The closing ceremony that rocked Batumi

10/8/2018 – The closing ceremony of the Batumi Chess Olympiad 2018 was a power-packed one. Prizes were not only given to the top three performing teams and their players, but there were so many other medals, including individual board medals and also gold medals for teams in Groups A to E. We bring you videos, photos and descriptions to give you a feel for how wonderfully this closing ceremony was conducted. | Pictured: The Chinese men and women's team took the front two rows in the auditorium | Photos: Amruta Mokal

Magnus Carlsen's Play Live Challenge

10/8/2018 – Live from 18:30 CEST (16:30 UT) is the Play Magnus: Play Live Challenge from the Hamburg headquarters of Der Spiegel. Twelve players took on the World Champion in a clock simul (30 minutes per player for the whole game). Live commentary (in English and German) was provided by Grandmaster Daniel King. This is the fourth edition of what has become an annual event, and Carlsen has yet to drop even one-half point. He won all twelve games of the 2018 edition.

Simon Says — More Olympiad highlights

10/8/2018 – In this Simon Says, Simon takes a look at the most interesting games from the second half of the Olympiad. Simon is live this week, so tune in at 18:00 CEST (16:00 UT / Noon EDT) for free access to this popular ChessBase show, or try a Basic ChessBase account for on-demand replay. You can register a free 90-day account to watch.

Amateur blitz on a Friday night

10/8/2018 – Blitz is often bad-mouthed and thought as damaging a player's development. The historical evidence shows the contrary. Most legendary names like Fischer, Bronstein, Tal, were all avid blitz players. The benefit of blitz is easy to understand: within the short span of time of a blitz game, one can see the defects in thought-process, opening repertoire and of course, missing endgame knowledge. Especially at the amateur level, blitz can be a fundamental tool to improve one's own chess. A blitz tournament at the chess club is also a chance for that human interaction, which unfortunately was taken away being modern chess played mainly online. Chess is definitely more pleasant, and exciting when played face to face over the board, and of course more painful!

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry flies over chess

10/7/2018 – “Here is my secret. It is very simple: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly”. This phrase, extracted from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s ‘Little Prince’, has travelled all around the world, like its author had done while alive. The French writer and aviator was, incidentally, also very fond of chess. SERGIO NEGRI compiles quotes, anecdotes and interpretations that confirm this compelling, albeit unsurprising, connection.

Dvorkovich ally Lewis Ncube remains African chess head

10/7/2018 – The FIDE Presidential election was not the only heated contest at the FIDE Congress. The African Chess Confederation held an election for its President and deputies as well, which proved to be much closer than the FIDE election and included its own case of "withdraw and endorse" at the eleventh hour. But unlike Nigel Short, ACC candidate Tshepo Sitale's plea to support insurgent candidate Essoh Essis failed to tip the scales sufficiently to stave off Lewis Ncube — an Ilyumzhinov loyalist who supported Dvorkovich — who was narrowly re-elected to a new term. | All photos: Macauley Peterson

How China conquered the Batumi Olympiad 2018 with a double gold

10/6/2018 – The excitement levels had gone off the charts for the final round of the Batumi Olympiad 2018. The strongest teams were fighting against each other to decide who would take gold. USA and China were pitted against each other in the open section and China and Russia faced off against each other in the women's. The matches ended in 2-2 draws with a lot of drama surrounding them. The tiebreaks favoured China in both the sections and they went home with a double gold! In the Open, the USA took the silver and Russia the bronze while in the Women's Ukraine had to be content with silver, and bronze went to Georgia's first team. Full report from Batumi by Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal.

