Champions Showdown: Hikaru Nakamura On Saudi Arabia Hosting The Rapid And Blitz Chess Champs 

Modern FIDE loves money more than chess. They'd sell out Magnus in a heartbeat if it meant they'd get big money

6 years later, Saudi Arabia has been annouced to host Fifa World cup and Expo and will host major events in various sports. The dogs barks and the train keeps moving 🇸🇦

ex0duzz Maybe some scheduling issues?

After looking up I found"The reason for the strange scheduling is that Magnus is playing in a live simul in Hamburg, Germany for users of his Play Magnus app".

Ohh yeah, i think i saw some video for that in my subscriptions, but i thought that was an old video and they only just uploaded it today/yesterday. I also thought maybe it had something to do with him not being US player and him being world champion, so they gave him some special treatment to the other 3 'americans' lol. But yeah. This is all purely knockout play between the two players, game score from each match has no bearing on any of the other matches so there's no advantage to starting later yeah? I can't remember, but do the winners from each match move on to play each other like tournament, or is it just one match at different time controls and then it all ends right then and there after the current pairing only?

colbol18 that's just a variation of Vienna game as well as bishops opening.... I would look up those openings to be more familiar

refutation for wich side, I always thought it was better for black because of the attack in the middle game.

Israeli, Iranian, and Quatarian players will not be allowed to participate.

Mehdi Mehdikhani women

ridiculous. why do they not allow it?

Mehdi Mehdikhani because of Islam, their religion

they can attend

SamtheBOLD not true!!

بو فهد لاتتعب نفسك بعظهم مثل الحمير متعصبين ومايفيد فيهم تصحيح اغكارهم المغسوله بالاعلام

That means he can never play the Ruy Lopez from the white side. That's just crazy...

Victor N I thought his tone was one of condescension towards other players when he talked about why he chose Topalov. The way he kept repeating how other players keep playing Berlin seems to imply he alone wants something interesting. Berlin is just good, whether it is interesting or not is another matter. Also, from an objective stand point, he can still play towards Ruy Lopez, and if black then wants Berlin because it is not bad for black, then he can avoid it too. Albeit by playing something suspicious then, but that is the point I'm making. You make choices. Berlin is a choice. If you choose that over forcibly playing something else that may bite you in the arse later, then that is the choice all players make. This 'I want to play something else, but no one else does' seems a bit condescending, given that perhaps others male the same choice.

Berlin is a choice chosen by black. Naka shouldn't be forced to play 1.d4 or 1. c4 to get an exciting game. If black only wants a draw and doesn't have the balls to go for a win, then OK whatever good for them, but Naka is making the point that he wants to play interesting chess and the Berlin doesn't help, and that's why he chose Topalov. That's the reason chess fans like watching Magnus, Aronian and Naka (exciting chess) compared to say Giri and Leko (who are infamous draw masters). I'm not saying one group is better than the other, but when it comes to who I would prefer to watch, and who Naka would prefer to play, we both choose exciting chess over drawfests.

Victor N no, no opening is chosen by one side only. White has many moves to avoid Berlin after black goes for it, if he wishes. They may be inferior moves, but that is my point. You choose. And no, I think people like naka talk a lot about this, and often, and it ends up shaping people's perspective of them as much as their games. I won't say giri and he are the same, but most top GMs are more or less similar today in terms of priorities in openings. Naka plays the Berlin all the time, as black. He just talks a lot, and has an audience who listen, and so ends up being able to distinguish himself. Not because he plays more entertaining chess more often, but because he talks about it a lot. You see other players and him all playing very similar openings all the time. The only thing is, he may go for a win in an equal-ish position where perhaps someone like Giri will take a draw. That is a different discussion, and has nothing to do with opening preferences.

Choosing an inferior position to avoid the Berlin is not a choice. It's like saying, to not get into the berlin as white just play 1. h4. It achieves the aim of not boring yourself to death with the Berlin, but you will probably lose. Also, you are incorrect that Naka plays the Berlin often. Chessgames dot com has 1939 games of Hikaru's and the Berlin is not in the top 5 (it doesn't give further stats). Only 41 has been Berlins. His most played defense as black is the Sicilian (178 times), which is a direct answer to 1. e4 and avoids the Berlin. Let me conclude that I am not a Naka fan. I don't like his cockiness. But he is a fantastic chess player that is often part of interesting games both due to his fighting spirit and due to his choice of openings.

Nor women. Fuck you, people. Grow up.

Jože Ws we won't accept usurper and kid killers.

I agree about US backed killer Israel. Still, women?

ala clan thats not true, women can play chess in saudi!! They cant drive but that's going to change next summer.

ala clan u grow up!! and get educated u ignorant fool.