"People don't need to tell me what to do" - GM Benjamin Tan

Hundreds of Asians gather at the official chess convention in Russia to protest to Ben's citizenship. Some protestor carry banners saying "We dont need Ben, %$@# him and his family", others said "Kill Him".

This campaign is organized in accordance to the Russian-Connection revolutionary transfer, which negotiate the Russian citizenship offered to Singapore leading chess star GM Benjamin Tan. Tens of thousand of chess fans around the world sounded their anger and frustration, of these protestor more than 96% of them are Japanese and Chinese.

Former Chess SuperBowl Cup winner Hanrol Steniken sympathises with Benjamin Tan, "he (Ben) has met with cruel and merciless critiques ever since this whole incident started, it's a case of wanting to come here and stay, just as simple as that and there's no need to blow the whole incident up, I hope people can be more understanding".

Meanwhile Ben is in Singapore, he declined to say if he would be too bored by it. "There are something that's out of my control and frankly spoken I really don't care what those people do, it's not going to shake me and my spirit, people hates me because they think I betray my country, but they don't understand a thing - People dont need to tell me what to do".

Poor health forces Ben to pull out of Commonwealth Games

Once again Singapore would be without the service of their top chess star. GM Benjamin Tan, 19 has made an emergency withdrawal from the Games 3 days before New Dehli could pull up their curtains. Said to be suffering from poor health the World Junior number 38 would not be following the rest of the team to India.

But meanwhile he has played a few bullet games (1 minute per side) here in Singapore, one of the games is even recorded by a fan. Enjoy.

Singapore struggles without Grandmaster Benjamin Tan

Singapore were without their talisman and top chess star at the 2010 Chess Olympiad and this proved decisive. His stand-in replacement IM Daniel Howard Fernandez could only manage 2 wins and 2 draws, finishing the tournament with 7 lost.

Despite that, GM Benjamin Tan maintained that he's proud of IM Daniel Fernandez. "He went there and played a few nice games, this trip serves more as an experience-getter for him rather than a real fight, he's still young".

Without the service of their top marksman Singapore could only attain 73rd position, winning 4, drawing 3 and losing 3 - including a devastating 4-0 reverse to Georgia.

Ben sees red as match-fixing scandal resurfaced

This year's Singapore Polytechnic Chess Open once again ended in dramatic style.

A volcanic Benjamin Tan burst out of the tournament room and went straight home before the last round, the Singaporean leading chess star refused to entertain the host further when his suspicious of the match-fixing scandal exceeded its limit.

A year ago in this very same event Ben raised the same complain, but any allegation was quickly denied by the organizer. This year Ben's suspicious grew when he found out that Singapore Polytechnic are using a tie-break system to protect their player from the top spots, at the same time feeding them with "easier opponents". He also found out that the organizer delibrately send three leading foreign players from NTU to "take him out".

Said Ben just before his dramatic storm off "those three (NTU) players are not going to affect me too much, but it certainly forces me to take the longer path to victory as compared to that SP guy who had a considerable more comfortable time, also the tie-break system they adopted is specially designed to benefit their own players and target me, you call that fair ? very clearly SP are trying to protect their own player, and I as an outsider has no say, forget it ! If they wants to win so badly so be it, I'm done with what I have to say goodbye".

Ben also vow not to come back to this tournament ever again.

A fury Ben promised to follow up in this issue and might even call in the World Chess Federation for further investigation if neccessary.

2010 Salto Angel International Chess Cup

"Magnificient Eight" announced


The eight participants invited for the annual super-tournament is officially announced.
Featuring newly-crowned chess superbowl winner and four-times RCI Cup winner Singaporean Grandmaster Benjamin Tan.

Two other former superbowl winner GM Andrei Jantovoltski (1999 - 2003) and GM Hanrol Steniken (2004-2005) are invited too.

Other participants includes Vietnam's superstar IM Le Kong Nam - winner of the 2009 King's Cup, Indonesian star FM Sarat Tohatmatai - winner of the 2009 SEA Chess Congress Class B, Malaysian star FM Dave Wong Wei Zi - winner of the 2009 Baltic Warrior Cup, Indian super prodigy IM Kashmov Kashima - 1st runner up of the 2010 Salzburg Emerald and American IM Ray Evans - winner of the Bulls Cup 2010.

Games would be played at the time control of 15 minutes per side without time increment.
In case of a tie-break, a "first-to-six-points" format of blitz games would be played, with draws counting too.

The first round would start on January 18 2011

Round 1 pairing would look something like this



Dave Wong vs Benjamin Tan
Sarat Tohatmatai vs Hanrol Steniken
Andrei Jantovoltski vs Le Kong Nam
Ray Evans vs Kashmov Kashima

Ben VS Alexis. After Round 20

GM Benjamin Tan wins 2010 Chess SuperBowl !

At first the world thought he's finally cracking under pressure when GM Benjamin Tan played his 14th move of the game. Ben sacrificed the exchange only to win it back at move number 33, he simplify the game to a 2 v 2 pawn position with a winning outside passed-pawn for him. Facing inevitable defeat the defending champion shook hands and conceeded his title in the process. Benjamin Tan ended up beating Alexis Migel by 12.5 to 7.5, not needing to play the remaining 4 games.

This is Ben's greatest grand-slam title in his life and also his first SuperBowl ever.

Way to go Benjamin Tan, congratulation on your victory.

