National GM shines at Oslo Esports Cup

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilova

Azerbaijani chess player Shahriyar Mammadyarov has won the fifth round at the Oslo Esports Cup.

In the fifth round, Shahriyar Mammadyarov faced Anish Giri from the Netherlands. The national chess player gained the victory with a score of 3.5: 2.5. In the first round, Mammadyarov defeated Le Quang Liem (Vietnam).

The national GM currently shares the 6th-7th places among 8 chess players with 6 points.

The Oslo Esports Cup is the first major of the tour: a round-robin among eight players, with each round consisting of four-game matches (15|10) each day which advance to blitz (5|3) and armageddon (White has five minutes, Black four with no increment) tiebreaks in case of a tie.

Shahriyar Mammadyarov is a three-fold European Team Champion (2009, 2013 and 2017) and gold medalist at the 2012 Chess Olympiad on the third board.

He won the World Junior Chess Championship in 2003 and repeated his victory in 2005, becoming the only two-time champion, achieving a 2,953 performance rating after eight rounds. After winning the Essent Tournament in 2006, Shahriyar achieved world fame.

In June 2016, Mammadyarov won the 3rd Shamkir Chess Tournament, the Vugar Gashimov Memorial. He defeated Fabiano Caruana and Anish Giri in the last two rounds, which put him in a tiebreak situation with Caruana. He defeated Caruana in the tiebreak, thus giving him tournament victory.

In 2021, Mammadyarov defeated the 13-time world champion Garry Kasparov at the Grand Chess Tour in Zagreb (Croatia).

The round-robin tournament consists of 13 rounds. 14 chess players take part in the tournament.

The Tata Steel Chess Tournament is one of the most prestigious events in the international chess calendar. The "Wimbledon of Chess" attracts the very best chess grandmasters in the world, along with thousands of amateur players.

The tournament has two main player groups, each with 14 players. They are known as the Tata Steel Masters and the Tata Steel Challengers. Both the Masters and the Challengers played their first round on  January 13. In addition to Grandmaster events, the Tata Steel Chess Tournament also organises amateur events that are open to players of all levels.

In May, Shahriyar Mammadyarov will joint Superbet Chess Classic in Romania.

The first stage of the Grand Chess Tour series will be held in Bucharest on May 4-14.