Kobalia wins Arctic Chess Challenge with dramatic finish

Summer night in Tromsø

Hello Everybody,

Twenty-five Grandmasters with at least 12 rated more than 2600 competed in the 2010 Arctic Chess Challenge in the Chess Olympiad candidate city of Tromsø in Norway.

If you were there you would have wondered can summer nights be so beautiful? And, can chess be so unpredictable!

GM Loek Van Wely led throughout the tournament only to lose the last round in a dramatic game leaving Mikhail Kobalia to win the tournament. Kobalia beat Wely in the last round!

Last year’s winner Monika Socko got the prize for best female, while Frode O. O. Urkedal and Heikki Westerinen got the prizes for best junior and best senior, respectively.

You can read more details and check out photos at the official website here.

Here is the nice last round game between Kobalia and Van Wely. You can run the moves through the pgnplayer or watch in flash below.

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's

www.chessblog.com

Also see her personal blog at

www.chessqueen.com