[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.1"] [Board "1"] [White "Cheparinov, Ivan"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B30"] [WhiteElo "2628"] [BlackElo "2798"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "140"] [GameId "2089565440633447"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "Bulgaria"] [BlackTeam "United States of America"] [WhiteTeamCountry "BUL"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 e6 4. O-O Nge7 5. Re1 Nd4 6. Nxd4 cxd4 7. c3 a6 8. Bf1 Nc6 9. b4 Bd6 10. Bb2 dxc3 11. dxc3 Qc7 12. h3 O-O 13. Nd2 b6 14. a3 (14. Nc4 $14) 14... Bb7 15. c4 Bh2+ (15... a5 16. b5 Ne5) 16. Kh1 Be5 17. Qb3 Bxb2 18. Qxb2 a5 19. Kg1 axb4 20. axb4 Ne5 (20... d6) 21. Qd4 (21. Rac1) 21... h6 22. Rec1 Nc6 23. Qc3 Rxa1 24. Rxa1 Rc8 25. Qb2 d6 $11 26. Nf3 Nd8 27. Nd2 e5 28. Be2 Rb8 29. Ra3 Ne6 30. Bf1 Nd4 31. f3 Bc8 32. Nb3 Nc6 33. Na1 Be6 34. Nc2 h5 35. Kh1 h4 36. Qc3 Ne7 37. Ne3 Ng6 38. Qa1 Qd8 39. Qe1 Nf4 40. Qf2 Qg5 {The U.S. had already won the match by this point, so the rest is Caruana fighting for individual glory. It pays off, though perhaps we should see how he plays tomorrow before deciding whether grinding to the finish was a good idea.} 41. Ra1 Nh5 42. Bd3 g6 43. Kh2 Kg7 44. Bf1 Rc8 45. b5 Qd8 46. Kg1 Nf4 47. Ra7 Rb8 48. Kh2 Nh5 49. Bd3 Qg5 $15 50. Bf1 Qg3+ 51. Kg1 Nf4 $17 52. Qxg3 hxg3 53. Nd1 Rc8 54. Nb2 Rb8 55. Na4 Bc8 56. Nc3 Kf6 57. Na4 (57. Nd5+) 57... Kg7 58. Nc3 Be6 59. Na4 Kh6 $1 {After drifting a bit Caruana hits on the best plan.} 60. Ra6 Bc8 $1 61. Ra7 (61. Rxb6 $2 Ra8 62. Nc3 Ra3 63. Nd5 Ne6 $19 {Black will play ...Nd4 and ...Ra1, which will not go over well with White's king.}) 61... f5 62. Nc3 Kg5 63. exf5 Bxf5 64. Ra6 Kh4 65. Na4 (65. Ra7 $142) 65... Bc8 $2 (65... d5 $1 66. Nxb6 d4 $17) 66. Ra7 $2 (66. Rxb6 $1 Ra8 67. Nc3 Ra3 68. Nd5 $1 $11 {/?}) 66... Kg5 $17 67. Nc3 Bb7 $15 (67... Bf5 $142) 68. Be2 $2 (68. Ra1 {keeps White in the game.}) 68... d5 $1 $19 {Black's rook breaks through, and White's chronically weak king will finally come a-cropper.} 69. cxd5 Rc8 70. Ne4+ Kh4 (70... Kh4 71. Bf1 (71. Rxb7 {threatens mate, but Black gets there first.} Rc1+ 72. Bf1 Ne2+ 73. Kh1 Rxf1#) 71... Rc1 72. Nd2 Bxd5 {Black can play ...Rd1 next, winning the knight (it can't move because of ...Ne2+ followed by ...Rxf1#) before continuing the pursuit of White's king.}) 0-1 [Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.1"] [Board "2"] [White "So, Wesley"] [Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C55"] [WhiteElo "2752"] [BlackElo "2643"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "69"] [GameId "2089565440637544"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "United States of America"] [BlackTeam "Bulgaria"] [BlackTeamCountry "BUL"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] {[%evp 0,69,24,24,24,24,4,13,13,13,19,16,16,26,28,10,33,25,23,-14,-5,-10,-9,-32,-31,-54,-45,-13,-13,-9,65,65,65,54,113,45,74,100,138,134,165,161,186,192,192,172,172,162,179,173,155,164,156,161,161,150,166,166,168,173,166,183,238,219,269,269,275,256,306,327,346,347]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Be7 5. Nc3 O-O 6. a3 d6 7. Be3 Nd7 (7... Be6 $11 {is more popular; rightly, according to the engine.}) 8. Ba2 $14 Nb6 9. Ne2 (9. h4 $1) 9... Be6 (9... Kh8 $5) 10. Bxe6 fxe6 11. h4 d5 (11... h6 $142 $11) 12. Ng3 (12. Ng5) 12... h6 13. Ng1 {Clearing a path for Qg4.} Kh8 14. Qg4 Nd4 $2 (14... Qe8 $1 $11 {is best, indirectly defending the e6-pawn (15.Qxe6?? Bb4+ and 16...Qxe6).}) 15. Bxd4 exd4 16. Nf3 $18 Bd6 17. Nh5 Qd7 18. e5 {This wins material, as the bishop has nowhere to go - 18...Bc5 19.b4; 18...Be7?? 19.Qxg7#.