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Kasparov, Kramnik, Ponomariov, and Leko are joined by Anand, Vallejo Pons, and Radjabov for a 14 round double round robin event considered by many to be the premier event on the annual chess calendar. Kasparov has always done well here, but Kramnik and Ponomariov will be out to prove themselves after their recent poor showing at Wijk aan Zee. With GM Viswanathan Anand in attendance, not only do we get all four players from the reunification cycle, we also get the top three players in the world in one event.

Always well organized, it should provide both exciting match-ups and superlative chess at the superGM level.

Note that in 2002, Kasparov had a very fine showing in this event, winning clear first with 8.0; Ponomariov, fresh from his win at the FIDE World Championship, surprised many fans with his final position in clear second at 6.5; Anand, Ivanchuk, and Mickey Adams (another top 10 player) tied for 3rd-5th with 6.0; Local favorite Vallejo Pons came in 6th with 5.0, a respectable showing given his ranking relative to the field at the start; and a disappointing finish for GM Shirov of Spain (also a top 10 player), who only managed 4.5

Players (listed in rating order):

Name	Age	Country	Rating	World Rank	Notes
Garry Kasparov	39	Russia	2847	#1	scheduled to meet Ponomariov in the next phase of the reunification cycle
Vladimir Kramnik	27	Russia	2807	#2	holder of the Einstein Games world title
Viswanathan Anand	33	India	2753	#3	former holder of the FIDE title (2000)
Peter Leko	23	Hungary	2736	#5	the challenger to Kramnik in the next phase of the reunification cycle
Ruslan Ponomariov	19	Ukraine	2734	#7	holder of the FIDE world championship title
Vallejo Pons	20	Spain	2629	#59	a local favorite
Teimour Radjabov	15	Azerbajian	2624	#68	A rising junior, he is the #1 player in the world under age 18

Curious about playing styles of these contenders? Sergey Shipov offers an excellent brief precis of each player, including a photo, at Linares Preview.

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The following crosstable will be used to show the results. Each player plays each other player twice, once with White and once with Black (but on different days). There are three games each day, with one player getting a "bye" (rest day) each day. This table is done like traditional crosstables--the players are shown in rating order, highest to lowest. To determine who is leading the event, look at the results in the right-most column.

Day by Day Summary of Linares 2003

1 indicates a Win; "=" indicates a Draw; 0 indicates a Loss. The player with the best percentage is in BOLD, but remember that until the final round, the extra rest day means that some players are out of synch. The totals Column shows the number of points and the number of games played so far for each player

Name

Rating

1a

1b

2a

2b

3a

3b

4a

4b

5a

5b

6a

6b

7a

7b

Total

1

Kasparov

2847

X

X

=

=

1

=

=

=

1

=

=

=

0

=

6.5/12

2

Kramnik

2807

=

=

X

X

=

=

=

=

1

=

=

=

1

=

7.0/12

3

Anand

2753

0

=

=

=

X

X

1

0

1

=

=

=

=

1

6.5/12

4

Leko

2736

=

=

=

=

0

1

X

X

=

=

1

0

1

1

7.0/12*

5

Ponomariov

2734

0

=

0

=

0

=

=

=

X

X

1

1

=

=

5.5/12

6

Vallejo Pons

2629

=

=

=

=

=

=

0

1

0

0

X

X

=

=

5.0/12

7

Radjabov

2624

1

=

0

=

=

0

0

0

=

=

=

=

X

X

4.5/12

* 1st on tiebreaks (most wins)
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Day by Day Reports

Day 1: Kramnik-Kasparov was a quick draw in 18 moves. Anand had an excellent game against Ponomariov, breaking through the Berlin Defense and scoring a win. Young Radjabov had a very good, possibly even winning position against GM Leko, but stumbled, and Leko won the endgame for a full point. GM Vallejo Pons had a rest day (One player will sit out each day).

Day 2: A very exciting day. Leko has a rest day. Kramnik defeats Ponomariov, Anand draws with Vallejo Pons, and in the most unexpected result, 15 year old Radjabov defeats #1 rated player Garry Kasparov! This is the first tournament game loss for Kasparov in over 2 years. Garry Kasparov provides his own analysis of this game in Express Commentary at worldchessrating.com

Day 3: Anand had a rest day. The two youngest players, Radjabov and Ponomariov, drew quickly in only 11 moves. Kramnik and Vallejo Pons had a game that lasted almost 3 times as long, but still ended in a draw. The third game was Leko - Kasparov. This was an extremely complex game, with both players in time pressure near the 40th move. Leko had an advantage at one point, but Kasparov defended very well, reached a winning endgame because his King was better protected--but then Leko in turn defended well, both players again got in time trouble, and the game ended in a draw just before time ran out.

