Chess: Old men chasing young women

'OLD MEN and young women in two-to-a-board chess romp in Vienna' is the only way to describe it. The current Walzer Schachturnier is the most sexist and ageist contest of all time with six top women facing a team of superannuated grandmasters.

The women's world champion, Xie Jun, and her predecessor, Maya Chiburdanidze, lead the women; the men (average age 63) include Vassily Smyslov, world champion before any of his opponents was born, as well as the title candidates Larsen, Geller, Ivkov and Olafsson.

After six rounds, the women lead by 19 1/2-16 1/2 , but it could have been even worse for the old chaps.

Yefim Geller was the head of Queen's Gambits in Anatoly Karpov's team, repairing the defence every time Karpov lost as Black. The first round in Vienna showed that he still has ideas.

Black's 6 . . . d4 is an attempt to take advantage of the early Qc2, but after 8. Bf4 White threatens Nc7+. Geller's 8 . . . e5] is a nice idea. After 11. Nc7+ Kf8 12. Nxa8 Nxe5 the knight is trapped.

Galliamova's 11. Bxd4 is an imaginative response. After 12 . . . Qxd4 White would regain the piece with Qa4+. After the opening, Black was still having all the fun, but White had two pawns. After queens were exchanged, Black's prospects looked slim, but Galliamova was very short of time. With 27. Rc1 (27. Kd3 keeps the advantage more simply), she began to lose her way, and when Geller banged down 30 . . . g5] renewing the threat of Nf4+, White, still standing better, overstepped the time limit.

White: Galliamova

Black: Geller

1 d4 d5

2 c4 e6

3 Nc3 Be7

4 Nf3 Nf6

5 Qc2 c5

6 dxc5 d4

7 Nb5 Bxc5

8 Bf4 e5

9 Bxe5 Bb4+

10 Nd2 Nc6

11 Bxd4 Nxd4

12 Nxd4 0-0

13 e3 Bxd2+

14 Qxd2 Ne4

15 Qb4 Qf6

16 Nf3 Bg4

17 Be2 Rad8

18 c5 Rfe8

19 Rd1 Bxf3

20 gxf3 a5

21 Rxd8 Qxd8

22 Qd4 Qxd4

23 exd4 Ng5

24 Kd2 Ne6

25 Bd3 Nxd4

26 Be4 Re7

27 Rc1 f5

28 Bd5+ Kf8

29 Kd3 Ne2

30 Rc4 g5

0-1 (time)