Full Steam Ahead!

Reported by the special correspondent of 64, Evgeny Ilyin.

On the station square in Yerevan the departure signal sounded, and the train set off. In its carriages were seven international grandmasters, one USSR grandmaster, five international masters and three national masters. Thus began the Yerevan International Chess Tournament.

A new tournament means a new address. This time the Railway Workers’ Palace of Culture was dressed in chessboard black and white. One cannot help recalling Moscow’s Three Stations Square and the Central House of Railway Workers, dear to lovers of the ancient game, which long ago became the Central House of Chess Players. Its Yerevan “simultaneous-display brother” has a different stature and different dimensions of stage and hall, but one would like to believe that its chess destiny will be just as fortunate.

The opening of the Yerevan international tournament nevertheless took place in the long-established Armenian Chess House. The participants were addressed by M. Aleksandrian, deputy chairman of the republic’s Gosplan and chairman of the presidium of the Chess Federation. He expressed confidence that the Yerevan international tournament would become a new stimulus for the development of chess in Soviet Armenia and would further strengthen friendly ties among sportsmen from different countries.

On behalf of Yerevan chess enthusiasts, the participants were welcomed by J. Arustamian, deputy director of the Armenian Scientific Research Institute of Mathematical Machines. Grandmaster V. Tukmakov responded on behalf of the players. He spoke of the ardent love Armenian chess fans have for this remarkable game and of the high level of their chess understanding.

The chief arbiter of the tournament, A. Khachatrian, announced the regulations and conducted the drawing of lots, which placed the participants in the following order:

1. J. Smejkal, Czechoslovakia
2. R. Vaganian, USSR
3. K. Grigorian, USSR
4. I. Csom, Hungary
5. E. Mnatsakanian, USSR
6. P. Ostojić, Yugoslavia
7. A. Petrosian, USSR
8. E. Vasiukov, USSR
9. A. Ornstein, Sweden
10. A. Rodríguez, Cuba
11. W. Schmidt, Poland
12. V. Savon, USSR
13. V. Tukmakov, USSR
14. B. Gulko, USSR
15. P. Poutiainen, Finland
16. O. Romanishin, USSR

And so the tournament set off, immediately gathering considerable speed. This impression of speed is created by the fairly demanding schedule and by the high number of decisive results in the first rounds. For the Soviet participants, accustomed to having constantly to qualify for something — what can be done, when the large number of strong chess players determines the multi-stage structure of sporting selection — there is here a pleasant chance to play without constantly looking back at the tournament table. And none of them can be accused of lacking fighting spirit.

Yet even in such an “aggressive” team there are leaders of the attack. Among them I would name first of all Oleg Romanishin. This modest young man has long since won the sympathy of chess fans with his truly uncompromising style. Judging by his play, Romanishin is convinced that the foundation of chess is not the idea of equilibrium, but the idea of struggle. He is ready to fight with any weapon. His arsenal contains everything with which modern chess is rich: positional manoeuvres and tactical blows. Yet the tactics of an outstanding master differ from a kind of “master key”. In his games they create constant tension. Romanishin does not know the very notion of “one-sided chess”; he does not attach special importance to any one aspect of the game. This is the so-called psychological aspect. Romanishin always believes in himself and does not change his programme of play depending on whom he is playing or on the opponent’s attitude.

Romanishin is the least experienced participant, but so far he is advancing without losses. He has three points from three games, as well as one adjourned game with an extra pawn and winning chances. True, an important result from the sporting point of view in the third round did not materialize because Yerevan grandmaster Vaganian missed the first three rounds. The reason was, of course, a respectable one: Vaganian was playing in an international tournament in Yugoslavia. Still, these three blank spots have considerably upset the tournament officials and do not allow a complete “deployment” of the forces to be presented before the coming battles.

Among the immediate results after four rounds, in first place is the Cuban A. Rodríguez, who has lost all his games. This is a sad circumstance for the guest, but it has put the other participants on their guard. As E. Vasiukov remarked, in every tournament a player who has been losing becomes dangerous for his next opponent. It appears that the “loser” may be W. Schmidt, who has an adjourned game against Rodríguez a pawn down and in a worse position, although the Polish master is hoping for “opposite-coloured bishops”. If Schmidt manages to save himself, he will be the first. His first personal “system”, according to which the Pole loses in odd-numbered rounds and wins in even-numbered ones, scoring with Black, does not apply to A. Ornstein, who had to acclimatize himself to the tournament on the principle of “one out of four”.

Grandmaster E. Vasiukov began the tournament with three victories. At last one may call him a veteran: in this team, even players in their fifties are not encountered very often. The Moscow master is distinguished by many qualities peculiar to him alone. In several competitions I have observed his high-class play, while he himself remained in a modest place that did not correspond to his talent and reputation.