} Rxf3 {The only try, but it's nowhere near enough.} 19. gxf3 Bxe5 20. f4 Bd6 21. Rg1 Bf8 22. Kf1 Qf7 23. Re1 Re8 24. Qg6 {White's kingside pawns look ugly as sin, but there's no way for Black to do anything with them. What's more important is the disparity in the activity of both sides' pieces. White's go where they want, and Black's are huddled together hoping to keep the wolf from the door.} Re7 25. f5 Qxg6 26. Rxg6 e5 27. Re6 Rf7 28. R6xe5 Bd6 29. Re8+ Kh7 30. Ng3 Nd7 31. Ra8 Bxg3 32. fxg3 Rxf5+ 33. Kg2 Nf6 34. Rf8 $1 {Not necessary, but excellent technique. Black's pieces are severely restricted.} Kg6 35. Re7 {Black will lose pawns left and right - literally, after the coming Rff7.} 1-0 [Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.1"] [Board "3"] [White "Petrov, Martin"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C54"] [WhiteElo "2536"] [BlackElo "2729"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "68"] [GameId "2089565440641641"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "Bulgaria"] [BlackTeam "United States of America"] [WhiteTeamCountry "BUL"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] {[%evp 0,68,24,24,24,24,13,13,7,5,7,7,3,5,45,-12,-7,-22,53,44,62,-42,38,-78,-75,-160,-87,-148,-167,-242,-137,-281,-97,-45,-120,-168,-164,-234,-197,-217,-217,-255,-256,-256,-270,-256,-259,-262,-258,-258,-236,-264,-231,-241,-232,-245,-237,-256,-281,-299,-301,-289,-304,-305,-308,-372,-367,-367,-407,-407,-479]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 a5 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 Qe7 9. d4 $146 {Incredibly, a new position has arisen in the Giuoco after only eight and a half moves. Will it last, or is a transposition inevitable?} Ba7 10. Nbd2 O-O {Still no transpositions. Miracles never cease.} 11. Re1 $5 {Petrov is going for it - we won't be seeing Petrov's defense in this game; he's going all-out for the attack.} exd4 12. e5 dxe5 13. Ne4 dxc3 14. Bxf6 $2 {Tempting, but Aronian has calculated more deeply and accurately.} (14. bxc3 {was correct, and White's attacking prospects are by no means finished here. Black should now choose among various wild options including} Nxe4 $5 ({and} 14... g5 15. Nfxg5 Nxe4 16. Rxe4 hxg5 17. Qh5 Bxf2+ $1 18. Kxf2 (18. Bxf2 $143 Kg7 $15) 18... Qf6+ $8 19. Kg1 Kg7 $11) 15. Bxe7 Nxf2 $44) 14... gxf6 $19 15. Nh4 f5 16. Qh5 Kg7 17. Ng3 $2 {Perhaps the move Petrov had counted on from afar. From anear, we see it doesn't work:} Qg5 $1 18. Nhxf5+ Bxf5 19. Nxf5+ Kf6 $1 ({Perhaps Petrov had only considered} 19... Kh7 $2 20. Qxg5 hxg5 {gives White to recapture on c3, since his knight's not hanging.} 21. bxc3 $15) 20. Qxh6+ Qxh6 21. Nxh6 cxb2 {It feels like Black is up three or four pawns, even though it's "only" two. With a pawn like the monster on b2 though, it's enough to be winning with room to spare. The rest was comparatively easy for Aronian.} 22. Rab1 Bd4 23. Ng4+ Kg5 24. Ne3 a4 25. a3 Na5 26. h4+ Kf6 27. Ba2 Nb3 28. Nc2 c5 29. Nxd4 exd4 30. Rxb2 Rfe8 31. Rd1 c4 32. Rc2 b5 33. Kf1 d3 34. Rc3 Re2 0-1 [Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.1"] [Board "4"] [White "Robson, Ray"] [Black "Petkov, Momchil"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B66"] [WhiteElo "2700"] [BlackElo "2540"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "71"] [GameId "2089565440645738"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "United States of America"] [BlackTeam "Bulgaria"] [BlackTeamCountry "BUL"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] {[%evp 0,71,24,24,42,52,77,77,69,28,40,30,39,42,79,46,46,33,75,26,30,20,30,27,37,14,44,0,7,7,16,-3,72,-55,94,2,2,2,34,30,33,53,56,43,55,55,32,17,11,18,35,0,13,16,-7,-1,-1,0,8,0,6,20,12,11,6,5,1,0,25,10,6,4,0,4]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6 {The Classical Sicilian has made a comeback the last few years, though I can't tell if it's because Black has found good ideas that equalize or because it's considered a good weapon in games where Black hopes to play for a win as well, even if it comes at the cost of increased losing chances. What I can say is that Black's results have been dismal, at least in games at the elite level.