Globus & Batumi are Euro Club Cup Champs

Vladimir Kramnik, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Anish Giri and Ian Nepomniachtchi all won as Globus finished with a flourish to claim the 2017 European Club Cup. That win wouldn’t have helped if Odlar Yurdu had won their match, but the Azeri team finally fell at the finish to AVE Novy Bor after Sasikiran beat Nijat Abasov. They still took bronze medals, with last year’s winner Alkaloid taking silver. The women’s event unexpectedly became a thriller but top seeds Batumi ultimately scraped the draw they needed to win the title.

Globus take the title
The Russian team Globus started the 33rd European Club Cup as the big favourites with a stunning 2772 average rating for their top six players, but they didn’t have it easy. They only drew their Round 5 match against Odlar Yurdu by a miracle and then went into the last round a point behind their Azeri rivals, knowing they needed to win and hope for the best elsewhere. Their opponents, Legacy Square Capital, had only lost a single match, and by a single point, so were expected to put up stiff opposition. In the end, though, they were swept aside by a Globus team finally firing on all cylinders!

Batumi win a photo-finish
The women’s section seemed to be all but over after the penultimate round, with Batumi Chess Club NONA needing only a draw against a weaker team to take gold while Odlar Yurdu looked guaranteed silver medals. In the end, though, there was more excitement than in the open section!

So that’s all for the 2017 European Club Cup. We’d like to thank the organisers for transmitting all the games live with almost no issues, broadcasting an excellent live show each day, hiring a great photographer and having one of the best Twitter accounts of any top tournament. Let’s end with the traditional “chess after chess” photo!

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