Topalov to challenge Anand for the chess crown
by Petar Kostadinov
Sofia Echo – Bulgaria
Bulgarian grandmaster Vesselin Topalov won the right to challenge world champion Viswanathan Anand after winning the chess crown pretenders match against American Gata Kamsky on February 26 2009.
Playing with the white pieces, Topalov won the seventh game in his eight-of-best match against Kamsky in Sofia to take the overall score to 4.5-2.5 points.
Topalov’s superb performance forced Kamsky to concede on the 45th move, which meant that there was no need for the two to meet for an eight time.
If the final score was 4-4, a tie-break of up to seven fast chess games had to be played on February 28 2009.
“It was a game of blink, to see who will make the first mistake,” Topalov was quoted by Bulgarian news agency Focus after the game.
“At one point, I felt in control of the game but then I made a mistake. Kamsky played very fast and he himself made a fatal mistake. He could have played better. After my loss [in game four] we with the team felt very bad because we could not get our game where we wanted.
“Kamsky always outsmarted us. He is a very tough player. I have never won in such a long match and it was a big experience for me,” Topalov said.
“It was a very complicated game,” Focus quoted Kamsky as saying. “I made some serious mistakes while Vesselin played very smart and made fewer mistakes. At the end, I was the one who lost,” he said.
Topalov, the 2005 world champion, will have a chance thus to reclaim the crown when he meets reigning champion Viswanathan Anand later this year.
Source: http://www.sofiaecho.com
Topalov was 2005 FIDE world champ. That’s about as prestigious as Khalifman’s crown. Anand is the champ these days. And he is the undisputed champ. Topalov must first defeat Anand to place himself alongside the true line of champions – Steinitz, Lasker, … , Spassky, Fischer, Karpov, Kasparov, Kramnik, Anand.
This comparison of Topalov to Khalifman always amuses me. Was Khalifman ever N1 in ther world like Topalov? No. Has he had the second highest rating after Kasparov, like Topalov has? No. Did he win a Chess Oscar like Topalov? No. Has he won (at least shared) all major tournaments – Corus, Linares, Dortmund and Sofia – like Topalov has? No. Drop that nonsense already, please.
This is no surprise. Anyone who knows something about chess should have known that Gata had 0 chances against the Bulgarian chess machine. Later this year, Topalov will crush Anand to claim his title of WCC.
Once again, if you know anything about chess, you surely know who the real WCC is….Topalov of course. The only reason why Topalov is not WCC today is because he was not allowed to play in the Mexico tournament where Anand was crowned.
The fact remains that Topalov still has to defeat Anand in order to be considered the undisputed champ. Ratings and chess oscars do not determine who the world champion is. Kasparov was world number one from 2000 up to his retirement, but Kramnik was world champ from 2000 up to Kasparov’s retirement.
This is true – but the only reason for that is that Kramnik avoided a rematch at all costs. We all know what the result would’ve been had Gary been given another chance to challenge Vlad for the title. 🙂
“We all know what the result would’ve been had Gary been given another chance to challenge Vlad for the title.”
That’s similar to what Capablanca’s fans claim when debating about the greatness of Capa as compared to Alekhine. Still, it’s all just speculation and opinion.
Let’s hope Topalov (against Anand) plays better than the way he played in his match with Kamsky.
Topalov played no stronger than necessary. Had it been Anand, we woul’ve seen a different Topalov – the one we say in Bilbao and China – methodical and almost error-free. Against Kamsky, he simply employed the tactic that worked best against Kamsky.
“The only reason why Topalov is not WCC …”
Actually, Topalov NEVER IN HIS WHOLE LIFE managed (despite his undisputed chess skills) to qualify for a World Championship Final.
The last time in 2004 he was defeated by Kasimdhzanov in Tripoli/Lybia in the semifinal.
For the 2005 WCC Tournament in San Louis he was INVITED because of his ELO rating at that time.
His current ‘right’ to play a WCC Final Match against Anand springs out of his ‘FREE-Lunch’ Match against Kamsky that was NEGOTIATED through Danailov in conjunction with FIDE. (Normally, Kamsky would have had the right to challenge Anand directly)
If Topalov is as good/superior as he is described by bloggers here, then why doesn’t he simply play the necessary qualifications rounds and blast away all the other players? Why does he need these PRIVILEGES beyong anything what others get.
That Kramnik got a Re-Match is understandable, because he was the WINNER of Elista 2006, but why does the LOSER also have to get a shot at the Title??? Never was before.
That the loser (Topalov) of Elista 2006 was kicked out of the INVITATION list (only 50% of the participants did qualify!!!) for the WCC tournament in Mexico 2007 was the idea of DANAILOV by the way!