The notation for round 20 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl
11th August 2010
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 h6 3. Bxf6 exf6 4. c4 d5 5. Nf3 dxc4 6. e3 Be6 7. Be2 Nc6 8. 0-0 Be7 9. a4 0-0 10. Na3 Bxa3 11. Rxa3 a6 12. a5 b6 13. Nd2 Nxa5?? 14. Rxa5!! bxa5 15. Nxc4 c6 16. Qa4 Bxc4 17. Bxc4 Qb6 18. b3 Rab8 19. Ra1 Rfe8 20. Qxa5 Qb7 21. Qxa6 Qxa6 22. Rxa6 Rbc8 23. Kf1 Re7 24. Ke2 Kf8 25. Kd2 g5 26. g4! Ke8 27. Kc3 Rd7? 28. Kb4 Rdc7 29. Kc5 Rd8 30. e4 Rcd7 31. d5 cxd5 32. Bb5 dxe4 33. Bxd7+ Kxd7 34. Rxf6 Ke7 35. Rxh6 Rd2 36. Rh3 Rxf2 37. Re3! Rxh2 38. Rxe4+ Kf6 39. b4 Rf2 40. b5 Rf4 41. Kd5 resign


Final Score

GM Benjamin Tan 12.5
GM Alexis Migel 7.5

Alexis vs Ben. After Round 19

Migel threw everything down but still NO WAY THROUGH...

For the first time in this game Russia finally admits their man is lost, Moscow officially congratulated Benjamin Tan on his stunning victory over Migel. Meanwhile on the board the 31 years old Russian fought for every inch, threw everything at Benjamin Tan but was still held to a crucial draw.

A lost in the next game for Migel would essentially end the match - at high note.

The notation for round 19 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 19
7th August 2010
Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. g3 d5 4. c4 Nc6 5. Nc3 Be7 6. Ne5 0-0 7. Bg2 Na5 8. cxd5 exd5 9. 0-0 Be6 10. f4 Bf5 11. Nxd5 Nxd5 12. e4 f6 13. Na3 Be6 14. f5 Nb6 15. fxe6 Qxd4+ 16. Nf2 Nc6 17. Qb3 Na5 18. Qc2 Rac8 19. Bf4 Nac4 20. b3 Ne5 21. a4 a5 22. Rfd1 Qc5 23. Qb2 Qb4 24. Rd4 Qc5 25. Rd2 c6 26. Rc2 Qb4 27. Rf1 Ra8 28. Bd2 Qd6 29. Be3 Nc8 30. Bh3 Qb4 31. Rd1 Bd6 32. Bg2 c5 33. Nd3 Qb6 34. Nxc5 35. b4 axb4 36. Qb3 Kh8 37. Bf1 Ng4 38. Bd4 Be5 39. Bb5 Rd8 40. Qxb4 Ne7 41. Nd7 Qxe6 42. Bxe5 fxe5 43. Rd6 Qf7 44. h3 Rac8 45. Bc4 Qe8 46. hxg4 Rxd7 47. Bf7 Rxd6 48. Qxd6 Rd8 49. Rc7 Rxd6 50. Bxe8 Ng8 51. Rc8 Ne7 52. Rb8 g5 53. a5 Kg7 54. Rxb7 Kf6 55. Rb6 Ke6 56. Kf2 Nc8 57. Rc6 Rxc6 58. Bxc6 Kd6 59. Bb7 Na7 60. Ke3 Kc5 61. Kd3 Nb5 62. Bc8 h6 63. Be6 Kc6 64. Bd5+ Kc5 65. Ke3 Nd6 66. a6 Kb6 67. Bb7 Nxb7 68. axb7 Kxb7 69. Kd3 Kc7 70. Kd2 Kc6 71. Kc2 Kc5 72. Kc3 draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 11.5
GM Alexis Migel 7.5

Ben VS Alexis. After Round 18

Deadlock to endgame

Round 18 saw both players stepping into tactical water, with Ben down a pawn but easily converting it into a drawn endgame. Great game for Ben.

The notation of round 18 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 18
4th August 2010
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel

1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. e4 Nc6 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Nc3 Bg4 6. Be3 e6 7. Bxc4 Bb4 8. 0-0 Qd7 9. e5 Bxc3 10. exf6 Bxb2 11. fxg7 Rg8 12. Rb1 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Bxf3 14. Bxd4 Nxd4 15. Qxb7 Ke7 16. Rfd1 Rad8 17. Qb4+ Ke8 18. Bb5 draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 11
GM Alexis Migel 7

Alexis VS Ben. After Round 17

Lethagic Draw ??

This game saw Alexis taking the white piece again, but unable to break down a solid Benjamin Tan's defence, when Ben threatened to counterplay both side decide to shake hands.

The notation of round 17 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 17
31st July 2010
Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan

1. e4 c6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e5 Bg4 4. d4 e6 5. Be2 Nd7 6. 0-0 Ne7 7. h3 Bxf3 8. Bxf3 Ng6 9. c3 Be7 10. Be3 Rc8 11. Qd2 0-0 12. Bh5 Nh4 13. Be2 Nf5 14. Bg4 Nxe3 15. fxe3 a6 16. Bd1 b5 17. Bc2 c5 18. Qd3 g6 19. Qe2 cxd4 20. exd4 Nb8 21. Nd2 draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 10.5
GM Alexis Migel 6.5

Ben VS Alexis. After Round 16

Accurate defending frustrates Migel

Just when he though he would be getting his first win things when wrong again... accurate defending from Benjamin denied Migel a single win in 16 games.

