After a few days in the sky, and a few more on the ground, I've made it through the first day of the 2025 FIDE World Cup. Unlike 2019, I am here as an arbiter, looking after games up until the end of round 6.
Today saw the first 78 matches begin, the the top 50 seeds then joining in from round 2. Although there were a number of draws on the lower boards, I think there were only 2 upsets and even then the ratings of the players were quite close.
I was responsible for boards 61 to 70, and as it is a knockout event, almost all players were very close together in rating. Almost every game in my section was exciting and hard fought, although the most interesting was the Jobava v Cardoso pairing on board 66. (All games can be found at https://worldcup2025.fide.com/live/ ) After 12 moves both players had used up almost all of their time, but Jobava found enough threats to make his opponent go wrong, at the wrong moment. Fier's win board 61 was also a nice game to watch, and of course to play through.
Tomorrow sees the 2nd game of round 1. For some players it will be the end of the road, while for others it is either onto round 2, or the nerve wracking experience of playoff matches (2 game mini matches at increasingly faster time controls). With the rounds start at the viewing friendly time of 8:30 pm (Canberra time) there is plenty of opportunity to tune in and cheer on your favourite player(s)
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