Interview with Senior Master Faik Aleskerov

Interview with Senior Master Faik Aleskerov from Baku, Azerbaijan. He's a member of the Texas Tech Knight Raider Chess Team. He is pursuing is MBA at Texas Tech University.

Both Azerbaijani Players Out of World Championship Candidates Matches

Two Azerbaijani chess players lose in FIDE Candidates Matches quarterfinals
Tue 10 May 2011 04:42 GMT | -1:42 Local Time

The tie-breaks in quarterfinals of the FIDE Candidates Matches were held in Tatarstan capital on Monday.

The winners were defined in the confrontation of Teymur Rajabov of Azerbaijan and Vladimir Kramnik of Russia, Levon Aronyan of Armenia and Alexander Grishuk of Russia. Following the four matches with the standard control of time played previously, the matched saw a draw 2-2.

In the confrontation between Rajabov and Kramnik, the four quick matches with 25-minute control ended in a draw. Under regulations, blitz of five mini-matches of two five minute parts was envisioned. Each of these matches might be the last.

In the first match Rajabov won with white pieces but the clock broke when he was playing with black. After the case was clarified, the grandmasters against sat at the board and Kramnik won.

The story with the clock had a negative impact on Rajabov. He started the second minimatch with the loss with black pieces. He had to win with white pieces but failed-Kramnik was stronger again. In the semifinal the Russian chess player will play Grishuk who managed to beat Aronyan in quick chess 2.5-1.5.

Shahriyar Mammadyarov lost to Israel’s Boris Gelfand 1.5-2.5 by results of the main matches.

Elmir Aliyev
News.Az

Newly constructed chess school in Azerbaijan

Azerbaijani President inaugurates newly constructed building of Chess School in Agjabadi (PHOTO)
06.05.2011 19:58

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has today opened the newly constructed building of Chess School in Agjabadi, the Azerbaijani President's official website reported.

The Head of State cut the ribbon, symbolizing the opening of the two-storey building and toured it. President Ilham Aliyev was told the construction of the building started in June, 2010.

The facility, whose total area is 483 square meters, got greenery, fountain and modern lightning system.

The Head of State viewed photo stands reflecting care and attention of national leader Heydar Aliyev and President Ilham Aliyev to development of sports, in particular chess and chess players. The President also viewed classrooms and computer room here.

President Ilham Aliyev was told chess players from Agjabadi garnered nearly 100 medals, diplomas and cups in republic tournaments over the last three years. President Ilham Aliyev praised the work done here.

Source: http://en.trend.az

Gashimov to hold simul for youth in Baku

Vugar Gashimov to hold synchronous games in Baku and Ganja
Wed 04 May 2011 04:01 GMT | -3:01 Local Time

The game will start at 12.00 with participation of children attending chess schools of the capital city.

Azerbaijani grandmaster Vugar Gashimov will hold synchronous games on 88 boards at the Narimanov park in Baku on May 6 as part of celebrations of Heydar Aliyev’s birthday.

Sport manager Sarhan Gashimov is the organizer of this event to be held under support of the Chess Federation of Azerbaijan, Executive powers of the Narimanov district, chief department of youth and sports of Baku.

The game will start at 12.00 with participation of children attending chess schools of the capital city. Gadir Guseynov, Eltaj Safarli and Vasif Durarbeyli will also compete.

On the same day Gashimov brothers will leave for Ganja to hold the same game series for local children on 7 May under support of the executive power of the city, Education Department of Ganja and Ganja chess school. It will start at 11.00.

Elmir Aliyev
News.Az

Azerbaijani youths shine

Artwork by Mike Magnan

Azerbaijani chess players successful in world championship among school children
Wed 04 May 2011 12:55 GMT | 5:55 Local Time

The seventh chess championship among schoolchildren is run in Poland’s Krakow.

Azerbaijani chess splayers are also competing. After four rounds, several representatives of our country are among leaders. Khatun Bagirova is second with 3.5 points in the contests among girls below 15 years, just behind Diana Assanbayeva of Kazakhstan.

Meanwhile, Farid Aslanov (U-9), Oguz Abishli (U-11), Ulvi Sadikhov (U-13) and Kenan Izzet (U-15) are third in their age groups.

The championship will be made up of nine rounds and is to finish on 9 May. Champions will get the title of ‘candidates for masters’.

Elmir Aliyev
News.Az

2 Azerbaijani in the world top 10

Two Azerbaijani chess players join top ten
02.05.2011 16:21

Azerbaijan, Baku, May 2 / Trend T. Hajiyev /

The International Chess Federation (FİDE) announced a new rating table.