The notation of round 16 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 16
24th July 2010
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel

1. d4 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nge2 Nc6 5. Be3 e6 6. a3 Nd5 7. g3 f5 8. Nxd5 exd5 9. c4 Bd6 10. Rc1 0-0 11. cxd5 Ne7 12. Nc3 Ng6 13. Be2 f4 14. gxf4 Bf5 15. Qb3 Nxf4 16. h4 Nd3+ 17. Bxd3 exd3 18. h5 Rb8 19. Nb5 Rf7 20. h6 g6 21. Nxd6 Qxd6 22. Rg1 Be4 23. Rg5 Qf6 24. f4 Bf5 25. Rc6 Qd8 26. Re6 Kh8 27. Bd2 Qf8 28. Kd1 Qxh6 29. Re1 Qh3 30. Rgg1 Qf3+ 31. Kc1 Rd7 32. Re5 b6 33. Rge1 Rbd8 34. Qc3 Kg8 35. Qc4 Rf7 36. Qa4 Kg7 37. Qxa7 Qg2 38. Qa4 h5 39. b3 h4 40. Qb4 Rdd7 41. Qc3 h3 42. Kb2 h2 43. Qc1 Rxd5 44. Re8 Rxd4 45. a4 c5 46. a5 bxa5 47. Ka3 Qc6 48. R8e3 Rfd7 49. Rh1 Qg2 50. Re8 Rd8 51. Qxc5 Rxe8 52. Qxd4+ Kh6 53. Re1 Rg8 54. Qf6 h1=Q 55. Qg5+ Kh7 56. Qf6 Be6 57. Rxe6 Rg7 58. Re7 Rxe7 59. Qxe7+ Kh6 60. Qe5 Qa8 61. f5+ Kh5 62. fxg6+ Kxg6 63. Qe6+ Kh5 64. Qf5+ Kh4 65. Bg5+ Kg3 66 . Qf4+ Kh3 67. Qh4+ Kg2 68. Qg4+ Kf2 69. Bh4+ draw agreed due to perpetual checks o.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 10
GM Alexis Migel 6

Alexis vs Ben. After Round 15

Stalemate in Firework

One might argue that game 15 is the most entertaining game so far, with both players having attacking chances but the final score of the game remains as boring as ever, with Ben once again holding out for a draw.

The notation of round 15 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 15
Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan
20th July 2010

1. d4 f5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. e3 d5 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Bd3 Nf6 7. 0-0 Bd6 8. Bd2 a6 9. cxd5 exd5 10. dxc5 Bxc5 11. Rc1 Be7 12. Qb3 0-0 13. Na4 Ne4 14. Nb6 Nxd2 15. Nxd2 Bb4 16. Nxa8 Bxd2 17. Rc5 Qe7 18. Rc2 Ba5 19. Nb6 Bxb6 20. Qxb6 f4 21. Bxa6 Qe4 22. Rc3 f3 23. g3 Qe6 24. Kh1 Qh3 25. Rg1 Ne5 26. Rxc8 Rxc8 27. Qxb7 Rc6 28. Qa8+ Kf7 29. g4 Nxg4 30. Qb7+ Kg8 31. Qb8+ Kf7 32. Qf4+ Ke6 33. Qxg4+ Qxg4 34. Rxg4 Rxa6 35. a3 Rc6 36. h4 Rc2 37. Kg1 Rxb2 38. Rxg7 Rb1+ 39. Kh2 Rf1 40. Rxh7 Rxf2+ 41. Kg3 Ra2 42. Kxf3 Rxa3 43. Rh6+ Ke5 44. Rh5+ Ke6 45. Kf2 Ra4 46. Rh6+ Kf7 47. h5 d4 48. e4 Ra5 49. Ke2 Kg7 50. Rd6 Rxh5 draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 9.5
GM Alexis Migel 5.5

Ben VS Alexis. After Round 14

No way through

Migel started off lively but Ben quickly prevented that by blocking up the position, the two shook hands in move number 30.

The notation of round 14 is as followed


2010 Chess Superbowl Round 14
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel
17th July 2010

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 c6 6. Bd3 c5 7. d5 0-0 8. Nge2 Nbd7 9. Bc2 a6 10. a4 Ne5 11. b3 e6 12. 0-0 exd5 13. exd5 Re8 14. Bb2 Nh5 15. Qc1 f5 16. Qd2 Bd7 17. a5 Qh4 18. Ra2 Qe7 19. Bc1 Nf7 20. Qd3 Rac8 21. Bb1 Rb8 22. Bd2 b5 23. axb6ep Rxb6 24. Ra3 Bc8 25. Qc2 Rb8 26. Qc1 Bb7 27. Bc2 Qh4 28. Ra2 Be5 29. f4 Bg7 30. Rf3 draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 9
GM Alexis Migel 5

Alexis VS Ben. After Round 13

Ben held on to 4 games lead

From game 12 to 13, spectators saw the Singaporean superstar played the white pieces twice in a roll, yet Ben managed a win and a draw out of the two games. Game 13 can be described as unambitious by the leader, holding a 4-0 lead he would only need to draw 9 of the remaining 12 games to lift the SuperBowl Title. Ben did just that and went home with half a point in the bag.

