blue Café SM City last weekend. Second placer was Miguel Banebane with 4 points. Tied at third and fourth spots were Joe Atillo and Nic Cuizon. Mandy Baria and Felix Balbona each scored 3 points to tie at fifth to sixth.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Records in chess Part 2
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
I HAD a lot of feedback from my article last week on chess records and here are a few more. I would like to acknowledge Cepca member Edmund Suralta who has probably the biggest collection of all kinds of chess information for sharing these to my readers.
The latest first capture was played in Veume 2000 between B. Meljfroidi and A. Lenoir and lasted up to 72 moves as white overstepped the time limit. In fact all the pieces were still on the board and there was no capture at all.
In the game between Filipowich and Smederevac Polanica Zdro in 1966, all 32 pieces were present at move 70, when white claimed a draw on the ground of the 50-move rule. This is the most crowded position in which that rule was used.
The earliest stalemate occurred at move 27 between Sibilio-Mariotti in Ravenna 1982. Stalemate normally happens very much later in the game.
The longest consecutive series of captures: 17 half-move from move 12-20 was between R.Blodig and H. Wimmer in Germany 1988. The game was played in 35 moves won by black.
One of the longest games played in which there were 73 consecutive moves by the black queen starting at move 72 was played between Mackinzie and Mason in London in 1982. The game was a draw after 144 moves.
A unique record is this game between Wegner and Johnsen Gausdal in 1991 when there were a total of 141 checks; 100 by white and 41 by black. There was also no capture in 151 moves starting at move 49 and the game was a draw after 200 moves. I featured this game in my previous but there were no details then.
Another one-of-a-kind record is the H.Rebickova vs. M. Vorakova game in the Czech Republic in 1995, when Rh 1 never plays for 105 moves and there were 74 consecutive checks by the black queen. It was a draw in move 105.
In the game between P. Zarrouate and H.Brauckmann in Tolouse in 1980, six mutual consecutive checks were made starting at move 27. White won.
Another no-mover this time by the Knight at g8 for 85 moves was the B.Galanov vs. S. Kosanski in Budapest in 1994 which ended in a draw.
This pawn never moved until 171 which is then captured. This was a game in the Olympiad in Thessaloniki in 1988 between Seirawen and Xu Jun and is one of the longest game ever played at 191 moves and ended in a draw.
Again, another no-mover is this bishop at Bc8 which never moved at all in all of the 81 moves of the game. J.Levitti won over R. Lev in Tel Aviv in 1989.
The Queen is the most powerful piece and yet was never played until move 76 to Qa8 from Qd8. This was a drawn game between D. Alvarado and J. Carvajal in San Jose, Costa Rica in 2001.
In the game between Thorhallsson and Johanesson in Hafnaborg, Iceland in 2003, both kings remain in their original squares throughout the game of 47 moves won by white.
Center pawns normally are exchanged early in the game. The game J. Vidarrson-J Hjartarson in Iceland 1994 started with 1.e4 e5 and a draw was agreed on move 180 and those pawns were still there. A drawn game.
When all four Rooks do not move at all until the end of the game, then it is unique. It happened in L.Szabo vs. Tristoja in Helsinski in 1975 and won by White after 41 moves.
The most number of moves by the black King is 123 and was a draw in 174. This was played in Kusadasi, Turkey in 2004 between F. Bozkurt and E. Tanrivermis and won by white.
The most number of moves by a Knight is 93. The game lasted for 159 moves and ended in a draw. This was between Lipschvix and H Bird in New York 1889.
Lastly, this coincidentally was played in Manila in 1992 (Olympiad?) when 15 pieces were captured on one square at d5. E. Ng vs. S. Erigayama (1-0).
If you are interested to play the moves of these games, these are available and I can send these to you via e-mail.
Chessmoso
I HAD a lot of feedback from my article last week on chess records and here are a few more. I would like to acknowledge Cepca member Edmund Suralta who has probably the biggest collection of all kinds of chess information for sharing these to my readers.
The latest first capture was played in Veume 2000 between B. Meljfroidi and A. Lenoir and lasted up to 72 moves as white overstepped the time limit. In fact all the pieces were still on the board and there was no capture at all.
In the game between Filipowich and Smederevac Polanica Zdro in 1966, all 32 pieces were present at move 70, when white claimed a draw on the ground of the 50-move rule. This is the most crowded position in which that rule was used.
