Sam Shankland – Chessdom https://www.chessdom.com Chess, chess news, live chess games Tue, 27 Aug 2024 12:19:05 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6.2 Akiba Rubinstein Memorial 2024 LIVE https://www.chessdom.com/akiba-rubinstein-memorial-2024-live/ Wed, 21 Aug 2024 04:19:00 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=92754 The 60th Akiba Rubinstein Festival going to take place 17-25 August in Polanica-Zdrój, Poland. It is a 10 player round robin with Jan-Krzysztof Duda, David Navara, Vincent Keymer, Alexey Sarana, Pentala Harikrishna, Vladimir Fedoseev, Radoslaw Wojtaszek, Sam Shankland, Andrei Volokitin, and Mateuzs Bartel.

Live games will be daily on Chessdom with broadcast provided by the largest free online chess server Lichess.

More parallel tournament: European Youth Chess 2024 / Simul with Zuzana Hagarova / Dortmund Chess 2024 / Hans Niemann – Nikita Vitiugov / Sinquefield Cup 2024 / Abu Dhabi Chess 2024

Akiba Rubinstein live games

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Prague Masters 2023 – LIVE https://www.chessdom.com/prague-masters-2023-live/ Tue, 20 Jun 2023 04:30:00 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=90894 The Prague Masters 2023 is taking place from 21–30 June 2023 in Prague, Czechia. Players receive 90 minutes for 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes to the end of the game, plus a 30-second increment starting from move one. It is a 10-player round-robin tournament with participation of Hao Wang, Sam Shankland, Pentala Harikrishna, Bogdan-Daniel Deac, Vincent Keymer, David Navara, Ray Robson, Haik M. Martirosyan, Boris Gelfand and Thai Dai Van Nguyen.

Parallel : Prague Challengers 2023 / Prague Open 2023
More : European Pairs Blitz 2023 / Armageddon Europe & Africa – Winners / Armageddon Europe & Africa – Losers / Yoo vs. Pranav V – Junior Speed Chess Quaterfinal / Raunak vs. Samadov – Junior Speed Chess Quaterfinal / US National Open 2023 / US Women’s National Open 2023 / Silver Lake Open 2023 / FISCA GM 2023 / FISCA Open 2023 / Aktobe Open Classic 2023

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Prague Masters 2023 https://www.chessdom.com/prague-masters-2023/ Tue, 20 Jun 2023 04:00:00 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=90892 The Prague Masters 2023 is a 10-player round-robin tournament taking place from 21–30 June 2023 in Prague, Czechia. Players receive 90 minutes for 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes to the end of the game, plus a 30-second increment starting from move one.
Chessdom.com will daily follow the live games.

Parallel : Prague Challengers 2023 / Prague Open 2023
More : European Pairs Blitz 2023 / Armageddon Europe & Africa – Winners / Armageddon Europe & Africa – Losers / Yoo vs. Pranav V – Junior Speed Chess Quaterfinal / Raunak vs. Samadov – Junior Speed Chess Quaterfinal / US National Open 2023 / US Women’s National Open 2023 / Silver Lake Open 2023 / FISCA GM 2023 / FISCA Open 2023 / Aktobe Open Classic 2023

Full list of players :

No. NameFEDRtg
1GMWANG HaoCHN2722
2GMSHANKLAND SamUSA2711
3GMHARIKRISHNA PentalaIND2704
4GMDEAC Bogdan-DanielROU2693
5GMKEYMER VincentGER2690
6GMNAVARA DavidCZE2689
7GMROBSON RayUSA2689
8GMMARTIROSYAN Haik M.ARM2685
9GMGELFAND BorisISR2668
10GMNGUYEN Thai Dai VanCZE2653
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Vugar Gashimov Memorial 2022 – LIVE games https://www.chessdom.com/vugar-gashimov-memorial-2022-live-games/ Sun, 18 Dec 2022 12:58:00 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=85794 The Vugar Gashimov memorial 2022 will take place from 18-23 December in Baku, Azerbaijan. It will be a 10-player super-tournament consisting of Rapid and Blitz stages and the final standings will be determined according to the sum of points of Rapid and Blitz events. The Rapid portion will be played in 9 rounds, round-robin system, with time control 15 min + 10 sec, and the Blitz tournament will be played in 18 rounds, round-robin system, with time control 3 min + 2 sec.