The notation of game 13 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 13
Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan
13th July 2010

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e4 Bf5 4. Nf3 e6 5. Be2 Be7 6. 0-0 Bg6 7. c4 dxc4 8. Bxc4 Nd7 9. a4 Nb6 10. Be2 Nd5 11. Nc3 Nh6 12. Qb3 b6 13. Nxd5 cxd5 14. Bxh6 gxh6 15. Bb5+ Kf8 16. Qe3 Kg7 17. Rac1 a6 18. Bc6 Rc8 19. Bb7 Rxc1 20. Rxc1 Qb8 21. Bxa6 Qa7 22. Bb5 Qb7 23. Bc6 Qa6 24. Bb5 Qb7 draw agreed 0-5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 8.5
GM Alexis Migel 4.5

Alexis VS Ben. After Round 12 - The Halfway Mark

Ben lead 4-0 at the halfway mark

Singaporean superstar GM Benjamin Tan took a commanding 4-0 lead against his Russian opponent at the halfway mark. The two played 12 games with 8 ending in draws and 4 decisively, all in favour of the Chinese-Japanese chess star.

In the 12th game Ben hold a slight inituitive while Migel needed accurate play to claw back half a point. It is debatable if Ben's 18th move is a blunder, which allows Migel back into the game. At last at the 22nd moves when too much possibility are opened up both decided to shake hands and call it a day.
The notation of round 12 is as followed


2010 Chess Superbowl Round 12
6th July 2010
Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 c5 5. dxc5 0-0 6. a3 Bxc5 7. Nf3 Nc6 8. b4 Nd4 9. Qd1 Nxf3+ 10. exf3 Be7 11. Bd3 a5 12. Ra2 d5 13. c5 d4 14. Na4 Nd5 15. 0-0 axb4 16. Qc2 Bd7 17. Nb6 Nxb6 18. cxb6 bxa3? 19. Bxh7+ Kh8 20. Qd3 g6?! 21. Bxg6 fxg6 22. Bh6

draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 8
GM Alexis Migel 4

Ben VS Alexis. After Round 11

GM Benjamin Tan on a roll in SuperBowl

GM Ben shocked the chess world by recording consecutive victory over Russian Superstar Alexis Migel. Both players started out brightly but it was Ben's two central pawn that decided the game, some chess commentators even said that Migel had resigned prematurely - apparently out of fear for Ben's superior talent, some other argued that the position was a lost one for black and Migel did the right thing to give up.

Overall it was a superb game for Ben, he breezed through the game without having to spend too much time on any move.

The notation of round 11 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 11
25th June 2010
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 0-0 7. e3 c6 8. Bd3 Bg4 9. Qb3 a5 10. a3 Bxc3+ 11. bxc3 Bxf3 12. gxf3 b6 13. Rg1 Re8 14. c4 Nbd7 15. cxd5 cxd5 16. Bb5 Re6 17. Ke2 Nf8 18. Rac1 Rc8 19. f4 Rxc1 20. Rxc1 Rd6 21. f5 Qa8 22. Qc2 h6 23. Bxh6 Qb7 24. Bf4 Rd8 25. Qc7 Qxc7 26. Rxc7 Nh5 27. Be5 Nh7 28. Rc6 N5f6 29. f3 Nd7 30. Rd6 Nhf8 31. Rxd5 f6 32. Bf4 Kf7 33. e4 g5 34. Bg3 a4 35. Be1 Ke8 36. e5 Black resigns 1-0


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 7.5
GM Alexis Migel 3.5

Alexis VS Ben. After Round 10

Moscow to push panic button

Russia is in a state of shock after their man suffered a stunning defeat in the hand of Singapore ace GM Benjamin Tan. Widely expected to drift past his slightly lower-rated opponent Migel found himself trailing by 3-0 with 10 games played.

In round 10 Ben controlled the game brilliantly, neutralising every threat and eventually defeated Migel's king with is own ! The notation of round 10 is as followed

2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 10

22nd June 2010

Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 d5 4. Nc3 c6 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 h6 7. Bxf6 Bxf6 8. Be2 0-0 9. 0-0 Nd7 10. Bd3 Be7 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. Rc1 Nf6 13. Ne5 b6 14. Nc6 Qd7 15. Nxe7+ Qxe7 16. Qf3 Bb7 17. Nb5 Rfc8 18. Qf4 Ne8 19. Rxc8 Bxc8 20. Rc1 Bb7 21. f3 a6 22. Na3 Rc8 23. Rxc8 Bxc8 24. Nc2 Qd6 25. Qxd6 Nxd6 26. Kf2 b5 27. a3 Nc4 28. b3 Na5 29. Na1 Kf8 30. Kg3 Ke7 31. h4 g6 32. Kf4 Kd6 33. g4 Bd7 34. g5 h5 35. e4 Bc6 36. a4 Bxa4 37. e5+ Kc7 38. bxa4 Bxa4 39. Bxa6 Kb6 40. Bd3 Bb5 41. Bc2 Nc4! 42. Nb3 Na3 43. Bd1 Ba4 44. Ke3 Kb5 45. Ke2 Kb4 white resigns 0-1

Current score

GM Benjamin Tan 6.5

GM Alexis Migel 3.5

Ben VS Alexis. After Round 9

Drawn in 19 as two recorded 2nd quickest tie

Alexis Migel played like a man who hadn't slept for days and when Ben offered a draw he accepted after a minute of positional evaluation.

This game set the record as the quickest draw in the series so far.

