Champion's Chess Tour Finals, Days 1-4

Also, what really matters.

There have been some very interesting games and remarkable moments in the Champions Chess Tour in Oslo, Norway (e.g. Magnus Carlsen and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave both missing what was essentially mate in two), but I’ll save a post looking at those games until after the event ends tomorrow.

The event started with an eight-player round robin featuring those who qualified over the course of the year: Magnus Carlsen, Alireza Firouzja, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Wesley So, Levon Aronian, Vincent Keymer, and Denis Lazavik. All the games except for Armageddons were played with a 10’+2” time control; Armageddon games (when necessary) saw White get 10’, Black getting whatever the low bidder offered, and no increments until move 61. The round-robin consisted of two-game mini-matches settled by an Armageddon game if necessary.

Of the eight, the players finishing 7th and 8th were eliminated. The top 2 finishers were seeded directly into the semis, while the third through sixth seeds had to fight for the remaining two places in the semis. The way it worked was this: #3 played #4, with the winner qualifying for the semis. #5 played #6, with the loser getting eliminated. Finally, the loser of the first match played the winner of the second match, with the loser getting eliminated and the winner earning the last spot in the semis.

For the semis - which were today - the #1 seed played the opponent of his choice(!), with the remaining players facing off in the other semi. Both matches were best-of-six rather than best-of-two, as always with the 10’+2” time control.

Rounds 1-3 of the round-robin were on day 1, rounds 4-6 on day 2, and round 7 along with the matches needed to qualify for the semis on day 3. The semis were on day 4, and the finals will be tomorrow. Here are the videos for day 1, day 2, day 3, and day 4.

As for what “really matters” - at least in the competitive/sporting sense - long-time readers of my blog (more in its previous versions than this one) will probably know that I’m referring to Notre Dame football. Unaccountably, Notre Dame hasn’t won a national championship since 1988, but hope springs eternal. They’re in the college football playoff, in a home game against Indiana University as I type. The greatest college football team in history (Notre Dame, in case anyone is confused about this [I’m probably being slightly facetious…probably]) is up 14-0 early in the second quarter. So do check out the CCT action, but first watch Notre Dame rout IU. (The carnage can be watched on ABC/ESPN.)

One further bit of chess news. For those of you who may not be familiar with the World Rapid & Blitz Championships, they take place every year the day after Christmas. They are great fun to watch, generally featuring almost all the world’s best players (including Magnus Carlsen, who is the two-time defending champion in both disciplines; Gukesh Dommaraju is a notable but understandable no-show). And for the first time ever, they’re being held in the United States, in New York City. If you’re a resident of the Big Apple or live relatively close to it, you may want to visit the event, either for your own sake or to bring your kids or grandkids (or both).