36th Chess Olympiad

The 36th Chess Olympiad, organized by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) and comprising an open[1] and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between October 14 and October 31, 2004, in Calvià on the Spanish island of Majorca.

Contents

Chess competition

Both tournament sections were officiated by international arbiter Ignatius Leong. Teams were paired across the 14 rounds of competition according to the Swiss system; the open division was played over four boards per round, whilst the women's was played over three. The time control for each game permitted each player 90 minutes to make all of his or her moves, with an additional 30 seconds devolving on each player after each move, beginning with the first.

Open tournament

The open division was contested by 129 teams representing 125 nations and territories; Spain, as hosts, fielded three teams, whilst the International Braille Chess Association and the International Physically Disabled Chess Association each provided one squad.

Led by first board Grandmaster (GM) Vasyl Ivanchuk, the seventh highest-rated player at the tournament, who recorded nine-and-one-half points over 13 rounds, and second reserve GM Sergey Karjakin who, aged just 14 years, won six of his seven games, surrendering a draw only to American GM Gregory Kaidanov, Ukraine scored all four possible points in each of their first three matches before defeating Russia, 2½-1½, in the fourth round, eventually accumulating a nearly insurmountable three-point lead after the penultimate round; the Ukrainian team nevertheless scored three points against France and claimed the gold medal three points ahead over silver medallists Russia, who had entered the tournament as the top seed, having brought four of the tournament's nine highest-rated players, and as defending champions.

Armenia, one of just four teams to draw a match with Ukraine, paced by second board GM Levon Aronian, who did not lose in twelve games, and third board GM Rafael Vaganian, who scored eight-and-one-half points over in 11 games, lost to Russia, 2½-1½, in the eighth round and ultimately, on the strength of a 3½-½ final round defeat of Georgia, tied Russia's 36½ points; Armenia were placed after Russia, though, on the Buchholz tiebreak system employed by the Olympiad, and finished, as in the 35th Chess Olympiad, with the bronze medal.

Cuba, seeded 18th, and Bulgaria, seeded 20th, each finished in the top ten, led respectively by second board GM Lazaro Bruzon (eight points over 11 games) and first board GM Kiril Georgiev (eight points in 13 games, including a final round defeat of the tournament's top rated player, Indian GM Viswanathan Anand), while France, seeded 12th, and England, seeded eighth, performed below expectations, finishing in 23rd and 30th, respectively.

Team results

The teams finishing first through third overall receive medals, as do those finishing in the top three amongst teams organized by seed; overall medal winners are not eligible to receive group prizes.

Top ten overall finishers
Place of finish[2] Team Players[3][4] Seed[5] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Matches won Matches drawn Matches lost Total score[7]
First  Ukraine Vasyl Ivanchuk, Ruslan Ponomariov, Andrei Volokitin, Alexander Moiseenko, Pavel Eljanov, Sergey Karjakin 2 2680 10 4 0 39½
Second  Russia Alexander Morozevich, Peter Svidler, Alexander Grischuk, Alexey Dreev, Alexander Khalifman, Vadim Zvjaginsev 1 2718 11 0 3 36½
Third  Armenia Vladimir Akopian, Levon Aronian, Rafael Vaganian, Smbat Lputian, Gabriel Sargissian, Artashes Minasian 4 2660 8 4 2 36½
Fourth  United States Alexander Onischuk, Alexander Shabalov, Alexander Goldin, Gregory Kaidanov, Igor Novikov, Boris Gulko 10 2623 7 4 3 35
Fifth  Israel Boris Gelfand, Emil Sutovsky, Ilia Smirin, Boris Avrukh, Alexander Huzman, Michael Roiz 3 2670 7 5 2 34½
Sixth  India Viswanathan Anand, Krishnan Sasikiran, Pendyala Harikrishna, Surya Shekhar Ganguly, Abhijit Kunte, Chanda Sandipan 5 2655 10 0 4 34
Seventh  Cuba Leinier Domínguez, Lazaro Bruzon, Neuris Delgado, Jesus Nogueiras, Walter Arencibia, IM[8] Yuniesky Quezada 18 2596 8 2 4 33½
Eighth  Netherlands Loek Van Wely, Ivan Sokolov, Sergei Tiviakov, Jan Timman, Erik Van Den Doel, Friso Nijboer 8 2641 9 1 4 33
Ninth  Bulgaria Kiril Georgiev, Aleksandr Delchev, IM Ivan Cheparinov, Vasil Spasov, Boris Chatalbashev, IM Julian Radulski 20 2584 9 1 4 32½
Tenth  Spain A Alexei Shirov, Francisco Vallejo Pons, Miguel Illescas Córdoba, Roberto Cifuentes Parada, Alfonso Romero Holmes, IM Julien Arizmendi Martinez 7 2643 8 3 3 32½
Group prizes

