Today's results at #GrandPrixFIDE in Riga:
🇷🇺 Karjakin 1/2-1/2 So 🇺🇸
🇵🇱 Duda1/2-1/2 Mamedyarov 🇦🇿
🇷🇺 Grischuk 1/2-1/2 Yu 🇨🇳
🇧🇬 Topalov 0-1 Vachier-Lagrave 🇫🇷

Veselin Topalov needs to win with Black tomorrow to take the match to tiebreaks!

It looks like Awonder had an edge, but that was awfully fast! Liang checkmates Hans Niemann, moving to 4/5. He's in the studio now.

⚪️#258 (Strategy-White to Move)
🔸Aliyev,Ravan (2351)
🔸Gasimov,Parviz (2303)
🔸Baku Open 2018

19.Nf4! [Although Black has the bishop pair, White has some advantage thanks to his centralized knights which play an important role in the game.]

[19.g4 Kh7 20.Ng3 c5 21.Nf4 (21.dxc5 bxc5 22.Nxc5 Bd7 23.Ba4 Rdc8 24.Bxd7 Rxc5 25.Qa4 Rxb2³) 21...e5 22.dxe5 Bxg4 23.Qc4 h5 24.exf6 Bxf6 25.Nd5 Qg7 26.Nxf6+ Qxf6 27.Rxd8 Rxd8 28.Ne4 Qe7 29.f4 Ne6=; 19.f4 f5 20.Nef2 Bb7 21.Ba4 c5 22.dxc5 bxc5 23.Nxc5 Bd5 24.Nfd3=]

19...f5 20.Ng3±

1–0

⚪️#258 (Endgame-White to Move)
🔸Mamedjarova,Z (2338)
🔸Popov,Iv RUS (2590)
🔸Baku Open 2018

36.a5! [36.f3 Rxa4 37.Re7 Ra1 38.Rcc7 Rf1 39.Rc3 Rc4 40.Re5 Rg1+ 41.Kf2 Rb1 42.Ra3 Rc2+ 43.Ke3 Rcxb2 44.Ra8+ Rb8 45.Rxb8+ Rxb8 46.Rxg5=; 36.Rcc7 Rd3+ 37.Kg2 Rd2 38.Rxg7+ Kh8 39.Rh7+ Kg8 40.Rag7+ Kf8 41.Rxg5 Rdxf2+ 42.Kg1 Rf1+ 43.Kg2 R1f2+ 44.Kg1= (44.Kg3?? R4f3+ 45.Kh4 Rh2#) ]

36...Rxg4+ 37.Kf3 Rde4 38.Rc8+ [38.Rd7 Rgf4+ 39.Kg2 Rg4+ 40.Kf1 Ra4 41.Rxd5 Rgb4 42.Rxg5 Kf7 43.Rgc5+–]

38...Kh7„

0–1

🔸World Senior 65+ 2018
🔸Round 8
⚪️Balashov,Y (2445)
⚫️Vaisser,A (2504)
🔸1-0

27.Rd3! [Balashov notices that exposed Black's king and queen are standing on the same file. He exploits the opportunity by the rook lift technique.]

27...Rg4 28.Rg3! [28.f3? Qh4! 29.Qd2 Rg7 30.f4 c5! d4 31.Qf2 Qxf2+ 32.Kxf2=]

28...Rxg3 29.hxg3 Re8 30.b4± [¹30.e6! would be even stronger: 30...Bc8 31.Qc3‚ Rxe6 32.Rxe6 Bxe6 33.Qxc6 Kf7 34.Qb7+ Qe7 35.Bxd5 Qxb7 36.Bxb7±]

⚪️#259 (Strategy-White to Move)
🔸Brunello,S (2542)
🔸Garcia Palermo,C (2391)
🔸78th ch-ITA 2018

Unity Chess Strategy Multiple Choice 259
public poll

B) Ng6 – 8
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍 89%
Nikhil, Majid, اوین, @SophiaCat_does_Chess, @A_Somewhat_Cool_Guy, @Atharva1, @Kasyapat1, Arianna

A) d5 – 1
👍 11%
S.f

C) Qc3
▫️ 0%

👥 9 people voted so far.

⚪️#259 (Endgame-White to Move)
🔸Stella,A (2497)
🔸Lodici,Lorenzo (2456)
🔸78th ch-ITA 2018

Unity Chess Endgame Multiple Choice 259
public poll

C) f5 – 9
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍 69%
@Attaiyeh, S.f, Nikhil, @Rezagm9000, Jahanbakhsh, Majid, @AminAbedi10, @Kasyapat1, Arianna

A) b3 – 4
👍👍👍 31%
@payam6661, @SophiaCat_does_Chess, @A_Somewhat_Cool_Guy, Srikar

B) Nd1
▫️ 0%

👥 13 people voted so far.

Players and officials at the Karseladze Memorial Tournament, Tbilisi, November 1976.

@UnityChess