Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Where There is Smoke, Their is Fire!

Might I recommend that you try watching this game between Bologan and Bacrot by paning your browser, with the video on one side, then actual game in your chess viewer on the other?

The way I did it, I moved the curser in chessBase move for move at exactly the same speed of the game.

It is from the first the ACP World Rapid Chess Cup in Odessa, Ukraine [1]. That these guys can really play chess--like other similarly endowed Super Grandmasters--with nerves of steel cannot be doubted. Enjoy!



Impatient viewers can move to the 5:40 mark with Bologan's very tense 31.e6, when things really heat up. No one disagrees that that is Korchnoi's unique voice in the background?

Bologan,V (2658) - Bacrot,E (2705)
1st ACP World Rapid Cup, Odessa UKR (1.4), 06.01.2007 [C88]

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0–0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0–0 8.h3 Bb7 9.d3 d6 10.a3 Na5 11.Ba2 c5 12.Nc3 Nc6 13.Bg5 Nd7 14.Bd2 Nb6 15.Nd5 Nxd5 16.Bxd5 Qc7 17.c3 Nb8 18.b4 Nd7 19.c4 Bxd5 20.cxd5 Nb6 21.Rc1 Na4 22.bxc5 dxc5 23.d4 exd4 24.Nxd4 c4 25.e5 Bxa3 26.Rc2 Qd7 27.Qf3 c3 28.Bxc3 Nxc3 29.Qxc3 Qxd5 30.Nc6 Rfc8 31.e6 fxe6 32.Re5 Qd1+ 33.Re1 Qd5 34.Qxa3 Rxc6 35.Rce2 Rac8 36.Re5 Qd7 37.Qe3 b4 38.h4 Rb8 39.Qf4 Rf8 40.Qxb4 Qc7 41.Qe4 Rc1 42.Rxe6 Rxe1+ 43.Qxe1 a5 44.Re4 Qc5 45.g3 Qb5 46.Qa1 Qf5 47.Qa2+ Qf7 48.Qe2 Qf5 49.Ra4 Rc8 50.Qa2+ Qf7 51.Qd2 Qf5 52.Rxa5 Qf7 53.Ra1 Re8 54.Rd1 Qe6 55.Rf1 Qe4 56.Qa2+ Kh8 57.Qb2 Ra8 58.Rc1 Re8 59.Rc7 Qg6 60.Qd2 Qb1+ 61.Kh2 Qf5 62.Qd4 Qg6 63.Rd7 Rf8 64.Rd8 Qf7 65.Rxf8+ Qxf8 66.g4 h6 67.Kg3 Qf7 68.Qe4 Qc7+ 69.Qf4 Qc3+ 70.Kg2 Qc6+ 71.Qf3 Qd6 72.Qe4 Kg8 73.Kh3 Qa3+ 74.Qe3 Qd6 75.Qb3+ Kh8 76.Qf3 Qe5 77.Kg2 Qd6 78.Qe4 Qc5 79.Qf4 Qc6+ 80.Qf3 Qd6 81.g5 hxg5 82.hxg5 Kg8 83.Qe4 Kf7 84.Kf3 Qh2 85.Qf4+ Qxf4+ 86.Kxf4 Ke6 87.Ke4 g6 88.f4 Kd6 89.f5 gxf5+ 90.Kxf5 Ke7 91.Kg6 1–0

On one short personal note, I am currently spending several hours each day in job hunting. As French anthropologist Rene Dubos once said:

"In many ways, modern man is like an animal kept in a zoo, protected from the inclemencies, confined and depriving him of many of the natural stimulae essential for the well being of his mind and body".



















That about says what it is like--home alone all week, cyber knocking on doors and occassionally on the telephone in an equally arcane and impersonal, dissociated world. Man.

Warmest, dk

[1] Source, the weekly video at chessCafe.com.