'I'm back' - Pacquiao, 46, announces boxing return
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The Guardian
2 hours ago
- The Guardian
Chess: Aronian takes big top prize in Las Vegas as Niemann celebrates Carlsen's downfall
Levon Aronian, at 42 the oldest in the tournament, scored what he described as 'one of the crown jewels' of his career to win the $200,000 (£148,000) first prize at the Las Vegas leg of the Freestyle Grand Slam last weekend. Aronian did it in style, winning matches against the world No 1, Magnus Carlsen, the No 2, Hikaru Nakamura and the No 5, Arjun Erigaisi en route to victory. Carlsen had to settle for the third prize of $100,000, plus the further indignity of finishing behind his arch enemy, Hans Niemann, whose game with the Norwegian at the 2022 Sinquefield Cup led to allegations of cheating and a $100m lawsuit, which was eventually settled out of court. Niemann was invited to join the commentary team for the final stages of Aronian v Carlsen and made the most of his triumph and a post-game reunion with the former. Carlsen blamed his defeat on a 'complete collapse' of his nervous system. Besides his failure against Aronian, he also allowed Wesley So a mate in four moves. In fairness, he recovered well from his expensive early errors, scored five successive wins before defeating Nakamura in the third-place match, and still leads the overall Tour standings going into the next multi-hub leg in September and the final in Cape Town in December. Niemann showed commanding form when he defeated the US champion, Fabiano Caruana, against whom he had previously had poor results, by 2.5-1.5. In their third game, Caruana settled for a draw by threefold repetition when he had an edge, prompting Niemann to say he was not surprised: 'I think that my nerves, when there's low time, are clearly better than his. I play a lot more blitz, I'm younger, and I also play much faster.' Niemann finally met his match in the final for the $200,000 top prize, which Aronian won 1.5-0.5, but only after a double blunder where the former could have won a pawn race to queen but missed a simple deciding move. Nakamura also failed to clinch a winning sequence against Carlsen before losing 0.5-1.5. It seems that the psychological burden of playing for a total of half a million dollars proved difficult for all of them. The Freestyle Tour's future is unclear. Its huge $3.75m prize fund dwarfs even the $1.5m for chess in the Esports World Cup in Saudi Arabia next week, but is related to a $12m investment by the venture capital firm Left Lane Capital, which was made on the apparent assumption that the Tour would attract major television coverage. That does not appear to be the case so far, even though the event was a sell-out for the hundreds of spectators, who were allowed to bring in mobile phones and could talk loudly, with the players protected from the noise by earphones. The time controls, which were originally slow classical to satisfy Carlsen, were speeded up to one hour rapid in the interest of a fast-paced event. The Tour suffers in the eyes of the majority of grandmasters because entry is in effect restricted to the top 25-30 players in the world, with ratings above Fide 2725. Beyond that, there remains the troubling problem that, although Freestyle Chess sparks creativity and greatly reduces the need for opening preparation, it also makes it harder for even strong players viewing the games to relate the positions to their previous experience. One of the more easily understandable games, and an elegant victory, was Nakamura v So, where the world No 2 trapped his opponent's queen in just 17 moves. Elsewhere, last weekend's English Championship at Kenilworth, Warwickshire, turned into a trial of strength between the country's top two grandmasters, the world senior champion, Michael Adams, and the former Russian champion Nikita Vitiugov, which continued right into a tie-break for first prize which Adams edged 2.5-1.5. It was an impressive performance by Adams, the 53-year-old from Taunton, Somerset, whose wins over the defending champion, Gawain Jones, and England's youngest grandmaster, 16-year-old Shreyas Royal, were both of the highest class. Adams's tie-break strategy against Vitiugov, keeping a tight grip on the position until his opponent lost patience, was also very effective. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion Vitiugov lost little in defeat. He is a strong grandmaster in the Soviet tradition, and showed his quality by a fine attacking win against Ameet Ghasi in the final round. Royal had the best tie-break of those tied for third, played an excellent attack against John Emms, and appeared a potential 2600 player. Matthew Wadsworth, whose GM title has just been confirmed by Fide, looked the part. Final leading scores were Adams and Vitiugov 6/7, Royal, Wadsworth, Peter Roberson, and Jones 5.5. Elmira Mirzoeva retained the English Women's title. The old hands triumphed, while the losers were the ambitious amateurs and the teen or sub-teen juniors, groups that lacked outstanding performers. They will not have to wait long for another opportunity, though, because the British Championship starts at Liverpool next Thursday. Meanwhile Dan Fernandez, the 30-year-old England No 16, who is ambitious to break into the Olympiad team, has just scored a career-best result at the Ghent Open in Belgium, winning first prize with a spectacular 7.5/9, two points clear of the field and with a 2645 tournament performance rating. India's 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh defeated China's Tan Zhongyi 1.5-0.5 to reach Saturday's final of the Women's World Cup in Batumi, Georgia. Deshmukh will meet her compatriot Humpy Koneru, who won 5-3 against China's Lei Tingjie in the second semi-final. Finally, a word on American Chess Magazine, which is one of the best of its kind. The latest issue includes a rare account by Boris Spassky of his first meeting with Bobby Fischer, an analysis of the best queen sacrifices in chess history, advice on openings, and much more. 3982 1 Rxe8+! Rxe8 2 Nxf6+ gxf6 3 Bb5! Resigns. White wins the e8 rook or mates by Qg4+ and Qg7.
