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Men's section Among notable upsets of the day were St. Petersburg Chess Club's (#2) loss to Mika Yerevan (#7) 2.5-3.5 and G-Team Novy Bor's (#12) victory over Ural (#9) 3.5-2.5. Five teams remain perfect after 3 rounds: Bihac CK, Economist SGSUE-1, Mika Yerevan, Socar Azerbaijan, ShSM-64 Moscow. Bo. 1   SOCAR Azerbaijan Rtg - 10   A DAN DZO & PGMB - Chernigiv Rtg 3½:2½ 1.1 GM Mamedyarov Shakhriyar 2756 - GM Jobava Baadur 2710 1 - 0 1.2 GM Radjabov Teimour 2748 - GM Korobov Anton 2670 ½ - ½ 1.3 GM Grischuk Alexander 2760 - GM Zhigalko Sergei 2640 1 - 0 1.4 GM Shirov Alexei 2749 - GM Baklan Vladimir 2621 ½ - ½ 1.5 GM Vachier-Lagrave Maxime 2721 - GM Azarov Sergei 2596 ½ - ½ 1.6 GM Kasimdzhanov Rustam 2685 - GM Lastin Alexander 2616 0 - 1 Bo. 7   Mika Yerevan Rtg - 2   St.Petersburg Chess Club Rtg 3½:2½ 2.1 GM Aronian Levon 2783 - GM Ivanchuk Vassily 2754 1 - 0 2.2 GM Akopian Vladimir 2691 - GM Svidler Peter 2731 ½ - ½ 2.3 GM Sargissian Gabriel 2677 - GM Vitiugov Nikita 2709 ½ - ½ 2.4 GM Pashikian Arman 2639 - GM Movsesian Sergei 2723 ½ - ½ 2.5 GM Melkumyan Hrant 2614 - GM Efimenko Zahar 2683 ½ - ½ 2.6 GM Petrosian Tigran L 2613 - GM Zvjaginsev Vadim 2664 ½ - ½ Bo. 5   Baden-Baden OSG Rtg - 3   ShSM-64 Moscow Rtg 2½:3½ 3.1 GM Adams Michael 2728 - GM Gelfand Boris 2751 ½ - ½ 3.2 GM Vallejo Pons Francisco 2697 - GM Karjakin Sergey 2747 0 - 1 3.3 GM Nisipeanu Liviu-Dieter 2683 - GM Caruana Fabiano 2700 0 - 1 3.4 GM Naiditsch Arkadij 2674 - GM Riazantsev Alexander 2686 1 - 0 3.5 GM Nielsen Peter Heine 2670 - GM Grachev Boris 2668 ½ - ½ 3.6 GM Gustafsson Jan 2646 - GM Najer Evgeniy 2657 ½ - ½ Bo. 8   Ashdod Elite CC Rtg - 4   Economist-SGSEU-1 Rtg 2½:3½ 4.1 GM Kamsky Gata 2705 - GM Eljanov Pavel 2761 ½ - ½ 4.2 GM Sutovsky Emil 2665 - GM Tomashevsky Evgeny 2701 ½ - ½ 4.3 GM Smirin Ilia 2657 - GM Alekseev Evgeny 2691 ½ - ½ 4.4 GM Mikhalevski Victor 2610 - GM Andreikin Dmitry 2669 ½ - ½ 4.5 GM Avrukh Boris 2636 - GM Moiseenko Alexander 2658 ½ - ½ 4.6 GM Miroshnichenko Evgenij 2677 - GM Roiz Michael 2637 0 - 1 Bo. 15   Bihac CK Rtg - 19   Oslo Schakselskap Rtg 3½:2½ 5.1 GM Stevic Hrvoje 2607 - GM Hammer Jon Ludvig 2633 ½ - ½ 5.2 GM Dizdarevic Emir 2475 - GM Berg Emanuel 2616 0 - 1 5.3 GM Gyimesi Zoltan 2595 - GM Johannessen Leif Erlend 2516 ½ - ½ 5.4 GM