I came, I saw, I conquered

Margaret I was the first female ruler of Denmark and the founder of the Kalmar Union. Her reign lasted from the 3rd of August 1387 to 28th of October 1412 and her dominion stretched across both Norway and Sweden. Already back then the Scandinavian countries needed a Danish woman as a leader who could guide them towards greater accomplishments. As we all know, history often repeats itself and indeed here we are with a Danish Nordic Champion.

1.Round I take Scania
I had just arrived in the airport and was pretty confused. I had been up at 3 in the morning to catch my flight from Reykjavik and was basically still half asleep. The first round of the Nordic Chess Championships for Girls u-20 was going to begin soon and I had no idea on how I would get there. Luckily for me I got the best friends and when I stepped out of the airport I was meet by Martin Lokander, a sign saying “Ellen Kakulidis” (I probably would not have noticed him otherwise) and a freshly brewed cup of coffee. The rest of the Danish team had already announced that they had left me on my own and I now completely relied on my Swedish helper.
We were walking through the old part of Stockholm, had just grabbed some food and were now on our way to “Stockholms Schacksalonger” the playing venue:

Ellen – “What opening should I play?”
Martin – “Who are you playing and what colour do you have?”
Ellen – “I know nothing”
Martin – “At night in this spot you can eat the spiciest hotdog in the world”
Ellen – “…What”
Martin – “What…”

The round started and I was pretty nervous as always. I used a great deal of time just focusing on staying awake. The clip from the movie Mr Bean’s vacation, where he is putting toothpicks under his eyelids to keep them open, played in my head. Already after the opening I was low on time and the move Bf4 (she moved her bishop to a square where I could just take it) was like sent from heaven. I went straight to bed.

2. Round I challenge my friends
15 minutes late Sara and Ingrid walked through the door. Apparently Ingrid had to do her makeup and it took longer than expected. At least she sat at the board looking better than the rest of us, when she slowly got a worse looking position. The stakes were high since both Ingrid and Sara were my classmates at NTG and Simen was probably going to analyse the game at their next lesson. Overall I was satisfied with the game except for the move g4? It does not improve much and just erases the possibility of playing f4 later on. Nils would have described the move as a “criminal move” and I am sure Ulf would not have been proud… but a victory is a victory and the show must go on… when you play double rounds.

To play 33.g4 is just... ugly

To play 33.g4 is just… ugly

3. Round I conquer Norway
I have had a lot of fancy preparations since Martin started to tell me what to play, but I have to say, that this prep from Peter Grove blew the socks of Martin, my opponent Sara Næss and myself. It is very rare that we see talent in this pure form, but to play 3..h6 in the French should from this day on be called the Grove-variation regardless of who it truly origins from. When I decided what to play I almost felt sorry for Anton who tried to prepare Sara, but they loudly spoke about some master tactics like 1.h4 and 2.Rh3 when I tried to “spy” on them and therefore I had no mercy. Furthermore I did not even castle the whole game and it ended up being a masterpiece. Poor Sara was now on half a point out of three and as the good friends we are, we all laughed when Ingrid came up with the joke:

Ingrid: “What is the different between Sara and a joke?”
Ingrid: “The joke got a point”

I have commented the game in Danish on Aalborg Skakforenings webpage if you are interested: http://aalborgskakforening.dk/klubliv/kommentarer-og-parti-fra-nm-for-piger/. I also have to mention that I believe Sara will make a comeback next year! I personally have scored 0 of 4, 0 of 5 and 1 of 5 in the Nordic Championships and we have all forgotten that now… I hope.

Naturally we went out on the local chess bar “Krukan” to celebrate that I had scored 3 out of 3. We were probably going anyway but it is always good with extra excuses. Ingrid, Sara, Erik and Martin were some of the people joining the party. A couple of beers a little Bang! some lies about the Norwegian girls age and then we decided to go home. We did not exactly reach the hotel before midnight, but that had more to do with the fact that Ingrid had to jump out of the Metro and find the nearest bathroom. Sara and I enjoyed a couple of chilli-cheese-tops and had the chance to discuss how reasonable we were while waiting.

Haha I love the expression in Erik's face and the fact that Lokander is completely read

Haha I love the expression in Erik’s face and the fact that Lokander is completely read

4. Round I kill all resistance
I am a little disappointed that Erik Blomqvist did not come to support me during this important battle. He came Saturday, but seemed more interested in going to the bar than cheering for me. I would in particular have found it funny if I had the support of the three best chess players in Sweden Nils, Erik and Martin when I played the Swedes; I had to settle for 2 out of 3, but I think that is good enough. Nevertheless I was super nervous about this decisive match and the only thing calming me down was the encouraging words from Peter Grove: You are to bad for the game to matter. Thank you very much then I do not need to worry. I again used some time in the opening but only because I tried to avoid playing the whole game against Stellan Brynell (who were the team leader of Sweden and definitely prepared the players). Nils had (almost) for the first time tried to help me by sending a file!?!?! But I just concluded that I was too dumb to understand the point of the moves and I did not want to play it (if you do not understand the amount of question- and exclamation marks after file, I can explain. When I played in Runavik last year, Nils helped all the others to prepare and so on. I asked for help and his answer was “you are not good enough to understand it”… He was right). However the time in the opening was well spent because she definitely struggled when I deviated from her plan. I had some very nice tactics towards the end and you are welcome to play through the game and comments here: http://www.viewchess.com/cbreader/2017/5/31/Game199141421.html