Group A (from amongst teams seeded 1st to 25th)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[5] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[7]
 United States 4 10 2623 35
 Israel 5 3 2670 34½
 India 6 5 2655 34

Group B (from amongst teams seeded 26th to 51st)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[5] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[7]
 Switzerland 13 29 2559 32
 Uzbekistan 14 30 2533 32
 Serbia and Montenegro 15 26 2568 32

Group C (from amongst teams seeded 52nd to 77th)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[5] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[7]
 Ireland 43 54 2454 30
 Indonesia 48 65 2397 29½
 Finland 49 53 2456 29½

Group D (from amongst teams seeded 78th to 103rd)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[5] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[7]
 Tajikistan 61 83 2303 28½
 Bolivia 65 79 2371 28½
 Pakistan 69 84 2298 28

Group E (from amongst teams seeded 104th to 129th)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[5] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[7]
 Japan 87 112 2125 26½
 Botswana 94 105 2174 25½
 Kenya 95 119 2121 25½

Individual results

Individual medals are awarded to the three players to achieve the best rating performance having played at least eight games. Medals are also awarded to the top three finishers, by percentage of points won from total points possible, from amongst those to have played primarily on each of boards one through four (having played at least eight games) as well as to those reserves who have otherwise played at least seven games across all boards, who are classified as playing on boards five and six. Teams typically feature their better players on the lower-numbered boards, but illness, fatigue, and absence often affect playing rotations. Ties are resolved in favor of the player who played more games; where ties remain, the player with a better rating performance is awarded the superior placing.

Best rating performance
Player[4] Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Principal board played Games played Points scored Rating performance
Baadur Jobava  Georgia 2614 4 10 8½ 2842
Viswanathan Anand  India 2781 1 11 8 2824
Vasyl Ivanchuk  Ukraine 2705 1 13 9½ 2819
Rafael Vaganian  Armenia 2640 3 11 8½ 2818
Peter Svidler  Russia 2735 2 9 6½ 2811
Michael Adams  England 2740 1 13 10 2773
Andrei Volokitin  Ukraine 2652 3 12 8½ 2771
Lazaro Bruzon  Cuba 2637 2 11 8 2771
Gregory Kaidanov  United States 2611 4 10 8 2763
Leinier Domínguez  Cuba 2645 1 11 7½ 2749
Board prizes

First board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
GM[11]Evgenij Ermenkov  Palestine 2454 12 10½ 87.5
GM Andres Rodríguez  Uruguay 2533 10 8 80.0
GM Michael Adams  England 2740 13 10 76.9

Second board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
IM[8] Mohamed Tissir  Morocco 2394 9 7½ 83.3
GM[11] Anh Dung Nguyen  Vietnam 2567 11 8½ 77.3
GM Bazar Hatanbaatar  Mongolia 2427 12 9 75.0

Third board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
GM[11]Rafael Vaganian  Armenia 2640 11 8½ 77.3
GM Vladimir Georgiev  Macedonia 2512 12 9 75.0
IM[8]Garcia Jose Gonzalez  Mexico 2447 10 7½ 75.0

Fourth board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
GM[11]Baadur Jobava  Georgia 2614 10 8½ 85.0
GM Gregory Kaidanov  United States 2611 10 8 80.0
GM Gadir Guseinov  Azerbaijan 2552 10 8 80.0

Fifth (first reserve) board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
IM[8]Vaidas Sakalauskas  Lithuania 2464 7 6 85.7
GM[11]Serik Temirbaev  Kazakhstan 2468 7 5½ 78.6
GM Jean-Marc Degraeve  France 2551 9 7 77.8

Sixth (second reserve) board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
GM[11] Sergey Karjakin  Ukraine 2576 7 6½ 92.9
FM[12]Ibrahim Chahrani  Libya 2273 7 6½ 92.9
William Bermudez Adams  Puerto Rico 2138 8 6½ 81.3

Women's tournament

The women's division was contested by 87 teams representing 84 nations and territories; Spain, as hosts, fielded two teams, whilst the International Braille Chess Association and the International Physically Disabled Chess Association each entered one squad.

People's Republic of China, led by first board Grandmaster (GM) and former women's world champion Xie Jun and second board Woman Grandmaster (WGM) Xu Yuhua, who would become women's world champion in 2006, entered the competition as top seed and defending champion and quickly took the tournament lead, conceding just two draw in their first five matches (comprising fifteen games) and then defeating 35th Chess Olympiad silver medallists Russia and bronze medallists Poland (each 2-1) in the sixth and eighth rounds, respectively, later carrying a six-point lead into a tenth round match with second place United States.