Two Azerbaijani chess players Shahriyar Mammadyarov and Vugar Gashimov entered the top ten, FİDE official website said.

Besides Mammadyarov and Hashimov, Teymur Radjabov and Rauf Mammadov are among the top hundred players.

Mammadyarov received 2.772 points and ranked ninth, Gashimov ranked tenth with 2.760 points, Radjabov ranked thirteenth with 2.744 points and Mammadov ranked sixty second with 2.679 points.

Indian chess player Viswanathan Anand heads the rating list of the top chess players. He has 2.817 points. Norwegian chess player Magnus Carlsen (2.815 points) ranked second.

Source: http://en.trend.az

Korobov wins Nakhchivan Open

Final round top board results

Bo.	No.		Name	Pts.	Result	Pts.		Name	No.
1	7	GM	Korobov Anton	6	1 - 0	6½	GM	Vallejo Pons Francisco	3
2	2	GM	Almasi Zoltan	6	½ - ½	5½	GM	Smirin Ilia	6
3	8	GM	Sokolov Ivan	5½	1 - 0	5½	GM	Wang Yue	1
4	12	GM	Safarli Eltaj	5½	½ - ½	5½	GM	Guseinov Gadir	17
5	16	GM	Gagunashvili Merab	5½	0 - 1	5½	IM	Ipatov Alexander	21

Final (top 15) standings

Rk.		Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1	TB2	TB3
1	GM	Korobov Anton	UKR	2647	7.0	2531	6	0.0
2	GM	Almasi Zoltan	HUN	2719	6.5	2621	5	0.0
3	GM	Vallejo Pons Francisco	ESP	2707	6.5	2609	5	0.0
4	GM	Sokolov Ivan	NED	2643	6.5	2582	5	0.0
5	IM	Ipatov Alexander	ESP	2514	6.5	2464	5	0.0
6	GM	Smirin Ilia	ISR	2658	6.0	2557	4	0.0
7	GM	Guseinov Gadir	AZE	2584	6.0	2545	4	0.0
8	GM	Landa Konstantin	RUS	2609	6.0	2497	4	0.0
9	GM	Safarli Eltaj	AZE	2628	6.0	2462	3	0.0
10	GM	Wang Yue	CHN	2734	5.5	2560	3	0.0
11	GM	Ibrahimov Rasul	AZE	2526	5.5	2556	4	0.0
12	GM	Turov Maxim	RUS	2635	5.5	2544	3	0.0
13	GM	Abbasov Farid	AZE	2543	5.5	2515	5	0.0
14	GM	Gagunashvili Merab	GEO	2599	5.5	2506	4	0.0
15	IM	Guliev Logman	AZE	2468	5.5	2493	5	0.0
16	GM	Mchedlishvili Mikheil	GEO	2629	5.5	2417	4	0.0

Full standings here: http://chess-results.com/tnr48598.aspx

Vallejo Pons enjoys sole lead after 7 at Nakhchivan Open 2011

Leaders after 7 rounds

Rk.		Name	FED	Rtg	Club/City	Pts.	TB1	TB2
1	GM	Vallejo Pons Francisco	ESP	2707		6.0	2600	5
2	GM	Almasi Zoltan	HUN	2719		5.5	2600	5
3	GM	Ibrahimov Rasul	AZE	2526	Baku	5.0	2532	4
4	GM	Wang Yue	CHN	2734		5.0	2526	3
5	GM	Guseinov Gadir	AZE	2584	Baku	5.0	2525	4
6	GM	Smirin Ilia	ISR	2658		5.0	2523	4
7	GM	Korobov Anton	UKR	2647		5.0	2506	4
8	GM	Gagunashvili Merab	GEO	2599		5.0	2493	4
9	GM	Safarli Eltaj	AZE	2628	Baku	5.0	2410	3
10	GM	Sokolov Ivan	NED	2643		4.5	2555	3
11	GM	Turov Maxim	RUS	2635		4.5	2531	3
12	GM	Volkov Sergey	RUS	2621		4.5	2525	3
13	IM	Benidze Davit	GEO	2503		4.5	2494	4
14	IM	Ipatov Alexander	ESP	2514		4.5	2439	3

