3-way tie for 1st at Asian Individual Championship

Final top 15 standings

Rk.		Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1	TB2	TB3
1	GM	Harikrishna P	IND	2666	6.5	0.0	2615	44.5
2	GM	Yu Yangyi	CHN	2646	6.5	0.0	2607	45.5
3	GM	Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son	VIE	2635	6.5	0.0	2547	42.5
4	GM	Jumabayev Rinat	KAZ	2558	6.0	0.0	2640	43.0
5	GM	Bu Xiangzhi	CHN	2662	6.0	0.0	2636	48.5
6	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	IND	2676	6.0	0.0	2613	46.0
7		Lu Shanglei	CHN	2473	6.0	0.0	2601	40.0
8	GM	Moradiabadi Elshan	IRI	2536	6.0	0.0	2588	40.5
9	GM	Negi Parimarjan	IND	2622	5.5	0.0	2616	43.0
10	GM	Zhao Jun	CHN	2574	5.5	0.0	2565	40.0
11	GM	Zhou Weiqi	CHN	2610	5.5	0.0	2556	39.5
12	GM	So Wesley	PHI	2667	5.5	0.0	2553	38.5
13	IM	Barbosa Oliver	PHI	2506	5.0	0.0	2606	41.0
14	GM	Ismagambetov Anuar	KAZ	2500	5.0	0.0	2584	38.5
15	GM	Wen Yang	CHN	2545	5.0	0.0	2582	41.5
16	GM	Ganguly Surya Shekhar	IND	2643	5.0	0.0	2562	42.0
17	GM	Kunte Abhijit	IND	2526	5.0	0.0	2548	39.0
18	GM	Sethuraman S P	IND	2527	5.0	0.0	2543	35.0
19	GM	Kasimdzhanov Rustam	UZB	2685	5.0	0.0	2534	40.0
20	GM	Gomez John Paul	PHI	2538	5.0	0.0	2471	34.5
21	GM	Cao Sang	VIE	2547	5.0	0.0	2439	34.0

Full standings here.

Yu Yangyi leads Asian Individual Championship after 6

Rank after Round 6

Rk.		Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1	TB2	TB3
1	GM	Yu Yangyi	CHN	2646	5.0	0.0	2601	18.5
2	GM	Harikrishna P	IND	2666	4.5	0.0	2603	19.5
3	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	IND	2676	4.5	0.0	2579	18.0
4	GM	Bu Xiangzhi	CHN	2662	4.0	0.0	2642	21.5
5	GM	Negi Parimarjan	IND	2622	4.0	0.0	2642	19.0
6	GM	Jumabayev Rinat	KAZ	2558	4.0	0.0	2629	19.5
7	GM	Adhiban B	IND	2543	4.0	0.0	2609	16.5
8	GM	Wen Yang	CHN	2545	4.0	0.0	2582	18.0
9	GM	Moradiabadi Elshan	IRI	2536	4.0	0.0	2551	16.0
10	GM	Ganguly Surya Shekhar	IND	2643	4.0	0.0	2543	16.5
11	GM	Zhao Jun	CHN	2574	4.0	0.0	2534	16.0
12	GM	Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son	VIE	2635	4.0	0.0	2519	16.5
13		Lu Shanglei	CHN	2473	3.5	0.0	2647	16.0
14	IM	Barbosa Oliver	PHI	2506	3.5	0.0	2623	17.5
15	GM	Ismagambetov Anuar	KAZ	2500	3.5	0.0	2610	18.0
16	GM	Zhou Weiqi	CHN	2610	3.5	0.0	2569	17.0
17	IM	Yang Kaiqi	CHN	2409	3.5	0.0	2548	15.0
18	GM	Kasimdzhanov Rustam	UZB	2685	3.5	0.0	2538	17.0
19	GM	So Wesley	PHI	2667	3.5	0.0	2513	15.5
20	GM	Paragua Mark	PHI	2542	3.5	0.0	2460	12.5
21	GM	Gomez John Paul	PHI	2538	3.5	0.0	2414	14.0

Full results here: http://chess-results.com/tnr49118.aspx

Stunning upset

Adhiban stuns Wesley So in Asian Individual Chess
PTI | May 6, 2011, 10.23am IST

MASHHAD (IRAN): Grandmaster B Adhiban of India crashed through the defenses of ace Filipino Wesley So in the fourth round to occupy the joint third position in the Asian Individual Chess championship.

After a sedate start, Adhiban rose in contention for a place in the next World Cup with a masterly display that left his higher ranked opponent shocked.

The victory meant Adhiban is just half a point behind the leaders.

At the top of the tables, Grandmaster P Harikrishna played out a draw with Bu Xiangzhi of China to also inch to three points.

