Israeli Chess Champion Yaali Sokolovsky crowned European U20 Champion
A tremendous achievement for Israeli chess. 19-year-old gifted chess player Yaali Sokolovsky, who won the Israeli championship about six months ago, recorded an extraordinary achievement by winning the European U20 Champion title in a crushing victory without any losses against the continent's top young chess players: "My dream? To be world champion."
A crushing victory for Yaali Sokolovsky at the European U20 Championship without a single loss, and a tremendous achievement for the Israeli hope in chess, who has already been crowned as the heir apparent to Boris Gelfand.
19-year-old Sokolovsky, a resident of the city of Kiryat Ono and a player at the Rishon LeZion Chess Club, is one of the greatest talents in Israeli chess, plays for the national team, and now, after achieving the coveted title of Israeli champion, celebrated an extraordinary achievement and a win in a particularly significant European title.
The championship was held in the city of Cetinje in Montenegro, organized by the European Chess Union and the Chess Federation of Montenegro, using the Swiss system and included nine rounds with a classical time control. Sokolovsky arrived at the championship ranked first on the starting list, with an international rating of 2541.
Despite his status as one of the favorites to win, the path to the title was not simple: he faced a series of grandmasters, international masters, and FIDE masters among the top young chess players on the continent.
Yaali started the tournament with a win, and then maintained stability with a series of wins and draws. The decisive moments came in the last three rounds, in which he demonstrated composure and particularly impressive ability. In the seventh round, he defeated Anton Zlatkov from North Macedonia, in the eighth round he won with the black pieces against the Armenian grandmaster Emin Ohanyan - ranked second in the tournament, and in the ninth and decisive round, he defeated the Armenian international master Vahe Sukiasyan.
Thus, the 19-year-old Israeli champion finished the tournament in first place with 7 points out of 9 possible, after a record of five wins and four draws - and without a single loss. Throughout the nine rounds, he recorded a performance rating of 2584, higher than the rating with which he started the tournament.
"It was a very difficult and very tight championship, quality chess players who fought until the last moment. I worked very hard to reach this moment and now I am looking forward - soon we have an Olympiad. I continue to work hard and do everything necessary to succeed. My dream? To be world champion."
CEO of the Chess Federation, Gil Boruchovsky, said after the victory: "It is clear to all of us that Sokolovsky is one of the hot names of the Israeli Chess Federation in the coming years, we congratulate him on the tremendous achievement and will do everything necessary to give him the tools to continue to develop and bring achievements and honor to the State of Israel."
Chairman of the Chess Federation in Israel, Dr. Tzvika Barkai, concluded: "This is an extraordinary achievement that continues the renaissance of Israeli chess - both in terms of the level of events and competitions held here and in terms of the tremendous achievement of an Israeli chess player. Sokolovsky works very hard and is reaping the rewards - we are proud of him!"