The participants are GM Shakhriyar MamedyarovGM Richard RapportGM Wang HaoGM Sam Shankland, GM Gukesh DGM Nodirbek AbdusattorovGM Rauf MamedovGM Vallejo PonsGM Abdulla Gadimbayli and GM Aydin Suleymanli.

Chessdom will follow the event with daily news and videos and will broadcast live games.

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Vugar Gashimov Memorial 2022 https://www.chessdom.com/vugar-gashimov-memorial-2022/ Wed, 14 Dec 2022 13:43:35 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=85790 The Vugar Gashimov memorial 2022 will take place from 18-23 December in Baku, Azerbaijan. It will be a 10-player super-tournament consisting of Rapid and Blitz stages. The Rapid portion will be played in 9 rounds, round-robin system, with time control 15 min + 10 sec, and the Blitz tournament will be played in 18 rounds, round-robin system, with time control 3 min + 2 sec. The final standings will be determined according to the sum of points of Rapid and Blitz events.

The participants are GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, GM Richard Rapport, GM Wang Hao, GM Sam Shankland, GM Gukesh D, GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov, GM Rauf Mamedov, GM Vallejo Pons, GM Abdulla Gadimbayli and GM Aydin Suleymanli.

Vugar Gashimov Memorial 2022 – LIVE games

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US Women’s Chess Champion 2022 to be determined in playoffs; Round 13 recap https://www.chessdom.com/us-womens-chess-champion-2022-to-be-determined-in-playoffs-round-13-recap/ Thu, 20 Oct 2022 08:11:32 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=84173 GM Fabiano Caruana is the 2022 U.S. Champion, clinching his second title with a draw in the 13th and final round of the tournament against GM Levon Aronian, a first-time competitor in the U.S. Championship. 

The U.S. Women’s Championship will be decided in a playoff tomorrow between GM Irina Krush and WGM Jennifer Yu. Krush drew a hard-fought game vs. IM Anna Zatonskih. Meanwhile, Yu scored a must-win victory vs. WGM Thalia Cerventes, tying with Krush and getting a rematch for the title. 

Check out the full replay of live coverage from the day here. The time control for the event is 90 minutes for 40 moves plus 30 minutes for the rest of the game; with a 30-second increment starting from move 1.

U.S. Championship –  Final Standings
U.S. Women’s Championship – Standings after Round 13

2022 U.S. Championship

GM Fabiano Caruana vs. GM Levon Aronian ½-½ 

Twelve minutes into the game, the players had already played 34 moves into a repetition draw. However, this was not your typical quick GM draw. As Caruana later explained: “Normally I would’ve liked to play, at least a little bit. Of course a draw is a good result in the last round, considering the tournament situation… It’s a big day for Levon, and I thought it would be wrong for me to play this game.”

Caruana and Aronian drew before the delayed broadcast even began but for an atypical reason. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes

GM Ray Robson vs. GM Jeffery Xiong ½-½ 

Ray Robson fought for the win and his chance at a playoff for the title but lost his advantage when Jeffery Xiong counterattacked on the kingside. 

Robson pressed with a small edge for over 30 moves but overlooked 38…f5. After 39.Bxf5 Qxh4 40.Bxd7 Nxd7, Xiong had a slight advantage. The players fought for 72 moves before drawing. | ½-½, 72 moves
Though they drew, Robson and Xiong came ready for a fight and dueled for over five hours. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes

GM Dariusz Swiercz vs. GM Christopher Yoo 0-1

The youngest player in the U.S. Championship, Christopher Yoo, finished on a victory, winning a tactical game vs. GM Dariusz Swiercz.

Yoo sealed the victory with 33…b4! breaking the pin on his queen with a double attack against the Swiercz’s queen and rook. | 0-1, 33 moves

GM Leinier Dominguez vs. GM Sam Shankland ½-½ 

Though both players were hoping to have a chance to play for the win, Leinier Dominguez vs. Sam Shankland ended in a 10 move draw. Shankland explains his disappointment with this result in his interview after the game: “I’m sorry for how this ended. I’ve been one of the most vocal critics of people making this Qe4-Qd4 draw in the Berlin. I wrote in my Chessable course that anyone who does this more than once with white just shouldn’t be invited to tournaments. I just felt like I owe the world an apology…”

GM Elshan Moradiabadi vs. GM Aleksandr Lenderman 0-1

Aleksandr Lenderman finished his tournament on a victory, battling for the upper hand vs. GM Elshan Moradiabadi for 72 moves.

