Utut takes revenge against Gelfand

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesian chess wizard Utut Adianto produced yet another notable scalp in the Biel Master Invitational Tournament in Switzerland as he outwitted second seed Boris Gelfand of Belarus in a marathon fifth-round game on Wednesday.

It was a sweet revenge for Utut who lost to the Belarusian world number eight in the Olympic of Chess in Moscow last year. Utut, playing the advantageous white pieces, destroyed Gelfand's King Indian defense and forced the Belarusian to resign after 83 moves.

Chess enthusiasts who packed the Koner Haus in Biel greeted the 30-year-old Indonesian with a long ovation after the match, which lasted six and a half hours.

The victory capped Utut's brilliant showing at the elite tournament, following two impressive wins over Germany's Stefan Kinderman and Dutch Grand Master Jan Timman. Utut now shares the lead in the 14-field chess meet with Alexei Dreev of Russia with 3.5 points apiece.

Dreev had to settle for a draw with Argentinean Daniel Campora after both players failed to escape a stalemate in the 55th move of their Caro-Kann game.

"It was a nerve-wracking game. Nobody had expected earlier that Utut would produced that big upset," Utut's colleague Sebastian Simanjuntak said in a facsimile.

Utut deserved a place in the annual tournament after assuring himself of the Grand Master Super title during the Interzonal tournament in Genting Highland, Malaysia early this month. (amd)