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Chess Femme News |
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Our Coverage of the 2007 U.S. Women's Chess Championship News/Results/Standings
(scroll down for latest news) Round 1, May 13, 2008 (report posted May 14, 2008): Hola! We're underway. Wish I could be in Tulsa watching the action live. Unfortunately, the games are being held while I'm working and I can't watch - and since I have a thing about having to "sign up" for services that are advertised as free, I wouldn't watch even if I could. Call it a quirk in my personality... Exciting news in connection with the Women's Championship is that Susan Polgar and Paul Truong travelled to Tulsa to personally deliver to Mr. Frank Berry the funds for the Fighting Chess Prize - $350 from Goddesschess. SP also announced at her blog that she is contributing another $150 to the Prize Fund to make it an even $500. That is very generous and makes the prize no small chunk of change! How exciting! I - and the entire Goddesschess crew - wish to thank SP and PT for going above and beyond the call of duty by personally delivering the prize money to Mr. Berry so that it will be available for presentation to the winner of the prize at the conclusion of the Championship. My part in getting the Goddesschess funds to GM Polgar was all I had to worry about - we left the rest up to her as to how to get the prize money to the winner and selecting the winning "fighting chess" game. I knew I could trust her implicitly to have the prize money delivered where it needed to go in a timely manner, and I didn't think about it for another second, except to vaguely envision a check being sent by overnight delivery. I never imagined that she would undertake this trip to deliver the funds personally! It's indicative, however, of SP's commitment to chess in general and, I think, to women's chess in particular, that she did so, and I find it a touching act of honor and a salute of the players who are participating in the U.S. Women's Chess Championship from one of the great Women's Chess Champions. Well done, SP and PT, and many thanks. There are a couple of games posted at Susan Polgar's blog from Round 1 in PGN format along with links to replay the games: Zatonskih (W) v. Zenyuk (B) and Abrahamyan (W) v. Krush (B). Monroi, providing official coverage, has the games available from Round 1, here. You have to sign up but it's free. Monroi is adding more content even as I'm writing this. New photos have appeared, there will be (or perhaps already is) a photogallery, and there is a summary of Round 1 and commentary by Tom Braunlich. Analysis of some of the games - not sure exactly where, in the blog perhaps??? Here are the results for Round 1:
Jen Shahade, 2004 U.S. Women's Chess Champion and silver medal winner on the 2004 U.S. Women's Chess Olympiad Team, who is the webmaster (webmastress???) at the U.S. Chess Federation's Chess Life Online is also providing coverage and stories on the Championships. Mig Greengard's Chess Ninja blog has an entry (with comments) on the start of the U.S. Chess Championships - no mention at all of the Women's Championship - and no comments on it either! Tsk tsk. I added my two cents worth just to try and give us chess femmes some equal representation! The Week in Chess has coverage on the U.S. Championships, complete with cross-tables! After Round 1, WIM Chouchanik Airapetian is in 1st place!
Round 2, May 14, 2008 (report posted May 15, 2008): Results:
Standings:
As you can see, all the women's games were decisive, so the women are continuing their battling mood from Round 1 (4 out of 5 matches were decisive in Round 1). In her May 14th report on the Championships at Chess Life Online, Jen Shahade noted "the women demonstrated the height of fighting spirit, creating five decisive games." That's what we want to see - fighting chess! The $500 Fighting Chess prize may, perhaps, have inspired the chess femmes to battle for each game. Perhaps next year we can work out some matching funds arrangements with some friendly websites and fans of women's chess, with the aim of awarding one game with a special monetary prize each round, like Jeffrey Smith did this year for the Men's Championship. Worth exploring further... This really sucks - Susan Polgar's wallet was stolen at the hotel where the championships are being held! SP posted several photographs from the championships, here are links to some of them: http://susanpolgar.blogspot.com/2008/05/set-ready-make-your-first-move.html#links http://susanpolgar.blogspot.com/2008/05/more-actions-in-round-2.html#links http://susanpolgar.blogspot.com/2008/05/womens-action.html#links http://susanpolgar.blogspot.com/2008/05/ladies.html#links Tom Braunlich Round 2 report at Monroi. Monroi's webpages on the championships now have standings tables. Monroi's tournaments page is running a poll on who will win the Women's Championship. So far, Irina Krush is "krushing" the competition :) (yes, it's hokey, but I couldn't resist!) The Week in Chess has games from both championships in PGN ready to download, and current cross-tables. At Chess Life Online, Liz Vicary interviewed wild card entry Courtney Jamison. |
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