} 6. Bg5 e6 7. Qd2 Be7 8. O-O-O a6 9. Bxf6 gxf6 10. f4 Nxd4 11. Qxd4 Qa5 12. Bc4 (12. Kb1 $14) (12. f5 $14) 12... Qc5 13. Qd3 Bd7 14. Bb3 b5 15. f5 a5 $11 16. fxe6 (16. a4 bxa4 17. Bxa4 Bxa4 18. Nxa4 Qb4 19. Qd4 Rg8 20. g3 Rg4 21. Rhe1 d5 22. h3 Rxe4 23. Rxe4 dxe4 24. g4 e3 25. Nc3 a4 26. Qxb4 Bxb4 27. Rd3 a3 28. Kb1 Rb8 29. Rxe3 {0-1 Ivanov,A (2560)-Gurevich,D (2570) USA-ch Parsippany 1996 (7)}) 16... fxe6 17. e5 $11 {This is a typical sac in the Classical; here, it's the only way for White to maintain equality.} fxe5 18. Ne4 Qc6 19. Nxd6+ Bxd6 20. Qxd6 Qxd6 21. Rxd6 Ke7 22. Rhd1 Ra7 23. a3 $146 {This won't win any awards for best novelty. The position remains equal, notwithstanding White's seeming activity and the doubled e-pawns.} (23. c3 {and draw agreed was Panarin (2437) - Grachev (2483) from the Russian U20 Championship in 2003.}) 23... Rg8 24. g3 Rf8 25. R6d2 Bc6 26. Re1 e4 27. c3 b4 28. Bc2 bxc3 29. bxc3 Rf3 30. Bxe4 Bxe4 31. Rxe4 Rxc3+ 32. Kb2 Rc5 33. Kb3 Rd7 34. Rde2 Rd6 35. Ka4 h5 36. Rf4 {If this was Robson's prep, it wasn't very good. But maybe he played his second-tier material, feeling that he could outplay Petkov if necessary and preferring to save his best prep for his peers?} 1/2-1/2 [Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.2"] [Board "4"] [White "Gledura, Benjamin"] [Black "Blohberger, Felix"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2628"] [BlackElo "2520"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "57"] [GameId "2089565440649838"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "Hungary"] [BlackTeam "Austria"] [WhiteTeamCountry "HUN"] [BlackTeamCountry "AUT"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] {[%evp 0,57,24,24,24,23,23,1,23,24,24,0,5,8,6,5,13,-9,18,6,6,8,7,-11,15,40,42,47,53,58,58,49,49,40,48,38,54,32,31,31,53,33,35,59,49,52,38,185,953,1418,29991,29992,29993,29994,29995,29996,29997,29998,29999,29999] This win decided the Hungary-Austria match. (But just imagine if the two teams combined forces - there would be an Austro-Hungarian chess empire!)} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. Nbd2 Be6 7. O-O Bd6 8. Nb3 a5 9. Qe1 a4 10. Na5 {This is not a very common position in theory, with only 13 games getting here. But with what players! Caruana, Nakamura, Gukesh, Firouzja, Dominguez, Aronian, Vidit, Vitiugov, etc.} Qc8 (10... Qb8 11. Bd2 (11. b4 O-O (11... Bg4 12. Nh4 O-O 13. Nc4 Be6 14. Nxd6 cxd6 15. f4 exf4 16. Bxf4 Re8 17. a3 Nh5 18. Bd2 d5 19. Qe2 Nf6 20. Rxf6 gxf6 21. Rf1 dxe4 22. Bc3 Qd6 23. Bxf6 h6 24. Qh5 Kh7 25. Nf5 Qf8 26. dxe4 Rad8 27. Rf4 Rd2 28. Rg4 Rd1+ 29. Kf2 Rd2+ 30. Ke1 Rxc2 31. Bg7 {1-0 Dominguez Perez,L (2763)-Aronian,L (2765) Saint Louis Blitz 2019 (6)}) 12. Ng5 Re8 13. Nxe6 Rxe6 14. Kh1 Nd7 15. Rb1 Qa7 16. Nc4 b5 17. Ne3 c5 18. bxc5 Qxc5 19. Qe2 c6 20. Nf5 Bf8 21. Be3 Qc3 22. d4 exd4 23. Bxd4 Qa3 24. c4 g6 25. Ng3 Rd6 26. Ba1 bxc4 27. Qxc4 Qd3 28. Qc1 Qd2 29. Qc4 Qd3 30. Qc1 Qd2 31. Qc4 {½-½ Gukesh,D (2744)-Esipenko,A (2683) FIDE World Cup Baku 2023 (4.1)}) 11... O-O (11... h6 12. Bc3 Nd7 13. d4 f6 14. dxe5 fxe5 15. Nh4 O-O 16. Qe2 Rf4 17. Nf5 Bxf5 18. exf5 Rxf5 19. Rad1 Nf6 20. Nc4 Nd5 21. Bxe5 Qe8 22. Rfe1 Qg6 