Uzbekistan's first loss in Olympiad! | Germany takes down the leaders

Yeah, yeah, sure. Yeah, crazy.

And Frederick, how did you approach Uzbekistan as a team? Because, you know, they were on They were winning match after match. How did you guys— like, what was the sort of team strategy looking like for Uzbekistan?

Not much of a strategy. We just tried to play our games, like usually try to be solid with black, which like unfortunately didn't work out today, although Gusmotov is doing well. But I mean, Matthias lost against Sidorov, which happens of course. But yeah, and then put some pressure with white, and I think that has, has been going quite well for us.

I mean, your game was sort of the opposite of solid, would you say?

Yeah, exactly. But it's not, it's not my fault. I think I was trying— oh, okay, I kind of like played an interesting opening, very complicated, and then he just put fire on the board, and then I have to respond to that, respond to that. So yeah, but yeah, crazy game.

You know, on day 1, Vincent said that, uh, I think on day 2 or something when you guys played Uzbekistan 2, he said, you know, we are winning match after match. We played Uzbekistan 2, you have to win much more to reach Uzbekistan 1. You guys reached it and the chances are looking good. How important of match win is this for Germany?

I mean, very important, of course. Like, beating— first of all, we get like a good tiebreak by beating Uzbekistan, probably. And also getting 2 points is pretty important. And it's like the hot phase now, like last 3 rounds after today. So I mean, very big, of course.

Uh, Frederik, Yakubov is known to be a player who plays attacking chess, and you took the game to him. You played Knight f7, then Bishop d5. So So was it like you wanted to take the game to him before he launched an attack of his own?

Not really. Like he put fire on board, I guess, and like I couldn't do much than just put fire on the board myself. So I also like to play these kind of games usually. So I mean, it was fine for me, especially because it wasn't objectively good, I think, what he did.

You and your brother Rasmus, the Swane brothers, both of you are winning against Uzbekistan. So have Having your brother by your side, exactly adjacent to you in a team event, does it give you additional boost of confidence or something?

I mean, definitely it's great to have my brother in my team, and he is also doing well, which I'm very happy to see. He hasn't won a lot of games recently, so now he got hopefully 2 wins in a row. That would be great. And I mean, he's also very reliable in match situations. He rarely loses, so it's very comfortable playing with him in a team. also from the sporting perspective.

Well, you're on the verge of ending Uzbekistan's unbeaten run, only 3 rounds left. Who do you think is a formidable foe for Germany?

I guess the logical would be India because we haven't played against them from the top, top 4, so probably we'll have, we'll have to meet them at some point. But I mean, there are a lot of strong teams, like Armenia is also really pretty strong and a couple other teams, so it's not Going to be easier from now on.

One, please.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Rasmus, big congratulations! A great result for Germany. You guys have defeated Uzbekistan. Like, did you check Vincent's game before you left, or how was it?

Yeah, I did see Vincent's game. I was not sure if he's drawing or winning, but in any case, he won't lose.

So.

Um, that's very unlikely, so probably we'll— you will win the match. If he wins, even better.

Yeah.

When we asked your brother after your game, he said that Rasmus just won an exchange out of nowhere. Like, tell us a bit what happened there.

Yeah, I think he just made a huge blunder with this b3. Like, in any case, I was already thinking about this bishop takes c3 and knight f4 idea one move earlier, but somehow he completely missed it. Uh, he missed that I have knight e2, knight takes he won or something. And yeah, he realized very late. I could see on his face that he was, he was shocked, like, that I just win the exchange.

And today the Svane brothers actually bring the win for Germany. How happy are you that your own brother also won, also won his game, you won your game, and now Germany is winning the match?

Yeah, it's a very special feeling, of course. Also yesterday we won 3-1 because we both won. And yeah, it's very nice to play with Frederik because he's just playing like such a Such a beast this tournament. He's on 2800 performance. It feels like he's just playing and winning, and I don't have to worry about too much.

