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Kramnik - Aronian Rapid Match The Week In Chess reports World Champion Vladimir Kramnik plays World Cup Holder Levon Aronian in a rapid match May 4th-6th, 2007 in Yerevan, Armenia. Two games will be played each day. The time control will be 25 minutes for the whole game with an increment of 10 seconds per move. The match is organized by the Armenian Chess Federation.

Topalov,V (2813) - Kramnik,V (2743) [D18] WCh Playoffs Elista RUS (1), 13.10.2006 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4 5.a4 Bf5 6.e3 e6 7.Bxc4 Bb4 8.0-0 Nbd7 9.Qe2 0-0 10.e4 Bg6 11.Bd3 Bh5 12.e5 Nd5 13.Nxd5 cxd5 14.Qe3 Re8 15.Ne1 Rc8 16.f4 Bxe1 17.Rxe1 Bg6 18.Bf1 Rc2 19.b3 Qa5 20.Bb5 Rd8 21.Re2 Rcc8 22.Bd2 Qb6 23.Rf2 a6 24.Bf1 Rc6 25.b4 Rc2 26.b5 a5 27.Bc3 Rxf2 28.Qxf2 Qa7 29.Qd2 Ra8 30.Rc1 Nb6 31.Bb2 Nxa4 32.Ba3 h6 33.h3 Be4 34.Kh2 Nb6 35.Bc5 a4 36.Ra1 Nc4 37.Bxc4 b6 38.Qe3 Rc8 39.Bf1 bxc5 40.dxc5 Qxc5 41.Qxc5 Rxc5 42.b6 Rc6 43.b7 Rb6 44.Ba6 d4 45.Rxa4 Bxb7 46.Bxb7 Rxb7 47.Rxd4 Diagram 1/2-1/2 Kramnik,V (2743) - Topalov,V (2813) [D45] WCh Playoffs Elista RUS (2), 13.10.2006 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.e3 Nbd7 6.Qc2 Bd6 7.b3 0-0 8.Be2 b6 9.0-0 Bb7 10.Bb2 Re8 11.Rad1 Qe7 12.Rfe1 Rac8 13.Bd3 e5 14.e4 dxc4 15.Bxc4 b5 16.Bf1 g6 17.Qd2 Rcd8 18.Qg5 a6 19.h3 exd4 20.Nxd4 Qe5 21.Qxe5 Nxe5 22.Nc2 g5 23.Bc1 h6 24.Be3 c5 25.f3 Bf8 26.Bf2 Bc8 27.Ne3 Be6 28.Ned5 Bxd5 29.exd5 Ned7 30.Rxe...

WCh Elista RUS (12), 12.10.2006 [IM Malcolm Pein] 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 Bf5 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nh4 Bg6 7.Nxg6 hxg6 Unexpected but a back handed compliment to Kramnik. Topalov uses his opening line. Its solid and so it suits for thisgame 8.g3 Nbd7 9.Bd2 Bb4 10.Qb3 Bxc3 11.Bxc3 Ne4 12.Bg2 Nxc3 13.Qxc3 f5 Like in the Stonewall the white squared pawns act as a barrier against the white bishop. Black must be slightly worse and it feels like the players have swopped roles [ 13...dxc4 14.Qxc4 Qa5+ 15.Qc3+/=] 14.0-0 [ 14.0-0-0!? Fritz, would never have occurred to me] 14...Qe7 15.cxd5 Kramnik opts for clarity and the plan of a minority attack on the queenside 15...exd5 16.b4 Nf6 Diagram 17.Rfc1 [ 17.b5 cxb5 18.Qb3 Qd7 19.Rfc1 Actually look quite good as d5 is very weak because of Rc1-c5 and a2-a4 might be good later. However its too risky for the circumstances 19...a6 20.Rc2 0-0 21.Rac1©] 17...Ne4 18.Qb2 0-0 19.b5 Rac8 20.bxc6 bxc6 21.Qe2 Nice move with many points. Black's only count...

Kramnik gives important press conference · Oct 17, 09:28 PM Today in the “Central Chess Players House” Vladimir Kramnik gave a press conference together with Alexander Zhukov, Vassilii Smislov, the chief of President’s Putin administration Arcadii Dvorkovich, Gir Ginsen (the arbiter of the Wcc 2006 match), and Carsten Hensel. Alexander Zhukov congratulated Vladimir Kramnik for the victory, emphasizing that “his success – this is not just the success of an outstanding chess player, but also “rescuing” for the entire chess world and, certainly, enormous success of Russian chess. Alexander Roshal gave the idea that Topalov should be admitted in a round robin in Mexico and then the winner should then play with you a final match. How do you accept this idea? V.K.: The manager of Topalov, Silvio Danailov, certainly did not show his best side at the WCC 2006, but Topalov as a chess player undoubtedly deserves admittance at the tournament. I consider the old formula with some corrections was ...