23. Nxd6 cxd6 24. Bg3 Rf6 25. Rd4 b5 26. c4 bxc4 27. Qxc4 Re8 28. Rf1 Qf7 29. Qxc6 Ne7 30. Qxa4 Nf5 31. Rd2 h5 32. b3 Rg6 33. Qc4 Qxc4 34. bxc4 h4 35. Bf4 Re4 36. Be3 Rxc4 37. Re1 h3 38. Rde2 Rxg2+ 39. Kh1 Nh4 40. f3 Nxf3 {0-1 Caruana,F (2786)-Firouzja,A (2777) Titled Tuesday intern op 05th Sep Late Chess.com INT blitz 2023 (9)}) 12. b4 Re8 13. Ng5 Bg4 14. f3 Bd7 15. f4 h6 16. Nf3 exf4 17. Nc4 Qd8 18. Nxd6 cxd6 19. Bxf4 d5 20. e5 Nh7 21. Qg3 Re6 22. Nd4 Rg6 23. Qf2 Qe7 24. a3 b6 25. Bg3 c5 26. bxc5 bxc5 27. Ne2 Rb6 28. Rab1 Rab8 29. Rxb6 Rxb6 30. Nc3 Bc6 31. d4 c4 32. Bh4 Qd7 33. Na2 Nf8 34. Nb4 Bb7 35. c3 Rg6 36. h3 Re6 37. Kh2 Ng6 38. Bg3 Qe8 39. Rb1 Rb6 40. Qc2 Qb5 41. Rf1 Bc8 42. Qf2 Be6 43. Bf4 Qd7 44. Bd2 Rb8 45. Qg3 Rf8 46. Rf2 Kh7 47. Be3 Ne7 48. Qf3 Nc6 49. Na6 Ne7 50. Nc5 Qc6 51. Rb2 Bf5 52. Qf2 f6 53. Rb7 Re8 54. Rxe7 Rxe7 55. Qxf5+ Kg8 56. e6 Qe8 57. Bf4 Qc6 58. Bg3 Re8 59. Qh5 Re7 60. Qg6 Qe8 61. Qb1 Qc6 62. Qb8+ Kh7 63. Qd6 Qxd6 64. Bxd6 Re8 65. e7 Kg6 66. Ne6 Kf7 67. Nc7 Rc8 68. Kg3 g6 69. Kf3 Rg8 70. Bb4 Rc8 71. Nxd5 {1-0 Caruana,F (2804)-Svane,R (2637) Chessable Masters Play In Chess.com INT rapid 2024 (3)}) 11. Ng5 (11. Bd2 O-O 12. Ng5 b6 13. Nxe6 Qxe6 14. Nxc6 Bc5 15. Nb4 a3 16. b3 Qd6 17. Rd1 Rfd8 18. Kh1 Re8 19. f4 exf4 20. Bxf4 Bxb4 21. c3 Bxc3 22. Qxc3 Qe6 23. Qxc7 Rac8 24. Qd6 Qxd6 25. Bxd6 Rc2 26. Bxa3 Ng4 27. Ra1 Nf2+ 28. Kg1 Nxd3 29. Bd6 Rxe4 30. Rad1 Rd4 31. Bg3 h5 32. Rf3 Nf4 33. Rxd4 Ne2+ 34. Kf1 Nxd4 35. Rd3 Ne6 36. a3 Nc5 37. Re3 f5 38. b4 Ne4 39. Be1 Kf7 40. a4 Ra2 41. a5 bxa5 {½-½ Fedoseev,V (2686)-Nakamura,H (2760) Chess.com Rapid Wk20 KO Chess.com INT 2022 (2.1)}) 11... Bd7 $146 (11... Bc5 12. Nxe6 Qxe6 13. Nxb7 Bb6 14. Be3 Nd7 15. b4 axb3 16. axb3 Rxa1 17. Qxa1 O-O 18. Qc3 Bxe3 19. fxe3 Qh6 20. Qd2 Ra8 21. Na5 c5 22. Nc4 Qe6 23. Qc3 h6 24. Ra1 Rxa1+ 25. Qxa1 Qg4 26. Qf1 f6 27. h3 Qh4 28. Kh2 Nb6 29. Na5 Qg5 30. Qf3 h5 31. Nc6 Kf8 32. Qg3 Qxg3+ 33. Kxg3 Ke8 34. Kh4 g6 35. g4 hxg4 36. Kxg4 Kd7 37. Na5 Nc8 38. h4 Nd6 39. Nc4 Nf7 40. h5 Nh6+ 41. Kh4 g5+ 42. Kg3 Ke6 43. Nd2 Kf7 44. Nf3 Kg7 45. d4 cxd4 46. exd4 exd4 47. Nxd4 Nf7 48. Kg4 Kh6 49. Nf5+ Kh7 50. Kf3 Ne5+ 51. Ke3 Ng4+ 52. Kd4 Nh6 53. Ne3 g4 54. Nd5 f5 55. exf5 g3 56. Ke3 Nxf5+ 57. Kf3 Nd4+ 58. Kxg3 Nxc2 59. Nxc7 Kh6 60. Kh4 Nd4 61. b4 Nf5+ 62. Kg4 Ne3+ 63. Kf4 Nc4 64. Nd5 Kxh5 65. Kf5 Na3 66. Ke5 Kg5 67. Ne3 Kg6 68. Ke6 Kg5 69. Kd5 Kf4 70. Nc4 Nb5 71. Nd6 Na3 72. Kc5 Kg5 73. Nc4 Nb1 74. Kd4 Kf6 75. Kd5 Ke7 76. Kc6 Nc3 77. Nb6 Kd8 78. Nd5 Nxd5 79. Kxd5 Kd7 80. Kc5 Kc7 81. Kb5 Kb7 82. Kc5 Kc7 83. b5 Kb7 84. b6 Kb8 85. Kc6 Kc8 86. Kb5 Kb7 87. Kc5 Kb8 88. Kc6 Kc8 89. b7+ Kb8 90. Kb6 {½-½ Caruana,F (2764)-Le,Q (2728) Chessable Masters Div 1 Win Chess.com INT rapid 2023 (1.1)}) (11... Bg4 12. h3 (12. f3 Bh5 13. f4 exf4 14. Bxf4 Be7 15. Nc4 O-O 16. Ne3 Bg6 17. Nf3 Bc5 18. Kh1 Re8 19. Qc3 b6 20. Nh4 Nh5 21. Nef5 Bf8 22. Qxc6 Nxf4 23. Rxf4 Re5 24. Qc3 Rc5 25. Qd2 Qe6 26. Rff1 Rd8 27. Qf2 Rd7 28. Nd4 Qe5 29. Nhf3 Qd6 30. b4 axb3 31. axb3 Ra5 32. Rxa5 bxa5 33. Ne2 f6 34. Nd2 Qb4 35. Ng3 a4 36. bxa4 Qxa4 37. Nc4 Bf7 38. Ne3 c5 39. e5 fxe5 40. Nc4 Qa2 41. Ne4 h6 42. Nc3 Qa7 43. Nxe5 Rb7 44. Ne4 Qa2 45. Nxc5 Rb1 46. Ncd7 Bd6 47. Nxf7 Rxf1+ 48. Qxf1 Qxf7 49. Qxf7+ Kxf7 50. g4 Ke6 51. Nb6 Bc7 52. Nc4 Kd5 53. c3 Bd8 54. Kg2 {1-0 Alekseenko,K (2675)-Vitiugov,N (2719) ESP-chT CECLUB Honor Linares 2023 (5.2)}) 12... Bd7 13. f4 exf4 14. Bxf4 O-O 15. Bxd6 cxd6 16. Nc4 Qc7 17. Qh4 h6 18. Rxf6 gxf6 19. Qxh6 fxg5 20. Qxg5+ Kh8 21. Rf1 f5 22. Qh6+ Kg8 23. Qg6+ Kh8 24. Rf4 Qd8 25. Qh6+ Kg8 26. Rh4 Qe7 27. Rh5 Rf6 28. Qh8+ Kf7 29. Qxa8 Rg6 30. Qh8 Qf8 31. Rh7+ Rg7 32. Qxf8+ {1-0 Fedoseev,V (2686)-Nakamura,H (2760) Titled Tuesday intern op 02nd Aug Late Chess.com INT blitz 2022 (9)}) 12. Nc4 $14 O-O 13. f4 {White's position plays itself; the question is how Black will defend his kingside.