How did you guys approach Uzbekistan as an opponent? Because you know they were on this hot streak. They were winning match after match. How did you see them as an opponent? How was the preparation for them sort of?

I don't know. Just we'll just play play our games like normal strategy to try to be solid on the black. games and tried to put some pressure on the white games. Matthias got under some, some pressure in his game and didn't manage to hold a draw, but yeah, fortunately Frederik managed to win and Vincent also managed. I didn't understand his game, but it seems like now at least he's pressing, and yeah, it was very nice that I got so lucky and, and managed to get some winning chances because after the opening I didn't really believe I would have any, any winning chances.

Was it a dilemma sort of that who will play board 4 today, or was it like very clear?

No, of course, like we also have Alexander Donchenko, who is also playing a good tournament, and he could of course also have played.

Do you consider Samarkand the lucky place? Last year you played the Grand Swiss here, the top Germans were in prime form, Dubov went into the Candidates, and we saw the team spirit, and also we understood how strong German team actually is. And it's showing here. Do you think now you are in the race for even the gold?

Yeah, I hope. Like, Samarkand can be a lucky place like it was for Matthias last time. Maybe it's giving the rest of the team some luck, but still 3 rounds to go. Anything can happen and we'll have to perform very well in the last 3 rounds also to finish in the top.

Any particular opponent you are looking forward to face in the next 3 rounds?

Hopefully as weak as possible, but I don't know. Like, we still have to play against India. We might face them at some point since we're so far in the lead.

Yeah.

Thank you.

Well, this question I asked your brother also. So what does it mean to have your brother Frederik right next to you, adjacent to you on your board at such a huge stage at the Olympia? Does it give you an extra boost of confidence, energy or something?

Yeah, of course. It's very, very nice to be able to play with my brother on the national team, and especially when we do well. It's not a very common thing for siblings to play in the same team. Of course, it's very special for me.

Well, recently we saw that on your Instagram you are posting some very instructional and valuable content from your game or positions. What is the reason behind it, if you could share?

No, I just have a YouTube channel and I produce some shorts, and now I also started to post them on Instagram. It's it's just like a funny thing to have some entertainment.

Well, one funny question: Like what did you have for breakfast and lunch? Daswani Brothers today.

For breakfast, I didn't have anything actually, and lunch nothing special. Some pasta.

Thank you for.

Paul, how happy are you with this win? You know, you came in today, I think, and today this big win comes against Uzbekistan.

I mean, I'm extremely happy. I mean, we always know that our team can do anything, but it's one thing believing and one thing achieving. So this is a huge step. The Olympiad is wide open. I think we helped not only us but the whole competition. So I think it's going to be an exciting next 3 days.

Yeah, and I think, I think we can be really proud of our players. And the, like, the competition, as you mentioned, has just blown open now. I think a lot of teams have the shot. It was the Swana brothers today who scored these 2 decisive wins. I mean, just how—

Second day in a row.

Second day in a row, as you mentioned. How happy are you about their play?

I mean, how happy can I be when they just take every point, you know? I mean, it's tremendous. I mean, I was so fucking nervous. Sorry, sorry for the language, but I'm just happy they, they brought it home. It's insane.

And you know what goes into the preparation? Oftentimes we do not get to see, you know, the behind the scenes, the preparation, the hard work. How was it before the Olympiad? Were there a lot of camps, a lot of preparation for the team?

Sorry, last thing I didn't understand.

Like a lot of camps or a lot of preparation for the team before the Olympiad?

Obviously there was a lot of preparation. We had a special camp and it pays out. So yeah. They had like, actually they made, um, before the competition we had like a nearly 2-week special camp with the whole teams where they came together, had special training, and then we arrived 2 days before the Olympiad, like 2 days before, for example, the India disaster, so that we have time to settle in, you know, and no problems with the rooms. So that was a wise decision. And yeah, now I'm just really happy.

And how are you looking forward to the next 3 rounds? Of course Uh, quite important days, not just in terms of the Olympiad but also the upcoming FIDE elections.

