Coming Even Sooner: The FIDE Grand Prix Comes to Tashkent
Thursday, October 16, 2014 at 11:13PM
Dennis Monokroussos in Tashkent Grand Prix

The first tournament of the new FIDE Grand Prix cycle finished a few days ago, and next Monday many of the same players will start all over again in the second Grand Prix tournament, in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Here's the line-up this time around:

The asterisk after Gelfand's name and rating indicates that there's a bit of a problem, since he's playing in the Petrosian Memorial the same day this tournament finishes. (Or the day after, in case November 3 is the date of the opening ceremony of the latter event.) I'm wondering, but do not know, if the recent and highly commendable decision by FIDE to scrub the proposal to hold the third Grand Prix tournament in Tehran and move it to Tbilisi accounts for this. By moving that one, it gives Gelfand the ability to play there rather than in Tashkent, and then there wouldn't be any conflict or crazy back-to-back issue for him to deal with.

It should be a fun tournament and a nice lead into the world championship next month. And who knows - if Caruana plays at the top of his level it might suck some more of the air out of the Anand-Carlsen match.

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