Odd issues occurred on Day 1 of the blitz portion of the FIDE World Fast and Blitz Championship in Samarkand. There was an unlawful transfer made within the sport between Vladislav Artemiev nor Sanan Sjugirov, which neither participant seen and continued enjoying on. In one other sport, issues on the board obtained so intense between Parham Maghsoodloo and Volodar Murzin, that neither seen that the Iranian had misplaced on time and continued forging forward. In a 3rd sport, Andrew Hong claimed his clock was malfunctioning throughout his sport with Yu Yangyi, which led to an enchantment and a consequent delay in additional rounds.
However what made headlines on Friday was the sport between Ian Nepomniachtchi and Daniil Dubov. The 2 Russian grandmasters confronted off in spherical 11 with Dubov enjoying as white. The sport lasted all of 13 strikes earlier than the gamers shook fingers and agreed to a draw.
Extra considerably, the 2 gamers solely moved their knights on the board for the entire sport, the items harmlessly hopping round in circles on the board as if waltzing on the dance ground, with no intention of capturing and even threatening the opposite military’s items. What made the scenario much more ridiculous was that each gamers had been merrily chatting away in Russian earlier than the sport and exchanging smiles throughout the sport itself.
The match’s Chief Arbiter, Ivan Syrovy, took a dim view of the scenario and declared that the sport be known as a double forfeit, that means each gamers misplaced the half factors they earned from the draw.
Speaking about his choice, Chief Arbiter Syrovy mentioned in a press release: “In my eyes each gamers are liable for it, I contemplate they prearranged the results of the sport. My opinion is predicated on the strikes they performed”.
Each Nepo and Dubov objected to the choice and moved the choice to the Appeals Committee, which unanimously voted (all three members) to reject Nepomniachtchi’s enchantment and uphold the choice made by the arbiter. The half-point deduction pushed the duo out of the pack of the match leaders.
These had been the strikes Ian Nepomniachtchi and Daniil Dubov performed earlier than agreeing to a draw:
1.Nf3 Nf6 2.Nd4 Nd5 3.Nb3 Nb6 4.Nc3 Nc6 5.Ne4 Ne5 6.Ng5 Ng4 7.Nf3 Nf6 8.Ng1 Ng8 9.Nc5 Nc4 10.Na4 Na5 11.Nc3 Nc6 12.Nb1 Nb8 13.Nf3
Right here’s how the Ian Nepomniachtchi vs Daniil Dubov 13-move draw performed out:
bruh. 🐎 Dubov vs Nepo was actually one thing #RapidBlitz pic.twitter.com/JYxQatxjTK
— Chess.com (@chesscom) December 29, 2023
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Some jokes and a number of anger
Nepo, who has twice contested for the World Chess Championship crown, appeared to take the choice in his stride.
“0.5 factors from Gryffindor,” he tweeted making a reference to the Harry Potter universe. He additionally tweeted a YouTube hyperlink to a 1935 track composed by Sergei Prokofiev known as Montagues and Capulets, which is popularly often called Dance of the Knights.
Some chess gamers had been furious on the sport, with one even likening it to match fixing.
“That is match-fixing past cheap doubt. Dubov and Nepo idiots for risking their careers for this,” tweeted Norwegian chess grandmaster Jon Ludvig Hammer.
“As a lot as I really like Nepo and Danii, they’re each superb gamers and wonderful dudes, however they have an inclination to neglect they’re too many people on the market who have to combat a lot tougher to make a residing out of chess and gained’t get excessive class invitations to advertise the sport in the very best method. Prime gamers can afford any behaviour, but they may all the time be invited. If decrease gamers afford such a nonsense, they gained’t be invited anymore as they’re replaceable,” posted German ladies’s GM Elisabeth Pahtz.
“My full assist for this choice. Moreover being disrespectful to the sport, it’s premature and inappropriate. Whereas they’re fooling across the high Ukrainian GM Igor Kovalenko is celebrating his thirty fifth birthday within the trenches defending Ukraine from their bloody regime,” thundered Ukranian grandmaster Pavel Eljanov.