Scottish Sun
4 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
‘Stop this atrocity' – Boxing sensation aged 12 has pro debut CANCELLED as WBC president personally intervenes
Read on to find out why the WBC had to step in to make sure the fight was cancelled FIGHT BLOCK 'Stop this atrocity' – Boxing sensation aged 12 has pro debut CANCELLED as WBC president personally intervenes A 12-YEAR-OLD boxing prodigy's controversial professional debut in Mexico has been cancelled after the World Boxing Council stepped in to block the fight. Romina 'La Bambita' Castan - fresh out of primary school - was due to make history on Saturday night in Veracruz by becoming the youngest professional boxer ever. 3 Sulaiman personally cancelled the fight Credit: AFP 3 The WBC chief branded the move an 'atrocity' given the age of the girl Credit: Getty Images - Getty 3 Canelo Alvarez made his professional boxing debut aged 15 Credit: AP The fight scheduled for four rounds at atomweight (102lbs/46kg) was billed as a world-record-breaking event. But the plans have sparked international outcry with WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman branding the move an 'atrocity' and personally intervening to prevent it. Sulaiman said in a statement: 'The WBC is absolutely against a proposed fight in which a 12-year-old girl is to make her pro debut. 'We all thought it was a joke, we will fight to the bitter end to stop this atrocity.' He said he contacted the event promoter directly and accused Castan's father, former boxer Isaac 'Bamba' Castan of issuing 'all kinds of threats' to push the fight through. The WBC confirmed late Friday that the bout had been officially cancelled, with Sulaiman pledging to support Castan's future in the amateur ranks and guide her boxing journey responsibly. He added: 'I'm happy to inform that 12-year-old Romina Castan will not fight tomorrow. 'The WBC will guide her father and support her amateur career.' Tigre's Boxing Promotions who organised the event also confirmed the cancellation and thanked Sulaiman for stepping in. The company said in a statement: 'We appreciate the intervention of Mauricio Sulaiman and the support he will provide to the young boxer. 'Romina Castan Lara continues her boxing career with our promoter and now with the full support of the WBC.' Tyson Fury leaps to Daniel Dubois' defence after Oleksandr Usyk defeat Castan began boxing at the age of eight and has already fought over 50 amateur bouts. But while professional debuts under 18 are banned in the UK and US, some fighters have turned pro earlier in countries like Mexico and Thailand. Mexican superstar Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez made his debut at 15. Critics have argued 12 is far too young for the pro ranks, with concerns over safety and ethics taking centre stage. The WBC's intervention now looks set to prevent Castan's entry into the record books- at least for now.
The Sun
5 hours ago
- The Sun
‘Stop this atrocity' – Boxing sensation aged 12 has pro debut CANCELLED as WBC president personally intervenes
A 12-YEAR-OLD boxing prodigy's controversial professional debut in Mexico has been cancelled after the World Boxing Council stepped in to block the fight. Romina 'La Bambita' Castan - fresh out of primary school - was due to make history on Saturday night in Veracruz by becoming the youngest professional boxer ever. 3 3 3 The fight scheduled for four rounds at atomweight (102lbs/46kg) was billed as a world-record-breaking event. But the plans have sparked international outcry with WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman branding the move an 'atrocity' and personally intervening to prevent it. Sulaiman said in a statement: 'The WBC is absolutely against a proposed fight in which a 12-year-old girl is to make her pro debut. 'We all thought it was a joke, we will fight to the bitter end to stop this atrocity.' He said he contacted the event promoter directly and accused Castan's father, former boxer Isaac 'Bamba' Castan of issuing 'all kinds of threats' to push the fight through. The WBC confirmed late Friday that the bout had been officially cancelled, with Sulaiman pledging to support Castan's future in the amateur ranks and guide her boxing journey responsibly. He added: 'I'm happy to inform that 12-year-old Romina Castan will not fight tomorrow. 'The WBC will guide her father and support her amateur career.' Tigre's Boxing Promotions who organised the event also confirmed the cancellation and thanked Sulaiman for stepping in. The company said in a statement: 'We appreciate the intervention of Mauricio Sulaiman and the support he will provide to the young boxer. 'Romina Castan Lara continues her boxing career with our promoter and now with the full support of the WBC.' Tyson Fury leaps to Daniel Dubois' defence after Oleksandr Usyk defeat Castan began boxing at the age of eight and has already fought over 50 amateur bouts. But while professional debuts under 18 are banned in the UK and US, some fighters have turned pro earlier in countries like Mexico and Thailand. Mexican superstar Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez made his debut at 15. Critics have argued 12 is far too young for the pro ranks, with concerns over safety and ethics taking centre stage. The WBC's intervention now looks set to prevent Castan's entry into the record books - at least for now.
