Super Final R1: Kasparov, Svidler and Grischuk victorious

11/15/2004 – The first round of the 57th Russian Championship Super Final started with victories by Garry Kasparov, Peter Svidler and Alexander Grischuk, the latter two winning their games with the black pieces. The field now consists of 11 players. We bring you results and games, and a beautifully illustrated report by Dagobert Kohlmeyer.

'I have never given up the idea of reunification'

11/13/2004 – Classical Chess World Champion Vladimir Kramnik recently expressed doubts on the current course of the reunification process, and dropped out of the Russian Super Final for health reasons. For this he has taken a lot of harsh criticism in the press and from chess fans. In a press release Kramnik explains his position.

Fritz and Chesster tops Amazon

11/13/2004 – For the first time the bestseller list in the Children software section of Amazon was topped by a chess program – ahead of Nancy Drew, I Spy and Backyard Baseball. Learn to Play Chess with Fritz & Chesster by Viva Media has received a 4½ (out of five) star rating. Meanwhile Viva has announced the release of Fritz 8 Deluxe. Curious?

Confirmed: Karpov drops out of Super Final

11/13/2004 – On Saturday night we reported that Anatoly Karpov had dropped out of the "Super Final" of the Russian Championship due to "other business commitments" . Our information, which came from contacts close to the organisation, was contradicted by chess friends in Moscow. Now the Russian news agency Itar Tass has confirmed: Karpov will not play.

2nd Mediterranean Championship in Antalya

11/12/2004 – The incredibly active Turkish Chess Federation is hosting another one: the second Mediterranean Men & Women Championship in the splendid Belek region of Antalya, Turkey. Dates: December 11–19, 2004. If you are a member of the Mediterranean Chess Association get your federation to nominate you now. Details...

Levy on Reunification

11/12/2004 – Recently David Levy, IM, computer expert, author, long-time FIDE delegate, wrote a hilariously satirical piece on the reunification process in chess. But laughter doesn't solve the very real problems that doubtlessly exist in the chess world today. Now David has sent us a dead serious evaluation of the situation and proposals for its resolution.

Susan Polgar's dream comeback

11/11/2004 – The US women's team made history at the Chess Olympiad by capturing Silver, the first ever Olympic medal for the United States. The player and driving force behind this success was Susan Polgar, who came out of a seven-year hiatus with a stunning performance. Here's the full story and part two of our interview with Susan.

Andrew Martin: The ABC of the Ruy Lopez

11/11/2004 – The venerable Ruy Lopez is one of the most interesting of chess openings. In a new multimedia DVD IM Andrew Martin explains how the opening works – in over 200 minutes of high-quality video instructions. The well-respected chess teacher and writer does this in the relaxed style for which he is known. More...

The Azmaiparashvili Saga – your views

11/10/2004 – The events at the end of the closing ceremony of the 36th Chess Olympiad stunned chess players all over the world. A FIDE vice president beaten and arrested? We returned from Calvià to find a barrage of letters from concerned readers – most in support of "Azmai", but some critical of his conduct in the affair. Take some time for a long but interesting read.

From the mailbag

11/10/2004 – While columnist Steve Lopez doesn't answer every e-mail he receives, he does read and consider them. Steve dips into the mailbag and comes up with some interesting messages that lead us from chess into the world of linguistics and the importance of context and subtext. Boring? Not when Steve sharpens his pen and gets going. Read all about it in the latest ChessBase Workshop.

Breaking news: Kramnik to skip Super Final

11/9/2004 – The "Super Final" of the 57th Russian Championship begins next week, with Kasparov, Kramnik, Morozevich, Svidler, Bareev, Grischuk, Karpov and six qualifiers from the championships in St. Petersburg and Tomsk. Well, strike Kramnik. We hear that the classical chess world champions won't participate.

The Taming of the Giuoco

11/8/2004 – The Moeller Attack in the Giuoco Piano is a complex line filled with traps Black must avoid. But before you give up 1…e5 altogether drop in at Playchess.com for Dennis Monkroussos's Monday night lecture. You might just end up considering the Moeller a free win with the black pieces.