The notation of round 9 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 9
June 18th 2010
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 0-0 11. Bc4 f5 12. 0-0 fxe4 13. Ng5 Re8 14. Rfe1 h6 15. Nxe4 Nc6 16. Qf4 Rf8 17. Qd6 Nxd4 18. Rad1 Qxd6 19. Nxd6 drawn agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 5.5
GM Alexis Migel 3.5

Alexis VS Ben. After Round 8

Alexis Fires Blanks

Alexis is getting more and more desperate in search of a full point, but the Russian superstar hasn't been lucky so far, failing to win in any of the opening 8 games. In game 8, he shook hands with Ben when the Singaporean asked for a draw despite having the better position for most of the game and a pawn up in the endgame.

The notation of round 8 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 8
15th June 2010
Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan

1. c4 c6 2. e4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. cxd5 Nf6 5. Bb5+ Bd7 6. Bxd7+ Qxd7 7. Nc3 Nxd5 8. Nf3 Nc6 9. d4 e5 10. dxe5 0-0-0 11. Qxd5 Qxd5 12. Nxd5 Rxd5 13. 0-0 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Rxe5 15. Bf4 Re6 16. Rac1+ Rc6 17. Rxc6+ bxc6 18. Rc1 Kd7 19. Rd1+ Re6 20. Rd8 g6 21. Re8+ Kd7 22. Ra8 Bg7 23. Rxa7+ Ke6 24. b3 Rc8 25. Rc7 Rxc7 26. Bxc7 Kd5 27. a4 c5 28. Kf1 c4 29. bxc4+ Kxc4 draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 5
GM Alexis Migel 3

Ben VS Alexis. After Round 7

Ben happy with draw

Ben appeared to be in a composed mood after his round 7 tie with Alexis Migel, the Singaporean superstar played solidly, shutting out any real threat by his Russian opponent. The two shook hands in the 56th move.

The notation of round 7 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 7
11 June 2010
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 0-0 7. e3 h6 8. Bxf6 Qxf6 9. Qb3 Qe7 10. a3 Bxc3+ 11. Qxc3 Bf5 12. Bd3 Bxd3 13. Qxd3 Nd7 14. Qb3 Nb6 15. 0-0 Rfe8 16. Rac1 c6 17. Ne5 Nc8 18. e4 dxe4 19. f3 e3 20. Rfe1 Nb6 21. Rxe3 Qc7 22. Ng4 Qf4 23. Rd1 Rad8 24. Ne5 Re7 25. Nc4 Rxe3 26. Qxe3 Nd5 27. Qe5 Kf8 28. Re1 f6 29. Qe4 Qxe4 30. fxe4 Nf4 31. d5 cxd5 32. exd5 Rxd5 33. g3 Nh3+ 34. Kf1 Ng5 35. h4 Nf3 36. Re3 Nd4 37. Rd3 Ke8 38. Kg2 Rd7 39. h5 b6 40. Kf2 b5 41. Nd2 Nc6 42. Rxd7 Kxd7 43. Ke3 Ke6 44. Ne4 Ne7 45. Nc3 Nd5+ 46. Kd4 Nxc3 47. bxc3 Kd6 48. c4 Kc6 49. cxb5+ Kxb5 50. Kd5 a5 51. Ke6 Ka4 52. Kf7 Kxa3 53. Kxg7 a4 54. Kxh6 Kb3 55. Kg6 a3 56. h6 draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 4.5
GM Alexis Migel 2.5

Alexis VS Ben. After Round 6

All square as Migel failed to take advantage

Migel would have to wait for his first win after he once again failed to convert his white-pieces-advantage into a full point. The Russian arguable has the better position throughout the game, but the Singaporean superstar showed positional-understanding prowness and held onto his 2 points lead.

The notation of round 6 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 6
6th June 2010
Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan

1. e4 e5 2. f4 exf4 3. Bc4 d5 4. exd5 Nf6 5. Nf3 Nxd5 6. Qe2+ Be7 7. Nc3 Be6 8. Nxd5 Bxd5 9. d4 Bxf3 10. Qxf3 Qxd4 11. Qxf4 Nc6! 12. Bxf7+ Kf8 13. Bd5+ Bf6 14. Bxc6 bxc6 15. Qxd4 Bxd4 16. Rf1+ Kg8 17. Rf3 Re8+ 18. Kf1 Rf8 19. Bf4 Bxb2 20. Rb1 Bd4 21. Rb7 h6 22. c3 Bxc3 23. Rxa7 Kh7 24. a4 Bd4 25. Rxc7 Ra8 26. Rxc6 Rxa4 27. Rc1 Rf8 28. Bg3 Rxf3+ 29. gxf3 Ra1 30. Rxa1 Bxa1 31. Ke2 Kg6 32. Kd3 Kf5 33. Kc4 Be5 34. Kd3 Bf4 35. Ke2 h5 36. Kf2 Kg5 37. h4+ Kf5 38. Kg2 Bxg3 39. Kxg3 Ke5 40. Kf2 Kf4 41. Kg2 Ke3 42. Kg3 g6 43. Kg2 Kd4 44. Kf2 Ke5 45. Ke2 Kf5 46. Ke3 Ke6 47. Ke4 Kf6 48. Kf4 g5+ 49. hxg5+ Kg6 50. Ke5 Kxg5 51. f4+ draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 4
GM Alexis Migel 2

Ben VS Alexis. After Round 5

2nd crushing defeat stunned the Russians

Alexis Migel must be feeling like a volcano about to erupt any moment after suffering a shock thrashing in the hand of Singaporean premeir chess-player GM Benjamin Tan. Widely tipped to breeze through the match, Migel now find himself having a mountain to climb. Everyone predict Migel to win easily but found himself in the wrong end of the defeat.