Well, um, there are a lot of things happening right now for sure if you're a German chess player. Um, no, I'm just excited, honestly. I think the next 3 days give a lot of chances for us and for chess in general. I mean, following our man will be a pleasure. We have all the chances. Uh, there's nothing more we could have hoped For after 8 rounds, if, uh, before the tournament, if you would have told me that we are on the top of the table and beat the first-place team in the 8th round, I would have taken that in an instant. And yeah, I mean, also I think for Vadim, we see a lot of support, we see a lot of, a lot of positive outreach. And I think also there it's the same as with the Olympiad, the race is wide open. So I'm excited to see what happens.

Will there be a celebratory dinner today perhaps? With the German team?

Any— sorry, any—

Like a celebratory dinner?

I don't think that would be highly inappropriate because there's nothing to celebrate yet because there are 3 rounds to go. And even if we would offer that to our players, they would look at us like in a really weird way because I think they want to focus on their games. So we will not do that until Sunday evening. David, can I chat with Jessica?

Vincent, just quite a long game today against Nodirbek, and like towards the end, were you sure that there's no danger in the position?

Yes, I mean, I think I was pushing pretty much the entire game, and it might even be that there was a win at some point, probably. I mean, if there was, I certainly missed it, but yeah, I think it was very close. In the end, he managed to save it, but of course, you know, winning that match is an incredible result, and A big shout out to the both Swanes for winning their games. It's yeah, just fantastic.

I mean, with like them winning, it sort of reduced the pressure on you. Is that correct to say?

Of course.

Yes.

And tell us a bit about this match in general because how did you guys prepare against Uzbekistan? They were sort of on a rampage. You guys stopped them and like in quite a decisive manner.

I mean, we tried. We gave our best. Prepared a lot for coming. To fight, and I think you also saw that we had 3 decisive results, which is really a lot. Um, yeah, Matthias got under some pressure, and I think Rasmus's game was supposed to be a quite calm one, but then it seems like Shamsedin blundered something somewhere. I felt like it should even be an easier win for Rasmus, but okay, I also had to take care of my own game. And for Federer, it just seemed like a complete mess, which at the end he came on top out of. So yeah, it was a very good match from our side, and of course now looking forward to the next rounds.

How important is this match win in terms of the standings, would you say? And like, who do you say is the next big opponent Germany would face?

Well, I mean, from the teams that are seated in front of us, only India is missing, so I guess that will be one of the next matches. But generally, once you start playing at At the top, you only get great teams. So that's what we are used to now. And yeah, so far it's been going well.

Wonderful.

Thank you. Thank you so much.

Thank you so much. Yeah, how happy are you with this match win? Of course, quite important in terms of standings and beating the tournament leaders is biggest time.

No, of course it's a great result for us. Currently, frankly, I'm a little sad for Vincent because I thought he was winning and ended in a draw because the match looked won for a while, but Of course, going in to beat Uzbekistan, who hadn't lost a match or a game yet, is amazing for us.

And how happy are you with the Swana brothers' performance? I think both of them performed exceptionally well in the last 2 matches. They won the games and Germany won the match.

I'm aware, I'm aware.

Yeah, like, can't ask for much more in the last 2 matches.

And how did you approach the match against Uzbekistan? Because, you know, they were seeming to be in quite a great shape. Was there any special, like, strategy? Also, how is the decision like who to bench, when to bench Donchenko, when to bench Rasmus? How is the decision for you?

It's fairly random, to be honest. Like, I have a dice with evils. Nah, I can't really tell you that much about my deep decision process, but it's always, always tough, which is great because that means everybody's playing, playing all right and the team is doing well.

So yeah.

Did you meet the? Yeah, sorry, you were going.

Oh no, go ahead.

Yeah, I was just saying that. Did you meet the German Chess Federation president who also came in today?

Yeah, we had a dinner on the rest day.

And which team are you looking forward to face? Like, do you think will be the next biggest competitor after Uzbekistan?

I don't want to give you guys any ideas. We'll see.

We'll see who we get.