The strongest chess room in the United States just got a lot stronger.
On Sunday night, the historical 2014 Sinquefield Cup was brought to a close after benefactor Rex Sinquefield handed his prestigious trophy and the first-prize gift of $100,000 to winner GM Fabiano Caruana — though there was a special gift waiting for Mr. Sinquefield on his 70th birthday.
The thirteenth World Champion GM Garry Kasparov arrived in Saint Louis to personally thank Sinquefield — and to take place in Monday afternoon’s bonus event, titled “Ultimate Moves.”
The exhibition will feature Kasparov, GM Magnus Carlsen and GM Veselin Topalov — three world champions — and the remaining 2014 Sinquefield Cup field of Caruana, GM Levon Aronian, GM Hikaru Nakamura and GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, as well as four-time U.S. Champion and commentator GM Yasser Seirawan.
The eight legendary kings of chess have been split into teams and will pair up with Mr. Sinquefield and his son Randy, who organized the birthday surprise, to compete in a series of rapid and blitz games. The Grandmasters may initiate dazzling combinations, but the Sinquefields will be tasked with completing them, as the professionals and amateurs will alternate moves across six exhibition games through a knockout bracket.
Ultimate Moves will begin at 2:00 p.m. local time and once again be broadcast live through the worldwide stream on www.uschesschamps.com, who’s coverage of the 2014 Sinquefield Cup reached over 190 countries and accumulated more simultaneous viewers than the Tromso 2014 Chess Olympiad. Live viewers may also enjoy the exhibition with commentary, provided by GMs Ben Finegold and Varuzhan Akobian, at Lester’s Sports Bar and Restaurant next door to the host venue Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis.
Tuesday afternoon will also feature an exhibition titled “Ultimate Showdown,” a six-game friendly between GMs Levon Aronian and Hikaru Nakamura playing the popular chess variant of Chess960. Both players are former World Champions to the variant, also known as FischerRandom Chess, and will play the exhibition games on iconic furniture used by Fischer and his childhood mentor Jack Collins. The furniture is currently on display at the World Chess Hall of Fame, as part of a presentation titled A Memorable Life: A Glimpse into the Complex Mind of Bobby Fischer.