| Game 1 | 24.04.2010 | 17.00 EEST (14.00 UTC) |
| Veselin Topalov | 1 - 0 | Viswanathan Anand |
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Topalov Wins First Game of Title Match
By DYLAN LOEB MCCLAIN
Veselin Toplaov of Bulgaria got off to a great start in the world championship match as he won Game 1 after Viswanathan Anand of India, the world champion, blundered. The game was barely out of the opening stages when Anand erred in a dynamically balanced position. Facing checkmate, he resigned after only 30 moves.
It was a startlingly quick and unexpected beginning to a match that many experts have said is too close to call. Anand, who has been world champion since 2007, is ranked No. 4 in the world, but has been been ranked No. 1. His ranking has slipped recently as he prepared to defend his title. Topalov is ranked No. 2 and was a world champion from 2005 to 2006, when the title was split because of a rift in the chess world. He lost a bitter title reunification match in 2006 to Vladimir Kramnik of Russia.
The match is being played in Sofia, Bulgaria, and has a prize fund of two million euros (about $2.7 million). Though the match is being played on Topalov’s home turf, and therefore seems to give him an advantage, Bulgaria was selected as the host because the Bulgarian Chess Federation was able to raise the largest purse.
The match was supposed to begin on Friday, but was delayed by one day as Anand had a terrible time reaching Bulgaria because of the recent shutdown of airports across Europe. He made it as far as Frankfurt, Germany, and then had to drive 40 hours, arriving a few days later than he had planned.
He asked to postpone the match by several days, but the World Chess Federation pushed it back by only one. It is possible that the disruptions to Anand’s pre-match preparations contributed to his loss in Game 1.
Losing Game 1 in a 12-game match is not good, but it is not fatal. In his 2006 match against Kramnik, Topalov lost the first two games before rallying to take the lead after Game 9. Subsequently, Kramnik tied the match and won it in overtime.
The question now is how will Anand will respond? Game 2 is Sunday.
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