This year the nine round event runs from the 13th to the 20th of February.
All the statistics are impressive: a total of 652 players are present in this the ultimate open for players of all strengths. There are 58 countries represented, 78 grandmasters, 61 IMs plus 52 Fide masters.
If anyone knows of any larger open tournament, or one with as many different nationalities involved, I'd like to know!
The highest-rated player is Ivan Sokolov (2649) who is again representing Bosnia-Herzegovina.
For those who are curious, the rate of play is 90 minutes (plus 30 seconds per move) for the first 40 moves and then 30 minutes (plus an incremental 30 seconds) until the end of the game.
Draws by mutual consent cannot be in the first 20 moves. This 'pseudo-rule' is becoming more common even in amateur events but its application tends to be variable.
For more information official site
