International Women's Chess Festival in Erfurt

6/6/2014 – "They are prettier, they dress better and have a much stronger fighting spirit," said GM Thomas Pähtz, when asked why he was organizing this big chess festival for women in eastern Germany in late August. For some reason he missed "photogenic". Thomas, a well-known chess trainer, is the father of the top German female, Elisabeth, who sent us this pre-tournament report.

5th Blitz Marathon to be broadcast live

6/6/2014 – If you itch to see fast-paced action while following the Herculean games in Norway, then on Saturday, you will be served. With 16 grandmasters and many more players, the 5th Blitz Marathon will run a continuous 21 rounds of five-minute blitz games in Marocco, with the top four boards broadcast on Playchess. On Sunday Vishy Anand and Alexander Ipatov will give a simul. Don't miss it.

Kasparov answers questions in Norway (2/2)

6/6/2014 – In this second part, Garry faces provocative questions, starting with Levon Aronian's allegation that aside from Kasparov and Karpov, there were no good players in the 80s. Even Short presents some misgivings, but it is not over when the former world champion is asked to discuss the 1.e4 and 1.d4 debate and why it has virtually disappeared from elite play. What do you think?

Norway 03: Fantastic Round!

6/5/2014 – A very hard round to predict. Carlsen barely held on against Caruana who had him against the ropes the majority of the game. Aronian blundered his queen in less than 15 moves and Grischuk mopped up the game. Karjakin miraculously drew against Agdestein who certainly had a winning position. Kramnik meanwhile cannot win Catalans with the white pieces, but he crushes with black!

Breaking news: "There will be a Chess Olympiad"

6/5/2014 – That's the good news the twitter account ChessOlympiadNorway could spread to the chess world. After doubts whether the 41. Chess Olympiad 2014, which will take place from 1. August to 14. August in Tromsø, Norway, could be financed, the Norwegian parliament has come to the rescue. With 12 million Norwegian Crowns (about 1.47 million euros).

To Tromsø with Style

6/5/2014 – Norway's coastline is spectacular. As has been noted by thousands of tourists and by Douglas Adams in his classic "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". But what does this have to do with chess? Well, if you want to visit the Chess Olympiad in Tromsø in August and experience the beauty of Norway's coast there is an opportunity to combine both.

Alexander Chernin - coach to the stars

6/5/2014 – There are coaches and there are coaches. Alexander Chernin is one whose pedigree of students elevated to stardom ranks him as one of the most successful in the world, and his students have included Fabiano Caruana, whom he mentored from IM to elite player, and now US stars such as Samuel Sevian and Jeffrey Xiong, both who just scored GM norms. A fascinating interview.

Kasparov answers questions in Norway (1/2)

6/5/2014 – During the first round of the Norway Chess tournament, Garry Kasparov appeared in the commentary box hosted by Dirk Jan Ten Geuzendam, editor-in-chief of New in Chess, and Nigel Short. While analyzing the games in progress, he also answered questions regarding players such as Caruana and Karjakin, and clarified a number of points on the campaign. He didn't mince words.

Norway 02: Caruana 2.0/2

6/4/2014 – Caruana showed excellent preparation and confused Svidler who could not keep up with the extreme complications over the board, putting the Italian player in a perfect 2.0/2 start. Aronian vanquished Karjakin, the Russian's first loss in 24 games. Topalov and Grischuk was also wild, and time pressure this time did not favor the Bulgarian who committed a series of mistakes.

French Team Ch: Clichy and Bischwiller victorious

6/4/2014 – It was a fitting conclusion to a great event held in Saint Quentin, France. In the penultimate round, not only was Clichy guaranteed the title, and Bischwiller the silver, but the two tail-enders condemned to play next year in the lower division and fight for their spot in the sun. Despite knowing the results, all the teams played the games in the final round to the bitter end.

13-year-old scores GM norm in Saint Louis

6/4/2014 – Saint Louis was recently named the capital of chess in America, and it is living up to its name. Only a couple of weeks after the US Championship two closed tournaments were held simultaneously; one an IM-norm and one a GM-norm section. The GM section was dominated by young kids, and the winner was 13 year old Samuel Sevian from California. Brian Jerauld brings us a full report.

Norway 01: Caruana strikes first

6/3/2014 – The first round in Stavanger almost saw five draws and a very solid series of games. Carlsen had some chances against Giri but an exceptional defense allowed the Dutchman to hold on to a draw. Grischuk got into his typical time pressure but his solid position should have ended in the players splitting the point, until a colossal move 39 mistake cost him the game Round one report.

