The German Masters for men and women started on December 11th.
According to a recent decision by the Federal Congress, the tournament, which is played as a round-robin tournament with 10 players, will in future be the official German championship. This is something that the state rulers have resisted up to now, as they fear that it would weaken the state championships. On the other hand, only one national championship qualifies for the Fide Circuit, which in turn could help Vincent Keymer to qualify for the Candidates Tournament.
This time, Vincent Keymer stayed away from the German Masters, which is actually the 10 best German players. This was certainly due to his exhausting program of the last few weeks, but also to the lack of sporting appeal. Dmitrij Kollars is also not taking part. In the women's competition, number 1 Elisabeth Pähtz is also not taking part. However, in the women's competition, the allocation of the number 1 spot is no longer as clear as it once was. Dinara Wagner, only 7 Elo points lighter than the eternal number 1, would have the chance to replace Pähtz with a good result at the German Masters.
In the men's competition, Christopher Noe, probably the best international master in Germany (or maybe even the world?!), is leading after two rounds, tied with Dennis Wagner and Rasmus Svane, all 1.5 points apart. In the women's competition, Dinara Wagner and Hanna Marie Klek still have the full number of points. This means that Wagner is only 2 points behind Pähtz.
Photo: Sandra Schmidt
