Live From Olympia....

The second day of play brought a second win for Magnus Carlsen, who made good use of his second White to beat Luke McShane's King's Indian Defence.

Former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik showed some fearsome preparation to beat Hua Ni.

In the all-English clash, Nigel Short drew with David Howell. Michael Adams drew with American champion Hikaru Nakamura.

Today, Carlsen is Black for the first time in the tournament, against British Champion Howell.

Ni will have his first White and he must be hoping to put Michael Adams under pressure.

McShane will have to recover quickly from yesterday's defeat as he will need to be at his best against Kramnik.

Short will be hoping to keep 'H-Bomb' Nakamura quiet with the Black pieces.

More reports to follow.

Meanwhile, here's some photos from the first couple of days...

The Olympia

Tournament Organiser Malcolm Pein opening the Press Conference

The players were invited to choose a White pawn
to determine the numbers for the draw

Lining up with their pictures

The stage is set for the first round

Malcolm Pein making the introductory speech

A very big clash in the very first round

Checking that Carlsen is happy with the staged first move!

Maximum concentration and high expectations