Levon Aronian Defeated Kramnik!!! 4-2 in rapid 25min

Levon Aronian defeated the World Champion Vladimir Kramnik 4-2 in a fine display of active play, tactics, and execution. After losing the first game, the young Armenian reeled off three wins in a row, and then held a dramatic game 5 draw to win the match.

m1 Kramnik, Vladimir - Aronian, Levon 1-0 45 C89 Ruy Lopez Marshall
Gm2 Aronian, Levon - Kramnik, Vladimir 1-0 76 D17 Slav Defence
Gm3 Kramnik, Vladimir - Aronian, Levon 0-1 77 A30 English Symmetrical
Gm4 Aronian, Levon - Kramnik, Vladimir 1-0 43 D45 Anti-Meran Variations
Gm5 Kramnik, Vladimir - Aronian, Levon 1/2 47 A60 Modern Benoni
Gm6 Aronian, Levon - Kramnik, Vladimir 1/2 55 D12 Slav Defence

Levon Aronian of Armenia was born on October 6, 1982. He currently is ranked fifth in the world with a rating of 2759. The latest in the long line of Armenian chess stars, the 24 year old Levon Aronian has recently catapulted himself into very top circle of the chess elite with victories in the 2006 Category XX Morelia/Linares Super-GM tournament.

Other major accomplishments include top finishes at Gibraltar, Nagorno-Karabakh, the Tal Memorial, Wijk-aan-Zee and victory at the World Cup tournament in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. In addition, among Aronian’s most memorable achievements must be his role in helping lead his Armenian compatriots to a deserved gold medal at the Turin Olympiad in 2006 where he anchored the Armenian team on board one. Despite the fact that he is relatively new to the elite stage, the young grandmaster is a two time World Junior Champion (under-12 in 1994 and under-20 in 2002) and maintains a light, positive attitude under all circumstances.

Levon Aronian’s playing style is difficult to characterize and easy to misunderstand. However, this much is certain: his games are unconventional and exciting, while his attitude is engaging and uncompromising. As he prepares for the World Championship Candidate Matches to be held in Elista, Russia later in May, Aronian is one opponent that is sure to elicit discomfort for all potential adversaries across the board.