With 3.5 points, Xiangzhi was joined at the top by compatriot Yu Yangyi. The two Chinese will now clash against each other in the next round.

Another Indian in fray, Grandmaster Parimarjan Negi put aside his previous round loss against Xiangzhi and bounced back to beat Wen Yang of China.

Negi and Krishnan Sasikiran, who was held to a draw by Rinat Zumabayev of Kazakhstan, are also amongst those who have three points in their kitty.

The Indian challenge, however, suffered a serious setback in the women's section when top seed D Harika went down to Munguntuul Batkhuyag of Mongolia.

More here.

2 lead Asian Individual Championship after 4

Leaders after 4 rounds

Rk.		Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1	TB2	TB3
1	GM	Bu Xiangzhi	CHN	2662	3.5	0.0	2644	8.5
2	GM	Yu Yangyi	CHN	2646	3.5	0.0	2537	8.0
3	GM	Jumabayev Rinat	KAZ	2558	3.0	0.0	2661	7.5
4	GM	Adhiban B	IND	2543	3.0	0.0	2655	6.5
5	GM	Negi Parimarjan	IND	2622	3.0	0.0	2604	8.5
6	GM	Harikrishna P	IND	2666	3.0	0.0	2604	8.0
7	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	IND	2676	3.0	0.0	2543	7.5
8	GM	Dao Thien Hai	VIE	2512	2.5	0.0	2676	6.5
9	IM	Barbosa Oliver	PHI	2506	2.5	0.0	2656	7.5
10	GM	Wen Yang	CHN	2545	2.5	0.0	2644	8.0
11	FM	Pourramezanali Amirreza	IRI	2330	2.5	0.0	2629	8.0
12	GM	Megaranto Susanto	INA	2529	2.5	0.0	2627	7.5
13	GM	Kunte Abhijit	IND	2526	2.5	0.0	2616	6.5
14	GM	Laylo Darwin	PHI	2516	2.5	0.0	2610	7.0
15	GM	Moradiabadi Elshan	IRI	2536	2.5	0.0	2549	7.5
16	GM	Ganguly Surya Shekhar	IND	2643	2.5	0.0	2536	7.0
17	GM	Zhou Weiqi	CHN	2610	2.5	0.0	2528	7.0
18	GM	Kasimdzhanov Rustam	UZB	2685	2.5	0.0	2506	6.0
19	GM	Zhao Jun	CHN	2574	2.5	0.0	2494	5.5
20	GM	Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son	VIE	2635	2.5	0.0	2490	6.0

Round 5 top board pairings

Bo.		Name	Rtg	Pts.	Result	Pts.		Name	Rtg
1	GM	Bu Xiangzhi	2662	3½		3½	GM	Yu Yangyi	2646
2	GM	Negi Parimarjan	2622	3		3	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	2676
3	GM	Jumabayev Rinat	2558	3		3	GM	Harikrishna P	2666
4	GM	Zhou Weiqi	2610	2½		3	GM	Adhiban B	2543
5	GM	Laylo Darwin	2516	2½		2½	GM	Kasimdzhanov Rustam	2685
6	GM	Ganguly Surya Shekhar	2643	2½		2½	GM	Kunte Abhijit	2526
7	FM	Pourramezanali Amirreza	2330	2½		2½	GM	Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son	2635
8	IM	Barbosa Oliver	2506	2½		2½	GM	Zhao Jun	2574
9	GM	Wen Yang	2545	2½		2½	GM	Megaranto Susanto	2529
10	GM	Moradiabadi Elshan	2536	2½		2½	GM	Dao Thien Hai	2512

Full results here: http://chess-results.com/tnr49118.aspx

10th Asian Continental Individual Championship

10th Asian Continental Individual Championship
1st to 11th May at the Hotel Pardisan, in Mashhad, Iran

The 10th Asian Continental Individual Championship and First Asian Individual Blitz Championship (Open and Women's) are scheduled to take place from 1st to 11th May at the Hotel Pardisan, in Mashhad, Iran. Members of all FIDE Affiliated Chess Federations in Asia, Zones 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6 and 3.7 are eligible to take participation.

Harika Dronavalli (2524) from India and former World Champion Rustam Kasimdzhanov (2687) from Uzbekistan are top rated among the currently registered players.

Mashhad is the second largest city in Iran and one of the holiest cities in the Shia Muslim world.

It is located 850 kilometers (530 mi) east of Tehran, close to the borders of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. Its population was 2,427,316 at the 2006 population census.

The city benefits from the proximity of the mountains, having cool winters, pleasant springs, mild summers, and beautiful autumns. It is only about 250 km (156 miles) from Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.

