Susan Polgar Chess Daily News and Information

Moscow Chess Tactic

2012-02-02T02:19:00.000-06:00

White to move. How should white proceed?

Source: ChessToday.net

Can anyone stop Hou Yifan?

2012-02-01T23:09:00.000-06:00

Final round pairings

Bo.	No.		Name	Rtg	Pts.	Result	Pts.		Name	Rtg	No.
1	25	GM	Hou Yifan	2605	7½		7	GM	Mamedyarov Shakhriyar	2747	2
2	14	GM	Bologan Viktor	2680	7		7	GM	Adams Michael	2724	3
3	11	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	2700	7		7	GM	Short Nigel D	2677	15
4	10	GM	Movsesian Sergei	2700	6½		6½	GM	Svidler Peter	2749	1
5	21	GM	Gustafsson Jan	2643	6½		6½	GM	Almasi Zoltan	2717	4
6	22	GM	Negi Parimarjan	2641	6½		6½	GM	Le Quang Liem	2714	5
7	23	GM	Erdos Viktor	2634	6½		6½	GM	Sutovsky Emil	2703	9
8	27	GM	Howell David W L	2603	6½		6	GM	Shirov Alexei	2710	7
9	6	GM	Polgar Judit	2710	6		6	GM	Korchnoi Viktor	2558	37
10	8	GM	Laznicka Viktor	2704	6		6	GM	Rapport Richard	2543	39
11	38	GM	Berg Emanuel	2550	6		6	GM	Vachier-Lagrave Maxime	2699	12
12	41	GM	Dzagnidze Nana	2535	6		6	GM	Sargissian Gabriel	2683	13
13	16	GM	Fridman Daniel	2660	6		6	GM	Al-Sayed Mohammed	2524	45
14	42	GM	Del Rio De Angelis Salvador G	2531	6		6	GM	Gupta Abhijeet	2652	17
15	18	GM	Parligras Mircea-Emilian	2650	6		6	GM	Kanep Meelis	2509	48
16	46	GM	Stefanova Antoaneta	2523	6		6	GM	Iturrizaga Edoardo	2649	19
17	24	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2617	6		6	GM	Cabrera Alexis	2504	52
18	28	GM	David Alberto	2598	6		6	GM	Salem A R Saleh	2505	51
19	30	GM	Brunello Sabino	2581	6		6	GM	El Debs Felipe De Cresce	2497	54
20	56	GM	Cramling Pia	2491	6		6	GM	Kulaots Kaido	2581	31
21	34	GM	Jussupow Artur	2569	6		6	GM	Womacka Mathias	2455	62
22	59	GM	Zhu Chen	2472	6		6	GM	Gopal G N	2566	35

Full final round pairings: http://chess-results.com/tnr63931.aspx

Sevillano Wins 15th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational

2012-02-01T20:52:00.001-06:00

IM Enrico Sevillano Wins 15th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational
Feb 1, 2012

Metropolitan Chess, Inc. hosted an International Master norm round robin tournament on January 25th to 29th 2012.

This tournament is the 15th in its series and was held in Suite C1002 of the California Market Center on 110 East 9th Street, Los Angeles 90079. The tournament was organized by Ankit Gupta.

The participants included: IM Zhanibek Amanov (KAZ), IM Andranik Matikozyan (ARM), IM Enrico Sevillano (USA), FM Harutyan Akopyan (USA), FM Mark Duckworth (USA), FM Konstantin Kavutskiy (USA), Vadim Kudryavtsev (RUS), Garush Manukyan (ARM), and NM Craig Clawitter (USA).

The tournament was won by IM Enrico Sevillano in a convincing fashion with a score of 7.5-1.5. No norms were achieved.

The only non international master who was able to hold IM Sevillano to a draw, FM Konstantin Kavutskiy, came closest to an IM norm performance with a score of 5.5-3.5. 6.5 was necessary for the norm.

The tournament was a 10 player round-robin (all play all), with rounds scheduled as follows – 25th: 7:00 PM, 26th: 11:00 AM & 5:00 PM, 27th: 11:00 AM & 5:00 PM, 28th: 11:00 AM & 5:00 PM, 29th: 10:00 AM & 4:00 PM.

The tournament was sponsored by California Market Center, Fashion Business, Inc, Chess.com, MonRoi, LawyerFy, and Betty Bottom Showroom.

The standings can be found on the Metropolitan Chess, Inc. website at: http://metrochessla.com/schedule.php

64 squares and 100X that in laughs

2012-02-01T20:08:00.000-06:00

64 squares and 100X that in laughs from Lisa Suhay on Vimeo.

Mr. Brian was AWOL from chess tonight, so poor Curtis took all the hits and loved every minute of it. From getting the stare-down from a 5-year-old, to trash-talking with the boy Brian challenged last week, it was a fun night at Lamberts Point Community Center. Even Mr. Ronning reversed his position on the fun factor of the game!

Leading the pack with one round to go

2012-02-01T20:06:00.000-06:00

Leaders after 9 rounds

Rk.		Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1
1	GM	Hou Yifan	CHN	2605	7.5	2892.0
2	GM	Adams Michael	ENG	2724	7.0	2826.0
3	GM	Mamedyarov Shakhriyar	AZE	2747	7.0	2808.0
4	GM	Short Nigel D	ENG	2677	7.0	2807.0
5	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	IND	2700	7.0	2776.0
6	GM	Bologan Viktor	MDA	2680	7.0	2740.0
7	GM	Le Quang Liem	VIE	2714	6.5	2744.0
8	GM	Almasi Zoltan	HUN	2717	6.5	2740.0
9	GM	Howell David W L	ENG	2603	6.5	2727.0
10	GM	Movsesian Sergei	ARM	2700	6.5	2707.0
11	GM	Svidler Peter	RUS	2749	6.5	2701.0
12	GM	Negi Parimarjan	IND	2641	6.5	2692.0
13	GM	Erdos Viktor	HUN	2634	6.5	2633.0
14	GM	Sutovsky Emil	ISR	2703	6.5	2624.0
15	GM	Gustafsson Jan	GER	2643	6.5	2618.0
16	GM	Gopal G N	IND	2566	6.0	2669.0
17	GM	Polgar Judit	HUN	2710	6.0	2668.0
18	GM	Dzagnidze Nana	GEO	2535	6.0	2658.0
19	GM	Laznicka Viktor	CZE	2704	6.0	2656.0
20	GM	David Alberto	LUX	2598	6.0	2642.0
21	GM	Shirov Alexei	LAT	2710	6.0	2635.0
	GM	Parligras Mircea-Emilian	ROU	2650	6.0	2635.0
23	GM	Brunello Sabino	ITA	2581	6.0	2633.0
24	GM	Kulaots Kaido	EST	2581	6.0	2619.0
25	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	USA	2617	6.0	2614.0
26	GM	Rapport Richard	HUN	2543	6.0	2605.0
27	GM	Zhu Chen	QAT	2472	6.0	2604.0
28	GM	Fridman Daniel	GER	2660	6.0	2603.0
29	GM	Vachier-Lagrave Maxime	FRA	2699	6.0	2601.0
30	GM	Jussupow Artur	GER	2569	6.0	2600.0
31	GM	Cramling Pia	SWE	2491	6.0	2595.0
32	GM	El Debs Felipe De Cresce	BRA	2497	6.0	2585.0
33	GM	Salem A R Saleh	UAE	2505	6.0	2583.0
34	GM	Stefanova Antoaneta	BUL	2523	6.0	2565.0
35	GM	Sargissian Gabriel	ARM	2683	6.0	2560.0

Full standings: http://chess-results.com/tnr63931.aspx

Spectacular performance by the young phenom in Gibraltar

2012-02-01T17:08:00.000-06:00

Round by round results

Rd.	Bo.	SNo		Name	Rtg	FED	Pts.	Res.
1	25	93	FM	Schiendorfer Emanuel	2354	SUI	5.0	w 1
2	21	61	IM	Hunt Adam C	2462	ENG	4.5	s 1
3	3	4	GM	Almasi Zoltan	2717	HUN	6.0	w 1
4	1	3	GM	Adams Michael	2724	ENG	6.5	w ½
5	5	11	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	2700	IND	6.0	s 0
6	18	57	IM	Muzychuk Mariya	2483	UKR	4.5	s 1
7	7	6	GM	Polgar Judit	2710	HUN	5.5	w 1
8	3	5	GM	Le Quang Liem	2714	VIE	5.5	w 1
9	2	7	GM	Shirov Alexei	2710	LAT	6.0	s 1

Going into the final round, Hou Yifan is leading Gibraltar with 7.5 points / 9, with wins over four 2700+ players!

