RAW World Chess Challenge 2010 (Preview)
RAW World Chess Challenge 2010
IM Malcolm Pein - Friday 13th August 2010
The RAW World Chess Challenge with Magnus Carlsen taking on the World promises to be some of the best publicity for chess in quite some time. It also may introduce Carlsen to a global audience.
Magnus Carlsen's new career as a fashion model for the label GStar has spawned an online match between the world number one and the rest of the world. On September 10th at the Cooper Star Hotel in New York City, Carlsen will be playing the RAW World Chess Challenge live on the internet. Anyone can join the world team by registering and they will be able to vote on what to play against the Norwegian.
The world team will have an advisory board of three GMs World Junior champion Maxime Vachier-Lagrave from France, 2009 US champion Hikaru Nakamura and the strongest female player in the history of the game, Judit Polgar from Hungary. The public will vote online for their favoured move to be played against Magnus.
Carlsen's former coach Garry Kasparov is the official RAW World Chess Challenge ambassador and he summed up one of the unique attributes of chess as follows:
'There isn't any sport I know of that gives the entire world the opportunity to play the world's best simultaneously. Magnus is one of the greatest talents ever. This game will be a true challenge for him. Let's see who wins: he or the World.' Kasparov won one such contest, in 1999, supported by Microsoft. It was an epic game played over many months.
G Kasparov (2851) - The World
MSN 1999
Sicilian Bb5+
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+ Bd7 4.Bxd7+ Qxd7 5.c4 Nc6 6.Nc3 Nf6 7.0-0 g6 8.d4 cxd4 9.Nxd4 Bg7 10.Nde2 Qe6 11.Nd5 Qxe4 12.Nc7+ Kd7 13.Nxa8 Qxc4 14.Nb6+ axb6 15.Nc3 Ra8
(15...b5!?)
The World
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Garry Kasparov
Position after 15...Ra8
16.a4 Ne4 17.Nxe4 Qxe4 18.Qb3 f5 19.Bg5 Qb4 20.Qf7 Be5
(20...Qxb2!?)
21.h3 Rxa4 22.Rxa4 Qxa4 23.Qxh7 Bxb2 24.Qxg6 Qe4
(Black's b pawn balances White's h pawn)
25.Qf7 Bd4 26.Qb3 f4 27.Qf7 Be5 28.h4 b5 29.h5 Qc4 30.Qf5+ Qe6 31.Qxe6+ Kxe6 32.g3 fxg3 33.fxg3 b4 34.Bf4 Bd4+
(34...Bh8! - Kasparov)
35.Kh1 b3 36.g4 Kd5 37.g5 e6 38.h6 Ne7 39.Rd1 e5 40.Be3 Kc4 41.Bxd4 exd4 42.Kg2 b2 43.Kf3 Kc3 44.h7 Ng6 45.Ke4 Kc2 46.Rh1 d3 47.Kf5 b1Q 48.Rxb1 Kxb1 49.Kxg6 d2 50.h8Q d1Q 51.Qh7!
(White's more advanced pawn is more dangerous than Black's two)
b5 52.Kf6+ Kb2
(52...Ka1!)
53.Qh2+ Ka1 54.Qf4!
(Avoiding checks, now the pawn can advance)
54...b4 55.Qxb4 Qf3+ 56.Kg7 d5 57.Qd4+ Kb1 58.g6 Qe4 59.Qg1+ Kb2 60.Qf2+ Kc1 61.Kf6 d4 62.g7 1-0
White wins after 62.g7 Qc6+ 63.Kg5 Qd5+ 64.Qf5 Qd8+ 65.Kh6 Qg8 66.Qc5+ Kb1 67.Qxd4 Qe6+ 68.Kg5 Qe7+ 69.Kg4 avoiding checks.
The World
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Garry Kasparov
Final position after 62.g7
A miniature, played with a board and pieces
M Khachiyan - T Taylor
50th PSW Open Los Angeles
Ruy Lopez Exchange
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.Nc3
(5.0-0 is more commonly played)
5...Bd6 6.d4 exd4 7.Qxd4 f6 8.Be3 Ne7 9.0-0-0 0-0
(9...Be6)
10.Qc4+ Kh8 11.Bc5! Bg4??
(In a difficult position it was better to jettison a pawn for counterplay with 11...Ng6 12.Bxd6 cxd6 13.Qd4 Nf4 14.Rhg1 Bg4 15.Qxd6 Qxd6 16.Rxd6)
12.e5!
T Taylor
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M Khachiyan
Position after 12.e5! discovering an attack on the bishop on g4.
12...Bxf3
(12...fxe5 13.Qxg4)
13.exd6 1-0
