Blitz tournament was held at the Nakhchivan Open on Saturday. It turned out successful for the Georgian delegation. Levan Pantsulaia (2556) distinguished himself and took the first place.
The Georgian chess player celebrated 7 wins and played 4 draws in 11 rounds. He became champion with 9.0 points. Rauf Mamedov of Azerbaijan (2662) and Denis Khismatullin of Russia earned 8.5-8.5 points. They took the second-third places.
Other four Georgians participated in the blitz tournament. Here are their results: 11. Giga Kuparadze (2489) – 7.0; 13. Mikheil Mchedlishvili (2640) – 7.0; 18. Bachana Morchiashvili (2377) – 7.0; 45. Zurab Javakhadze (2448) – 5.0;
Five rounds are already held at the main tournament. Mchedlishvili and Pantsulaia have the best results from the Georgians. They are in the 11th-12th places with 3.5-3.5 points. Kuparadze, Morchiashvili and Javakhadze are beyond Top 30 with 2.5-2.5 points.
The Nakhchivan Open has three leaders who have 4-4 points: Igor Kurnosov (Russia, 2649), Eltaj Safarli (Azerbaijan, 2644), Bartlomiej Macieja (Poland, 2608).
The Azerbaijani tournament is based on Swiss system and it will end up on May 1. Prize money of the tournament is 60 000 USD. Champion will win 10 000 USD. The prize money will be distributed to 30 chess players.
Dato Manjavidze