But old chess fans may protest: “Enough! You already promised Vasiukov victory in the Philippine super-tournament. We shall not demand a serene tournament fate for him in Yerevan as well.” For the time being, however, the grandmaster, as befits a true “internationalist”, has presented himself in full brilliance before the foreign participants.

The Bulgarian B. Gulko is industrious and inventive. He holds, though not yet the highest title, that of USSR grandmaster. Much has already been said about the absurdity of the situation in which this title seems somehow to stand below the title of international grandmaster. It is well known that scoring successes in our internal competitions is much harder than in average-level international tournaments. An “overproduction” of grandmasters is hardly likely to threaten Soviet chess.

Incidentally, in Yerevan Gulko — like Romanishin — may reach the first two places and, by doing so, obtain the title of international grandmaster. He has already taken a step in that direction, scoring four points out of five.

Let us welcome the strong line-up of the Yerevan tournament, and let us say frankly that it will be difficult for him to gain even “fifty percent”. For the time being, the guest from Yugoslavia has successfully overcome the difficulty and is holding on at the fifty-percent mark.

Half of the possible points — or even better — is what the foreign participants were able to achieve. And if this does not especially surprise anyone, the play of the young masters has to some extent been “planned” in advance: “In such a strong tournament I shall study and faithfully take part,” said, for example, A. Ornstein. The modest result of Czechoslovak grandmaster Smejkal is another old weakness. Smejkal has not only a high rating of 2615; his reputation as one of the most interesting creative grandmasters of his country is beyond doubt. Here, however, he is playing with full commitment, but so far the game is not coming together for him. Let us hope that this fan of chess’s ancient form will find his best form in the duel — for Caissa values a devoted knight.

The two Vladimir Borisoviches — the two Ukrainian grandmasters Savon and Tukmakov — have little in common in their sporting fortunes. Having achieved impressive successes several years ago, they then somehow faded somewhat, losing their chess optimism and good fortune. Now Tukmakov and Savon are in the leading group and are demonstrating substantial play.

We have the right to hope that talented grandmasters from sunny and mountainous Armenia will begin to reap all possible sporting and creative harvests.

To conclude, a few words about the hosts of the tournament. Perhaps they should have been mentioned at the beginning of the report. But I have no doubt that the Armenians themselves, with true Caucasian hospitality, would have given the first lines to their guests.

It is generally believed that in sport the saying “home walls help” is especially justified. Football teams even develop special tactics for home and away matches. Chess practice in recent years, however, shows that in chess one’s own walls often do not help, but actually weigh upon the player. It is especially difficult for Rafael Vaganian. The talented grandmaster has more than once pleased his countrymen. But the scale of his gift, and the restless love with which he is followed, demand ever more new victories from him. And now, after his unsuccessful performance in Yugoslavia, these demands are becoming still more insistent...

One gets the impression that the Yerevan masters E. Mnatsakanian and A. Petrosian do not feel quite at home under the close gaze of exacting fans. In any case, both are allowing quite a few “technical defects”.

After six rounds O. Romanishin and V. Tukmakov had 4½ points each, but the Lvov player still had a postponed game with R. Vaganian. B. Gulko and R. Vaganian had 4 points out of 5, and A. Ornstein had 2½ out of 3.

A Common Language

Reported by the correspondent of 64, Evgeny Ilyin.

The language of chess, like the language of music, knows no territorial boundaries and needs no translation. The beauty of combinations and the strict logic of positional manoeuvring sound the same in every corner of the earth. At the chessboard, even without knowing a single word, people easily understand one another — just as, incidentally, they may fail to understand one another while speaking the same language. Yet it is worth moving away from the chessboard and the wooden pieces, and contact between representatives of different countries immediately gives rise to the so-called language barrier. Overcoming that barrier and restoring the joy of communication between masters and grandmasters is helped by knowledge of Russian. In Yerevan I was once again convinced how widespread our chess language has become. The Hungarian Csom and the Pole Schmidt, the Yugoslav Ostojić and the Czech Smejkal not only discuss chess events, but also make jokes in Russian. It is amusing to watch them occasionally suggest to one another a forgotten word and clarify the meaning of a correctly constructed phrase.

Only the Swede Ornstein, the Finn Poutiainen and the Cuban Rodríguez do not speak Russian, but that, of course, is explained by their youth and comparatively modest chess experience.

While they are taking their first steps and learning the basics of the “grandmaster language”, colleagues come to their aid. Most communication with the little-Russian-speaking Tukmakov falls to the lot of the Armenian-speaking Romanishin, who knows a little German. In short, the members of the international fraternity understand one another. And only the reluctance to enter a fight whose main pragmatists did not find understanding in this combat company. In any case, no such proposals are made. As for the most high-probability result of decisive games — there are already more than 60 percent of them. And although the meeting ends in peace, here the point is usually not divided, but literally broken in half in stubborn combat.

