Black's barrier

9/16/2014 – Every week ChessBase Magazine author and renowned endgame expert Karsten Müller presents an endgame in his blog. Today you also have the chance to see him live. Just visit the playchess server at 16.00 CEST and go to Karsten Müller's "Endgame Magic" show. His guest today is GM Mihai Marin. To get in endgame mood, click on the diagram and have fun!

The Chess Train rolls again

9/16/2014 – Five days, five cities, five countries and one of the most charming chess events of the world - that is the "Chess Train Tournament 2014". The journey begins on October 10th and in the following five days the chess travelers will have the unique experience of playing a 12-round rapid tournament while visiting five of the most beautiful European cities.

ECC 02: Demolitions and Surprises!

9/16/2014 – An exciting game in the European Club Cup in Bilbao. In the Open section the big news of the day was the board one matchup between SHSM and SOCAR, in paper a close one, but one that was dominated by the Azerbaijani team with a brutal 5-1 score! Mamedyarov, Topalov, Adams, Radjabov vanquished Nepo, Morozevich, Dreev and Dubov. In the Women's section Monte Carlo lost yet again!

Bilbao Masters 02: Time Pressure Reigns

9/16/2014 – Today's games might have gone differently in the main stage at Bilbao had the players managed their time differently. Especially unlucky was Vallejo Pons who blundered the game against Anand "basically in one move". Aronian kept the pressure up against Ponomariov, who had a respite of only one move. He missed his chance, again in time pressure, and it looks like a two horse race.

Arkadij Naiditsch wins GRENKE Chess Classic

9/15/2014 – Arkadij Naiditsch, Germany's number one, is well-known for his aggressive play. In the GRENKE Chess Classic he lived up to his reputation and showed why he is Germany's number one. Despite losing in round two against up-and-coming talent Matthias Blübaum he won the tournament with 5.0/7, leaving David Baramidze and Daniel Fridman one point behind.

European Club Cup starts

9/15/2014 – Next to the Grand Slam Finals in Bilbao, a big room has one of the strongest open team tournaments in the World: the European Club Cup. With a few teams having an over 2700 average, the tournament could go to any one of the top ten teams. In the women's section it would seem that Monte Carlo is again the clear favorite, but unfortunately for them they didn't win their very first round!

Bilbao Masters 01: Anand starts well!

9/15/2014 – The 2014 Bilbao Masters Final has started. The four player double round robin is the main attraction in Bilbao, which is also hosting the European Club Cup. In today's games, it was Vishy Anand that started with a bang as he convincingly outplayed Ukrainian GM Ruslan Ponomariov. In the other duel Vallejo Pons tried to crack Levon Aronian from the opening, but it almost backfired.

Randy Sinquefield emerges victorious!

9/15/2014 – After Caruana shocked the whole world with his incredible performance, the players took part in a more relaxed chess event at the Saint Louis Chess Club. Well, more relaxed for some more than others! An unusual match between the top players, including one special guest, in the world was staged... with one big handicap: they were paired with the Sinquefields, two amateurs!

Karsten Müller: Olympiad Endgames

9/14/2014 – Our special course with endgames that occurred at the Chess Olympiad in Tromsø was interrupted by topical instructions on how to play the Vancura position. The course is brought to you by one of the world's leading endgame experts, Dr. Karsten Müller, whom you all know from ChessBase Magazine. Today we bring you, for your weekend study, the second Olympic installment.

Sharjah Grand Prix winner Ju Wenjun

9/14/2014 – She is still a simple WGM, not a full-fledged grandmaster – but only because of a clerical error. That will change pretty soon, now that Ju Wenjun has won a Grand Prix and reached a live rating of 2580. That makes her number four in the world in women’s chess. Her goal: "that one day I will have the chance to challenge the world champion." Portrait and interview.

Chess elite meets in Bilbao

9/13/2014 – In September the world's best players will meet in Bilbao. Levon Aronian, Vishy Anand, Ruslan Ponomariov and Francisco Vallejo-Pons will play a double-round-robin, and, parallel to this event, Anand's last tournament before the World Championship match, the European Club Cup will take place. One of the players: Fabiano Caruana. Press release...

Interview with Dominic Lawson

9/13/2014 – In October the English Chess Federation will elect a new president, and with a single nomination the result is clear: Dominic Lawson, one of Britain’s most prominent journalists and a well-known supporter of chess, will be chosen. Dominic has been a good friend for many years and agreed to a very frank and engaging interview on chess, life and mental disability.

