2008 Chess Olympiad: Round #6

Pregame Analysis: Near the midway point, the beat goes on as Russia is back on board #1 facing England. England has done well with the young duo of Howell and Jones. Both Germany and Russia lead the field with nine points after fighting to a draw. Germany will face Ukraine and a marquee matchup between Azerbaijan and Armenia is on tap. The latter has some political tension given the comments Teimour Radjabov made about Armenia earlier this year. All the matchups will certainly be interesting. China is trying to sneak back up in contention after suffering an upset to Norway a couple of rounds ago. Romania-Bulgaria are two nations from the old eastern bloc battling. Bulgaria’s Topalov looks to take Bulgaria to the top.

Round #6 Analysis: Armenia toppled Azerbaijan to move slightly ahead of Russia who beat England convincingly 3-1. It’s Armenia-Russia in round #7! Germany and the Ukraine traded wins on boards #2 and #4 and split the match. France crushed Poland and India beat Bosnia and Hergozovina. The next round will be exciting with several marquee matchups on the top boards.

In the women’s competition, China maintains their lead after beating the Polgar-less Hungary 2½-1½. Russia beat Austria and heads for a showdown match with China. That encounter may be just one round away. China gets the USA and Russia faces Poland. The Ukraine has slowly climbed back into contention and will face the Netherlands. Asia is well-represented on the next three boards with Mongolia, India and Vietnam facing Hungary, Bulgaria and Serbia respectively.

African-Caribbean scores (by board #): Cuba 1½-2½ USA; Turkey 4-0 Algeria; Austria 4-0 Egypt; Italy 3-1 South Africa; Kazahkstan 4-0 Netherlands Antilles; Puerto Rico 0-4 Czech Republic; Estonia 4-0 Nigeria; Libya ½-3½ Uzbekistan; Ethiopia ½-3½ Guatamala; Domincan Republic 2½-1½ Panama; 0-4 Tunisia; Botswana 2½-1½ Nepal; Jamaica 3½-½ Papua New Guinea; San Marino 2-2 Zambia; Barbados ½-3½ Sri Lanka; Mozambique 4-0 U.S. Virgin Islands; Uganda 2-2 Bermuda; Namibia 2-2 Ghana; Suriname 2-2 Mauritius; Kenya 1½-2½ Malawi; British Virgin Islands 2-2 Madagascar; Seychelles 2-2 Gabon