The Russian superstar crumbled like dust and within 27 moves he was in a completely hopeless position and has to shake hands. The playing standard of both players is clearly exposed in this game. While the Singaporean fans cheered like they had just won the World Cup, the Russian could only stare at thin air, mouth hanging open in utter disbelief......

The notation of round 5 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 5
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nc3 e6 6. Bd3 Bxd3 7. Qxd3 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b5 9. Qd3 b4 10. Ne4 Nxe4 11. Qxe4 Bd6 12. 0-0 0-0 13. b3 Qf6 14. Bb2 Rd8 15. Rac1 a5 16. Rfd1 a4 17. Ne5 axb3 18. axb3 Ra2 19. Qb1 Ra6 20. f4 g5 21. d5 Qe7 22. dxc6 gxf4 23. Qe4 fxe3?? 24. Qg4+ Kf8 25. Rxd6!! Qxd6 26. Nxf7 Qd2 27. Qg7+ Black Resigns


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 3.5
GM Alexis Migel 1.5

Alexis VS Ben. After Round 4

No Way Through For Migel

No question who has been the busier of the two, hot favorite Alexis Migel fell behind after a shocked defeat in the last round, he would be looking to equalize the series. Migel has been the more aggressive of the two players, but Ben defended solidly and hold on to all his resources for an eventually draw on move number 46.

Ben defended Alexis' 1. e4 with his trademark Alekhine Defence - Benekan Variation, retreating the knight back to g8, giving up a tempo to save a tempo and good position for his king's knight. The result was a brick wall which deservingly frustrated Migel who could not find an opening in Ben's defence, eventually the two shook hands and shared points on move number 46.

The notation of round 3 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 4
Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan

1. e4 Nf6 2. d3 d5 3. e5 Ng8 4. h3 Bf5 5. Nf3 e6 6. d4 Nd7 7. Bd3 Bxd3 8. Qxd3 c5 9. c3 cxd4 10. cxd4 Bb4+ 11. Bd2 Bxd2+ 12. Nbxd2 Rc8 13. 0-0 Ne7 14. Rac1 0-0 15. Nb3 h6 16. Rxc8 Qxc8 17. Rc1 Qb8 18. Qb5 Nb6 19. Nc5 Rc8 20. Rc3 Rc7 21. g4 Qc8 22. Kg2 Nd7 23. Nxd7 Qxd7 24. Qxd7 Rxd7 25. b4 a6 26. a4 Nc6 27. b5 axb5 28. axb5 Na5 29. Rc5 Nc4 30. Kf1 Kf8 31. Ke2 Ke7 32. Kd3 Kd8 33. Kc3 g6 34. Nd2 Nxd2 35. Kxd2 Rc7 36. Kc3 Rxc5+ 37. dxc5 Kc7 38. Kd4 g5 39. f3 Kd7 40. Kc3 Kc7 41. Kb4 Kd7 42. Ka5 Kc7 43. Kb4 Kd7 44. Kc3 Kc7 45. Kd4 Kd7 46. Kc3 Kc7 draw agreed 0.5 - 0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 2.5
GM Alexis Migel 1.5

Ben VS Alexis. After Round 3

Benjamin Tan crushed Migel to take the lead

Round 3 sparked the most life into both players so far. Ben dominated the opening, controlled the middlegame magnificently and crushed his superstar opponent in the endgame. Out of the three games (so far) this is the only game in which Ben played to his full potential, according to some Professional Chess Commentators. A shell-shocked Alexis Migel never knew what hit him when he was repeatedly slugged down at full-force.

Ben started with his usual d4 and Migel opted for a King's Indian, the opening which earned him a draw at round 1, but Ben chose the Bayonet Attack this time and dominated the game with crushing initiative, eventually Migel was wore down and Ben threatened to queen his a-pawn, unable to take it anymore Migel shook hands and conceeded.

The notation of round 3 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 3
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 0-0 6. Be2 e5 7. 0-0 Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. b4 Nh5 10. Re1 f5 11. Ng5 Nf4 12. Bxf4 exf4 13. Rc1 Bf6 14. Ne6 Bxe6 15. dxe6 Bxc3 16. Rxc3 fxe4 17. Bf1 Nc6 18. Rxe4 Qe7 19. c5 Rad8 20. cxd6 cxd6 21. b5 Ne5 22. Qd5 Rde8 23. Qd4 h5 24. f3 h4 25. h3 g5 26. Qxa7 Rc8 27. Rxc8 Rxc8 28. Qb6 Rc2 29. a4 Rd2 30. a5 Kg7 31. a6 bxa6 32. bxa6 Ra2 33. Rd4 Qxe6 34. Rxd6 Qf7 35. Re6 Qf5 36. Qa7+ Qf7 37. Qd4+ Kf8 38. Rf6 Qb1 39. Qd5 Rxg2+ 40. Kxg2 Qb2+ 41. Kh1 Qxf6 42. a7 Black Resigns 1-0


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 2
GM Alexis Migel 1

Benjamin Tan VS Alexis Migel, Round 3

The match reach the third round, but what would we see from Ben and Alexis ? Would we see some crazy novelty from GM Benjamin Tan, rock-solid defensive resources from Alexis Migel ? or another boring GM draw ? Would Ben open with e4 finally ? or would he stick to his favourite first move - d4

We would find out !

