Chess: Who’s Sergey Karjakin? – MIRROR ONLINE

challenges The man, the world champion Magnus Carlsen, discovered the game of chess when he was five years old. In his native Simferopol on the Crimean Peninsula Sergei Karjakin saw a television advertisement in which it said: “The farmer can become a lady.” He asked his father what he meant so, and a little later his ascent began one of the best chess players in the world. On Monday, he won the candidates tournament in Moscow and qualified for the World Cup in November.

After the second class, his parents Karjakin reported on the school, the talent received private lessons and developed his skills in the board game dramatically. As the Ukrainian Ruslan Ponomariov 2001/2002 hired him for the FIDE World Cup in Moscow as the seconds, the prodigy in chess scene was abruptly released.

Half a year later Karjakin secured at the age of twelve years and seven months the title as the youngest grandmaster in chess history – this record is valid until today. Full confidence declared Karjakin wanting to be world champion at the age of 16 years.

First, it looked as if he could achieve this goal: the end of 2005 Karjakin was the best young people of his age world. In July 2008, he took second place in the junior world rankings, behind the same age Magnus Carlsen, but which was called Elopunkten significantly forward.

A house as a welcome gift

A year later, a watershed in Karjakin career. Because he had the feeling that the Ukrainian Association insufficiently supported him and he therefore stagnated in its development, he moved at the age of 19 years in the Russian Chess Federation. As a welcome gift of new Russian citizens got a house on the outskirts of Moscow.

Two years after the exchange, in July 2011, Karjakin achieved its highest ever Elo rating of 2788 and fourth in the world rankings. But he fell back to 13th place back before the Candidates Tournament in Moscow, he was 90 Elo points behind Carlsen, a significant residue in check.

Karjakin is considered open and sociable person. When candidates tournament he was the darling of journalists, despite the tension he kept her cool and was always up for a joke.

With Carlsen is the challenger understands very well, he says, and explains that he occasionally communicating with the Norwegians via Skype and was sometimes gone at night at a tournament in Moscow with him for bowling. “I admire his ability to keep the concentration and over seven hours high,” says Karjakin over its competitors.

The Challenger is underdog

In a direct comparison it is in the games long reflection with 1: 2, 15 draws, only just returned. In the rapid chess World Cup 2012 in Astana, he referred Carlsen in second place, and in its home tournament in Stavanger succeeded Karjakin even twice the world champion to steal the show. 2013 and 2014 won the Russian the Norway Chess tournament.

Nevertheless Karjakin is only outsider at the World Cup in November in New York. Seems too great Carlsen’s superiority. Karjakin’s strength lies in its objective, factual style. However, can also play very sharp, as we saw in the last game against Caruana the candidates tournament Karjakin. As with the last FIDE World Cup he showed great nerve here.

Its weakness is its limited opening repertoire. Carlsen has the greater will to win, an irrepressible energy and the greater willingness to take risks. However, this is not always good for the world champion

Karjakin decisive victory against Fabiano Caruana :. Here you can replay all the games from the last game. And here is the tremendous analysis of the final round.