Youth and Sports Minister: Azerbaijan Does Not Deny Attempts to Organize A Contender’s Match between Teymur Radjabov and Vladimir Kramnnik. Source: Trend Author: Z. Safarov 16.10.2006 “We are not going to deny attempts to negotiate with Vladimir Kramnik concerning holding a contender’s match between Teymur Radjabov and him”, Azad Rahimov, Azerbaijan`s Youth and Sports Minister exclusively told Trend commenting the possibility on organizing a match between the Azerbaijani grand master and the FIDE Champion. An agreement between the Azerbaijani Sports Ministry and their Bulgarian counterparts on holding a match between Teymur Radjabov and Veselin Topalov, who was a possessor of the chess crown till recently, was signed in the spring this year. However, the Bulgarian gross master lost it as a result of the recent match with Vladimir Kramnik of Russia, and due to that, the preliminary agreement with Bulgarians has lost its force. “It is too early to say anything concrete in this regar...

Bulgaria's chess king Vesselin Topalov, who lost the title of world's best chess grandmaster with a narrow defeat against Russia's Vladimir Kramnik, will challenge his rival in Sofia. Sports: 15 October 2006, Sunday: Bulgaria's chess king Vesselin Topalov, who lost the title of world's best chess grandmaster with a narrow defeat against Russia's Vladimir Kramnik, will insist on a return game, his manager announced in Sofia. The regulations of the World chess federation (FIDE) allows every former world champion to challenge his opponent should he secure the prize of EUR 1,5 M, Silvio Danailov told journalists on Sunday. According to Danailov the return match could take place in Sofia, on March 3, 2007. Danailov suspects Kramnik will not accept the offer, which will force FIDE to strip him of the world's only chess king title. Kramnik won the title of world's best chess grandmaster defeating Vesselin Topalov on the fourth game of a tiebreak. The title was ...

Hi all, Heads up to all of you chess fans out there! If you visit Chessbase , you can write and send a letter to Kramnik or Topalov through Chessbase. I urge everyone to write a letter to both players expressing your congratulations to both for a fine match. Don't waste your time ranting about 'ToiletGate' - the letters will be pre-screened by Chessbase. Read the fine print!

This morning at approximately 11:00 AM EST, Vladimir Kramnik defeated Veselin Topalov in a decisive Game 4 Rapid Tie-break to become the Unified World Chess Champion. Congratulations To both players for a match well played. Topalov deserves alot of credit for the hard work he put into this match. He gave very little, but in the end, Kramnik's exceptional positional style won the day in a 2R+B vs. 2R+B endgame, in which Topalov dropped a Rook in complications. Tie-Breaks, Topalov, White: Game 1: 1/2 - 1/2 Game 2: Kramnik, 1-0 Game 3: Topalov, 1-0 Game 4: Kramnik, 1-0 It is interesting to note that the three decisive games were all won by white. Media Coverage: International Herald Tribune/Europe Games to follow...

Question:Vladimir, what is your score against Topalov in rapid chess, and will it affect the outcome of the tiebreak in any way? Vladimir Kramnik: The match booklet states it is +4 in my favor. However, it counts rapid and blindfold games together. Will the score matter? I hope it will, but actually the tiebreak is a lottery. A lot will depend on small details: luck, the night’s sleep, etc. It is impossible to predict the result. In principle, I have already won the match from my point of view, so I think this will make playing easier for me. What can you say about today’s [the 12th] game? It is a very interesting and combative game. I exerted pressure, but the opponent managed to create counterplay and made a draw. Maybe I could play more accurately, I cannot tell without detailed analysis. But the draw is generally logical. And yet, you had White, which means something at the WCC… Modern chess theory develops in such direction that it is very difficult to find sharp positions with a...

So, here we are. After 13 years of pitted confusion in the chess world, brought on by Gary Kasparov's breaking away from FIDE, we have come full circle. Will Kramnik remove all doubt with a victory here today? Or will Topalov be able to further expand the schizm in the elite chess world with a Victory himself, careening Top-Level chess into the courts? Or, will we have - what probably everyone in the chess world wants - a drawn game today so that the combatants can battle it out on Friday in tiebreaks? My personal feeling is this: Kramnik was definitely attacked by the Topalov team in a manner that has been regarded as a 'dirty trick' by most chess journalists, patzers, and titled players. Being a Kramnik supporter, I have to hope that there is justice in the stars and that Kramnik defeats Topalov today outright. We will know in about 6 or so hours.