Hou Yifan takes down another 2700, leads Gibraltar

2012-02-01T15:04:00.001-06:00

Round 9 top board results

Bo.	No.		Name	Rtg	Pts.	Result	Pts.		Name	Rtg	No.
1	4	GM	Almasi Zoltan	2717	6	½ - ½	6½	GM	Adams Michael	2724	3
2	7	GM	Shirov Alexei	2710	6	0 - 1	6½	GM	Hou Yifan	2605	25
3	1	GM	Svidler Peter	2749	6	½ - ½	6	GM	Negi Parimarjan	2641	22
4	2	GM	Mamedyarov Shakhriyar	2747	6	1 - 0	6	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2617	24
5	27	GM	Howell David W L	2603	6	½ - ½	6	GM	Movsesian Sergei	2700	10
6	39	GM	Rapport Richard	2543	6	0 - 1	6	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	2700	11
7	35	GM	Gopal G N	2566	6	0 - 1	6	GM	Bologan Viktor	2680	14
8	51	GM	Salem A R Saleh	2505	6	0 - 1	6	GM	Short Nigel D	2677	15
9	5	GM	Le Quang Liem	2714	5½	1 - 0	5½	IM	Muzychuk Anna	2580	32
10	31	GM	Kulaots Kaido	2581	5½	½ - ½	5½	GM	Polgar Judit	2710	6
11	9	GM	Sutovsky Emil	2703	5½	1 - 0	5½	GM	Nabaty Tamir	2563	36
12	12	GM	Vachier-Lagrave Maxime	2699	5½	½ - ½	5½	GM	Dzagnidze Nana	2535	41
13	62	GM	Womacka Mathias	2455	5½	½ - ½	5½	GM	Fridman Daniel	2660	16
14	19	GM	Iturrizaga Edoardo	2649	5½	½ - ½	5½	GM	Del Rio De Angelis Salvador G	2531	42
15	21	GM	Gustafsson Jan	2643	5½	1 - 0	5½	FM	Kuipers Stefan	2391	84
16	23	GM	Erdos Viktor	2634	5½	1 - 0	5½	IM	Dvirnyy Daniyyl	2492	55
17	56	GM	Cramling Pia	2491	5½	½ - ½	5½	GM	Brunello Sabino	2581	30
18	29	GM	Koneru Humpy	2589	5	½ - ½	5½	GM	Zhu Chen	2472	59
19	60	IM	Krush Irina	2467	5	0 - 1	5	GM	Laznicka Viktor	2704	8
20	13	GM	Sargissian Gabriel	2683	5	1 - 0	5	IM	Hanley Craig A	2421	72
21	17	GM	Gupta Abhijeet	2652	5	1 - 0	5	IM	Javakhishvili Lela	2454	63
22	64	IM	Molner Mackenzie	2449	5	0 - 1	5	GM	Parligras Mircea-Emilian	2650	18
23	66	IM	Cernousek Lukas	2438	5	1 - 0	5	GM	Fier Alexandr	2603	26
24	68	IM	Lyrberg Patrik	2435	5	0 - 1	5	GM	David Alberto	2598	28
25	71	GM	Bellon Lopez Juan Manuel	2422	5	0 - 1	5	GM	Jussupow Artur	2569	34

Full results here: http://chess-results.com/tnr63931.aspx

World Amateur Chess Championship 2012

2012-02-01T14:36:00.000-06:00

World Amateur Chess Championship 2012

The “Chess Academy of Thessaloniki”, the World Chess Federation (FIDE) and the Greek Chess Federation have the honour of inviting all national chess federations and eligible players in the FIDE World Amateur Chess Championship 2012 to be held in the 5-star Porto Carras Grand Resort in Halkidiki, Northern Greece from 16 April (1st round) to 22 April (9th round).

The participants shall not have a FIDE title or published FIDE rating above 2000 at the start of the tournament nor had such a rating for at least two years prior to the start of the event. The World Amateur Championship is open to all eligible chess players registered with their federation. FIDE-member federations shall have the right to send as many players as they wish. The World Amateur Women’s Championship shall be held as part of the World Amateur Championship and female contestants will be eligible to win both titles.

Full regulations in English (PDF)

Full regulations in German (PDF)

Full regulations in Russian

Full regulations in Greek (PDF)

Side events

The 4th International Open Chess Tournament “Alexander the Great”, which will be held with open participation and nine (9) rounds Swiss system for players with a FIDE rating of over 2000.

The tournament will be held in the 5-star “Porto Carras Grand Resort” on the seaside of Halkidiki, Northern Greece from 16 April (1st round) to 22 April (9th round) 2012. A limited number of players with a FIDE rating below 2000 may be accepted by the Organising Committee to play in the “Alexander the Great” tournament.

Time control: for each player 90 minutes for 40 moves plus 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from the 1st move. The FIDE system rules are valid and the tournament will be FIDE rated.

Players with a FIDE rating of 2000 and less can participate in the parallel “World Amateur Championship 2012″ which will also be held the same dates in Porto Carras, in accordance with FIDE regulations.

The 2nd international Youth Chess Open Tournament “Hebe 2012″, which will be held with open participation and seven (7) rounds Swiss system. The tournament will be held in Hotel Porto Carras Grand Resort, Halkidiki from 16 April (1st round) to 22 April 2012 (7th round).

Time control for each player is 90 minutes for the whole of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 1. The FIDE system rules are valid.

The tournament will be FIDE rated and is for Juniors/Girls U14 (born in 1998 and afterwards) with less than 1500 FIDE Rating.

Turkish Championship

2012-02-01T12:02:00.000-06:00

Dear Friends!

Turkish Chess Championships among women and men is under way in Kemer, Antalya and will continue till 5th of February. The fifth round was a successful day for Turkish youngsters – Vahap Sanal, Batuhan Dastan, Cemil Can and Volkan Sevgi (all members of the National team) defeated rating favourites of their matches. Batuhan Dastan, playing Black, managed to win against defending Turkish Champion GM Emre Can. After the fifth round Solak Dragan, Umut Atakisi, Vahap Sanal and Cemil Can are leading in the championship with 100% result.

In women championship the key game between strongest Turkish players Betul Yildiz and Kubra Ozturk took place in the sixth round. Kubra Ozturk, playing with White pieces, managed to defeat her teammate and took a lead in the event together with ARIĞ BÜŞRA Busra Arig with 5.5 points after 6 games. Betul Yildiz placed third half .

Tournament is organized with help and sponsorship of Turkish Chess Federation, Is Bank and Arzum Company.

Official websites: http://tr2012.tsf.org.tr/
http://kadinlar2012.tsf.org.tr/
Live games: http://tr2012.tsf.org.tr/tr/canli-yayin

Pictures by Anastasiya Karlovich

With best wishes, Anastasiya Karlovich
member of press team

Gibraltar LIVE!

2012-02-01T08:00:00.000-06:00

The Gibraltar Chess Festival 2012 will be live daily on Chessdom.com with analysis by the Houdini 2.0 engine. Games start at 14:00 CET.

All news about Gibraltar Chess Festival here

Full participants list at this link

Live chess broadcast powered by ChessBomb and Chessdom

Kids friendly chess artwork

2012-02-01T07:42:00.000-06:00

Awesome chess artwork (kids friendly) by Mike Magnan: http://www.magnanschessblog.blogspot.com/

You can even buy his work for your home or chess club. Feel free to check it out.

Is a chess federation relevant?

2012-02-01T07:08:00.002-06:00

Chess, Scrabble Federations Face Sack
01 Feb 2012
By Olawale Ajimotokan

Supervising Minister of Sports, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, has canvassed for the streamlining of the national sports associations in order to save costs and make them (federations) to be efficient.

