Magnus Carlsen

In the final rounds Magnus beat Topalov 4-1 but fell to 3^rd place as a result of Karjakin beating Harikrisna 6-0.

Bu secured his clear 1^st with an endgame win against Polgar as white. In the second game Polgar got revenge and secured a clear 4^th ahead of Topalov and Harikrisna. 

In the first game Topalov probably mixed up the move order playing Be7 without having castled and in the middle game Magnus could comfortably put pressure on black weaknesses c6 and a7 without taking any risks. Topalov voluntarily gave up the c-pawn but when he lost the a-pawn some 10 moves later he decided to resign.
In the second game Magnus was struggling after the opening with white controlling the c- and d-files. After a long thought he played b5, a slight weakness, but which got his pieces activated and he felt he had sufficient counterplay to balance the position. After exchanging rooks the endgame is probably better for white because the black pawns on a3 and b4 are more of a weakness than a strength, but both players wanted to win. (Topalov probably because he always wants to win(!) while Magnus needed to win to secure 2^nd place overall.)
However, a few moves later, after Topalov had made an illegal move, he seemed to be looking for drawing chances to avoid a tense and difficult time-scramble. When he found one, Magnus didn't have any choice but to accept. Draw.   

In the end the 3-1-0 score determined the rank between Karjakin (+5=2-3) and Magnus (+4=4-2). Final table:
X. Bu                 21 points
S.Karjakin       17 points
M.Carlsen       16 points
J.Polgar           12 points
V.Topalov          9 points
P.Harikrisna     6 points 

Rating performance is not important in rapid blindfold, but with 6 out of 10, a 2778-performance and nice wins against Karjakin, Polgar and Topalov, the tournament cannot be described as anything but a success for young Magnus!  
Congratulations to X.Bu for a tremendous performance and a deserved 1^st place, and to S.Karjakin for his impressive finish and 2^nd place. 



The closing ceremony was held in the centre featuring Basque folk dance and gifts to the organisers, arbiters, commentators, guests of honour and players followed by canapés and wine! 

Many thanks to the organisers for a nice event, great hospitality, excellent cuisine and exciting chess! 

Next challenges for Magnus are the Glitnir Blitz in Oslo October 27th followed by the European National Team Championship in Crete starting October 28.

Henrik Carlsen
Bilbao, October 21th