Gulf News, United Arab Emirates
August 22, 2004

IRANIAN GM MAGHAMI EMERGES SOLE LEADER

Iranian Grandmaster Ehsan Ghaem Maghami emerged as the sole leader of
the Master Tournament at the 14th Abu Dhabi Chess Festival when he
defeated Marat Dzhumaev in the sixth round yesterday.

Ghaem Maghami has five points with three rounds remaining in the $
4,000 tournament. Five players are in second place with 4.5 points
each. They are Russian’s Mikhail Kobail and Evgeny Vladimirov,
Kazkhstan’s Pavel Kotsur, Artashes Minasian and Armenia’s Ashot
Anastasian.

Thursday was the only rest day in the Festival and the competition
resumed late Friday evening.

A total of $ 30,000 is on offer in prize money for the event which
also includes an open tournament, a children’s tournament and a blitz
tournament.

Ghaem Maghami won the Blitz tournament beating Konstantin Chernyshov
in the final. Top-seeded GM Evgeny Vladimirov of Kazakhstan drew his
sixth-round match with Tejas Bakre to total 4 points. Fancied GM
Artashes Minasian of Armenia beat International Master Imad Hakki of
Syria.

Five more players including Indian GMs Ramachandra Ramesh and
Pentalal Harikrishna, are in joint seventh place with four points
each. The others are Evgeny Vladimirov, Dmitry Bocharov, Tejas Bakre
and Morteza Mahjoob.