Saric Ibro 2565 - FM Kovachev Daniel Jakobsen 2305 1 - 0 5.5 GM Kurajica Bojan 2535 -   Stubberud Ornulf 2293 1 - 0 5.6 IM Boric Muhamed 2377 -   Getz Nicolai 2276 ½ - ½ Bo. 9   Ural Rtg - 12   G-Team Novy Bor Rtg 2½:3½ 6.1 GM Nepomniachtchi Ian 2706 - GM Laznicka Viktor 2690 0 - 1 6.2 GM Kobalia Mikhail 2656 - GM Hracek Zbynek 2633 ½ - ½ 6.3 GM Dreev Alexey 2649 - GM Bartel Mateusz 2599 1 - 0 6.4 GM Belov Vladimir 2625 - GM Stocek Jiri 2567 ½ - ½ 6.5 GM Lysyj Igor 2638 - GM Markos Jan 2566 ½ - ½ 6.6 GM Ponkratov Pavel 2592 - GM Haba Petr 2517 0 - 1 Bo. 17   Vesnianka Gran Rtg - 39   Differdange CE Le Cavalier Rtg 5½: ½ 7.1 GM Zhigalko Andrey 2580 - GM Sanikidze Tornike 2564 1 - 0 7.2 IM Stupak Kirill 2502 -   Jeitz Christian 2235 1 - 0 7.3 GM Teterev Vitaly 2511 -   Pettinger Jean-Paul 2191 1 - 0 7.4   Podolchenko Evgeniy 2506 -   Barthel Ansgar 2199 1 - 0 7.5 GM Tihonov Jurij 2486 -   Gengler Pierre 2107 ½ - ½ 7.6 IM Mochalov Evgeny V 2392 -   Boyard Marie 2028 1 - 0 Bo. 6   Yugra Rtg - 29   Amay Rtg 6 : 0 8.1 GM Jakovenko Dmitry 2726 - GM Bojkov Dejan 2552 1 - 0 8.2 GM Malakhov Vladimir 2725 - IM Zaragatski Ilja 2490 1 - 0 8.3 GM Motylev Alexander 2694 - IM Burg Twan 2455 1 - 0 8.4 GM Rublevsky Sergei 2683 - FM Buscher Michael 2388 1 - 0 8.5 GM Sjugirov Sanan 2627 -   Memeti Kastriot 2210 1 - 0 8.6 GM Kabanov Nikolai 2500 -   Noiroux Kevin 2150 1 - 0 Bo. 11   Werder Bremen Rtg - 34   K Gentse SRL Rtg 4½:1½ 9.1 GM Fressinet Laurent 2718 - IM Van Oosterom Chiel 2413 ½ - ½ 9.2 GM Mcshane Luke J 2657 - IM Lemmers Oscar 2395 1 - 0 9.3 GM Nyback Tomi 2635 - IM Tjiam Dharma 2398 1 - 0 9.4 GM Babula Vlastimil 2515 - FM Vandenbussche Thibaut 2333 0 - 1 9.5 GM Fish Gennadij 2502 - FM Deleyn Gunter 2250 1 - 0 9.6 IM Llaneza Vega Marcos 2467 -   Versporten Wim 2092 1 - 0 Bo. 27   Obiettivo Risarcimento Padova Rtg - 13   Naiden Voinov CC Rtg 2 : 4 10.1 GM Georgiev Kiril 2685 - GM Cheparinov Ivan 2661 ½ - ½ 10.2 IM Collutiis Duilio 2447 - GM Delchev Aleksander 2623 0 - 1 10.3 IM Arlandi Ennio 2430 - GM Iotov Valentin 2588 0 - 1 10.4 FM Valsecchi Alessio 2331 - GM Nikolov Momchil 2549 0 - 1 10.5 FM Luciani Valerio 2212 - GM Petrov Marijan 2550 ½ - ½ 10.6   Navarro Stefano 2274 -   Stefanov Evtim 1925 1 - 0 Women's section After three rounds just two teams remain perfect - AVS (6 match points, 8.5 board points - Stefanova, Lahno, Pogonina, Muzychuk M., Savina) and Samaia Tbilisi (6 match points, 7.5 board points - Chiburdanidze, Javakhishvili, Salome, Khurtidse, Hotenashvili). They will face each other in the 4th round. Other teams have 4 match points or less.
