Month: June 2018

Wesley So leads Grand Chess Tour 2018 tally after Leuven and Paris

Grand Chess Tour 2018 is a five-leg tour composed of the rapid and blitz games in Leuven and Paris, and rapid, blitz and classical games tournaments in St. Louis later this year. The final leg in London will played among the top 4 finishers in the first four legs.

At the end of each leg, GCT points are awarded to each player based on their rankings. By the end of the second leg in Paris, Wesley So leads the cumulative GCT points:

Wesley So in Solo Lead after Day 2 in Paris Grand Chess Tour 2018

As the second leg of Grand Chess Tour continues in Paris, Wesley So takes solo lead at the end of Day 2 — after 6 rapid rounds. This, after he defeated Vladimir Kramnik and Alexander Grischuk and drew with Levon Aronian during the day.

Replay Day 2 games below:[replay]

Paris Grand Chess Tour 2018 Ranking after Day 2

[csvtable file=”http://chesshive.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/gtcpr_d2_ranking.csv”]

Replay all rapid games in Paris GCT 2018.

Official scoring after Round 6 rapid games:

Grand Chess Tour Paris 2018 Day 1 Rapid Results: Aronian, Anand, and So lead

The second leg of the Grand Chess Tour 2018, the Paris GCT 2018, kicked off just 4 days after Leuven. The format is still the same: 5 days, 9 rapid, and 18 blitz games. Vladimir Kramnik plays wildcard in Anish Giri‘s stead.

Day 1 was action-packed, as expected in rapid games. 7 out of the 15 games were decisive. Replay Day 1 games below:[replay]

Grand Chess Tour Paris 2018 Ranking after Day 1 Rapid

[csvtable file=”http://chesshive.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/gtcpr_d1_ranking.csv”]

The official scoring system awards 2 points for a win and 1 for a draw. Thus, here’s the official scores after Day 1 of three rapid games:

Stay tuned for more chess action from Paris.

Wesley So Wins Your Next Move 2018

The first leg of the Grand Chess Tour 2018, the Your Next Move 2018, came to a conclusion. After 5 days of play, 9 rounds of rapid and 18 rounds of blitz games, Wesley So emerged victorious being just half a point ahead of the contenders: Sergey Karjakin and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.

The last round indeed was full of drama. Going into the final round, So was just half a point ahead of Karjakin and MVL — he needed a win to secure the title, while a draw could mean tie-break games. Watching the live coverage, you can see the disappointment in So’s face as he resigned his last blitz game against Hikaru Nakamura. Yet, to his surprise, both Karjakin and MVL lost their respective games as well. Thus, Wesley So was crowned the champion.

Your Next Move 2018 Day 2: Wesley So extends lead

Fast chess such as Rapid and Blitz games truly brings excitement into the world of chess. That’s the meat of the first leg of Grand Chess Tour 2018, the Your Next Move 2018 happening in Leuven, Belgium, as it brings top chess players around the globe to play rapid and blitz chess.

On Day 2 of the Rapid games, Wesley So pulled off yet another outstanding chess as he won 2, against Anish Giri and Alexander Grischuk, and drew against Levon Aronian in Round 6.

Thus, So now leads by 1 full game against the closest runner up.

Your Next Move 2018 Ranking after Day 2 Rapid

[csvtable file=”http://chesshive.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ynm18-day2.csv”]

Here are the scores according to the Your Next Move scoring system:

Replay all Day 2 Rapid games below:[replay]

Replay all rapid games of Your Next Move 2018.

Wesley So leads Your Next Move 2018 after Day 1

Your Next Move 2018, the first leg of Grand Chess Tour 2018, kicks off in Leuven in Belgium.

Day 1 concluded with 3 rapid rounds. Wesley So won 2, against Fabiano Caruana and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, and drew 1 against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, to lead the pack with 2.5 points.

Your Next Move 2018 Ranking after Day 1

[csvtable file=”http://chesshive.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ynm18-day1.csv”]

Replay the games below:[replay]

Stay tuned for more rapid and blitz chess action of Your Next Move 2018.