Four Winners Crowned at FIDE World Seniors Championships in Porto Santo, Portugal
Four winners were crowned on Thursday at the FIDE World Seniors Championships in Porto Santo, Portugal. GM Alexander Shabalov (U.S.) won the Open 50+ section, GM Rainer Knaak (Germany) came first in the Open 65+ section, IM Masha Klinova (Israel) topped the Women’s 50+, and WIM Brigitte Burchardt (Germany) won the Women’s 65+.
The world championship for senior players tends to be held in lovely resorts with good weather and good food, and this year wasn’t any different. Old friends came together in the four-star Hotel Vila Baleira in Porto Santo, a Portuguese island 43 kilometers (27 miles) northeast of Madeira Island in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Europe and Africa.
11 rounds were played between 17 and 28 November, with only one rest day on the 23rd. With such a tough schedule, it was probably a good thing that no rule against draw offers existed in this tournament as some participants might have decided against embarking on the trip otherwise!
In the Open 50+ section, Shabalov emerged as the winner, edging out Michal Krasenkow of Poland on tiebreak after both finished on 8.5/11. They shared the top prizes of €3,000 and €2,500, while Victor Mikhalevski of Israel took bronze and earned €2,000.
In the Open 65+ section, Knaak was the clear winner with an 8.5/11 score. He won €3,000, while Alexander Mikhalevski (Israel), Lubomir Ftacnik (Slovakia), and Christian Maier (Germany) shared the prizes two-four valued at €2,500, €2,000, and €1,500, respectively.
In the Women’s 50+ category, Klinova and Silvia Collas of France tied for first place, with Klinova having a slightly better tiebreak. In the Women’s 65+ category, Burchardt finished ahead of Nona Gaprindashvili (silver) and Tatiana Bogumil (bronze).
The tournament was an 11-round Swiss event with a prize fund of €42,500. The time control was 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes to finish the game, with a 30-second increment per move.
Overall, the FIDE World Seniors Championships in Porto Santo, Portugal, showcased some intense competition and crowned deserving winners in each category.