But why didn’t Topalov (the super-super No1-player) then NOT START LIKE KAMSKY in the FIRST round of the World Cup in order to qualify for the next championship!!!!!!!!
Why did he get a Place in the Candidates Final for FREE!!!!!!
Why does he need this unjustified privilege when he is supposed to be the best antway???
Why not PROVE that he is the best???
These privileges are unjust in respect to the other players and I can fully understand that Carlsen dropped out of the ongoing World Cup Cycle.
If he simply keeps up his performance he just needs a ‘contract’ with the organizers of the next Candidates Matches and he will get a wild-card spot for FREE!!!
Don’t be stupid and qualify! – Do it the Topalov way instead!!!
To Anon 8:30:00
You have a point there. That’s why Anand has a lot of fans. The guy has won championships in 3 formats. He has had no freebies on the way to his championships and he dutifully fought his way from the bottom up to the top. He’s had disappointments of course -against Karpov, Kasparov, etc.- but it did not deter him from pursuing the championship. He has earned the right to be placed alongside the undisputed champions of chess.
The most ridiculous aspect of this match was the number of games. 8 games to qualify as a candidate is a sad joke played by FIDE on us.
I hope the championship match is at least 16 games. I would love a 24 game match where each player is thoroughly tested both mentally and physically.
A 24-game championship… Those were the good old days of chess. Unfortunately, the attention span of fans for chess championships has shortened considerably.
I’m sure that even if Topalov beats Anand convincingly, there will be people who will find an excude to not accept him, like “Yeah, but he is not a true champion because he is losing his hair” 🙂
“I’m sure that even if Topalov beats Anand convincingly, there will be people who will find an excude to not accept him, like “Yeah, but he is not a true champion because he is losing his hair” :)”
That is expected, of course. Nevertheless, the facts will remain. If Topalov defeats Anand in the championship, he will be the undisputed champion and no amount of denial will change that.
yes, but people will say “he was given a privilige to play Kamsky right away instead of qualifying”, like anonymous 8:30. As if Kramnik didn’t get the chance to play Kasparov for the title undeservedly and unfairly, at the expense of the true qualifier Shirov 😉
As for me, I still prefer the old “Interzonals and Candidates matches” format. It’s a pity FIDE had to resort to changing formats frequently (in order to drum up interest or favor certain players).
The idea that Topalov, playing execrable chess which should have lost him the match, was simply putting out the minimum effort to win —that is where denial lies.
Topalov could easily have lost that match, and certainly would be annihilated if he played so inaccurately against Anand.
he committed errors in one game only, and only because he saw from kamsky’s psychological condition that he could afford a risky but shaky play. don’t exaggerate.
Topalov always plays well against Anand. They are players at exactly the same level and pretty much in a league of their own at the moment. Kamsky is a talented chess player but neither has the grit nor the stamina to win against Topalov.
>>
This comparison of Topalov to Khalifman always amuses me.
>>
The comparison is that they won the same title, which is completely true whether you pretend to be amused or not. The title that Fischer and John Grefe both won is the US Title, not the world championship. See the difference? That Fischer was much stronger than Grefe is irrelevant.
Topalov has never been world champion, only FIDE Champion. The title he’s challenging Anand for is the undisputed title, not the disputed title one he held in 2005, despite the way the story tries to blend the two together.
I’m sure that even if Topalov beats Anand convincingly, there will be people who will find an excude to not accept him, like “Yeah, but he is not a true champion because he is losing his hair” 🙂
You think that because you want to. Because you want to believe that the heat Topalov has gotten has been through no fault of his own. It’s a fantasy. Of course, if Topalov beats Anand, he’s the world champion. Just as surely as he’s never been world champion before now.
Topa is an A..h…
“Topa is an A..h…”
I would rather put it like this:
DANAILOV is an @$$#*!& – but Topalov is responsible for doing business with him for his own profit
“Topa is an A..h…”
Because he just anihilated your favorite? lol
Yes, Topalov is an Anihilator!:))
Let’s cry for Kamsky!
Bulgarians are certainly a shit G.W.Bush would have liked to
wipe off the map;)
You,Americans are always the best,ain’t you 😉
Nah, they don’t send their troops to wipe somebody out.
They send troops to “liberate” and to spread “democracy” 😉
Another VALID reason why Topalov will never be a true champion : his high-pitched voice.
The same goes, strangely enough, for his second Cheparinov, who even outclasses his master with his six-year-old-girl-voice.
This makes me wonder : is it some kind of secret ritual in Bulgaria to have their most talented players cut their balls off ?
In order to aggravate their frustration and thus sharpen their chess skills and will power ?
D.