GM Zsuzsa Polgar, who entered the tournament as the second highest-rated player and achieved the best performance rating of any player in the tournament, drew Jun, while International Master (IM) Irina Krush won her second board game against Yuhua; a draw by WGM Anna Zatonskih against WGM Zhao Xue gave the Americans a 2-1 win over the Chinese team. In rounds eleven and twelve, China drew Hungary and lost to Georgia, whilst the United States defeated Slovakia and then scored a 2½-½ victory of Hungary, drawing, along with Georgia, to within three points of China with two rounds remaining. China, though, defeated sixth-seeded India and 12th-seeded Slovakia in the final two rounds, scoring four points to preserve what was ultimately a three-point win over the United States side and to clinch the Vera Menchik Trophy.

Second-seeded Russia, led by fourth board WGM Nadezhda Kosintseva, who won top honors on the first reserve board for scoring 10 points in 12 rounds, sat in eighth place after ten rounds but rallied to fourth place entering the penultimate round, where they faced Georgia, whom they trailed by one half-point. Although first board GM Maya Chiburdanidze and second board WGM Nana Dzagnidze, each of whom scored eight-and-one-half points for her team over the event, drew their matches, third board WGM Lela Javakhishvili lost to Kosintseva, giving the Russian team a one half-point lead over Georgia; although Georgia defeated Ukraine, 2½-½, in the final round, Russia managed two points against France, equalling Georgia's 27½ total and winning third place on tiebreaks.

Thirteenth-seeded Hungary, paced by second board IM Szidonia Vajda, who recorded two wins and a draw against three players ranked in the top seven of those participating, and 27th-seeded England, for whom IM Harriet Hunt scored nine-and-one-half points in 13 games, finished a surprising sixth and eighth respectively, while Ukraine, the fifth-seeded team, tallied only eight points in 19 games played by first board WGM Natalia Zhukova and fourth board IM Olga Alexandrova, ultimately finishing in 18th place.

Team results

The teams finishing first through third overall receive medals, as do those finishing in the top three amongst teams organized by seed; overall medal winners are not eligible to receive group prizes.

Top ten overall finishers
Place of finish[13] Team Players[14][15] Seed[16] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Matches won Matches drawn Matches lost Total score[17]
First  China GM[11]Xie Jun, WGM[18] Xu Yuhua, WGM Zhao Xue, WIM[19] Huang Qian 1 2514 11 1 2 31
Second  United States GM Zsuzsa Polgar, IM[8]Irina Krush, WGM Anna Zatonskih, WIM Jennifer Shahade 3 2490 10 3 1 28
Third  Russia IM Alexandra Kosteniuk, WGM Tatiana Kosintseva, IM Ekaterina Kovalevskaya, WGM Nadezhda Kosintseva 2 2491 9 3 2 27½
Fourth  Georgia GM Maya Chiburdanidze, WGM Nana Dzagnidze, WGM Lela Javakhishvili, IM Maria Lomineishvili 4 2470 10 1 3 27½
Fifth  France IM Almira Skripchenko, IM Marie Sebag, WGM Silvia Collas, WIM Sophie Milliet 8 2417 8 2 4 25½
Sixth  Hungary IM Ildikó Mádl, IM Szidonia Vajda, WGM Anita Gara, WGM Nikoletta Lakos 13 2376 8 3 3 25
Seventh  Slovakia WGM Eva Repkova, WGM Regina Pokorna, IM Zuzana Hagarova, Zuzana Borošová 12 2377 8 2 4 25
Eighth  England IM Harriet Hunt, WGM Jovanka Houska, WIM Heather Richards, Melanie Buckley 27 2293 7 2 5 25
Ninth  India GM Humpy Koneru, IM Subbaraman Vijayalakshmi, WGM Dronavalli Harika, WGM Nisha Mohota 6 2435 8 3 3 24½
Tenth  Poland IM Iweta Radziewicz, IM Monika Soćko, IM Joanna Dworakowska, WGM Marta Zielinska 7 2427 7 3 4 24½
Group prizes

Group A (from amongst teams seeded 1st to 17th)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[16] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[17]
 Georgia 4 4 2470 27½
 France 5 8 2417 25½
 Hungary 6 13 2376 25

Group B (from amongst teams seeded 18th to 34th)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[16] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[17]
 England 8 27 2293 25
 Lithuania 13 20 2311 24
 Sweden 15 24 2301 24

