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The first major online Chess tournament of the year, the Champions Chess Tour Chessable Masters 2024, witnessed an unexpected turn. Notably, Peruvian streamer and Grandmaster Jose Martinez, also known as "GMJospemm," secured a draw against fellow streamer and Grandmaster Hikaru "GMHikaru" from what appeared to be a completely losing position; the phenomenon has been described as "once in a million."
GMJospemm is one of the leading Spanish-speaking Twitch streamers with nearly 30K followers. He's renowned for his chess content and holds impressive FIDE ratings of 2610 (Classical), 2641 (Rapid), and 2703 (Blitz).
On Chess.com, the streamer boasts a Rapid rating of 2724 and a Blitz rating of 3067. He has previously won the platform's weekly online blitz tournament called Titled Tuesdays.
How did Jose Martinez manage a draw against GMHikaru?
Jose Martinez, also known as GMJospemm, had an intriguing day during the Play-in of the 2024 Champions Chess Tour Chessable Masters. The streamer and Grandmaster concluded the day at the top of the table with 7.5 points, 0.5 points ahead of third-place holder, GMHikaru.
Despite delivering a strong performance throughout the day, the Peruvian streamer found himself in a deeply poor position when he faced GMHikaru. However, on move 55, the latter appeared to blunder his knight.
Until that point, the position heavily favored white with a significant advantage of +4.9 (with GMHikaru playing as white). However, a simple oversight ended up costing him the win and his material advantage.
Naturally, a visibly startled GMHikaru was seen with his head in his hand, and this reaction was captured by the Chess.com livestream. Watch the moment he made a blunder:
(Timestamp: 04:10:41)
What did Jose Martinez say after his draw?
Jose Martinez wrapped up Day 1 of the Champions Chess Tour Chessable Masters 2024 by topping the table. This which was especially noteworthy as it aligned with his birthday on January 31, making it a particularly enjoyable day for him.
At the end of Chess.com's stream, the 25-year-old was interviewed about his performance. The Peruvian said (Transcript via Chess.com stream):
"I don't know if the game against Vincent Keymer, or the game I saved by miracle against Hikaru was the best. I think, maybe against Hikaru, because that happens once in a million times...but it's his fault, it's not my own for which I hold this game. But I can take it."
(Timestamp: 04:54:15)
Meanwhile, GM Hikaru has been one of the most discussed players in recent months. He has been involved in a back-and-forth with fellow Grandmaster Vladimir Kramnik, who has been suggesting that Hikaru's online matches should be scrutinized.
