| Shakhriyar Mamedyarov | |
|---|---|
Mamedyarov at the 2006 Corus chess tournament |
|
| Full name | Şəhriyar Məmmədyarov |
| Country | Azerbaijan |
| Born | 12 April 1985 Sumgayit, Azerbaijan |
| Title | Grandmaster |
| FIDE rating | 2746 (No. 14 in the September 2011 FIDE World Rankings) |
| Peak rating | 2772 (January 2011) |
Shakhriyar Hamid oglu Mammadyarov (Azerbaijani: Şəhriyar Həmid oğlu Məmmədyarov) (born 12 April 1985 in Sumgayit, Azerbaijan), also known for his Shah nickname, is a chess Grandmaster.[1] On the September 2010 FIDE rating list he was ranked number nine in the world with an Elo rating of 2756.
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Shakhriyar Mamedyarov was born April 12, 1985 in Sumgayit, Azerbaijan.
In 2003 he won the World Junior Chess Championship. He repeated his victory in 2005 (thus becoming the only two-time champion), achieving an incredible 2953 performance rating after eight rounds.[2] This gained him an invitation to the Essent Tournament 2006 in Hoogeveen, and by winning this one and also the 2007 edition, Shakhriyar achieved world fame.[1]
In 2005 Mamedyarov competed at European Club Cup and had the second highest performance rating (2913) among all of the participants (Vassily Ivanchuk had the highest).
IM Goran Antunac has commented that Mamedyarov is a true virtuoso at handling the pieces, always finding the best squares for them.[2]
Mamedyarov attained joint first place in Aeroflot Open in Moscow in February 2006, with a score of 6½/9. In October 2006, he won the closed Essent Chess Tournament in Hoogeveen with 4½ of six games, beating Judit Polgár on Sonneborn-Berger.[3]
In the Chess World Cup 2007 Mamedyarov advanced to the third round where he was knocked out by Ivan Cheparinov.
He also become best individual player at the World Team Chess Championships 2009.[4]
In 2010, he tied for first place with Vladimir Kramnik and Gata Kamsky in the President's Cup in Baku.[5] Followed by joint win in the Mikhail Tal Memorial.[6]
In May 2011, Mammadyarov was tournament organisers' nominee, qualifying him for the Candidates tournament for the World Chess Championship 2012.[7] However, he lost to Boris Gelfand in the quarterfinal of the competition.[8]
His style often known for the experiments in the openings, who also uses various tactical techniques like the Alekhine Defence and the Budapest Gambit.[1]
He played for Azerbaijan in the Chess Olympiads of 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008 and 2010.[9] In 2009, he won the team gold medal for Azerbaijan in European Team Chess Championship, having won bronze medal in 2007 and silver in 2011.[10][11]
Mamedyarov caused controversy during the Aeroflot Open Tournament that took place in Moscow between 17 and 26 February 2009. After losing to lower-rated Igor Kurnosov in 21 moves, the Azeri voiced suspicions of cheating behaviour on the part of his Russian opponent, citing Kurnosov's wanderings outside the playing hall after each move, the refusal to agree to a draw on move 14, and the unusually strong moves for a 2600+ GM. The arbiters were unable to discover any evidence implicating Kurnosov and Mamedyarov withdrew from the tournament in protest.[12][13]
His personal trainer is his father, who is a former boxer. Shakhriyar has two sisters, Zeinab Mamedyarova and Turkan Mamedyarova, who are also Woman Grandmasters.[14]