With 32 deals to play in the Women's Olympiad semi-final between Germany and Canada, it was Canada who led by 21 IMPs. Germany had reduced the deficit by 1 IMP after four boards of the set. Then came the first substantial swing:

Board 5. Dealer North. N/S Vul.
	ª K Q 5 © A Q 9 3 2 ¨ A 5 2 § A 3
ª J 10 4 © J 6 4 ¨ K 10 6 § Q 8 5 4		ª A 8 6 3 © 8 5 ¨ Q 8 7 4 3 § K 9
	ª 9 7 2 © K 10 7 ¨ J 9 § J 10 7 6 2

Rhoda Habert and Beverly Kraft, for Canada, got to 3NT from the South hand and it seemed natural for Andrea Rauscheid to lead the jack of spades. Kraft covered with the king and Pony Nehmert won and returned a low spade. Kraft put in the seven and when that forced the ten she had her ninth trick; +600.

Sabine Auken and Daniela von Arnim also bid to 3NT but here North was the declarer. Katie Thorpe led a diamond, of course, and Auken held up to the third round. Auken cashed the ace of hearts then led a second round. Needing to find the ªA onside and to lead up to her honours twice, she followed the odds by finessing the ten. When that lost to the jack the contract was an extra one down; -200 and 13 IMPs to Canada.

Board 6. Dealer East. E/W Vul.
	ª Q J 3 © 10 2 ¨ Q 7 2 § K Q 10 8 4
ª A K 8 4 © A 9 7 ¨ A K 8 4 3 § 6		ª 7 6 © K Q J 5 ¨ 9 6 5 § A 5 3 2
	ª 10 9 5 2 © 8 6 4 3 ¨ J 10 § J 9 7

The simple German auction in the Closed Room sailed into the best contract. There is nothing to the play in six, where an even trump break is essential. Rauscheid won the club lead, cashed two top diamonds, then played on hearts. One spade loser went on the fourth heart and one was ruffed in dummy; +1370.

Auken's overcall made life a little more difficult in the Open Room. Dianna Gordon's jump to 4§ seems to be unnecessary when a simple 3§ would have created a force. Perhaps the jump cuebid should show this three-suited hand full of aces and kings, but it will never be as clear to partner, and perhaps she will expect a club void? It became clear that there was no 4-4 major-suit fit and now somebody had to be brave and bid the slam. Thorpe thought that her §A might be largely wasted facing a void, while Gordon feared a club loser, which would leave her needing a lot of perfect cards outside clubs if slam were to be good. Plus 620 meant 13 IMPs straight back to Germany, and we were back where we started.

Board 8. Dealer West. None Vul.
	ª A Q J 3 2 © Q ¨ 10 9 7 6 § Q J 9
ª 7 6 5 © J 6 5 4 ¨ A 3 2 § 7 6 2		ª 8 4 © A 9 3 2 ¨ K Q 8 5 § A 10 5
	ª K 10 9 © K 10 8 7 ¨ J 4 § K 8 4 3

Both North/Souths played the spade partscore. Habert made eight tricks for +110 after a diamond lead. Auken did rather better after a trump lead.

Auken won the ª9 and played a heart to the queen and ace. Back came a second spade. She won in dummy and played a club to the queen and ace. Thorpe returned the ten of clubs and Auken won in hand and played a spade to dummy, drawing the outstanding trump. Now she ruffed a heart, cashed the last trump, and played out her club winners. Dummy was down to a diamond and the king and ten of hearts. To hold the contract to nine tricks, Gordon had to throw her ¨A away. When she instead threw the small diamond, Auken led dummy's diamond, forcing her to lead into the heart tenace at trick 12. Nicely played for ten tricks and +170; 2 IMPs to Germany.

Board 9. Dealer North. E/W Vul.
	ª Q 9 6 © - ¨ A Q 6 4 2 § J 10 6 3 2
ª J 5 4 © K Q 9 8 6 ¨ J 8 § A K 8		ª 10 3 © A J 10 4 3 ¨ 10 7 5 3 § 9 4
	ª A K 8 7 2 © 7 5 2 ¨ K 9 § Q 7 5

Auken's light Open Rooming in the Open Room ensured that her side would get to game. With South having nothing wasted in hearts, the hands are a perfect fit, and the defence is powerless. If they play three rounds of clubs for their ruff, that is the end, while leading a heart is no better. Declarer can ruff the heart and draw three rounds of trumps, then three rounds of diamonds for a heart pitch before playing on clubs, losing just two clubs and a heart. Or she can play on clubs at trick two. Any sensible line works. In real life, the Canadians took the club ruff at the start. That was 6 IMPs to Germany.

