The 20-year-old FM earned his third and final IM norm at the 2019 US Masters. Combined with a peak rating of 2406 in April 2019, this qualifies him the FIDE International Master title! This final Norm caps an incredibly busy year, which has seen OKCR play 83 FIDE-rated games in the first 7 months of 2019.
[Event "2019 US Masters"]
[Site "North Carolina"]
[Date "2019.08.22"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Chiku-Ratte, Olivier Kenta"]
[Black "Mikhalevski, Victor"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2361"]
[BlackElo "2578"]
[Annotator "John Upper"]
[PlyCount "95"]
[EventDate "2019.??.??"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Nf3 c5 8.
Rb1 O-O 9. Be2 {[#]} Nc6 {The most provocative move. Black's other main tries
are} (9... cxd4 {and}) (9... b6) 10. d5 {The first of several positional sacs
in this game.} Ne5 (10... Bxc3+ 11. Bd2 Bxd2+ 12. Qxd2 Nd4 {returns the pawn} (
12... Na5 {keeps the pawn but} 13. h4 {with kingside pressure.}) 13. Nxd4 cxd4
14. Qxd4 Qa5+ 15. Qd2 Qxd2+ 16. Kxd2 Rd8 17. Ke3 $1 {Leaves White with a
comfortable endgame advantage, though Black sometimes holds; e.g.} Kf8 18. Rhc1
Ke8 19. Kd4 b6 20. Rc7 Bd7 21. Ba6 $16 Bc8 22. Bb5+ Bd7 23. Kc4 f5 24. f3 Bxb5+
25. Kxb5 Rd7 26. Rbc1 fxe4 27. fxe4 Kd8 28. R7c6 $1 {keeping the pieces on
maximizes the bind.} (28. Rxd7+ Kxd7 29. Ka6 $16) 28... Rb7 29. Ka6 Rab8 30.
Rf1 (30. Rb1 $1 b5 31. Rb4 $1 $18 {Black's Rooks are bottled, and a2-a4 wins.})
30... Ke8 31. a4 b5 $1 32. Rc8+ (32. Rb1 b4 33. Rc8+ $1 Rxc8 34. Kxb7 Rc4 35.
a5 $1 $18) 32... Rxc8 33. Kxb7 Rc5 34. a5 b4 35. a6 $4 (35. Ka6 {Only move.} $18 {
followed by Rb1xb4.}) 35... Kd7 36. Kxa7 Rb5 {Only move.} $11 {1/2-1/2 (60) Lesiege,A
(2584)-Fernandes,A (2438) Istanbul 2000}) 11. Nxe5 Bxe5 12. Qd2 e6 13. f4 {[#]}
Bc7 $1 {First played by Chiburdanidze in the 1981 Women's World Championship
match, this is now Black's main response. Zigzagging to the a5-e1 diagonal (as
in the Snake Benoni) stops White from clamping in the center with c3-c4 (since
...Ba5 skewers the royal couple) but leaves the kingside dark squares weaker,
inviting an attack.} (13... Bg7 {is the natural retreat, but after the
critical line} 14. c4 Re8 15. e5 f6 16. d6 fxe5 17. Bb2 {White has scored so
well that 13... Bc7 is almost exclusively played now.}) 14. O-O {Freeing the
c-pawn.} exd5 15. exd5 Ba5 {[#] As often in the Grunfeld, White's central
majority can be turned into a passed pawn or a kingside attack. In this game
OKCR goes for the K with ...f5.} 16. f5 (16. d6 {aims for pressure with the
passed d-pawn. Here's a game featuring two Canadians:} Rb8 17. Ba3 Bf5 18. Rbd1
Rc8 19. g4 Bd7 20. f5 gxf5 (20... Qh4 $5) 21. g5 (21. Bd3 $1) 21... c4 22. Bf3
Re8 23. Kh1 b5 24. Rfe1 Re6 25. Rxe6 fxe6 26. Rg1 Bb6 27. Rg3 Qf8 $1 $17 {
"It took me almost one hour to find this move! Black stops white's attack this
way, however 27... Kh8 was good enough to get rid of white's threats." -
Tyomkin} 28. g6 h6 $1 29. Rh3 f4 $1 30. Be4 Qf6 $1 31. Rf3 Be3 $19 32. Qc2 (32.
Qxe3 $2 fxe3 33. Rxf6 e2 $19) 32... Qe5 33. Rf1 Rf8 34. Bb4 Rf6 35. Qg2 Kg7 36.
Qf3 Bb6 37. h4 a5 38. Ba3 Be3 39. Bc6 Bxc6 40. Qxc6 Qf5 41. Qf3 e5 42. Rd1 e4
43. Qg2 f3 44. Qh2 f2 45. Rf1 Rxg6 {0-1 (45) Gerzhoy,L (2372)-Tyomkin,D (2505)
Ashdod 2004}) 16... Bxf5 17. Rxb7 Qf6 {[#]} (17... Qd6 {is safer, and
recommended in both the Kaufman repertoire and in Delchev and Agrest's 2011
book on the Grunfeld, though opinion may have changed since then.} 18. Bc4 $14)
18. Rf3 $5 {Defending c3 and threatening g4} (18. g4 {is the obviously
critical move.} Bxc3 {Only move.} 19. Bb2 {Only move.} Bxb2 (19... Bxd2 20. Bxf6 Bc8 {White is
down a pawn but has comp with the passed d-pawn and developed pieces after
either} 21. Re7 {or} (21. Rb2)) 20. Rxb2 c4 {Only move.} {threatening a fork on c3
decoys White's B to an exposed square} 21. Bxc4 Qh4 {pins the g-pawn to the Bc4
} 22. Rf4 $1 Bxg4 23. Qd4 h5 24. d6 Rac8 25. Qe5 (25. Rxf7 $3 $16) 25... Qd8
26. Rb7 Bf5 27. Qe7 Rxc4 28. Rxc4 Qa5 29. d7 Qd2 {Only move.} 30. d8=Q Qxd8 31. Qxd8 Rxd8
32. Rxa7 Rd1+ 33. Kf2 Rd2+ 34. Kg3 Be6 $11 35. Rca4 Kg7 36. h4 Rd3+ 37. Kf2
Rd2+ 38. Kf3 Rd3+ 39. Kg2 Rd2+ {1/2-1/2 (39) Shabalov,A (2593)-Areshchenko,A
(2625) Port Erin 2005}) 18... c4 $6 (18... Qe5 $1 19. Bc4 Bc8 20. Rb3 Bc7 21.
Qh6 $1 $16 {Threatening Bf4 (skewer) then Bg5 with a winning attack on the
dark squares.} Qe1+ 22. Rf1 Qe4 {Only move.} 23. Bg5 Be5 24. Qh4 $1 Qxh4 25. Bxh4 Bd6 26.
Rf6 Be5 (26... Be7 27. Rxg6+ $1 $16) 27. Rc6 Bd7 28. Ra6 Rfb8 29. Rxb8+ $2 (29.
d6 $1 $16) (29. Be7 $16) 29... Rxb8 30. Rxa7 Bxc3 31. Rxd7 Rb4 32. d6 Rxc4 33.
Be7 Kg7 $2 (33... f6 $3 $11) 34. Ra7 Rd4 $2 35. d7 Rd1+ 36. Kf2 c4 37. g3 $1
Rd2+ 38. Kf3 Rd3+ 39. Kg2 Rd2+ 40. Kh3 Bf6 41. d8=Q Rxd8 42. Bxd8 Bxd8 {
1-0 (42) Aronian,L (2809)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2722) Paris/ St Petersburg 2013})
(18... Qd6 19. Qh6 $1 $146 Qe5 20. Re3 $16) ({Relevant:} 18... Qe5 19. Bc4 Bc8
20. Rb3 Bc7 21. Qh6 Qe1+ 22. Rf1 Qe4 23. Bg5 Be5 24. Qh4 Qxh4 25. Bxh4 Bd6 26.
Rf6 Be5 27. Rc6 Bd7 28. Ra6 Rfb8 29. Rxb8+ Rxb8 30. Rxa7 Bxc3 31. Rxd7 Rb4 32.
d6 Rxc4 33. Be7 Kg7 34. Ra7 Rd4 35. d7 Rd1+ 36. Kf2 c4 37. g3 Rd2+ 38. Kf3 Rd3+
39. Kg2 Rd2+ 40. Kh3 Bf6 41. d8=Q Rxd8 42. Bxd8 Bxd8 {1-0 (42) Aronian,L (2809)
-Vachier Lagrave,M (2722) Paris/St Petersburg 2013}) 19. g4 $1 {Setting up a
strong exchange sac.} Qa6 (19... Bb6+ $2 20. Kf1 {Only move.} Qh4 21. gxf5 Qxh2 22. Ke1
$18) 20. gxf5 $1 (20. Qh6 $5 Bxg4 21. Rfxf7 Rxf7 22. Rxf7 Kxf7 23. Qxh7+ Kf6 {Only move.}
24. Qh4+ {White has comp, but probably not more.... but still a scary example
of how shakey Black's K is in this line of the Grunfeld.}) 20... Qxb7 {[#]
Even here White's two strategic threats -- kingside attack and passed d-pawn
-- dominate the game.} 21. f6 $1 $16 (21. Qh6 $1 f6 22. fxg6 Qg7 23. d6 $1 $16)
21... Bd8 {Novelty} (21... Bb6+ {was the only previous game, and it didn't
make any difference} 22. Kf1 Bd8 {Only move.} 23. Qh6 Bxf6 24. Rxf6 Qxd5 25. Be3 Rae8 26.
Bd4 $18 Re6 27. Kg1 $1 Re5 28. Bf3 (28. Rf5 $5) 28... Qb5 29. a4 Qb1+ 30. Kg2
Rfe8 31. Bxe5 Qc2+ 32. Kg3 Rxe5 33. Rc6 $18 {1-0 (40) Moborn,A (2205)-Basque,R
ICCF email, 2005.}) 22. Qh6 Bxf6 23. Rxf6 Rfe8 24. Be3 $1 $18 (24. Bf3 $2 {
saves the d5 pawn, but concedes too much counterplay after} Re1+ 25. Kf2 Rae8 {
and White may be better, but the game line is much clearer.}) 24... Re4 (24...
Qxd5 $2 25. Bd4 {and Black will have to give the Q for the B to prevent a mate
on g7.}) 25. Bf3 Qb1+ 26. Kg2 Qc2+ 27. Bf2 $18 Rd8 {[#]White has a material
advantage and his Bs leave him with the safer K too. The rest of the moves
aren't the most accurate, but White keeps control and is always clearly
winning.} 28. Qg5 (28. Bxe4 {also wins, but allows Black some annoying checks.}
) 28... Ree8 29. Qf4 Qxc3 30. Bd4 $1 Qc2+ 31. Kg3 Rd7 32. Rc6 f5 33. Rc7 Rxc7
34. Qxc7 f4+ 35. Qxf4 Qb1 36. d6 Qe1+ 37. Bf2 Qe6 38. Qd4 Kf8 39. Qh8+ Kf7 40.
Qxh7+ Kf8 41. d7 Qe5+ 42. Kg2 Rd8 43. Bg3 Qd4 44. Bc6 Qd2+ 45. Kh3 Qd3 46. Qh8+
Kf7 47. Qxd8 Qf1+ 48. Kh4 1-0