The earliest stalemate occurred at move 27 between Sibilio-Mariotti in Ravenna 1982. Stalemate normally happens very much later in the game.
The longest consecutive series of captures: 17 half-move from move 12-20 was between R.Blodig and H. Wimmer in Germany 1988. The game was played in 35 moves won by black.
One of the longest games played in which there were 73 consecutive moves by the black queen starting at move 72 was played between Mackinzie and Mason in London in 1982. The game was a draw after 144 moves.
A unique record is this game between Wegner and Johnsen Gausdal in 1991 when there were a total of 141 checks; 100 by white and 41 by black. There was also no capture in 151 moves starting at move 49 and the game was a draw after 200 moves. I featured this game in my previous but there were no details then.
Another one-of-a-kind record is the H.Rebickova vs. M. Vorakova game in the Czech Republic in 1995, when Rh 1 never plays for 105 moves and there were 74 consecutive checks by the black queen. It was a draw in move 105.
In the game between P. Zarrouate and H.Brauckmann in Tolouse in 1980, six mutual consecutive checks were made starting at move 27. White won.
Another no-mover this time by the Knight at g8 for 85 moves was the B.Galanov vs. S. Kosanski in Budapest in 1994 which ended in a draw.
This pawn never moved until 171 which is then captured. This was a game in the Olympiad in Thessaloniki in 1988 between Seirawen and Xu Jun and is one of the longest game ever played at 191 moves and ended in a draw.
Again, another no-mover is this bishop at Bc8 which never moved at all in all of the 81 moves of the game. J.Levitti won over R. Lev in Tel Aviv in 1989.
The Queen is the most powerful piece and yet was never played until move 76 to Qa8 from Qd8. This was a drawn game between D. Alvarado and J. Carvajal in San Jose, Costa Rica in 2001.
In the game between Thorhallsson and Johanesson in Hafnaborg, Iceland in 2003, both kings remain in their original squares throughout the game of 47 moves won by white.
Center pawns normally are exchanged early in the game. The game J. Vidarrson-J Hjartarson in Iceland 1994 started with 1.e4 e5 and a draw was agreed on move 180 and those pawns were still there. A drawn game.
When all four Rooks do not move at all until the end of the game, then it is unique. It happened in L.Szabo vs. Tristoja in Helsinski in 1975 and won by White after 41 moves.
The most number of moves by the black King is 123 and was a draw in 174. This was played in Kusadasi, Turkey in 2004 between F. Bozkurt and E. Tanrivermis and won by white.
The most number of moves by a Knight is 93. The game lasted for 159 moves and ended in a draw. This was between Lipschvix and H Bird in New York 1889.
Lastly, this coincidentally was played in Manila in 1992 (Olympiad?) when 15 pieces were captured on one square at d5. E. Ng vs. S. Erigayama (1-0).
If you are interested to play the moves of these games, these are available and I can send these to you via e-mail.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Records in chess
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
I ESTIMATE that the number of games I have played since I was eight is more than 30,000 most of them in them in the Internet on the past 10 years or so. I don’t remember ever playing a game that reached 100 moves.
So, it’s just amazing that moves in tournament play can reach more than 200 and the record stands at 269 moves, played in modern times. It was played in Belgrade in 1989 between Nikolic-Arsovic and lasted more than 20 hours.
With modifications to the 50-move rule, this record is unlikely to ever be broken.
The 50-move rule states that a player can claim a draw if no capture has been made and no pawn has been moved in the last fifty consecutive moves. The reason for the rule is so that a player with no chance to win can’t be obstinate and play on indefinitely.
Other games which lasted more than 200 moves according to chess historian Tim Krabbe are Fressinet vs. Kosteniuk (237 moves) in Villandry in 2007 which lasted just about two hours as the play was rapid with increment; the blitz Dos Hermanas Internet 2007 Petrosian-Sammour Hasbun (227 moves) ; Ivanchuk vs. Leko World Biltz Championship Moscow 2000 (215 moves); Cheklov vs. Stavrinov, Riga in 1988 (209 moves) ; and Wegner-Johnsen Gausdal in 1991 (200 moves).
When a pawn moves up to the 8th rank, it is normally promoted to queen.