} Bc5+ 14. Be3 Bxe3+ 15. Nxe3 exf4 16. Rxf4 h6 (16... Qd8 $14 {makes sense, avoiding any Rxf6 nastiness and also hinting at tactical possibilities between the queen and White's knight on g5.}) 17. Nf3 $16 Ng4 18. Nf5 Bxf5 19. Rxf5 Re8 $2 (19... Qd7 20. h3 Nf6 21. Qg3 Nh7 22. Rf1 $16 {White's position is obviously preferable, but nowhere near winning.}) 20. Qg3 $18 Ne3 $8 (20... Nf6 $4 21. Rxf6) 21. Nd4 $1 {Black's knight is trapped. Perhaps Blohberger missed this idea. Black is more or less forced to grab the exchange, but he'll fall prey to a terminal attack.} Nxf5 (21... b6 $1 {is the best defense, though it's not enough.} 22. Qxe3 c5 {The point is that if the knight moves Black plays 23...Qxf5, exploiting the pin on the e-pawn. Unfortunately, White has a simple rejoinder to this idea.} 23. Qf2 $1 cxd4 24. Rxf7 $18) 22. Nxf5 g6 23. Rf1 $1 {Now 24.Nxh6+ is a huge threat.} Qd8 (23... Kh7 {doesn't stop it, either:} 24. Nxh6 $1 Kxh6 25. Rxf7 g5 26. Qf3 Qe6 (26... Re6 27. Qh3+ Kg6 28. Qh7#) 27. Rf6+ $18) 24. Nxh6+ Kg7 25. Rxf7+ $1 Kxh6 26. Qh3+ Kg5 27. Qe3+ Kh5 28. Rh7+ Kg4 29. h3# {A very nice win by Gledura.} 1-0 [Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.3"] [Board "3"] [White "Erigaisi, Arjun"] [Black "Prohaszka, Peter"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D35"] [WhiteElo "2778"] [BlackElo "2542"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "67"] [GameId "2089565440658033"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "India"] [BlackTeam "Hungary B"] [WhiteTeamCountry "IND"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] {[%evp 0,67,24,-5,1,4,4,4,6,6,21,24,25,13,35,17,33,25,33,35,48,38,38,-4,58,54,50,51,51,51,0,-24,54,69,69,68,53,62,81,-13,92,63,57,39,94,24,108,27,26,-23,36,36,40,64,119,137,207,243,302,316,735,1098,1098,1357,29995,29996,29997,29998,29999,29999] India won easily, so let's just look at one of their wins. Erigaisi didn't make the Candidates, unlike Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa, and Vidit, but he is highest-rated of the lot, currently the world's #4 player.} 1. c4 e6 2. Nc3 d5 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nf3 Be7 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bf4 Nh5 7. Bd2 O-O 8. e3 Nf6 9. Bd3 Nbd7 10. Qc2 c6 11. g4 $146 {A new move, but by no means a new idea.} Ne4 (11... g6 $1 12. g5 Nh5 $1 13. O-O-O Bd6 $11) 12. h4 $14 Re8 $6 (12... a5 $142) 13. g5 $16 {Black has neither counterplay nor much by way of defense around his king. This is unlikely to go well for him.} f5 $1 14. gxf6 Ndxf6 15. Ng5 $1 h6 {Black is forced to cough up a pawn.} 16. Ncxe4 dxe4 17. Nxe4 Nxe4 18. Bxe4 Be6 19. Rg1 (19. O-O-O $142 $16) 19... Bf6 (19... Bxh4 $1 $14 {Black's strategy is to hang on and pray.}) 20. O-O-O $16 Qe7 21. Bg6 Red8 22. Bc3 (22. Kb1) 22... a5 23. Bf5 $6 (23. e4 $142 $16) 23... Bxa2 $6 (23... Bxf5 24. Qxf5 b5 $132) 24. Rg6 $1 $16 Rf8 $2 (24... Bf7 $2 {is a tempting error that allows White to demonstrate his idea.} 25. Rxf6 $1 Qxf6 26. d5 Qxh4 27. Rg1 g5 28. Be6 $1 {Threatening Qg6+.} Qh5 $8 29. Qf5 Kf8 30. Rg3 $1 {Threatening Rf3.} Rxd5 $1 31. Bxd5 cxd5 32. Rf3 $18) (24... Kf8 $142 $16) (24... a4 $142 25. Rdg1 Bb3 26. Qd2 a3 27. bxa3 Bf7 $1 28. Rxh6 Qxa3+ 29. Bb2 Qd6 $16) 25. Rdg1 $18 Kh8 26. e4 $1 Rf7 27. Qd2 Qf8 28. d5 $1 cxd5 29. e5 (29. Rxg7 $1 {is even stronger.}) 29... Bxh4 30. e6 Rf6 31. e7 $1 {Preparing to finish with a little pizzazz.