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From the CEO

The Chess Olympiad 2024 will be held in Budapest, Hungary from the 12th to the 23rd of September 2024. It is one of the largest sporting events and perhaps the biggest event in the world when it comes to the number of countries taking part. This year the open section has 193 teams and the women section has 181! Massive! The good news for Indian fans is that India has excellent chances of returning home with two medals and who knows both them could be Gold! :) But it is not going to be easy. Let's first have a look at our teams.

This will be one of the strongest Chess Olympiads ever! | Photo: FIDE

In the open section we have Arjun Erigaisi, Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa, Vidit Gujrathi and Harikrishna. This is such an amazing squad - the right mix of youth and experience. With an Elo of 2778, Arjun is the current world no.4 and is in scintillating form. Gukesh is the current World Championship Challenger and we all know what Praggnanandhaa is capable off. The top 3 boards of India represent what would most likely be the top 3 boards of the country for several Olympiads to come! On board 4 we have Vidit Gujrathi - rock solid. He made his Olympiad debut in 2016 and has been part of the team ever since. He was also the captain of the Indian team at the Online Olympiad in 2020. On the 5th board we have P. Harikrishna. It's quite unbelievable that Hari made his debut for India at the Olympiads in the year 2000 when he was just 14 years old. Since then he has played in every single Olympiad except the one in 2014. Just to show how rapidly India is progressing as a chess nation - Hari was board 1 for Team India in 2022 and in just 2 years he is now on board 5. It goes without saying that having Vidit and Harikrishna on boards 4 and 5 adds tremendous stability to the team.

The Indian Open Team for Budapest Olympiad 2024.

In the women's section team India consists of Harika, Vaishali, Divya Deshmukh, Vantika Agrawal and Tania Sachdev. This team is extremely strong, but we are surely going to miss India's top player Koneru Humpy on the top board. The reason she mentioned for skipping this Olympiad is that she had already confirmed some events before hand and does not want to play back to back events. Harika on the top board played her first Olympiad in 2004 and since then she hasn't skipped a single Olympiad. She loves representing the country and that was seen in ample measure when in her 9th month of pregnancy she played at the Chess Olympiad in 2022. It was one of the most inspirational stories of the entire Olympiad. R. Vaishali recently entered top 10 female players in the world and is definitely a world class player. Divya Deshmukh has made rapid strides in recent months and will rightfully claim the third board for the team. On board four we have the talented Vantika Agrawal and Tania Sachdev will be on board no.5. Tania has been selected by Jio Cinemas to commentate on the Paris Olympics that is beginning in a few days - and then will represent the country at the Chess Olympiad - an amazing achievement to be a commentator as well as a player! India team captains are - Srinath Narayanan in the open and Abhijit Kunte in the women - just like the previous edition. 

The Indian Women's Team for Budapest Olympiad 2024.

So India starts as the second seeds in both open and women section! The chances for gold do exist, but we will have to do our best against some of the finest teams in the world. In the open section we have team USA as the top seed - Caruana, Wesley So, Dominguez and Aronian - what a team! The only change in this team as compared to last year is Ray Robson making it to board no.5 instead of Sam Shankland. But with 4 absolute elite players, USA surely look like the favourites. The Chinese squad is also amazing - they have Wei Yi, World Champion Ding Liren, Yu Yangyi, Bu Xiangzhi and Wang Yue. China has always shown good team spirit and are an extremely difficult team to beat. But what was absolutely shocking was the fact that in the women's team - Hou Yifan, Ju Wenjun, Lei Tingjie and Tan Zhongyi - none of these top players have decided to participate. This has made the Chinese team quite weak. With Zhu Jiner, Lu Miaoyi, Song Yuxin, Guo Qi and Ni Shiqun - they are not the favourites, but even without their top players, they are the 4th seeds, which just goes to show the depth of Chinese women's chess.

