Background

From 1948 to 1993, the world chess championship had been administered by FIDE, the international chess federation. In 1993, World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov split from FIDE and formed a rival organisation, the Professional Chess Association. FIDE stripped Kasparov of his title, meaning there were now two rival championships: the FIDE title, held by Anatoly Karpov, and the PCA title, held by Kasparov. Karpov and Kasparov had successfully defended their titles at the FIDE World Chess Championship 1996 and PCA World Chess Championship 1995 respectively.

From 1948 until 1996, World Chess Championships had followed a similar pattern: a series of qualifying tournaments and matches were held over more than a year, culminating in the Candidates Tournament. The winner of the Candidates tournament was the official challenger for the world title and would play the incumbent champion in a match for world championship. (The 1996 cycle was an exception. The incumbent world champion participated in the Candidates tournament as a seeded semi-finalist.)

In 1997, FIDE president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov proposed a completely new structure: a knockout tournament, consisting of two-game matches (slightly longer in the final rounds), with match tie-breakers using rapid chess and blitz chess if necessary. This format had been done before in tournaments such as Tilburg 1992–94, but never at the world championship level.

In addition to the new format, it was proposed by Ilyumzhinov as a way to unify the two rival world titles. To do this, FIDE champion Anatoly Karpov and PCA champion Garry Kasparov were each to be seeded into the semi-finals.

Kasparov did not want to defend his title under these circumstances and declined his invitation. The format was then modified to have FIDE champion Karpov seeded directly into the final.

Controversies

The advantages of the new format were:

• It avoided a long cycle, and was all over in a month or so. This is could all be done in the one venue, it would not have the scheduling problems which had beset some previous world championship cycles. Each round could be played in 3 days (one day for each normal time control game, and one for the tie breaks).
• More players (up to 128) could be included.
• There were no special privileges for the incumbent champion or seeded players (although some were preserved in the earlier championships, these were eliminated later on).

Opponents pointed out disadvantages of the format:

• Short matches (only two games in the earlier rounds) left too much to chance – the stronger player could blunder a game, and it would be difficult to recover from a bad start. (Many world championship and Candidates matches had been won by the player who recovered from an early loss).
• The rapid playoffs were also seen to be left too much to chance: strength in rapid chess is not the same as strength in chess with normal time controls.
• These first two considerations, taken together, meant there was a very high chance that the best player would not win, or even that a complete outsider might win, opponents argued.
• Some people felt that the tradition of the champion being seeded into the final should be preserved, so that a new champion can only be champion by defeating the old champion.
• However, the scheduling of the match caused great controversy regarding the fairness of the contest: Anand was forced to play a fresh and prepared Karpov a mere three days^[1] after his exhausting performance at Groningen.

Prominent non-participants

• Kasparov did not want to defend his title under these circumstances, and declined his invitation.
• Vladimir Kramnik declined to play, in protest against having the final with Karpov shortly after the end of the tournament.

Section 1

	First round					Second round					Third round					Fourth round
						9	Michael Adams	2
						40	Giorgy Giorgadze	0
	40	Giorgy Giorgadze	4
	78	Étienne Bacrot	3
											9	Michael Adams	1½
											60	Sergei Tiviakov	½
	27	Eduardas Rozentalis	1½
	71	Konstantin Lerner	½
						27	Eduardas Rozentalis	½
						60	Sergei Tiviakov	1½
																9	Michael Adams	4
																19	Peter Svidler	2
						19	Peter Svidler	1½
						47	Utut Adianto	½
	47	Utut Adianto	2
	87	Wang Zili	0
											19	Peter Svidler	1½
											69	Vladimir Epishin	½
						35	Ivan Sokolov	1½
						69	Vladimir Epishin	2½

Section 2

First round

Second round

Third round

Fourth round

4

Veselin Topalov

½

38

Jeroen Piket

1½

38

Jeroen Piket

2½

21

Loek van Wely

3½

21

Loek van Wely

1½

91

Igor Miladinović

½

54

Curt Hansen

1½

91

Igor Miladinović

2½

21

Loek van Wely

1½

12

Kiril Georgiev

½

12

Kiril Georgiev

2½

44

Boris Alterman

1½

44

Boris Alterman

1½

83

Peter Wells

½

12

Kiril Georgiev

1½

34

Vadim Milov

½

74

Larry Christiansen

4

28

Ulf Andersson

5

28

Ulf Andersson

3

34

Vadim Milov

4

63

Vasilios Kotronias

1½

34

Vadim Milov

2½

Section 3

	First round					Second round					Third round					Fourth round
						6	Alexander Beliavsky	1½
						42	Jan Timman	½
											6	Alexander Beliavsky	2½
											23	Sergei Rublevsky	1½
	23	Sergei Rublevsky	2
	68	Kevin Spraggett	0
						23	Sergei Rublevsky	1½
						92	Tal Shaked	½
	92	Tal Shaked	3
	56	Ivan Morovic	2
																6	Alexander Beliavsky	1
																18	Nigel Short	3
						18	Nigel Short	3½
						49	Viktor Korchnoi	2½
	49	Viktor Korchnoi	1½
	84	Gilberto Hernandez	½
											18	Nigel Short	2
											65	Andrei Sokolov	0
	29	Alexander Chernin	2
	75	Andrei Istrățescu	3
						75	Andrei Istrățescu	0
						65	Andrei Sokolov	2
	65	Andrei Sokolov	1½
	99	Watu Kobese	½