The rest of the games ended in draws. 

Aleksandr Lenderman clinched the victory in the last round; Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club

2022 U.S. Women’s Championship

WGM Thalia Cervantes vs. WGM Jennifer Yu 0-1

Jennifer Yu won a critical game with the black pieces vs. her closest competitor, Thalia Cervantes.

Yu recaptured with 42…cxd4 when she has great pressure on her opponent between her active rooks on kingside outposts and passed d-pawn. After 43.Rc4 d3 44.Ra4 Ne5 45.Rxa5 Ng6, Black’s knight joined the attack, and Yu soon crashed through on the kingside. | 0-1, 57 moves
Yu came through in the last round, giving her the opportunity at a rematch vs. Krush for the championship. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller

GM Irina Krush vs. IM Anna Zatonskih ½-½ 

Irina Krush and longtime rival Anna Zatonskih fought a close game to a king vs. king draw. 

Though Krush pressed her edge with white for a while, Zatonskih consolidated and after 56…Qc5, the players traded into a balanced ending, drawing on move 87. | ½-½, 87 moves
Krush will fight for her ninth U.S. Women’s Championship title in the playoff vs. Yu. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes

FM Alice Lee vs. WIM Megan Lee 0-1

Megan Lee capped off her tournament with a king attack victory.

Megan Lee ripped open Alice Lee’s kingside with 17…Nxg3! and won material to boot after 18.cxd5 (if 18.hxg3 Qh1+ 19.Kf2 Ne4+ 20.Bxe4 fxe4 21.Ne5 Bxe5 22.dxe5 Qf3+ 23.Kg1 Rh1#) 18…Nxf1 19.Bxf1 exd5  | 0-1, 60 moves
Megan Lee finishes her tournament with an attacking victory. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller

FM Rochelle Wu vs. WGM Sabina Foisor 1-0

Rochelle Wu defeated Sabina Foisor with a clever interference tactic to win material.

Wu played 30.Bd6! cutting off the defense of the d2-rook to win the exchange after 30…R2xd6 31.cxd6 Qxd6 Qxf5  | 1-0, 60 moves

WGM Tatev Abrahamyan and Sophie Morris-Suzuki also finished their tournaments with victories while Begim Tokhirjonova and Ruiyang Yan drew. 

Irina Krush and Jennifer Yu will face each other in the playoff for the U.S. Women’s Chess Championship on Thursday, October 20. Watch the action live at 1:20pm CT with commentators GM Yasser Seirawan, WGM Anastasiya Karlovich, and GM Cristian Chirila.

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Sam Shankland joins US Championship studio to apologize for a quick draw https://www.chessdom.com/sam-shankland-joins-us-championship-studio-to-apologize-for-a-quick-draw/ Wed, 19 Oct 2022 20:07:36 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=84159 Sam Shankland’s last game of the 2022 US Chess Championship ended in a draw after only 8 minutes of play as his opponent Leinier Dominguez decided to go for an early threefold repetition in Najdorf. Shankland was disappointed with the repetition of the moves and requested to join the event’s live studio to apologize for a quick draw. “First of all, they didn’t even ask me to come for an interview, I came because I requested. I wanted to say I’m sorry for how this ended“, said Sam.

Shankland added that Leinier had never before forced an early draw with white pieces: “I played the Najdorf, I mean, I was ready to take a lot of risks. I’d never once ever seen Dominguez force a draw with whites, like literally zero times“. Sam said that he considered a decision to refuse a draw despite he had black pieces, but he explained that he wasn’t prepared well for the alternative. “I just sort of decided to make the adult decision, but it is not one that I am proud of“, concluded Shankland. Replay the complete interview below

With a draw in the last round, Leinier Dominguez secured the top-5 position in the 2022 US Chess Championship and a qualification spot for the next FIDE World Chess Cup.

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US Chess Championship 2022 – Round 13 live https://www.chessdom.com/us-chess-championship-2022-round-13-live/ Wed, 19 Oct 2022 10:05:05 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=84141 The 2022 U.S. Chess Championship and the US Women’s Chess Championship 2022 are concurrently held from 5-20 October in Saint Louis Chess Club. Fourteen of the country’s strongest chess players battle for the national title and $60,000 in a classical round-robin event with Fabiano CaruanaLevon Aronian and Wesley So headlining the field which includes Hans Niemann as the 8th seed. The U.S. Women’s title is decided in an identical format with a $40,000 first prize, with GM Irina KrushIM Anna Zatonskih and FM Ashritha Eswaran being the top seeds.

