1/2006 - In October 2005, in one
tournament, Veselin Topalov won the chess triple crown. He won the FIDE Championship, became
the highest active player in the world, and broke the sacred
2800-rating-barrier with a 2801 rating. That’s a tall order especially going up against 7 of
the best players in the world.
The 30-year old, Bulgarian star Veselin Topalov established himself early at Corus 2005, when he finished
in third place behind Leko and Anand. Topalov continued to build
momentum all year. At Linares, his first place finish -on tiebreaker- was
over shadowed by Garry Kasparov’s sudden retirement. Topalov's tiebreaker
share of first was well deserved, when he defeated Garry Kasparov in the
final round.
Topalov’s momentum continued at Sofia, where, after a slow
start, he rebounded to take first. This set the stage for Topalov to claim
the best player in the world title. At San Luis, Topalov's talent and
fearlessness ruled the day. Topalov was the frontrunner the whole tournament
and finished first ahead of Anand by 1.5 points.
In 2005, Topalov established himself as the best
classical player in the world. With Garry Kasparov’s retirement, Topalov’s
emergence is a breath of fresh air for the chess world. In a recent New In
Chess interview, Topalov said he is not afraid to lose. This fearlessness
has certainly manifested itself when Topalov plays Anand. This rivalry,
between these two top players, is the hottest in chess today. Lets hope that
Topalov accepts Vladimir Kramnik’s offer for a world championship match.
Topalov deserves a shot at the true world title.
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