The composition of the leading group, determined already at the start, proved stable — familiar faces all around. Yet the main column is gradually stretching out over the distance; gaps between the stragglers are becoming noticeable. Apparently, perhaps only Vasiukov is successfully maintaining the pace set by Romanishin. The defeat of Tukmakov in the fifth round seemed to spur on the Moscow grandmaster, and he again switched on maximum speed. On the way, Vasiukov scored two very important victories over Gulko and Vaganian.

Two defeats in a row — he had also lost to Ornstein — did not knock Gulko out of the saddle. In the following rounds the Muscovite energetically made up his losses. The chances of fulfilling the international grandmaster norm are still quite high.

Savon and Tukmakov, as at the beginning of the tournament, are walking “in pairs”. They almost synchronously made a sharp spurt, and then, equally amicably, slowed down.

Vaganian was supposed to catch up with the leaders. He already had two wins out of the three missed games at the start of the tournament. To make up for such gaps under a strict schedule is very difficult. The organizers can be understood: the Yerevan residents want to see their favourite “in action”. However, in future neither Vaganian nor other chess players should be subjected to such overloads. Competitions should be planned more precisely.

The ninth round proved exceptional in many respects. In it Rodríguez scored his first victory.

In the ninth round Black won more games than White for the first time. In general, the statistical pattern shows that in this tournament White’s advantage was unusually great: after eight rounds the score was 21:8 in favour of White. If one recalls that a similar pattern was observed in the recent USSR Championship, then chess Yerevan may perhaps be called a “white city”.

Finally, in the ninth round one of the foreign guests, for the first time — the first round not counting — crossed the fifty-percent mark. This was the representative of the interzonal tournament in the Philippines, Hungarian grandmaster Csom. He displays solid play, and considering his relatively easy finish, one may suppose that the sympathetic grandmaster will not damage his “interzonal” prestige in Yerevan.

In the Armenian capital, spring has arrived: warm weather, green grass is appearing, and the trees are covered with green fluff. But to the Cuban Amador Rodríguez, it seems, the weather is still cool. The dark-haired young man walks around in a demi-season coat and a woollen sweater. Rodríguez was chilled also in the figurative, sporting sense: he had a very bad start. Now, however, his mood has noticeably improved — “halves” and even full points have appeared in the table.

Alex Ornstein is also gathering a harvest of points, but on the impassive face of the young Swedish master there is almost always a cloudless expression. Evidently this time he is counting on greater than tournament successes: he is counting on success in the Russian language.

The lively, bright-haired Finn Pertti Poutiainen also remains young. But he is more restrained. His self-control and composure show especially in time trouble. Thus, under the Damocles’ sword of a raised flag, he defeated Vaganian and Mnatsakanian.

In the tenth round Romanishin dealt a precise blow to Tukmakov and strengthened his leading position still further. This was the first defeat of the Odessa grandmaster. Now only Romanishin remains undefeated. There are no longer any participants in the tournament who have not tasted the joy of victory — Mnatsakanian has also won. Curiously, on the previous day Ostojić had said to him: “Since you are making winning positions, it means you will soon start winning.” The prophecy came true the next day: the defeated player was the Yugoslav grandmaster himself.

In the eleventh round the leaders suffered defeats: Ostojić defeated Romanishin, and Csom defeated Vasiukov. After 11 rounds Romanishin had 8 points from 11, Vasiukov 7½ from 11, Savon and Mnatsakanian 7 points each, Gulko 6½ with one adjourned game, Csom 6, Tukmakov 6 with one adjourned game, Smejkal 6, Schmidt 5½, Vaganian 5 with one adjourned game, Grigorian 4½ with one adjourned game, Poutiainen and Ostojić 4½ each, A. Petrosian 4 with one adjourned game, Mnatsakanian 3 with one adjourned game, Ornstein and Rodríguez 3 each.

The Fulfilment of Wishes

Reported by the special correspondent of 64, Evgeny Ilyin.

The tournament in Yerevan is simply international — no qualifying functions have been assigned to it. This circumstance allows the participants to feel more relaxed and, as they say, to play for their own pleasure. They enjoy this opportunity from the heart. Yet the absence of the oppressing “selection apple” does not, of course, mean that chess players have no specific wishes, no aims or secret desires.