Abdullahi, who is the substantive Minister of Youth Development, made the submission during the public hearing conducted by the House of Representatives Committee on Sports when the NSC appeared before it to defend its budget for year 2012.

According to the minister, the current 37-federation structure is superfluous because the country was not in position to competently fund all of them.

He questioned the relevance of federations like Chess and Scrabble, stressing that the National Sports Commission (NSC) can derive comparative advantage by streamlining these federations to a manageable 10 sports associations that can get results for the country.

He said the rest can continue to exist if they can source their own funds instead of depending on government’s subvention.

“We have all kinds of federations that we don’t even know whether they are hobbies or sports. We should be known for something instead of 37 sports federations. Do we need to give funds to sports like Chess, Ludo and Scrabble which are hobbies and not sports? Let’s ask ourselves, as a country though we have potentials for Ayo Olopon (Ayo), what benefit will Nigeria derive in funding it?” Abdullahi queried.

According to him, the Sports Commission has resolved to go into wider consultation and reach a consensus on the sports that Nigeria can focus on because “there is no point spreading resource so thin on every sport because you want to carry everybody along.”

There is always a concern about policy sustainability in Nigeria sports. Even as the Minister is proposing to streamline these federations, a new administration may step in later to reverse such decision.

But despite such concern, the Minister said the NSC is bound to make the streamlining policy work, in the sense that if it is successful, which ever new office holder will be proud to associate with it.

Similarly, he described the endless power tussle among factions in Nigerian football as ‘political’, and not legal. He insisted that the NSC will soon bring the warring factions to a round table discussion to talk out their differences.

Two weeks ago, a federal high court of competent jurisdiction, threw Nigerian football into confusion by pronouncing the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and Nigeria Premier League (NPL) as aberration.

Source: http://www.thisdaylive.com

Alexei Shirov shows win over Jussupow

2012-02-01T06:55:00.000-06:00

Alexei Shirov shows win over Jussupow (Gibraltar Chess Festival - Round 8)

Moscow 2012 LIVE

2012-02-01T06:54:00.000-06:00

Live chess broadcast powered by ChessBomb and Chessdom

Master Class - IM Anna Zatonskih

2012-02-01T06:52:00.000-06:00

Master Class - IM Anna Zatonskih

Thrills and spills

2012-02-01T06:44:00.003-06:00

2012 TRADEWISE GIBRALTAR CHESS FESTIVAL

Monday 23 January - Thursday 2 February 2012

PRESS RELEASE 23 - 1 February 2012

THRILLS AND SPILLS

Round 8 Report 31 January 2012 by Stewart Reuben

GM Adams Michael 2724 6 ½ 5½ GM Mamedyarov Shakhriyar 2747
GM Short Nigel D 2677 5½ ½ 5½ GM Almasi Zoltan 2717
GM Hou Yifan 2605 5½ 1-0 5½ GM Le Quang Liem 2714
GM Movsesian Sergei 2700 5½ ½ 5½ GM Gopal G N 2566
GM Negi Parimarjan 2641 5½ ½ 5½ GM Sasikiran Krishnan 2700
GM Dzagnidze Nana 2535 5½ 0-1 5 GM Svidler Peter 2749

Today there were many interesting games, naturally some of them not from the top six games above. It was amazing to see Simon Williams conduct virtually a simultaneous display during the time scrambles, flitting rapidly from one game to another. There were 2700+ GMs on each of the first 9 boards, with two being paired together on board 1.

Michael Adams ENG v Shakhriyar Mamedyarov AZE

This came down to a bishops of opposite colour endgame with Michael having an outside passed pawn. We had visions of history repeating itself as he won a similar game yesterday after over 100 moves. But it was not to be, Shakhriyar set up an impenetrable barrier by move 42.

Nigel Short ENG v Zoltan Almasi HUN

Nigel didn’t try for much in the opening, starting off with 1 b3 and he didn’t achieve much either. Eventually it came down to yet another bishops of opposite colour endgame that was completely drawn.

Hou Yifan CHN v Liem Le Quang VIE

This started life as a normal Open Sicilian.

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.f4 e6 7.Be2 Qc7 8.0–0 Be7 9.Kh1 0–0 10.a4 Nc6 11.Be3 Re8 12.Bf3 Na5 13.Bf2 Nd7 14.Qe1 b6 15.e5 (This seems premature, saddling White with weak pawns, one of which dropped off.) 15...Bb7 16.Bg3 dxe5 17.fxe5 Rac8 18.Rd1 Bb4 19.Qf2 Rf8 20.Ne4 Nxe5 21.Bf4 Bxe4 22.Bxe4 Bd6 23.Nf3 f5 24.Bxe5 Bxe5 25.Bd3 Bxb2 (Although Black is two pawns up, White has dynamic counterplay and must, at least, regain one of the pawns.) 26.Rb1 Bc3 27.Ng5 Qe7 28.Qe3 Nc4 29.Bxc4 Rxc4 30.Rxb6 Bd4 31.Qd3 Rxa4 32.Rxe6 Qa3 33.Qe2 h6 34.Rxh6! (The computer didn't see this for some time.) Now the best Black can hope for is a draw.) 34...gxh6 35.Qe6+ Kg7 36.Qd7+ Kg6 37.Ne6 Bc5?? (Ouch. What was he thinking of? 37...Rf7 keeps him in the game.) 38.Qg7+ Kh5 39.Nxf8 Bxf8 40.Qf7+ 1–0

Sergei Movsesian CZE v G N Gopal IND

This was a rather dull draw.

Parimarjan Negi IND v Krishnan Sasikiran IND

This reached yet another bishops of opposite colour endgame. Both players made attempts to win to no avail.

Nana Dzagnidze GEO v Peter Svidler RUS

White’s pawns became very weak and eventually the problems became insurmountable. A nice game by the highest rated player in the tournament which brought him back into contention.

Thus the British Champion Michael Adams and the Women’s World Champion Hou Yifan are tied for first with 6½/8. They met and drew in round 4.

Artur Jussupow GER v Alexei Shirov LAT

We expected Alexei to visit the commentary room after this wonderful win. Thus we got two master classes in quick succession. Artur seemed rejuvenated – he doesn’t play that much competitive chess anymore. A game where it seems a pity there had to be a result. We would have liked it to go on and on. A win for either player would disadvantage the other. Alexei said that, should it win the £1000 Best Game Prize, Artur would deserve a portion.

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.Bg5 Bg7 4.Nbd2 0–0 5.c3 d5 6.e3 Nbd7 7.Bd3 Re8 8.0–0 e5 (Shirov didn't know the theory and, as a result, got into time trouble.) 9.e4 exd4 10.cxd4 dxe4 11.Nxe4 h6 12.Qb3 Re7 13.Ne5

(After an hour's thought. Alexei suggested this may be a record think for this type of time control where each player has two hours for 40 moves including the 30 second increment.) 13...hxg5 (Black thought for 27 minutes before playing this. 13...Nxe5 14 Nxf6ch Kh8 15 dxe5 hxg5 may be better.) 14.Nxf7 Nc5 15.Nxf6+ Bxf6 16.dxc5 Rxf7 17.Bxg6 Qf8 18.f4! g4 19.f5 (2 Bishops are often a superior force to Rook and 2 pawns. But the position can't be thought of as having been stabilised.) 19...Bd7 20.Rf4 Bc6 21.Kh1 Rd8 22.Rxg4 (The 2 bishops are mighty beasts, even against those 3 passed pawns.) 22...Bd5 23.Qh3 Rg7 24.Bh7+ Kf7 25.Bg6+ Ke7 (Had Alexei played 25...Kg8, White would probably have repeated and been satisfied with a draw. But he wanted more from the game, in order to get back into contention. He didn't want to think for long as that would have given Artur time to think.) 26.Qa3 Kd7 27.Rd1 Kc8 (Our silicon friend suggests 27...Qe7. As Simon pointed out. 'Hasn't Black now castled twice in the same game? Isn't that illegal?') 28.Qxa7 c6 29.Qa8+ Kc7 30.Qa5+ Kb8 31.Ra4 Be5 32.h3 (Possibly 32 Re1.) 32...Kc8 33.Re1 (33 Kg1.) 33...Bxg2+ 34.Kxg2 (Panicking. Kg1 was best and Black still has some work to do.) Qxf5 35.Rg4 Rxg6 36.Qb4 Rd4 0–1

Viktor Laznicka CZE v David Howell ENG

One would have thought David would be shattered today after the bitter disappointment of his loss to Mickey Adams. Instead he gritted his teeth and won against a member of the 2700 club. This will have raised the stock considerably of the young Cardiff University student.