Group C (from amongst teams seeded 35th to 51st)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[16] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[17]
 Uzbekistan 32 37 2235 22½
 Iran 34 41 2189 22
 Estonia 36 38 2229 22

Group D (from amongst teams seeded 52nd to 69th)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[16] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[17]
 Colombia 37 55 2107 21½
 Malaysia 40 56 2084 21½
 Canada 41 52 2123 21½

Group E (from amongst teams seeded 70th to 87th)

Team Overall place of finish[9] Seed[16] Average July 2004 FIDE rating[6] Total score[17]
 Kyrgyzstan 58 75 2080 20
 Indonesia 59 72 2125 20
 Guatemala 60 77 2043 20

Individual results

Individual medals are awarded to the three players to achieve the best rating performance having played at least eight games. Medals are also awarded to the top three finishers, by percentage of points won from total points possible, from amongst those to have played primarily on each of boards one through three (having played at least eight games) as well as to those reserves who have otherwise played at least seven games across all boards, who are classified as playing on board four. Teams typically feature their better players on the lower-numbered boards, but illness, fatigue, and absence often affect playing rotations. Ties are resolved in favor of the player who played more games; where ties remain, the player with a better rating performance is awarded the superior placing.

Best rating performance
Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Principal board played Games played Points scored Rating performance
GM[11] Zsuzsa Polgar  United States 2567 1 14 10½ 2622
GM Xie Jun  China 2569 1 10 7 2597
WGM[18] Zhao Xue  China 2487 3 12 10 2596
IM[8] Harriet Hunt  England 2385 1 13 9½ 2558
WGM Nadezhda Kosintseva  Russia 2446 4 12 10 2550
IM Viktorija Čmilytė  Lithuania 2442 1 11 8½ 2550
IM Szidonia Vajda  Hungary 2369 2 12 9 2541
IM Alexandra Kosteniuk  Russia 2508 1 11 7 2539
GM Maya Chiburdanidze  Georgia 2503 1 13 8½ 2531
GM Humpy Koneru  India 2503 1 14 8½ 2521
Board prizes

First board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
IM[8] Viktorija Čmilytė  Lithuania 2442 11 8½ 77.3
GM[11] Zsuzsa Polgar  United States 2567 14 10½ 75.0
WGM[18] Elvira Berend  Luxembourg 2307 12 9 75.0

Second board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
IM[8] Szidonia Vajda  Hungary 2369 12 9 75.0
IM Corina-Isabela Peptan  Romania 2429 12 9 75.0
WGM[18] Barbara Hund  Switzerland 2240 11 8 72.7

Third board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
WGM[18] Zhao Xue  China 2487 12 10 83.3
Irine Kharisma Sukandar  Indonesia No rating[20] 12 10 83.3
WIM[19] Tuvshintogs Batceceg  Mongolia 2209 12 9 75.0

Fourth (reserve) board

Player Team represented July 2004 FIDE rating Games played Points scored Percentage attained[10]
WGM[18] Nadezhda Kosintseva  Russia 2446 12 10 83.3
WGM Maria Velcheva  Bulgaria 2299 10 8 80.0
WGM Marta Zielinska  Poland 2395 10 7½ 75.0

Overall title

The Nona Gaprindashvili Trophy is awarded to the entity the average place of finish of which in the open and women's division is the best (where two or more teams are tied, they are ordered by single-best finish in either division and then by total points scored); with an average finish of two-and-one-half, the Russia won the 2004 trophy.

Top ten finishers

Team Open division placing Women's division placing Average placing
 Russia 2 3 2½
 United States 4 2 3
 Armenia 3 11 7
 India 6 9 7½
 Ukraine 1 18 9½
 Netherlands 8 12 10
 Poland 12 10 11
 Bulgaria 9 14 11½
 China 24 1 12½
 Georgia 21 4 12½

Participating teams

Squads representing 119 nations, five constituent countries, two autonomous entities, two crown dependencies, two international organizations, two special administrative regions, two insular areas, and one overseas territory were entered into the Olympiad, comprising 1204 players (some registered players, though, did not play).

Entering teams in the open and women's division were

Controversy

Azmaiparashvili incident

Prior to the closing ceremonies of the Olympiad, FIDE vice president Grandmaster Zurab Azmaiparashvili was arrested by Palmanovan law enforcement as he attempted to ascend the stage. Security officers, in conjunction with local police, did not permit Azmaiparashvili access to tournament organizers, and a struggle ensued, after which Azmaiparashvili, having sustained several injuries, was arrested; he secured his release on bail for €500 after having been held for 40 hours, and the charges against him were later dropped.

