A dress rehearsal in Norway

World champion Anand,challenger Carlsen part of a strong field in Supertournament

Norway Chess 2013 will provide a preview of the World Championship final between Viswanathan Anand and Magnus Carlsen,with the pair,along with several other players in the top ten,participating in the supertournament.

The ten-player round robin event has one of the strongest fields in recent memory. Four of the five highest ranked players at present,and seven of the top-ten will be taking part. The event is Norways first major chess tournament,and will go on from May 8 to 18 in the countrys third largest city,Stavanger.

This is the first time that Anand and Carlsen will be playing each other after the Norwegian had won the Candidates tournament in April to become the official challenger for the world title. Neither Anand nor Carlsen will have begun serious preparations for the final,to be held in Chennai later this year,but both players will be careful not to reveal too much of their hand in Norway.

A large part of Anands advantage in match-play is attributed to his extensive opening preparation,in getting an edge out of the early phase of the game with white and in neutralising whites natural advantage when playing with black pieces. Carlsen is considered a versatile player,who can deal with most positions without discomfort,and doesnt rely on the opening for an advantage.

In that sense,it will perhaps be Anand who will be more careful about what he reveals during the tournament. Then again,Anand has also had sufficient experience in juggling between tournaments and matches,having done so since becoming the world champion in 2007. Despite Carlsens high win-rate in the last two years or so,matches between Anand and Carlsen in the period have tended to be tightly contested affairs. The last six games between the two have thrown up five draws,but more significantly,it was Carlsen who won the one decisive game during the stretch.

Other stars

Though the game between the two will be the most keenly followed of the tournament,there are several players in the sidelines who can make a mark. Levon Aronian,currently second in the rankings,is coming off a win at the Alekhine Memorial,a tournament in which Anand finished third. Veselin Topalov,a former World Champion,is also on a hot streak,having won the Zug Grand Prix a clear 1.5 points ahead of second place. Having dropped out of the top 10 for close to a year now,the Bulgarian has stormed back to World No. 4 on the back of some strong recent results.

The field also includes current US champion Hikaru Nakamura,six-times Russian champion Peter Svidler among others.

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Classical time control will be followed,with 100 minutes for the first 40 moves,50 minutes for the next 20,and then an additional 15 minutes till the end. Each move will add 30 seconds to the players clock. The Sofia rule,where participants cannot agree on draws before the 40th move,will be in effect. The draw will depend on the results of a Blitz event held before the tournament proper begins.