Three rounds into the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad, held from September 10 through 23 in Budapest, Hungary, Team USA is off to a 3–0 start in both the Open and Women's events.
Read on for a full report, featuring analysis of games from each round of both teams. Highlights include: GM Levon Aronian's come-from-behind magic in round one, IM Carissa Yip's full-board control in round three, IM Alice Lee's Olympiad debut, and some serious endgame clinics from GMs Ray Robson and Leinier Dominguez as well as IM Golrukhbegim Tokhirjonova.
Women's Tournament
Team USA entered the Women's Olympiad as the eighth seed by aggregate rating, and has avoided any early upsets with victories against Jordan (4–0), the Philippines (3½–½), and Canada (3½–½).
In the first round, wins from IM Carissa Yip, GM Irina Krush, and IM Anna Zatonskih all highlighted the players' superior chess understanding, with principled decision-making underpinning the tactics in each of the below victories:
As is often the case for the top board in these events, IM Gulrukhbegim (Beigm) Tokhirjonova faced the toughest test of the round. And, as is often the case in these events, she managed to use a slight advantage on the board and on the clock to put her lower-rated opponent under serious pressure in the endgame:
Tokhirjonova found herself in a similar situation in round two, only this time she was not able to convert a particularly difficult endgame:
Zatonskih and IM Alice Lee (making her Olympiad debut after resting in the first round) contributed fine attacking victories to clinch the match:
Finally, all three results felt possible in Yip's game, where her signature King's Indian Defense produced the kind of complications one would hope for:
With Tokhirjonova again holding a draw in the third round (this time against strong WGM Maili-Jade Ouellet), Yip set the tone for the match against Canada with a really impressive full-board press on board two:
Krush contributed a similar full-board triumph in a wildly complex game that saw both players use most of their time in the first 15 moves.
Finally, it was Lee's turn to play for "three results," although in actuality she was the one hoping to salvage a draw for the majority of the game. At one point, her opponent even had a forced mate in seven!
But, after being let off the hook for the worst of it, her opponent suffered a painful blunder, simply neglecting a hanging piece. From there, Lee stole the full point.
Open Tournament
The top-rated team in the Open currently boasts wins against Panama, Singapore and – as a few moments ago – Bulgaria. Of their three opponents, Bulgaria was the first to feature a lineup of four grandmasters. Nevertheless, USA won 3½–½, matching their score against Panama. Yesterday, they defeated Singapore 4–0.
So far, at least a few games from each round have been more tense than the lopsided scores would suggest. Most notably, GM Levon Aronian was in hot water early in round one, having to part with a piece as early as move 13!
What unfolded next was an entertaining, instructive, and dramatic affair. Aronian managed to create complications while forcing his 16-year-old opponent to navigate the delicate balance between playing it safe and being too passive. After swindling back his piece, he won the endgame in style as well:
GM Leinier Dominguez's methodical victory (featuring an odd idea in the Petrov's Defense) and GM Ray Robson's handling of an enterprising Sicilian Dragon can be seen below, as well:
After resting in round one, it was business as usual for GM Fabiano Caruana in his second-round debut, dispatching his opponent with signature accuracy.
Despite the results, the other three boards served as a reminder of how difficult this event will be. Both Dominguez and Robson had to essay lengthy grinds in equal endgames before finally breaking through:
And then, once again, there was Aronian. Armed with deep preparation against his opponent's Sicilian Taimanov, he quickly amassed a large advantage on the clock. But his opponent nevertheless found defensive resource after resource, almost hanging on to save the half-point:
In the third round, GM Wesley So earned his first win of the Olympiad (after being held to a draw with the black pieces in round one and resting in round two). And what a win it was! Against a top-tier opponent, So punished one inaccuracy with a crushing attack:
With Robson being held to a draw by his opponent's Classical Sicilian, Caruana and Aronian each won their games to round out the match. This time, Aronian was in control from the start, confidently capturing his opponent's gambited pawns and holding on from there.
Caruana had only a small initiative to speak of for most of the game, but it was also enough to grind down a well-known competitor.
Looking Ahead and Looking Around
Heading into round four, precisely 16 teams remain with perfect 3/3 scores in both the Open and Women's tournaments. It should be noted that both teams boast strong tiebreaks, too, with the Women's team atop the standings (along with Spain and England) while only India has better tiebreaks in the Open.
