Train the trainers: the ECU Online Trainers Conference

9/22/2021 – Having regular training and having a good trainer helps enormously to improve one's game. But trainers also need to be trained, and this is what the European Chess Union and the European Chess Academy do in the "ECU Online Trainers Conference" from 1 October to 3 October, in which some of the world's best and most experienced trainers share their methods and secrets.

Karpov vs Kortschnoi in the movies: "The World Champion"

9/22/2021 – Chess is currently a popular subject for films. In Russia, production of a feature film about the dramatic and at times scandalous 1978 World Championship match between Anatoly Karpov and Viktor Kortschnoi began in 2019 and has now been completed after a forced break caused by the pandemic. The film will be released in Russian cinemas in December.

With a new format: Women’s World Team Championship in Sitges

9/22/2021 – The FIDE Women’s World Team Championship kicks off on September 26 at the Catalonian coastal town of Sitges. A new format will be in place: instead of the usual round-robin, the 12 teams will be divided into two pools of approximately the same strength; 4 top teams from each pool will qualify for the knockout playoff. The time control will be shorter than usual, with 45 minutes for the whole game and a 10-second increment per move.

The Weekly Show: Norway Chess Final

9/21/2021 – In his "Weekly Show" IM Lawrence Trent focuses on the end of Norway Chess and Carlsen’s fantastic resurgence in the second half to win the tournament. He will also briefly cover the Hou Yifan Challenge, Norway Open Masters and European Club Cup. But the game of the day will be the exciting encounter Firouzja-Rapport, which involved a very interesting opening debate but ultimately one that was successful for the young prodigy. | Lawrence's show is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can register a Premium account here

Hou Yifan Challenge - Live!

9/21/2021 – The Hou Yifan Challenge, the final regular event on the Julius Baer Challengers Chess Tour, will take place on September 18-21 in the chess24 Playzone. The prize fund is $15,000, with $3,000 for the winner, who also gets to play alongside Magnus Carlsen and co. in the next edition’s first event of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour.

Hou Yifan Challenge: Keymer leapfrogs Pragg

9/21/2021 – Vincent Keymer grabbed the lead on the third day of action at the Hou Yifan Challenge. Praggnanandhaa, who had a perfect 9/9 start, only scored a half point on Monday and is now sharing second place with Christopher Yoo. Pragg has played one more game than Keymer and Yoo in the 17-player single round-robin.

"The Queen's Gambit": Eleven Emmys and a lawsuit

9/21/2021 – After winning nine Emmys in technical categories, "The Queen's Gambit", the chess series based on Walter Tevis' novel, on Sunday also won Emmys for "Outstanding Limited Or Anthology Series" and "Outstanding Directing For A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie". However, former Women's World Champion Nona Gaprindashvili is unhappy about the production - she feels she was misrepresented in the series.

Gukesh clinches Norway Open Masters, Iniyan finishes second

9/21/2021 – Gukesh D won the masters’ section of the Norway Chess Open in Stavanger. He scored 8½/10, remained undefeated, performed at 2743 and gained 17.5 Elo rating points. His compatriot Iniyan P scored 7½/10 to finish at second position. He performed at 2550 and increased his rating by 6.7 points. Gukesh is currently playing for Prilep (North Macedonia) at the European Club Cup. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

A surprising mate

9/21/2021 – Even in endgames one should not forget that mate ends the game. In the diagram position it is White to move and win. What did he do?

Karsten Mueller’s Endgame Magic #161: Carlsen and Capablanca

9/20/2021 – One of the most fascinating recent endgames was Magnus Carlsen's win against Alireza Firouzja in round 6 of the Norway Chess Tournament: in a slightly better position that seemed to be impossible to win Carlsen worked his magic and created an endgame masterpiece. In the "Endgame Magic Show #161" Karsten Müller and Arne Kähler take a look at this astonishing endgame and show why it is good to know the classics. | Endgame Magic is on air most Mondays. Watch it on-demand with a ChessBase Premium account.

Etienne Bacrot on reliving the winning feeling

9/20/2021 – Etienne Bacrot went into this year’s World Cup without any expectations, including qualifying for the 2022 FIDE Grand Prix, a series of three tournaments that will serve as a qualifying route for the next Candidates. Understandably so, as the last time the French Grandmaster had played in a Fide Grand Prix was in 2013. "Based solely on my rating (2658), I could not have qualified for the Grand Prix. It’s crazy that I made it this time," Bacrot said on the sidelines of a rapid tournament that was held in Asniéres-sur-Seine near Paris on September 11 and 12. | Photo: Pascal Simon (Archive)

Play The Author - Thematic tournament with Lars Schandorff

9/20/2021 – Last week, Grandmaster Lars Schandorff from Denmark faced nine brave CBM readers for the fourth "Play The Author" round-robin tournament this year. The chosen opening was 4.Bg5 Bg7!? in the Grünfeld. The Danish GM won the tournament and all games, except one draw. While a Canadian player reached the second place, the youngest participant (13 years old) from Germany, managed to get the third place. | Photo: Facebook - Lars Schandorff

ChessBase Tactics web app: Best by test

9/20/2021 – Among the myriad apps and services offered with a subscription to ChessBase Account is the Tactics web app. This concept is hardly new, and readers undoubtedly are aware of a plethora of rival sites and apps offering this same service, so what makes this one so special? What makes it deserving of the headline "best by test"? Read on to find out!