With only one round to go, Fabiano Caruana is the sole leader of the event and GM Ray Robson trails by half a point. Round 12 recap / Pairings & Schedule of all rounds

Round 13 pairings:
Fabiano Caruana – Levon Aronian
Leinier Dominguez – Sam Shankland
Ray Robson – Jeffery Xiong
Dariusz Swiercz – Christopher Yoo
Hans Niemann – Awonder Liang
Wesley So – Samuel Sevian
Elshan Moradiabadi – Aleksandr Lenderman

Follow Round 13 live video coverage with commentaries by GMs Yasser Seirawan, Cristian Chirila, & WGM Anastasiya Karlovych:

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Fabiano Caruana remains in sole lead; US Chess Championship 2022 Round 12 recap https://www.chessdom.com/fabiano-caruana-remains-in-sole-lead-us-chess-championship-2022-round-12-recap/ Wed, 19 Oct 2022 08:09:22 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=84138 A broken king? A blundered bishop? A scrambled leaderboard in the U.S. Women’s Championship with one round to go? Chaos has erupted at the U.S. Championships. 

Fabiano Caruana and his closest competitor Ray Robson each drew, staying in first and second. Wild card GM Awonder Liang fought for 105 moves for the win to join Leiner Dominguez in a tie for third. In the U.S. Women’s Championship, there were decisive results on all the leading boards. Irina Krush defeated Jennifer Yu to leapfrog into first. Thalia Cervantes won yet again, reaching a five-game winning streak. She and Yu are now tied for second, trailing Krush by half a point, and facing each other for a climatic last round. 

Check out the full replay of live coverage from the day here. The time control for the event is 90 minutes for 40 moves plus 30 minutes for the rest of the game; with a 30-second increment starting from move 1.

U.S. Championship – Standings after Round 12
U.S. Women’s Championship – Standings after Round 12

2022 U.S. Championship

GM Awonder Liang vs. GM Dariusz Swiercz 1-0

GM Awonder Liang was the last game to finish. In this marathon game vs. GM Dariusz Swiercz, Liang gained one extra pawn after 50 moves, a second one on move 60, and finally converted in the rook ending after 105 moves. Liang has performed vastly above his rating, gaining 20 FIDE rating points from the event so far.

Liang gained the first extra pawn with 45.Nh5+ Kg6 46.Rfg1 Kxh5 47.Rxg5+ Kh6 48.Rxf5 and converted his advantage after a hard-fought 50+ more moves. | 1-0, 105 moves
With a 2700+ performance rating, Liang is proving to be a well-chosen wild card entry. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller

GM Sam Sevian vs. GM Hans Niemann 0-1

Sam Sevian vs. Hans Niemann featured not just dynamic fighting play between these resilient grandmasters but also a unique over-the-board incident. On move 45, as Niemann considered his next move, Sevian absentmindedly picked up his opponent’s king ― the way one might fiddle with a piece from off the board―and broke the top cross off. This leads to a moment of sheer confusion between the players, the arbiter, and the commentators before the game continues. In the post-game interview, Niemann explained that Sam wanted to glue the broken piece. Despite his broken king, Niemann managed to score his third victory in a row. 

Back to the chess itself: Earlier in the game, Sevian tried the bold sacrifice of 20.Rd1!? to enhance his activity. Although 20…Bxd1 21.Ne6+ Ke7 22.Nxc5 looks promising, Niemann found 22…Bg4, which prevents all of White’s major threats, giving Black an edge. | 0-1, 78 moves
The players explain Sevian’s unique king incident to the arbiter. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes

GM Aleksandr Lenderman vs. GM Wesley So 0-1

Aleksandr Lenderman vs. Wesley So was close for much of the game until So doubled on the open h-file, aiming down at White’s open king. 

So played 38…Rh1+ when Lenderman’s king has no cover. After 39.Ke2 Qh5+ 40.Kd3 Rh3 Black resigned. | 0-1, 40 moves
Wesley So has gained his third victory. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes

GM Levon Aronian vs. GM Elshan Moradiabadi 1-0

Levon Aronian scored a positional victory vs. Elshan Moradiabadi and won his first game in the 2022 US Chess Championship!

