The main series begins on the picturesque Baltic coast in Weissenhaus! A week full of freestyle action, paired with the breathtaking backdrop of the coast.
A nap after each game
Levon Aronian at the WEISSENHAUS Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge
„My advantage is my experience with the game,“ said Levon Aronian after defeating Vincent Keymer in the quarter-finals. It will soon be 20 years since Levon Aronian was even world champion in chess960: in 2006 and 2007 at the then privately organized World Championship, also in Germany, in Mainz.
However, the experience does not make the competition much easier. „I treat myself to a little nap after each game,“ reveals Aronian, who at 41 is the senior player in the tournament. Thinking creatively right from the start, without being able to fall back on familiar schemes and patterns, is challenging, he explained in an interview with Sagar Shah from ChessBase India.
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But it is also refreshing, and new in every game, a fact that makes freestyle so attractive not only for Aronian. „Almost every elite grandmaster loves this game,“ explains the semi-finalist. One exception: Ding Liren, who is not playing the competition in WEISSENHAUS in the best of shape. „Ding would love the game too if he had a little more practice.“
If Levon Aronian has his way, the world champion in traditional chess could soon get that practice. According to Aronian, „chess960 is the future“ – in general and in the freestyle format, which Aronian hopes will not remain a one-off tournament.
Levon Aronian is taking part in the WEISSENHAUS Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge accompanied by his long-time friend Thomas Falk, a former judge and strong chess amateur. „Thomas knows a lot about art and cinema. It’s always a pleasure to have him around,“ says Aronian. | Photo: Maria Emelianova/chess.com