Section 4

	First round					Second round					Third round					Fourth round
						22	Zurab Azmaiparashvili	2½
						76	Roman Slobodjan	1½
	76	Roman Slobodjan	1½
	33	Peter Leko	½
											22	Zurab Azmaiparashvili	1½
											16	Aleksej Alexandrov	½
	16	Aleksej Alexandrov	3
	67	Boris Gulko	2
						16	Aleksej Alexandrov	2½
						51	Jóhann Hjartarson	1½
	51	Jóhann Hjartarson	2½
	89	Šarūnas Šulskis	1½
																22	Zurab Azmaiparashvili	3
																25	Michal Krasenkov	4
						11	Yevgeny Bareev	2
						45	Vladimir Malaniuk	0
	45	Vladimir Malaniuk	2
	81	Hichem Hamdouchi	0
											11	Yevgeny Bareev	½
											25	Michal Krasenkov	1½
	25	Michal Krasenkov	1½
	73	Paul van der Sterren	½
						25	Michal Krasenkov	1½
						94	Gildardo Garcia	½
	59	Emil Sutovsky	½
	94	Gildardo Garcia	1½

Section 5

	First round					Second round					Third round					Fourth round
	95	Vasily Smyslov	0
	58	Alexander Morozevich	2
						58	Alexander Morozevich	½
						26	Lembit Oll	1½
	72	Margeir Petursson	½
	26	Lembit Oll	1½
											26	Lembit Oll	1½
											46	Vladislav Tkachiev	2½
	80	Alexander Fominyh	½
	46	Vladislav Tkachiev	1½
						46	Vladislav Tkachiev	3
						10	Valery Salov	1
																46	Vladislav Tkachiev	2½
																8	Boris Gelfand	3½
	88	Dibyendu Barua	2
	52	Zbyněk Hráček	3
						52	Zbyněk Hráček	½
						17	Joël Lautier	1½
											17	Joël Lautier	2
											8	Boris Gelfand	4

Section 6

	First round					Second round					Third round					Fourth round
	98	Hendrik Hoeksema	½
	64	Alexander Nenashev	1½
						64	Alexander Nenashev	½
						30	Alexey Dreev	1½
											30	Alexey Dreev	1½
											14	Matthew Sadler	½
	86	John van der Wiel	½
	48	Jaan Ehlvest	1½
						48	Jaan Ehlvest	2
						14	Matthew Sadler	4
																30	Alexey Dreev	3
																36	Vadim Zvjaginsev	1
						55	Grigory Kaidanov	2
						36	Vadim Zvjaginsev	4
	66	Joel Benjamin	2
	36	Vadim Zvjaginsev	3
											36	Vadim Zvjaginsev	2½
											39	Yasser Seirawan	1½
	39	Yasser Seirawan	3
	77	Ashot Anastasian	1
						39	Yasser Seirawan	1½
						5	Vassily Ivanchuk	½

Section 7

	First round					Second round					Third round					Fourth round
	96	Helgi Grétarsson	1½
	62	Miguel Illescas	½
						96	Helgi Grétarsson	½
						32	Artur Yusupov	1½
											32	Artur Yusupov	½
											43	Zoltán Almási	1½
	82	Peng Xiaomin	½
	43	Zoltán Almási	1½
						43	Zoltán Almási	1½
						13	Judit Polgár	½
																43	Zoltán Almási	0
																2	Viswanathan Anand	2
	90	Igor Glek	1½
	53	Friso Nijboer	2½
						53	Friso Nijboer	0
						20	Alexander Khalifman	2
											20	Alexander Khalifman	2½
											2	Viswanathan Anand	3½
						37	Predrag Nikolić	0
						2	Viswanathan Anand	2

Section 8

	First round					Second round					Third round					Fourth round
	100	Alexander Umgaev	0
	61	Viktor Bologan	2
						61	Viktor Bologan	0
						31	Rafael Vaganian	2
											31	Rafael Vaganian	3
											15	Vladimir Akopian	4
	85	Thomas Luther	3½
	50	Lajos Portisch	2½
						85	Thomas Luther	½
						15	Vladimir Akopian	1½
																15	Vladimir Akopian	½
																7	Alexei Shirov	1½
	57	Gilberto Milos	2
	93	Niaz Murshed	0
						57	Gilberto Milos	2
						70	Stefan Kindermann	0
	70	Stefan Kindermann	3
	24	Alex Yermolinsky	2
											57	Gilberto Milos	1½
											7	Alexei Shirov	2½
	79	Bojan Kurajica	1½
	41	Julio Granda	2½
						41	Julio Granda	½
						7	Alexei Shirov	1½