Day 4:Kasparov has a rest day. Anand - Kramnik drew in fewer than 20 moves. Vallejo Pons - Radjabov went into some sharp lines, as Radjabov had a material advantage (2 pawns up), but Vallejo Pons had a strong attack on the dark squares. However, again both players had some time trouble, and the game ultimately ended in a draw. The third game, Ponomariov - Leko, went 109 moves and almost 7 hours and ended in a very exciting game drawn due to the short time left on the clocks.

Day 5: Kramnik has a rest day. Radjabov - Anand was a draw. The draw leaves Anand even with Kramnik in the overall scores. Garry Kasparov was back on form today, with a very instructive win against the 19 year old FIDE champion, Ponomariov. That brings Kasparov back to an even score for the first time since Round 1. Peter Leko (only 23 himself) defeated Vallejo Pons in the longest game of the day, putting him in first place overall as we reach the end of the first third.

Day 6: Ponomario has a rest day. Kramnik plays an excellent game against Radjabov, winning in less than 40 moves. (GM Fedorowicz on www.chess.fm suggests Radjabov reconsider playing this opening before future games, as he has had several bad positions from it.) Vallejo Pons drew with Kasparov. Anand played a strong game against Leko, apparently springing a prepared line. Although Leko defended well, Anand rolled through to a win during the third time control. Anand and Kramnik now share the lead, with Leko dropping back by half a point.

Day 7: Radjabov has a rest day. Leko vs Kramnik is the quietest game of the day, ending in a draw after 25 moves. FM Aviv Freidman on chess.fm said, "Now we finally see the Ponomariov who won the World Championship" as the 19 year old was able to score a full point against local favorite Vallejo Pons. The most exciting game, though, was Kasparov Anand. Several unclear positions, some errors on both sides, but ultimately a win for Kasparov. At the half-way point, Kramnik leads the field by a slender half-point margin, with Anand, Leko, and Kasparov right behind, and 7 more days to go.

Day 8: Vallejo Pons has a rest day. Kasparov and Kramnik reach a draw. Leko defeats Radjabov. After an early advantage for Anand, Ponomariov finds a drawing resource and that game ends in a draw. This leaves Kramnik and Leko at the top of the leader board, with Kasparov and Anand tied a half point back. There are 6 rounds left in the event. Day 9.

Day 9: Leko has a rest day. All three of the games were draws: Kramnik - Ponomariov, Radjabov - Kasparov, and Anand - Vallejo Pons, leaving Leko at the top of the standings by percentage. The lower-rated players must all feel a sense of accomplishment for today.

Day 10: Anand has a rest day. Vallejo Pons - Kramnik ends in a short draw. Ponomariov - Radjabov looks good for Radjabov in the beginning, but ends in a draw. Although Kasparov had an early advantage, he failed to convert, and Kasparov - Leko also ends in a draw. At the 3/4 mark, Leko remains in first by percentage, with 5.0 out of 8.

Day 11: Kasparov has a rest day. All three games are drawn: Leko - Ponomariov, Radjabov-Vallejo Pons, and Kramnik-Anand. Leko remains in first by percentage, with 5.5 out of 9.

Day 12: An exciting round! Kramnik has a rest day. Anand outplays Radjabov in a strong game that moves him up in the standings. Ponomariov - Kasparov had Ponomariov in some trouble during the game, but it ends in a draw. Vallejo Pons - Leko was a very exciting game, with the young Spaniard capitalizing on Leko's mistake and goig on to an overwhelming attack and a full point. Kramnik and Anand are now in a tie for first, with Kasparov and Leko a half point back. Only two rounds left to play.

Day 13: Ponomariov has a rest day. Day 13 proves unlucky for Kasparov, drawing with Vallejo Pons, leaving him with only half a point in a game he really needed to win to move up in the standings. (At first many analysts watching throught that Kasparov had overlooked the draw by reptition in time pressure, but it turns out that Kasparov hiimself felt that the position was drawn at best, and was ready to take the half point.) Leko defeated Anand in an interesting endgame, while Radjabov drew with Kramnik. Kramnik and Leko are now in a tie for first, with Kasparov and Anand a half point back. Only one round left to play. The last round pairings will be: Kramnik - Leko; Anand - Kasparov; Vallejo Pons - Ponomariov; and a rest day for Radjabov.

Day 14: Last Round. Radjabov has a rest day. Going in to the round, Kramnik and Leko are tied at 6.5; Kasparov and Anand a half point back at 6.0 Kasparov did his best to create an unbalanced position, but finally drew with the Black pieces against Anand. Kramnik - Leko is also a draw. Vallejo Pons - Ponomariov ends in a win for Ponomariov. Leko is first on tiebreaks, with Kramnik second, and Anand and Kasparov tied for 3rd-4th.

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