ACF NEWS

OLYMPIAD SELECTIONS: 38th FIDE Chess Olympiad, Dresden, Germany

from Kevin Bonham, ACF Selections Director

Applications are now open for the Australian Open and Womens Olympiad Teams for the 38^th Chess Olympiad to be held in Dresden, Germany from 12 - 25 November 2008. (Event website: www.dresden2008.org)

An Open team and a Womens team, each consisting of five players and a non-playing captain, will be selected to represent Australia at this event. Players and captains are entitled to full board from the host organisation (two double and two single rooms per team) and travel subsidies from the ACF's Olympiad Appeal fundraising efforts (see www.caq.org.au/olympiad/index.htm for current progress.)

APPLYING FOR SELECTION

Those wishing to be considered for selection as players must apply, by email or in writing (email strongly preferred) by 20 June 2008. Please refer to item 5 of the ACF Selection By-Laws before applying, and for details of material required in an application (item 5.4). The full Selection By-Laws are available online in PDF form at www.auschess.org.au/constitution/Selection%20Procedures%20after%2012%20Feb%202008.pdf. A text copy will be emailed on request.

Please send all applications by email, and any queries about the selections process, to Kevin Bonham (k_bonham@tassie.net.au). If an emailed application has not been acknowledged as received within seven days, please phone (03) 6224 8487 or 0421 428 775. Written applications signed by the applicant may be posted to 410 Macquarie St, South Hobart, Tas 7004.

The names of known applicants will be released progressively on the Olympiad Appeal website as applications are received. Applicants' supporting statements and results summaries, and ratings and results information to be made available to the selectors, will be published online at an address to be announced, and available for public scrutiny, after applications close. Any corrections or additions to this material must then be made by 1 July 2008. Provisional selection results will be advised to all applicants and made public shortly after selections are finalised, on or about 15 July 2008.

IMPORTANT NOTES FOR APPLICANTS

1. Please, if possible, provide an email address that you will check regularly (preferably at least weekly) from the time of your application until the end of July. If at all possible, please send your application from this address.

2. All applicants should keep a copy of their application. Any claims for late application on the grounds of email transmission problems will not be accepted unless accompanied by a copy of the application and a letter from the sender's ISP confirming that the application was sent.

3. Activity Rule: All applicants must have completed 20 games that have been, or will be, rated by the ACF, FIDE or another approved organisation, in the time period 20 June 2007 - 20 June 2008 and at a normal (non-rapid) time limit. However, it is not required that all 20 games have been rated or even submitted for rating by 20 June, so long as they will be rated at some stage. If you have not yet reached your 20 games when you submit your application, please say so, and advise which events you intend to play in to reach 20 games by the deadline.

CAPTAINCIES

Applications for captaincies will be called for in June with a closing date a few days after selections are made public. Unsuccessful applicants for the teams are entitled to apply for a captaincy. Team captains will then be selected by the ACF Council, taking into account (but not necessarily bound by) the preferences and comments of team members. Exact dates and processes for captaincy applications will be announced closer to this stage.

SUMMARY OF DATES

14 April Applications Open
20 June Applications Close
1 July Deadline for Corrections / Material to Selectors
15 July Deadline for Selectors' Votes - provisional selection results advised ASAP to all applicants and published.

This notice also appears online at chesschat.org/showthread.php?p=170639 and has also been sent to the ACF Selections Email List. Please feel free to pass this information on to anyone who may be interested.

AUSTRALIAN OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP 2008-2009

from Gary Wastell, ACF President

The ACF Council has extended to 30 June 2008 the deadline for offers to conduct the 2008-2009 Australian Open Championship on behalf of the ACF.

Other aspects of the call for bids published in email newsletters 417 and 418 are unchanged:
  - ACF by-laws and resolutions governing the conduct of Australian Championship tournaments, including the Australian Open Championship, may be seen on the ACF web site at www.auschess.org.au via the link to Constitution and By-laws;
  - Under current by-laws, the 2008-2009 Australian Women's Championship is to be incorporated in the Open Championship;
  - The chosen organiser must endeavour to conduct the tournament in compliance with all ACF Council resolutions and by-laws not suspended for the purpose;
  - Normal time is a starting date in late December or very early January and a finishing date towards the middle of January;
  - An expression of interest in having the title decided by results in a tournament that is currently scheduled to be held in NSW in a later month remains under consideration;
  - ACF will provide the organiser with a guarantee against loss of an amount not exceeding $2000, receipt of which would be conditional upon presentation of a financial statement acceptable to the Council;
  - Bids should contain the information required by the By-laws for ACF Tournaments, which are at www.auschess.org.au/constitution/index.html;
  - Bids should be submitted to the ACF Secretary Jey Hoole at jeydh4@hotmail.com with a copy to ACF President Gary Wastell at gwastell@netspace.net.au.

An application form covering matters in the by-laws may be obtained by contacting either of the above.