} Qxe7 32. Qxh6+ $1 gxh6 33. Rxh6+ Qh7 34. Rxh7# 1-0 [Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.4"] [Board "4"] [White "Wang, Yue"] [Black "Sebenik, Matej"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B90"] [WhiteElo "2637"] [BlackElo "2515"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "43"] [GameId "2089565440670326"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Slovenia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "SLO"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] {[%evp 0,43,23,23,52,52,72,52,52,24,34,32,58,42,43,27,31,32,19,4,13,-32,-22,3,-4,-4,-4,-67,97,73,126,127,143,139,148,155,177,177,332,401,390,344,421,359,807,1066] Here's one of China's two wins.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be3 e5 7. Nf3 Be7 8. Bc4 Be6 9. Bxe6 (9. Bb3 {is very different, keeping Black's pawn on f7 so White can play for the d5 and f5 squares.}) 9... fxe6 10. Ng5 Qd7 11. Qf3 h6 $2 (11... Nc6) ({and} 11... d5 {are standard.}) 12. Qh3 $16 {/+- Just like that, Black is almost losing.} Nc6 13. Na4 Bd8 14. O-O-O Qe7 $2 (14... b5 $142 15. Nc5 Qe7 16. Ncxe6 Rg8 $16 {/+- This isn't delightful, but if Black wants to stay in the game this is what he must do.}) 15. Nxe6 $18 Ba5 16. f4 $1 {Looking to anchor the knight with f5, and if Black takes then the knight can escape at will. (Plus, the e-file opens, and that's not good news for Black.)} Kf7 17. f5 Rac8 18. Bb6 Nxe4 19. Bxa5 Nxa5 20. Nb6 Nf6 (20... Rc6 21. Nd5 {is if anything even more miserable for Black.}) 21. Qg3 g5 (21... Rhg8 {would also lead to 1-0 after White's 22nd move, but this time Black would have no say in the matter.} 22. Qg6#) 22. fxg6+ $1 (22. fxg6+ $1 Kxe6 23. Qh3+ Ng4 24. Qxg4+ Kf6 25. Nd5+ $18) 1-0 [Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.6"] [Board "1"] [White "Lodici, Lorenzo"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E43"] [WhiteElo "2556"] [BlackElo "2724"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "61"] [GameId "2089565440674427"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "Italy"] [BlackTeam "Netherlands"] [WhiteTeamCountry "ITA"] [BlackTeamCountry "NED"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] {[%evp 0,61,23,20,28,6,6,6,33,29,34,20,20,-11,-29,-19,-29,-32,-25,-28,-25,-31,-25,-22,-27,-25,-25,-43,-14,-56,-34,-42,-10,-57,-45,-55,16,-43,35,16,0,28,170,161,144,136,151,153,154,157,164,157,156,197,189,137,176,116,191,212,238,227,228,243] We've seen top players succeed; now for the opposite story.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 b6 5. Bd3 Bb7 6. Nge2 Bxg2 {A risky line, but it's objectively good.} 7. Rg1 Bf3 8. Rg3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Be4 10. Qc2 Bxd3 11. Qxd3 Nh5 $146 12. Rh3 g6 13. e4 $44 d6 14. Ng3 Nxg3 15. Qxg3 f6 16. Bh6 (16. Qxg6+ $143 hxg6 17. Rxh8+ Kd7 18. Rxd8+ Kxd8 $11 {/? gets White his pawn back, but Black's structure is better and his knight should prove at least the equal of White's bishop.}) 16... Rg8 $2 (16... Qe7 $1 17. e5 $1 Nd7 $1 {leads to complex play.} 18. Qf3 (18. exf6 Nxf6 19. Kf1 e5 $11) 18... O-O-O $11) 17. e5 $16 Nd7 18. O-O-O Qe7 19. exf6 Nxf6 20. Bg5 Ne4 $4 {This allows White to reach an easily won double rook ending.} (20... Rf8 $16) 21. Bxe7 Nxg3 22. fxg3 Kxe7 23. Rxh7+ Kd8 24. Rf1 {This is a complete disaster for Black. Rather than trying to defend passively, Giri correctly gives up some material to get his king out of the way and (hopefully) get his rooks going.} Kc8 $1 25. Rff7 Kb7 26. Rxc7+ Ka6 27. Rhe7 Rgf8 (27... e5) 28. Kb2 d5 29. Rxe6 dxc4 30. Rxc4 Rf2+ 31. Kb3 {White has two extra pawns, and while his king is safe Black's isn't. Giri had enough.