Peter Heine Nielsen wins European Internet Championship

11/8/2004 – The Second European Internet Championship on Playchess.com ended in a triumph for Peter Heine Nielsen, who knocked out the likes of Kharlov, Short and Gelfand to take on England's Michael Adams in the final. The Danish GM won this encounter 0.5-2.5 to pocket the €2,400 first prize. Report and games...

Ali Nihat Yazici on the Azmaiparashvili scandal

11/7/2004 – Immediately after the FIDE VP was dragged off to the police station, the president of the Turkish chess federation burst into action. Here he gives a blow-by-blow account of his conversations with the Spanish organizers and federation officials. When he requested a lawyer for his friend Zurab he was told to look in the yellow pages!

Brain builders

11/7/2004 – If you find yourself jumping from diagram to diagram in your antiquated printed chess books and magazines, these exercises are definitely for you. Even if you have joined the 21st century with ChessBase 9 and our training videos, your skills will definitely benefit from this workout.

Kasimdzhanov-Kasparov is a go

11/6/2004 – According to an interview with FIDE president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov in the Russian paper Sport Express, the sponsorship of the K-K unification match in Dubai has been confirmed. The bank guarantees are in place and the match is scheduled for Jan. 14-Feb. 1. We now have a translation of the interview and a comment from Garry Kasparov.

The chess continues – for a thousand years

11/5/2004 – The 36th Chess Olympiad ended on the 31st of October, and hundreds of players left Mallorca. But 122 players from 34 different countries remained to take part in the International Open of Calvià – the first, we are told, of a thousand. Here's another look at the ruggedly beautiful Mediterranean island, including fledgling pictures by a world champion

Vishy Anand repeats in Corsica

11/5/2004 – You didn't need to be Nostradamus to see this one coming. Indian star Viswanathan Anand demolished Sergei Rublevsky in the final match of the Corsica Masters. That makes five Corsica titles in five years for Anand. One more and they should just rename the event the "Anand Masters" and get it over with. Is Anand unstoppable?

George Renko's new ChessBase training CD

11/5/2004 – ChessBase's accomplished tactics trainer George Renko has done it again! In the latest ChessBase Workshop, get a first glimpse of his newest tactics training CD Intensive Course Tactics 2. Workshop...

Zurab Azmaiparashvili's two days in prison

11/4/2004 – FIDE vice president Zurab Azmaiparashvili was attacked by security guards. Two days later he was released by a Spanish judge and was able to return to his native Georgia. We spoke to the battered GM immediately after his release. Let us know your opinion or express your support. Here is Zurab's harrowing story.

Anand rolls on in Corsica

11/3/2004 – Vishy Anand rolled over Etienne Bacrot to reach the final of the Corsica Masters. He will face Sergei Rublevsky, who beat his countryman Motylev with the aid of a little luck. Rublevsky is eager to change the course of history by denying Anand yet another Corsica title. Semifinal report and games.

ChessBase 9.0 – a matter of history (3)

11/3/2004 – A really useful feature of ChessBase 9 is "History". When you look for something you recently saw you don't need to search in a million game database. Just check the games you loaded in the last days or months. You will also find the new threat animation and 3D graphics of ChessBase 9 fascinating. Part three.

Exclusive! Bush vs Kerry on the chessboard

11/2/2004 – You've seen them debate, you've seen the commercials, you've heard all the exhortations, fabrications, and exaggerations. Now we can bring you what really counts, George W. Bush versus John Kerry on the 64 squares. From preemptive attacks to flip-flopping knights, this game has it all.

Corsican rules

11/2/2004 – India's Viswanathan Anand has won yet anoth.. oh, wait, the event's not over yet, sorry. The 8th Corsica Masters rapid tournament has reached the semifinals and Anand is positioned to renew his title yet again. He'll face Bacrot in the semis while Rublevsky and Motylev duel for the other finals spot. Report, games, and analysis.