Two GMs, a WGM and a WFM confirmed for the 2007 Canadian Open

Turkish GM Suat Atalik, his wife WGM Katerina Atalik and renowned American GM Alex Yermolinsky will be playing at the 2007 Canadian Open Chess Championship.
GM Atalik is Turkey's top-rated native-born player. He is rated 2586. His wife, rated 2374, is the 2006 European Union Women's Champion. They will be accompanied in Ottawa by Turkish WFM Kubra Ozturk, 16, the 2006 European Girls Under-16 Champion.

Katerina and Suat Atalik

GM Atalik has been the second of GM Nigel Short, who is also playing in the Canadian Open. GM Short was the best man at the wedding of the Ataliks.

GM Yermolinsky, a two-time U.S. champion with a current rating of 2523, is the grandmaster-in-residence at the Mechanics Instititute Chess Room in San Francisco, the oldest chess club in the United States. He is the acclaimed author of two books, The Road to Chess Improvement and Chess Explained: The Classical Sicilian, both published by Gambit Books. He is slated to give a lecture in Ottawa.

Alex Yermolinsky

The Ataliks and WFM Ozturk are coming to Ottawa thanks to the kind support of the Turkish Chess Federation. They, along with GM Yermolinsky and GM Short will be playing in Ottawa thanks to the generous support of OZ Optics, an Ottawa tech company, and its chief executive officer, Omur Sezerman.

The 2007 Canadian Open will be held in Ottawa from July 7 to 15.

IM Thomas Krnan and Nikolay Noritsyn Confirmed for the 2007 Canadian Open

The Organizing Committee for the 2007 Canadian Open is pleased to announce the confirmation of IM Tomas Krnan and Nikolay Noritsyn.

IM Krnan, who turns 19 this year, represented Canada at the 2006 Chess Olympiad in Turin. He has a FIDE rating of 2432, and his CFC rating is 100 points higher. The Burlington Ontario teenager is ranked seventh in Canada.

Tomas Krnan

IM-elect Noritsyn turns 16 this year. He is ranked 15th in Canada with a rating of 2444. His FIDE rating is 2354.

Nikolay Noritsyn

For more information on the 2007 Canadian Open in Ottawa, visit http://cocycc.pbwiki.com/

2007 Canadian Open Registration List

The Organizing Committee for the 2007 Canadian Open Championship is pleased to announce the Registration List . To date, we have almost 70 registrants. The list can be found at: http://cocycc.pbwiki.com/CORegisteredPlayers

As a reminder, players who wish to take advantage of the Early-Bird discounted registration fee have until February 15th, 2007. Until then, the fee is $100. After, it's $125.

Please visit our event website for details. http://cocycc.pbwiki.com/

WCN Sponsors Canadian Open and Canadian Youth Chess Championship

The 2007 CO CYCC Organizing Committee is pleased to announce the support of the World Chess Network for the 2007 Canadian Youth Chess Championship and the 2007 Canadian Open Chess Championship.

The World Chess Network (http://www.worldchessnetwork.com/ ) has agreed to give free one-year Gold Membership passes to each participant in both of the tournaments. Each pass is valued at approximately $50 U.S. The organizers of both events will gather the e-mail addresses of the participants and forward them to WCN so that the one-year accounts can be set up.

WCN chief executive Patrick Connoy said he was particularly pleased to support the CYCC.
"Over half of WCN's employees live in Canada and we are pleased to be able to make a small contribution to the continued growth and promotion of chess for the kids in Canada. Best of luck to all your participants. I know it will be a highly successful event!" Connoy said.

The CYCC will be staged July 3 to 6 in Ottawa at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier. Its winners qualify for the WYCC in Turkey in the November.

This year's Canadian Open Chess Championsihp runs from July 7 to 15 in Ottawa.

Super-GM Nigel Short confirmed for the 2007 Canadian Open

Super-Grandmaster Nigel Short has confirmed his participation in the 2007 Canadian Open Chess Championship, to be held in Ottawa from July 7 to 15 this year.

"I look forward to coming," said the amiable 41-year-old British chess legend. "I noticed in the wikipedia entry for Ottawa that there are even some cricket clubs in the city -- so it is obviously a very civilised place," Short joked.

Regarding the 2007 Canadian Open, Short was particularly pleased that International Arbiter Jonathan Berry has agreed to be the Tournament Director. "There is no one better qualified," Short said. "Plus Jonathan's a great guy."

Short's career is filled with countless milestones.

A former child prodigy, Short is the current Commonwealth Chess Champion. A noted chess writer, he has contributed erudite and entertaining columns and book reviews for the British newspapers The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, The Spectator, and The Guardian. He regards his best victory as his 1992 Candidates Match win over former world champion Anatoly Karpov. Subsequently, Short challenged Garry Kasparov in 1993 for the World Championship, but was unsuccessful. Nonetheless, the match with Kasparov cemented his fame with the public at large.

In the January 2007 FIDE rating list, Short is ranked number 23 in the world with an Elo rating of 2691. His rating topped 2700 in 2004, and in 1989, he was ranked third in the world. Short is a resident of Athens, Greece. His is married and has two children.

Short's Ottawa appearance will be his first visit to Canada in nearly 20 years.

In 1988, Short beat GM Gyula Sax in their Candidates Match in Saint John, New Brunswick. "Saint John was a happy experience. It was well-organized and I was successful," Short remembered. "It was also bloody cold - probably the factor that will deter me from ever emigrating (to Canada), although one should never say 'never.' My wife and I tried our hand at cross-country skiing, which was good fun, although we have not repeated it - Greek beaches being more our sort of thing." In 1982, Short played in the Quebec Open in Montreal. "I remember a riotous night out at a club where I attempted to join in singing passionate "free Quebec" songs with the throng," Short said. "'When in Rome,' as they say."

Short made clear that he holds Canada in high regard. "Incidentally, it is my earnest desire to see Canada host the Commonwealth Chess Championship in future," he said. "I cannot imagine a more appropriate venue than your fine country."

For more information on the 2007 Canadian Open in Ottawa, visit http://cocycc.pbwiki.com/