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Chess Life Online 2008 May UTD Arrives in China
Chess Life Online 2008 May UTD Arrives in China | UTD Arrives in China |
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| By Jennifer Shahade | |
| May 14, 2008 | |
L to R: Jim Stallings, Tian Hongwei (Aibgail Tian), FM Igor Schneider, Zhu Fushan, IM Rade Milovanovic, IM Davorin Kuljasevic, Zhang Weida, IM Marko Zivaniv, WGM Ning Chunhong and IM Mark Zivanic. Photo courtesy GM Alejandro Ramirez
The University of Texas at Dallas squad arrived in China for a match against the super strong Nankai University team. Here are the lineups: Nankai GM Wang Yue 2689 GM Zhao Jun 2566 GM Wen Yang 2497 Lin Chen 2406 Li Haoyu 2328 UTD GM Alejandro Ramirez 2527 IM Davorin Kuljasevic 2502 IM Marko Zivanic 2474 IM Jacek Stopa 2430 FM Igor Schneider 2338 Originally, Wang Yue was unable to participate, but with this last-minute addition, James Stallings expects that the U.S. Squad will have their hands full: "We will have the honor of playing some of their country's strongest players. Before the addition of Wang Yue, the match looked relatively even with a weaker player on their board 5. Now, we are the distinct underdogs. At 2700 (after recent tournaments are rated), Wang Yue is in a category known as Super-GM." In addition to holding down board one, Alejandro Ramirez is blogging, although his blog can't be accessed from inside China due to China's second most famous wall, the firewall. Ramirez's blog includes colorful stories and photographs, such as the following account of UTD's welcome dinner: This was the most outstanding dinner I have ever experienced in my life. Not only was the food very varied and magnificent (we had easily 7 courses, including appetizers, soup, another soup, a plethora of entrees and desserts), but the service was simply spectacular. As soon as you took a sip of your Cha (Chinese Tea) we would have a smiling waitress refilling the cup. Check Ramirez's dispatches throughout the event, and look for more updates on CLO. Good luck to UTD! |