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Classical World Chess Championship 2000

The Classical World Chess Championship 2000, known at the time as the Braingames World Chess Championships,[2] was held from 8 October 2000 – 4 November 2000 in London, United Kingdom. Garry Kasparov, the defending champion, played Vladimir Kramnik. The match was played in a best-of-16-games format, with Kramnik defeating the heavily favoured Kasparov.[3] Kramnik won the match with two wins, 13 draws and no losses.[4] To the supporters of the lineal world championship, Kramnik became the 14th world chess champion.

Classical World Chess Championship 2000
 
Defending champion
Challenger
 
Garry Kasparov
Garry Kasparov
Vladimir Kramnik
Vladimir Kramnik
  Russia Garry Kasparov Russia Vladimir Kramnik
 
6½Scores8½
  Born 13 April 1963
37 years old		 Born 25 June 1975
25 years old
  Winner of the 1995 Classical World Chess Championship Runner-up of 1998 Candidates Match (replacement for Spain Alexei Shirov)
  Rating: 2849
(World No. 1)[1]		 Rating: 2772
(World No. 3)[1]
← 1995
2004 →

Background

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Following the split in the world chess championship in 1993, there were two rival world titles: the official FIDE world title, and the PCA world title held by Garry Kasparov. The rationale behind Kasparov's title was that he had not been defeated in a match, but in fact had defeated the rightful challenger Nigel Short in 1993, so FIDE had no power to strip the title from him.

The PCA then held Interzonal and Candidates matches from 1993–1995, and Kasparov successfully defended his PCA title in 1995 against Viswanathan Anand.

The PCA folded in 1996. The initial contract with Intel had expired. Kasparov was looking for a new sponsor, but hadn't been able to find one.[5] However, Kasparov still claimed he was the rightful world champion, so Kasparov looked for other ways to select his next challenger.

Qualification

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Without the sponsorship of the PCA, Kasparov found he was unable to organise a series of qualifying matches to choose a challenger. Eventually in 1998, he announced that, based on their ratings and results, Anand and Vladimir Kramnik were clearly the next two best players in the world, and that they would play a match to decide who would challenge for Kasparov's title.[6]

Anand, however, as a participant in the FIDE world championship cycle, believed he was contractually obligated to not participate in a rival cycle and declined the offer.[7] So instead a match was organised between Kramnik and Alexei Shirov, from 24 May to 5 June 1998 in Cazorla, Spain.[8] Shirov was chosen because he was next in the PCA rating list,[9][10] and because of his strong performance at the Linares 1998 super tournament.[7][11]

Despite being the underdog, Shirov won the match with two wins, seven draws and no losses.[12][13]

World Chess Championship Candidates Match (1998)
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Total
  Vladimir Kramnik (Russia) 2790 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 3½
  Alexei Shirov (Spain) 2710 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 5½

However, during 1998 Kasparov, Shirov and sponsors were unable to come to an agreement.[14] Shirov rejected one offer of a match in California, but believed rejecting this offer did not mean waiving his rights for a match.[11] In December 1998, there was still talk of organising a Kasparov–Shirov match.[15]

In February 1999, Kasparov abandoned plans for a match with Shirov and pursued a match with Anand instead, on the basis that Anand was second to Kasparov on the ratings list.[16] Negotiations for a 1999 match failed,[17][18] as did negotiations in 2000, with Anand expressing dissatisfaction with the contract.[19] In March 2000 it was announced that negotiations with Anand had failed and so Kasparov would negotiate a match with the next player in the ratings list—Kramnik.[20] This time negotiations were successful, and the company Braingames was formed to finance a Kasparov-Kramnik match in October 2000.

Shirov was aggrieved, and even in 2006 maintained that Kramnik was not a valid world champion.[21] However, most supporters of Kasparov's title believe that, despite the unsatisfactory way in which a challenger was chosen, nevertheless the winner of this match would be the true World Champion.[citation needed] Kramnik had a far better record against Kasparov than Shirov did (a point Kasparov emphasised when the match was announced in April 2000).[22] In the years that followed, Kasparov maintained an overwhelming plus score in his individual games against Shirov.[23]

Championship Match

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Classical World Chess Championship Match 2000
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Total
  Garry Kasparov (Russia) 2849 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 6½
  Vladimir Kramnik (Russia) 2772 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 8½

Match games

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White Black Date Result Moves Winner Standing Opening Notes / Reference
1 Kasparov Kramnik 8 October ½–½ 25 ½–½ C67 Ruy Lopez [1]
2 Kramnik Kasparov 10 October 1–0 40 Kramnik Kramnik leads 1½–½ D85 Grünfeld Defence Kramnik uncorked a novelty in Grünfeld Defence, after which Kasparov did not use the Grünfeld [2]
3 Kasparov Kramnik 12 October ½–½ 53 Kramnik leads 2–1 C67 Ruy Lopez [3]
4 Kramnik Kasparov 14 October ½–½ 74 Kramnik leads 2½–1½ D27 Queen's Gambit [4]
5 Kasparov Kramnik 15 October ½–½ 24 Kramnik leads 3–2 A34 English Opening [5]
6 Kramnik Kasparov 17 October ½–½ 66 Kramnik leads 3½–2½ D27 Queen's Gambit [6]
7 Kasparov Kramnik 19 October ½–½ 11 Kramnik leads 4–3 A32 English Opening [7]
8 Kramnik Kasparov 21 October ½–½ 38 Kramnik leads 4½–3½ E32 Nimzo-Indian Defence [8]
9 Kasparov Kramnik 22 October ½–½ 33 Kramnik leads 5–4 C67 Ruy Lopez [9]
10 Kramnik Kasparov 24 October 1–0 25 Kramnik Kramnik leads 6–4 E54 Nimzo-Indian Defence [10]
11 Kasparov Kramnik 26 October ½–½ 41 Kramnik leads 6½–4½ C78 Ruy Lopez [11]
12 Kramnik Kasparov 28 October ½–½ 33 Kramnik leads 7–5 E55 Nimzo-Indian Defence [12]
13 Kasparov Kramnik 29 October ½–½ 14 Kramnik leads 7½–5½ C67 Ruy Lopez [13]
14 Kramnik Kasparov 31 October ½–½ 57 Kramnik leads 8–6 A30 English Opening [14]
15 Kasparov Kramnik 2 November ½–½ 38 Kramnik wins 8½–6½ E05 Catalan Opening [15]
Berlin Defence after 8... Kxd8
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8
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
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This position occurred four times—in games 1, 3, 9 and 13—and each time Kramnik (black) was able to draw.

