9/12/2002 – She is there in the Russian capital, covering the chess tournament. Our roving correspondent Anna Dergatscheva has sent us another batch of pictures that give you a nice impression of the match Russia vs the Rest of the World. They include Alexander Motylev with chess groupies, Alexandra Kosteniuk with a pushy admirer and an exclusive first-time shot of Kramnik with his wife (left). More

9/11/2002 – The Russians are playing against the Rest of the World – and although they fielded a "dream team" they are not doing well at all. Elsewhere we have reported on the abysmal performance, after eight rounds, of the four Ks. Now our very special correspondent Anna Dergatscheva, who is in Moscow, has sent us a special illustrated report with her impressions of the tournament. Find out why Peter Svidler was hobbling around on crutches or what exactly Judit Polgar is preparing for (psst – motherhood?). You will find Anna's personal report here.

9/11/2002 – Amazing, isn't it? The regular media will ignore big chess events, but if Russia, and especially Garry Kasparov, loses, then it is all over the news. "Russia falls behind in chess", reported ABC, and "Shock defeat for chess tsars" the Sydney Morning Herald. And just listen to this phone-in discussion in 720 ABC Perth. Results, games and statistics are on our special Moscow report page.

9/10/2002 – Viktor Kortschnoj easily outplayed Arkadi Naiditsch, 56 years his junior, while Yannick Pelletier turned a very precarious position into a stunning victory with his opponent's rook hopelessly trapped on a8. So after the first leg of the match the Germans return from Switzerland with a meagre 0.5 points and have their work cut out for them next weekend in Berlin. You will find an illustrated report here.

9/10/2002 – They have all been world champions, they are all playing for Russia against the Rest of the World. But their performance are all well under par. Karpov and Khalifman have played 40 and 92 points below their expected scores, Kramnik is struggling at minus 161 and Garry Kasparov lost to Ivanchuk, Judit Polgar and Vladimir Akopian (in 25 moves!) to chalk up an incredible minus 242. Results and games are available here.

9/9/2002 – If Viktor Kortschnoj had had his stubborn way it would in fact have been 2-0. The maximalist dominated in his game against Lutz, had a tremendous passed pawn on e6, but had to conceed a draw because of opposite coloured bishops. On the other board Yannick Pelletier of Switzerland defeated Germany's Arkadi Naiditsch in a very exciting encounter. More

9/5/2002 – This weekend we will see an interesting match between the top Swiss and German GMs Kortschnoj and Lutz, and the brightest young stars of both countries Pelletier and Naiditsch. The games are being held in the world-famous Savoy hotel (admittance free). You can also watch the action on the Fritz7 Playchess server. You will find further details here

9/3/2002 – In September Russia will play against the "Rest of the World" in Moscow, at the chess Olympiad in Bled (October 25) they will field Kasparov, Bareev, Morozevich, Grischuk, Khalifman and Svidler. In a Moscow park some of the players could be seen doing battle in an open-air blitz tournament. Guess who won. Eugeny Ataov has sent us a spectacular picture report.

9/2/2002 – Chess is for boring old fogies. Male fogies. Not any more! These days it can be about curls and dredlocks, plunging necklines and bra straps. Really! If you don't believe us just visit the French Championship at Val d'Isère. You will find corroborative pictures in our special report on this very attractive tournament. Oh, yes, what's-his-face won. Bacrot.

9/1/2002 – Iceland is probably the only country in the world with more GM's then IM's! This "rock in the Northern Atlantic" easily has the largest GM's per capita ratio of any country. And some spectacular scenery, as you can see in this final report on the Icelandic Championship. There are also ten interesting tactical problems to solve at the end of the article.

8/29/2002 – The Icelandic Chess Championships 2002 has turned into a triumph for Hannes Stefansson. After eight rounds he was leading with a perfect 8.0 score. In round nine he lost his first game against Helgi Gretarsson, who was trailing 2.5 points behind in second place. Still Stefansson's performance is an incredible 2702 (he is rated 2588). More

8/27/2002 – In France the national championship, with a total of over 1000 players, has men and women playing on the same stage in Val d'Isère. For the first time ever one of the women, Almira Skripchenko, is even playing in the top men's section. The women's section is being led by the young and very talented Marie Sebag (2344, picture right). More