Tashkent 08: Humpy increases lead

9/27/2013 – Humpy scored a very important victory today by beating the second seed Zhao Xue. This, coupled with the fact that both of her closest rivals drew, gives her a full point lead over Lagno and Harika. With only three rounds to go it seems that she is clearly in a pathway to taking the tournament, but of course it is not over yet. Pictorial report of round 8.

Paris 05: Two Black wins

9/27/2013 – The players used the rest day to visit the breath taking Palace of Versailles. During their visit, the Chapelle in which they are playing was used for a fascinating chess art exhibit by the famous French artist Zigou. The players came re-energized to the tournament, and Grischuk and Bacrot were able to win with Black. Gelfand is back to solo lead after his draw against Wang Hao. Full analysis and pictorial report.

2013 World Junior: Yangyi and Goryachkina are gold

9/27/2013 – Sometimes great is not enough. These are the only words of consolation one can offer Alexander Ipatov, whose great score of 10.5/13, the same by Kasparov and Mamedyarov in the past, was overshadowed by Yu Yangyi's amazing 11.0/13 and 2813 performance. In the Girl's section, 15-year-old Aleksandra Goryachkina took gold and 13-year-old Zhansaya Abdumalik was silver. Report, pictures and stats.

ChessBase Magazine #156 – download sample!

9/27/2013 – The King's Gambit does not have a good reputation according to opening theory but in a practical game the black player must remember lots of variations especially when he goes for the main line with 3...g5. In the new issue of CBM, German IM Martin Breutigam recommends a rare but highly successful sideline with 3...Ne7. You can download his article for free! More.

Colbert and Mayweather talk chess

9/26/2013 – In April 2012 American political satirist and television host Stephen Colbert interviewed Magnus Carlsen and even played some quick rock-paper-sissors games with him (Magnus won). Today Colbert did a another bit on chess – and introduced a world champion boxer as an expert on the subject. You can watch the hilarious Floyd Mayweather cameo and review the Carlsen interview. Enjoy.

Novy Bor Final: Topalov clinches

9/26/2013 – Topalov was able to very successfully wrap up his match against Laznicka. He was held easily to a draw in his last white game, he came back with a vengeance in the final round as he destroyed his opponent in a beautiful positional game. From the beginning it was clear that Laznicka's dark squares were going to be a problem, and the Bulgarian exploited it beautifully. Analysis of the last game.

World Championship: interview with Anand

9/26/2013 – The Russian Internet TV channel Chess TV has recorded two interview for the upcoming World Championship match. Last week we showed you the first with Norwegian challenger Magnus Carlsen; today we bring you a 23-minute interview with Viswanathan Anand in which the World Champion expresses his thoughts on the match, his chess career and life in general. Do not miss this one.

Tashkent 07: A Black day

9/26/2013 – Four players managed to win today with the black pieces, though one of the most important of these victories could easily have favored white. Muminova was very close to beating Humpy and she had a decisive advantage, but she faltered in the most important moment and the Indian player took the game and the lead, half a point of Harika and Lagno who drew each other. Report and analysis.

Paris 04: Dominguez, Ivanchuk win

9/25/2013 – Dominguez and Ivanchuk scored today against Giri and Fressinet. The Cuban was able to quickly dismantle Giri's defenses after the latter's pawn sacrifice from the opening failed to yield full equality. Fressinet had chances for an advantage against Ivanchuk but slowly the tides turned against him and it is now the Ukrainian that is tied for first with Gelfand at 3.0/4. Round four report

World Junior: Battle of the prodigies to decide gold

9/25/2013 – The 2013 World Junior Championship has now rounded the last turn for the final sprint to the finish. The Open section is seeing a dominant performance by Yu Yangyi, followed closely by defending champion Alexander Ipatov, while the Girl’s section has seen Russian prodigy Aleksandra Goryachkina take sole lead, followed closely by 13-year-old Kazakh phenom Zhansaya Abdumalik. Large pictorial.

After game five it could start from the beginning

9/25/2013 – Women's World Champion Anna Ushenina took a pounding in the World Championship match that ended in Taizhou, China, last week. Challenger Hou Yifan won four games – while three were drawn. That in spite of the fact that "Anya" had some top-class seconds. One of them, former FIDE world champion Alexander Khalifman describes the ordeal in this indepth interview.

Tashkent 06: Lagno catches the Indians

9/25/2013 – Lagno was definitely the one that can be most satisfied from this round. While the duel of the leaders beteween Humpy and Harika ended in a hard-fought draw, Lagno was able to outplay Stefanova and catch up with them at 4.5/6. This leaves the tournament up for grabs for any of them, although Khotenashvili has also entered the fray as she beat Girya with the black pieces. Report of the 6th round.

