Good morning everyone and welcome to the live blog from day 1 of the Candidates! We will cover all day long the events from Madrid, where the battles start today at 15:00 CET. The news will appear here on this live blog, time stamped at reverse chronological order. Scroll down to the first news of the day, while on top you will find the latest curiosities from Madrid.
More: All Candidates news (collection) / Preview of R1 / Candidates pairings all rounds
9:35 CET
Norway is anticipating with interest the challenger of Magnus Carlsen. But Norwegian audience has two very different scenarios in mind. “This tournament has a dimension far beyond the ordinary,” Torstein Bae says for NRK. “Two World Cup tickets can be awarded in this year’s candidate tournament. If Magnus Carlsen actually withdraws from the World Cup, he will be the winner of the candidate tournament in Madrid and the one who ends up as number two, who will be the opponent in 2023.” NKR’s article also dubs Alireza Firouzja as the favorite of the competition.
Recently Magnus Carlsen said, “I will be following the Candidates full time” See the whole interview with Carlsen here
9:14 CET, Madrid
You are looking for a ticket to attend the Candidates? There are none! The Candidates were sold out long ago. But you still have a chance to feel the atmosphere as the organizers are creating a special fan zone. Attendees will enjoy surprise visits by prominent personalities from the chess world, including grandmasters, famous commentators and streamers, and other enigmatic guests. Fun may continue even after the conclusion of the Candidates games, with a friendly banter blitz among the guests. See more about the fan zone here
8:51 CET, Madrid
The Candidates 2022 in Madrid are unpredictable. This opinion is shared by the majority of chess fans around the world. We have not had such contested Candidates since London 2013, and this is bringing records before the event even starts. @olimpiuurcan explains the tension perfectly with one photo. Chess is a tough game, but these Candidates can prove to be on another level. The tension of this tournament is surpassed only by the world championship match
8:31 CET, Madrid
The weather at this time in Madrid is quite nice for a walk with the outside temperature being 25 degrees Celsius (77 degrees Farenheit). But this is quickly about to change as temperatures around the start of round 1 of the Candidates are going to break 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Farenheit). We wrote earlier about the heat wave that is tormenting Spain at this moment. But even in this extreme heat, Ljubomir Ljubojevic is walking on Madrid’s streets in a suit. Ljubojevic is roaming the streets of the city for a few days now after he arrived earlier this week with Richard Rapport (pictured together here)
8:15 CET, Madrid
Vishy Anand also shared his opinion on the upcoming Candidates, “Obviously these are the best chess players on the planet, with the exception of Magnus. What makes it especially interesting is that this is the first Candidates after the pandemic, and we also have people who are coming after very long breaks: Ding and Hikaru have played relatively little over-the-board chess for a long time; Then we have a lot of the newcomers: Rapport, Firouzja, Duda; Plus experienced players like Caruana who played last several Candidates. So there is a very exciting field with a lot of question marks hanging over everyone and that makes it particularly intriguing in the beginning. I think the first few rounds you really want to see who is in the best shape, because I can’t predict it at all.” See all that Vishy says about the Candidates here
8:00 CET, Madrid
We start the day with Alexander Grischuk. He talked to RIA Novosti about the chances of Ian Nepomniachtchi in the Candidates and shared, “The political situation in the world and the ban on Russian players from international sports competitions will not affect the chances of Ian Nepomniachtchi in the Candidates Tournament. Ian has decent chances to win the tournament, I would say 15%, maybe even 20%. The composition of the tournament is very balanced. The only players who I do not believe that can win the event are Radjabov and Rapport. Everyone else can win, there is no clear favorite.” Earlier comments by Grischuk on Krajakin and the Candidates here