Tournaments

  • Daaim ShabazzJune 2, 2019
    2 2,253

    Renewed Energy @ Chicago Open!

    The Chicago Open has been one of the marquee tournaments for two decades. It is the first major of the summer season and generally attracts a healthy mix of professionals, norm seekers and scholastic phenoms. However, what made this tournament different was the buzz created by the online battles that…

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  • Daaim ShabazzMay 29, 2019
    0 2,215

    Vasif Dararbayli wins 2019 Chicago Open!

    Illia Nyzhnyk and Vasif Dararbayli face off in round 7.The game was drawn. Aided by a strong 5.5/6 start Vasif Dararbayli held off a field of strong GMs to win the 2019 Chicago Open. Perhaps the key win was his 6th round win over then-co-leader Jeffery Xiong (2015 Chicago Open…

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  • Daaim ShabazzMay 25, 2019
    12 2,899

    2019 Chicago Open (Wheeling, Illinois)

    Summer is here and just outside of the “Windy City” in the suburb of Wheeling, the Chicago Open has begun. Aleksandr Shimanov is the defending champion, but Jeffery Xiong is the top seed and wants to repeat his 2015 win. Then only 14-years old, he has since evolved into a…

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  • Daaim ShabazzMay 22, 2019
    1 2,275

    Reflections on 2019 Abidjan Rapid & Blitz

    Going back to Africa! Before traveling to Francophone (French-speaking) Africa for the first time, I had to brush off my French instruction books from grad school to brush up on vocabulary, cognates, listening, phrases, and passe compose’. I discovered that there were a lot of videos on YouTube and went…

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  • Daaim ShabazzMay 18, 2019
    3 2,148

    The Chess Drum chats with Nigeria’s Oladapo Adu

    Nigeria has plans to break through to produce their first Grandmaster and an official campaign was launched in February. One of the hopefuls in the Africa’s most populous nation is International Master Oladapo Adu. A long-time national team member, Adu spent a number of years in the U.S. before returning…

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  • Daaim ShabazzMay 17, 2019
    2 2,131

    20 years after GM title, Ashley discusses African path

    GM Maurice AshleyPhoto by Daaim Shabazz Côte d’Ivoire was Maurice Ashley’s 7th African country, all in a relatively short period of time. This would be the first visit to a Francophone African country and the Jamaican-born GM would put his French skills to use. Ashley took up French in high…

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  • Daaim ShabazzMay 16, 2019
    1 2,027

    Essoh Essis on GCT Rapid & Blitz event

    The first event of the Grand Chess Tour is officially over and Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire will have in its history and world class chess event. There will be trivia questions such as the players who played, the hotel where it was hosted and that famous icon who was visiting the…

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  • Daaim ShabazzMay 14, 2019
    0 2,085

    Carlsen wins Abidjan Rapid & Blitz!

    Congratulations to @MagnusCarlsen for winning Côte d’Ivoire, the first leg of 2019 #GrandChessTour with 2 rounds to spare!! pic.twitter.com/xbEc8RCkTo — Grand Chess Tour (@GrandChessTour) May 12, 2019 After the election in the past FIDE election, there was an assertion that the international chess body would be more inclusive. While the…

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  • Daaim ShabazzMay 13, 2019
    0 2,119

    Veselin Topalov chats with The Chess Drum

    Former World Champion Veselin Topalov with Daaim Shabazz in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. Photo by The Chess Drum. Veselin Topalov has seen a thing or two in chess. Known as a tremendous fighter and the master of the exchange sacrifice, he has playing many a scintillating game. However, he is a…

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  • Daaim ShabazzMay 10, 2019
    0 1,988

    Grand Chess Tour meets Didier Drogba!

    When one thinks of the Ivory Coast, several things come to mind including their world-famous cocoa, but one unmistakable characterization is that the land of 23 million is a football-crazy nation. During the lead up of the Grand Chess Tour, there were a lot of promotional content including photos of…

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