Article by Anna Rudolf

For the 22nd time in a row the town of Jyväskylä organises the most important chess tournament of its country, the Heart of Finland Open.

From 9th to 15 July more than 150 players are expected to be competing for title of the champion, the category prizes, rating points, and simply for the joy of playing chess.

The dates coincide with the town’s Summer Festival, a rich cultural week with theatre and music performances on the streets of Jyväskylä – a pleasant spare time programme for the participants.

Besides the Summer Festival, an evening cruise is organised for the players on the Lake Päijänne – an excursion which, the author of this article can highly recommend!

For more information on the tournament please contact the organisers from the official website.

128 players, 23 titled (9 Grandmasters!) have already confirmed their participation! Will GM Yrjö Rantanen be able to defend his title?

Photo courtesy of the Heart of Finland organisers, Chessdom and Anna Rudolf.

Participants (top seeds):

1 Sulskis Sarunas GM LTU 2596
2 Ehlvest Jaan GM EST 2594
3 Kanep Meelis GM EST 2515
4 Gavrilov Alexei GM RUS 2502
5 Solozhenkin Evgeniy GM RUS 2473
6 Vorotnikov Vladeslav GM RUS 2446
7 Agopov Mikael IM FIN 2444
8 Mishuchkov Nikolai IM RUS 2431
9 Sakalauskas Vaidas IM LTU 2413
10 Kiik Kalle IM EST 2400
11 Rantanen Yrjö GM FIN 2387
12 Karasev Vladimir I IM RUS 2379
13 Yrjölä Jouni GM FIN 2372
14 Mertanen Janne FM FIN 2371
15 Nyysti Sampsa IM FIN 2341

Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
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