I already knew that this victory meant that I had won the tournament and therefore Martin and I went out to celebrate with a round of sushi! The champagne we saved for later… much later! I also have to say that I am really sorry. I had promised Martin to play 1.g4 if I had already secured the victory before the last round, but I chickened out when the better part of my said it was bad sportsmanship. Of course he is absolutely right. 

Mmmm, sushi was a great way to celebrate

Mmmm, sushi was a great way to celebrate

5. Round and the time to surrender
The nerves had definitely gone away but it is hard to say that was a good thing. She played directly into my favourite opening, the exchange slav, and I could have gotten an advantage at once… but missed it! The game was the least pretty of the tournament and it took some time before I woke up and finished the job. A pretty 5 out of 5 and probably the biggest win streak I have ever had.
Peter Grove tried to lead the rest of the Danish forces into battle, but the resistance was though. We have to remember that it was not only the Danes who were Vikings. Nevertheless I am also pretty sure that the rest of the team were saving their full strength for next year when they have to defend our title.

The time had come and Stellan could no longer postpone the award of my victory. I got a firm handshake and maybe (just maybe) a little smile. It could have been the light or his Swedish politeness, because I have a hard time imagining Stellan giving any kind of recognition. What can you expect from a man whose favourite show is the Antiques Roadshow. The prize giver even tried to take some of my credit by saying I was “half Swedish” and give some to Norway “because I had lived and trained there”, but no no, if you do not want me at my worst, you do not deserve me at my best!
The prize giving was followed by a fun night with Ingrid, Sara, Martin and Anton. First we went to the cinema and saw Beauty and the Beast and then we strolled through Stockholm. Ingrid of course with her second place trophy in hand. She even convinced an old couple she had won a step tournament. I also came up with some funny stories when I took the train home. But it is actually kind of nice that people congratulate you.

Last but not least I threw a party at my place last Saturday and I finally got the chance to drink champagne from the trophy. On that note I think it is time to move on and play a new tournament, I cannot live on this victory forever. Next goal is the double, when I play the Nordic Women Championship. The Kalmar union is great but Denmark is best!

Probably the last time I try that, but it was kind of fun

Probably the last time I try that, but it was kind of fun

I got a different opinion

I was sitting at the local burger joint with Aman Hambleton and Dagur Ragnarsson, who had just picked me up at the airport. This was my 4th time in Iceland, and once again I had the chance to enjoy the view of the beautiful landscape. Not even the fact that Hambleton was pouring his ketchup all over his fries, like a true Canadian, could ruin the mood. After 3 weeks in Eastern Europe, the only thing on my mind was Nils and the chess tournament, Reykjavik Open.

The tournament also featured some modern legends like Anish Giri, Baadur Jobava and Ellen Kakulidis!

The tournament also featured some modern legends like Anish Giri, Baadur Jobava and Ellen Kakulidis!

Back in business
Reykjavik Open was once again played at concert hall, Harpa, with a stunning view and a little bit of live music during the weekend. The tournament had visitors from chess enthusiast, musicians, mayors and one day around 1.000.000 kids (at least it felt like this amount) who had an event in the same building. A little schoolgirl even performed the 1st move on board 1, where Nils was playing. She was a little nervous, probably because she realised what a great honour it was to stand that close to Nils, when I gave her the killer eyes down from board 79… I am just kidding, she was actually very cute and I am sure that Jobava was a little jealous. I enjoyed the different twist before the opening of every round and as last year the only thing I can criticise about the whole event is my lack in abilities regarding chess.

“One ticket for the elevator please. Yes I would like to stay for 9 days”

The sentence above describes my whole tournament. Not once did I manage to make a surprising result – in a good or bad way. Instead I kept on losing to the higher rated opponents and winning against the lower rated (in a very solid and confident way!). I knew that the solution probably was to take a bye and step out of the uncomfortable situation, but I was too stubborn. Luckily for me Nils was doing pretty well, and I could just focus on other things like the good company and beer.

