The Smith & Williamson 2006 British Championship is underway in Swansea. A few people wrote in to say there were problems with the live games site at the start but it's worked for me in the past few days. With six of eleven rounds in the books Mark Hebden and Nicholas Pert share the lead on five. Two-time defending champion Jonathan Rowson fell off the pace with a loss to Pert in round six. If he comes back to win his third straight he'd be the first to do so since the days of Penrose.
The biggest news out of the UK Ch in the past few years was uninviting the Commonwealth and the strong Indian contingent that had started winning the top prizes. But the continuing story is one that even many strong chess countries continue to suffer, the top players skipping the national championship. The first prize of 10,000 pounds, nearly $19,000, is a lot of fish and chips. But no Adams, no Short, and McShane is only playing a few league games these days. Hodgson and Sadler are inactive. Teen hope David Howell isn't playing.
From the Snatching Defeat from the Jaws of Victory Department we bring you Cannon-Sowray (yo Pete!) from the first round. White was up a queen and had various mates at his disposal. He then fell into a mate in two. Somehow it always seems to happen to the lower rated player...
Cannon,Ri (2102) - Sowray,P (2357) [B33]
93rd ch-GBR Swansea WLS (1), 07.08.2006
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Qb6 5.Nb3 Nf6 6.Nc3 e6 7.Bd3 d6 8.0-0 Be7 9.a4 0-0 10.Kh1 d5 11.a5 Qd8 12.exd5 Nxd5 13.Nxd5 Qxd5 14.Qe2 Rd8 15.a6 bxa6 16.Be4 Qd7 17.Na5 Nd4 18.Qd3 Rb8 19.Bxh7+ Kf8 20.Qh3 Bf6 21.b3 Nb5 22.Ra4 e5 23.Qh5 Rb6 24.Nc4 Rb8 25.Be3 Bb7?? 26.Bc5+ Ke8 27.Bf5 Bxg2+ 28.Kg1 Qxf5 29.Qxf5 Bc6 30.Rxa6 Bb7 31.Rxf6 [31.Re6+ Kd7 32.Rxf6+ Kc7 33.Rxf7+ Kc6 34.Nxe5+ Kxc5 35.Nd7+ Kd6 36.Qe5+ Kc6 37.Qc5#] 31...gxf6 32.Qxf6 Kd7 33.Qe7+ [33.Rd1+] 33...Kc8 34.Bd6?? Rg8+ 0-1
Adams, Speelman and Howell are playing in the Staunton Memorial which starts on Monday. Check www.bcmchess.co.uk for details.
At least an English man will win our own championship this time! All the players on equal first and equal third are English.
And both Short and McShane are also playing in the European Chess Union championships in Liverpool in September.
the top americans seem to be missing from the US Open in Chicago right now also. the top seeds are really thinned down. they show up for the US Championships in San Diego but not the US Open in chicago.
can anyone explain this to me.
Frank, I can't explain it but I was rather surprised to see a 2300 tied for second with a round to go at the US Open.
And before anyone starts up with any suspicions, the 2300 in question has simply had an incredibly easy set of pairings to this point in time. He's only played one GM and one IM, losing to the first and beating the latter.
Yes I noticed there was a lower rated person near the top. but it seemed appropriate because so many high rated players are missing from the tournament. they just are not there.
standings with last round still to be played.
http://www.chessforlife.com/chess/mergstand8.html
Come on something is wrong if the high rated players do not show up for the US Open. It is not like one is missing. but almost all of them are missing. there must be a reason.
actually it looks like 6 people with 6.5 or more points have no title.