World Champion Ding Liren will be seen in action at the Olympiad - probably one of his last classical tournaments before the World Championship match! Photo: Stev Bonhage

Georgia is the top team in the women's section with Nana Dzagnidze, Nino Batsiashvili, Lela Javakhishvili, Bela Khotenashvili and Salome Melia. They also have a strong trainer in the form of Vladimir Tukmakov. The champions of the 2022 edition in the open section Uzbekistan have retained the same team. Nodirbek Abdusattorov is now world no.5 and the rest of the players - Sindarov, Yakkuboev and Shamsiddin have also grown in strength. The experienced man in the team and the big brother of the squad Jakhongir Vakhidov will take board no.5. A big surprise is Vladimir Kramnik deciding to become the captain of the team. Ivan Sokolov was the team captain of Uzbekistan but this time the role will fall on the shoulders of the former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik. Ivan will be the coach of Romania. 

Team Georgia is the strongest women's Team by rating, and is full of experience!

The host country Hungary have made some massive changes this year. They have got back Richard Rapport, who had been representing Romania for a few years now, and a big surprise - Peter Leko is coming back to fight for his country! A national hero and the man who played the world championship match in 2004 is well known in the chess world as a commentator. He deciding to get back in the ring is going to be an amazing moment for all the chess fans! His last tournament (apart from Bundesliga games) was back in 2019 - the European Club Cup. The Dutch team led by Anish Giri is also pretty strong and it will also be wonderful to see Magnus Carlsen once again in action for Norway on the top board. It's a pity that Norway does not have any other player who is rated above 2700, but with Christiansen and Tari, the team is getting stronger each year. Some of the notable names missing are Alireza Firouzja not playing for the French team and Radjabov deciding to become the coach of the Azerbaijan team, instead of being a player. 

It is fantastic to see one of the best chess commentators in the world, GM Peter Leko coming back to classical chess!

If there was a team which I would definitely keep my eyes on - it's Turkey. With Ediz Gurel, born in 2008, on top board and Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, born in 2011, playing on board 3, it's fantastic to see the talent coming out from Turkey. We, at ChessBase India, will be making a trip to Budapest to ensure top notch LIVE as well as on ground coverage for all of you back home! - Sagar Shah

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HEADLINE OF THE WEEK

The Evolution of Indian Chess: Anand, Aruna and Arjun at the Indian Express Sports Adda

In 1988, India got its first Grandmaster, Viswanathan Anand. In 2024, India's count of grandmasters has jumped from 1 to 85. This shows the rapid growth of chess in the country. Anand's journey, especially after becoming the World Champion in 2000 inspired the younger generation. Three of the top ten chess players in the world are now Indians: Arjun, Gukesh, and Pragnanandhaa. This surge promises that Indian chess has a bright future on the international level. In a recent interview with The Indian Express, the person who transformed Indian chess, Viswanathan Anand, the person who supported this man's journey, Aruna Anand, and the person who will become the next big thing in Indian and world chess - Arjun Erigaisi discussed their thoughts on the evolution and future of chess in India, the impact of technology, the surge in young talent, and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the next generation of chess players.  Photo Credit: The Indian Express

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BRAND NEW CHESSBASE VIDEO COURSE BY GM VISHNU PRASANNA!

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Doesn’t every chess game get decided by mistakes? Absolutely. But most players never truly comprehend that they are making the same kind of mistakes over and over again. The first task is to identify these mistakes and label them. Then the next time you sit at the chessboard, you are aware and able to avoid them. This is why we created the video course "How to Avoid Mistakes and Boost Your Winning Rate" by GM Vishnu Prasanna!

GM Vishnu Prasanna is one of the most respected chess trainers in India. He is the coach of the current Indian no.1 player D. Gukesh – his main coach for his journey from 2200 to 2750 Elo. Vishnu has used his immense experience to touch upon the topic of mistakes in chess. Vishnu groups mistakes into the following categories:

1. Unforced Errors
2. Tactical & Positional mistakes
3. Psychological mistakes
4. Calculation & Assessment mistakes
5. Good positional moves that are mistakes

With more than 20 examples, you get a firm understanding of each type of mistake. IM Sagar Shah asks pertinent questions, and has also made cards, shown throughout the videos, that ensure you can firmly grasp the nature of the mistakes. Vishnu discusses how to fix these mistakes, and how his students - Gukesh, Leon Mendonca, Surya Ganguly and himself! - all very strong grandmasters, managed to fix the mistakes that they were making - leading to serious improvement in their play. To conclude, there are test positions to reinforce your understanding of the subject. If you study this course carefully, it will help you to become a stronger and more aware chess player, and will surely lead to a rise in your level of play.

