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CHESS!
Nov 25, 2024 22:27:19 GMT
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Post by Shockprowl on Nov 25, 2024 22:27:19 GMT
I watched and read The Queen's Gambit this year. I'm going to assume the World Chess Championship is _just_ like that. Martin I haven't seen (or read) it, but if you want to learn about the exciting story of the World Chess Championship I can recommend Andre Sholtz's 'The Big Book of World Chess Championships' (although he only goes up to Carlsen-Anand 2014). |
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CHESS!
Nov 25, 2024 22:27:40 GMT
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Post by Shockprowl on Nov 25, 2024 22:27:40 GMT
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Post by The Doctor on Nov 25, 2024 22:32:26 GMT
Remember that time Galvatron played chess on the cover of TFUK?
-Ralph
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CHESS!
Nov 25, 2024 23:07:15 GMT
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Post by Shockprowl on Nov 25, 2024 23:07:15 GMT
Bit of background for you chaps.
So you have the World Champion. Historically, every three, but currently every two, years a Candidates Tournament is held and the qualifying top players in the world slug it out to determine who is the 'Challenger'. The Challenger then takes on the World Champion in a match. Only in a long match can the truly strongest player be determined. Historically these have been long matches, e.g., 24 games. These days they're shorter, 12 or 14 games, due to our limited attention spans these days...
This is 'Classical' chess, long time controls. As opposed to 'Rapid' chess, short time controls, or 'Blitz' chess, ridiculously short time controls (both of which have their own World Champions - currently both titles held by Magnus Carlsen).
The former "Classical' champion and (still) the world's strongest player (most likely the strongest in history), Magnus Carlsen, gave up his Classical title in 2022. So, the chess world's governing body, FIDE, held the planned match between the winner of the Candidates, Ian Nepomniatchi (who Carlsen crushed in 2020/21), and the second placed player in the Candidates, Ding Liren. It was a very exciting match, in which Ding was noted as being extremely candid about how much he was struggling with his anxiety and mental health. Ding won in thrilling fashion to become the 17th World Chess Champion. "Self-pinning for immortality."
After winning though, Ding struggled to maintain form. Recently he's been getting it back but has been struggling to convert good positions into wins, having to settle for draws.
Gukesh Dommaraju has rocketed into the world elite. At only 18 he's one of the youngest of an army of incredibly talented Indian players; The Legacy of Vishwanathan Anand, the first Indian chess Grand Master and 15th World Chess Champion, the man who Carlsen defeated to become champion.
Gukesh shocked the chess world by spectacularly winning the Candidates earlier in 2024, fending off stronger, far more experienced players such as Nepomniatchi, Fabiano Caruana, and Hikaru Nakamura (Caruana just missing out in the last game to draw level with Gukesh on points forcing tiebreak games). It was a stunning performance by Gukesh.
Carlsen won the crown in 2013 aged 22. If Gukesh wins he will become the youngest Champion in history.
But Gukesh has never beaten Ding.
They've only played eachother three times in classical chess. Ding has won two with one draw.
Ding is also older and far more experienced.
And, thankfully, although struggling for form, Ding seems to have put at least some of his demons to bed (the most important thing of all).
They're not the strongest or second strongest players in the world currently, that's Carlsen and Caruana (although Gukesh isn't far behind). But they've qualified through the gruelling Candidates mailestrum to get to where they are now.
Two years ago, people felt Ding was lucky. He only qualified for the Candidates after Sergey Karjakin was disqualified after publicly supporting Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
But I don't think Ding was lucky. Ding, now 32, has maintained his place at the very top of world chess for nearly a decade. When you work that hard to stay at the top you make your own luck.
Gukesh is the lightning rod of a new era in chess: the Dominance of India. Will this new era start with him achieving a historic win? Or will Ding be able to tap back into his extraordinary genius that has kept him in the world elite for so long?
This is the 2024 World Chess Championship.
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CHESS!
Nov 25, 2024 23:08:04 GMT
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Post by Shockprowl on Nov 25, 2024 23:08:04 GMT
Remember that time Galvatron played chess on the cover of TFUK? -Ralph Prowl out-played him though. |
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CHESS!
Nov 25, 2024 23:25:12 GMT
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Post by Shockprowl on Nov 25, 2024 23:25:12 GMT
And, boy oh boy, have we got off to a thrilling start!!! World Championship matches are notorious for lots of draws - these top guys just cancelling each other out. Carlsen-Caruana 2016 was like that: 14 draws! (But fighting draws though with their own thrilling momentum). Well, in 2024, Game One was NOT a draw... Gukesh with white, Ding with black (white has a slight advantage in chess because white moves first).
Ding surprised everyone by playing the little used 'French Defense' against Gukesh's 1.e4. Some deft maneuvering followed and Ding gradually gained the upper hand!
Gukesh couldn't find his way out and Ding didn't falter and WON GAME ONE!!!! Incredible!
It felt like Ding was in control from a fairly early point. His greater experience making all the difference? It's not over yet though- Gukesh seemed entirely undaunted in the post game interview. After all, the great Bobby Fischer had never beaten Boris Spassky before their World Championship match in 1972, AND he lost the first game! Buckle up, chaps- this match is gonna be doozey! |
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