A STEP AWAY FROM THE CANDIDATES TOURNAMENT

Sahriyar Mammadyarov continues to press forward in the FIDE world ratings with the confident play he has been demonstrating in recent months. After winning a gold medal at the world rapid chess championships, the Azerbaijani grandmaster achieved further success in China. Shahriyar won the 5th stage of the men's Grand Prix series in Beijing.

By winning seven points Mammadyarov beat all his rivals in the tournament which featured 12 of the world's strongest grandmasters. He thereby won important ratings points at the fifth stage of the Grand Prix. In Beijing he chalked up another 170 points, consolidating his second place in the final table.

Meanwhile, the question of Sahriyar's participation in the candidates tournament will be decided after the final stage of the Grand Prix which will be held in Paris. Shahriyar himself will not take part in this tournament because, according to FIDE rules, players can only take part in four out of the six stages of the tournament. Mammadyarov has already reached this limit. The main battle in Paris will be between Aleksandr Grishchuk and Fabiano Caruana. These two players could pass the milestone of 390 points reached by Sahriyar. First place in the Grand Prix ratings is held by the Bulgarian, Veselin Topalov.

Experience shows that Sahriyar is one of those sportsmen who, having embarked on a winning streak, is capable of continuing his success. Bearing in mind the Azerbaijani grandmaster's successful showing in recent months, one would hope that he would continue to show good form in competitions at the end of the year. After his triumph at the world championships in Khanty-Mansiysk, Mammadyarov was in the top three at the Mikhail Tal Memorial Tournament, and then won the tournament in Geneva. And in Beijing Sahriyar showed top form and did not give his rivals a chance. The five victories he achieved at this tournament show his desire to do his utmost at each meeting. Even after losing games Mammadyarov did not lose heart, playing even better the next day. Shahriyar, who lost to Aleksandr Morozevich before the last round, was still a little fortunate. The defeat of his closest pursuer, Aleksandr Grishchuk, to Boris Gelfand, enabled Mammadyarov to stay in the lead. Although in the last round against Boris Gelfand, Sahriyar chose a defensive tactic but did not forget about attack. As a result, having obtained an advantage in the lay-out of the pieces, Mammadyarov offered his opponent a draw in the 29th move. And these half-points ensured his triumph in Beijing.

Speaking about his performance at the Grand Prix in Beijing, Shahriyar Mammadyarov also assessed his chances of winning a ticket to the candidates tournament. "I prepared especially for the Grand Prix in Beijing. But in a tournament with such strong players five victories is some achievement. I aimed to increase my points tally and win a ticket to the candidates tournament. I'm now in second place. However, both Grishchuk and Caruana have an opportunity to overtake me."

One of the sponsors of the Grand Prix, the Russian businessman Oleg Skvortsov, came up with an interesting suggestion, putting forward the idea of holding a mini-tournament involving Grishchuk, Caruana and Mammad-yarov instead of the final stage of the Grand Prix. "There is no point to the remaining stage of the Grand Prix, but a match to qualify for the candidates would be much more interesting for the chess world," Skvortsov explained. That said, the sponsor proposes allowing Mammadyarov, who now occupies second place in the Grand Prix, to take part in the candidates tournament as the organizers' nominee, wherever the tournament is held.

"If it is not possible to offer Mammadyarov a wild card, then I would like to propose the following option as a back-up: a play-off between Grishchuk, Caruana and Mammadyarov," Skvortsov said. This, he believes, also makes sense to Shahriyar "because the chances that either Grishchuk or Caruana will take first place in the deciding tournament of the Grand Prix are quite high bearing in mind the complete lack of motivation on the part of the remaining participants".

If the interested parties at FIDE agree, the sponsor is prepared to consider his participation in the organization of this match or a play-off. But for the time being, after a short break, Sahriyar Mammadyarov faces more competition. In October the grandmaster will be competing for the European Cup with his club SOCAR, and in November he will be going with the Azerbaijani team to the continental championships. The names of the participants in the candidates tournament will be finally known at the end of the year.