Tal Memorial

(Fischer v Tal)

The Mikhail Tal Memorial this year is the one to look out for and is probably the most anticipated event. This Category XXI rated tournament has a star studded "cast" comprising 10 of the 13 highest rated players among them, Anand, Carlsen, Kramnik.

Live broadcasts with GM commentaries are available at Chessdom.

And to add the icing on the cake, the World Blitz Chess Championship 2009 will immediately start at the same venue after the conclusion of the Tal Memorial. Anatoly Karpov, current world blitz champion Leinier Dominguez Perez and a whole host of other players will join the rest of the players to bring the number of participants to 20.

Since its birth in 2006, the Tal Memorial has steadily rose to become one of the elite competitions to look forward to in the calendar. The number of top ranked players taking part this year has certainly added a great deal of prestige to the tournament. I for one, am happy that there is more chess at the elite level to watch.

On a personal note, I plan to head down to Chess Discount Sales (operated by Peter Parr) in town sometime either later this week or next week to pick up a Chessbase DVD (still haven't decided between getting Daniel King's PowerPlay 11 or a Chessbase Opening DVD instead). I really need to get my skills back up to speed. Currently, my OT blitz games are woeful to say the least. I keep getting myself into bad positions (picking the worst move) or making ridiculous moves (that I always regret 5 seconds after I played it). :)

World Youth Chess Championship 2009 Update:
Had a little chat with Vladimir Smirnov last night (Thanks for giving me a chance to play a few quick blitz games against you, Vlad. It was very much appreciated). Both him and Anton will be flying off this weekend. I wish them and the entire Australian contingent the best of luck.

Ryde-Eastwood Club Championship
I forgot to add that the Ryde-Eastwood Club Championship was still progressing last night. The last game to conclude was between Brenton Yam and Bill Gletsos. It was an interesting game. I thought that Brenton had the upper hand near the endgame but sadly he was unable to hold.