Doha: Russian Grandmaster Vladislav Artemiev (pictured) emerged as the Katara International Chess Tournament 2021 champion defeating American GM Andrew Tang in a gripping final. Artemiev won 7.5-6.5 via a thrilling ‘Online Bullet’ tie-breaker while playing from their respective countries and watched live by over 4,000 spectators.
The former young prodigies played a total of 11 Bullet games in total with both winning five games each and scoring two draws each to be locked at 6.5-6.5 forcing the tie-break.
The 23-yr-old Artemiev has been one of the best young chess players, ranked fourth in the world for all players age 25. A chess prodigy much like his final opponent the 21-year-old Tang, Artemiev broke into the upper echelon of elite chess in 2019 becoming one of the top-10 ranked chess players in the world. Artemiev received $4,000 in top prize while Tang fetched $2,000.
Defending champion and 7-time world champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway was beaten by Tang in the semis (7-4) while Artemiev beat compatriot Alexander Grischuk (7-1).
Applauding the success, Dr. Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti, General Manager of the Cultural Village Foundation -- Katara, said: “We are delighted with the exciting finish and the worldwide participation of top-ranked players in the Katara International Chess Tournament 2021. Katara as a cultural institution has always been to support and which also reflect the State of Qatar’s interest in sport."
