Reykjavik Open 2013 Rd10-IM Hambleton A(CAN)

Hambleton ground out an extra P in an opposite color B-B ending with GM persistence and a bit of luck.

Muir,Andrew J (2313) - Hambleton,Aman (2472) 
Nimzo-Indian Karpov Variation 11.Ne5[E54] 
Reykjavik Open 2013, Iceland (10.16), 27.02.2013

Position 1
Black has won a pawn but is hampered by the open kingside. What do you suggest for white?

White to Play

22...Bc5

Position 2
White is down a pawn and is facing the gradual advance of the queenside majority. Black has a mobile with a clear path to the queenside on the dark squares. How should white defend?

White to Play

32...f5

Position 3
White has a difficult defence but is not lost. Ke2 is tied to the f2 pawn which leaves black's king free to infiltrate unopposed on the queenside. Is there a defence for white?

White to Play

41...Bxh4

Reykjavik Open 2013 Rd9-IM Hambleton A(CAN)

Hambleton had a nice position right way in the opening and soon bagged an extra P. There was no trouble converting in the ending.

Hambleton,Aman (2472) - Jayakumar,Adarsh (2271)
Delayed Stonewall[A84] 
Reykjavik Open 2013, Iceland (9.39), 26.02.2013

Position 1
White won a pawn early and returned it to complete development. Now white has pressure with the bishop pair while black has a loose structure to worry about. What do you recommend for white now?

White to Play

27...Nd6

Beauty and Chess Geek-Ipatov Interview

Here's the latest video from BeautyandChessGeek done by Orlova in Reykjavik.

Orlova says 'Hi' from Reykjavik

Orlova's site YelizavetaOrlova

Her Youtube Channel BeautyandChessGeek 

Reykjavik Open 2013 Rd10 Standings

Results Chess-results Site Reykjavikopen 2013
Hambleton won his last two games to finish with a respectable 6.5/10.

'Pavel Eljanov and Wesley so finish on top with 8 points after their mutual draw but Amin Baseem managed to catch up with his last round victory.'-Tournament site report 

SNo		Name	FIDE	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Pts.
39	FM	Hambleton Aman	2472	1	½	½	½	½	1	½	0	1	1	6.5
125		Murray Michael A.	2017	0	1	0	1	0	0	1	1	0	1	5
139	WCM	Orlova Yelizaveta	1978	0	1	0	½	0	0	1	½	1	½	4.5

Hambleton Results by Round

FM Hambleton Aman 2472 CAN Rp:2343 Pts. 6.5

Rd.	SNo		Name	RtgI	FED	Pts.	Res.
1	152		Leimeister Winfried	1909	GER	4	w 1
2	93		Omarsson Dadi	2212	ISL	6	s ½
3	90		Wang Yiye	2226	CHN	5.5	w ½
4	88		Karason Askell O	2235	ISL	5	s ½
5	102		Maack Kjartan	2136	ISL	5.5	w ½
6	76	FM	Cubas Pons Juan Miguel	2284	ESP	6	s 1
7	47	NM	Norowitz Yaacov	2432	USA	7.5	w ½
8	73	WGM	Cherednichenko Svetlana	2307	UKR	6.5	s 0
9	81	FM	Jayakumar Adarsh	2271	USA	5.5	w 1
10	71	IM	Muir Andrew J	2313	SCO	5.5	s 1

Orlova Results by Round

WCM Orlova Yelizaveta 1978 CAN Rp:1764 Pts. 4.5

Rd.	SNo		Name	RtgI	FED	Pts.	Res.
1	26	GM	Maze Sebastien	2556	FRA	6	w 0
2	196		Ramtin Raman	1661	IRI	2	s 1
3	70	FM	Kvisvik Brede	2314	NOR	5.5	w 0
4	202		Jacobsen Trond	1610	NOR	2.5	s ½
5	209		Davidsdottir Nansy	1479	ISL	3.5	w 0
6	175		Bauza Mercere Eduardo	1809	ARG	3.5	s 0
7	218		Hrafnsson Hilmir	1331	ISL	3	s 1
8	185		Leosson Atli Johann	1736	ISL	4.5	w ½
9	189		Seim Fredrik	1714	NOR	4	s 1
10	176		Hyotyla Tapio	1792	SUI	4.5	w ½

Cappelle La Grande 2013 Rd5-Hansen E

Thanks to Hugh Brodie for posting the PGN on Chesstalk
A quiet draw for Hansen in rd5.