The tragic fate of Vladimir Petrovs

10/5/2018 – Vladimir Petrovs had a tragic life. He was born in 1907 and became one of the strongest players in Latvia. His biggest success was the international tournament in Kemeri 1937 where he finished joint first with Reshevsky and Flohr, ahead of Alekhine and Keres. When Germany occupied Latvia in WW II he fled to Moscow but after critical remarks about the commuist regime he was arrested and in August 1943 he died in a Soviet labour camp. | Photo: Vladimir Petrovs with his wife Galina (Russkije.lv)

Staircase to heaven

10/5/2018 – From the diagram position White's rooks display amazing flexibility to outsmart Black's passers. Things start with 1.Ra3+ Kb4 2.Rab3+ before the ways (mate nets) divide. Enjoy!

The election of Arkady Dvorkovich

10/5/2018 – We present the highlights and analysis of an extraordinary day in Batumi: The FIDE General Assembly convened Wednesday in Batumi, in a hotly contested presidential election that was closer than it has been in decades, but not as close as expected, with many delegates still undecided right up until the end. It will be a new chapter in the history of FIDE as the reign of Greek International Master Georgios Makropoulos draws to a close after 103 federation delegates voted in favour of the Russian Arkady Dvorkovich. Nigel Short, who made a dramatic last-minute endorsement of Dvorkovich, was later appointed to be one of several Vice-Presidents. | All photos: David Llada / batumi2018.fide.com

Chess Olympiad LIVE: Double-gold for China

10/5/2018 – Closing ceremony, top Round 11 matches, final standings and commentary from the 43rd World Chess Olympiad taking place in Batumi, in the Republic of Georgia. China took gold in the Open followed by the USA (silver) and Russia (bronze), all tied on match points. In the Women's it was China and Ukraine with gold and silver, with Georgia taking the clear bronze. All Round 11 matches at live.chessbase.com

Batumi Olympiad Round 10: The mega duel China vs USA will decide the gold!

10/5/2018 – It's the finale of the 43rd World Chess Olympiad 2018 and we couldn't have asked for a better match-up. It's USA versus China in the open section to decide who takes home the gold and China against USA in the women's section on the top board! The strongest of teams have been paired against each other and it is extremely difficult to predict who will take home the three medals at stake. It's final rounds like these that make a tournament like Olympiad exciting! Round 10 report from Batumi, Georgia.

Dvorkovich wins FIDE election

10/4/2018 – A Russian politician is the new FIDE President. Arkady Dvorkovich defeated incumbent Georgios Makropoulos by 103 votes to 78, after the third candidate Nigel Short withdrew his application. The election was held during the 89th FIDE general assembly in Batumi – where the Chess Olympiad is currently under way. Dvorkovich has announced an annual budget of three million Euros for developing countries. Read the international news reports. Full report and analysis on the FIDE election.

Batumi Olympiad Round 9: Poland stuns USA

10/4/2018 – Being the sole leader at the Olympiad is not an easy task. USA was the sole leader with 15.0/16 going into the ninth round. They were the clear favourites facing the Polish team. But the inspired Poles played out of their skins and beat the US with three draws and the decisive result being Piorun beating Nakamura. In the women's section China has taken the sole lead by beating Kazakhstan 3-1. We have round 9 report from Batumi by Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal with GM analysis by Surya Sekhar Ganguly.

The Reliable Petroff

10/4/2018 – How do you choose an opening for Black against 1.e4? One idea is to watch the games of the most influential players and discover how you feel about their main choices. But in general, having a number of games at our fingertips to use as a foundation for knowing the opening is a must for every serious player. The Petroff has been considered a safe and solid way to play for equality, but as we will see in this review, it can become quite a sharp weapon to add to one's own repertoire. This can be ideal for the weekend tournament warrior, as well as for club players. The collection of games given with this review will help the reader make an informed choice, discovering the manoeuvres, ideas and risky lines available in the Petroff.

The Game of the Week

10/3/2018 – Ideas and strategies in Grandmaster games can be quite instructive. IM Merijn van Delft presents games like these every Wednesday at 20:00 CEST (19:00 UT, 2 pm EDT). On this week's show: More excitement at the Olympiad! Featuring Peter Leko vs Maxme Vachier-Lagrave in a Najdorf Sicilian.