1. GM Shulman, Yury (3).......... IL 2665 W192 W109 W35 W53 W22 D9 W11 W7 7.5
2. IM Cordova, Emilio (8)........ NY 2570 W251 W84 W97 W33 D7 W28 D6 W9 7.0
3. GM Fedorowicz, John P (9)..... NY 2520 W288 W315 D39 W44 W29 D40 W89 W26 7.0
4. Aigner, Michael (24).......... CA 2311 W326 W132 W113 W164 L6 W42 W144 W24 7.0
5. GM Kaidanov, Gregory (1)...... KY 2696 W206 W120 W72 W54 D10 W13 L9 W51 6.5
6. GM Izoria, Zviad (2).......... NY 2694 W261 W174 W309 W31 W4 D8 D2 D15 6.5
7. GM Shabalov,Alexand (4)....... PA 2653 W193 W83 W38 W16 D2 W27 W8 L1 6.5
8. GM Kacheishvili, Giorgi (5)... NY 2648 W323 W173 W105 W55 W63 D6 L7 W54 6.5
9. GM Benjamin, Joel (6)......... NJ 2632 W153 W124 W106 W61 W71 D1 W5 L2 6.5
10. GM Gurevich, Dmitry (7)....... IL 2571 W263 W126 W310 W59 D5 D17 D26 W52 6.5
11. IM Almeida, Alfonso A (13).... NY 2443 W381 W129 W82 D40 W65 W93 L1 W61 6.5
12. IM Mulyar, Michael (14)....... CO 2437 W266 W231 W86 D67 D42 W98 D20 W63 6.5
13. IM Young, Angelo (15)......... IL 2428 W290 W139 W76 W57 W46 L5 W39 -H- 6.5
14. Kochetkov, Vitali (16)........ NY 2408 D443 W307 D119 W172 W104 -H- W65 W64 6.5
15. IM Sarkar, Justin (17)........ NY 2388 W523 D119 W121 W41 D25 W71 W40 D6 6.5
16. Cheng, Xiao (23).............. GA 2317 W322 W172 W69 L7 W108 D103 W67 W66 6.5
17. FM Karklins, Andrew (25)...... IL 2297 W207 D125 W239 W115 W43 D10 D22 W73 6.5
18. Barnett, Alexander S (27)..... MD 2285 W262 W122 D101 D104 D81 W111 W69 W80 6.5
19. Onyekwere, Chikwere Godwi (32) MN 2272 W269 L135 W325 D132 W179 W224 W75 W81 6.5
20. Burgess, Jon L (38)........... IL 2249 W383 L133 W381 W178 W112 W79 D12 W83 6.5
Mig I can not view this posting to see if it looks good. so here we go.
the number in parenthesis is his seed placement. so 4th place Aigner is seeded (24). so all grandmasters and IM's have to be above that. they are just not at the tournament.
Mark,
It is the British championship, Championship of the British Isles, organized by the English Chesss Federation, and held in Wales. It is not the English championship, and an English man has not yet won.
While kicking out the Indians, you forgot to expel the Scots.
I know we haven't yet... they're next on the list ;)
(That might even have some literal truth- the English Chess Federation are next on the list).
I think after this dally into Wales- which I don't agree with as well- it'll be back to England for years to come. Since it's the ECF now there's no obligation to hold it anywhere but England.
The Welsh and Scots both have championships which English people can't enter so the same rules should apply.
Can't see Rowson coming back to win it at all- I've seen him play in real life and have read quite a lot of his stuff... know people who've been out drinking with him too. He prefers to get on a roll and then extend that form, and there are a lot of good young English IMs and some GMs he's got to play yet. He's got the easiest pairing possible for the next round though.
Easy explanation why leading players were missing at US Open. Only the winner makes money, the rest don't even get their expenses back.
speaking of Brits kicking the foreigners out... they are doing it not just in chess.
In cricket, they are reducing the number of foreign players per county team from two to one from 2008 season...
yes, can we have a "preview" button, please?
What's up with the Staunton Memorial tournament? It seems to have the worst coverage I can remember... Is it just for posh gentlemen or something??
Mark,
If the English want an additional separate championship, go ahead. But they lack any authority to make the British Championship into an English-only English Championship.
The ECF is the organizer, but need not always be, there can be some deal among the various UK federations.
I think it would make little difference if it was known as the English Championship.
(It sounds slightly better from a sponsorship point of view to call it the British Championship, but it essentially holds the same appeal.)
When the Federation was called the BCF, it did help progress in all of the countries in the UK, but was funded by English players. It's continuing to help ther other countries by holding the championship this year in Wales for instance.
I've no real issue with players from the rest of the UK playing in it, but to make it fair they should probably pay a slight additional charge to ease the burden on English players.
There's no way any other countries could hold a British Championship without England being the main force. As well as having practically all the strongest players in the UK (only Rowson could challenge for the title, and he wouldn't even have a serious look in if the strongest English players played), the English Federation also has more experienced arbiters and organisers and better possible venues.
The Scottish Championship this year had no members of it's national team playing, and I think maybe one or two IMs, about 8 players total. Very little prize money there.
Mark,
The British Championship fortnight comprises a whole series of events (age groups, etc.) which financially operates as an integrated package (with quite high entry fees and quite low prizes). 'English players' are not burdened into paying for it, that's for sure.
If the British Championship is eliminated, and an English championship appears instead, then the funny outcome is that there is no national championship.
Please bear in mind that England, Scotland, etc. are not real countries, they are provinces (Canada) or states (US) equivalent.
I think the British nation deserves a national championship.
I wouldn't be so confident about an English champion now... :-)
Merk,
I thought you promised an English man would win?
And your drinking buddies told you Rowson is a weak finisher?
Now you have to exclude Scots, Georgians and Georgian Scots.
Eventually, then, an Englishman may win something.