7/18/2019 – In yesterday's 4th round of the Sparkassen Chess meeting, all games ended without a winner. Leinier Dominguez (pictured right) thus defended his lead in the tournament. Wojtaszek, Radjabov (pictured left) and Rapport remain a half point back in this short seven-round sprint. Thursday is the tournament's second (and final) rest day. Play resumes on Friday at 13:15 UTC (15:15 CEST, 9:15 AM EDT) | Photos: Georgios Souleidis

7/18/2019 – The semi-finals of the Grand Prix in Riga begins July 18th at 12:00 UTC (14:00 CEST, 8:00 AM EDT). Live games and commentary with GM Evgeny Miroshnichenko and GM Arturs Neikans. The four survivors continue to fight for Grand Prix points and a chance to qualify to next year's Candidates Tournament. Wesley So faces Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, while Alexander Grischuk plays against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave | Photo: Niki Riga / World Chess

7/18/2019 – Playing online is both fun and helps you to improve. ChessBase offers a number of possibilities to do so, including in your web browser. Here's a short and easy introduction to the various ways and possibilities to play online chess with ChessBase for free.

7/18/2019 – Alexander Grischuk and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov knocked out Yu Yangyi and Jan-Krzysztof Duda in the first two games of the quarter-finals tiebreaks at the FIDE Grand Prix in Riga. Meanwhile, Sergey Karjakin and Wesley So drew all their 25'+10" and 10'+10" games — in the end, So emerged the winner after turning around a sharp tactical position in the first 5'+3" encounter and saving a draw in a roller-coaster of a rematch game. | Photo: Niki Riga / World Chess

7/17/2019 – The training game focus this week is the FIDE Grand Prix in Riga and the quarter-final match between Veselin Topalov and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. The live show is free to watch, and available on-demand for ChessBase Premium account holders (but FREE for a limited time!). To chat, please visit videos.chessbase.com/live or login via Playchess for Windows. Merijn is on-demand this week starting at 18:00 UTC (20:00 CEST / 2 PM EDT).

7/17/2019 – Leinier Dominguez seems to be in good shape at the Sparkassen Chess Meeting in Dortmund. In round three he won against defending champion Ian Nepomniachtchi with a nice, tactical combination and is now in sole first place with 2½/3. Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu scored the second win of the round, with black against Daniel Fridman. Kaido Kulaots and Radoslaw Wojtaszek drew, as did Teimour Radjabov and Richard Rapport. Live games of round four from 13:15 UTC (15:15 CEST, 9:15 EDT). | Photos: Georgios Souleidis

7/17/2019 – Renowned trainer and author Grandmaster Mihail Marin is Karsten's guest today. Live at 13:00 UTC (15:00 CEST; 9:00 AM EDT) and on-demand for ChessBase account holders. Don't have an account yet? You can register a free 90-day account to watch!

7/16/2019 – Maxime Vachier-Lagrave has already secured his spot in the semi-finals of the FIDE Grand Prix in Riga, as Veselin Topalov shocked everyone by offering a draw after merely twelve moves in a must-win situation. The rest of the match-ups are still tied and will be decided on tiebreaks — while Wesley So, Sergey Karjakin, Yu Yangyi and Alexander Grischuk played it safe, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Jan-Krzyztof Duda got into a real fight in Tuesday's round. | Photo: Niki Riga / World Chess

7/16/2019 – Grandmaster Aryan Tari won his second Norwegian Championship title last weekend after narrowly edging GM Jon-Ludwig Hammer on tiebreak. Both players scored 6½/9. The tournament saw several top players withdraw in opposition to a controversial sponsorship proposal, that was eventually rejected by the Norwegian Chess Federation's Congress delegates. | Photo: Larvik Chess Club Facebook page

7/16/2019 – IM Lawrence Trent takes a look at how some of the 'old guard' can still move the pieces at the U.S. Senior Championship this week. Free for a limited time, or forever on-demand with a ChessBase Basic Account. You can register a free 90-day account to watch.

7/16/2019 – If you play e4, you have to have a good weapon against the Sicilian Defence, and unless you want to hide behind sidelines, you have to reach for 3.d4. On this three-volume set video series from Grandmaster Victor Bologan, you'll discover how to clear a path through the Sicilian's theoretical thicket. Check it out this week only for a special price!

7/16/2019 – After a rest day, the Sparkassen Chess meeting in Dortmund continues today with the 3rd round. In a German derby meet the national team Daniel Fridman and Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu each other. Live from 13.15 UTC (15:15 CEST / 9:15 AM EDT).