Recap

After yesterday’s first rest day Ian Nepomniachtchi took the lead by defeating Alireza Firouzja in a sharp Najdorf, every other game ended in a draw. Two peaceful games and Caruana finally holding off Ding, surviving yet another unpleasant game.

Going into the first rest day, the tournament situation is not much clearer than it was one round ago. Two players are tied for first — Caruana and Nepomniachtchi on plus one. All games finished in a draw, even though there was no shortage of chess drama. Both Rapport and Nakamura pulled off major escapes, while Caruana almost overpressed with the White pieces.

The second act of the 14-round Candidates tournament paced at a much slower speed today. If the first round started with a bang, the next one slowly gained momentum and built up tension towards the only decisive game of the round.

Eight of the world’s best players have gathered at the spectacular Palace of Santoña in Madrid, Spain, to compete for the right to challenge the World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen. The lead up to one of the most anticipated events of this year was rocky to say the least, as Ding Liren jumped in at the last moment.

After 6 rounds, the Summer Classic was shaping up to be one for the ages. In both groups, an astounding 7 out of 10 players remained within a point of first place, leaving everything to play for in the last 3 rounds. 

Day 7:

Day 4 of the 2022 Summer Chess Classic started with Ray Robson unfortunately withdrawing from the tournament due to COVID-19. Because he had not played more than 50% of his games, Robson’s results against Yu Yangyi, Oparin, and Mishra were annulled, and no points were awarded for his remaining games. The games already played will still count for rating.

The Saint Louis Chess Club has a brand new look as competitors gather for the first time in our new tournament hall for the 2022 Summer Chess Classic. For the second time this year, strong players from all around the world have come together to compete for their share of $36,000. The two ten-player round robins are headlined by two 2700+ Grandmasters Yu Yangyi and Sam Sevian.

GM Fabiano Caruana clinched clear 1st place in the inaugural 2022 American Cup, after defeating GM Levon Aronian in today’s decisive classical game.

After defeating GM Leinier Dominguez in a dramatic playoff, GM Levon Aronian qualified for the finals of the 2022 American Cup, where he will face GM Fabiano Caruana for the 1st place prize of $50,000.

In the women’s field, FM Alice Lee earned herself a rematch in the $25,000 final against GM Irina Krush, after winning an incredibly close match against WGM Tatev Abrahamyan that went all the way to Armageddon. 

Both GM Fabiano Caruana and GM Irina Krush managed to qualify to the finals of the American Cup, after drawing the second game and avoiding a playoff in their Champions Bracket matches against GM Leinier Dominguez and FM Alice Lee.