Gurevich,M(2581)-Hansen,Eric(2557)

Reykjavik Open 2013 Rd8-Hambleton A

This game was full of drama and missed chances for both sides. White was given the first go on the attack as Hambleton chose to keep the queens on. Later Black missed winning chances and eventually blundered to allow white the win.

Cherednichenko,Svetlana (2307) - Hambleton,Aman (2472) 
Colle vs Queen’s Indian[A46]
Reykjavik Open 2013 (8.15), 25.02.2013

Position 1

White's pieces look scattered and are not making any direct threats. What do you suggest for white?

White to Play

20...Bf8

Reykjavik Open 2013 Rd9 Standings

Hambleton and Orlova both won in rd9(See chess-results).

SNo		Name	RtgI	FED	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Pts.
39	FM	Hambleton Aman	2472	CAN	1	½	½	½	½	1	½	0	1	5.5
125		Murray Michael A.	2017	CAN	0	1	0	1	0	0	1	1	0	4
139	WCM	Orlova Yelizaveta	1978	CAN	0	1	0	½	0	0	1	½	1	4

Hambleton's Results by  Round
A win in rd9 brings Hambleton up to Rp:2304 and 5.5/9.

Rd.	SNo		Name	RtgI	FED	Pts.	Res.
1	152		Leimeister Winfried	1909	GER	4	w 1
2	93		Omarsson Dadi	2212	ISL	5	s ½
3	90		Wang Yiye	2226	CHN	5.5	w ½
4	88		Karason Askell O	2235	ISL	5	s ½
5	102		Maack Kjartan	2136	ISL	4.5	w ½
6	76	FM	Cubas Pons Juan Miguel	2284	ESP	5	s 1
7	47	NM	Norowitz Yaacov	2432	USA	6.5	w ½
8	73	WGM	Cherednichenko Svetlana	2307	UKR	5.5	s 0
9	81	FM	Jayakumar Adarsh	2271	USA	4.5	w 1

Cappelle La Grande 2013 Rd4-Hansen E(CAN)

Hansen chose a quiet positional approach to exploiting black's uncastled king and compromised pawn structure.

Hansen,E (2557) - Kambrath,Y (2232) 
Sicilian Kan[B46] 
Cappelle La Grande(4), 26.02.2013

Position 1

White to Play

17..Rg8

Cappelle La Grande 2013 Rd3-GM Hansen E(CAN)

Hansen had to weather a storm in the middlegame before taking over in a complex R-R ending.

Todorcevic,M (2419) - Hansen,E (2557) 
French Winawer 4.Bd2[C15]
Cappelle La Grande(3), 26.02.2013

Position 1

The position is complicated and it is not clear who has the safer king and who is attacking who. Black's king is hiding behind a wall of pawns while Kb2 is exposed on the b-file. 

What do you suggest for white?

White to Play

37...Qa5

Reykjavik Open 2013 Rd7-IM Hambleton(CAN)

Hambleton had the early advantage but then black had the upper hand before peace was agreed with RRN vs Q in a hugely complicated fight.

Hambleton,Aman (2472) - Norowitz,Yaacov (2432) 
Queen’s Gambit Declined[D31]
Reykjavík Open 2013 (7.6), 24.02.2013

Position 1
The position is complicated. White has a mobile mass of kingside/central pawns while black's is not yet castled. What do you suggest for white?

• 22.f5(cash in right away while black in uncastled)
• 22.Rhf1(complete mobilization first as black is not safe castling on either wing)
• Something else

White to Play

21...Nd7

Position 2
Black has 4 pawns for a rook and is on the attack. How should black continue?

Black to Play

40.Kh2

Reykjavik Open 2013 Rd8 Standings

Rd8 Chess-results Also see Reykjavikopen 2013
Hambleton lost to WGM Cherednichenko, Svetlana(2307).

SNo		Name	RtgI	FED	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	Pts.
39	FM	Hambleton Aman	2472	CAN	1	½	½	½	½	1	½	0	4.5
125		Murray Michael A.	2017	CAN	0	1	0	1	0	0	1	1	4
139	WCM	Orlova Yelizaveta	1978	CAN	0	1	0	½	0	0	1	½	3

Hambleton's results by round
Rating performance is 2261.

