45th Chess Olympiad R06: India emerges as sole leader in both sections

India is going to the only rest day of the 45th Chess Olympiad as the sole leader, having won all matches in both the open and women’s sections. Both teams have been winning confidently, without experiencing tough matches so far—a strong statement on their path to the gold medals.

Argentinian chess prodigy Faustino Oro, with a current rating of 2434 at just ten years old, made the first move in Round 6 for world champion Ding Liren, setting the games in motion.

India continued their pursuit of gold medals, defeating Hungary 3-1. Arjun Erigaisi remains the only player with a perfect score in the open section. In Round 6, he won against Sanan Sjugirov, a recent addition to the Hungarian team. Erigaisi is gaining 13 rating points in the Olympiad, elevating him to a career-high of 2791. The second win in the match was delivered by Vidit Gujrathi, while the games on first two boards ended in draws.

Incredible Vietnam halted China, tying the match 2-2. Wang Yue beat Tuan Minh Tran on the last board, but the leader of the Vietnamese team, Le Quang Liem, retaliated by defeating world champion Ding Liren.

“This is the first time that after the first half of the tournament, we are among the leaders,” commented Liem on the official broadcast. “I am very happy with the result and proud of my teammates. We are playing fantastically this time. Coming into this tournament, we had no expectations. We were initially ranked #21. We have never been this close to the medals before. We will enjoy the games and see what happens.”

Iran prevailed over Norway in a close match, thanks to a win on the fourth board, where Pouya Idani gained the upper hand over Frode Urkedal. Magnus Carlsen had a significant advantage in the middlegame against Parham Maghsoodloo but could only achieve a draw.

Uzbekistan had a tough match against Israel, as Sindarov blundered and lost to Nabaty. However, thanks to the wins of Abdusattorov and Yakubboev, the defending champions clinched the match victory. The USA continues to struggle, with four draws against Romania despite being the favorites on every board—a result that is hardly satisfying for the team of Fabiano Caruana.

After 6 rounds, India is the sole leader with 12 points, closely pursued by Vietnam, China, and Iran with 11 match points.

In the women’s section, India continues to delight their fans too. A convincing victory over Armenia was secured by Divya Deshmukh, who defeated Elina Danielian. Draws on the other boards cemented the result.

China, meanwhile, suffered a second consecutive loss. Poland pulled off this important victory by 2½-1½, thanks to Oliwia Kiolbasa, the heroine of the previous Olympiad, who beat Guo Qi. The other three games ended in draws. Georgia narrowly won against Mongolia, thanks to Melia Salome’s victory on the fourth board.

After six rounds, India leads with 12 match points, followed by Georgia and Poland with 11.

The tournament halts for a one-day break and the competition will resume on September 18 with Round 7.

Position of the day:

Ding Liren (China, 2736) – Le Quang Liem (Vietnam, 2741)

White to move

In this position, White could have held a draw with precise play after 44.Rd8. The World Champion played 44.Ra8? only to find himself lost after 44…d5!

Le Quang Liem: “The main challenge for White is that it is not clear where you should put your rook – behind the pawn or on the side – and where to put your king, so it’s a bit tricky.”

Peter Svidler: “The rook needs to be on d8, it turns out. It is very important to keep it on d8.”

Results of the top matches:

Open:

(10) China 2-2 Vietnam (10)
(10) Hungary 1-3 India (10)
(9) Norway 1.5-2.5 Iran (9)
(8) USA 2-2 Romania (8)
(8) Israel 1.5-2.5 Uzbekistan (8)

Women:

(10) India 2.5-1.5 Armenia (10)
(9) Georgia 2.5-1.5 Mongolia (10)
(9) Poland 2.5-1.5 China (8)
(8) Ukraine 3-1 Serbia (8)
(8) Vietnam 1.5-2.5 Azerbaijan (8)

Full results: Chess-results.com – 45th Chess Olympiad

Written by WGM Anna Burtasova

Photos: Michal Walusza, Mark Livshitz and Maria Emelianova

Official website: chessolympiad2024.fide.com