Cuban chess player Leinier Domínguez begins with victory in world tournament

September 13, 2020

The Cuban Grandmaster Leinier Domínguez achieved victory in the first game of the Champions Showdown Chess 9LX Chess 960 tournament, which is played online and sponsored by the Saint Louis Chess Club, and has already accumulated 2.5 points in the first three rounds of the competition.

Leinier surpassed GM Hikaru Nakamura in his debut with the white pieces, reaching the endgame with an extra pawn. He then drew against Wesley So and closed out the day with another victory, this one over the so-called Iranian "prodigy" Alireza Firouzja.

One of the great attractions of the tournament is the participation of Garry Kasparov alongside the best chess figures in the world. The "Ogre of Baku" officially retired from chess two decades ago, but occasionally participates in tournaments organized by the Saint Louis Club. In the second round, Kasparov faced the world champion, Norwegian Magnus Carlsen. The last time they played was in 2004. At that moment, the child prodigy was 13 years old and Kasparov was 41. That time, the Ogre had the advantage: 1.5-0.5.

Now, Carlsen had Kasparov against the ropes, but the Azerbaijani managed to secure half a point in a lost position. Furthermore, Kasparov managed to defeat Firouzja in the first game.

For now, Leinier and Carlsen lead the match with 2.5 points, ahead of So with 2 points and Caruana, Kasparov, Aronian, Nakamura and Svidler, all with 1.5. Firouzja closes with 0.5 and Vachier-Lagrave, who lost all three games.

The Champions Showdown Chess 9LX is held every year and for this edition the organizers invited nine super-elite chess players and Kasparov to play online. The game system is round-robin, single round, in games of 20 minutes plus 10 seconds increment.

The total prize pool will amount to $150,000, with prizes of $37,500, $25,000 and $20,000 for the first, second and third place finishers, respectively.

Chess 960 is a variant created by former world champion Bobby Fischer in which the initial position of the pieces is determined randomly, although this process is subject to certain restrictions.

One day after the Chess 960 tournament concludes, the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz will begin, where Leinier will also participate. This tournament, which is played annually, will bring together 10 Grandmasters, including Carlsen.

The Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz will also be held online due to concerns created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition to Leinier and Carlsen, Nepomniachtchi, Grischuk, Aronian, So, Nakamura, Harikrishna, Firouzja and Xiong will compete.

The tournament will include three rapid chess dates and a total of nine rounds, with games of 25 minutes and 25 seconds increment per move. Then there will be two blitz chess dates, with nine rounds each day, in games of five minutes and three seconds increment. The prize pool is $250,000.