Final Four Nations League Weekend – Part three

6/3/2014 – Over 850 players and £10,000 in cash prizes make this the most prestigious team chess event held in the United Kingdom. It takes place over various weekends from October to May 2013/14, in several venues. In the third (of four) reports John Saunders shows us two games, one an adventurous display of counterattacking chess, one a game that baffles chess engines. Learn and enjoy.

Norway Blitz brilliancies and blunders

6/3/2014 – Every chess player enjoys a blitz game, and there is nothing quite like watching the best of the best slug it out between themselves. Chess fans got a major dose of it in the opening day of Norway, where the elite fought for the fun and prestige of it. The predominant feature of blitz games is tactical fireworks and many great shots were made and missed. Can you find them?

Norway Blitz: Carlsen Crushes

6/2/2014 – Magnus Carlsen, who recently announced his goal of being the best player in blitz, rapid and standard time controls, proved that he is definitely capable of dominating all of chess' speeds as he razed his opposition in the blitz tournament in Norway. A crushing 7.5/9 eclipsed even Aronian's 6.5/9, a score that was enough to win last year. Full report with all the blitz games!

It's back: the Maharashtra Chess League 2014

6/2/2014 – It is a unique chess tournament that starts with an exciting bidding process by private sponsors to determined the line-ups of the teams. Some of the top Indian players are up for sale to the highest bidders: GMs Abhijit Kunte and Vidit Gujrathi netting Rs. 120,000 each. Present at the auction was former World Champion Viswanathan Anand. Big illustrated report by V. Saravanan.

June 2014 ratings - US teenagers in rocket race

6/1/2014 – The June ratings list saw some standout changes such as the consistent rise by Anish Giri and Wesley So as they close in on the Top 10. French player Romain Edouard also breaks into the 2700 for the first time, but the US is seeing a race of a rare kind. While 13-year-old IM Samuel Sevian just scored a GM norm, 14-year-old IM Jeffrey Xiong has gained 76 Elo in three months.

Super Chess in Stavanger begins Tomorrow

6/1/2014 – The 2014 edition of Norway's Super Tournament begins tomorrow with the blitz tournament to determine the pairing orders. With some of the best chess players, including the top four in the FIDE rankings, the beautiful city of Stavanger is yet again the center of attention of the chess world. We bring you a preview of the event as well as some fabulous views of the host city.

French Team Ch: three dominate

6/1/2014 – It had almost seemed as if the reigning champion, Clichy, would whitewash the event as they successively beat top challengers Bischwiller and Mulhouse, all with top players on their front lines. Just when the danger seemed past, Evry, a team that has been struggling in the event, pulled off a huge 3-3 upset, including some very unexpected board results. The lesson is never drop your guard.

Mitropa Cup: Hungary and Italy take gold

5/31/2014 – The Mitropa Cub in chess holds a unique status as a team event with national squads without being part of any of the official FIDE cycles. Despite this, it is now in its 33rd edition, with a full roster of teams and grandmasters playing. The men's event was won by Hungary thanks in large part to a monster result by Peter Acs, the Italians took the women's. A large illustrated report.

Asian Cup: China takes gold, India is silver

5/31/2014 – The final round of the men's competition was a cliffhanger since the medals were not assured, and a slip could end in tragedy. The Chinese men played Iran-A, and barely scraped through a win, thus taking gold, while India had an easy round and took silver. Iran's GM Elshan Moradiabadi sent us a report of the tour of Tabriz, with many fascinating glimpses into the culture of the region.

Two top Chicago

5/30/2014 – The traditional Chicago Open was held only days after the U.S. Championship. With many players taking advantage of the close location between the tournaments it is not a surprise that the event was incredibly strong. At the end, Armenian GM Gabriel Sargissian and Indian IM Priyadarshan Kannappan shared first place and the nice first prize.

Final Four Nations League Weekend – Part two

5/30/2014 – This tournament, held over three divisions, with over 850 players and over £10,000 in cash prizes on offer, is the most prestigious team chess event held in the United Kingdom. It takes place over various weekends from October to May 2013/14, in several venues. In his inimitable style – wonderful narrative, interesting analysis – John Saunders reports on the final weekend. Enjoy.

Asian Cup: China wins women's event

5/29/2014 – It was a perfect performance by the Chinese women as they completed a rout in the standard event, while India took silver and Iran-A bronze. Iran's double result against India in both the Open and Women event stood out as the last-minute draw in the women secured their medal, while the Indian men lost their lead after a win by Iran's Moradiabadi over Adhiban changed everything.