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Qc2 dxc4 5.Qxc4 Bf5 6.g3 e6 7.Bg2 Nbd7 8.e3 Be7 9.0–0 0–0 10.Rd1 Ne4 11.Qe2 Qb6 12.Nc3 Rfd8 13.Ne1 Nxc3 14.bxc3 Bg6 15.e4 c5 16.Be3 Qa5 17.Nd3 Qxc3 18.dxc5 Rac8 19.Rab1 Nxc5 20.Rbc1 Na4 21.Nf4 Qb4 22.Rxd8+ Rxd8 23.Nxg6 hxg6 24.e5 Bc5 25.Bg5 Rd7 26.Qc2 b5 27.h4 a6 28.Bf3 Rd4 29.Qb3 Qa5 30.Kg2 Qb6 31.Rh1 (31 Be3 was probably best of the many choices.) Rb4 32.Qd3 Rb2 33.Kh3 Rxf2 34.Be4 Qc7 35.h5 Qxe5 36.Qd8+ Bf8 37.Rd1 f6 38.Bxg6 fxg5 39.Rd7 Rf3 0–1

Varuzhan Akobian USA v El Debs Felipe De Cresce BRA

The American’s entry for the £1000 Best Game Prize.

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nf3 dxc4 5.a4 e6 6.e4 Bb4 7.Bxc4 Nxe4 8.0–0 Nf6 9.Qe2 0–0 10.Rd1 Nd5 11.Rd3 Nd7 12.Bg5 f6 13.Bd2 Re8 14.Re1 Nf8 15.h4 Bd7 16.h5 Bd6 17.Ne4 Nf4 18.Bxf4 Bxf4 19.g3 Bc7 20.h6 g6 21.Qd2 f5 22.Qc3 Ba5 23.b4 Bxb4 24.Qxb4 fxe4 25.Rxe4 Re7 26.Qxb7 Qb8 27.Rb3 Qxb7 28.Rxb7 Kf7 29.Ne5+ Ke8 30.Rf4 a5 31.Rb3 g5 32.Rg4 c5 33.dxc5 Bxa4 34.Ra3 Nd7 35.Rxg5 Nxe5 36.Rg8+ Kf7 37.Rxa8 Bc6 38.Rh8 Nxc4 39.Rxh7+ Kg8 40.Rxe7 Nxa3 41.Rxe6 Bd5 42.Rd6 Be4 43.c6 Nb5 44.Rd8+ Kh7 45.c7 1–0

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2012-02-01T02:32:00.000-06:00

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More Gibraltar Chess Tactic

2012-02-01T02:13:00.000-06:00

White to move. How should white proceed?

Source: ChessToday.net

Interview with GM Dmitry Kokarev

2012-02-01T01:38:00.001-06:00

Interview with GM Dmitry Kokarev

In the stage of the Cup of Russia, which is being held as a part of the RSSU Cup “Moscow Open 2012″, Grandmaster from Penza Dmitry Kokarev is currently one of the pleading players.

Kokarev had won four stages of the Cup of Russia in 2011. Julia Dogodkina interviewed him after one of the rounds.

Q: Dima, last year you have won almost all stages of the Cup of Russia in which you took part in – it is very impressive. Many chess players would like to learn what is your secret?

A: It is the Russian chess school – a good school of the Swiss tournament system. We have many good players at the average level, unlike Europe, and it is necessary to get used to fight them. Now more or less it started to turn out well for me.

Q: You are taking part in our tournament for the third time. You played at the very first Moscow Open. But this event didn’t “obey” you till now…

A: I am now working on this. But it is an extremely strong tournament, in the starting list I am 16th seed. Of course, I would like to win, but objectively it is very difficult. The start was good, and it undoubtedly satisfies me.

Q: Three rounds have passed and in your games there were some bright and interesting moments. What details did you remember, that personally pleased you?

A: The most interesting game was in the 3rd round. Strangely enough, it looked like a dried-up endgame, like it was possible to win only by accident. So many tricks in one game I didn’t see for a long time.

Q: Last year you played a lot in Russia. What is your plan for this year?

A: I will try to play in all tournaments that will take part in Russia. Now we have quite a chess boom in my opinion. Many interesting tournaments, good prize funds, and it is not necessary to go far abroad.

www.Chessdom.com

Gibraltar critical round 9 matchups

2012-02-01T00:30:00.000-06:00

Round 9 top board matchups
2012/02/01 at 15:00

Bo.	No.		Name	Rtg	Pts.	Result	Pts.		Name	Rtg	No.
1	4	GM	Almasi Zoltan	2717	6		6½	GM	Adams Michael	2724	3
2	7	GM	Shirov Alexei	2710	6		6½	GM	Hou Yifan	2605	25
3	1	GM	Svidler Peter	2749	6		6	GM	Negi Parimarjan	2641	22
4	2	GM	Mamedyarov Shakhriyar	2747	6		6	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2617	24
5	27	GM	Howell David W L	2603	6		6	GM	Movsesian Sergei	2700	10
6	39	GM	Rapport Richard	2543	6		6	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	2700	11
7	35	GM	Gopal G N	2566	6		6	GM	Bologan Viktor	2680	14
8	51	GM	Salem A R Saleh	2505	6		6	GM	Short Nigel D	2677	15
9	5	GM	Le Quang Liem	2714	5½		5½	IM	Muzychuk Anna	2580	32
10	31	GM	Kulaots Kaido	2581	5½		5½	GM	Polgar Judit	2710	6
11	9	GM	Sutovsky Emil	2703	5½		5½	GM	Nabaty Tamir	2563	36
12	12	GM	Vachier-Lagrave Maxime	2699	5½		5½	GM	Dzagnidze Nana	2535	41
13	62	GM	Womacka Mathias	2455	5½		5½	GM	Fridman Daniel	2660	16
14	19	GM	Iturrizaga Edoardo	2649	5½		5½	GM	Del Rio De Angelis Salvador G	2531	42
15	21	GM	Gustafsson Jan	2643	5½		5½	FM	Kuipers Stefan	2391	84
16	23	GM	Erdos Viktor	2634	5½		5½	IM	Dvirnyy Daniyyl	2492	55
17	56	GM	Cramling Pia	2491	5½		5½	GM	Brunello Sabino	2581	30
18	29	GM	Koneru Humpy	2589	5		5½	GM	Zhu Chen	2472	59
19	60	IM	Krush Irina	2467	5		5	GM	Laznicka Viktor	2704	8
20	13	GM	Sargissian Gabriel	2683	5		5	IM	Hanley Craig A	2421	72
21	17	GM	Gupta Abhijeet	2652	5		5	IM	Javakhishvili Lela	2454	63
22	64	IM	Molner Mackenzie	2449	5		5	GM	Parligras Mircea-Emilian	2650	18
23	66	IM	Cernousek Lukas	2438	5		5	GM	Fier Alexandr	2603	26
24	68	IM	Lyrberg Patrik	2435	5		5	GM	David Alberto	2598	28
25	71	GM	Bellon Lopez Juan Manuel	2422	5		5	GM	Jussupow Artur	2569	34

Full pairings: http://chess-results.com/tnr63931.aspx

Low-key Aronian soars high at Tata Steel

2012-02-01T00:16:00.000-06:00

Low-key Aronian soars high in Wijk aan Zee chess tournament
By David R. Sands and David R. Sands
The Washington Times
Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Armenian GM Levon Aronian has added another chapter to a career that has been both illustrious and somewhat under the radar, capturing the 74th Tata Steel Grandmaster “A” Tournament in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands, Sunday by a full point over Norway’s Magnus Carlsen and Azerbaijan’s Teimour Radjabov. Despite a loss to Carlsen during the Category 21 event, Aronian won going away, notching a quick last-round draw to finish at a very impressive 9-4.