JUNIOR EMAIL LIST

from Jenni Oliver

An e-mail list is planned for 2008. It is for juniors, coaches, parents and interested people. It is envisaged that it will be used for distributing information on events such as overseas selections, Ergas selections, etc. Initially it will also be used as a discussion mechanism for concepts such as the need for a national body to deal with junior affairs (AusJCL). Can interested people please send their e-mail address to jenni@stratagemcc.com.au

MYER TAN AUSTRALIAN CHESS GRAND PRIX

http://www.chessaustralia.com.au/index.cfm?site=grandprix

Coming Grand Prix Events

EVENTS CALENDAR

Gardiner Chess Gold Coast Open

Venue Carrara Community Centre, Nielsens Road, Carrara.
Format Three 7 Round Swisses.
Entry fee Open $90 ($60 J/P/S); U/1600 $60; U/1000 $50. $10 discount for entries paid by 26/6/08.
Prizes Open: $1500, $1000, $750, $300, $250, $200 (U/2000 $100). U/1600: $400, $200, $100 (Rating groups $100, $60). U/1000: Trophies & Medals.
Registration 8.30 to 9.00 a.m., Saturday, 28 June.
Enquiries outreachchess@bigpond.com or Peter Bender 07 5556 0434
Flyer here.

OVERSEAS NEWS

2007 CHESS OSCARS

The Chess Oscar for the World's best chess player in 2007 has been awarded to World Champion and world number one ranked player Viswanathan Anand. The award is based on the nominations of more than two hundred and twenty chess and sports journalists from thirty countries.

One hundred and thirty experts placed Anand in first place. Overall, Vladimir Kramnik came second and Gata Kamsky, following his performance in the World Cup, third.

This is Anand's fifth Chess Oscar, having previously won in 1997, 1998, 2003 and 2004.

M-TEL MASTERS 2008

Official website

Veselin Topalov (2767) - Vassily Ivanchuk (2740)
4th M-Tel Masters Sofia BUL (2), 09/05/08

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 a6 8.a3 cxd4 9.Nxd4 Bc5 10.Be2 0-0 11.Qd2 Qc7 12.Bf3 Nxd4 13.Bxd4 Nb6 14.Ne2 Bxd4 15.Qxd4 Bd7 16.b3 Bb5 17.Nc3 Rfc8 18.Nxb5 axb5 19.Be2 Nd7 20.Ra2 Nb8 21.0-0 Nc6 22.Qd2 Qb6+ 23.Kh1 Qa5 24.Qxa5 Rxa5 25.Raa1 Rca8 26.Rad1 Rxa3 27.Bxb5 Nb4 28.c4 R8a5 29.f5 exf5 30.g4 Rxb3 31.gxf5 Re3 32.Rb1 Nd3
  White might be slightly better, but his super-aggressive continuation does not really work.
33.e6? d4 34.Be8 Nc5?
  Both players were in time trouble. Better was simply 34...Kf8.
35.Bxf7+ Kf8 36.f6 gxf6 37.Rxf6 Ke7 38.Rh6 d3 39.Rxh7 d2
  Black is now better, but White can still fight and hope to hold the draw. Unfortunately on the last move before the time control Topalov falters.
40.Rg1?
  Allowing a forced win:
Re1 41.Bh5+ Kxe6 42.Rhg7 Ne4 43.R7g6+ Ke5 0-1

Vassily Ivanchuk (2740) - Bu Xiangzhi (2708)
4th M-Tel Masters Sofia BUL (3), 10/05/08

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 d5 4.e3 a6 5.Qc2 b5 6.b3 Bg4 7.Ne5 Bh5 8.cxb5
  This position has previously occurred in Agamaliev - Khaghani, Teheran 2005, where it continued 8...Qc7 9.Nxc6 Nxc6 10.bxc6 Qxc6 and White won in 30 moves. In this game, Bu played the catastrophic:
8...cxb5?? 9.Bxb5+ axb5 10.Nxb5
  Threatening 11.Nc7+.
10...e6 11.Nc7+ Ke7 12.Nxa8 Nfd7 13.Ba3+ Kf6 14.Bb2 Nxe5 15.f4 Nbd7 16.Nc7 Bg6 17.Bxe5+ Nxe5 18.fxe5+ Kxe5 19.Qc3+ Kf5
  Bu Xiangzhi is of course playing on to spare himself sub-20 move defeat and an appearance in the record books. Ivanchuk's quickest victory would have gone 20.e4+ Kg4 (20...dxe4 21.0-0+ leads to a slightly shorter mate) 21.Qf3+ Kh4 22.g3+ Kh3 23.Qf1+ Kg4 24.h4 Qf6 25.Qh3+ Kf3 26.g4+ Kf4 27.Rf1+ Ke5 28.Qg3+ Qf4 29.Qxf4+ Kd4 30.Qf2+ Ke5 31.Nb5 Bc5 (or 31...d4 32.Qxd4#) 32.Qf4#.
20.0-0+ Kg5 21.a4 Kh6 22.Rf3 Bf5 23.Raf1 Bd6 24.Nb5 Bb8 25.Nd4 Be4 26.Rh3+ Kg6 27.d3 Bf5 28.Rhf3 Be5 29.Qe1 Bxd4 30.Rg3+ Kh6 31.exd4 g6 32.Rgf3 Qh4 1-0

TAILPIECE