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The Sicilian Kan variation has seen a recent surge in popularity. Here's a Kan game by rising Russian prodigy Vladislav Artemiev, facing the strong Russian IM Vadim Moiseenko.
This article was reproduced from Chess Magazine October/2017, with kind permission.
CHESS Magazine was established in 1935 by B.H. Wood who ran it for over fifty years. It is published each month by the London Chess Centre and is edited by IM Richard Palliser and Matt Read. The Executive Editor is Malcolm Pein, who organises the London Chess Classic. CHESS is mailed to subscribers in over 50 countries. You can subscribe from Europe and Asia at a specially discounted rate for first timers, or subscribe from North America.
Reti: A Repertoire for White
Victor Bologan; PC-DVD, running time: 5 hours
RRP £25.99 SUBSCRIBERS £23.39
1 Nf3 followed by 2 c4 is, of course, by no means a new development, but it has been quite topical of late and might just surprise many opponents at club level. The Symmetrical English lines after 1 Nf3 c5 2 c4 Nf6 3 Nc3 can become quite theoretical, but here and with 1 Nf3 d5 2 c4 c6 3 g3 there should be sufficient coverage for most viewers. Bologan admits that he has not covered every black defence, which is honest and shouldn’t be too big a deterent to getting the viewer up and running with 1 Nf3, but quite possibly not all will want to meet the King’s Indian, 1...Nf6 2 c4 g6, with 3 b4!?.
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Rocket Repertoire: The Four Knights
Simon Williams; PC-DVD, running time: 5 hours
RRP £25.99 SUBSCRIBERS £23.39
The popular English Grandmaster isn’t a man one associates with dull positions, so that he considers 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Nc3 N f6 to be quite a viable position as White makes one sit up and take notice. Williams covers both 4 Bb5 and 4 d4 exd4 5 Nxd4, two sensible options where he does his best to avoid excessive theory and to inject an attacking bent where possible. Unsurprisingly, though, some of the recommendations are still quite positional, something which one couldn’t describe the concluding Belgrade Gambit (4 d4 exd4 5 Nd5!?) coverage as.
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The London Chess Centre or Chess4Less (USA)
The Chess Player’s Mating Guide
Vol. 1: The King in the Centre -
Vol. 2: Weakened Kingside
Robert Ris, PC-DVD, running time 5 hours
RRP £26.99 + £26.99
One of the first lessons you learn in chess is to bring your king into safety by castling – be it on the kingside or the queenside - after having developed your minor pieces. By ignoring this rule of thumb, not only may your king end up in trouble, but your other pieces and in particular, your rooks, may never end up playing much of a role, and before you know it, things are looking grim.
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The London Chess Centre or Chess4Less (USA)
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