The record with most number of queens played in modern times and in tournament play stands at 5. The most famous is the Alekhine-Grogoriev Moscow 1915. Others are Belov vs. Prohorov Chelyabinsk in 1991; Brumen vs. Jurkovic Bed in 2000; Mackic vs. Maksimenko Yugoslavia in 1994.
There is a game, the Sumpter vs King in Australia in 1965 in some databases with seven queens which later was proven fake and the six-queen Van Hall vs. Krabbe Amsterdam, 1963 also probably fake.
Chess-in-School. A few years ago I wrote an article about the benefits of playing chess, especially if taught to children in schools and am happy to note that in Marikina this school year, chess is part of the curriculum. It was also noted in the television program that the school authorities hoped that this program might implemented nationwide.
Last year President Arroyo even suggested and recommended that the game be a part of the curriculum. With Butch Pichay at the helm of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines this might become a reality.
More than 40 countries have Chess-in-School programs including giants such as the US, China and Russia.
I wrote in 2004 “Chess and the Child” that “Dr. Peter Dauvergne of the University of Sydney (1990), said that chess as a learning tool can:
“Raise intelligence quotient (IQ) scores; enhance reading, memory, language, and mathematical abilities; foster critical, creative, and original thinking; provide practice at making accurate and fast decisions under time pressure, a skill that can help improve exam scores; challenge gifted children while potentially helping underachieving gifted students learn how to study and strive for excellence; teach how to think logically and efficiently, learning to select the “best” choice from a large number of options; demonstrate the importance of flexible planning, concentration, and the consequences of decisions.”
DPWH Team Tournament. Cepca secretary Tony Cabibil informed me that the DPWH region 7 recently organized a four-board tournament with the following results among 9 teams: First-Cebu 3rd District 34 points winner over the other rule, second RO 7 also with 34 points and third Bohol 2nd District.
The players for the champion team are Cepca member Nilo Visitacion, Josephus Apurado, Edward Testa and Raul Flores. The members of RO 7 are Roy dela Cruz, Nonato Paylado,Cepca
Chessmoso
I ESTIMATE that the number of games I have played since I was eight is more than 30,000 most of them in them in the Internet on the past 10 years or so. I don’t remember ever playing a game that reached 100 moves.
So, it’s just amazing that moves in tournament play can reach more than 200 and the record stands at 269 moves, played in modern times. It was played in Belgrade in 1989 between Nikolic-Arsovic and lasted more than 20 hours.
With modifications to the 50-move rule, this record is unlikely to ever be broken.
The 50-move rule states that a player can claim a draw if no capture has been made and no pawn has been moved in the last fifty consecutive moves. The reason for the rule is so that a player with no chance to win can’t be obstinate and play on indefinitely.
Other games which lasted more than 200 moves according to chess historian Tim Krabbe are Fressinet vs. Kosteniuk (237 moves) in Villandry in 2007 which lasted just about two hours as the play was rapid with increment; the blitz Dos Hermanas Internet 2007 Petrosian-Sammour Hasbun (227 moves) ; Ivanchuk vs. Leko World Biltz Championship Moscow 2000 (215 moves); Cheklov vs. Stavrinov, Riga in 1988 (209 moves) ; and Wegner-Johnsen Gausdal in 1991 (200 moves).
When a pawn moves up to the 8th rank, it is normally promoted to queen.
The record with most number of queens played in modern times and in tournament play stands at 5. The most famous is the Alekhine-Grogoriev Moscow 1915. Others are Belov vs. Prohorov Chelyabinsk in 1991; Brumen vs. Jurkovic Bed in 2000; Mackic vs. Maksimenko Yugoslavia in 1994.
There is a game, the Sumpter vs King in Australia in 1965 in some databases with seven queens which later was proven fake and the six-queen Van Hall vs. Krabbe Amsterdam, 1963 also probably fake.
Chess-in-School. A few years ago I wrote an article about the benefits of playing chess, especially if taught to children in schools and am happy to note that in Marikina this school year, chess is part of the curriculum. It was also noted in the television program that the school authorities hoped that this program might implemented nationwide.
Last year President Arroyo even suggested and recommended that the game be a part of the curriculum. With Butch Pichay at the helm of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines this might become a reality.
More than 40 countries have Chess-in-School programs including giants such as the US, China and Russia.
