2001 FICS 3 0 Championships Quest

The Free Internet Chess Server had just started a FICS 3 0  (or 3 minutes blitz) competition for all members. 621 players took part for the title of the  2001 FICS 3 0 Champion. I decided to take part after my remaining correspondence chess opponents were taking about a month per move. This is what happened so far...

Qualifier 35: After 6 unsucessful tries at the qualifiers, it's make or break in the final qualifier and with an over-abundance of luck, I managed to win all my 6  games despite having losing positions in all of them! Click here for Tournament Standings Click here for CCN article on my FICS Quest

Semi Finals: Semi Finals 1: I lost my first two games meekly and climbed back to 4.5/7, giving away only one more draw. Unfortunately, I was swiftty dispatched by Alexeyl who had also beaten me in the qualifiers. Semi Finals 2: Seeded 3rd, my chances of qualifying should be quite reasonable. This time, I played relatively error-free games and lost only one game to the eventual winner neochessking from India after a misguided Knight sacrifice.. Three other games were drawn against thobjo (repetition), adiamant (perpetual check) and testator (on move 1 to secure the qualification place!). I finished with 5.5/8 for joint 2nd place and a spot in the Finals! Click here for Tournament Standings Click here for games

Finals Top Seed Alexeyl clinched the title of FICS 3 0 Champion by outdistancing the field with 8/9, half a point more than uvo and Neochessking of India. I got crushed in the first 4 games against the top 4 seeds before recovering to win 3 games. A tough time forfeit loss to Ishmael in a won position and a quickie win over Teemuth put me in  6th positon. Click here for tournament standings Click here for games and an exclusive interview with Alexeyl, the FICS 3 0 champion.