Vladimir Akopian
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Vladimir Eduardovich Akopian (Template:Langx, Template:Langx; born December 7, 1971) is an Armenian-American chess Grandmaster.
Career
Akopian was born in Baku, Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Union. He won the World Under-16 Championship in 1986 at the age of 14 and the World Under-18 Championship at 16. In 1991, he won the World Junior Chess Championship.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
He won the Armenian Chess Championship in 1996 and 1997.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1999 he made his way through to the final of the FIDE knockout World Chess Championship, but lost to Alexander Khalifman by 3.5-2.5.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
At the Russia vs the Rest of the World 2002, Akopian defeated FIDE #1 ranked Garry Kasparov in 25 moves in the final eighth round.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Akopian defeated World Champion Vladimir Kramnik in the first round of the Corus chess tournament 2004 and was in the lead for the beginning of the tournament.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He finished the contest in tenth place.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
He made it to the quarterfinals in the FIDE World Chess Championship 2004, where he lost to eventual tournament runner-up Michael Adams.
In 2005, he tied for 1st–5th with Emil Sutovsky, Andrei Kharlov, Vassily Ivanchuk and Alexander Motylev at the Aeroflot Open in Moscow. Akopian had a score of 6.5 at the Aeroflot Open 2005 and took part in a five-way tie. After the tiebreaker, he came in fifth.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
It was reported that Akopian had to withdraw from the 2005 Dubai Open when he was arrested at Dubai airport, having been mistaken for his namesake wanted by Interpol for attempted murder.<ref>ChessBase.com - Chess News - News and views from the world of chess</ref>
Early in 2007, Akopian won the Gibtelecom Masters in Gibraltar with a score of 7.5/9 ahead of a group of players tied at 7/9 including Michael Adams.<ref>ChessBase.com - Chess News - Akopian wins GibTel Masters in Gibraltar</ref>
Akopian came in third place at the Fourth FIDE Grand Prix in April 2009 with a score of 7.5/13, one point behind compatriot Levon Aronian. He lost to Peter Leko, who had the same score, in a tiebreaker.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In December 2009, he was awarded the title of "Honored Master of Sport of the Republic of Armenia".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
On the May 2013 FIDE list, he had an Elo rating of 2705, making him number 39 in the world and Armenia's number two player, behind Levon Aronian.
In 2021, Akopian switched federations to represent the United States of America.<ref name="to_US" />
In 2024, Akopian won the U.S. Senior Chess Championship with a round to spare, scoring 7 points out of 9. He was the only undefeated player in the tournament.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Team competitions
The Armenia national chess team made its debut at the 30th Chess Olympiad in 1992 in Manila and won bronze. Akopian played on second board at the Olympiad, behind Rafael Vaganian.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Akopian was one of the contributing players on the Armenian chess team which won gold at the 2006 Turin Chess Olympiad ahead of second-placed China and third-placed United States.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Akopian played on board two at the Olympiad.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Armenia won the 38th Chess Olympiad in Dresden (2008), winning gold for the second time in a row. Akopian played on board two.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan attended the Olympiad to support the team. After the Olympiad, they flew back to Armenia on the presidential plane, Air Force Armenia One.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Armenia regained their title at the 40th Chess Olympiad in Istanbul (2012). This was the third time Armenia won gold at the Olympiad. Akopian played on the third board. As the players were awarded their gold medals, the Armenian national anthem Mer Hayrenik was played, and the Armenian flag was raised in Istanbul. Levon Aronian held up an Armenian flag as he and his team stood on the first place podium.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web Template:In lang</ref> Upon returning to Yerevan, the players were greeted with a ceremony attended by many people in the city the moment their airplane touched down in Zvartnots Airport.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
After the 40th Olympiad, Akopian revealed that he is unsure if he will ever compete at Chess Olympiads again.<ref>Template:Cite web Template:In lang</ref>
He was a member of the gold medal-winning Armenian team at the World Team Chess Championship held in Ningbo (2011). It was the first time that the Armenian team won this event. Akopian played on board three.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Notable games
- Mikhail Tal vs Vladimir Akopian, Barcelona 1992, Sicilian Defense: Nezhmetdinov-Rossolimo Attack (B30), 1-0
- Vladimir Akopian vs Garry Kasparov, 11th European Club Cup Final 1995, Neo-Grünfeld Defense: Classical Variation. Modern Defense (D78), 1/2-1/2
- Vladimir Akopian vs Garry Kasparov, Russia vs The Rest of the World 2002, Sicilian Defense: Nyezhmetdinov-Rossolimo Attack (B30), 1-0
- Vladimir Akopian vs Vladimir Kramnik, Corus Group A 2004, Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation. English Attack Anti-English (B90), 1-0
- Anatoly Karpov vs Vladimir Akopian, Russian Club Cup 2006, Slav Defense: Quiet Variation. Schallopp Defense (D12), 0-1
- Vladimir Akopian vs Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, 38th Chess Olympiad 2008, Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation. English Attack (B90), 1-0
- Vladimir Akopian vs Sergey Karjakin, FIDE Grand Prix 2009, Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation. English Attack Anti-English (B90), 1-0
- Ivan Sokolov vs Vladimir Akopian, 40th Chess Olympiad 2012, Slav Defense: General (D10), 0-1
References
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External links
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- Template:Chessgames.com player
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- Grandmaster Games Database - Vladimir Akopian at redhotpawn.com
- The Life Story of Vladimir Akopian (Part 1) at Chessbase.com
- The Life Story of Vladimir Akopian (Part 2) at Chessbase.com
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