Lone woman player Polgar keeps lead in JAPFA Classic
Lone woman player Polgar keeps lead in JAPFA Classic
By Ivy Susanti
SANUR, Bali (JP): Grand Master (GM) Judit Polgar of Hungary
held her lead on Friday with 4.5 Match Points (MP) after she
drew with GM Alexander Khalifman of Russia in the sixth round of
the JAPFA Classic International Tournament 2000.
Russian chess legend GM Anatoly Karpov shared second place
with GM Gilberto Milos of Brazil with 4 MP each, followed by
Khalifman and GM Yasser Seirawan of the United States with 3.5
MP.
Karpov, who is now the world's 11th ranked player, drew with
GM Jan Timman of the Netherlands in the 62nd move after a six-
hour tussle, using the Caro Kann defense. Their match ended in
checkmate as they were left with a king, queen and a pawn.
Timman, who is ranked 32 in the world, collected 2.5 MP.
Indonesia's top player GM Utut Adianto managed to improve his
point after defeating International Master (IM) Zaw Win Lay of
Myanmar in the 20th move by Queen Indian defense. Utut earned 3
MP while Zaw is the bottom finisher with 0.5 MP.
Another Indonesian player GM Ruben Gunawan conceded to Milos
in the 32nd move in the Sicilia defense. Ruben collected 1.5 MP.
At another table, Seirawan beat GM Jaan Ehlvest of Estonia in
the 48th move with the Indian Bogo defense. Ehlvest has 3 points.
Polgar said after the match she was happy with her performance
in the tournament. She was modest, however, about her chances of
winning the 16th category tournament held at the Grand Bali Beach
hotel here.
"I'm happy with the result. Of course I want to win. But there
are still three other games ahead." Polgar has won three games
and tied three.
Climate
Khalifman offered Polgar a draw after he realized that both of
them would have to repeat their knight movement at the central
board.
Khalifman, the 1999 FIDE world champion, blamed his poor
performance on the local weather.
"I'm not used to playing in the hot and humid climate like
here. I don't like this climate and the climate doesn't like me
either. So I'm not in my best form. I lack energy. I remember
when I was younger, I played in Manila, which has a similar
climate, and I faced the same problem there. Staying in the air-
conditioned room is not enough," he said.
He expressed his hope that he could play better in the
remaining games.
"I regret my performance. I want to play better. I still have
three games to go. To win a game we need some energy. I still
hope the tournament is not over. But sometimes, things do not go
on perfectly," he said.
Utut said after the match that Zaw apparently did not like his
style. He said he needed one more points to maintain his elo
rating.
"I hope I can win two more games against Khalifman and
Seirawan but it won't be easy. I still have the chance because I
will play the white pieces," Utut said.
Zaw said mental pressure led him to give up easily to Utut.
"Yesterday (on Thursday), I fought longer with Judit. I'm very
tired. I also lost my confidence because I earned the fewest
point of 0.5 MP. But I have to try, I will never give up," he
said.
Zaw lost to Polgar in a momentous struggle lasting about six
hours and 30 minutes in the fifth round match on Thursday.