R1 Constantius of Indonesia

ASEAN Primary School Sport Olympiad
Jakarta, Indonesia
R1 Standard Event
White: Leonardo Constantius [Indonesia]

Black: Raul Sol Cruz, Jr. [Philippines]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 
The Ruy Lopez Exchange Variation.
This opening often leads to a Q-less middlegame, pitting White's static advantage (his opponent's doubled pawns) against Black's dynamic ones (the two bishops and an open central file). Watson in Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy

Rhal has been Exchanged many times in the past; once with GM Eugene Torre in 2009 and 6 times in tournament play with an impressive 5W-1L record: Abo (0-1) in Metropolitan 2010, Tan (0-1) in Pope John Paul II Memorial 2010, Buhat (0-1) in 4th Sol Cruz Memorial 2010, Pastor (0-1) in Shell NCR 2010, Jallorina (0-1) in Shell Batangas, and Escutin (1-0) in Shell Iloilo 2010.

4... dxc6 5. O-O Bd6
After 5. O-O, Black has many playable responses. If we can trust the statistics, the results with at least five alternative variations (5... Ne7, 5... Bd6, 5... Bg4, 5... Qd6, and 5... f6 ) are more or less the same. Chess Opening Essentials

a) John Nunn, author of Understanding Chess Move by Move
http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1103791
b) Ivan Sokolov, author of Winning Chess Middlegames
http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1059742
c) Larsen vs Carlsen 2005 
d) Madl vs Kosintseva in Olympiad 2010
e) Savchenko vs Tomashevsky 2011

5... Qd6!? is one of Black's best options - after 6 Na3! b5 (6... Be6 7 Qe2 f6 is also possible) 7 c3 c5 8 Nc2 White plans both a4 and d4, and so has a tiny edge. Collins in Understanding the Chess Openings

6. d4 
In the Ruy Lopez Exchange Variation, White usually plays d4 early in the opening; this advance leads mostly to an ending featuring a struggle between White's better pawn structure and Black's B pair. Euwe & Kramer in The Middlegame

6... exd4 7. Qxd4 f6 8. Re1 c5?
Every pawn move is to be regarded as loss of time, unless it helps to build or support the center or attack the enemy's center. Nimzovich in My System

[8... Ne7]
You must try to react to a pin as soon as possible, or even try to avoid being pinned. Yusupov in Build Up Your Chess
Polgar vs Perenyi 1979
Wahls vs Polgar 1988

9. Qc3 

9... b6  

[9... Be6 10.e5 fxe5 11.Nxe5 Qe7 or 9... Qe7 10.Nbd2 Be6 11.Nc4 Bxc4]

An active position for the pieces is one of the most important elements of the positional struggle, possibly the decisive one. Kotov in Play Like a Grandmaster

10.e5! Be7 11. Bf4! Bb7 12. Nbd2 Qd7! 13. Nc4 O-O-O 14. Rad1 Qg4
Botvinnik's Law: One aspect of technique that is overlooked or under appreciated is the attacking of unprotected enemy pieces.

15. Rxd8+ Bxd8 16. Bg3

16... Bxf3  
[16... h5]
If the opponent is tied up, but your immediate threats aren't sufficient to win, bring another piece or pawn into the attack, or improve your position in other ways; then exchange into a favorable endgame. Harding in Better Chess for Average Player

17. Qxf3 Qxf3 
An important part of positional play is to create permanent weaknesses in the opponent's camp. Aagard in Excelling at Positional Chess

18. gxf3 Nh6
You should try to identify the least active piece, the worst piece, in your own camp, and look for a way to activate it. Kosikov in Elements of Chess Strategy

19. Bf4 Nf5 20. c3 Nh4 21. Re3 Nf5  
[21... Rf8 or 21... b5 or 21... fxe5]  

22. Rd3 Re8! 
A R placed on the central files, commanding open or semi-open lines, contribute strongly to center control. Heisman in Elements of Positional Evaluation

23. exf6

23... Bxf6  
[23... Re1+]
The ideal which lies at the root of every operation in a file is the ultimate penetration by way of this file into the enemy's game, that is, to say our 7th or 8th rank. Nimzovich in My System

24.Kg2 Rd8?  
[24... Re1]
Do not exchange automatically, for there are positions in which exchanges cause your material superiority to lose its effect. Euwe in Judgment and Planning in Chess

25.Rxd8 Kxd8 26. Be5 Bxe5 27. Nxe5 Ke7 28. f4 Ke6

Result: 1/2-1/2