Strayed rook

9/12/2014 – Chess pieces like company. In fact, they need it. The better in touch with their colleagues they are, the better the chances that their side will win the game. Unprotected pieces are vulnerable and can easily fall victim to a tactical shot. Much more so when queens are still on the board. However, to catch a stray piece you need to be tactically alert.

Huffington: Caruana's Spectacular Chess Leap

9/12/2014 – The Sinquefield Cup was arguably the strongest tournament in the history of chess. Fabiano Caruana, an Italian born in Miami, won the first seven games and finished the six-player double-round robin tournament three points ahead of the field. It was one of the best results in chess history. Huffington Post columnist Lubomir Kavalek compares it to other great chess performances.

Always worth a visit: The US Masters

9/11/2014 – Sabrina Chevannes, WIM from England, is a fan of the US Masters. Last year she obtained her title in this tournament and she was keen to come back this year. So, at the end of August she traveled to Greensboro, North Carolina, to try for more norms and prizes. And was again impressed by a strong field, a superb organisation and an amazing hospitality.

Behind the Scenes of the Sinquefield Cup

9/10/2014 – The Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis not only boasted the strongest field in history, but also invested in a full-scale production to broadcast the tournament to a mass audience. Alisa Melekhina takes a behind-the-scenes glimpse while Tony Rich reveals which future high-level events the organization plans to host. Pictorial behind-the-scenes report.

Komodo 8: bringing creativity back to chess

9/10/2014 – It is a different kind of chess engine. It makes extensive use of extensions, which leads to sounder positional play and the discovery of ideas that are much deeper and more subtle than other leading engines. In the process Komodo remains tactically sound and has achieved the top ranking in the computer rating lists. The latest version has now been released by ChessBase.

Pegasus chess extravaganza in Dresden

9/10/2014 – Do you recognize the three chess legends in our thumbnail image? All three played in the 1971 Candidates cycle (which Bobby Fischer won to become the challenger). The same three met again, 43 years later, to play a consultation game with live chess pieces in Dresden. We bring you the game and pictures of the legends today, playing in the Pegasus Chess Summit.

Radjabov's Rook

9/9/2014 – Every week ChessBase magazine author and renowned endgame expert Karsten Müller presents a remarkable or particularly instructive endgame in his blog. This week he chose the game Radjabov-Batista Bruzon. A click on the diagram opens a larger board. Test your endgame skills, improve and have fun!

Monastir – the chess hub of Tunisia

9/9/2014 – Tunisia is one of the most active chess nations in the Magreb and Africa. Today, the country's enthusiasm for the game has not diminished, and a lot of efforts are being made to strengthen the position of chess and give it an important place in the cultural and sport activities of the country. Diana Mihajlova reports on the big chess festival in the beautiful city of Monastir.

Karsten Müller: Understanding the Vancura draw

9/9/2014 – "It is insulting that Aronian is not resigning," said spectators on the server. Magnus Carlsen was two pawns up and chess engines were displaying +5 for the World Champion. But after a while it became clear: Levon Aronian knew the "Vančura position" and how to reach it. The game was drawn. For those of you who do not know the strategy here is a complete primer by Karsten Müller.

Humpy’s spectacular Indian wedding

9/8/2014 – Marriage in Europe or America can be lavish, but we cannot compete with the beauty and tradition of an Indian wedding. Recently the third strongest female chess player in history, Humpy Koneru, tied the knot in a wonderfully colorful ceremony. Sagar Shah, who celebrated his own wedding earlier this year, describes the traditions and practices. Congrats to Humpy and Anvesh!

Sharjah Final: The Two Chinese take it

9/8/2014 – With no big surprises in the last round it was Hou Yifan and Ju Wenjun, the long time leaders of the event, that finished at the very top of the field with an excellent 8.5/11, two more points than the big tie for third between Zhao Xue, Batchimeg Tuvshintugs, Harika Dronavalli and Anna Ushenina. Final round report and pictures of the small closing ceremony.

Carlsen signs for Sochi; will defend title!

9/7/2014 – After a tumultuous process to decide if the World Championship was or was not happening, it is now official. Magnus Carlsen has finally signed his contract and is scheduled to defend his title against contender Viswanathan Anand. Today was the World Champion's final day to decide whether he was agreeing to FIDE's terms or not, and for the good of chess he officially has.