The genial 29-year-old Aronian, ranked second in the world behind Carlsen, led his small country to gold in the 2006 and 2008 Olympiads and to a World Team Chess title last year. He also has racked up a slew of firsts in elite events over the past decade, and he’s the reigning world blitz champion, to boot.

Yet despite a solid and at times spectacular style at the board, he has at times been overlooked among the small class of the world’s elite players, overshadowed by rivals such as Carlsen and reigning world champion Viswanathan Anand - over whom Aronian has a 5-1 edge in classical chess games.

Playing a few more games like this win from Tata would only help Aronian’s Q rating. He schools young Dutch grandmaster Anish Giri from the Black side of a Queen’s Gambit Declined, first with a powerful exchange sacrifice to seize the initiative and then with a combination featuring a queen sacrifice to wrap up the point.

Full article here.

Lindenwood Launches World-Class Collegiate Chess Program

2012-01-31T20:53:00.000-06:00

For more information, please contact:
Mike Wilmering
Communications Specialist
Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis
For Immediate Release

Lindenwood Launches World-Class Collegiate Chess Program
University Offering Chess Scholarships, Forming Team for Competition

ST. LOUIS, January 31, 2012--Lindenwood University is putting out a call for some of the finest young chess players in America and abroad. And the university is willing to provide scholarship money to build the nation’s top collegiate chess program.

Located in the St. Louis metropolitan area just west of the City of St. Louis, Lindenwood University is a private four-year liberal arts school that is dedicated to excellence in higher education.

What is unique about Lindenwood’s plan is the number of competitors it plans to have in the program. Organizers say there could be 25-30 players on up to six different teams.

“We are planning to recruit some of the highest-rated competitors in the world,” said Tim Canavan, Lindenwood’s Director of Student Life Sports. “We are also going to recruit people who aren’t at the elite level yet, but want to get there. Our interest is competing, promoting the wonderful game of chess, and providing a way for young people to get a good education.”

Canavan said the university has been collaborating with the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis, which is known internationally for its quality. He praised the Chess Club for its guidance during the program’s developmental stages. Canavan said Lindenwood has retained the club’s Grandmaster-in-Residence, Ben Finegold, as coach.

“I was immediately impressed with the level of commitment Lindenwood has demonstrated to launching this program,” Finegold said. “It’s an exciting development for collegiate chess and also for the chess scene in the greater St. Louis area.”

Lindenwood already is on the recruiting trail and is building a collegiate schedule with plans to compete in the fall. Barger said the university already has designated a spot in the Evans Commons for practice and competition.

For information about a chess scholarship at Lindenwood University, call Lauren Nystrom at (636) 949-4949. For more information about the university, visit www.lindenwood.edu.

I would like to congratulate Lindenwood University for their bold and wonderful move. Bravo! GM Finegold is an excellent choice as coach for the Lindenwood Chess Program. He will no doubt do a great job.

Unfortunately, some people who are very closely associated with the USCF recently (publicly) insulted, demeaned, and posted false and libelous information about some universities which strongly support College Chess. These are universities which provide scholarships and excellent education for young players.

The USCF should never condone this type of vicious, reprehensible, and unwarranted attack toward sponsors and/or supporters of chess. I hope that the management of the USCF will put an end to this kind of destructive and classless behavior by a few bad apples and show to the world that they fully support College Chess and appreciate everyone who support chess.

The world will soon see what this national chess federation stands for.

Tata Steel Chess 2012 - Video Analises

2012-01-31T19:22:00.000-06:00

Anish Giri vs Levon Aronian - Round 10

Gelfand vs Nakamura - Round 6

Carlsen vs GM Gashimov - Round 1

New Articles

Follow William for fresh daily updates: Follow @OnlineChessLess

William Stewart is a National Master. He specializes in Chess Coaching Online and maintains a daily updated Chess Blog

Hou Yifan wins again, leads Gibraltar

2012-01-31T17:12:00.000-06:00

Round 8 top board results

Bo.	No.		Name	Rtg	Pts.	Result	Pts.		Name	Rtg	No.
1	3	GM	Adams Michael	2724	6	½ - ½	5½	GM	Mamedyarov Shakhriyar	2747	2
2	15	GM	Short Nigel D	2677	5½	½ - ½	5½	GM	Almasi Zoltan	2717	4
3	25	GM	Hou Yifan	2605	5½	1 - 0	5½	GM	Le Quang Liem	2714	5
4	10	GM	Movsesian Sergei	2700	5½	½ - ½	5½	GM	Gopal G N	2566	35
5	22	GM	Negi Parimarjan	2641	5½	½ - ½	5½	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	2700	11
6	41	GM	Dzagnidze Nana	2535	5½	0 - 1	5	GM	Svidler Peter	2749	1
7	34	GM	Jussupow Artur	2569	5	0 - 1	5	GM	Shirov Alexei	2710	7
8	8	GM	Laznicka Viktor	2704	5	0 - 1	5	GM	Howell David W L	2603	27
9	59	GM	Zhu Chen	2472	5	½ - ½	5	GM	Sutovsky Emil	2703	9
10	14	GM	Bologan Viktor	2680	5	1 - 0	5	GM	Koneru Humpy	2589	29
11	18	GM	Parligras Mircea-Emilian	2650	5	0 - 1	5	GM	Rapport Richard	2543	39
12	42	GM	Del Rio De Angelis Salvador G	2531	5	½ - ½	5	GM	Gustafsson Jan	2643	21
13	24	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2617	5	1 - 0	5	GM	El Debs Felipe De Cresce	2497	54
14	26	GM	Fier Alexandr	2603	5	0 - 1	5	GM	Salem A R Saleh	2505	51
15	6	GM	Polgar Judit	2710	4½	1 - 0	4½	IM	Muzychuk Mariya	2483	57
16	12	GM	Vachier-Lagrave Maxime	2699	4½	1 - 0	4½	IM	Hunt Adam C	2462	61
17	63	IM	Javakhishvili Lela	2454	4½	½ - ½	4½	GM	Sargissian Gabriel	2683	13
18	16	GM	Fridman Daniel	2660	4½	1 - 0	4½	IM	Arnold Marc T	2482	58
19	70	GM	Zhukova Natalia	2426	4½	0 - 1	4½	GM	Iturrizaga Edoardo	2649	19
20	20	GM	Lupulescu Constantin	2648	4½	0 - 1	4½	GM	Womacka Mathias	2455	62

Full results: http://chess-results.com/tnr63931.aspx

Spassky chess tactic

2012-01-31T17:10:00.000-06:00

Black to move. How should black proceed?

Source: ChessToday.net

Babu, Shyamsundar 26th, 27th Grandmasters

2012-01-31T12:03:00.000-06:00

Babu, Shyamsundar 26th, 27th Grandmasters
Correspondent
Guwahati, Tuesday, January 31, 2012

DULIAJAN, Jan 30 – International Chess Player Laishram Imocha of Assam represented India as the coach of the Indian youth chess team in the 87th Hastings International Chess Tournament, England. Imocha is the first person of Oil India Limited who has been appointed as a coach of any Indian sports team. He is working with Pipeline Fields Department, Oil India Limited, Duliajan.

The oldest and the prestigious chess tournament in the world was held at Multi Sports Complex, Horntye Park, Hastings, England from December 28 to January 5. Players from 19 different countries participated in the tournament. Two Indian youngsters Lalith Babu of Hydrabad and Shyamsundar of Chennai completed their final International Grandmaster norms and became the India's 26th and 27th Grandmasters respectively. Except V Anand and Kasparov, all the world chess champions including genius Bobby Fisher played in the past Hastings chess Tournaments. The tournament was won by Chinese Super Grandmaster 24 years old Wang Yue. Wang drew with both the new Indian Grandmasters Lalith Babu and Shyamsundar in the tournament.

Source: http://www.assamtribune.com

Gibraltar LIVE!

2012-01-31T08:00:00.000-06:00

The Gibraltar Chess Festival 2012 will be live daily on Chessdom.com with analysis by the Houdini 2.0 engine. Games start at 14:00 CET.

