Bulgaria's Kiril Georgiev ousted the last of the former world champions when he beat the legendary Anatoly Karpov 2.5-1.5 to enter the semifinals of the UAE Grand Prix chess championship, which has earned a reputation of sinking highly rated players. Georgiev was joined by Alexander Grischuk, a 19-year-old rising star from Russia, in the last four stage. Grischuk overcome Etienne Bacrot 2-0. The battle between Georgiev and Karpov was exciting from the start. In the first match, Georgiev took a hovering advantage to put pressure on Karpov. Though Karpov managed a good defence, he still could not push for a victory. Finally, an extra pawn decided the game in Georgiev's favour.In the second game, Karpov played a gambit game and picked up a big advantage. Georgiev made some complications to upset Karpov, who maintaining his cool and placing the pieces in position, won the game. Karpov lost the first tie break, but looked like winning the second, when in a flash Georgiev took away the rook and claimed an important victory. On Sunday, though, Peter Leko of Hungary advanced to the final round of the FIDE Grand Prix by winning a sudden-death blitz game against Bulgarian Kiril Georgiev of Bulgaria in the semifinal round on Sunday. In the first game, Leko was a pawn up with a fine position, but in time trouble he allowed Georgiev to get a passed pawn and push it home. Leko came back to even the match in the second game. He won an exchange on move 22 and then had to stifle Georgiev's two bishops. The first playoff game was drawn and Leko salvaged a draw from an exchange-down position in the second playoff game. Leko ran Georgiev out of time in the sudden-death game. In other play, former world champion Anatoly Karpov of Russia defeated Bulgarian Veselin Topalov.

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