The opening round of was not an easy for several of the main Russian Cup favourites. Multiple-time winner of the Cup events Denis Khismatullin (Neftekamsk) and the last season winner of the First Leagues of the Russian Women Championships Baira Kovanov (Saratov) lost. They suffered defeats from very young players: 16-year-old Zhamsaran Tsydypov (Ulan-Ude) and 11-year-old Alexandra Obolentseva (Moscow).

The main favourite of the Russian Cup event Yan Nepomnyaschiii needed a whole 67 moves to overcome the resistance from the international master Maxim Ozolin (Izhevsk). The second ranked female player in the Cup Nino Batsiashvili (Georgia) had to settle for a draw against Anastasia Romanova (Kemerovo).

There were no surprises in the grandmasters round robin tournament. The two players with highest ELO rating Alexander Shimanov (St. Petersburg) and Robert Hovhannisyan, the 2011 Armenian Champion, met each other in the key game. The Russian player prevailed.

The favourite of the women tournament Olga Girya was unable to break down the defence of two-time Belarus Champion 17-year-old Anastasia Zezulkina. Their game ended in a draw.

The second round games at the RSSU Cup Moscow Open 2013 will take place on Sunday, February 3rd.