Sydney Chess International Open showcases surprise winner

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011

Hello everybody,

It's always a special feeling when you perform way better than your Fide rating. So we can understand FM Akshat Khamparia's joy as he won the Sydney International Chess Open picking up an IM norm and a whopping 42.8 rating points. Chalking out five straight wins and five straight draws, the young player finished with 7 points for a clear first. This was his second IM norm within a week as he was recently joint fourth at the 2011 Doeberl Cup. 

The best performance by a woman chess player at the event was by WFM Emma Guo of Australia with a 21st position.

A group of seven players shared the second place with 6.5 points each. Among them were FM Christopher Wallis, who also earned an IM norm, and Doeberl Cup winner GM Andrei Deviatkin. Harry Press, rated only 1423, was the winner of the Challengers group. Press shared the first place with much higher seeded Maros Zajac and Tony Davis, but was declared the winner on superior tiebreak.

Open Group Final Top Standings:

1 FM Akshat Khamparia IND 2328 - 7
2 GM Arutinian David GEO 2575 - 6.5
3 GM Deviatkin Andrei RUS 2566 - 6.5
4 IM Goh Wei Ming Kevin SIN 2382 - 6.5
5 FM Wallis Christopher AUS 2305 - 6.5
6 IM Solomon Stephen J AUS 2398 - 6.5
7 GM Zhao Zong-Yuan AUS 2579 - 6.5
8 FM Steadman Michael NZL 2217 - 6.5
9 GM Bojkov Dejan BUL 2523 - 6
10 FM Smirnov Vladimir RUS 2395 - 6
11 FM Ikeda Junta AUS 2296 - 6
12 FM Ly Moulthun AUS 2381 - 6
13 FM Illingworth Max AUS 2345 - 6
14 GM Johansen Darryl K AUS 2419 - 5.5
15 FM Canfell Gregory AUS 2313 - 5.5
16 GM Hansen Sune Berg DEN 2603 - 5.5
17 Samar Raul AUS 2236 - 5.5
18 Hu Jason AUS 2190 - 5.5
19 Brown Andrew AUS 2275 - 5
20 Kresovic Velimir GER 2246 - 5

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