2nd Cambridge International Open

[Mick Norris]

Tiviakov has entered, as has Matthew Turner

[Roger de Coverly]

Play starts today at 10.30 am with most of the games on live boards.

Breakfast for those staying in the hotel was interrupted at about 9.15 am by what used to be known as the "curse of Sedgwick", namely a fire alarm. This seemed to be caused by the toast making machine getting over enthusiastic.

[LawrenceCooper]

Live games available at these links and probably elsewhere:

https://lichess.org/broadcast/2nd-cambr ... 1/0cI64J5j
https://www.chess.com/events/2024-cambr ... open/games
https://live.chessbase.com/en/watch/2nd ... Open-2024/

with a 15 minute delay.

[Kevin Thurlow]

"This seemed to be caused by the toast making machine getting over enthusiastic."

These always seem to be set up so that you put the bread in once and nothing happens, so you put it in again, and it immediately scorches the bread with the power of a million suns...

[David Gilbert]

There's presently dancing in the streets around Tothill Street and Millman Street. Well done Rafe! And in Cambridge too - almost forgot Cambridge!

[LawrenceCooper]

There's presently dancing in the streets around Tothill Street and Millman Street. Well done Rafe!

Especially given the position after move 22

[Jonathan Rogers]

He drew again with Hebden in the evening. Quite something to visit the event at 8pm, and to see Hebden and Adams on boards 40-44, still trying hard just to get to +1.

[LawrenceCooper]

Bodhana-Supratit on board 17 today with a combined age of 17 (unless one/both of them has had a birthday this year).

[Jonathan Rogers]

I do find that a slightly hilarious pairing. Anyway, I hope it's a good game.

[NickFaulks]

I do find that a slightly hilarious pairing.

I have long since given up trying to understand accelerated pairings.

[LawrenceCooper]

Bodhana-Supratit on board 17 today with a combined age of 17 (unless one/both of them has had a birthday this year).

Youth triumphed over experience.

[Christopher Kreuzer]

It is interesting seeing these "rising stars" play people you know!

I know both Philip Gardner and Lewis Martin (through deaf chess) and they both played (and lost, in rounds 1 and 3) to Jaden Jermy:

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/20849678.y ... and-squad/

That article is from 7 years ago (when he was 12 and a junior chess prospect, the linked article gives you an idea of the history - I am hopeless at assessing how good juniors are or were). I see he now has a rating of 2162, but rather embarassingly I cannot work out what that is in 'old money', there have been so many changes... (it appears to be about ECF Clarke grade 195?).

More recent piece (local chess club) here:

https://bsechess.org.uk/2019/08/jaden-j ... ion-title/

Anyway, talking of other rising stars, Lewis took half a point off Bodhana (Sivanandan - you know you have become famous when people only need to use your first name), and had a topsy-turvey game against GM Matthew Turner in round 1.

Back on the top boards, it was a slight surprise I think to see Craig Hanley beat Shreyas Royal, and the accelerated pairings appear to have produced the pairing of Nicolai Woltery (1979) on board 3 against GM Sergei Tiviakov. I fully expect to look up Nicolai and find he is some mostrously under-rated future superstar (I apologise for the hyperbole here).

Well, maybe not, but he does have some chess junior pedigree (as a junior, he played Magnus Carlsen in a simul in 2015).

Here is a nice tactical puzzle where he (Nicolai) was Black:

https://chesspuzzle.net/Puzzle/37602

I am still going to tip the GM to win, but it is great that tournaments like this can see such pairings. I should really follow in the footsteps of Tiviakov and look at the three games that Nicolai won, so will go and do that now.

(EDIT: With apologies to his opponents, I could have picked better games to play through! I then picked Shreyas's game where he blundered awfully against Hanley - I ended up picking Mickey's win over Peter Wells, which still felt slightly disappointing despite being a tactical slugfest.)

[NickFaulks]

Youth triumphed over experience.

At first glance, a good game and a significant result.

[LawrenceCooper]

Black is trying to mate with bishop & knight on board 35.

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Black is trying to mate with bishop & knight on board 35.

Who is playing?