Chess David Howell draws 142 move marathon in Riga using rare rule
almost 4 years in The guardian
Scotland’s Keti Arakhamia-Grant wins impressively in round one, while India’s teenage trio shine at the Grand Swiss world qualifierDavid Howell is the only Englishman in the 108-player Covid-hit Grand Swiss at Riga, and the three-times British champion, 30, has made a promising 1.5/2 start in the world qualifier. It looked unlikely when he blundered early into a lost round two position on Thursday against Latvia’s Artur Neiksans, but Howell fought on and finally halved a marathon of 142 moves and eight hours. The game ended in a draw via the rare rule of 50 moves played without a capture or a pawn move.Howell is seeded only No 34, but will be harking back to the last Grand Swiss at Douglas, Isle of Man, in 2019, where a late surge gave him an outside chance to qualify for the Candidates until a final-round loss to the tournament winner Wang Hao. Continue reading...
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