Azmaiparashvili, a Georgian undertook to inform the presenter of the Nona Gaprindashvili Trophy that the latter ought more clearly to explain Gaprindashvili's contributions to the game of chess (Gaprindashvili had been women's world chess champion), but was barred by security. Azmaiparashvili and FIDE averred that Azmaiparashvili was detained and physically accosted despite his having properly and clearly [displayed] his VIP credentials [1], whilst representatives of the Spanish chess federation (the Federación Española de Ajedrez) and tournament organizers blamed Azmaiparashvili for the incident, saying that he without any previous provocation, assaulted [an] agent with a head butt to [the] mouth [2].

Drug testing

Having been formally recognized by the International Olympic Committee in 1999, in preparation for prospective inclusion in future iterations of the Olympic Games, FIDE, in 2001, implemented doping restrictions consistent with those adopted by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Two players, Shaun Press of Papua New Guinea and Bobby Miller of Bermuda, refused, for various reasons, to submit urine samples for analysis. Both players appeared before a FIDE disciplinary panel, which decided to cancel the players' performances (Press had scored seven-and-one-half points over fourteen games, while Miller had scored three-and-one-half points over nine games), reducing the final score of Papua New Guinea to 15.5 (from 23.0) and that of Bermuda to 18.5 (from 22.0).

Associated events

Concomitant to the tournaments were several chess-related events planned by the organizing committee of the Olympiad, some under the auspices of FIDE; the events were known collectively as the First Chess Festival Calvià 2004. Within the festival were held simultaneous exhibitions, game demonstrations and lectures by top Spanish players, and several chess tournaments, including one for amateur players, one for players aged under 16 years (a speed chess event), and one for senior players.

Chess classes were introduced into the primary and secondary schools, as well as senior centers, in and around Calvià, in an effort to promote chess generally, and chess films were screened on the beaches of Calvià each weeknight.

Chess-oriented art was displayed at an International Chess Fair, with prizes for top works awarded by a jury.

External links

Notes

  1. ^ Although commonly referred to as the men's division, this section is open to both male and female players.
  2. ^ Where teams share the same total score, they are ordered by Buchholz tiebreak scores, calculated by summing the final scores of each opponent played by a given team. It was on the basis of a superior sum of opponents' scores, 460 to 459, that Russia claimed second place over Armenia.
  3. ^ Players are ordered by board, from first to last, in the same fashion in which they principally played; the fifth and sixth players of each team may have played on higher boards during the Olympiad but played fewer games than the players who primarily occupied the positions.
  4. ^ a b All players are Grandmasters except where a note to the contrary is present.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Teams were initially seeded into the Olympiad on the basis of the average Elo rating of the top four players expected to compose each team; for example, the highest-seeded team, Russia, entered the tournament with an average FIDE rating of 2724, whilst the lowest-seeded team, United States Virgin Islands, fielded no players with international ratings (and was therefore assessed an average rating of 1600).
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l The ratings averaged are those of the top four players expected to compose each team.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Inasmuch as the tournament consisted of 14 rounds, with four games played by each team per round, the maximum number of points one team could accumulate was 56.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h IM denotes International Master.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rank is after the application of tiebreaks, where applicable.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j A player's percentage attained is the fraction of possible points he/she actually earned; a player winning five games, drawing three, and losing two would, having scored 6½ points over 10 games, achieve a 65 per cent success rate.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i GM denotes Grandmaster.
  12. ^ FM denotes FIDE Master.
  13. ^ Where teams share the same total score, they are ordered by Buchholz tiebreak scores, calculated by summing the final scores of each opponent played by a given team. It was on the basis of a superior sum of opponents' scores, 346 to 339, that Russia claimed third place over Georgia.
  14. ^ Players are ordered by board, from first to last, in the same fashion in which they principally played; the fourth player on each team will have played on a higher board during the Olympiad but will have played fewer games than the players who primarily occupied the positions.
  15. ^ Titles for all FIDE-titled players are listed.
  16. ^ a b c d e f Teams were initially seeded into the Olympiad on the basis of the average Elo rating of the top three players expected to compose each team; for example, the highest-seeded team, People's Republic of China, entered the tournament with an average FIDE rating of 2514, whilst the lowest-seeded team, United States Virgin Islands, fielded no players with international ratings (and was therefore assessed an average rating of 1600).
  17. ^ a b c d e f Inasmuch as the tournament consisted of 14 rounds, with three games played by each team per round, the maximum number of points one team could accumulate was 42.
  18. ^ a b c d e f WGM denotes Woman Grandmaster.
  19. ^ a b WIM denotes Woman International Master.
  20. ^ Players without a rating had not played the required ten, FIDE-approved games before the July 2004 rating list was issued.