Refusal to compromise

Two rounds of the World Championship went without draws

At the World Chess Championship in Argentina, after four rounds played, the prospects of the participants became quite clear. It would be a mistake to believe that the entire eight will fight for the world title. The reality of modern chess is such that usually only three or four players can lay claim to this title. Before the start in San Luis, these included Indian Viswanathan Anand, who shared second and third place in the FIDE rankings, Bulgarian Veselin Topalov and Hungarian Peter Leko, who occupied fourth position. The rest are most likely not averse to being content with the very fact of participating in the World Championship. The start brought the first surprises. Few could have expected eight successful games in the last two rounds, two defeats for Leko and a loss for Anand.

As a result, the number of favorites was reduced to two, and Topalov took the lead. His 3.5 points in four games is a significant result in itself. The unique energy of the Bulgarian grandmaster has long been known. Here it is appropriate to recall his spurt at the super tournament in Sofia, in the second round of which Veselin won four games with one draw. As for the quality of Topalov's play, the leader's class is most clearly demonstrated by the last of his three victories - over the Englishman Michael Adams, where the Bulgarian, with black in an equal position, completely prevailed over an opponent famous for his impenetrability.

The retreat into the shadows of Anand, who currently occupies third place in the standings, is apparently temporary. He still remains among the real favorites. In recent years, Anand has consistently been in the top three of the rating list. It is possible that his discrimination at the 2002 Prague Summit in the unification cycle proclaimed by FIDE prompted the world federation to restore justice and organize the current tournament. The potential of the winner of the chess Oscar of the last two years is extremely high. Thus, in the Spanish game against Adams, he demonstrated one of his most brilliant innovations, which led to an almost forced win.

The appearance of Russian Peter Svidler in second place inspires some optimism among admirers of the work of the four-time Russian champion. Despite the fact that he is seventh in the world rankings, it was difficult to imagine the avant-garde aspirations of Peter, who for a long time did not shine with any special achievements. This was evidenced by the inexpressive start with two short draws, and the opening repertoire with Black, which was quite risky for this level of tournaments. He was “let go” early by the Uzbek player Rustam Kasimzhanov, and Peter was on the verge of defeat in a game with his compatriot Alexander Morozevich. But nevertheless, with three points in four games, it would be a sin not to take advantage of the presented chance to compete for the top title.

Number eight in the current table of ranks is occupied by the only representative of the fair sex in this tournament, Hungarian Judit Polgar. Of course, she is no stranger to male company, and her poor start fully reflects her true capabilities. But still, the participation of a woman in the men's World Championship can be considered as exotic, presented by FIDE by forming a list of participants based on cumulative successes for 2003-2004. After all, Polgar was included in the tournament according to the candidate list, in which it would be logical to take into account the current rating.

Let us remember that Vasily Ivanchuk, from whom one could have expected any result, was left behind. By the way, Michael Adams and Alexander Morozevich, who have clearly been lowering their ratings lately, do not justify their past merits. This year, the leader of our team did not have successful performances at the last Olympics. He plays inexpressively in this tournament as well. A third could have been added to the two defeats - from Kasimzhanov. Knowing Alexander’s impulsiveness (if he starts poorly, he ends the tournament poorly), one can only hope for a miracle.

It remains to be said about the 2004 FIDE world champion Kasimzhanov. His 35th place in the current ranking perfectly reflects the paradox of determining the world champion using the knockout system. As for Kasimzhanov’s performance, his fourth position at the intermediate finish to some extent testifies to his unrealized potential (games with Svidler and Morozevich), although the victory over Anand, of course, is more than just a victory. Obviously, the difference in class between the “stars” and the “averages” is not so great, which indicates shortcomings in the rating calculation system.

Position of the participants after four rounds: Topalov - 3.5 points, Svidler - 3, Anand - 2.5, Kasimzhanov - 2, Polgar, Leko - 1.5 each, Adams, Morozevich - 1.0 each .

Oleg STETSKO