WCh Elista RUS (9), 07.10.2006 [Malcolm Pein] (Thanks to Mark Crowther, The Week In Chess , and Malcolm Pein for commentary and analysis) 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 Bf5 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nh4 Bg6 A big surprise to me. Kramnik plays the same line that led to disaster in game 9. 7.Nxg6 hxg6 8.Rb1N An interesting choice which has the benefit of being new but it does rule out 0-0-0 for White which can be a useful option There is a huge choice of moves here. A sample: [ 8.Qc2; 8.Qb3; 8.cxd5; 8.g3; 8.Bd3; 8.Bd2; 8.a3 Nbd7 9.g3 Be7 10.f4 dxc4 11.Bxc4 0-0 12.e4 was much better for White in game 9 of the match and led to a fairly easy Topalov victory.] 8...Nbd7 9.c5 a5 Played after about 5 minutes thought. Black needs this file for counterplay 10.a3 [ 10.f4 b6! and b4 is not possible] 10...e5! Again essential to get counterplay before f2-f4 rules it out 11.b4 axb4 12.axb4 Qc7 13.f4 Diagram The same strategic idea from Topalov. As in game 9 White tries to take over the whole board. Topalov...

WCh Elista RUS (10), 08.10.2006 [IM Malcolm Pein and Mark Crowther] (Thanks to Mark Crowther, The Week In Chess , and Malcolm Pein for commentary and analysis) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Bb4+ 5.Bd2 Be7 6.Bg2 0-0 7.0-0 c6 8.Bf4 Nbd7 9.Qc2 a5!? Again a wrinkle off the main line. 9...b6 and 9...Nh5 are the normal moves but this may well lead to the lines where Black plays b5 and a5 10.Rd1 Nh5 11.Bc1 b5 Diagram [ 11...b6 12.Nbd2 Ba6 13.e4 Nhf6 14.e5 Ne8] 12.cxd5 [ 12.c5 f5 Gives Black a reasonable Stonewall Dutch where White has no automatic play on the queenside now it is blocked 13.Nc3 g5 14.a3 Bf6 15.Qd2 h6 16.h4 g4 17.Qxh6 gxf3 18.Qxh5 fxg2 19.Qg6+ Kh8 20.Qh6+ Kg8 21.Qg6+ 1/2-1/2 Rahman,Z (2542)-Ghaem Maghami,E (2500)/Doha 2003/CBM 94] 12...cxd5 13.e4! The optimal time when the Ra8 and Nh5 are loose but [ 13.Ne5 was interesting 13...Bb7 14.Nc6 Bxc6 15.Qxc6 Rb8 16.e4] 13...dxe4 [ 13...Nhf6 14.Ng5!? ( 14.e5 Ne4 15.Ne1! is just good ) 14...dxe4 15.Bxe4 ( 15.Nxh7!?) 15...Nxe4 16....

Kramnik succumbs to pressure and drops second game in a row. Arguably the worst played game of the match so far, Game 9 saw Kramnik completely fold in time pressure. Topalov,V (2813) - Kramnik,V (2743) [D12] WCh Elista RUS (9), 07.10.2006 [IM Malcolm Pein and Mark Crowther] (Thanks to Mark Crowther, The Week In Chess , and Malcolm Pein for commentary and analysis) 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 Bf5 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nh4 Bg6 7.Nxg6 hxg6 A solid line, Black gets a lead in development and White the bishop pair plus space. Black must attack the centre at some point withc6-c5ore6-e5 8.a3 Nbd7 9.g3 [ 9.h3 Be7 10.Bd3 0-0 11.0-0 e5 12.cxd5 cxd5 13.dxe5 Nxe5 14.Bb1 Rc8 15.Ba2 Nc4 16.Qd3 Qd7 17.Rd1 Rfd8 18.e4 dxe4 19.Qxd7 Rxd7 20.Rxd7 Nxd7 21.Nxe4 b5 22.Bg5 Bxg5 23.Nxg5 a5 24.Re1 Kf8 25.Nh7+ Kg8 26.Ng5 Kf8 27.Nh7+ Kg8 28.Re7 Kxh7 29.Rxd7 f6 30.a4 Ne5 31.Rd4 g5 32.axb5 Kh6 33.Bb3 Rb8 34.Ba4 Rb6 35.Kf1 Nf7 36.Rc4 Ne5 37.Rc8 g6 38.Rc7 Re6 39.Bb3 Rb6 40.g4 1-0 Finegold,B (2539)-Zaremba,A (2342)/Philadel...