Official website

RULES & REGULATIONS

1. ELIGIBILITY & PARTICIPATION

1.1 Each Federation from FIDE Zones 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6 and 3.7 can enter one official player in the Open and one official player in the Women’s Division.

1.2 In addition, each Federation may send extra players rated 2300 and above for the Open, and 2000 and above for Women based on the March 2011 FIDE Rating List. Extra players will be responsible for the payment of their board and lodging at the official hotel. Exceptions for the rating floor may be made by the Continental President on request of national federations.

2. PLAYING CONDITIONS

The tournament shall be conducted as a Swiss System competition of 9 or 11 rounds and will be played according to FIDE regulations. If the players are 64 or less, it will be organized in 9 rounds and if more than 64 it will be in 11 rounds.

The tournament will be played according to FIDE regulations. The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an addition of 30 seconds per move starting from move one. The games shall be played with DGT clocks. Pairings will be made by Swiss Manager Program Draw offers are not allowed before Black’s 30th move.

The blitz competition will be organized in 11 round Swiss System for players under the same conditions as the main tournament. Time control will be 3 minutes and 2 second increment per move.

Tagaytay finished 4th

Tagaytay ends up 4th in Asian Cities Chess

abs-cbnNEWS.com

Posted at 04/29/2011 5:51 PM | Updated as of 04/29/2011 5:51 PM

MANILA, Philippines - Tagaytay (Philippines) settled a 2-2 draw against Tehran (Iran) in the 9th and final round to finish in a tie for 4th to 7th place in the conclusion of the Asian Cities Chess Championship in Jakarta, Indonesia on Thursday.

Grandmaster (GM) Wesley So drew with GM Ehsan Ghaem Maghami on Board 1; GM Rogelio "Joey" Antonio Jr. split the point with GM Elshan Moradiabadi on Board 2; GM John Paul Gomez halved the point with GM Morteza Mahjoob on Board 3; and GM Darwin Laylo also drew with International Master (IM) Asghar Golizadeh on Board 4.

The Tagaytay team sent by National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) President Prospero “Butch” Pichay Jr. and secretary-general Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino Jr. notched a total of 11 match points.

The team eventually took 4th place after winning the tie break points against Palembang (Indonesia), Jakarta (Indonesia) and Mashhad (Iran).

Former champion Tehran took solo 3rd with 13 match points.

Top seed Shi Jiazhuang (China) won the overall title with 18 match points while Astana (Kazakhstan) nabbed 2nd place with 15 match points. – By Marlon Bernardino

Source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com

Shi Jiazhuang, Astana, Tehran Top Asian Cities

Shi Jiazhuang, Astana, Tehran Top Asian Cities
Thursday, 28 April 2011 19:53

The Chinese city of Shi Jiazhuang won all their matches to win the Asian Cities Team Championship for the Dubai Cup held 21-28 April 2011 in Jakarta, Indonesia. Visit chess-results.comfor round by round results and standings. Download games at the Asian Chess Federation site. Visit the official site.

The team of GM Yu Yangyi, GM Li Chao, Wan Yunguo, GM Wang Rui and GM Zhang Pengxiang, scored a perfect 18 match points on the basis of 2-1-0 points per match.

Asian Chess Federation president Sheikh Sultan bin Khalifah Al Nahyan (left) awards the Dubai Cup to the Chinese city of Shi Jiazhuang with the check for $10,000. At right is Senator GM Utut Adianto, Chairman of the Jakarta Asian Cities Organizing Committee.

FinalRanking
Rk.	Team	Win	Draw	Loss	MP	GP	TB
1	Shi Jiazhuang	9	0	0	18	27.5	192
2	Astana	7	1	1	15	25.5	159.75
3	Tehran	6	1	2	13	24	132.5
4	Tagaytay	5	1	3	11	26	96.5
5	Palembang	5	1	3	11	22.5	105.25
6	Jakarta	5	1	3	11	22.5	97.75
7	Mashhad	5	1	3	11	15.5	98.75
8	Bangalore	5	0	4	10	23	71
9	Abu Dhabi	5	0	4	10	19	56
10	Sydney	4	2	3	10	18.5	79
11	Dubai	3	3	3	9	21	55.5
12	Yangon	4	1	4	9	18	76
13	Erdenet	4	1	4	9	17	78.5
14	Penang	4	1	4	9	17	60.25
15	Pekanbaru	4	1	4	9	16.5	48
16	Sharjah	2	4	3	8	18	52.75
17	Baghdad	4	0	5	8	17	51.5
18	Tarakan	4	0	5	8	15	69.5
19	Kathmandu	3	2	4	8	15	63
20	Singapore	2	2	5	6	14.5	28.75
21	Hongkong	2	1	6	5	12.5	24.75
22	Bandar Seri Begawan	2	0	7	4	9	17.5
23	Seoul	1	1	7	3	13	16.75
24	Putrajaya	0	1	8	1	4.5	6.5
Annotation
MP: Matchpoints (2 for wins, 1 for Draws, 0 for Losses)
GP: points (game-points)
Tie Break: Sonneborn-Berger-Tie-Break (with real points)

China Leads Asian Cities

China's Shi Jiazhuang Leads Asian Cities

Tuesday, 26 April 2011 11:49

The Chinese team of Shi Jiazhuang beat the Kazakhastan team of Astana in the 5th round to grab solo lead halfway through the Asian Cities Team Championship for the Dubai Cup in Jakarta, Indonesia.

