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Dortmund 2005 Field Announced

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Dortmund 2005 Field Announced

Of all the major chess tournaments held each year, the Sparkassen Chess Meeting in Dortmund, Germany, may be the most prestigous. Each year organizers create a strong field with a unique flavor, and often with a twist: one year a computer was invited, while another event earned Leko his chance at the World Championship.

The organizers of the Sparkassen Chess Meeting recently announced the 2005 field, and while it doesn't contain any surprises, the lineup should provide fans with plenty of excellent chess.

Leading the group is World Champion Vladimir Kramnik, who will be looking for his 7th tournament victory at Dortmund. Kramnik finished second in last year's event, losing in a final round match against Viswanathan Anand.

Anand has not returned to defend his title, but there are plenty of other strong opponents who will be contending for the title. Leko will be considered one of the favorites, especially after his win earlier this year at Wijk aan Zee. Four more players from the top ten in the world are also competing: Veselin Topalov (rated 3rd), Michael Adams (7th), Etienne Bacrot (9th), and Peter Svidler (10th).

The field is rounded out by four more strong grandmasters: Scandinavian grandmasters Loek van Wely and Peter Heine Nielsen, Aeroflot Open winner Emil Sutovsky, and the young German prodigy, Arkadij Naiditsch, who at 19 years old, will be looking to improve on his previous Dortmund results.

The tournament, which will run from July 8th through July 17th, is a single round-robin event with nine rounds and one rest day. This is a departure from last year's event, where players played in smaller preliminary groups before reaching a knockout stage. We will be providing complete coverage of this event when it begins.