Vladislav Tkachiev
Encyclopedia
Vladislav Tkachiev is a French-Russian-Kazakhstani chess
player.
with his parents and learnt to play chess a year later. A winner of the Kazakhstani Youth Championship in 1985, he went on to represent Kazakhstan at the 1992 Chess Olympiad in Manila
and was twice the national champion.
International Master and Grandmaster titles were awarded to him in 1993 and 1996 respectively. Now living in Cannes
, Tkachiev has taken French citizenship and won the 2006 French Chess Championship
, held at Besançon
, August 14–26. His victory included a thrilling rapidplay play-off against Laurent Fressinet
.
In 2007, he won the European Individual Chess Championship, held in Dresden
, following a play-off with GMs Emil Sutovsky
, Dmitry Jakovenko
and Ivan Cheparinov
. The field was exceptionally strong with more than 50 competitors having an Elo rating of 2600 or more.
He also reached the semi-finals of the Russian Chess Championship
in 2005 and won the Moscow Blitz Superfinal in 2004, ahead of Alexander Morozevich
. Other noteworthy victories include Oakham
1993, Cannes
1996 (and 1999), Isle of Man
1996 and Makarska
1997.
In matchplay, he has defeated Alberto David
6-2 (+4=4-0) in 1999 and also beat the Dutch player John van der Wiel
by the wider margin of 7-3 (+5=4-1). In 2000, his (Cannes) match against Jeroen Piket
ended in a 4-4 draw (+2=4-2).
Tkachiev admits leading a racy—if not hedonistic—lifestyle and to finding it difficult to cope with lengthy tournaments at long time control
s. His passion is therefore for blitz chess
and this appears also to be his real strength.
In September 2009, Tkachiev caused controversy after falling asleep during a match at an international tournament in Calcutta, India. He was reportedly drunk and, after passing out repeatedly during the first hour of play, was forced to concede the game after just 11 moves on technical grounds.
Whilst the contest was controversial in some quarters and considered to be degrading by some female chess players, the not-too-revealing photographs were mostly sent in by the participants themselves. A judging panel was made up of a wider selection of chess grandmasters, including Nigel Short
, who along with some women players like Jennifer Shahade
, supported the idea behind the venture. Amongst the more noted chess players featured in the contest were Natalija Pogonina, Maria Manakova
, Almira Skripchenko
and Elisabeth Pähtz
.
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
player.
Biography
In 1982, he moved to KazakhstanKazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
with his parents and learnt to play chess a year later. A winner of the Kazakhstani Youth Championship in 1985, he went on to represent Kazakhstan at the 1992 Chess Olympiad in Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
and was twice the national champion.
International Master and Grandmaster titles were awarded to him in 1993 and 1996 respectively. Now living in Cannes
Cannes
Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It is a Commune of France in the Alpes-Maritimes department....
, Tkachiev has taken French citizenship and won the 2006 French Chess Championship
French Chess Championship
The French Chess Championship is the annual, national chess tournament of France. It was officially first played in 1923after the formation of the Fédération Française des Echecs in 1921. The first unofficial national tournament was played in 1880, in the Café de la Régence, where further edition...
, held at Besançon
Besançon
Besançon , is the capital and principal city of the Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It had a population of about 237,000 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2008...
, August 14–26. His victory included a thrilling rapidplay play-off against Laurent Fressinet
Laurent Fressinet
Laurent Fressinet is a French chess Grandmaster. He is married to Almira Skripchenko.In October 2011 he tied for 3rd-15th in the open section of the 15th Corsican Circuit.-External links:*...
.
In 2007, he won the European Individual Chess Championship, held in Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, following a play-off with GMs Emil Sutovsky
Emil Sutovsky
Emil Sutovsky is an Israeli chess Grandmaster. He is one of the several top chess grandmasters who were born in Baku, Azerbaijan .-Successes:...
, Dmitry Jakovenko
Dmitry Jakovenko
Dmitry Olegovich Jakovenko is a Russian chess grandmaster. On the March 2010 FIDE Elo rating list, Jakovenko has a rating of 2725, making him the 20th highest ranked player in the world....
and Ivan Cheparinov
Ivan Cheparinov
Ivan Cheparinov is a Bulgarian chess player, who won the Bulgarian Chess Championship in 2005.-Topalov's second:Until 2007, he was best known as the second of former FIDE World Champion Veselin Topalov...
. The field was exceptionally strong with more than 50 competitors having an Elo rating of 2600 or more.
He also reached the semi-finals of the Russian Chess Championship
Russian Chess Championship
-Imperial Russia:In 1874, Emanuel Schiffers defeated Andrey Chardin in a match held in St. Petersburg with five wins and four losses. Schiffers was considered the first Russian champion until his student, Mikhail Chigorin, defeated him in a match held in St. Petersburg in 1879...
in 2005 and won the Moscow Blitz Superfinal in 2004, ahead of Alexander Morozevich
Alexander Morozevich
Alexander Morozevich is a Russian chess Grandmaster. In the November 2011 FIDE list, he had an Elo rating of 2762, making him the 9th-highest rated player in the world, although he has previously ranked as high as second, in the July 2008 list....
