4/28/2016 – ChessBase editor Sagar Shah met Boris Gelfand at the Candidates tournament 2016 in Moscow and did an hour long interview with him. In this first part we ask Boris about how he became such a strong blindfold player, how one should work on the three phases of the game, his best games of chess and how much importance he gives to computer engines. Besides this, you will also have a chance to test yourself with a study that Boris himself struggled with!

4/28/2016 – The Women's Grand Prix in Batumi remains interesting and produces lively games. After seven rounds none of the twelve players is without a loss and three players share the lead with 4.5/7 each: Valentina Gunina who won against Anna Muzychuk, the leader after round six, Nana Dzagnidze and Zhao Xue who in round seven won her third game in a row.

4/28/2016 – In round seven of the Norway Chess tournament Magnus Carlsen won an impressive game against Vladimir Kramnik by employing a new idea in a line of the Queen's Gambit Declined that had been considered as rather solid. At the board Kramnik found no adequate response to Carlsen's strategy and lost clearly. But maybe Black has alternatives? Daniel King takes a look.

4/28/2016 – In round seven Magnus Carlsen played against Vladimir Kramnik, one of his predecessors as World Champion. Carlsen seemed well prepared and won a fine strategic game in which he exploited Black's weak square f5 in textbook fashion. Levon Aronian used his space advantage to harass Black's king and to win with a mating attack. The three other games were drawn.

4/27/2016 – In the top encounter of round six at the Women's Grand Prix in Batumi Anna Muzychuk won against Almira Skripchenko, who had led the table after round five. Anna Muzychuk now has 4.0/6 and is half a point ahead of five players with 3.5/6 each. Former Women's World Champion Mariya Muzchuk, who had started badly, played against Olga Girya and scored her first win.

4/27/2016 – The Grand Prix series, which is part of the World Championship cycle, is increasing the number of participants and changing its format. FIDE and Agon have decided to expand the 2016-2017 Grand Prix to 24 players (from previously 16) in nine round Swiss events (from 11 round all-play-all). The total prize fund for the four GP tournaments, scheduled for October 2016 to July 2017, will be 520,000 Euros. Full details.

4/25/2016 – After the rest day, fans were looking forward to the clash between Carlsen and Giri a player the world champion has yet to beat in classical time controls. There was no blood and a relatively uneventful draw was the result. The two players to post full points had also not won a game yet: Harikrishna who beat Li Chao, and Topalov who defeated Grandelius. Report with GM analysis.

4/24/2016 – The closer we approach the finish line, the higher the stakes are and nerves are claiming their first victims. Such was the case in the crucial encounter between Anna Zatonskih and Tatev Abrahamyan, saw the blunder of the tournament considering the impact on the standings. Nevertheless, it was a great round with many entertaining games. Round nine with GM commentary.

4/24/2016 – The Game of Thrones is a wildly popular TV series watched by young and old alike across the world with unmatched devotion and it has achieved near cult status. It is based on the equally popular series of books named 'A Song of Ice and Fire'. Did you know that George RR Martin, the author of the books and TV series, was a chess player and organizer?

4/23/2016 – With tension and fatigue extracting their toll, the leaderboards have become jumbled. There are two leaders in the US Championship and a three way tie in US Women’s Championship. Nakamura is making a strong comeback and he is now only half a point behind the leaders, while Zatonskih joins leaders Paikidze and Abrahamyan in the Women's. Round eight with GM analysis.

4/23/2016 – After a gap of 15 years Mircea-Emilian Parligras once again became the Romanian National Champion. "Every time I said to myself – maybe next year. Now that it has finally happened, it is like a dream come true!" These were the feelings of Mircea after winning the title. In this article you will find an interview with the 35-year-old grandmaster and also two instructively annotated games by him. Parligras also shares with us his secrets of success and future plans.

4/22/2016 – We do not often link to general articles on chess in the mainstream media. But this one is inspiring and describes a chess initiative in New York City that deserves emulation. In after-school programs kindergarten and first graders are shown a different way of using their brains. Often they go on to beat elite private school teams. Some are even trained by weathered characters in Washing Square Park. Don't miss this one.