Ian Nepomniachtchi and Wang Hao Start FIDE Candidates Tournament with Wins

First games were played in Yekaterinburg.

Round 1 of the FIDE Candidates Tournament was played in the capital of the Sverdlovsk region on March 17. 

First symbolic moves were made by FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich, the 12th world champion Anatoly Karpov, a well-known Russian footballer Dmitri Bulykin, and President of the Yekaterinburg chess federation Mikhail Vakhrushev. 

There were two decisive games on this day: Ian Nepomniachtchi and Wanga Hao defeated respectively Anish Giri and Ding Liren as Black. The games Vachier-Lagrave - Caruana and Grischuk - Alekseenko were drawn. 

Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France) – Fabiano Caruana (USA) 1/2-1/2 

The grandmasters opted for the Ruy Lopez, where a precise double-edged play started quite early. Obviously, the participants had analyzed this line very deeply. An interesting moment appeared on the 17th move when White delivered a blow on f7 while Black replied e5-e4 in cold blood allowing a discovered check. The knight's jumping aside led to exchanges and simplifications but soon Caruana seized the initiative after several White's inaccuracies. White had to be precise because the black pieces were more active. Still, MVL managed to equalize with an accurate play. A draw was agreed in the endgame with rooks and opposite-coloured bishops after Black's 44th move. 

Ding Liren (China) – Wang Hao (China) 0-1

The English Opening was played in the Chinese derby. The rivals were acting creatively and an uncharacteristic position appeared after the opening. White grabbed the space on the queenside and got a certain advantage. Nevertheless, a turning point happened on the 30th move: after the queens were traded, White made a pawn breakthrough on the kingside, which allowed Black to flood the opponent's camp with his pieces. Wang Hao won a pawn and sacrificed an exchange from the position of strength: the black passers on the kingside were unstoppable. Ding Liren resigned on the 45th move. 

Anish Giri (Netherlands) – Ian Nepomiachtchi (Russia) 0-1

A sharp modern variation of the English Opening took place in this encounter. The grandmasters were acting head-on choosing the most principal lines. When both kings were not castled yet, Black made a temporary piece sacrifice but restored a material balance quite quickly but then White gave up an exchange placing a bet on the activity of his pieces. As a result of a tense tactical struggle, Black got an extra pawn. Giri, who spent a lot of time on calculating complicated lines, decided to give up his queen for a rook and a bishop. However, he didn't manage to coordinate his pieces, lost the bishop and wasnt able to build a fortress. Nepomniachtchi was converting his edge energetically demonstrating a great technique and celebrated victory after the 73rd move. 

Alexander Grischuk (Russia) – Kirill Alekseenko (Russia) 1/2-1/2

The Russian derby also saw the English Opening. A positional battle was going on with Black's play looking a bit slow. White took seize of the centre but Alekseenko came up with an interesting pawn sacrifice in a mutual time trouble, which changed the character of play dramatically. Grischuk's reaction was not the most precise one and soon Black achieved a draw with a perpetual. 




Standings after Round 1:

1-2. Ian Nepomniachtchi, Wang Hao – 1
3-6. Fabiano Caruana, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Alexander Grischuk, Kirill Alekseenko – 0.5
7-8. Ding Liren, Anish Giri – 0.

Round 2 pairings:

Fabiano Caruana (USA) – Kirill Alekseenko (Russia)
Ian Nepomniachtchi (Russia) – Alexander Grischuk (Russia)
Wang Hao (China) – Anish Giri (Netherlands)
Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France) – Ding Liren (China)

The organizers of the FIDE Candidates Tournament are the International Chess Federation (FIDE), the Chess Federation of Russia (CFR) as well as the Government of the Sverdlovsk Region and the Chess Federation of the Sverdlovsk Region.

The Partners: 

Sima Land - the title sponsor of the FIDE Candidates Tournament
Algorand - official blockchain partner
Kaspersky - official cybersecurity partner
PJSC PhosAgro - General partner of the CFR
Mercedes-Benz Russia - official auto partner
Pine Creek Golf Resort and SILA International Lawyers - partners 

Official website

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