NEW: The Aggressive Classical Dutch for Black

10/3/2018 – The Dutch (1.d4 f5) is known as a very aggressive and unbalanced opening, resulting in the lowest percentage of draws among the most common replies to 1.d4 . The opening became popular during the 1951 World Championship match, where both players tried it successfully. Today, players known for spectacular attacking chess are using the opening as a dangerous, surprise weapon.

Batumi Olympiad Round 8: USA beats Azerbaijan in a thriller

10/3/2018 – It was perhaps the most hard-fought round of the tournament. Nine out of the first ten matches ended decisively in the open section. We now have a sole leader — USA in the open section. The US team managed to beat Azerbaijan in a thrilling match. In the women's section, Ukraine managed to beat overnight leaders Armenia to take the top spot. They are joined by the Chinese girls. With three rounds to go this Olympiad is excitingly placed with the biggest match today being USA taking on Poland in the open section. Report from Batumi by Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal.

Dvorkovich curries favour with the players

10/3/2018 – Last month the Association of Chess Professionals endorsed him with high praise, saying "it's time for a change" and in Batumi, Arkady Dvorkovich has been making a strong final push to woo delegates and players alike. The latter group don't get to vote, but here's why they ACP says they support him. | Pictured: The Kazakhstan Women's team of Assel Serikbay, Guliskhan Nakhbayeva, Dinara Saduakassova, Gulmira Dauletova, Zhansaya Abdumalik | Photo: David Llada

Makropoulos in-depth interview

10/2/2018 – "Georgios Makropoulos, the person who has ruled chess for almost three decades, has barely given any interviews," starts a new interview profile of the FIDE presidential candidate on the new American Chess Magazine blog. Indeed, while ChessBase has previously published long conversations with Makropoulos' running-mate Malcolm Pein, as well as Makropoulos' rivals, self-proclaimed "insurgent candidate" GM Nigel Short and Russian economic policy expert Arkady Dvorkovich, the incumbent has declined other interview requests. We run down the topics and key quotes with kind permission of ACM. | Photo: David Llada

The Weekly Show with Lawrence Trent

10/2/2018 – Tuesdays at 18:00 CEST (5:00 pm UK time, Noon EDT) Lawrence Trent brings you the latest trends, games and combinations from elite chess tournaments. The is streamed live, free for all, and will be available on-demand for ChessBase Premium account holders. This week Lawrence's focus is the Chess Olympiad!

Traffic jam

10/2/2018 – Endgames with opposite-colored bishops are often drawn. But one should keep in mind that connected passed pawns are always dangerous.

Batumi Olympiad Round 7: The medals are not too far away!

10/2/2018 – With just four rounds to go, we are now closing in on the last lap of the 43rd Batumi Chess Olympiad 2018. The seventh round of the women's event saw the lead change hands. Armenia beat the USA and are now the sole leaders. In the men's section, Poland and Azerbaijan drew their games to stay at the top but are now joined by the USA. Armenia is standing solely on the second position with 12.0/14 in the open section. Read on for some instructive positions, exciting pictures and videos that tell you more details about the matches. | Pictured: It was the first time that all the three Polgar sisters (L-R: Judit, Sofia and Susan) were commentating together | Photo: Amruta Mokal

African Chess Confederation candidates in their own words

10/2/2018 – Later this week, delegates to the African Chess Confederation will vote on a new presidential administration following the FIDE General Assembly in Batumi. Three candidates, each a veteran of African chess politics, will face off in a race which in some ways mirrors the larger FIDE election campaigns. Ogunsiku Babatunde, CEO of Africa Chess Media, endeavoured to arrange an in-person debate to allow delegates to hear from each of the three candidates. As of late Monday, two of the three candidates have confirmed participation in the debate to be held Tuesday between 7 and 9 pm local time. Mr. Lewis Ncube is expected to give a response Tuesday morning. There has already been a preliminary debate-like discussion, however, held via the group chat application WhatsApp, and we share that with you here.