. Other noteworthy victories include Oakham
Oakham
-Oakham's horseshoes:Traditionally, members of royalty and peers of the realm who visited or passed through the town had to pay a forfeit in the form of a horseshoe...
1993, Cannes
Cannes
Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It is a Commune of France in the Alpes-Maritimes department....
1996 (and 1999), Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
1996 and Makarska
Makarska
Makarska is a small town on the Adriatic coastline of Croatia, about southeast of Split and northwest of Dubrovnik. It has a population of 13,716 residents. Administratively Makarska has the status of a town and it is part of the Split-Dalmatia County....
1997.
In matchplay, he has defeated Alberto David
Alberto David
Alberto David is a Luxembourgian chess player holding the rank of grandmaster. , he has an Elo rating of 2587, having peaked at a rating of 2603 in January 2009. He has competed for Luxembourg at six Chess Olympiads , playing first board each time...
6-2 (+4=4-0) in 1999 and also beat the Dutch player John van der Wiel
John van der Wiel
John van der Wiel is a Dutch chess grandmaster. He was awarded the Grandmaster title in 1982.He was the European Junior Champion in 1978 and the champion of the Netherlands in 1986. He was a participant in the Chess Olympiads of 1980, 1982 and 1984...
by the wider margin of 7-3 (+5=4-1). In 2000, his (Cannes) match against Jeroen Piket
Jeroen Piket
Jeroen Piket is a retired Dutch chess player who earned the Grandmaster title in 1989. He won the Dutch Chess Championship in 1990, 1991, 1992, and 1994. Other notable results include a second place at the Hoogovens tournament 1997...
ended in a 4-4 draw (+2=4-2).
Tkachiev admits leading a racy—if not hedonistic—lifestyle and to finding it difficult to cope with lengthy tournaments at long time control
Time control
A time control is a mechanism in the tournament play of almost all two-player board games so that each round of the match can finish in a timely way and the tournament can proceed. Time controls are typically enforced by means of a game clock...
s. His passion is therefore for blitz chess
Blitz chess
Fast chess, also known as blitz chess, lightning chess, sudden death, speed chess, bullet chess and rapid chess, is a type of chess game in which each side is given less time to make their moves than under the normal tournament time controls of 60 to 180 minutes per player.-Overview:The different...
and this appears also to be his real strength.
In September 2009, Tkachiev caused controversy after falling asleep during a match at an international tournament in Calcutta, India. He was reportedly drunk and, after passing out repeatedly during the first hour of play, was forced to concede the game after just 11 moves on technical grounds.
Notable games
- Viswanathan Anand vs Vladislav Tkachiev, FIDE WCh KO 2001, Spanish Game: Morphy Defense (C78), 1/2-1/2
- Alexander Morozevich vs Vladislav Tkachiev, World Cup of Rapid Chess Gp B 2001, Scotch Game: Classical, Intermezzo Variation (C45), 0-1
- Evgeny E Vorobiov vs Vladislav Tkachiev, 58th Russian Championship Semi-Finals 2005, Scotch Game: Classical, Intermezzo Variation (C45), 0-1
- Vladislav Tkachiev vs Maxime Vachier Lagrave, French Championships 2006, English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense. King's Knight Variation (A15), 1-0
Blitz Brothers
On the less serious side of chess, Vladislav Tkachiev is one half of a duo, known as the "Blitz Brothers", responsible for setting up the World Chess Beauty Contest. With the intention of promoting chess worldwide and attracting the interest of media and sponsors, Vladislav and his brother Evgeny created a website that hosted the competition. Although the site is currently offline, viewers were able to register to see the full size images and vote for their favourites.Whilst the contest was controversial in some quarters and considered to be degrading by some female chess players, the not-too-revealing photographs were mostly sent in by the participants themselves. A judging panel was made up of a wider selection of chess grandmasters, including Nigel Short
Nigel Short
Nigel David Short MBE is an English chess grandmaster earning the title at the age of 19. Short is often regarded as the strongest English player of the 20th century as he was ranked third in the world, from January 1988 – July 1989 and in 1993, he challenged Garry Kasparov for the World Chess...
, who along with some women players like Jennifer Shahade
Jennifer Shahade
Jennifer Shahade is an American chess player and writer. She is a two-time American women's chess champion and, as of October 2007, has a FIDE rating of 2322. She has the FIDE title of Woman Grandmaster. Jennifer is the author of the book Chess Bitch...
, supported the idea behind the venture. Amongst the more noted chess players featured in the contest were Natalija Pogonina, Maria Manakova
Maria Manakova
Maria Manakova is a Woman Grandmaster of chess, born in Russia. She lived in Serbia for several years and played for the Yugoslav women's chess team. Manakova was first board reserve on the silver medal winning Yugoslav team at the European Team Championship in Batumi 1999, although she did not...
, Almira Skripchenko
Almira Skripchenko
Almira Skripchenko is a French chess player who has achieved the FIDE International Master and Woman Grandmaster titles...
and Elisabeth Pähtz
Elisabeth Pähtz
Elisabeth Pähtz is a German chess Woman Grandmaster.She was trained from early childhood by her father Thomas Pähtz, a chess grandmaster himself. At the age of 9 years she won her first German championship in the under-11 age group. In 1999 she became Germany's women's chess champion...
.