The FIDE World Rapid Chess Championship 2003 was the third FIDE-sanctioned edition of the World Rapid Chess Championship. The Caisse Centrale d'Activités Sociales des Electriciens et Gaziers de France (CCAS) hosted the 16-player tournament from 24 to 30 October 2003 at Cap d'Agde, France. Featuring eleven of the world's twelve top-ranked players, the multi-stage tournament was the strongest rapid tournament in history up to that point. Indian grandmaster Viswanathan Anand won the event, defeating World Champion Vladimir Kramnik 1½–½ in the finals. This was Anand's seventh World Rapid title.
Details The FIDE World Rapid Championship 2003 was hosted by Caisse Centrale d'Activités Sociales des Electriciens et Gaziers de France (CCAS) in conjunction with FIDE. The time control was 25 minutes + 10-second increment for rapid games and 3 minutes + 3-second increment for blitz games.
The tournament began with a preliminary group stage (24-26 October), where the sixteen players were split into two groups of eight players each. Each group played a seven-game round robin, with the top four players from each advancing to an eight-player single-elimination knockout (28-30 October) to determine the champion. In case of a tie for 4th place in the group stage, a blitz playoff would be played. Each knockout match was best-of-two games with alternating colors. In case of a 1–1 tie, the players would play a blitz tiebreak, also with alternating colors.
The field featured eleven of the world's top-12-ranked players and had an average Elo rating of 2726, making it the strongest rapid chess tournament in history up to that point. Included in the field were the reigning FIDE and Classical world champions, Ruslan Ponomariov and Vladimir Kramnik. The 16 participants, all of whom are grandmasters, are listed below:
, 2777 , 2766 , 2739 , 2737 , 2735 , 2732 , 2725 , 2723 , 2722 , 2722 , 2718 , 2703 , 2693 , 2693 , 2666 , 2664
Results
Group A PlayerRating12345678TotalTPR12777 ½½11½½½4½281322718½ ½1½½½14½282132664½½ ½½½114½28294270300½ 11½½3½2717527350½½0 11½3½272262693½½½00 012½261472725½½0½01 02½261682739½00½½01 2½2621 Vladimir Kramnik, Ruslan Ponomariov, and Etienne Bacrot all scored 4½/7 (+2–0=5) to progress from Group A. One point behind were Veselin Topalov and Boris Gelfand, who tied for 4th place with 3½/7 (+2–2=3). Topalov defeated Gelfand in a blitz playoff to claim the final quarterfinals spot.
Group A - Blitz Tiebreak +NameRating12Total27351½1½27030½½
Group B PlayerRating12345678TotalTPR12723 ½½1½1½15287722732½ ½½½11½4½282032766½½ 0½1½142763427220½1 ½0114276952737½½½½ 01½3½27176272200011 1½3½271972666½0½000 122569826930½00½½0 1½2494 In group B, Peter Svidler finished clear of the field with 5/7 (+3–0=4) to secure a spot in the quarterfinals. A half point behind was Alexander Grischuk on 4½/7, and another half point behind on 4/7 were Viswanathan Anand, and Judit Polgar. The four players advanced to the quarterfinals.
Knockout Kramnik, the reigning classical world champion and tournament's No. 1 seed, dispatched Polgár and Grischuk with little difficulty to reach the final. In the other half of the bracket, Anand joined Kramnik in the finals after defeating Ponomariov and then beating Svidler in a sudden-death blitz game after three drawn games to join him.
After Game 1 of the finals ended in a quiet 19-move draw, Anand chose to play for complications in Game 2 in the white side of a Sveshnikov Sicilian. Following an inaccuracy from Kramnik (17... a5? 18. Na3), Anand was able to use his two knights to infiltrate Kramnik's defense, eventually forcing a queen sac to win the game and the match. +World Rapid Chess Championship 2003 – FinalNameRating12Total2777½0½2766½11½ With this victory, Anand earned his seventh World Rapid title and his second of the year, having earlier won the Grenkeleasing Rapid Championship 2003. After this event, there was a long hiatus before FIDE next organized a World Championship in 2012. In the meantime, the Chess Classic continued to annually organize its rapid world championships until 2010.
References