Aronian played 20.a4! to create pressure on the queenside. The game continued: 20…O-O 21.Bxc6 bxc6 22.a5 when Aronian’s rook broke through 22…Nc4 23.Rb7, winning a pawn due to the double attack on a7 and e7. | 1-0, 42 moves
Aronian will face the tournament leader, Caruana, in the final round. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes

The remaining three games ended in draws. 

2022 U.S. Women’s Championship

WGM Jennifer Yu vs. GM Irina Krush 0-1

Krush gained an edge out of the opening with black, but Yu gradually fought back to equality. Yu soon built up attacking chances against her opponent’s king but then tried an inaccurate tactical idea, losing a bishop. 

With 31.Ba4?, Yu deflects the black queen from the defense of f7, but after 31…Qxa4 32.Qf7+ Kh8, everything around the black king is guarded. White tried 33.h5, but after 33…gxh5 34.Rf5 Bd4 35.Rg5 Qc2+, Krush’s king attack proved more dangerous. | 0-1, 38 moves
Krush and Yu now switch places on the scoreboard. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller

WGM Begim Tokhirjonova vs. WGM Thalia Cervantes 0-1

Thalia Cervantes won a tactical battle vs. Begim Tokhirjonova to reach a fifth victory in a row. 

After 28…Rxd8 although Cervantes is down an exchange, she is soon winning it back due to the dual threats of …Bd4 and …Bxa1. The game continued: 29.Kh1 Bxa1 30.Rxa1 when Cervantes gained powerful activity with 30…Rd2 31.Bg2 Qf6 32.Re1 Qb2  | 0-1, 50 moves
The smile of a player on an impressive winning streak. Can Cervantes win one more to be in contention for the title? | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes

WGM Tatev Abrahamyan vs. FM Rochelle Wu 1-0

In a Siclian with the kings castled to opposite sides, Abrahamyan’s effective attacking play won material. 

Abrahamyan played 22.Rf1 when after 22…Nxd3 23.cxd3, Black’s bishop has nowhere to go. Wu attempted to drum up a counter attack with 23…Rac8 24.Rxf6 Rxc1+ 25.Kxc1 Qxa2 26.Rf2 Qa1+ 27.Kc2 Rc8 28.Rc4 White’s king was safe and she soon converted her extra material. | 1-0, 38 moves
In her classic attacking style, Abrahamyan scores her third victory of the tournament. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller

WIM Megan Lee vs. WIM Sophie Morris-Suzuki 0-1

Sophie Morris-Suzuki defeated Megan Lee in an open position where her long-range pieces sliced into her opponent’s position. 

Morris-Suzuki played 37…Rad8 when her long-range pieces create a great amount of pressure in the center, especially her bishops cutting through from both sides. Black threatens 38…Rd3, overwhelming the pinned bishop on e3. The game continued: 38.Bxg5 Qxe2 39.Bxd8 Qxc2 40.Bb6 Qxb2 41.Bf2 Qxa3, gaining a powerful passed a-pawn. | 0-1, 60 moves

FM Ashritha Eswaran vs. FM Ruiyang Yan 0-1

Ruiyang Yan’s powerful bishop pair aided in creating threats against her opponent’s king, winning material. 

It was yet another round of five decisive games and only two draws.

The players often partake in friendly post-game analysis inside the club. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Crystal Fuller

The last round of the 2022 U.S. & U.S. Women’s Chess Championships will take place on Wednesday, October 19. Watch the action live at 1:20pm CT with commentators GM Yasser Seirawan, WGM Anastasiya Karlovich, and GM Cristian Chirila.

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Sam Shankland vs Fabiano Caruana, US Chess Championship 2022 Round 12 LIVE https://www.chessdom.com/sam-shankland-vs-fabiano-caruana-us-chess-championship-2022-round-12-live/ Tue, 18 Oct 2022 07:48:31 +0000 https://www.chessdom.com/?p=84087 The US Chess Championship 2022 is taking place from 5-20 October at the Saint Louis Chess Club. Fourteen of the country’s strongest chess players battle for the national title and $60,000 in a classical round-robin event with Fabiano CaruanaLevon Aronian and Wesley So headlining the field which includes Hans Niemann as the 8th seed.

Heading into the 12th – the penultimate round of the US Chess Championship 2022, Fabiano Caruana is the sole leader of the event. He today takes black pieces against Sam Shankland. Follow the game live:

Pairings & Schedule of all rounds / Round 11 recap / Round 12 live video coverage

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