I wrote in 2004 “Chess and the Child” that “Dr. Peter Dauvergne of the University of Sydney (1990), said that chess as a learning tool can:
“Raise intelligence quotient (IQ) scores; enhance reading, memory, language, and mathematical abilities; foster critical, creative, and original thinking; provide practice at making accurate and fast decisions under time pressure, a skill that can help improve exam scores; challenge gifted children while potentially helping underachieving gifted students learn how to study and strive for excellence; teach how to think logically and efficiently, learning to select the “best” choice from a large number of options; demonstrate the importance of flexible planning, concentration, and the consequences of decisions.”
DPWH Team Tournament. Cepca secretary Tony Cabibil informed me that the DPWH region 7 recently organized a four-board tournament with the following results among 9 teams: First-Cebu 3rd District 34 points winner over the other rule, second RO 7 also with 34 points and third Bohol 2nd District.
The players for the champion team are Cepca member Nilo Visitacion, Josephus Apurado, Edward Testa and Raul Flores. The members of RO 7 are Roy dela Cruz, Nonato Paylado,Cepca
Friday, June 6, 2008
Tournament highlights
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Cheesemoso
THE Cebu Executives and Professionals Chess Association (Cepca) monthly tournament for Kiddies, Juniors and regular members for May was held last weekend at Deep Blue Café SM City and the winners are, for Kiddies: First placer Cleomar Tilus, 5 points, second placer Raymond Abellana 4 third to fifth placers were Cheryl Angot, Raffy Bensi, Jevin Albios, 3.5.
In the Juniors Category the final standing is first placer Nikki Sabiquil; two were tied for second Felix Shawn Balbona and his sister Jessa with 4 points and had tallied three points—-Kevin Albios, Godfrey Villamor, Herbert Siiton, Gerald Miral and Daniel Minoza.
The come-backing Bong San Pascual easily won the regular handicapping tournament with five straight wins followed by Nic Cuizon with 4. Miguel Banebane, Joe Atillo and Felix Poloyapoy Jr. managed to score 3 points each.
Meanwhile nine barangay teams played a round robin at the City Sports Center last weekend also and here are the final standings: First Camputhaw A with 28 points, second place Sawang Calero A with 27, third placer Tinago with 23.5 points and fourth placer Camputhaw B with 19.5.
The players for Kamputhaw A were Ed Vincent Lepalm, Patrick Osorno, Jaymond Albino and Leonard Obatay. For Sawang Calero the members were Ricky Raganot, Camilo Benabente, Mark Kevin Albios and Johnny Cualbar.
On the national front, the talk of the town is Jayson Gonzales who finally became the country’s ninth grandmaster after breaching the 2500 barrier with his win at the Subic Open last month and leading the Philippine team to a rout over Myanmar in Tagaytay City.
“Nagpapasalamat ako kay Rep. (Butch) Pichay dahil hindi siya tumigil sa pagsuporta sa akin mapa local at internasyunal para matupad ang pangarap kong makuha ang GM title,” said Gonzales.
Gonzales, a member of the Philippine Army Chess Team joins the elite-GM group of Eugene Torre, Joey Antonio Jr., Bong Villamayor, Nelson Mariano, Mark Paragua, Darwin Laylo, Wesley So and the late Rosendo Balinas.
International. Peter Leko, Hungary’s top player played a one-on-one eight rapid games with current chess sensation, Magnus Carlsen of Norway. The event was played from May 28 to June 1st and Carlsen won, 5-3, with two wins and six draws.
Miskolc has a history of pairing their top player Leko with the leading players of the world, first with Michael Adams, Anatoly Karpov and Vladimir Kramnik last year,
The Bosnia Sarajevo tournament took place from May 23to June 2 and was a six-player double round-robin featuring Alexander Morozevich (2774), Perez Dominguez (2695), Sergei Movsesian (2695), Arty Timofeev (2664), B. Predojevic (2651) and Ivan Sokolov (2690).
At the end of seven rounds Morozevich scored 6 points with a performance rating of 2987 but had three draws in the end to win the tournament with 7.5/10,1.5 points
over the field. With this win, Morozevich moves up to No. 3 in the world behind Anand and Kramnik.
XXI Magistral Ciudad de León in Spain featured four players, who played two semifinal matches of four games each, with the winners meeting in the final.
Ukrainian GM Vassily Ivanchuk defeated world champion Viswanathan Anand in the final by 2½-1½ . It was the first time that Anand did not win the tournament after
seven tries.