All news about Gibraltar Chess Festival here

Full participants list at this link

Live chess broadcast powered by ChessBomb and Chessdom

Moscow 2012 LIVE

2012-01-31T06:30:00.000-06:00

Live chess broadcast powered by ChessBomb and Chessdom

Governor visits Gibraltar

2012-01-31T06:29:00.000-06:00

2012 TRADEWISE GIBRALTAR CHESS FESTIVAL
Monday 23 January - Thursday 2 February 2012

PRESS RELEASE No. 22 31, January 2012

GOVERNOR OF GIBRALTAR VISITS TRADEWISE

The Governor of Gibraltar Sir Adrian Johns visited the 2012 Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival today. Sir Adrian was met by organiser Brian Callaghan and director Stuart Conquest. Also there to meet him was John Isola from Anglo Hispano one of the main sponsors of the Festival, and Joe Hernandez from the Gibraltar Sport Authority which has always supported the event.

Sir Adrian was shown around both chess halls at the Caleta Hotel. He paused to view the main boards and especially the historic game between Hou Yifan and Judit Polgar. He was also interviewed in the studio live on the official website by Stuart Conquest.

ALL PHOTOGRAPHS ARE ON OUR WEBSITE
www.gibraltarchesscongress.com

Please do not hesitate to contact me at gibchesspress@gmail.com

Alice Mascarenhas
Tradewise Chess Press Officer

--

Press Office
2012 Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival
www.gibraltarchesscongress.com

Aronian closing in on Carlsen for the top spot

2012-01-31T00:56:00.005-06:00

Current LIVE ratings

#	Name	Rating	+/−
1	Carlsen	2834.6	−0.4
2	Aronian	2823.9	+18.9
3	Kramnik	2801.0	0.0
4	Anand	2799.0	0.0
5	Radjabov	2784.4	+11.4
6	Nakamura	2770.8	+11.8
7	Karjakin	2766.2	−2.8
8	Morozevich	2764.8	+1.8
9	Ivanchuk	2763.7	−2.3
10	Caruana	2762.4	+26.4
11	Grischuk	2761.0	0.0
12	Topalov	2751.9	−18.1
13	Mamedyarov	2751.0	+4.0
14	Kamsky	2741.3	+9.3
15	Svidler	2740.8	−8.2
16	Tomashevsky	2740.0	0.0
17	Nepomniachtchi	2735.0	0.0
18	Gashimov	2734.1	−26.9
19	Wang Hao	2733.0	0.0
20	Dominguez	2730.0	0.0
21	Jakovenko	2729.0	0.0
22	Gelfand	2727.0	−12.0
23	Adams	2726.5	+2.5
24	Ponomariov	2724.2	−2.8
25	Le Quang Liem	2721.5	+7.5
26	Leko	2720.0	0.0
27	Almasi	2719.0	+2.0
28	Giri	2716.8	+2.8
29	Navara	2715.7	+3.7
30	Vallejo	2712.2	+7.2
31	Riazantsev	2710.0	0.0
32	Vitiugov	2709.0	−17.0
33	Wojtaszek	2708.6	+2.6
34	Moiseenko	2706.0	0.0
35	Grachev	2705.9	+12.9
36	Sasikiran	2705.9	+5.9
37	Polgar, Judit	2705.2	−4.8
38	Malakhov	2705.0	0.0
39	Jobava	2704.0	0.0
40	Shirov	2702.8	−7.2
41	Wang Yue	2702.1	+8.1
42	Sutovsky	2701.2	−1.8
43	Naiditsch	2700.6	−1.4

Source: http://www.2700chess.com

Gibraltar round 8 matchups

2012-01-31T00:52:00.000-06:00

Round 8 pairings

Bo.	No.		Name	Rtg	Pts.	Result	Pts.		Name	Rtg	No.
1	3	GM	Adams Michael	2724	6		5½	GM	Mamedyarov Shakhriyar	2747	2
2	15	GM	Short Nigel D	2677	5½		5½	GM	Almasi Zoltan	2717	4
3	25	GM	Hou Yifan	2605	5½		5½	GM	Le Quang Liem	2714	5
4	10	GM	Movsesian Sergei	2700	5½		5½	GM	Gopal G N	2566	35
5	22	GM	Negi Parimarjan	2641	5½		5½	GM	Sasikiran Krishnan	2700	11
6	41	GM	Dzagnidze Nana	2535	5½		5	GM	Svidler Peter	2749	1
7	34	GM	Jussupow Artur	2569	5		5	GM	Shirov Alexei	2710	7
8	8	GM	Laznicka Viktor	2704	5		5	GM	Howell David W L	2603	27
9	59	GM	Zhu Chen	2472	5		5	GM	Sutovsky Emil	2703	9
10	14	GM	Bologan Viktor	2680	5		5	GM	Koneru Humpy	2589	29
11	18	GM	Parligras Mircea-Emilian	2650	5		5	GM	Rapport Richard	2543	39
12	42	GM	Del Rio De Angelis Salvador G	2531	5		5	GM	Gustafsson Jan	2643	21
13	24	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2617	5		5	GM	El Debs Felipe De Cresce	2497	54
14	26	GM	Fier Alexandr	2603	5		5	GM	Salem A R Saleh	2505	51
15	6	GM	Polgar Judit	2710	4½		4½	IM	Muzychuk Mariya	2483	57
16	12	GM	Vachier-Lagrave Maxime	2699	4½		4½	IM	Hunt Adam C	2462	61
17	63	IM	Javakhishvili Lela	2454	4½		4½	GM	Sargissian Gabriel	2683	13
18	16	GM	Fridman Daniel	2660	4½		4½	IM	Arnold Marc T	2482	58
19	70	GM	Zhukova Natalia	2426	4½		4½	GM	Iturrizaga Edoardo	2649	19
20	20	GM	Lupulescu Constantin	2648	4½		4½	GM	Womacka Mathias	2455	62
21	80	IM	Nezad Husein Aziz	2402	4½		4½	GM	Erdos Viktor	2634	23
22	28	GM	David Alberto	2598	4½		4½	IM	Molner Mackenzie	2449	64
23	30	GM	Brunello Sabino	2581	4½		4½	IM	Khurtsidze Nino	2444	65
24	82	IM	Melia Salome	2398	4½		4½	GM	Kulaots Kaido	2581	31
25	32	IM	Muzychuk Anna	2580	4½		4½	FM	Adnani Mokhlis	2386	85

Full pairings: http://chess-results.com/tnr63931.aspx

Knight Raiders host fifth annual chess tournament

2012-01-31T00:38:00.000-06:00

Knight Raiders host fifth annual chess tournament
Posted: Sunday, January 29, 2012 8:17 pm
By Nicole Molter
Staff Writer

The Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence and the Knight Raiders hosted the fifth annual Lubbock Open at the Lubbock Science Spectrum on Jan. 28.

The tournament was a five-round Swiss System tournament.

“Just remember that it’s not about win or lose,” said competitor Marcus Gamboa, an Evans Middle School student from Lubbock. “It’s about having fun. If you’re really wanting to win, make sure you know what you’re doing before you make a move.”

The tournament was open to all ages. Elementary, middle school, high school and college students, as well as adults, were involved in the competition.

“This tournament includes seven sections including kindergarten through 12th grade scholastic sections and one adult section,” said Susan Polgar, SPICE director and Knight Raiders coach.

Five Grand Masters from Tech competed, said Brett James, president of the Knight Raiders and a pre-medicine major from Richmond, Va.

“Chess players can’t take any moves for granted,” James said. “You have to focus the entire time, even if it’s a five minute game or a three hour game. Every single move counts. Stay mentally tough and be ready to play the entire game.”

The competitors consistently practice before playing in competitions, he said.

“Our chess team meets once a week at school and most of them play every day at home,” said Tom Messerschmidt, chess coach at Frenship Middle School. “ I also have a computerized chess game that they take home and play on the computer. They play quite a bit.”

Chess players practice as a team but also use their own time to better themselves at the game.

“Plan your moves before you use them,” said Lawson Sittre, a Frenship Middle School student. “I practice every day at school, at lunch and during my intervention period. I practice at home sometimes, too.”