A number of top teams and players can be seen all over the top of the standings, as well. One of the most visually imposing presences comes from the defending gold medalists in the Open. In fact, they seemed to have taken a page out of Team USA Women's playbook and hired their own "Coach K."
While many of the world's top ten compete for teams that also boast top-ten aggregate ratings, there are also several others scattered throughout the standings. In the Open, Norway is currently 2½/3, with a certain former world champion playing as their top board. In the Women's event, GM Alexandra Kosteniuk is the top board of a Swiss team with 2/3.
There's nothing quite like seeing the entire chess world come together in one place. As expected, we can see recent top stories like a rising brother-sister duo or a current world champion with his beloved second. But there are also grandmasters from earlier eras sitting alongside players as young as England's nine-year-old WFM Bodhana Sivanandan. Not to mention, it's nice seeing popular streamers and commentators take seats at the board as well. There are even a few Americans coaching other teams! Hover over the photos below for captions/credits.
Play continues with the fourth round on Saturday, September 14, with games beginning at 8:00 a.m. CDT. The Open team will face Ukraine, and it will be USA – Netherlands in the Women's event.
Play continues with one round per day, with the exception of Tuesday, September 17, when there will be a rest day. Note that the final round starts four hours earlier than usual on Sunday, September 22.
All results can be found here for the Women's event and here for the Open. Live games can be followed on Lichess.org and Chess.com.
Categories
Archives
- October 2024 (12)
- September 2024 (23)
- August 2024 (27)
- July 2024 (44)
- June 2024 (27)
- May 2024 (32)
- April 2024 (51)
- March 2024 (34)
- February 2024 (25)
- January 2024 (26)
- December 2023 (29)
- November 2023 (26)
- October 2023 (37)
- September 2023 (27)
- August 2023 (37)
- July 2023 (47)
- June 2023 (33)
- May 2023 (37)
- April 2023 (45)
- March 2023 (37)
- February 2023 (28)
- January 2023 (31)
- December 2022 (23)
- November 2022 (32)
- October 2022 (31)
- September 2022 (19)
- August 2022 (39)
- July 2022 (32)
- June 2022 (35)
- May 2022 (21)
- April 2022 (31)
- March 2022 (33)
- February 2022 (21)
- January 2022 (27)
- December 2021 (36)
- November 2021 (34)
- October 2021 (25)
- September 2021 (25)
- August 2021 (41)
- July 2021 (36)
- June 2021 (29)
- May 2021 (29)
- April 2021 (31)
- March 2021 (33)
- February 2021 (28)
- January 2021 (29)
- December 2020 (38)
- November 2020 (40)
- October 2020 (41)
- September 2020 (35)
- August 2020 (38)
- July 2020 (36)
- June 2020 (46)
- May 2020 (42)
- April 2020 (37)
- March 2020 (60)
- February 2020 (38)
- January 2020 (45)
- December 2019 (35)
- November 2019 (35)
- October 2019 (42)
- September 2019 (45)
- August 2019 (56)
- July 2019 (44)
- June 2019 (35)
- May 2019 (40)
- April 2019 (48)
- March 2019 (61)
- February 2019 (39)
- January 2019 (30)
- December 2018 (29)
- November 2018 (51)
- October 2018 (45)
- September 2018 (29)
- August 2018 (49)
- July 2018 (35)
- June 2018 (31)
- May 2018 (39)
- April 2018 (31)
- March 2018 (26)
- February 2018 (33)
- January 2018 (30)
- December 2017 (26)
- November 2017 (24)
- October 2017 (30)
- September 2017 (30)
- August 2017 (32)
- July 2017 (27)
- June 2017 (32)
- May 2017 (26)
- April 2017 (37)
- March 2017 (28)
- February 2017 (30)
- January 2017 (27)
- December 2016 (29)
- November 2016 (24)
- October 2016 (32)
- September 2016 (31)
- August 2016 (27)
- July 2016 (24)
- June 2016 (26)
- May 2016 (19)
- April 2016 (30)
- March 2016 (37)
- February 2016 (27)
- January 2016 (33)
- December 2015 (25)
- November 2015 (23)
- October 2015 (16)
- September 2015 (28)
- August 2015 (28)
- July 2015 (6)
- June 2015 (1)
- May 2015 (2)
- April 2015 (1)
- February 2015 (3)
- January 2015 (1)
- December 2014 (1)
- July 2010 (1)
- October 1991 (1)
- August 1989 (1)
- January 1988 (1)
- December 1983 (1)