Half way through at WYCC 2009, Antalya

Rounds 3, 4 and 6 I played Nima Fendereski, Mohammad Amin Tabatabaei and Borna Derakhshani all from Iran. It is definitely a very strong contingent. Round 5 was with Anton Smirnov from Australia. Overall I have 5 out of 6 points and still in the hunt.

Our delegation had only two passes until yesterday so it was difficult to get in within first 10 minutes to take pictures. Now we have four so it should be easier to save some memories and share them.

Round 3 with Nima:

Round 5 with Anton:

Free day could not have come at a better time. I am looking forward to do some sight seeing and try some alternate food (maybe a Mcdonald's).

I also took some time to go for a refreshing walk on the beach and around the hotel. Some pictures...

Day 4 Round 2 WYCC 2009, Antalya

It was a crazy day with unstable Internet service and change of procedures. They did not allow anyone but the players to enter the playing hall until after the rounds started. The new zero tolerance rule by FIDE is being enforced. I am being cautious and get there 15 minutes before the round start time.

I played Dachi Donghvani from Georgia in round 2. It was nice game and I was able to trap his queen making it a short game. Below is the only picture we could get.

Later we went to the Italian restaurant for dinner. Alisha and her dad were there too so we had dinner together. Unfortunately the food was disappointing. Well the company made up for the lack of quality food and it was okay overall.

Round 3, I will be black against an Iranian player.

Day 3 Round 1 WYCC 2009, Antalya

In round 1 I played with Bora Gecer from the host country. I had an okay game and advanced to second round in about an hour and a half. In general, US team had a good first round. Winston (U-8) and Simone(U-10G) both won.

Hotel Limra is a very big hotel and well suited for such a large tournament. However the facilities are pretty basic and some inadequate. Biggest gripe was no Internet access in room or elsewhere at the hotel. Food is already getting monotonous and need a change. Planning to go to the Italian restaurant for dinner. I hope they serve good ravioli:)

My dad will tweet if Internet is available. You can also follow the event at Chessdom.com.

Team meeting earlier in the day.

Exciting first day at Antalya

I arrived on Monday afternoon and the day was over too quickly as I slept immediately. My body clock and sleep pattern is totally messed up. Slept at 6pm and woke up at 12midnight and could not sleep after that. Hopefully we can bring it under control within the next two days.

I am staying at Renaissance Antalya Beach Resort & Spa. It is not one of the WYCC listed hotels but my dad got it for reward points. It is very very nice and we got upgrade to family suite. Our hotel has its  own beach. It is not a sandy beach but with many colorful stones. The hotel is located between hills and the mediterranean sea.

Our suite has a living room, bedroom, walk-in closet and two bathrooms (one with shower, other with a nice big bath tub).

Next was HUGE breakfast. It was the largest breakfast I have ever seen. They had 18 varieties of Jam! Check out pictures here:

Then we went for a stroll on the beach. It was drizzling earlier but temperature was just nice. No winter clothes needed. I am wearing a thin jacket for rain.

In the afternoon, we went for a swim in indoor pool and then to "Hamam", a turkish bath. Dinner was at a chinese restaurant called Lotus.

After dinner we went to the game room for an hour of foos ball and Wii sports. Tomorrow we move to Hotel Limra. Chess starts on 12th Thursday:)

Getting ready for World Youth, Kemer-Antalya, Turkey

World Youth Chess Championship 2009 will be held at Kemer-Antalya, Turkey. It is the highest level of competition with age restrictions. I already feel proud to be competing at that level and nothing about my result can take it away from me. That being said I have been preparing to put up the best performance I can.

My preparation for this event is similar to Pan-Am couple of months ago but with lesser available time and tighter schedule. Now that the school is in full swing I am getting about 1-2 hours a day for chess studies on week days. Physical training is already making a good impact in my overall fitness. I run couple of laps after school every day at my local park. It is helping me play better soccer too:)

As my first experience at the big stage I am eagerly looking forward to it. I hope I can play with players from as many countries as possible and make new friends along the way. The new team jacket and shirt is really cool.

I leave for Antalya on 8th from San Francisco. My dad will tweet regularly and I’ll try to blog occasionally from the event. Other prominent chess websites will also be covering the event.

Tournament Official Website

Best wishes and encouragement from my friends and family would be my strength.

Youngest FIDE Master in the world !

FIDE Master (FM) is a title awarded by the world chess governing body, Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE). Introduced in 1978, FM ranks below the titles of International Master and International Grandmaster, but ahead of Candidate Master. The most usual way for a player to qualify for the FIDE Master title is by achieving a FIDE Rating of 2300 or more. The title is open to both men and women who play in international chess competitions. Wikipedia Link.

I checked the Fide site and there is no other younger Fide Master.

FM Tanuj Vasudeva now

I just received word from Mr Brown at USCF that FIDE (World Chess Federation) has awarded me the coveted FIDE Master title based on my win at Pan-American Youth, Mar Del Plata.

Check out my FIDE profile page:

http://ratings.fide.com/card.phtml?event=2035863

It might be a record at 8 years 2 month and 3 days.