Kramnik will participate in the Tal Memorial in Moscow
News by Chessdom
Former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik will participate in the traditional super-tournament Mikhail Tal Memorial, which will be held in Moscow from 18th to 28th August, as reported by Sports.ru. Kramnik is back to defend the last year’s trophy, when he confidently took the first place, full point ahead of Alexei Shirov.
Apart from Vladimir Kramnik, also confirmed is the participation of the winner of the Mtel Masters 2008 – Vassily Ivanchuk, the World Chess Championship semi-finalist Gata Kamsky, the 2007 World Championship participant Boris Gelfand and the 2007 World Cup finalist Alexei Shirov. There will be 10 players, but the rest of the field is to be announced later.
This tournament will probably serve as the last practical test for Kramnik and Kamsky prior to important matches in the World Championship cycle.
Riga to host its own Mikhail Tal Memorial
Organized by the Tal Foundation
Besides the heavyweight Moscow event, another Mikhail Tal Memorial will be held this fall in his hometown Riga. President of the Tal Foundation and daughter of the great Magician, Zana Tal, shared with Latvian Telegraph that Boris Spassky and Victor Korchnoi have already agreed to take participation.
Top Spanish player Alexei Shirov, who is also former resident of Riga, will most likely play as well, if the Memorial is not in conflict with his tournament schedule. Best female players of Riga will demonstrate their skill on the board, along with applicants from Lithuania and Estonia. A total of 20 players are expected to show up at the opening.
News via e3e5.com
I’d like to see Kramnik break 2800 again.