} 1-0 [Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.7"] [Board "1"] [White "Stremavicius, Titas"] [Black "Keymer, Vincent"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E10"] [WhiteElo "2527"] [BlackElo "2730"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "69"] [GameId "2089565440678527"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "Lithuania"] [BlackTeam "Germany"] [WhiteTeamCountry "LTU"] [BlackTeamCountry "GER"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] {[%evp 0,69,23,19,23,6,6,6,20,21,28,28,30,32,32,0,8,0,30,3,3,1,12,2,44,31,45,34,34,34,38,39,48,39,39,64,61,8,105,48,40,90,90,54,54,54,54,39,60,64,47,44,71,57,36,36,36,50,49,41,57,57,155,142,235,235,235,235,1205,1223,29997,29998]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 h6 $5 {Recently played by Gukesh against...Keymer.} 4. g3 (4. Bf4 b6 5. Nc3 Bb4 6. e3 Bb7 7. Bd3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 d6 9. Qc2 g5 10. Bg3 Nbd7 11. e4 Nh5 12. Qe2 Qf6 13. Rb1 Rg8 14. c5 Nxg3 15. hxg3 dxc5 16. e5 Qe7 17. Be4 O-O-O 18. Bxb7+ Kxb7 19. Qe4+ Kb8 20. Rxh6 g4 21. Nd2 cxd4 22. cxd4 Qa3 23. Rh7 Qxa2 24. Rxf7 Rh8 25. Ke2 Qa6+ 26. Ke3 c5 27. Qc6 cxd4+ 28. Kf4 Rhf8 29. Qd6+ Ka8 30. Rxf8 Rxf8+ 31. Kxg4 Qe2+ 32. Nf3 Qe4+ 33. Kh3 Qxb1 34. Qxd7 Rh8+ 35. Nh4 Qf5+ 36. Kh2 Qxe5 37. f4 Qd5 38. Qg7 Rc8 39. Nf3 d3 40. Qb2 Qxf3 {0-1 Keymer,V (2726)-Gukesh,D (2764) Warsaw Superbet Rapid 2024 (5)}) 4... Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 d5 7. Qc2 O-O 8. O-O c6 9. Rd1 Nbd7 10. Bf4 a5 {Through a circuitous route, the players have reached a well-known position that typically arises from a Catalan.} 11. Nc3 b6 12. Ne5 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. e4 d4 16. Rxd4 g5 (16... Bc5 17. Rdd1 g5 18. Bc1 Qc7 19. Na4 Qxe5 20. Nxc5 Nxc5 21. Be3 Ba6 22. Bd4 Qc7 23. Qc3 Kh7 24. Be5 (24. Bf6 Be2 25. Rd4 Rac8 26. Qd2 Bh5 27. e5 Rg8 28. h4 g4 29. Rc1 Bg6 30. Rxg4 Bf5 31. Rd4 {1-0 Murzin,V (2632)-Bilych,O (2451) Menorca op 3rd Ciutadella de Menorca 2024 (5)}) 24... Qa7 25. Qf3 Rg8 26. Rd6 g4 27. Qe3 Rad8 28. Rad1 Qe7 29. h3 Rxd6 30. Bxd6 Qg5 31. Bf4 Qg7 32. Rd6 Qxb2 33. hxg4 Rxg4 34. Bf3 h5 35. Rd4 Bb7 36. Kh2 Qb1 37. Be5 Bxe4 38. Rd1 Qc2 39. Bxg4 hxg4 40. Rd8 {1-0 Esipenko,A (2683)-Maghsoodloo,P (2707) FIDE Grand Swiss Douglas 2023 (10)}) 17. Be3 $146 (17. Bc1 Qc7 18. Rd1 Nxe5 19. Be3 Ng4 20. Bd2 Ba6 21. Rac1 Rac8 22. Qa4 Bc5 23. Be1 b5 24. Qc2 b4 25. Bh3 Ne3 26. fxe3 Bxe3+ 27. Bf2 Bxc1 28. Rxc1 bxc3 29. bxc3 Rfd8 {0-1 Luo,T (2351)-Huston,G (2439) New York Marshall Labor Day GM 2023 (6)}) 17... Bc5 $11 18. Qe2 $5 Qe8 (18... Qe7 $1 19. Rd6 $5 Nxe5 $1 20. Bxc5 bxc5 21. Rad1 Rb8 22. f4 Ng6 $11) 19. Rd2 (19. Rd6 $1 $14 {/?}) 19... Ba6 $11 {/?} 20. Qd1 Nxe5 (20... Bxe3 $142 21. Rxd7 Bc5 $11 {/?}) 21. Bxc5 bxc5 22. f4 $16 Nc4 23. Rf2 Ne3 24. Qf3 (24. Qc1 $1 $16) 24... Nxg2 25. fxg5 $1 hxg5 26. e5 $1 Rb8 $1 27. Ne4 $1 f5 $8 28. exf6 Bb7 29. Rxg2 {The flurry is over, and White is only slightly better despite Black's porous kingside.} Qg6 30. Re2 c4 $2 (30... Bd5 $1 {was better, setting up counterplay, e.g.} 31. Rf1 Rb4 $1 $11) 31. Rf1 $18 {Just like that, Black is losing.} Bxe4 32. Rxe4 Rxb2 33. Rxe6 Qh7 34. f7+ Kh8 (34... Rxf7 $2 35. Re8+ Kg7 36. Qxf7+ $18) (34... Qxf7 35. Rg6+ $1 {That's a move one can miss, at least/especially in time trouble.