Резюме: | China beat USA and Russia on tie-breaks after a triple tie on 18/22 while England achieved their highest placing since 1996 China scored a double triumph at the 185-nation chess Olympiad in Batumi, beating the United States and Russia on tie-breaks after a tense final round on Friday. Leading scores after 11 rounds were China, USA and Russia 18/22 match points, Poland and England 17. China also won the women’s Olympiad ahead of Ukraine and Georgia. Fifth (post tie-break) was England’s highest Olympiad placing for 22 years, since fourth at Yerevan in 1996. The team, well captained by John Nunn, rode their luck at times and were blessed by favourable pairings but were also resilient, technically prepared in depth and professional in their match strategy. David Howell’s 7.5/10 on third board was the outstanding individual performance as the 27-year-old from Seaford advanced to 2699 on the live ratings. His only defeat was by the former world champion Vlad Kramnik. Continue reading... |