Practice has a great effect on the outcome of a tournament, even for players at Tech.

“Preparation before you play is important,” said Ananya Roy, a third-year member of the Knight Raiders and a junior political science major from Atlanta. “Think about each move, even if you think it’s an easy move.”

The upper-level players and coaches have been involved in competitions for several years and have seen how the game has grown and changed, James said.

“I started playing when I was in fifth grade, and my tournaments were a lot smaller than this,” he said. “Lubbock has a very big chess community. The tournaments I played in Virginia were about half this size, but it was a great opportunity to start playing the game. I’m glad I can help do the same for kids in Lubbock, who will hopefully go on to play chess in high school and college, too.”

Hard work pays off, James said, and the Knight Raiders are an example of success in chess competitions, having a national championship title.

“We won the Final Four last year in April and we’re going back to defend that this April,” he said.

Georg Meier, a freshman management and international business major from Trier, Germany, is rated second in the country, said Haraldur Karlsson, adviser for the Tech Chess Club and associate professor of the geosciences department.

“I was chess professional for about four years and last November I became European Team Champion with the German team,” Meier said.

Meier, as well as other foreign players, saw Tech as a great opportunity to continue playing chess competitively.

“The Tech team is famous in the whole chess world,” Meier said. “I heard about this program and contacted Susan Polgar and then everything just started working out.”

The strategy learned in chess can also be applied to life, Messerschmidt said.

“Keep focused and don’t let the other players distract you,” he said. “The moves you make depend on the moves your opponent makes. Think ahead. It’s problem-solving; a life skill.”

Source: http://www.dailytoreador.com

Aronian-Kramnik match likely in April

2012-01-31T00:32:00.000-06:00

Aronian-Kramnik match likely in April
January 30, 2012 - 11:03 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenian grandmaster Levon Aronian said he is extremely happy to have shown a perfect result at the 74th Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee.

In the 13-round tournament, Aronian won 7 games, tied 4 and lost 2, to claim his 3rd Tata Steel title. “This is the best tournament in my career, as I managed to control the situation almost all the time,” the GM confesses.

He also said that his next match will probably be against Russia’s Vladimir Kramnik in April.

Source: http://www.panarmenian.net

Kramnik signs friendly match contract with Aronian

Vladimir Kramnik announced he has signed a contract for a six-game match in classical chess against Levon Aronian. The match is scheduled on April 21-29. Though a ‘friendly’ match, it is also a serious one, aimed to help both prepare for the upcoming Candidates tournament. This is also the first time in history in which two players rated 2800 will play a classical match.

The first game is scheduled for April 21st, 2012, with a rest day scheduled after rounds two and four, and the last game will be played on April 28th. In the event of a draw that ends with less than three hours of play, the players will play a rapid game at 25 minutes plus 10 seconds increment that same day for the spectators. Note that this will not count toward the score of course.

The sponsor is Russian precious stones giant ICG with another Western partner in the same field.

Source: http://www.panorama.am

Czech Tour 2012/2013 Series

2012-01-31T00:11:00.000-06:00

Dear chess friends,

Allow us to announce that information about dates and kinds of tournaments, which will be held within the frame of 12th International Chess Festivals Series CZECH TOUR 2012/2013 can be found on http://www.czechtour.net/news/

Preliminary regulations of the 23rd International Chess and Games Festival CZECH OPEN 2012 can be found on http://www.czechopen.net/en/news/.

Furthermore we would like to inform you that the registration deadline for 3rd NOVY BOR OPEN, which takes place 11th –18th February 2012, has been prolonged without extra fee for the late enrolment till 5th February 2012.

The registration deadline for 1st LANTA OPEN, which takes place 22nd - 28th March 2012 in Thailand, has been prolonged without extra fee for the late enrolment till 29th February 2012.

With best regards

Kings of the chessboard: Academy team wins again

2012-01-31T00:08:00.000-06:00

Kings of the chessboard: Academy team wins again

* The Columbus Academy fifth-graders win a state title for the third time in four years; their classmates also claimed several individual awards.

By PAMELA WILLIS

Published: Monday, January 30, 2012 9:58 AM EST

Daily hours of practice and strategy study paid off for Columbus Academy's fifth-grade chess team as it captured the state title at the Ohio Grade Level Chess Championships.

Thomas Jones, Sam Massick, Jacob Sardo and Nicholas Welch are no strangers to winning; they took home the top team trophy in their grade level for the third time in four years at the tournament, held last month in Akron.

The students won team trophies as second-graders in 2008 and as a fourth-grade team in 2010.

Sardo and Massick are New Albany residents; Jones is a Powell resident and Welch lives in Blacklick.

Columbus Academy students also won individual trophies at the Dec. 10 tournament: Massick was named co-state champion in his grade level; sophomore Rahul Ramaswamy, from Powell, claimed co-state champion for 10th grade; his brother, Abhi Ramaswamy, was state runner-up in sixth grade; first-grader Laine Massick tied for fifth place at her grade level; and sophomore Garrett Levine, from Columbus, tied for fourth at his level.

Last year, Levine and Rahul Ramaswamy, with teammate John Hughes of Worthington, captured the ninth-grade team title at the tournament, winning their fourth consecutive team title at the yearly tournament.

Look up "chess strategy" online or in books, where odd strategies are mentioned such as, "Place the board so that the sun is in your opponent's eyes." That tactic was penned by Ruy Lopez de Segura, who supposedly played chess in the 1550s.

Sam Massick has better advice: "Play a lot and practice."

He started playing chess in kindergarten and said he's never stopped.

"I like chess because it forces you to think a lot and use your brain," he said.

Massick plays chess for two hours a day and attends Columbus Chess Lessons classes three times a week.

"I play games online and read books about chess," he said. "At Columbus Chess Lessons, I play five people in my grade."

His advice to students who think chess is "too hard" is to "find friends that play chess."

"It helps to play games with your friends and chat over chess," he said.

Massick's chess coach, Alan Casden from Columbus Chess Lessons, said more than 400 students participated in the Ohio Grade Level Championship last month.

Full article here.

Belgrade Chess Championships 2012

2012-01-31T00:01:00.000-06:00

Belgrade Chess Championships 2012

The 2012 Belgrade Chess Championships were held from 22nd to 30th January at the Belgrade Fair Hall 4. 118 players in Men’s and 19 in Women’s Championship competed. Both events were played over 9 rounds of Swiss pairings.

Dejan Pikula collected 7.5 points and took a clear first place ahead of five fellow Grandmasters. Four players shared the 2nd place but only GM Danilo Milanovic qualified for the 2012 Serbia Championship thanks to the best tie-break score.

In the Women’s Championship WIM Ljilja Drljevic convincingly won the trophy by scoring 8.5 points. WIM Sandra Djukic arrived second with 7.5 points. Both of them qualified for the Serbian Championship.

Final standings (top 20):

1 GM Pikula Dejan SRB 2522 – 7.5
2 GM Milanovic Danilo SRB 2510 – 7
3 IM Perunovic Miodrag SRB 2466 – 7
4 GM Cabrilo Goran SRB 2471 – 7
5 GM Abramovic Bosko SRB 2447 – 7
6 IM Govedarica Radovan SRB 2394 – 6.5
7 FM Sredojevic Ivan SRB 2417 – 6.5
8 FM Martic Ivan SRB 2391 – 6.5
9 IM Andrijevic Milan SRB 2338 – 6.5
10 IM Velickovic Sasa SRB 2397 – 6.5
11 FM Ravic Nenad SRB 2310 – 6
12 IM Certic Branimir SRB 2404 – 6
13 GM Lajthajm Borko SRB 2498 – 6
14 GM Tosic Miroslav SRB 2435 – 6
15 MK Nenezic Marko SRB 2356 – 6
16 FM Jovanovic Sasa T SRB 2274 – 6
17 IM Cvetkovic Srdjan SRB 2395 – 6
18 FM Popovic Aleksandar M SRB 2319 – 6
19 FM Pucarevic Milenko SRB 2237 – 6
20 MK Markovic Aleksandar SRB 2010 – 6
21 FM Sorgic Dragan SRB 2242 – 6

Gibraltar Chess Tactic

2012-01-31T00:00:00.000-06:00

White to move. How should white proceed?