Bo.	2	AVS	Rtg	-	6	Giprorechtrans	Rtg	2½:1½
1.1	GM	Stefanova Antoaneta	2551	-	GM	Zhukova Natalia	2499	½ - ½
1.2	GM	Lahno Kateryna	2539	-	IM	Munguntuul Batkhuyag	2412	½ - ½
1.3	WGM	Pogonina Natalija	2491	-	IM	Zaiatz Elena	2407	½ - ½
1.4	IM	Muzychuk Mariya	2464	-	IM	Vasilevich Irina	2324	1 - 0
Bo.	4	Samaia Tbilisi	Rtg	-	5	MIKA Yerevan	Rtg	2½:1½
2.1	GM	Chiburdanidze Maia	2500	-	IM	Danielian Elina	2466	1 - 0
2.2	IM	Melia Salome	2439	-	IM	Harika Dronavalli	2515	½ - ½
2.3	IM	Khurtsidze Nino	2435	-	IM	Mkrtchian Lilit	2484	1 - 0
2.4	IM	Khotenashvili Bela	2464	-	IM	Galojan Lilit	2373	0 - 1
Bo.	1	Cercle d'Echecs de Monte Carlo	Rtg	-	10	CS Fischer Chieti	Rtg	3½: ½
3.1	GM	Koneru Humpy	2593	-	IM	Fierro Baquero Martha L	2368	1 - 0
3.2	GM	Hou Yifan	2578	-	IM	Zimina Olga	2334	1 - 0
3.3	IM	Muzychuk Anna	2535	-	WFM	De Rosa Mariagrazia	2073	½ - ½
3.4	IM	Skripchenko Almira	2464	-		Di Primio Eugenia	1984	1 - 0
Bo.	7	BAS Beograd	Rtg	-	8	USV Volksbank Halle	Rtg	3 : 1
4.1	IM	Bojkovic Natasa	2368	-	IM	Kononenko Tatiana	2384	½ - ½
4.2	IM	Gaponenko Inna	2469	-	WGM	Sharevich Anna	2283	½ - ½
4.3	WGM	Chelushkina Irina	2325	-	WGM	Straub Natalia	2224	1 - 0
4.4	IM	Vasilevich Tatjana	2399	-	WIM	Jahn Constanze	2152	1 - 0
Bo.	3	St.Petersburg Chess Club	Rtg	-	12	Herzliya Chess Club	Rtg	3½: ½
5.1	GM	Socko Monika	2486	-	WFM	Botvinnik Irina	2216	½ - ½
5.2	GM	Arakhamia-Grant Ketevan	2451	-		Len Irina	2065	1 - 0
5.3	IM	Atalik Ekaterina	2447	-		Yakovleva Tatiana	2124	1 - 0
5.4	IM	Bodnaruk Anastasia	2399	-		Lian Marina	1865	1 - 0
Bo.	11	Lokomotiv 2000	Rtg	-	13	KSC Komarno	Rtg	2 : 2
6.1	WIM	Nikolova Adriana	2295	-	WIM	Borosova Zuzana	2277	0 - 1
6.2	WIM	Videnova Iva	2283	-		Edes Zsofia	2065	1 - 0
6.3		Sirkova Darena	2094	-		Kral Klaudia	1806	1 - 0
6.4		Janeva Mariya	2042	-		Kralova Katarina	1861	0 - 1
Bo.	14	Oslo Schakselkap	Rtg	-	9	Ashdod Elite CC	Rtg	1½:2½
7.1		Khachatourian Yerazik	2025	-	IM	Borsuk Angela	2270	½ - ½
7.2	WFM	Johnsen Sylvia	2030	-	WIM	Vasiliev Olga	2293	0 - 1
7.3		Reppen Ellisiv	1954	-	WIM	Tsifanskaya Ludmila A	2143	0 - 1
7.4		Almer Julia	1908	-	WFM	Dotan Valeria	2104	1 - 0