It was quite obvious that Oleg Romanishin wished to fulfil the international grandmaster norm. Boris Gulko, the USSR grandmaster, also laid claim to the grandmaster norm, thereby legally formalizing his affiliation to the world chess guard. From the very beginning, the Muscovite energetically set about saving his tournament “fortune”. Once what seemed comparatively easy began, in the process of its fulfilment, to demand considerable expenditure of nervous energy. It seemed possible to help Romanishin by having 8 points out of 9, and in the course of his tournament career the nine-point grandmaster circle was in sight. But in the tenth round Oleg suffered his first defeat from Ostojić, and then lost a previously drawn game against Vaganian. Nine points remained to be obtained from two and a half. Moreover, to secure the final one of them, the master, who had always been aggressively inclined, agreed to a short, bloodless draw with Savon. One might have grumbled: the grandmaster’s name made Romanishin a grandmaster. But we know that in reality his opponent was Aaronian — not literally, of course, but as a chess “metaphor”. The grandmaster point was earned with such difficulty because it was not the only aim, but rather an all-consuming dream. From the start Romanishin himself, more than anyone, fighting not so much for the norm as for first place, naturally deprived himself of still more “free” nervous reserves. Without ambition, it is no secret, there is no great success and there is no battle. Different aims require different means. And this very natural aim — the dream of the newest chess player, who was making the selection struggle more difficult by means of rational tactics — was achieved and went into the archive.

Unfortunately for Romanishin, his “difficulties” were not used by his rivals. Grandmaster Vasiukov, who had set himself up most seriously for first prize, also fell into a streak of bad luck. In a good game against Csom he first sacrificed several pieces, then in an even better position overlooked an elementary tactical blow.

The Moscow grandmaster also had a considerable advantage in his game with Ostojić, where he again suffered after sacrificing a piece, and in his game with A. Petrosian, which was postponed with one more pawn to his credit. True, Vasiukov’s opponents too proved not to be at their best, and the grandmaster managed to avoid defeat.

One gets the impression that Romanishin and Vasiukov, along the whole length of the ten rounds, had set the pace of the race, and then, as it were, failed to maintain that high speed.

For Gulko, the final steps toward the coveted grandmaster peak also proved difficult. He stumbled three times, “losing” to Smejkal. Now the Muscovite’s desire will depend on the outcome of his last-round meeting with Vaganian.

Yerevan’s own masters, or rather their admirers, also have wishes, but unfortunately no wish to delight the fans with a high result has reached the chess players tired by the exhausting tournament struggle. Of all of them, only Grigorian, who had at first made a magnificent artistic sacrifice of his queen for two minor pieces in the game against Schmidt, distinguished himself in all his glory.

But days of good fighting spirit alternate for Vaganian with days of “reduced activity”, when the grandmaster at best makes bloodless draws and sometimes commits serious blunders.

It is hard to guess the wishes of grandmasters Savon and Tukmakov. Both play calmly, without risk; both show “slowness” — each of them has only one “failure”, fewer than the other participants. Yet if I am not mistaken, the fire of desire burns within them too; these experienced fighters will certainly take high places in the final table. Can that not be considered the fulfilment of wishes?

The Hungarian grandmaster Csom is the only one of the unsuccessful starters who has managed to turn around his tournament fate. After a long spurt in the middle of the distance, it seemed he was ready to claim one of the highest places. But whether he had not had time to gather sufficient wishes, or whether the undertaken spurt had taken too much strength, Csom calmed down and decided not to trouble himself further. And now his position as the best of the foreign guests, having remained unbeaten, is threatened by his colleague from Czechoslovakia, Smejkal. In the final round Smejkal plays Poutiainen, who at the finish has lost game after game; if Smejkal succeeds, he may take part in the forthcoming “great division”.

The Yerevan chess players Mnatsakanian and A. Petrosian, as well as the Moscow player Grigorian, have very definite wishes. Of all the participants, they alone do not hold the international-master title. That title sounds respectable and opens the way to interesting competitions.

For many participants, the Yerevan tournament is the largest event in their sporting life. Usually it should serve as an additional stimulus for an unexpected rise. But in this case something different happened: the young chess players, having tested the heavy hand of celebrated opponents again and again, could not withstand the unbearable tension and at the finish finally broke down. Such a fate befell the Swede Ornstein and the Finn Poutiainen, who had acted quite confidently until the middle of the competition. Only the Cuban Rodríguez has shown enviable firmness and, despite all the twists of tournament fate, continues to fight stubbornly in every game.

The adjournment before the final round was tense. “Six hours” were played by A. Petrosian and Vasiukov, and that evening the game still did not end. Its result was decided only the following morning. A. Petrosian won. In this secret way Vasiukov withdrew from the fight for first place, and Romanishin secured victory in the tournament ahead of time.

On the final day Savon defeated Csom, Gulko defeated Vaganian, Smejkal defeated Poutiainen, and Ornstein defeated A. Petrosian. The remaining games ended in draws.

/ Reports from "64" numbers 13-15/1976 /