Odds -
Alexis Migel 68%
Benjamin Tan 4%
Draw 28%

GM Ben to pull out of Serangoon Garden International Chess Challenge

GM Benjamin Tan stunned the Serangoon Garden Chess Committe by withdrawing from the prestigious chess competition at the very last minute.



"Ben would not be appearing to grace the event", said former Fair Cup winner Karl Tigran Jankovik. His withdrawal is reported to be inspired by the neccessity to prepare for the 2010 Chess SuperBowl match against Alexis Migel. The Russian, who is widely expected to play against Benjamin Tan in the year's end RCI Cup Undisputed Champion added that his (Ben's) presence would be badly missed amist the tournament.



"The chess world wanted to see a good match between Benjamin Tan and Alexis Migel and Ben is doing his part to fulfil their wishes" added Mr Jankovik.

Alexis VS Ben. After Round 2

Draw Benefits Benjamin

In round 2 both players are starting to become slightly more motivated than they are from round 1, but not quite yet. Ben gained an early initiative and tried to build on it, but time trouble prevented him from converting his microsopic advantage into a vital victory against his Russian counterpart, in the end Ben offered a draw which is accepted by Migel after no less than 10 seconds of positional evaluation.

The notation of round 2 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 2
Alexis Migel vs Benjamin Tan

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e6 3. d3 d5 4. Bf4 Bd6 5. Bxd6 Qxd6 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. e3 Nxc3 8. bxc3 c5 9. Nf3 b6 10. d4 cxd4 11. Qa4+ Bd7 12. Qxd4 Qxd4 13. Nxd4 Nc6 14. Bb5 Rc8 15. Ba6 Rd8 16. Rd1 0-0 17. Bb7 Na5 18. Be4 Ba4 - draw agreed, 0.5-0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 1
GM Alexis Migel 1

2010 Chess SuperBowl - Round 2

This might only be the second game of the tournament, but the tension is already very high, with Ben's odds to win the match falling to 28 percent (from 32) if he were to fall to a defeat in this round.

Meanwhile over in Russia, Alexis Migel's team firmly believe that their man is still the clear favourite, as they cannot forsee anything standing in their way to a clear-cut victory. Some predicted that Alexis would not need to go beyond the 18th game to seal the match.

While things might look grim for Benjamin Tan, the Singaporean sensation has a reputation for fighting till the very last drop of blood, however this match would turn out round 2 has to come first, and what would be the outcome of it ?? - we will find out !

Benjamin Tan VS Alexis Migel. After Round 1

Honor-even at Raffles Town Club

Both players held their nerves to hold out a draw on their 5th May's encounter. It's evidental that both players were still trying to get use to the tournament. Ben gain the upper-hand in the first ten moves only to allow Alexis to break out, sacrifice a bishop and deliver perpectual check. Neither players were too keen on taking any risk, with Ben surprisingly being the meeker of the two.

The notation of round 1 is as followed


2010 Chess SuperBowl Round 1
Benjamin Tan vs Alexis Migel

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 b6 6. Be3 Bb7 7. Qd2 Nc6 8. a3 e5 9. d5 Nd4 10. Bxd4 exd4 11. Qxd4 o-o 12. Qd2 Re8 13. Bd3 c6 14. Ne2 a6 15. 0-0 16. Rfd1 bxc4 17. Bxc4 cxd5 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. Bxd5 Bxd5 20. Qxd5 Bxb2 21. Ra2 Be5 22. Nc1? Qh4 23. g3 Bxg3 24. hxg3 Qxg3+ 25. Rg2 Qxf3 26. Rf1 Qe3+ 27. Kh1 Qh3+ 28. Kg1 Qe3+ 29. Kh1 Qh3+ 30. Kg1 Qe3+ 31. Kh1 Qh3+ draw 0.5-0.5


Current Score

GM Benjamin Tan 0.5
GM Alexis Migel 0.5

Ben to open with the white pieces

Ben's draw overcome Alexis' 2 to 1 to start round 1 with the white pieces. The Singaporean superstar would be playing white in round 1 and the color would rotate after every round.

GrandmasterBenjaminTan.blogspot.com would be the official coverage for the 2010 Chess SuperBowl, every games would be posted here and analysis would be provided, spectators would be allowed (and encouraged) to share their views right here.

We shall await for round 1 to get underway...

I am not losing any sleep - said Benjamin

Arguably the most anticipated match in the history of the Chess SuperBowl is about to get underway on the 5th of May 2010. Singaporean superstar Benjamin Tan would be locking horns with Russian Superstar Alexis Mikhailvich Migel over the board for the very first time.

The draw for who to open with the white pieces (and who to open with the black) will be completed in a few hours time.

Said GM Benjamin Tan, "It really does not matters who plays white or who plays black first, at the end of the day the player who plays better would be the one to go home with the point". When asked how much confidence he has in himself Ben responded negatively, "I come here expecting to get last, Migel would have an easy time".

However anyone who had seen or heard about Ben's chess would know it would be far from easy for his Russian opponent, former RCI Classical Cup-finalist Lee Wei Cheng would be expecting a tough fight to the very last game.

But the lurking question that might drives some crazy would be - How would the 2 players prepare for this big match ? and what would the King of Novelty, Grandmaster Benjamin Tan had installed for his opponent this time round ?? we will find out...

The first game starts tomorrow at Raffles Town Club at 10am.

