1/8/2018 – In a series of articles we'll present the different shows we produce throughout the chess year. We'll begin with "Simon says" (mondays at 6pm CET). The english GM Simon Williams is one of the most popular commentators in chess. He's a regular to do live commentary in Gibraltar and Reykjavik as well as on playchess.com. | Photo: Alina L'Ami

1/8/2018 – The seventh round of Eka by IIFLIM International Chess tournament 2017-18 saw a very interesting event: an exciting blindfold simul starring GM Timur Gareyev! The Blindfold King was challenged by 12 young chess players, some of whom gave a very tough fight. Avathanshu Bhat, who was also in the simul, reported on the event. Timur not only played the simul scoring 10½ / 12 (with 3 draws), he also won his classical game against a 2300+ opponent and then came to the commentary studio to explain his win in a 25 minute masterclass! At the end of the day all we can think is, where does the man get all this energy from?! | Photo: Amruta Mokal

1/8/2018 – The Rilton Cup in Stockholm is over and in the end it came down to the many young players taking the top prizes. Six of the top seven places went to players under the age of 21. Kirill Alekseenko, Maksim Chigaev and Mikhail Antipov from Russia all won their games in rounds eight and nine and thus secured the podium places | Pictured: The decisive game of the tournament: Johan Salomon against Kirill Alekseenko | Photo: Lars OA Hedlund

1/7/2018 – More Vlastimil Hort stories from his time as a top grandmaster traveling the world to countless tournaments and matches. The living legend saw chess history in the making and share some of his memories. | Photo: André Schulz

1/7/2018 – At the end of our survey of 2017, we will be voting for the "Player of the Year 2017". We picked ten players who stood out over the past 12 months, excelling in one way or another. Choose your player of the year in our poll.

1/6/2018 – After the "Move of the Year", the "Endgame of the Year", and the "Game of the Year" we now ask you to vote for your chess personalities of the year. To start: Who was your "Female Player of the Year"? Vote here.

1/6/2018 – Twenty years ago this week, on January 2, 1998, Viswanathan Anand and Anatoly Karpov began their match for the FIDE World Championship in Lausanne, Switzerland — under peculiar circumstances. Anand had qualified for the match by winning the knock-out tournament in Groningen but then had to go immediately to Lausanne to play for the title — without a break or time for preparation.

1/6/2018 – The road to becoming a better player passes through many stages. One of these is predicting the future endgame in which one will enter. This is the true mastery, not memorising 25 moves of the Najdorf, but knowing which pieces will be advantageous to keep on the board, and which are better to let go. Through many painful losses, one can discover how difficult the game becomes when, for instance, the dust settles on the board and we find ourselves facing a good bishop with a bad knight. Now thanks to this DVD one can develop into a better player through many practical examples which guide the player through the maze of decisions we need to make when choosing what to exchange, or not, in a tournament game.

1/5/2018 – A solid tactical understanding is sure to help any chess player in critical situations. Whether it is a simple exchange or a mating attack, tactics are ubiquitous. Take advantage of the opportunity to develop your tactical understanding in this series with IM Oliver Reeh and Pascal Simon! Thursday at 15:30 CET (9:30 AM EDT) it's all about the Sicilian Exchange Sacrifice!

1/5/2018 – The XLVII Rilton Cup in Stockholm (Sweden) was down to two leaders after eight rounds setting up a dramatic final round showdown. GMs Johan Salomon and Kirill Alekseenko held a half point lead over six GMs going into Friday. And rather than make a quick draw, they played a full game, until Salomon blundered an exchange and was forced to resign on the spot, leaving Alekseenko the sole winner. Commentary by GM Harry Schüssler & FM Martin Lokander. | Photos: Lars OA Hedlund

1/5/2018 – Only a few chess enthusiasts will remember the name of Paul Felix Schmidt thought Schmidt was one of the world's best players in the 1930s and 1940s, and equal to his Estonian countryman Paul Keres. A new biography by Eva Regina Magacs and Michael Negele invites you to get to know Paul Felix Schmidt and chess in his time.

1/5/2018 – Since October, GM Pontus Carlsson has been experimenting with a relatively unexploited form of online coaching: group webinars. If you're looking for a low-cost way to access professional insights from someone with more than 20 years on the international chess scene as player and coach, the next one is starting on Saturday, January 6th, and is half price!