Traps, Tricks & Mistakes: Elegant Drawing Trick
The tournament Norway Chess takes place in Stavanger (Norway) every year.
Two norwegian players Carlsen and Aryan Tari took part in that event in 2022. But also top players Vachier-Lagrave, Topalov, Anand, Mamedjarov, Wang Hao, Giri, Radjabov and Wesley So. Anand (52) and Topalov (47) were the most veteran among them and also the least active in official competition. Topalov didn’t play any official game in the previous 12 months and Anand in the previous 6 months. However, Anand made an astonishing return to official tournaments. He led the table for five consecutive rounds, finishing third and even outplaying Carlsen in their particular match.
To encourage competitiveness and reduce the rate of draws, the organizers of Norway Chess have implemented a mixed format of games. They combine classical and blitz. The system is a double round-robin of classical games with an additional armageddon in case of a draw.
Time control for classical games is 120 minutes with a 10-second increment after move 40. In the armageddon game, White gets 10 minutes and Black 7 minutes. Increment of one second applies only after move 41.
The method of scoring is also particular. Winners in the standard game receive 3 points. However, if the game is drawn and competitors play the armageddon, the winner gets an overall score of 1.5 points and the loser 1 point.
Aryan Tari was the lowest-rated player in the pool and everybody expected he finished in last position. However, the Norwegian did an excellent tournament and even took down Carlsen in the armagedon in round 7. Because of his remarkable performance, Tari became the hero of the day and local journalists immediately rushed to him for an interview.
The last round saw Tari (23), the youngest participant, playing against Anand (52). Both players had reasons to be satisfied with their performance and the classical game quickly ended in a peaceful draw thanks to Anand’s elegant combination leading to a perpetual check.
At the end, Carlsen won the tournament, achieving his fifth victory in the ten editions of the Norway Chess.
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