World Cup is almost a unique tournament in the chess calendar where barely at the chess board you can be knocked out and go home. This is the most difficult for chess players and at the same time the most fascinating for spectators. If you have never watched the games life in the chess knock-out and did it only online, you would not fully feel the dramatic atmosphere of this format. In any case the author of these words have witnessed such pressure in the tournament hall extremely rarely before coming to Khanty-Mansiysk...

Maria Fominykh about the first day of the tournament

The rounds are rather fast flowing and thus very unpredictable. The fight is going on until the first rough mistake. However, a known paradox is in the following: the less possibilities to commit a mistake a player has — the more often they make them thus converting their blunders into ridiculous and rough ones.  If in «Round» and «Swiss» tournament a defeated player is given time to «heal the wounds », in the knock-out system there is not a single hint at mercy. The World Cup is like a revived computer game in the style of popular at the time game «Mortal combat» («fatal battle») where we see the characters fighting with an immense strength of the blow. To tell the truth, in the virtual game a player is given several «lives» and the participants of our battles have to content with only one. The tournament has just commenced, but already tomorrow we will know the names of lucky ones who manage to qualify for the next Round.

Welcome to the chess stadium

As for computer games, they would have been started by simple «Fight»!

FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, Mayor of Khanty-Mansiysk Vassily Filipenko, Director of the Deartment on Physical Training and Sport of Ugra Evgeny Redkin and Governor of Ugra Natalia Komarova attended the very start of the round and paid a special attention at the game of the Ugorian representative Dmitry Jakovenko.

Mitya (as his chess friends often call him) justified their faith in him and playing White defeated Saleh Salem of the United Arab Emirates.

Peter Leko was going for the game with an American Samuel Shankland and could hardly suppose that he would the sensation of the Round. In the drawish endgame the Hungarian Grandmaster decided to sharpen his play and, having lost his caution, missed a dangerous counter game. According to Shankland Leko offered a draw too late.

While the Rating favorite of the tournament Sergey Karjakin playing Black did no give any chances to his titled opponent and defeated him with confidence.

An experienced knock-out system chess player Alexey Shirov started his game without any adventures.

The winner is awaited by his wife and second.

One of the favorites of the tournament Ruslan Ponomariov (UKR) was to face IM Robert Gwaze (ZIM) in the first round. So far everything goes in accordance with the plan of the Ukrainian chess player.

For Alexander Grischuk the first game turned out to be a light promenade — it took him 22 moves to mate the local International Master Vladimir Genba.

Ian Nepomniachtchi defeated Ortiz Suarez Isan Reynal.

A newly made French Champion Maxime Vachier-Lagrave made a draw with Rahman Ziaur (BAN).

A draw with the opponent whose rating is much lower was not the reason for disappointment, because in the second game o this Round Maxime will play White.

Francisco Vallejo Pons playing Black made a serious claim to qualify for the second Round having defeated Jorge Cori (PER).

Vassily Ivanchuk playing White had a hard time to defeat the FIDE Master Henry Robert Steel (RSA).

Rauf Mamedov decided to cheer up Baadur Jobava before the Round. Both played Black and performed rather successfully — Baadur won and Rauf made a draw.

It took Evgeny Alekseev only 18 moves playing Black to make a draw against Markus Ragger (AUT).

The Grandmaster from Khanty-Mansiysk Alexei Bezgodov in the game with Nikita Vitiugov implemented an interesting novelty and had initiative during the entire game. I met his wife Svetlana in the hall and asked her some questions:

— Tell me please on the perception of the World Cup by local people. It is really a huge event for them? — I do not know as for all people in general, because I am a chess player myself and I cannot judge it as a spectator, I always consider it from its interior side. Certainly the World Cup is a great event for us and especially for my students. During the Olympiad many children went to watch the games every day as they were really interested. Today they are not yet back from vacations, because here in Ugra we try to come back from holidays as late as it is possible. Starting from the 1^st of September I believe there will be many children among spectators. I would come here every day, but I teach at school where I have more than 400 students. Obviously I will come here to support my husband and for the entire team of Ugra. We get along perfectly with all the club chess players and I would even call our relations family like ones.