Scandal-hit Ben booked spot in top 5

GM Benjamin Tan denies accusation that he has been the beneficial party of a "match-fixing scandal". Said the Singaporean superstar on sunday, "the pairings are entirely up to the officials, I have no knowledge whatsoever of how things are done in the courtyard, and certainly there are no words exchanged behind closed doors, I don't know where those rumours came from and why it was brought up in the first place, but I find the whole incident offending to my reputation and its level of ridicule is totally off the scale".

The incident rose because of fellow participant at Sunday's National Fair Cup Championship, B-Division had found Ben to be paired up against "easier" opponent. They smelled a rat when he was consistantly up against people lesser of his calibre, something which GM Ben ruled out, "there are certainly no easy opponent here, everyone who made it here has something to show".

Despite the outbreak of the rumor Ben managed to keep a cool head and finished in the top 5 zone with a 5.5 points out of a possible 7 - in front of approxiamately 115 participants.

Admirable sporting behaviour by GM Ben

Despite failling to achieve the number one place, GM Benny remained unfazed, insisting on putting up a sporting front.

He surprisingly opted to shake hands with the champion and personally congratulating him on the stage - in public view, demostrating excellent sportsmanship in a highly competitive tournament. Something that Wayne Bridge might want to note down in his future meetings with John Terry...

The 19 years old International Superstar attained a respectable 4th place in the recent National Festival Chess Championship - just three places away from his targeted position.

On a tournament where several of the participants were predicting Ben to capture the championship position, the Singaporean-born Russian star failed to live up to that hefty demand from his fans. Instead he won 4 straight games and the 4th game proved to be his last win of the tournament, having drawn his last three games against the top 7 players in the tournament (7th, 5th and the champion himself)

The player who become champion is 17 years old Tan Han Liang, whom had 6 straight wins before conceeding half a point to GM Ben. The two seems to be sharing a few laughter during their game and appear to be in no mood for winning each other.

Game 5 and 6 Ben lived dangerously, in game 5 Ben was an exchange down before regaining material and soon found a way to deliver perpertual check and ended the game in a draw.

Game number 6, Ben - who was down to a few minutes on his clock called for the arbiter to claim a (much needed) draw, the opponent was proposal to win on time was rejected and the arbiter awarded half a point to both side. However spectators agreed that it was a clear draw in a opposite colored bishop endgame where the pawns are fixed to their squares.

The last game both side appeared to be in friendly terms, they played for 9 moves and agreed on a 'grandmaster draw'

Said private chess commentator and former RCI Classical Champion Abdul Jidi, who was there to witness all 7 of Ben's game - "J (Benny) played very solidly in all his games, and never looked like losing any of them, although he was very tired, he never gave up and his effort duly paid off, 4 stars to his performance".

The Openings

Round 1 - Caro-Kann Defence Exchange 0-1, win
Round 2 - Benko-English Transposer 1-0, win
Round 3 - Alekhine Defence Benikan Variation 0-1, win
Round 4 - Benjamin Tan Opening (London System) 1-0, win
Round 5 - Caro-Kann Defence Exchange 1/2-1/2, draw
Round 6 - (facing) Sicillian defence, O kelly Variation 1/2-1/2, draw
Round 7 - Caro-Kann Defence Classical 1/2-1/2, draw

As an added bonus, Ben finished the tournament unbeatable :)

Ben roars back - in style

Despite going down in two consecutive games (round 2 and 3) GM Benjamin Tan did not give up, he fought to the very end and was duly rewarded for his effort.

The Russian International came back brilliantly, winning all of his last 4 games and clinching top 7 position, with his last game the most spectacular of all.

Openings
- Round 1 (white) Faced French (exchanged) 1-0
- Round 2 (black) Caro-Kann (classical) 1-0
- Round 3 (white) Faced Sicillian (sozin system) 0-1
- Round 4 (black) Indian game 0-1
- Round 5 (white) Benko-English 1-0
- Round 6 (black) Caro-Kann (advanced) 0-1
- Round 7 (white) Benjamin Tan Opening 1-0

Total - 5/7

No lost love between Melissa and Ben

Ben approaches the last round with cautious, knowing that only a win would see him squeeze into the top 10. He cannot ask for a more heated encounter after looking at his last round pairing - he was paired with Melissa Lo AGAIN.

The two met in a gritty encounter in the National Age Group barely a month ago. The conclusion of the game saw Ben edging out his tough opponent. Melissa went all the way down to 2 minutes plus in the 2 hours per side game.

Ben opted for an interesting and deep bishop sacrifice some 25 plus move into the game, only to activate his pieces tie his opponent's position up and win back the piece 10 moves later, reducing the position to king and pawns before promoting an extra pawn.

This time he knew it would be more challenging. With only 25 minutes on the clock, the time-pressured Russian star knew that he would have to think and act fast. He started the game with his trademark Benjamin Tan Opening (1. d4 d5 2. c3), Melissa looks like she has expected Queens Gambit, but it's not to be. An unknown spectator who witness the brilliant game jokingly said that the game was as good as won when Ben played 2. c3. The game ended in extreme gore when Ben (this time) sacrificed a knight to smash Melissa's kingside's pawn shelter, only to win it back some 5 moves later. The defending king was brutally exposed and checkmated in cold blood just only after 25 moves.

Both players left the playing table immediately after the game without even shaking hands or muttering 'good game'

Ben personally commented that 'it feels very good to defeat her in both standard and rapid!'