The other players were Spain-based Alexei Shirov and Spain’s top player Francisco Vallejo Pons.
The King’s Tournament, composed mostly of contemporaries of Eugene Torre, took place in Bazna, Romania from May 24 to June 4. Nigel Short won the event with 7/10 without a loss and a 1.5 spread over second placers, Lajos Portisch and Ulf andersson.
It is his best performance in a long time. A surprise participant was Henrique Mecking, who was rated third in the world in the ’70s, with a respectable five points.
Cheesemoso
THE Cebu Executives and Professionals Chess Association (Cepca) monthly tournament for Kiddies, Juniors and regular members for May was held last weekend at Deep Blue Café SM City and the winners are, for Kiddies: First placer Cleomar Tilus, 5 points, second placer Raymond Abellana 4 third to fifth placers were Cheryl Angot, Raffy Bensi, Jevin Albios, 3.5.
In the Juniors Category the final standing is first placer Nikki Sabiquil; two were tied for second Felix Shawn Balbona and his sister Jessa with 4 points and had tallied three points—-Kevin Albios, Godfrey Villamor, Herbert Siiton, Gerald Miral and Daniel Minoza.
The come-backing Bong San Pascual easily won the regular handicapping tournament with five straight wins followed by Nic Cuizon with 4. Miguel Banebane, Joe Atillo and Felix Poloyapoy Jr. managed to score 3 points each.
Meanwhile nine barangay teams played a round robin at the City Sports Center last weekend also and here are the final standings: First Camputhaw A with 28 points, second place Sawang Calero A with 27, third placer Tinago with 23.5 points and fourth placer Camputhaw B with 19.5.
The players for Kamputhaw A were Ed Vincent Lepalm, Patrick Osorno, Jaymond Albino and Leonard Obatay. For Sawang Calero the members were Ricky Raganot, Camilo Benabente, Mark Kevin Albios and Johnny Cualbar.
On the national front, the talk of the town is Jayson Gonzales who finally became the country’s ninth grandmaster after breaching the 2500 barrier with his win at the Subic Open last month and leading the Philippine team to a rout over Myanmar in Tagaytay City.
“Nagpapasalamat ako kay Rep. (Butch) Pichay dahil hindi siya tumigil sa pagsuporta sa akin mapa local at internasyunal para matupad ang pangarap kong makuha ang GM title,” said Gonzales.
Gonzales, a member of the Philippine Army Chess Team joins the elite-GM group of Eugene Torre, Joey Antonio Jr., Bong Villamayor, Nelson Mariano, Mark Paragua, Darwin Laylo, Wesley So and the late Rosendo Balinas.
International. Peter Leko, Hungary’s top player played a one-on-one eight rapid games with current chess sensation, Magnus Carlsen of Norway. The event was played from May 28 to June 1st and Carlsen won, 5-3, with two wins and six draws.
Miskolc has a history of pairing their top player Leko with the leading players of the world, first with Michael Adams, Anatoly Karpov and Vladimir Kramnik last year,
The Bosnia Sarajevo tournament took place from May 23to June 2 and was a six-player double round-robin featuring Alexander Morozevich (2774), Perez Dominguez (2695), Sergei Movsesian (2695), Arty Timofeev (2664), B. Predojevic (2651) and Ivan Sokolov (2690).
At the end of seven rounds Morozevich scored 6 points with a performance rating of 2987 but had three draws in the end to win the tournament with 7.5/10,1.5 points
over the field. With this win, Morozevich moves up to No. 3 in the world behind Anand and Kramnik.
XXI Magistral Ciudad de León in Spain featured four players, who played two semifinal matches of four games each, with the winners meeting in the final.
Ukrainian GM Vassily Ivanchuk defeated world champion Viswanathan Anand in the final by 2½-1½ . It was the first time that Anand did not win the tournament after
seven tries.
The other players were Spain-based Alexei Shirov and Spain’s top player Francisco Vallejo Pons.
The King’s Tournament, composed mostly of contemporaries of Eugene Torre, took place in Bazna, Romania from May 24 to June 4. Nigel Short won the event with 7/10 without a loss and a 1.5 spread over second placers, Lajos Portisch and Ulf andersson.
It is his best performance in a long time. A surprise participant was Henrique Mecking, who was rated third in the world in the ’70s, with a respectable five points.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
