By Andrey Avsitidiysky

On the last weekend of summer, two Cyprus chess championships were held at the Elias Beach Hotel in Limassol with the support of Freedom24.

International Master Artem Sadovsky took first place in the Rapid tournament, while seven-time national champion Konstantinos Michaelides won the Blitz tournament. The fate of the gold medals was decided in the games between them. Young players competed on equal terms with the favourites. Chess players from 12 countries took part in the competition.

Time control

  • Rapid: 10 minutes per game + 3 seconds per move
  • Blitz: 3 minutes per game + 2 seconds per move

The final of the first tournament was a thriller with a fast-paced plot. Before the last round, three members of the Cyprus team — Michaelides, Alexandros Isaakidis and Rafail Antoniou — had scored seven points out of a possible eight. It seemed no one could interfere in their dispute, but all three leaders lost. As a result, seven chess players finished with seven points, and the fate of first place was decided by additional indicators.

“All three wanted to win, as they were not sure that a draw would be enough for gold. In the end, they took a risk. It was easier for me — I knew that I only needed a win with black. I played the most risky option against Kostya. The risk paid off. I didn’t come to the tournament in the best shape: I hadn’t played for a long time, I was working, and I didn’t get enough sleep. I managed to hang on in the important games and was lucky at the finish,” said Sadovsky.

The intrigue did not end there — two chess players from the top seven had absolutely equal additional indicators. As a result, Sadovsky came first in the final table on the chess-results.com, and the champion’s cup was awarded to the young talent Rafail Antoniou, who defeated Artem in a personal game. In addition to three Cypriot chess players, the magnificent seven included players from Russia, Belarus and Wales

The Blitz championship turned out to be much more predictable. With four rounds to go, Michaelides was one point ahead of his closest rivals. The FIDE Master managed to maintain this comfortable lead and ended up with 12 points out of a possible 13.

“In my opinion, the decisive game was the ninth round against Artem Sadovsky. I hadn’t had very good results in my last few games against him. This time, I managed to win. After that, I felt that victory in the tournament was close. In the remaining four games, it was important to play as carefully as possible.”

The championships were organised by the Cyprus Chess Federation with the support of its general partner, Freedom24. Both winners were impressed by the excellent organisation of the two tournaments, in particular the incredible punctuality, which is unusual for Cyprus — all rounds started on the dot.

“Yes, we have reached a new level: everything is strictly on schedule — not only the games, but also lunch,” said George Amvrosiades, head of the Limassol Chess Club. “I was pleased with the strong line-up. 64 chess players participated in the rapid tournament, and 51 in the blitz tournament. They represented 12 federations: in addition to Cyprus, these were Austria, Belarus, Greece, Israel, India, Spain, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, Wales and Estonia.”

For his part, Evgenii Tiapkin, Executive Director of Freedom24 expressed satisfaction at the level and success of the competitions. “As part of our long-standing cooperation with the Cyprus Chess Federation (KYSO), we are delighted to support the Cyprus Rapid and Blitz Championships,” he said.

“It is particularly pleasing to see so many young players participating in these tournaments. For the new generation, such competitions are not only an opportunity to prove themselves at the board, but also an important step in the development of personal qualities. We are confident that supporting such initiatives promotes chess in Cyprus and inspires young people to new achievements.”