Full results here: http://chess-results.com/tnr48598.aspx

Trio lead Nakhchivan Open 2011

Leaders after 6 rounds

1	GM	Vallejo Pons Francisco	ESP	2707	5.0	2591	4	0.0
2	GM	Guseinov Gadir	AZE	2584	5.0	2493	4	0.0
3	GM	Smirin Ilia	ISR	2658	5.0	2492	4	0.0
4	GM	Almasi Zoltan	HUN	2719	4.5	2602	4	0.0
5	GM	Sokolov Ivan	NED	2643	4.0	2562	3	0.0
6	GM	Wang Yue	CHN	2734	4.0	2536	2	0.0
7	GM	Landa Konstantin	RUS	2609	4.0	2528	2	0.0
8	GM	Turov Maxim	RUS	2635	4.0	2516	3	0.0
9	GM	Ibrahimov Rasul	AZE	2526	4.0	2516	3	0.0
10	GM	Volkov Sergey	RUS	2621	4.0	2507	3	0.0
11	GM	Korobov Anton	UKR	2647	4.0	2505	3	0.0
12	GM	Gagunashvili Merab	GEO	2599	4.0	2485	3	0.0
13	GM	Durarbeyli Vasif	AZE	2510	4.0	2446	3	0.0
14	GM	Mchedlishvili Mikheil	GEO	2629	4.0	2405	3	0.0
15	IM	Ipatov Alexander	ESP	2514	4.0	2405	3	0.0
16	IM	Guliev Logman	AZE	2468	4.0	2401	4	0.0
17	GM	Safarli Eltaj	AZE	2628	4.0	2377	2	0.0
18	GM	Aleksandrov Aleksej	BLR	2638	3.5	2504	3	0.0
19	GM	Abbasov Farid	AZE	2543	3.5	2503	3	0.0
20	GM	Miroshnichenko Evgenij	UKR	2670	3.5	2493	3	0.0
21	IM	Benidze Davit	GEO	2503	3.5	2471	3	0.0
22		Iskandarov Misratdin Mehdi Ogl	AZE	2235	3.5	2412	3	0.0
23	IM	Rasulov Vugar Ural Oglu	AZE	2499	3.5	2387	3	0.0

Full results here: http://chess-results.com/tnr48598.aspx

Vallejo, Sokolov, Almasi, and Volkov lead in Nakhchivan

Vallejo, Sokolov, Almasi, and Volkov lead in Nakhchivan
Photos, standings, and more from the top open of April

The Super Open Nakhchivan 2011 continues in Azerbaijan. After round 4 there are 4 players sharing the leading position - Francisco Vallejo Pons (Spain), Zoltan Almasi (Hungary), Sergey Volkov (Russia), and Ivan Sokolov (Bosna and Herzegovina). They are facing each other in direct battles today, always eying their back, as Wang Yue, Ilia Smirin, Alexander Ipatov, Eltaj Safarli, Mikheil Mchedlishvili, Evgenij Miroshnichenko, and several other top contenders are withing 1/2 to 1 points distance.

The International Chess Festival Nakhchivan Open, dedicated to the memory of President Heydar Aliyev, is scheduled to take place from 23rd April to 1st May at the "Nakhchivan Chess Center" in Nakhchivan.

The Festival is organized by the Azerbaijan Youth & Sport Ministry, Azerbaijan Chess Federation and Nakhchivan AR Chess Federation. Nine rounds according to Swiss system will be played in the tournament. The total prize fund is $ 66.500.

Follow the live games at www.chess.az and www.azerichess.az.

Coaching change

GM Tukmakov is Azerbaijan's coach Grandmaster Vladimir Tukmakov who earlier this year resigned as coach of the Ukrainian team, will be a coach of the national team of Azerbaijan.

Extratime.az published an interview in Russian with him.

Source: ChessToday.net

7 players with perfect scores at Nakhchivan Open

International Chess Festival Nakhchivan Open
Seven players with perfect score after round two

The International Chess Festival Nakhchivan Open, dedicated to the memory of President Heydar Aliyev, is taking place from 23rd April to 1st May at the "Nakhchivan Chess Center" in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan. The Festival consists of two tournaments, A Group for those rated above 2250 and women rated above 2100, and B Group for those rated under 2250.

The A Group is incredibly strong, with dense field and a number of players rated above 2700-elo participating. Already in the second round there were many clashes between Grandmasters. Georgian Merab Gagunashvili held the top-seeded Wang Yue to a draw, while the local hope Nijat Abasov split the point with the experienced Ilia Smirin.