Rd.	SNo		Name	RtgI	FED	Pts.	Result
1	152		Leimeister Winfried	1909	GER	3.5	w 1
2	93		Omarsson Dadi	2212	ISL	4.5	s ½
3	90		Wang Yiye	2226	CHN	5	w ½
4	88		Karason Askell O	2235	ISL	4	s ½
5	102		Maack Kjartan	2136	ISL	4	w ½
6	76	FM	Cubas Pons Juan Miguel	2284	ESP	5	s 1
7	47	NM	Norowitz Yaacov	2432	USA	5.5	w ½
8	73	WGM	Cherednichenko Svetlana	2307	UKR	5.5	s 0

Orlova's results by round
Rating performance is 1725.

Rd.	SNo		Name	RtgI	FED	Pts.	Result
1	26	GM	Maze Sebastien	2556	FRA	4.5	w 0
2	196		Ramtin Raman	1661	IRI	2	s 1
3	70	FM	Kvisvik Brede	2314	NOR	4	w 0
4	202		Jacobsen Trond	1610	NOR	2.5	s ½
5	209		Davidsdottir Nansy	1479	ISL	2.5	w 0
6	175		Bauza Mercere Eduardo	1809	ARG	2.5	s 0
7	218		Hrafnsson Hilmir	1331	ISL	2	s 1
8	185		Leosson Atli Johann	1736	ISL	3	w ½

Cappelle La Grande 2013 Rd1-Hansen E(CAN)

Tournament Site Cappelle-chess 2013
For more see Hansenchess

Here is Hansen's rd 1 win against the tricky London System.

Payen,A (2325) - Hansen,E (2568) 
London System vs King’s Indian[A48]
Cappelle La Grande (1), 23.02.2013

Position 1

Black's queen is under attack. What should black do?

• 31..Qe4(centralize and keep the option of ...Nd4)
• 31..Qd4(stay on the d-file for future infiltration)
• Something else

Black to Play

31.c4

McGill Open Championship May 3-5 2013(Notice)

McGill Open Championship May 3-5 2013 -See Mcgill-open-2013

McGill University-Montreal

Photo Felix Dumont chesstalk

McGill University Open 2012

Photo Mcgill Chess Album

Why participate?- The tournament is open to all.
- A competitive first section (2000+) CFC and FIDE rated.
- Registration fees starting at $45 ($30 for junior players).
- A discount for McGill alumni!
-Lots of different hotels and restaurants nearby the tournament site, which is directly between downtown and the Mount Royal.
- $3000 in prizes (including class prizes and a prize for the best win).
-Encourage the university that won (and organized) the 2013 Universities Championship.
-May is the best month to visit Montreal or take a walk on the Mount Royal and still, the hotels are cheaper at that time of the year!

Note : The online payment system should be working within a week. (by March 1 est)

Reykjavik Open 2013 Rd6-Orlova Y

Here is Orlova's rd6 game. An easy to overlook intermediate move cost Orlova a piece.

Bauza Mercere,Eduardo (1809) - Orlova,Yelizaveta (1978)
Sicilian 4…Qb6[B32]
Reykjavik Open 2013, Iceland (6.88), 23.02.2013

Position 1
White wants to attack but how to break down the kingside?

White to Play

30..Bg5

Reykjavik Open 2013 Rd6-Hambleton

Hambleton played a nice attack after breaking with ...d5 from a Nimzo-Indian hedgehog.

Cubas Pons,Juan Miguel (2284) - Hambleton,Aman (2472)
Nimzo-Indian 4.Qc2 c5[E38]
Reykjavik Open 2013 Reykjavik, Iceland (6.32), 23.02.2013

Position 1
Black's position looks serene. How should black continue?

• 19...Ne5(with the idea of hitting the queen with ...Ng6)
• 19...Nf8( with the same idea)
• 19...Rcd8(to support the ...d5 break)
• 19...h6 (to take away g5 from the queen)
• Something else

Black to Play

19.Rc2

Position 2
The attack on the kingside is ready to explode. How should black continue?

Black to Play

32.Qb6