Chess: Aronian Takes Big Top Prize In Las Vegas As Niemann Celebrates Carlsen’s Downfall

Levon Aronian, astatine 42 nan oldest successful nan tournament, scored what he described arsenic “one of nan crown jewels” of his profession to triumph nan $200,000 (£148,000) first prize astatine nan Las Vegas limb of nan Freestyle Grand Slam past weekend. Aronian did it successful style, winning matches against nan world No 1 Magnus Carlsen, nan No 2 Hikaru Nakamura and nan No 5 Arjun Erigaisi en way to victory.

Carlsen had to settee for nan 3rd prize of $100,000, positive nan further indignity of finishing down his arch force Hans Niemann, whose crippled pinch nan Norwegian astatine nan 2022 Sinquefield Cup led to allegations of cheating and a $100m lawsuit, which was yet settled retired of court.

Niemann was invited to subordinate nan commentary squad for nan last stages of Aronian v Carlsen, and made nan astir of his triumph and a post-game reunion pinch Aronian.

Carlsen blamed his conclusion connected a “complete collapse” of his tense system. Besides his nonaccomplishment against Aronian, he besides allowed Wesley So a mate successful 4 moves. In fairness, he recovered good from his costly early errors, scored 5 successive wins earlier defeating Nakamura successful nan 3rd spot match, and still leads nan wide Tour standings going into nan adjacent multi-hub limb successful September and nan last successful Cape Town successful December.

3981 Paul Schmidt v Lucius Endzelins. Riga 1936. White to move and win.

Niemann showed commanding shape erstwhile he defeated nan US champion Fabiano Caruana, against whom he had antecedently had mediocre results, by 2.5-1.5. In their 3rd game, Caruana settled for a tie by threefold repetition erstwhile he had an edge, prompting Niemann to opportunity he was not surprised: “I deliberation that my nerves, erstwhile there’s debased time, are intelligibly amended than his. I play a batch much blitz, I’m younger, and I besides play overmuch faster.”

Niemann yet met his lucifer successful nan last for nan $200,000 apical prize, which Aronian won 1.5-0.5, but only aft a double blunder wherever Niemann could person won a pawn title to queen, but missed a elemental deciding move. Nakamura besides grounded to clinch a winning series against Carlsen earlier losing 0.5-1.5. It seems that nan psychological load of playing for a full of half a cardinal dollars proved difficult for each of them.

The Freestyle Tour’s early is unclear. Its immense $3.75m prize money dwarfs moreover nan $1.5m for chess successful nan Esports World Cup successful Saudi Arabia adjacent week, but is related to a $12m finance by nan task superior patient Left Lane Capital, which was made connected nan evident presumption that nan Tour would pull awesome tv coverage.

That does not look to beryllium nan lawsuit truthful far, moreover though nan arena was a sell-out for nan hundreds of spectators, who were allowed to bring successful mobile phones and could talk loudly, pinch nan players protected from nan sound by earphones. The clip controls, which were primitively slow classical to fulfill Carlsen, were speeded up to 1 hr accelerated successful nan liking of a fast-paced event.

Levon Aronian won nan $200,000 first prize successful nan Las Vegas limb of nan Freestyle Grand Slam. Photograph: Lennart Ootes/Freestyle Chess

The Tour suffers successful nan eyes of nan mostly of grandmasters because introduction is efficaciously restricted to nan apical 25-30 players successful nan world, pinch ratings supra Fide 2725.

Beyond that, location remains nan troubling problem that, though Freestyle Chess sparks productivity and greatly reduces nan request for opening preparation, it besides makes it harder for moreover beardown players viewing nan games to subordinate nan positions to their erstwhile experience. One of nan much easy understandable games, and an elegant victory, was Nakamura v So, wherever nan world No 2 trapped his opponent’s queen successful conscionable 17 moves.

Elsewhere, past weekend’s English Championship astatine Kenilworth, Warwickshire, turned into a proceedings of spot betwixt nan country’s apical 2 grandmasters, nan world elder champion Michael Adams and nan erstwhile Russian champion Nikita Vitiugov, which continued correct into a tie-break for first prize which Adams edged 2.5-1.5.

It was an awesome capacity by Adams, nan 53-year-old from Taunton, Somerset, whose wins over nan defending champion Gawain Jones and England’s youngest grandmaster, 16-year-old Shreyas Royal, were some of nan highest class. Adams’s tie-break strategy against Vitiugov, keeping a tight grip connected nan position until his force mislaid patience, was besides very effective.

Vitiugov mislaid small successful defeat. He is simply a beardown grandmaster successful nan Soviet tradition, and showed his value by a good attacking win against Ameet Ghasi successful nan last round. Royal had nan champion tie-break of those tied for third, played an fantabulous onslaught against John Emms, and appeared a imaginable 2600 player. Matthew Wadsworth, whose GM title has conscionable been confirmed by Fide, besides looked nan part.

Final starring scores were Adams and Vitiugov 6/7, Royal, Wadsworth, Peter Roberson, and Jones 5.5. Elmira Mirzoeva retained nan English Women’s title. The aged hands triumphed, while nan losers were nan eager amateurs and nan teen aliases sub-teen juniors, groups that lacked outstanding performers. They will not person to hold agelong for different opportunity, though, because nan British Championship starts astatine Liverpool adjacent Thursday.

Meanwhile Dan Fernandez, nan 30-year-old England No 16, who is eager to break into nan Olympiad team, has conscionable scored a career-best consequence astatine nan Ghent Open successful Belgium, winning first prize pinch a spectacular 7.5/9, 2 points clear of nan section and pinch a 2645 tourney capacity rating.

India’s 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh defeated China’s Tan Zhongyi 1.5-0.5 to scope Saturday’s last of nan Women’s World Cup successful Batumi, Georgia. Deshmukh will meet her compatriot Humpy Koneru, who won 5-3 against China’s Lei Tingjie successful nan 2nd semi-final.

Finally, a connection connected The American Chess Magazine, which is 1 of nan champion of its kind. The latest issue, disposable separately, includes a uncommon relationship by Boris Spassky of his first gathering pinch Bobby Fischer, an study of nan champion queen sacrifices successful chess history, proposal connected openings, and overmuch more.

3981 1 Rxe8+! Rxe8 2 Nxf6+ gxf6 3 Bb5! Resigns. White wins nan e8 rook aliases mates by Qg4+ and Qg7.