Paris 03: Four white wins

9/24/2013 – Four important white victories where achieved today in Paris. Nakamura and Gelfand were able to defend their opponents initiative and cash in material, even though the latter's technique was a bit messy. Caruana outclassed Fressinet from a Spanish opening and lastly Ivanchuk won a game in which Wang Hao was too eager to push for a win Report of an exciting round three.

Hou Yifan: was not as easy as people might think

9/24/2013 – At the age of 12 this extraordinary Chinese chess talent became the youngest player ever to participate in a FIDE Women's World Championship. At 16 she actually won the title, defended it once and then lost it in a knockout tournament, regaining it again last week. "It’s time to look for new things in chess, in studies, in other parts of life," the 19-year-old says in this indepth interview.

Novy Bor: Topalov leads 2.5-1.5

9/24/2013 – In absolutely fantastic games Topalov has been able to score 1.5/2 in games three and four against Laznicka. The latter was lucky to save the third game, but very unlucky in the fourth as he blundered a clear advantage in time pressure. Topalov gave a lovely simultaneous to the local players, including this young lady that held him to a draw. Analysis and report.

Paris 02: Fressinet scores, many draws

9/23/2013 – In what seems like a conspiracy to figure out how to circumvent the Sofia anti-draw rules that are active in this tournament, the players managed to draw in less than thirty moves in two games while two others were somewhat pale games anyways. Fressinet takes advantage of this by beating Grischuk and catches Gelfand at 1.5/2. Report of the games and pictures of the second round.

Tashkent: Rest day and Round 05

9/23/2013 – The players had a rest day which they used to explore Old Town Tashkent. They visited places including a local bazaar, a traditional mosque and an antique hand-craft museum. The games resumed with a bloodbath as only one game was drawn. Harika, Lagno and Zhao Xue all won and they are now in a close race in the leaderboard. Beautiful pictorial report.

Chennai: World Championship web site launched

9/23/2013 – The official website for the November World Chess Championship 2013 between defending champion Viswanathan Anand and challenger Magnus Carlsen has just been switched on. It provides all the details for the event – venue, rules, dress code, security schedule, ticketing, and media coverage on social networks and mobile platforms. Definitely worth a visit.

Paris 01: Gelfand wins and five draws

9/22/2013 – The venue of the season's last Grand Prix is a church from the 1100s, which served as a sharp contrast to the lively opening ceremony that included a breakdance performance. In round one only Gelfand scored by beating Giri, but Nakamura-Tomashevsky was absolutely crazy and we bring you full annotations of the game. Opening ceremony and first round pictorial report.

Gambit Studio: interactive chess books on an iPad

9/22/2013 – Remember when chess books were delivered on very thin slices of tree? The disadvange of traditional publication is that books require you to set up a chess board and follow the moves on it. If there are variations and analysis you have the daunting task of somehow geting back to the main game. Gambit Publications, probably the finest chess book publishers in the world, now offers an exciting alternative.

Tashkent 04: Russians rebound

9/22/2013 – The Russian ladies were able to climb the scoreboard as they were the only ones to win in today's round. Alexandra Kosteniuk defeated Bela Khotenashvili while Olga Girya did the same with Nafisa Muminova. With four other draws, Koneru keeps her half point lead over Harika while Lagno and Zhao Xue are still on the chase with 2.5/4. Report and analysis.

London Chess Classic: win a spot

9/21/2013 – Like to play in a chess tournament with Kramnik, Anand, Caruana, Nakamura, Gelfand, Adams, Svidler and co.? This is possible for normal chess players of any rating at the London Chess Classic in December: the two highest scorers at the LCC FIDE Open can qualify into the "Super Sixteen" Rapidplay, featuring the World's Elite and the Best of British. The prize fund is €150,000. It's the chance of a lifetime.

Novy Bor: Topalov and Laznicka tied 1-1

9/21/2013 – The Novoborska chess corrida has started in the Czech Republic. The event features two matches of six game with the main one being between Veselin Topalov and Viktor Laznicka. Two decisive games opened the match and so far both players have been able to convert their white pieces. Pictorial report and analysis.

Tashkent 03: Indians in the lead

9/21/2013 – A bloodbath was seen today in Tashkent as every single game ended in a decisive result. Two of the games were certainly swindles as Ju Wenjun and Muminova won after being on the verge of defeat. On the other hand Humpy and Lagno exhibited high quality chess and won very clean games. Humpy and Harika now lead with 3 and 2.5 points. Report and analysis by the players.