According to Kasparov, Kramnik's victory stemmed from his superior opening preparation.[24] He relied on the Berlin Defence of the Ruy Lopez to defuse Kasparov's 1.e4, an opening Kasparov was not prepared for. Kramnik also won Game 2 with a new idea for White in Kasparov's favourite Grünfeld Defence, which Kramnik discovered during training with Boris Gelfand a year before the match.[25] He won Game 10 due to deep knowledge of 4.e3 variation by Joël Lautier and Evgeny Bareev, his seconds; that variation was chosen because of Kasparov's unimpressive score with it.[26]


Opinions and Remarks

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Yasser Seirawan remarked that he had no explanation for the result except that kramnik played the best chess of his life, and also that he personally knew that Kasparov was going through divorce which might have affected his game. [27]


Aftermath

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The Berlin defense surged in popularity after this match, becoming a reliable drawing weapon.[28] Kramnik defended his title in the Classical World Chess Championship 2004 against Peter Leko. The world championship remained split until 2006, when Kramnik defeated FIDE champion Veselin Topalov in a reunification match, becoming the undisputed world chess champion.


See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Top 100 Players – October 2000". Ratings.fide.com. Archived from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  2. ^ Due to the sponsorship by Braingames, the match was known at the time as the Braingames World Chess Championships. Kramnik would later refer to the title as the "Classical" World Championship, hence this 2000 match was also a match for the "Classical" title.
  3. ^ The Week in Chess 308 Archived 15 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine 2 October 2000
  4. ^ The Week in Chess 313 Archived 15 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine 6 November 2000
  5. ^ Garry Kasparov. Deep Thinking.
  6. ^ The Week in Chess 172 Archived 17 October 2019 at the Wayback Machine, The Week in Chess, 23 February 1998
  7. ^ a b The Week in Chess 174 Archived 18 August 2024 at the Wayback Machine, The Week in Chess, 9 March 1998
  8. ^ "1998 Shirov - Kramnik Challenger Match (2000 cycle)". Archived from the original on 14 May 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
  9. ^ The Week in Chess 181 Archived 18 August 2024 at the Wayback Machine, The Week in Chess, 27 April 1998
  10. ^ WCC World Rankings Archived 7 February 2020 at the Wayback Machine, The Week in Chess 177, 30 March 1998
  11. ^ a b Shirov Press Statement Archived 30 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine, The Week in Chess, 8 February 1999
  12. ^ 1998-99 World Chess Council Archived 26 January 2021 at the Wayback Machine, Mark Weeks' Chess Pages
  13. ^ "Shirov-Kramnik WCC Candidates Match (1998)". Archived from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
  14. ^ The Week in Chess 200 Archived 28 October 2017 at the Wayback Machine, 7 September 1998 (Also contains a statement at the time from Kasparov)
  15. ^ The Week in Chess 215 Archived 28 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine, 21 December 1999, "Kasparov in England"
  16. ^ The Week in Chess 223 Archived 15 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine, 15 February 1999 – "The reality is that nobody wants to organize such a match. Potential sponsors are much more interested in a match between the number 1 and 2 chess players: Kasparov & Anand." – Kasparov
  17. ^ The Week in Chess 254 Archived 17 February 2020 at the Wayback Machine, 20 September 1999
  18. ^ The Week in Chess 255 Archived 15 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine, 27 September 1999
  19. ^ The Week in Chess 281, 27 March 2000
  20. ^ The Week in Chess 282 Archived 15 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine, 3 April 2000
  21. ^ Chessplayers deceived again by FIDE Archived 8 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Alexei Shirov, Chessbase, 4 May 2006
  22. ^ The Week in Chess 283 Archived 23 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine, 10 April 2000
  23. ^ According to chessgames.com Archived 1 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Kasparov's lifetime score against Shirov is 15 wins, 14 draws and no losses.
  24. ^ The Week in Chess 313 Archived 15 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine, 6 November 2000
  25. ^ Владимир Крамник рассказывает о легендарном матче с Гарри Каспаровым! Интервью второе., 14 October 2020, archived from the original on 21 December 2021, retrieved 23 August 2021
  26. ^ Владимир Крамник рассказывает о легендарном матче с Гарри Каспаровым! Интервью четвёртое., 29 October 2020, archived from the original on 21 December 2021, retrieved 23 August 2021
  27. ^ Seirawan on Kasparov-Kramnik 2000, 20 December 2020
  28. ^ Emmett, Ryan (9 August 2008). "The Berlin Wall Grows Higher In Sochi". Chess.com. Archived from the original on 21 September 2016. Retrieved 22 March 2009.
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