Board 10. Dealer East. All Vul.
	ª A 8 2 © A 10 8 5 ¨ A J 6 5 § 5 3
ª 4 © K 7 6 3 ¨ Q 7 2 § A Q J 10 6		ª Q J 7 6 3 © Q 9 2 ¨ 9 § K 8 4 2
	ª K 10 9 5 © J 4 ¨ K 10 8 4 3 § 9 7

The two auctions were identical except that Auken competed to 3¨ where Habert settled for defending against 3§.

Nehmert made 3§ on a trump lead, establishing her fifth spade as the ninth trick; +110. In 3¨, von Arnim just had to get the diamonds right after the spade lead. With East marked with length in both black suits, and hearts known to be 4-3 because nobody had bid them, the odds were heavily in favour of playing West for queen to three. Von Arnim duly did so and that was another +110 and 6 IMPs to Germany, bringing the deficit down to single figures.

Board 11. Dealer South. None Vul.
	ª 6 4 © J 7 5 4 ¨ 9 4 2 § Q J 9 5
ª K J 10 5 3 2 © A 3 ¨ 3 § A 10 7 3		ª Q 9 © Q 10 9 8 ¨ Q J 8 6 5 § K 6
	ª Q 8 7 © K 6 2 ¨ A K 10 7 § 8 4 2

Kraft's 1NT Open Rooming was 12-14 and Rauscheid showed a single-suited overcall. The German style is to overcall aggressively and Nehmert simply relayed to find the suit then passed the response; +170.

Von Arnim's 1NT was 9-12 and Gordon made a natural overcall. Clearly the Canadian style is sounder, because Thorpe moved with a forcing 2NT bid. That got 3§ from Gordon and Thorpe now bid 3NT. That all looks very aggressive facing my idea of an overcall but 3NT was just fine on this pair of hands. Von Arnim cashed a top diamond, caught a discouraging nine from Auken, and switched to a club for the nine and king. There are other lines which might prove to be more effective if, for example, South has queen to four spades, but Thorpe took the simple one of ace of spades and a spade to the jack, and when the suit behaved as wanted claimed nine tricks; +400 and 6 IMPs to Canada.

Board 12. Dealer West. N/S Vul.
	ª 8 7 4 © A J ¨ 6 3 § Q J 10 8 6 5
ª A J © K 7 5 3 ¨ J 10 9 5 § A K 4		ª K Q 9 © Q 8 ¨ A K Q 7 4 2 § 7 3
	ª 10 6 5 3 2 © 10 9 6 4 2 ¨ 8 § 9 2

Both East/West pairs bid to the top spot; +990 and a push.

Board 13. Dealer North. All Vul.
	ª 10 8 5 © 10 ¨ 10 9 5 § K J 10 8 7 6
ª A K J © A Q 8 7 6 ¨ J 7 6 § 4 2		ª Q 4 3 2 © K 3 2 ¨ A Q 4 2 § Q 3
	ª 9 7 6 © J 9 5 4 ¨ K 8 3 § A 9 5

This one is all about the lead, isn't it? Auken did very well on vugraph. Despite not getting a club raise from von Arnim, she led the ten of clubs and, when von Arnim let that hold the trick, continued with the king. She then switched to a diamond and there was no pressing reason why declarer should get the trumps right; down one for -100.

Habert led a spade and Rauscheid won and cashed three rounds of trumps. She unblocked the spades and led a diamond - to the queen! Clearly fatigue had become a factor because a player of her ability would never play that way normally. That was one down and a flat board instead of 12 IMPs to Germany.

Board 14. Dealer East. None Vul.
	ª A K 10 7 4 2 © A 8 5 ¨ - § K 10 7 4
ª 8 6 5 3 © 4 3 ¨ 10 7 2 § 9 8 6 2		ª Q 9 © K Q 9 7 ¨ Q J 9 8 6 5 § A
	ª J © J 10 6 2 ¨ A K 4 3 § Q J 5 3

By playing in 3¨ doubled for just one down, -100, Nehmert/Rauscheid seemed to have recovered most of the points given away on the previous deal, however, now it was Auken's turn to go off in a lay-down game. In 5§, she received the lead of the king of hearts and Gordon showed her doubleton with the three. Auken won the ©A and the obvious play is ace of spades and ruff a spade to get to dummy to pitch the two hearts on the top diamonds. But Auken had a blind spot and played ace then king of spades. As the cards lay, she would still have survived had she pitched a heart from dummy (she can continue with the ª10 for a second pitch), but she chose a diamond. She continued with a low spade and, had Thorpe discarded, would have reached dummy to take the necessary discards. But Thorpe was alive to the situation. She ruffed in with her ace of trumps and led queen and another heart for Gordon to ruff; down one and 4 IMPs to Canada instead of 7 IMPs to Germany.

Canada picked up 4 IMPs over the remaining two boards in the set and led by 141-123 with one set to play. But for those two uncharacteristic pieces of declarer play on Boards 13 and 14, Germany would have been ahead by 5 IMPs.

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