Governor of Altai Krai Cup Started in Barnaul

Dmitriy Khegay leads after 6 rounds.

Governor of Altai Krai Cup, a stage of the Rapid Grand Prix of Russia, started in Barnaul. Many well-known chess players are taking part in the event, e.g. the Russian champion Alexander Riazantsev, former Russian champions Igor Lysyj and Sergei Rublevsky, one the Russian Higher League-2017 heroes Andrei Belozerov, grandmasters Sergei Yudin, Aleksei Pridorozhni, Dmitry Kryakvin and other strong players.  

Many mass events took place on the arrival day. An honourable guest of the tournament Gata Kamsky, finalist of the FIDE World Chess Championship 1996 and participant of the Candidates Tournament 2009, gave a simultaneous exhibition and held a press conference together with his fiancee WGM Vera Nebolsina, former Girls U20 World Champion. Igor Lysyj, Andrei Belozerov, and the tournament’s Chief Arbiter Maxim Ivakhin gave simuls as well. Even a heavy rain, which, fortunately, stopped quite quickly, hadn’t discouraged numerous chess fans. 

In a regional chess club Dmitry Kryakvin gave a lecture entitled Russian National Team Fighting for the World Superiority. From Makarichev and Postovsky to Filatov and Rublevsky. A year ago the journalist had talked about the participants of the World Chess Championship Match Carlsen-Karjakin, having promised a tense fight in the encounter to the Barnaul chess amateurs. This time Kryakvin dwelled upon many historical facts to try to foretell an outcome of the forthcoming Olympiad and a new grandiose fight with the US national team. 

The President of the Chess Federation of Altai Krai Artem Polomoshnov and his deputy Maxim Gerasimuyk greeted the tournament’s guests at the opening ceremony. The sportsmen started to play after a colourful show and kind words from the organizers. Shortly before the event Artem Polomoshnov had met with the Governor of Altai Krai Alexander Karlin to discuss the aspects of chess development in the region. 

After 6 rounds the leader is Dmitriy Khegay who has scored 5.5 points. Igor Lysyj, Sergei Rublevsky, Aleksei Pridorozhni, Dmitry Kryakvin, Vitaly Boiarintsev, and Maxim Korobkin are half a point behind. 

Tournament on Chess-Results