Beautiful Queen Trapping Tactic from the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad 2024

The first round of the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad is in the books and we already have a major upset. Xavier Mompel Ferruz, a teenage FIDE Master from Equatorial Guinea, took down the Grandmaster and multi-time Icelandic National Champion, Gudmundur Kjartansson. FM Ferruz had no problems facing GM Gudmundur Kjartansson’s King’s Indian Attack and when the Icelandic Grandmaster made a mistake, Xavier Mompel Ferruz punished him with severity!

FIDE Master Xavier Mompel Ferruz of Equatorial Guinea.
23. b4?? was a costly mistake by GM Gudmundur Kjartansson. Better was playing 23. Rab1 and then after 23… Rd8 playing 24. b4 works.

23… axb4!! Begins a brilliant Queen winning tactic!

After 24. Qxa7 Qxc6, White’s Queen is trapped!

Then, 28… Rxa8 attacks the trapped Queen.

[Event “45th FIDE Chess Olympiad 2024”]

[Site “Budapest, Hungary”]

[Date “2024.09.11”]

[Round “01”]

[White “Kjartansson, Gudmundur”]

[Black “Mompel Ferruz, Xavier”]

[Result “0-1”]

[WhiteElo “2478”]

[BlackElo “2273”]

[TimeControl “5400+30”]

1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 c5 4. O-O e6 5. c4 d4 6. e3 Nc6 7. exd4 cxd4 8. d3

Bd6 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. Nbd2 Qe7 12. Re1 O-O 13. a3 a5 14. Nb3 Qf6 15.

Nfd2 Qd8 16. Ne4 Bc7 17. Nbc5 b6 18. Nf6+ Qxf6 19. Bxc6 Ra7 20. Ne4 Qe7 21. Qa4

Bd6 22. Nxd6 Qxd6 23. b4 axb4 24. Qxa7 Qxc6 25. axb4 Bb7 26. Re4 Ra8 27. Qxa8+

Bxa8 28. b5 Qb7 29. f3 Kh7 30. Rf1 Qe7 31. Re2 Qa3 32. Rd2 Bxf3 0-1

Published by chessmusings

Chris Torres is a nationally renowned scholastic chess coach working in the San Francisco Bay Area. His classes have attracted players of strengths ranging from rank beginners to world champions. A chess professional since 1998, Chris is widely recognized as one of the main driving forces behind the explosion in popularity and sudden rise in quality of scholastic chess in California. Chris Torres served as the President of the Torres Chess and Music Academy from 2005-2020 and currently is recognized as a correspondence chess master with the United States Chess Federation. Since 1998 Chris Torres has taught 6 individual national champions as well as led multiple school teams to win national championship titles. In addition, Chris Torres has directed and taught at 10 different schools which have been California State Champions at chess. In 2011 and 2012, several former and current students of Chris Torres have been selected to represent the United States at the World Youth Chess Championships. Mr. Torres’ hobbies include playing classical guitar and getting his students to appear on the national top 100 chess rating lists.

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