Rest Day at the WCC Since we have a rest day, let's throw up a puzzle: Kramnik,V (2730) - Short,N (2645) Dortmund Dortmund (5), 1995 [Notes by Bangiev,A] 22.Bxe6! Strong! [ 22.Nf4! Rxd4 23.Nxg6! Qe8 ( 23...fxg6 24.Bxe6+ Kh8 25.Qxg6+-) 24.Bxe6 fxe6 25.Nf4+-; 22.Nxe6? Qxh4] 22...fxe6 [ 22...Nxe5 23.de5, 23.Ba2 23.dxe5 Rxd1 24.Bxf7+ Qxf7 25.Nxf7+-] 23.Qxg6+- Nxe5 [ 23...Nf6 24.exf6 24.exf6 Qxf6 25.Qh7+ Kf8 26.Nf4!+-] 24.Qh7+ Kf8 25.Nf4! [ 25.Nf4 Ke8 26.dxe5 Rxd1 27.Qg6+ Kf8 28.Nfxe6++-] 1-0

Kramnik, possibly exausted from three Blacks in a row, capitulated to a nearly perfectly played, unbalanced position by Topalov. As Susan Polgar put it so well in her blog, I paraphrase: "These kinds of positions you should play out hundreds and thousands of times. It is the only way you can understand them. That was part of my training as a young girl". G8: Kramnik,V (2743) - Topalov,V (2813) WCh Elista RUS (8), 05.10.2006 [IM Malcolm Pein] (Thanks to Mark Crowther, The Week In Chess , and Malcolm Pein for commentary and analysis) 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.e3 Nbd7 6.Bd3 dxc4 7.Bxc4 b5 So this is Topalov's surprise, its a line Kramnik also plays with Black 8.Be2 Bb7 9.0-0 b4 10.Na4 c5!? Sharper than the standard 10... Be7 Topalov's pre-match preparation emerges. 11.dxc5 Nxc5 12.Bb5+ Ncd7 13.Ne5 Qc7 14.Qd4 [ 14.Nxd7 Nxd7 15.e4 ( 15.b3 Bd6 16.Bb2 Rd8 17.h3 0-0 18.Rc1 Qb8 19.Bxd7 Rxd7 20.Qg4 f5 21.Qg5 Qd8 22.Qxd8 Rfxd8 23.Nc5 Bxc5 24.Rxc5 Rd2 25.Bd4 Rd7 26....

Huh? Topalov as White again? As is clearly stated in the match rules, the colors reverse after game 6 to allow both players the same number of games (potentially) as White after a rest day. Topalov, having White in each even-numbered game during the first half of the match (Games 1-6), now reverts to having White in each odd-numbered game during the second have of the match (Games 7-12). This results in the oddity, due to the forfeit of Kramnik as White in Game 5, of Topalov having the White pieces 3 consecutive games in a row: G4, G6, G7. Needless to say it is critical for Kramnik to hold this game, effectively neutralizing the advantage of Topalov with the White pieces. G7: Topalov,V (2813) - Kramnik,V (2743) [D27] WCh Elista RUS (7), 04.10.2006 [Malcolm Pein] (Thanks to Mark Crowther, The Week In Chess , and Malcolm Pein for commentary and analysis) 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Bd3 dxc4 6.Bxc4 c5 7.0-0 a6 8.Bb3 cxd4 9.exd4 Nc6 10.Nc3 Be7 11.Re1 0-0 Diagram 12.a4 Unusual Mor...

G6: Topalov,V (2813) - Kramnik,V (2743) [D17] WCh Elista RUS (6), 02.10.2006 [Malcolm Pein] (Thanks to Mark Crowther, The Week In Chess , and Malcolm Pein for commentary and analysis) 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4 5.a4 Bf5 6.Ne5 A tacit admission that he did not have an opening advantage in game 2 although he did have a winning position 6...e6 7.f3 The sharpest line just trying to push Black off the board. Kramnik had a lot of success with this as white earlier in his career. 7...c5 Avoiding the argument! this is a sideline. The main line is [ 7...Bb4 8.e4 Bxe4 9.fxe4 Nxe4 10.Bd2 Qxd4 11.Nxe4 Qxe4+ 12.Qe2 Bxd2+ 13.Kxd2 Qd5+ 14.Kc2 Na6 which is terribly dangerous for White but not necessarily bad for him and ideal for Topalov's needs in this match.] 8.e4 White hopes he will shut this bishop out of the game and gain the advantage. Getting it back with f7-f5 weakens Black's structure but at the cost of a couple of tempi he can play f7-f6 and Bg6-f7 if there is time later...