Seven Grandmasters are on the top of the crosstable with perfect score (standings bellow). Top round 3 matches are: GM Almasi Zoltan - GM Sokolov Ivan, GM Landa Konstantin - GM Vallejo Pons Francisco, GM Miroshnichenko Evgenij - GM Aleksandrov Aleksej, GM Ibrahimov Rasul - GM Wang Yue.

The Festival is organized by the Azerbaijan Youth & Sport Ministry, Azerbaijan Chess Federation and Nakhchivan AR Chess Federation. Nine rounds according to Swiss system will be played in both tournaments. The total prize fund is $ 66.500.

Leaders after 2 rounds:

GM Sokolov Ivan NED 2643 - 2
GM Aleksandrov Aleksej BLR 2638 - 2
GM Ibrahimov Rasul AZE 2526 - 2
GM Almasi Zoltan HUN 2719 - 2
GM Vallejo Pons Francisco ESP 2707 - 2
GM Miroshnichenko Evgenij UKR 2670 - 2
GM Landa Konstantin RUS 2609 - 2
GM Turov Maxim RUS 2635 - 1.5
GM Safarli Eltaj AZE 2628 - 1.5
GM Wang Yue CHN 2734 - 1.5
GM Smirin Ilia ISR 2658 - 1.5
GM Gagunashvili Merab GEO 2599 - 1.5
GM Korobov Anton UKR 2647 - 1.5
GM Abasov Nijat Azad Oglu AZE 2504 - 1.5
IM Rasulov Vugar Ural Oglu AZE 2499 - 1.5
IM Bajarani Ulvi AZE 2437 - 1.5
GM Volkov Sergey RUS 2621 - 1.5
GM Guseinov Gadir AZE 2584 - 1.5
IM Ipatov Alexander ESP 2514 - 1.5

Nakhchivan Open to kick off in Azerbaijan

International chess contest Nakhchivan Open to kick off in Azerbaijan
Sat 23 April 2011 07:07 GMT | 2:07 Local Time

The prize fund of the contest is $66,500.

The International chess contest Nakhchivan Open in memory of national leader Heydar Aliyev is to kick off in Nakhchivan city of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic today.

The prize fund of the contest is $66,500. It will be held at the Nakhchivan chess center. Nakhchivan Open will be held in two A and B tournaments. Chinese Vang Yue (2734) is a ranking favorite in tournament A. The top three also includes Zoltan Almasi (2719) of Hungary) and Francisco Vallejo (2707) of France.

54 chess players will be involved, overall, with 31 from Azerbaijan. These are Eltaj Safarli (2628), Gadir Huseynov (2584), Farid Abbasov (2543) and others.

The tournament will consist of nine rounds and last till 1 May. The winner of the main tournament will get a money prize of $10,000 and a cup.

Elmir Aliyev
News.Az

International Chess Festival Nakhchivan Open

International Chess Festival Nakhchivan Open
Dedicated to the memory of President Heydar Aliyev

The International Chess Festival Nakhchivan Open, dedicated to the memory of President Heydar Aliyev, is scheduled to take place from 23rd April to 1st May at the "Nakhchivan Chess Center" in Nakhchivan. The players will enter two tournaments, A Group for those rated above 2250 and women rated above 2100, and B Group for those rated under 2250.

The Festival is organized by the Azerbaijan Youth & Sport Ministry, Azerbaijan Chess Federation and Nakhchivan AR Chess Federation. Nine rounds according to Swiss system will be played in both tournament. The total prize fund is $ 66.500.

Prizes

1 place - 10000 $ + cup
2 place - 7500 $
3 place - 5000 $
4 place - 3500 $
5 place - 3000 $
6 place - 2500 $
7 place - 2200 $
8 place - 2000 $
9 place - 1700 $
10 place - 1500 $
11 place - 1200 $
12 place - 1000 $
prizes for placed between 13th and 30th place are ranging from 400 to 950 USD

Women prizes:
1 place - 1000 $
2 place - 750 $
3 place - 500 $

Prize for the best senior player:
1 place - 300 $
2 place - 200 $
3 место - 100 $

Prizes for the best three players from Azerbaijan:
1 place - 3000 $
2 place - 2000 $
3 place - 1000 $

For any additional information, please contact the Organizing Committee:
Address, Khaqani str. 1, Baku, AZ1000, Azebaijan, Azerbaijan Chess Federation (ACF)
Tel: +99412 493-3841 or +99412 493-9084, Azerbaijan Chess Federation (ACF)
Email : azerbaijanchess@yahoo.com
Web: www.chess.az; www.azerichess.az