— Are there special conditions provided to the chess players in Khanty Mansiysk? — Yes, three years ago me, my husband and our two daughters moved here and never regretted on that. All members of our family play chess. Elder daughter Maria plays in the tournament actively. This year she entered the Russian State Humanitarian University and moved to Moscow. We are not planning to move anywhere. Khanty Mansiysk  is very cozy city, people are friendly, and climate is not that frightening. There are many social projects implemented here. For instance all school children have their food at school for free, sometimes not only once per day. Sections are also for free. There are billboards all over the city where you can read the city cares about its citizens. This is true. I advise to many of my friends — chess players to come here, to work and live. The social support here is on much higher level than in other regions. That is thy the Khanty Mansiysk population is increasing all the time. This causes another problem — lack of lodging, though the active construction is carried out. The first reason — people come here to work. Second one — it is not a rare situation when some families have about 8 children. I know it from my children. The teachers in our schools one by one take the maternity leave. Three children in a family is a usual case.

Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and Natalia Komarova said many warm words about Okrug at their press conference.

Meanwhile, the battles on 64 chess boards kept continuing on the second floor of the Academy

The day for the Chinese chess players was not that lucky. Hou Yifan started her game with a strong counter stand against Sergey Movsesian, but could not hold the balance.

Yu Yangyi lost to Parligras Mircea Emilian

Zhao Zong-Yuan lost to Evgeny Tomashevsky

Evgeny Tomashevsky with his second Alexey Ilyushin

Zhou Jianchao had a perspective position but got in the time trouble, started playing unconfidently and as a result lost to Anton Korobov

Wang Yue was a coauthor of the day sensation by losing to Alexander Fier and Li Chao defended with White his worse endgame against Nguyen

Le Quang Liem and Susanto Megaranto had a very beautiful position with three pawns competing for Queening.

It was hard for Megaranto to accept a defeat

Judit Polgar over calculated her opponent and came out from the tactical complications with an extra advantage

In the games of Emil Sutovsky one can often find non standard ideas. The game against Evgeny Vorobiev was not an exception. But the complicated game development calmly turned to the peaceful result

Alexander Morozevich did not use his chance of the first to move in his game against Stelios Halkias

The Greek Grandmaster was very happy with the result.

The peaceful agreement was also reached between Mikhail Kobalia (at the picture) and Igor Lysyi

The game Darcy Lima vs Peter Svidler was ended with an unexpected result. If we can trust the online translation, Black offered a draw having an absolutely winning position five moves before the checkmate. But we should not trust the translation.

Wesley So (right) and Ding Liren made a draw and went to analyze their game together

Ernesto Inarkiev quickly won Ivan Salgado and was studying the games of his colleagues in the Hall for analyses

Rustam Kasimdzhanov playing Black confused Dieter Nisipeanu and finished his game with light and effective tactics

Alexander Motylev participates in the tournament and at the same time helps to Sergey Karjakin

The positional style and stable performance usually bring points to Vladimir Malakhov in the nervous games of knock-out tournaments. This time he did not manage to open his score.

The opponent of Alexander Ryazantsev not only let him win the game, but also declare a checkmate

Master of maneuvering Michael Adams could easily win Marc Paragua

Murtas Kazhgaleev with White did not put any problems to Dmitry Andreikin

Dmitry Andreikin shared his impressions: — Today I had a better position, however, closer to the time trouble the fight was sharpened and I decided not to take risks and offered a draw. The thing is that at the previous World Cup the first game was developed in the same way and at that time I was trying to play for win, at one point exaggerated and lost the game. That is why today I decided to avoid this déjà vu, to draw the game playing Black and try to win playing White. — Do you consider that it is more important no to lose rather than win? — Indeed, since it is very hard to play off and it is a great stress. Last year I managed to play off, but still I was knocked out in the first Round having lost in tie-break. — How do you feel playing in the new Chess Academy? — The conditions are perfect. I nearly faced a serious trouble. I was not aware of the fact that the Chess Academy would be the venue of the tournament since I and my wife could not attend the Opening Ceremony. Today we left home 15 minutes before the start of the game and went to the hall where we played before. Luckily we met Sergei Movsesian on the way and got to know that the venue was here. If not this fact I would have been late for the game! We have a «Zero tolerance» regulation and I mysteriously avoided 0 score today.