} Qxg6 36. Qxf8+ Kh7 37. Rf7+ $18) 35. Qc3+ $1 (35. Qc3+ $1 Qg7 36. Rh6#) 1-0 [Event "45th Olympiad 2024"] [Site "Budapest HUN"] [Date "2024.09.13"] [Round "3.20"] [Board "1"] [White "Garcia Pantoja, Roberto"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B41"] [WhiteElo "2550"] [BlackElo "2832"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "80"] [GameId "2089565440744115"] [EventDate "2024.09.11"] [WhiteTeam "Colombia"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "COL"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] [TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"] {[%evp 0,80,23,23,52,52,52,29,31,36,78,40,39,30,33,35,65,24,34,6,23,37,48,29,71,55,69,73,73,54,48,20,0,45,54,-24,-24,-9,1,17,6,44,44,-5,4,-18,-18,-23,-23,-68,19,-99,-82,-133,-169,-193,-195,-195,-220,-221,-239,-224,-237,-237,-237,-244,-237,-256,-330,-237,-381,-374,-486,-519,-519,-630,-280,-29993,-29994,-29995,-29996,-29999,-29999] This was Carlsen's first game in the event, and it was an impressive success.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 a6 5. c4 Nf6 6. Nc3 Qc7 7. Be2 (7. a3 {is popular here, and has been used both by and against Carlsen. Surprisingly, in both cases, Carlsen came out second-best.} b6 8. Bd3 (8. Be2 Bb7 9. f3 Be7 10. Be3 O-O 11. O-O d6 12. Rc1 Nbd7 13. b4 Rfc8 14. Kh1 Qd8 15. Nb3 Ne5 16. Na4 Nfd7 17. Qd4 b5 18. Na5 Nc6 19. Nxc6 Bxc6 20. cxb5 Bxb5 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Qd1 Qc7 23. Bd4 Qc2 24. Bxb5 axb5 25. Nb6 Nxb6 26. Bxb6 Qxd1 27. Rxd1 Rc3 28. Ra1 Bf6 29. Rd1 Rxa3 30. Kg1 Ra6 31. Bc7 Be5 32. Rc1 Kf8 33. Ba5 d5 34. exd5 exd5 35. Kf1 Bxh2 36. Rc5 Re6 37. g4 d4 38. Rxb5 d3 39. Rd5 Rd6 40. Rxd6 Bxd6 41. b5 g6 42. b6 Ke8 43. b7 Kd7 44. Bb4 Bb8 45. Kf2 h5 46. gxh5 gxh5 47. Be1 h4 48. Kg2 Kc6 49. Kh3 Kxb7 50. Kg4 Bg3 {0-1 Carlsen,M (2863)-Xiong,J (2709) Clutch-ch June Lichess.org INT rapid 2020 (1.5)}) 8... Bb7 9. O-O Bd6 10. f4 Bc5 11. Be3 Nc6 12. Nc2 d6 13. Qd2 O-O 14. Rae1 Ng4 15. Bxc5 dxc5 16. e5 Rad8 17. Qe2 Nh6 18. Rd1 Nd4 19. Nxd4 cxd4 20. Ne4 Nf5 21. Rf3 Bxe4 22. Bxe4 Ne3 23. Bxh7+ Kxh7 24. Rh3+ Kg8 25. Qh5 f5 26. Qh7+ Kf7 27. Rh6 Qxc4 28. Rf6+ Ke8 29. Qxg7 {1-0 Vachier Lagrave,M (2727)-Carlsen,M (2839) AI Cup Div 1 W Chess.com INT rapid 2023 (5.2)}) 7... b6 8. O-O (8. Be3 Bb7 9. f3 $14) 8... Bb7 9. f3 (9. Qd3 $14) 9... Nc6 (9... Bd6) 10. Nxc6 ({Garcia Pantoja has also been here before.} 10. Be3 Bd6 11. f4 Bc5 12. Qd3 d6 13. Rad1 O-O 14. Nc2 Rad8 15. a3 Ne7 16. Kh1 Ng6 17. b4 Bxe3 18. Nxe3 e5 19. f5 Nf4 20. Qc2 b5 21. Ncd5 Bxd5 22. exd5 Rc8 23. Rc1 Qa7 24. Rf3 bxc4 25. Bxc4 N4xd5 26. Nxd5 Nxd5 27. Qd2 Nf6 28. Rff1 Rfd8 29. Qe2 a5 30. b5 d5 31. Ba2 Qe7 32. Qb2 h5 33. a4 e4 34. Qd4 Qd6 35. Rb1 Ng4 36. g3 Rc2 37. Rb2 Rxb2 38. Qxb2 Qc5 39. Rc1 Qe3 40. b6 Nf2+ 41. Kg2 Qf3+ 42. Kf1 Nd3+ {0-1 Garcia Pantoja,R (2507)-Caruana,F (2766) Titled Tuesday intern op 14th Mar Early Chess.com INT blitz 2023 (2)}) 10... Bxc6 11. Qd3 $146 h5 $5 (11... Bd6 $11) 12. Be3 Bd6 13. f4 $14 Ng4 14. e5 {This slightly weakens the light squares down the a8-h1 diagonal, and f5 as well. Black can't immediately take advantage of this, but he doesn't have to - it's going to be a chronic weakness.} (14. Bxg4 $142 hxg4 15. a3 $11 {/?}) 14... Be7 15. Bd4 d6 16. exd6 Bxd6 17. Bf3 $6 Bxf3 (17... O-O $142) 18. Qxf3 O-O 19. Ne4 $6 {There stereotype of Carlsen is that he's a grinder, but he wouldn't be the GOAT (or on the short list for GOAT status) if he wasn't a stupendous calculator. White goes in for tactics, and Carlsen will be right there with him, move for move.} (19. b3) 19... Qxc4 $1 20. Rad1 (20. Rfd1 $142) 20... Be7 $17 21. b3 Qb5 22. a4 Qb4 $1 23. h3 Nh6 24. Bc3 $2 Qxb3 $19 25. Rd7 Nf5 26. Rfd1 (26. g4 Nh4 27. Qg3 Qxa4 $1 28. Rxe7 Qxe4 29. Bxg7 (29. Qxh4 Qe3+ $19) 29... Kxg7 30. Qxh4 Qd4+ 31. Kg2 Qf6 $19) 26... Rad8 $1 27. g4 Nh4 28. Qe2 Qxa4 {Three extra pawns.} 29. R1d4 Qa3 {Everything's still covered.} 30. Kh2 Rxd7 31. Rxd7 Rd8 32. Ra7 hxg4 33. hxg4 Ng6 $1 34. f5 Bd6+ $1 35. Kg1 Qc1+ 36. Qe1 Bc5+ $1 37. Kg2 (37. Nxc5 Rd1 $19) 37... Nh4+ 38. Qxh4 {There weren't any good moves, but this gets mated.} Qg1+ 39. Kf3 Rd3+ 40. Ke2 Qd1# 0-1