Source: ChessToday.net

5th Colombo International Chess Festival ' 2012

2012-01-30T20:57:00.001-06:00

5th Colombo International Chess Festival ' 2012

On behalf of the Chess Federation of Sri Lanka, the Passed Pawn Chess Club is organizing the 5th Colombo International Chess Festival 2012, an International Rating Open Chess event for the 5th successive year with a total prize fund of nearly Rs. 250,000/= in cash and other attractive awards. The event will be played according to the Swiss System in 9 rounds from 15th to 22nd February 2012.

Venue: Colombo.

Schedule:
16th February - Arrival
17th to 20th February - Round 1 to 8
21st February - Round 9 and PDF
22nd February - Departure

Eligibility: Open for all

Prizes:
Champion - Trophy, Gold Medal & Rs. 50,000/=
1st Runner up - Silver Medal & Rs. 30,000/=
2nd Runner up - Bronze Medal & Rs. 20,000/=
4th & 5th - Rs. 10,000/= each
6th to 10th - Rs. 5,000/= each

Best Girls
Champion - Trophy, Gold Medal & Rs. 10,000/=
1st Runner up - Silver Medal, Rs. 6000/=
2nd Runner up - Bronze Medal Rs. 4000/=

Best Unrated Player
Champion - Gold Medal & Rs. 5,000/=
1st Runner up - Silver Medal & A Chess Set
2nd Runner up - Bronze Medal & A Chess Set

Best Under 8, 10, Under 12, Under 15, Boys & Girls separately (6 sets of awards)
Champion - Gold Medal & Rs. 5,000/=
1st Runner up - Silver Medal & A Chess Set
2nd Runner up - Bronze Medal & A Chess Set

Best Player - Rating category 1800 to 2000
Champion - Gold Medal & Rs. 5,000/=
1st Runner up - Silver Medal & A Chess Set
2nd Runner up - Bronze Medal & A Chess Set

Best Player - Rating category 1600 to 1800
Champion - Gold Medal & Rs. 5,000/=
1st Runner up - Silver Medal & A Chess Set
2nd Runner up - Bronze Medal & A Chess Set

Best Player - Rating category less than 1600
Champion - Gold Medal & Rs. 5,000/=
1st Runner up - Silver Medal & A Chess Set
2nd Runner up - Bronze Medal & A Chess Set

All participants will be provided with certificates and a souvenir.

Accommodation: All foreign players with the ELO rating of 2200 or more will be provided accommodation only. All foreign title players (above FM) will be provided accommodation with three meals. All other foreign players are charged with 50 US $ for accommodation only.

Travel Grant
GMs, IMs, WGMs, WIMs with more than 2300 rating will be given a travel grant of Rs. 12,000/=

Entry Fee
All title players and players having a rating of above 2200 are free.
Rating category 1800 - 2200 : Rs. 1000/=
Rating category less than 1800 : Rs. 2,000/=
Unrated players : Rs. 4,000/=

A discount of Rs. 500/= is granted for the players registering before 15th February 2012 with the relevant entry fee. (including rated players)
Normal Entry fee will be charged from after 15th February 2012.
Late fee of Rs. 500/= will be charged for the entries received on 17th of February 2012

All Inquiries & entries to :
Mr. Luxman Wijesuriya
Chairman, Organizing Committee,
151/12,Siridamma Mawatha, Colombo 10, Sri Lanka.
Telephone : 0715397829
Fax : 0112650622
Email - godigamu@yahoo.com

Be a part of this memorable Chess event!

Note:
1. All amounts are in Sri Lankan Rupees.
2. All Sri Lankan Chess Players should have the Chess Federation
Registration to play in this event. The CFSL ID is compulsory.

Download Prospectus (PDF)

Paragua tries to conquer simul chess meet

2012-01-30T20:44:00.002-06:00

GM Paragua tries to conquer simul chess meet
ABS-CBNnews.com
Posted at 01/29/2012 9:15 PM | Updated as of 01/29/2012 9:15 PM

MANILA, Philippines -- Grand Master Mark Paragua, the first Filipino to reach super grand master status, will once again showcase his talent when he goes up against top Sta. Maria players in a simultaneous chess exhibition on February 5 at the Sta. Maria Church yard in Sta. Maria, Bulacan.

Organized by the Sta. Maria Chess Club and the Paragua Chess Academy, the one-day event aims to promote chess in the grassroots level, according to tournament director Engineer Norben de Jesus.

The registration of Sta. Maria Town Fiesta 2012 Chess Challenge on Sunday is now on full swing. The champion in the 15 years old and below (Open age category) will get P5,000 plus trophy while the kiddies 14 years old and below pocketed the top prize of P2,500 plus trophy.

Registration fee for the Sta. Maria Town Fiesta 2012 Chess Challenge is P150 for kiddies division, P250 for 15 years old and below (Open age category) while free registration fee for Sta. Maria Players. For details, call or text 0922-838-6729 and 0908-754-0888.-- By Marlon Bernardino

Source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com

Junior chess champs battle it out in Sheringham

2012-01-30T20:22:00.002-06:00

Junior chess champs battle it out in Sheringham
By DONNA-LOUISE BISHOP,
Monday, January 30, 2012 5:33 PM

More than 30 children and their parents turned-up from all over the county to compete at the town’s community centre yesterday (Sunday).

Tomasina Contu, 37, of Marshland St James, was there to support her children who were taking part in the event, and praised the game which she said teaches key skills.

“All my children are home schooled,” she said.

“And have been playing chess from a young age. It’s an important game and I think it should be made compulsory in schools.”

Her 13-year-old son Yousuf Bin Suhayl plays for the county and came second in the junior category. He said it was an “interesting” game.

He added: “Chess is enjoyable and it helps to teach concentration and how to practice.”

Mrs Contu said she believes there is a direct correlation with chess players being competent in maths and Yousuf recently become one of the youngest people in the country to get the top A* grade in A-level maths.

Yousuf’s nine-year old brother Ibraheem, who also competed in the event, received his GCSE in maths last year.

Class teacher from Sheringham Primary School Matthew Perry, teaches chess at the school and helped out with the event.

He said: “There is pattern at school with chess, it often helps develop their maths skills. The kids also enjoy themselves when they play the game too.”

Prizes were presented to the winners by former Sheringham mayor Noel Gant and town councillor Harry Bennett.

More results: http://www.edp24.co.uk

Tata Steel Chess 2012 - Aronian Wins!

2012-01-30T12:49:00.002-06:00

Full article on the Tata Steel Chess 2012 Tournament available on William's site.

Levon Aronian dominated the field in a star-studded Tata Steel super-tournament, taking clear first by a full point over closest rivals Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, and Teimour Radjabov. Aronian played dazzlingly creative chess in Wijk Aan Zee, consistently creating aggressive complications to pressure his battered opponents in dynamically imbalanced positions. Aronian built his lead early in the tournament and forced his constant competitor Magnus Carlsen to chase him in the 2nd half of the Tata Steel Super-Tournament 2012, although the determined Norwegian wunderkind was unable to catch the Armenian powerhouse. Aronian's chess style features an impressive combination of thorough opening preparation, precise endgame technique, and an incredibly creative approach to the middlegame. Aronian's ability to successfully evaluate imbalances between time, material, and position enabled him to finish in 1st place at the 2012 Tata Steel Super-Tournament in Wijk Aan Zee.

Follow William for fresh daily updates: Follow @OnlineChessLess

William Stewart is a National Master. He specializes in Chess Coaching Online and maintains a daily updated Chess Blog

Gibraltar LIVE! Hou Yifan vs Judit!

2012-01-30T07:59:00.000-06:00

The Gibraltar Chess Festival 2012 continues to bring excitement to the chess calendar, this time attracting not only some of the best Grandmasters, but also the women chess elite. As a result of that just a few days ago we witnessed the battle between Judit Polgar, the top rated women on the planet for many years, and Humpy Koneru, World Chess Championship finalist (replay the game here).

Today it gets even better, as we will see Judit Polgar play with the World Champion Yifan Hou. Follow the game at this here at this article and here with computer analysis starting at 15:00 CET.