GM Li Chao scored the winning point on board two at the expense of GM Rinat Jumabayev as the three other boards were drawn to give the Chinese 2.5 points against 1.5.

See results and standings in chess-results.com, download games and see photo gallery in Asian Chess Federation site. visit official site.

Above photo shows Yu Yangyi vs Murtas Kazhgaleyev on board 1. In their perfect match scores, Shi Jiazhuang beat Mashhad 4:0, Bangalore 3:1, Jakarta 3:1, tehran 2.5-1.5, Astana 2.5-1.5 and plays the women's team of Tarakan in round 6. The leading teams they have to face are Tagaytay of the Philippines and Palembang of Indonesia.

Rank after Round 5
Rk.	Team	Win	Draw	Loss	MP	GP	TB
1	Shi Jiazhuang	5	0	0	10	15	66
2	Tehran	4	0	1	8	15.5	40
3	Astana	4	0	1	8	15	45.5
4	Jakarta	4	0	1	8	14.5	39
5	Tagaytay	3	0	2	6	14.5	24
6	Bangalore	3	0	2	6	13.5	23
7	Palembang	3	0	2	6	13	31.5
8	Yangon	3	0	2	6	11.5	25
9	Tarakan	3	0	2	6	8.5	32
10	Mashhad	3	0	2	6	7.5	28
11	Sydney	2	1	2	5	10.5	18.75
12	Erdenet	2	1	2	5	8.5	22
13	Penang	2	1	2	5	8.5	21.25
14	Dubai	1	2	2	4	10	15.75
15	Baghdad	2	0	3	4	9.5	13
16	Hongkong	2	0	3	4	9	9
17	Kathmandu	1	2	2	4	8	16.75
18	Abu Dhabi	2	0	3	4	8	11
19	Bandar Seri Begawan	2	0	3	4	7	9
20	Sharjah	0	3	2	3	8.5	12.5
21	Pekanbaru	1	1	3	3	7.5	13.25
22	Singapore	1	1	3	3	7.5	7.25
23	Seoul	0	1	4	1	6	1.5
24	Putrajaya	0	1	4	1	3	3

Asian dominance

World domination pursued by Asian women at title event
by Adam Richards
26th Dec 10

More evidence that Asia is taking the balance of power from Eastern Europe in the game of chess has been seen at the Women’s World Chess Championship.

This year’s World Championship started earlier in December in southern Turkey, with 24 of the 64 competitors coming from Eastern Europe. However, by the time the championships reached the quarter finals stage, just one Eastern European, Kateryna Lahno from Ukraine, remained in the competition.

China saw four of its competitors reach the quarter finals, whilst the last quarterfinalist was a French player – Almira Skripchenko – although she originally came from Moldova.

Skripchenko and Lahno were then eliminated at the quarterfinals stage , with the semifinalists being three Chinese competitors and one Indian – Humpy Koneru.

Koneru was the highest-ranked competitor in the semifinals, but suffered a defeat by Hou Yifan, who is only 16 years-of-age from China, but already ranked in the number three position in the world.

This is the second time that Koneru has lost to Hou. She was also beaten by the Chinese player in the 2008 World Championship’s semifinals.

In the final, Hou came up against Ruan Lufei. Ruan’s excellent results in the tournament came as a surprise. Ruan was the number four ranked Chinese player and currently studying at Carnegie Mellon University in their doctoral program.

Ruan’s tournament results is a sign of just how strong chess is in China at the moment.

The final was won by Hou in the second game when Ruan made some poor moves.

Source: http://www.discountvouchers.co.uk

Travel Special: Travel Malaysia

This is a catch up article since I missed out on the Thursday slot for Thursday Travel on Empty Streets 1027. Today am featuring a beautiful next door neighbor country to the Philippines - Malaysia. Malaysia is truly a place of beauty and one filled with enough mystery and adventure that is sure to fill up your itinerary.

To get you started though I found a cool site that talks about the top ten places to visit when you go to Malaysia: Top Ten Places in Malaysia

Now to further entice you - here is a video playlist of what to expect in the place that is known best as Truly Asia: