BOTW 2015.09.11

The FIDE World Chess Cup takes place from September 10 – October 5, 2015, in Baku, Azerbaijan. 

128 players from around the world compete in tennis-style knock-out tournament, with the winner and runner-up qualifiying for the Candidates stage of the World Championship cycle 2014-16, the winner of which challenges World Champion Magnus Carlsen for the title.

Two Canadians will compete: 2015 Canadian Champion IM Tomas Krnan and Continental Qualifier GM Anton Kovalyov.

Round 1:
Krnan (121st seed) has White in his first round game against Chinese GM Ding Liren (#8, 2782); the winner plays either Inarkiev (#57) or Quesada Perez (#72).

Kovalyov (#94) has Black in his first round game against Uzbek GM, and former FIDE Champion, GM Rustam Kasimdzhanov (#35, 2704); the winner plays either S.Mareco (#99) or Ni Hua (#30).

Format: 

Two game knock-out matches (TC: 40/90 + G/30 + 30s from move 1), followed (if necessary) by a day of rapid tiebreaks. 
Tiebreak TC gets shorter with each inconclusive pair of games: starting with G/25 + 10s, then 10 + 10, 5 + 3, finally and ending with a single armageddon game where White has five minutes to four but must win.

Final: four game match.
 

Homepage
http://www.bakuworldcup2015.com/

Live Games:

With video and viewer's choice of commentary in English, Azeri or Russian: 
http://www.bakuworldcup2015.com/content/5

with computer analysis:
http://www.chessdom.com/fide-world-chess-cup-2015-live/