The last round is not for everyone. Tragedies and luck, as well as ethical behavior.
The last round in many tournaments is decisive for strong players who are aiming for victory. Strong players do not “finish” the tournament, but rather play until the very end, like true athletes, and give their best, even if the chances of success are slim. Just recently, in China, the world’s strongest grandmasters were competing for a spot in the top three. It was the last round that determined who would take home the prizes.
It was thanks to the last round and their victory in it that the leaders “grabbed” a place in the top three.
.But there are also very dramatic events. Let’s take a look at the latest matches in the European Junior Championship
Group U-19
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In the junior group, the clear favorites were the Dutch checkers players. Once again, we would like to highlight the checkers school, which focuses on the development of the sport and the training of high-level athletes. The approach of the Dutch coaching school is something we can only admire. It is the professional approach based on the principle of “letting the player grow and mature” that allows them to achieve success at a high level and become a leader in global checkers.
And when most players in many federations stop playing at the age of 16, Dutch draughts players are just beginning to discover themselves. And they don’t care about medals in younger age groups. Perhaps this is why, as well as the rather low level in some groups, the beautiful girls Kruysmulder, Fleur and Bintsarovska, Yulia played in the boys’ groups. Kruysmulder, Fleur defeated her opponent in a beautiful and aggressive manner in the last round, and only the draw kept her in 4th place. On the other hand, Bintsarovska, Yulia took third place in the U-16 boys’ group. Boxum, Matheo – Wysokinski, Mateusz, Round 9, U19 In this position, Boxum, Matheo spent quite a lot of time, perhaps considering the “meeting” of the checkers after the black invasion of 23-29, or the obvious sacrifice of a checker to save the position for black 12-17, 8-12, 17-22. However, the situation turned out to be much more prosaic. 1. 45-40 12-17 2. 50-45 17-22?? 3. 28:17 21:12 4. 27-22!! 18:27 5. 32:21 16-27 6. 33-28 x The Royal Strike was a perfect conclusion to the tournament. |
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We would also like to provide a fragment of the 6th round game by champion Boxum Matheo, after which he won three more games.
Boxum, Matheo – Grisins, Roberts, Round 6, U19 In the position on the chart, Matheo managed to confuse his opponent and make them make a mistake! 1…. 25-30?? 2. 35:24 14-20 3. 38-32 1-7 4. 32:23 22-27 5. 23:32 18-23 6/ 29:9 20:40 It seems that Black has solved the problem of a difficult position, but… Suddenly, a “counter” combination appears out of nowhere. 7. 48-43!! 3:14 8. 27-21!! 26:17 9. 49-44! 40:27 10. 31:2 Beauty!! |
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In the group of beautiful girls, an equally hot battle broke out in the last round. Drabova, Darja showed her character. She faced the leader after the 8th round, Moisei, Kateryna. It is always difficult to play the last round when you are one step away from the championship title. Excessive nervousness influenced the subsequent events.
Moisei, Kateryna – Drabova, Darja. White, Round 9, U19 The climax of the game. White carelessly attacked 1. 33-28?? and Black won the checkers with a rapid exchange. 1…… 23-29! 2. 34:23 18:29 3. 28-22 25:34 4. 39:30 20-25 and Black won the game. Congratulations to Drabova, Darja on their strong victory. |
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to be continued…. |