Today, we have a big 10% discount on How to Avoid Mistakes and Boost Your Winning Rate by Vishnu Prasanna! Just use the coupon code "VISHNU10" to avail the discount. The offer expires on 2nd August 2024 - hurry up and get it NOW!

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LATEST NEWS OF THE WEEK

Rinat Jumabayev wins 57th Biel Festival MTO, Leon Luke Mendonca second and Ayush Sharma third

GM Leon Luke Mendonca and IM Ayush Sharma made a quick 17-move draw in the final round of 57th Biel Chess Festival MTO. Thus allowing the Kazakhstan no.1, GM Rinat Jumabayev to catch up. Rinat defeated IM Alexis Tahay (FRA) to become the champion on tie-breaks. Leon finished and Ayush third. IM Mukhiddin Madaminov (UZB) also scored 7.5/10. He was placed fourth. GM Krishnan Sasikiran and GM Aryan Chopra are the only two other Indians to make a top ten finish. They scored 7/10 each to secure fifth and sixth place. In GMT Masters, R Praggnanandhaa defeated Abhimanyu Mishra (USA) in the final round to finish third with 24.5 points. The total prize fund in GMT Masters was CHF 28500. The top three prizes were CHF 10000, 7500 and 5000 each. Photo: Biel Chess Festival

 

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Aarav Dengla prevails at 97th Championnat du Grand Paris Masters 2024, Aakash Sharadchandra Dalvi second

14-year-old Aarav Dengla scored an unbeaten 7/9 to win 97th Championnat du Grand Paris Masters 2024. The teenager finished a full point ahead of the field. Aakash Sharadchandra Dalvi scored an unbeaten 6/9 to secure second place. He also earned his second IM-norm in the process. GM Andrei Shchekachev (FRA) finished third scoring 5.5/9. Aarav drew with both runners-up, while Aakash defeated Andrei in the final round. The first prize was €2500 + trophy. The tournament was organized by Ligue IdF des Echecs at Lycee Blanche de Castille in Villemomble, France from 7th to 14th July 2024. Aarav earned his first and third IM-norms at the very same event in 2022 and 2023. Vinodh Kumar Balaguru scored 6.5/9 to finish second in Open A. Photo: Official site

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Deep Sengupta wins Najdorf Memorial for the second consecutive year

GM Deep Sengupta and GM Eduardas Rozentalis (LTU) scored 7.5/9 each at 23rd Najdorf Memorial A 2024. Deep won the tournament due to better tie-breaks, Eduardas was placed second. GM Valery Kazakouski (LTU) and GM Lukasz Jarmula (POL) scored 7/9 each. They secured third and fourth place respectively. The multi-time Hastings Masters and former Commonwealth gold medalist won this tournament for the second consecutive year. This time he bettered his performance by scoring a half point more and remained undefeated. The total prize fund of the festival was 45000 PLN, 24000 PLN in A, 12000 in B and 9000 in C. The top three prizes were 8000, 4000 and 3000 PLN each respectively in the A category. This is Deep's second rating tournament triumph of the year.

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Arjun Erigaisi convincingly clinches Crunchlabs Masters 2024 Division III

Arjun Erigaisi won Crunchlabs Masters Division III part of Champions Chess Tour. The World no.4 won the division without losing a single match. In the Semifinals and Finals, he defeated GM Evgeny Alekseev (ISR) to become the champion. Things were not easy for Arjun. He had a rocky start to say the least. In the Play-In event, he scored 5.5/7 and then lost the last two rounds. Thus, missing out the opportunity to battle in Division I. In Division Play, GM Abhimanyu Puranik made a 2-0 clean sweep, so Arjun did not qualify for Division II either. Afterwards, he got back his rhythm and won Division III convincingly. He earned US$ 7500, 30 tour points, and a spot in the Division I placement round 2 of the next event. Photo: chess.com

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