Game Score: Moiseyev 7W-6L-27  (Tuesday evening, 8/23/2011) - Alex Moiseyev defends his World Title!
Congratulations to both Grand Masters for an exciting "down-to-the-wire" Championship Match.
They played the 40th game to determine prize fund difference, split 50-50 for a drawn match or 60-40 to the winner.

  USTREAM Live video Link

Photo by Alan Millhone sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

The WCM opening ceremony took place Saturday morning, Aug. 13th, 9 AM at the World Famous Agora Theatre and Ballroom, a concert & musical club located in Cleveland. The building currently known as the Agora first opened in 1913 as the Metropolitan Theater. Cleveland Agora Theater on 5000 Euclid Avenue # 101 was the venue for Saturday through Tuesday, then WCM moved to the nearby Cleveland Public Library on 325 Superior Avenue for Wednesday. Joe LoConti concluded Wednesday's WCM matches by treating both match teams (minus Alex, who drove back to Columbus to spend his rest day with his family) to an absolutely scrumptious authentic Italian dinner at Michael Angelo's, a five-star Cleveland restaurant. Thanks, Joe-- molto bene!  The GrandMasters had a  rest  day Thursday and started back Friday at the Library (WCM schedule).

A big thanks to Joe LoConti and EVERGREEN-UNI for sponsorship support and Victor Niederhoffer for contributing, which we appreciate. Without these two and several others this WCM would not have been as successfully presented. At the closing ceremony, special thanks were given to Richard Beckwith for organizing the WCM, both sponsor and contributors, Joe LoConti for hotel arrangements, Alan Millhone as referee, Henry LoConti for lunches, John Acker for recording and internet live streaming games,  Maurizio De Leo, Gaetano Mazzilli, and many others who helped. Over $9,000 was raised for this WCM, with hotel, food, and travel expenses deducted it left an ACF $4,000 prize fund to be split 60/40. WCDF supplied the WCM plaques which were presented to the challenger and champion along with their prize money. Vic Niederhoffer was impressed with the sportsmanship demonstrated throughout this World Championship Match with hand shakes and pleasantly congratulating each other after the game by both Grand Masters, he included this above picture on his website and awarded each $500. Michele Borghetti received a €2,000 stipend from the Irish Draughts Association for winning the 2010 WQT and competing in this WCM, in addition to his ACF winnings. The WCM game checkerboards were signed by the Grandmasters and will be given to Vic and Alan. Alex autographed several copies of "The Sixth" and presented them to Maurizio and Michele. Richard, John, Michele, Maurizio, and Alex all spoke during the ceremony, which was caught on cam-recorder and viewable on USTREAM. This WCM was well received and about as exciting and enjoyable a championship match you will ever watch. I would expect more Italian competition in the future. 

This is the fourth consecutive year a Cleveland area World Title Match went down to the last game: 2011 3-Move - WTM (Borghetti vs Moiseyev) Cleveland, OH, (Moiseyev 7-6-27),   2010 GAYP - WTM (Beckwith vs King) Medina, OH, (King 2-1-21),  2009 3-Move (King vs Moiseyev) World Title Match - Cleveland, OH, (Moiseyev 7-6-27),  2008 GAYP - WTM (King vs Kondlo), Medina, OH, (King 7-6-27).