Tell the Driver

Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk – Evgenija Viktorovna Ovod
66th Russian Women’s Chess Championship; Novosibirsk, October 26, 2016
French Defence C16

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 Ne7 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 b6 7. Qg4 Ng6 8. h4 h5 9. Qd1 Ba6 10. Bg5 Qd7 11. Bxa6 Nxa6 12. Ne2 Qa4 13. 0-0 Ne7 14. Ng3 g6 15. Bf6 Rg8 16. Re1 Kd7 17. Qd2 Nc6 18. Re3 Na5 19. Rf3 Nc4 20. Qc1 Kc8 21. Bg5 Rg7 22. Ne2 Kb7 23. Nf4 Rc8 24. Nh3 c5 25. Qb1 Rc7 26. Qb3 Qe8 27. a4 Na5 28. Qb5 Qc8 29. Bh6 Rh7 30. Bd2 Ka8 31. Be1 Nb8 32. Ng5 Rg7 33. Rf6 Qb7 34. Bd2 Nc4 35. Bf4 cxd4 36. cxd4 Nc6 37. Rd1 a6 38. Qb3 Rg8 39. Bc1 Rd8 40. Rd3 Ka7 41. c3 Rdd7 42. Rdf3 Nd8 43. Nh7 Rc8 44. Qd1 b5 45. Ng5 Rcc7 46. Kh2 Qc6 47. a5 Rb7 48. Nh7 Qc7 49. Bh6 b4 50. cxb4 Rxb4 51. Bf8 Rb5 52. Qc1 Qxa5 53. Ng5 Rbb7 54. Qf4 Qe1 55. Bc5+ Ka8 56. Rd3 Qe2 57. Rc3 a5 58. Rc1 Qb2 59. Ne4!? When you are in trouble you can’t be too picky!

After a ferocious struggle Ovod got concrete winning chances, and now she could exploit it by 59. ... Rb3! 60. Nd6 Ne3!!−+, but it was not so easy to renounce to the more naturally founded advance of the a-Pawn... 59. ... a4? 60. Nd6 a3 61. Rxc4! Now or never! 61. ... dxc4 62. Nxc4 Qb3? On the wrong foot. Correct was 62. ... Rd5! 63. Qg3 (White evidently cannot yet take the Pawn) 63. ... Qb3! 64. Nxa3 Qxg3+ 65. fxg3 Nc6 with a rough equality. 63. Nxa3 Nc6 64. Qc1! Qa4? Ovod dramatically loses the thread of her own affairs, and with it the game, too. 64. ... Nxd4 65. Bd6 Rd8 was still quite unclear. 65. Nc4 Nxd4 66. Nb6+ Rxb6 67. Bxb6+− Nc6 68. Rf4 Qb5 69. Bc5 Nxe5 70. Qa1+ Kb7 71. Qxe5 Kc6 72. Qc3 Qxc5 73. Rc4 Qxc4 74. Qxc4+ Kd6 75. Qb4+ Ke5 76. Qb2+ Kf5 77. f3 e5 78. Qc1 Rd6 79. g4+ hxg4 80. Qg5+ Ke6 81. fxg4 Ra6 82. h5 Ra2+ 83. Kg1 Ra1+ 84. Kf2 Ra2+ 85. Ke1 Rh2 86. hxg6 fxg6 87. Qxg6+ Kd5 88. Qd3+ Ke6 89. Qf5+ Kd5 90. g5 Kd4 91. Qg4+ Kd5 1 : 0. “Previously I only won one Russian championship, in 2005. For some reason I was strongly motivated by the special prize, the Renault car, while the same could not be said about the money. When I found out that the champions will receive this car, I recalled that I don’t have the Russian driver’s license. Hopefully after this tournament I will fix the formalities, otherwise my husband will have to drive me around”, Kosteniuk finally said.

Kosteniuk vs. Ovod. Photo: ruchess.ru,

“I am very pleased of winning again the Russian Women’s Championship, eleven years after my first time!”, Kosteniuk said. Photo: A. Zieler.