Haik Martirosyan takes the top spot in Tashkent on tiebreak

The 19th Agzamov Memorial, held in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, produced a fiercely contested battle over ten rounds of classical chess. In the traditional tournament organized in memory of Georgy Tadzhikhanovich Agzamov, a pioneer of Uzbek chess and the country's first grandmaster, Armenian grandmaster Haik Martirosyan claimed first place. Martirosyan finished the tournament on 7.5/10, level with 16-year-old Artem Uskov; however, he lifted the trophy thanks to the Buchholz Cut 1 tiebreak.

Held annually since 2007, the event once again brought together a strong field this year. In the Open A section, 101 players competed, including 16 rated 2500 or above. Martirosyan, the strongest player on paper, lived up to expectations, while one of the most striking performances of the tournament came from 16-year-old Uskov. The young player stayed in the title race until the very end in a field full of experienced grandmasters, sending a very important message for the future.

After the first six rounds, Martirosyan and Uskov shared the lead on 5/6. Their critical seventh-round encounter ended in a draw after 39 moves. It was reported that Uskov had obtained a promising advantage in the later stages of the middlegame, but was unable to convert it into a full point. That draw also allowed the chasing pack to re-enter the race. Even so, Martirosyan was the more solid player in the final phase; his experience, risk management, and consistency at the classical time control kept him at the top of the standings.

The overall tournament picture was nearly as interesting as the fight for first place. A large group of six players finished on 7 points, with Abdimalik Abdisalimov taking third place on tiebreak. One of the surprise performances of the event came from Kyrgyzstan's Eldiyar Orozbaev. Starting the tournament as the 50th seed, Orozbaev finished in fourth place and also gained 37.3 rating points, producing one of the most productive breakthroughs of the event. The Agzamov Memorial once again showed the rising level of competition in Central Asian chess, and that young players are now a serious threat not only for the future, but for the present as well.