“The 76th edition of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament took place from 10 – 26 January 2014. The main tournament location was Wijk aan Zee in the Netherlands.
Garry arrived in Wijk aan Zee to observe the matches between such players as Aronian, Nakamura, Giri, Karjakin and other topGrandmasters. Speaking at the press conference he referred to the Wijk aan Zee tournament as “arguably the luckiest place for me on the chess map. I played three tournaments here and won all three of them, including the blitz one so that’s a fourth”. Garry participated in the tournament in 1999, 2000, 2001 finishing clear first in each. In 1999, he won what many consider his greatest game, a tactical masterpiece against Topalov.
Asked about current players and their respective chances of qualifying to face Magnus Carlsen in the 2014 World Championship matchby winning the Candidates tournament in Khanty-Mansyisk, Russia, in March, Garry said:
“Aronian plays perfectly here. If he keeps the same quality of chess he has a very good chance, fair chance of winning in Khanty-Mansiysk. But let’s not forget, I am not trying to take one side against the other, I am not rooting for any player! I’m running for the FIDE presidency and I will deal with anyone who wins the tournament and then faces Magnus Carlsen in November. But the danger is, as we all know, as all professional players know, and actually Aronian also learned his hard lessons, here in Wijk aan Zee there is not such great pressure. We’ve all seen how amazing his game is when he’s not under stress. Khanty-Mansiysk will be different. One mistake can deny him the chance to play the match of his life.”
The history of the Wijk aan Zee tournament dates back to 1938 and it has attracted many World Champions, such as Botvinnik, Anand,Carlsen, Petrosian and Kramnik, and many other great players from all over the world.
Tata Steel is an Indian multinational industry conglomerate. Those following the tournament from the early days will remember it as the Hoogovens, a Dutch steel company that would later merge with British steel to form the Corus Group. When Tata steel purchased Corus in 2007, the tournament took on the name of the Indian conglomerate.
The 77th edition of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament will take place from 9 – 25 January 2015.