And All Hell Broke Loose To keep it brief, I dutifully refer you to the Chessbase Summary Article. I see no point here in rehashing everything that has been said, and has been said better than I could put it. Having said that, it is my opinion that: 1) Danailov should be disciplined/investigated by FIDE Ethics Committee 2) Game 5 should be played and the forfeit reversed 3) Kramnik, regardless of the result of the match, should proceed legally against FIDE My personal opinion is that Topalov has his hand in this somewhat, Danailov being his manager. I'm not so sure that Topalov was aware beforehand the extent to which Danailov was going to go regarding personal attacks against Kramnik, and for that I believe he is sincerely sorry for. However, Topalov's decision to keep the forfeit point seems strange to me. Keeping the point and winning the match by +1 or tiebreaks will forever leave a mark on his championship status. Keeping the point and winning the match by +2 seems highly...

G4: Topalov,V (2813) - Kramnik,V (2743) [D47] WCh Elista RUS (4), 27.09.2006 [IM Malcolm Pein] (Thanks to Mark Crowther, The Week In Chess , and Malcolm Pein for commentary and analysis) 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Nf3 Nbd7 At some point there was going to have to be an examination of some sharp lines. Lets see what Topalov has cooked up. 6.Bd3 dxc4 7.Bxc4 b5 8.Bd3 Bb7 There are many alternatives here including 9.e4 9.a3 b4 10.Ne4 Nxe4 11.Bxe4 bxa3 12.0-0 Bd6 13.b3 Nf6 Diagram 14.Nd2N A remarkable novelty. At first sight Bxh2+ is possible [ 14.Bd3 c5 15.dxc5 Bxc5 16.Bb5+ Ke7 17.Bxa3 Bxa3 18.Qxd8+ Rhxd8 19.Rxa3 a6 20.Bc4 Rd6 21.Rfa1 Rb6 22.Nd4 Ne8 23.f3 Nd6 24.Bd3 e5 25.Nf5+ Nxf5 26.Bxf5 Rd8 27.Rc1 g6 28.Bb1 Rd2 29.Ra2 Rxa2 30.Bxa2 Bd5 31.Kf2 Be6 32.Rc7+ Kd6 33.Ra7 Bd5 34.Bb1 Kc5 35.Be4 Bxe4 36.fxe4 Rxb3 37.Rxf7 Kb4 38.Ra7 a5 39.Ke2 Rb2+ 0-1 Pogorelov,R (2395)-Vera,R (2510)/Andorra la Vella 2006; 14.Nd2 Nxe4 15.Nxe4 Bxh2+ 16.Kxh2 Qh4+ 17.Kg1 Qxe4 18.f3! Qg6 19.Bxa3 would be ...

G3: Kramnik,V (2743) - Topalov,V (2813) [E02] WCh Elista RUS (3), 26.09.2006 [IM Malcolm Pein and James Coleman] (Thanks to Mark Crowther, The Week In Chess , and Malcolm Pein for commentary and analysis) 1.d4 Nf6 Topalov should not be too down-hearted he has after all had two great positions in the match so far. However conventional match strategy dictates that Kramnik should try and kick his man while he is down. 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 dxc4 5.Bg2 Nc6 [ 5...Bb4+ 6.Bd2 a5 7.Qc2 Game 1] 6.Qa4 Kramnik undoubtedly wants to avoid messy lines where Black keeps the c4 pawn and so Nc6-a5 has to be considered a potential threat. This rules it out. 6...Bd7 7.Qxc4 Na5 8.Qd3 [ 8.Qc2 is not so good 8...Rc8 intending ...c5 and the Q is not well placed on c2.] 8...c5 9.0-0 Bc6 10.Nc3 cxd4 11.Nxd4 Following Tkachiev-Solozhenkin France 2000, note that there was a Tkachiev game in the theory of the first game 11...Bc5 [ 11...Bxg2 12.Kxg2 Qd7 13.Rd1 Bc5 14.Bg5+/= the Na5 is poor and White is better ...