Here you can se a commented game by Martin Lokander. The only game I am proud of. First round against Tania Sachdev: http://www.viewchess.com/cbreader/2017/5/19/Game314906.html

Sue is missing in this picture, where we are investigating an interesting sculpture

Sue is missing in this picture, where we are investigating an interesting sculpture

We are getting late!
One thing that I definitely noticed is the difference in routines when I compare Nils and me; I have come up with the 10 holy rules of Grandmaster preparation before the game:

  1.                       It does matter for how long you sleep (at least 10 hours!?)
  2.                       You should always complain in the morning, about not sleeping enough
  3.                       You should never arrive at breakfast more than 10 minutes before closing time
  4.                       Any clothing is acceptable to wear to breakfast
  5.                       You cannot prep without prepping what to prep (making a list)
  6.                       One hour before the meal you walk – it does not matter where
  7.                       It does matter when and what you eat before the round. Burger is a NO-go
  8.                       Before the round you should brush your teeth and take a shower to feel fresh
  9.                       No matter result, always complain, that you did not play well enough
  10.                       When dinner is done, your anger must be gone

Usually we always met with some friends for both the daily walk and the two meals. Our most common company were Gawain, Sue and Erik and we were often joined by others. The selection of restaurants was great and we tried every restaurant where our food coupons were a legit payment. Some restaurants were more surprised with the coupons than others, apparently the other chess players did not want to walk to far, and since some of the restaurants could reach the great distance of a whole kilometre, they where not used to being paid in pieces of paper with “Reykjavik Open” written on them.

A very nice view from one of the many "Grandelius-walking-tours"

A very nice view from one of the many “Grandelius-walking-tours”

I am to young for that stuff
As usual my main focus was on the side events and during Reykjavik Open they gave me plenty of chances to get my mind of chess… or at least the chess in the main tournament. It all started with Erik Blomqvist having a rather unlucky start of his Reykjavik adventure, when he lost to two lower rated opponents in a row. Since we are a very experienced group of people, we all suggested the blitz-tournament as the cure for this illness. Gawain could even assure Erik that the blitz in Dubai had been the turning point for him, when he went ahead to win it all. After I promised to buy the first beer, there was nothing more to talk about; it was also very hard to make it any worse. Additionally it has to be said, that Erik would do anything it takes to be on top of the game… but more about that later! Anyhow the blitz tournament was played and as expected Erik went on to win and I had to get another beer to forget everything about it. I had great support the first couple of rounds before the serious players had to go to bed (I need to mention that they all placed below Erik in the main tournament. Wonder why), but I need to figure out how to win on my own, when I do not have the possibility to bribe three strong players into staring at my opponent and make him uncomfortable.
A small party at a hotel room naturally followed the Harpa Blitz, but it was a short pleasure with some hand-and-brain (Hand-and brain is a chess game where you have two teams of two players: one who says a piece and one who makes a move. And I really need to mention that I won all of my games on the board in hand-and-brain… but lost all of them on time) and unknown bottled liquids imported from Japan. When the party was on its way to town, possibly the casino, Erik came up with the second brilliant idea of the night (first one was choosing me as his hand-and-brain partner):

“Maybe I should go to sleep”

Always quit, while you are ahead, and the others still had not reached the lobby.

A very intense first game. I won, not the game but the trash-talking!

A very intense first game. I won, not the game but the trash-talking!

My favourite happening during this tournament was the pub quiz. In general I really enjoy quizzes and games like Trivial Pursuit or Bezzerwizzer and to combine it with chess, some friends and some beers is just brilliant. I did not expect much of myself and that was the right thing to do since I had very limited knowledge. My partner however was a good supplement and we went on to get the highest score with 25/30 questions. They did not believe us at first, we are a very suspicious couple, so they had to tipple check our answers. Obviously we were just better and their only choice was to hand us our prize! All in all I am very happy about the fact, that I at least won something in Reykjavik. Here is one of the questions from the quiz:

“What did the 28 games Sämisch played in Busum and Linköping in 1969 have in common?”

A very nice view from one of the many "Grandelius-walking-tours"

How far are you willing to go?

Now more about what I meant, when I said Erik would do anything it takes. I had one very interesting question that I asked about 10 different players the last day of the tournament:

“How many fingers would you cut of, if you got an additional 100 elo point in strength per. finger?”

I got a lot of different answers that I find very curious. All of the Indian players and Nils answered “none” they did not think it was worth it. Gawain and Erik were instead discussing if they would settle for two or also go for the third and thereby make sure they would be the best players in the world. On the other hand (pun intended), they had also been discussing if they should go pro in the board game Bang! And skip chess, so maybe their confidence were not on top. I do not now if this says anything about willingness to sacrifice to become a better player or the faith in your ability to become better on your own, but I know that Mikhail Tall only had three fingers on one hand and was an excellent player!

The Hallgrímskirkja. Is that right?

The Hallgrímskirkja. Is that right?

As we say in Danish “The road to hell is paved with bad excuses”
The tournament got wrapped up with a nice party with free meatballs! We played some Bang! And enyoing the braindead fun of spinning a lucky wheel 20 times for the prize of 20 euro a spin. And NO we did not win anything big, maybe 4 beers if we combine the prizes… However it was a great night and my only regret was booking a flight that left 6:30 in the morning. Great job, Ellen.

I know this blog might be a little late, since the tournament was played almost a month ago, but I have been busy… I promise. There will soon follow a blog about my performance in the Nordic Championship for girls U-20. I hope you have not given up on me 😉