Hou Yifan Challenge: Pragg keeps up the pace

9/20/2021 – Apparently there is no stopping Praggnanandhaa at the Hou Yifan Challenge for young stars. The Indian prodigy has won all 9 of his games so far in the rapid tournament taking place online. Vincent Keymer is currently in second place, two points behind Pragg, albeit with one game less to his name. Keymer will face Pragg on Monday, in round 11. | Pictured: Pragg during a training session with Vladimir Kramnik in 2019 | Photo: Amruta Mokal

Do pawns disregard Einstein?

9/19/2021 – A pawn promotion is a huge event in a chess game, as the energy garnered by the pawn advancing up the board is transformed in a most un-Einsteinian way (surely a pawn’s advance doesn’t create that much energy) into serious amounts of matter. Star columnist Jon Speelman looks at overwhelming pawn avalanches, and analyses a game in which Albert Einstein got the better of Robert Oppenheimer. | Pictured: Albert Einstein and Robert Oppenheimer in 1947

Understanding before Moving 44: Attacking with opposite-coloured bishops

9/19/2021 – Herman Grooten is an International Master, a renowned trainer and the author of several highly acclaimed books about chess training and chess strategy. In the 44th instalment of his ChessBase show “Understanding before Moving”, Herman shows how to attack with opposite-coloured bishops. | Photo: Tommy Grooten

Hou Yifan Challenge: Pragg still perfect

9/18/2021 – Day 1 of the Hou Yifan Challenge, the last regular event of the Julius Baer Challengers Tour, saw Praggnanandhaa scoring five wins in as many games to take the sole lead. Vincent Keymer won his first four games, but lost against Christopher Yoo in the final round of the day, and now stands in sole second place. Pragg’s sister Vaishali was the strongest among the women, as she collected 2½ points in four games. | Pictured: Vaishali and Pragg with their mother, Nagalakshmi | Photo: Amruta Mokal

Carlsen wins Norway Chess, Firouzja shines

9/18/2021 – Magnus Carlsen beat Ian Nepomniachtchi in Armageddon to secure first place at the 2021 Norway Chess Tournament. This is the world champion’s third straight triumph in his home super-tournament. Alireza Firouzja had a great performance, ending the tournament with four wins in a row to get sole second place and climb to ninth place in the world ranking. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Chess Pioneer Sues Netflix

9/18/2021 – Nona Gaprindashvili, a history-making chess champion, has sued the giant video portal Netflix over a line in the series ‘The Queen’s Gambit’, where it was claimed that the female world champion had never faced men. Nona and her attorneys called the statement grossly sexist and belittling. "By 1968, the year in which the episode is set, she had competed against at least 59 male chess players." The international news is full of the story.

An uncompromising attack

9/18/2021 – In the diagram position, Black just burned his bridges by playing 7...Bg4 which forces White to win a piece with 8.f3. Putting aside "modern objectivity" - what I like about the following attack is the energy of Black's moves. He only has one goal in mind: to mate the enemy king. A full-speed nostalgia trip - enjoy!

Young stars ready to battle at Hou Yifan Challenge

9/17/2021 – The Hou Yifan Challenge, the final regular event on the Julius Baer Challengers Chess Tour, will take place on September 18-21 in the chess24 Playzone. The prize fund is $15,000, with $3,000 for the winner, who also gets to play alongside Magnus Carlsen and co. in the next edition’s first event of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour.

Robert Ris’ Fast and Furious: Nepo's King's Gambit

9/17/2021 – This week, well-known Dutch trainer Robert Ris shows how Ian Nepomniachtchi used the goold old King's Gambit to score a quick win in his Armageddon match against Alireza Firouzja at the Norway Chess Tournament. | “Fast and Furious” is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can register a Premium account here.

Norway Chess - Carlsen takes first place

9/17/2021 – Magnus Carlsen beat Ian Nepomniachtchi in Armageddon to secure first place at the 2021 Norway Chess Tournament. This is the world champion’s third straight triumph in his home super-tournament. Alireza Firouzja had a great performance, ending the tournament with four wins in a row to get sole second place and climb to 9th place in the world ranking. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / norwaychess.no

Young Stars return to in-person session

9/17/2021 – The Kasparov Chess Foundation (KCF) and Saint Louis Chess Club have been running the very successful Young Stars – Team USA program for the past six years. Team USA’s program has helped develop several American chess prodigies from across the country. including the likes of GM Jeffery Xiong and GM Sam Sevian. Team USA has been capped off with individualized training sessions with Kasparov’s coaching staff and special training sessions with Garry Kasparov himself. | Photo: Left to Right standing: Christopher Yoo, Michael Khodarkovsky, Garry Kasparov, Brandon Jacobson. Sitting: Carissa Yip and Rochelle Wu | Photos: Kasparov Chess Foundation