Batumi Olympiad

[Chris Rice]

Win for the Monkey's Bum

Jallow, Serray (gam) - Zephir, Marie Lucie (mri)
Women's World Chess Olympiad Batumi 2018 round 06
1. e4 g6 2. Bc4 Bg7 3. Qf3 Nf6 4. e5 Nh5 5. Qxf7# 1-0

[Jonathan Rogers]

USA 2-0 down to India (womens event) but possibly about to make it 2-2. Drama!

[JustinHorton]

In the Women's: Italy need to draw this to beat Cuba. Latvia need to win this previously drawn rook ending to draw with Azerbaijan, which would be a hell of a result. Russia are two down against Armenia with two equallish endings left. USA re two downagainst India but may well win the two outstanding games. Ukraine v China looks like the match of the day, all four games still in play and not an obvious winner among them.

[JustinHorton]

Also, Lithuania should win the last game against Kazakhstan to tie a match where they're cumulatively about 600 points weaker.

(EDIT: as Jonathan points out below it's Zazakhstan needing to win to tie.)

[Jonathan Rogers]

Crikey, did Putin visit his teams again on the rest day?

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Mamedyarov to become the new world number one before the World Chess Championship takes place in November. You read it here first!

[Jonathan Rogers]

Also, Lithuania should win the last game against Kazakhstan to tie a match where they're cumulatively about 600 points weaker.

other way around?

[JustinHorton]

Yes (well, half the other way round anyway)

[JustinHorton]

Meanwhile Poland v Ukraine has got interesting. Poland are 1.5 - 0.5 up and looked to be strolling it, but Piolun on board three is contracting to win queen against rook and pawns, which he might need to do seeing as Dragun is making a little heavy weather of bringing home the half-point on board four.

[JustinHorton]

England women have lost, a poor outcome after they looked to have the match under control earlier.

[JustinHorton]

USA 2-0 down to India (womens event) but possibly about to make it 2-2. Drama!

Krush is on 5/5, Wu on 5.5/6.

[JustinHorton]

As it stands (Kosteniuk has just conceded her draw, so Russia lose again) we should be looking at three teams on 11 in the Women's tournament tomorrow: the US, Armenia and Ukraine. There's few people on here who know less about pairings than I do, so I have no idea which two would expect to meet.

[JustinHorton]

Or not, as the case may be.

Ushesnina should have lost after blundering on move 37. Huang missed her chance, and a drawn ending developed which after move 57 was a pretty standard rook and two pawns against rook and one. Huang, who'd made no progress in 49 moves, pushed a pawn on move 106 to keep it going, and on move 119 Usheshina tragically threw it away again. This time Huang took advantage, so China draw the match and it'll be the US v Armenia tomorrow.

[Roger de Coverly]

and on move 119 Usheshina tragically threw it away again

What she played was drawing until the blunder, but isn't it simplest in such positions to just park the King on g2 and shuffle the rook between a2, b2 and c2 with the occasional venture up the board for a check? That allows them to advance and exchange the pawns to reach the five man ending, but with the defender controlling the queening square that should be simple enough to defend.

[Tim Harding]

Round 7 pairings are up. Argentina v England in the Open; Turkey-England in the Women's.

Brunei v Wales and Sao Tome & Principe are served up for the Scots.
I expect most of us will watch the big match between the only two countries on top marks, Azerbaijan & Poland.

On the top table, Armenia play USA, both on 11MP.

In the Women's tournament, top match is Armenia v USA< both on 11 MP.
Nine teams have 10MP and then in match 6, India (10MP) play Georgia-1 who have 11MP. Rather strange it's not match 2?

Unfortunately Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant lost her 100% record today, being held to a draw with Black against Moldova who had a useful WIM on top board.
She should be back to winning ways tomorrow against Zimbabwe.

Wales play the country that may soon be renamed North Macedonia depending on a referendum.