Comments (2)

1. Team Composition

During the Olympiad in Khanty-Mansyisk the captain had to notify the organizers of the team composition for each round from 9 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. After that time no changes were allowed. We usually decided who was going to play the evening before the next round.
 

Main criteria of choosing players:

1)      Physical shape, motivation

When choosing who is going to play, the captain should pay attention to the wellbeing of a player, not only his/her chess level. For example, in our team WGM Nastya Bodnaruk was on a roll and kept winning one game after another. Generally such players are getting “exploited” round after round so as to gain more points. However, after a long tiresome game vs Aginyan (Armenia) we decided to give her a rest during the match vs Romania. This strategy has proven to be correct.
 

Friendly chat with Alexandra Kosteniuk before the round

2)      Chess shape

After a few rounds it becomes obvious who is in a good chess form, and who is at his/her down. Those who are not doing well are substituted by the reserve player. For example, in Russia-1 Karjakin was scoring really well and had to play 10 rounds out of 11, while Malakhov, who wasn’t at his best, appeared otb only during 6 rounds.

3)      Choice based on opening/customer-nemesis theory

It’s often easy to predict the team composition of the opponent and, correspondingly, the openings that may occur. Sometimes coaches or players have breath-taking novelties up their sleeves, or know that player X is a nemesis of player Y. Then it makes sense to adjust the team composition accordingly. Such things did happen at this Olympiad too.
 

What are they doing in my absenñe?!

2. Plan for the round

Depending on the strength of the opponent and your own team, a plan for the round is developed. A wide-spread strategy is trying to draw with Black and play for a win with White. This is especially true for men’s chess where the color of the pieces matters more. For example, in the critical match-up of Ukraine vs Russia-1 the Russian team decided to offer Karjakin board 3 and White (so as to give him more winning chances as compared to playing on board 4 with Black), while the extra-solid Malakhov was asked to try to hold Efimenko. The drawback of this approach was that Grischuk had to be left out. This strategy could have paid off: Karjakin won his game…but Malakhov couldn’t handle his nerves and eventually lost! The match ended in a draw, and Ukraine could take a deep breath and keep marching towards overall victory.
 

Chess pieces love to be hugged before the game!

3. Team tactics during the round

During the round lots of surprises happen, and it is not always possible to stay loyal to the pre-game plans. One has to be flexible and pay attention to the other boards. For example, if your team is losing the match, and you have Black, you may have to forget about playing it solid, and try to gamble. Or, if a draw in your game implies a win in the match, one often has to take it even if she/he has some advantage. The last round has its own tricks. At this Olympiad Russia-1 was facing Spain in the ultimate round, while Ukraine was playing against Israel. After a tough struggle, the first match ended in a draw. Ukraine’s captain instantly offered a draw to Israel’s captain (since they had calculated the tie-break scores and found out that it gives both teams medals). The Israel captain agreed. Had Ukraine not done it, they might have lost and let the gold medal pass to Russia-1. Therefore, the captains had to monitor not only the situation on the boards of their protégés, but other teams’ standings too. As you can see, not everything is decided over the boards. Team play has its own intricate nuances which inexperienced players and captains do not feel.
 

This time I will show you a game from our match vs Cuba. Other players on my team drew their games, so, being a leader and the only one left, I had to do my best to win the game and seal the victory in the match.


 

After playing somewhat carelessly in the middlegame, I ended up in an equal position with a queen, bishop + rooks. Still, my opponent was in time trouble and had an exposed king, so I had some practical chances left. She didn’t feel the danger, misplayed the position and lost the game. Even if the position is equal, one still has to stay concentrated and try to put pressure on the opponent.


 

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