Tanzania: Breaking preconceptions (part 2/2)

6/29/2013 – In part two of Out of Africa... we mean Tanzania, globetrotting WGM Alina L'Ami continues her tale of a country striving to become a success story it has all the means to achieve. Efforts such as those by Vinay Choudary's Spicenet to promote the intellectual development of the nation are a key. A beautiful pictorial by Alina L'Ami.

Geneva Masters Rd2: Only one spot left

6/28/2013 – Day two of the Geneva Chess Masters was going to prove decisive or not in which players are most likely to make it to the final. In each of the four-player groups, two alone make it to the final, and while being first is not crucial, it doesn’t hurt to cover your tracks and avoid tales of last-minute disaster. Illustrated report of day two.

Dilijan WGP R10: Three wins, stiff opposition

6/28/2013 – The tournament leaders Koneru Humpy and Anna Muzychuk are facing stiff resistance from their colleagues and had to concede their third draws in a row. Women's world champion Anna Ushenina scored her first win, as did Elina Danielian, while Nana Dzagnidze kept her third place with a win over Viktorija Cmilyte. Big round ten report with photos by Arman Karakhanyan.

Kryvoruchko and Muzychuk win Ukrainian Ch

6/28/2013 – They say that to win a tournament you need a bit of luck as well as skill, and this was the case for Yuri Kryvoruchko, the unexpected winner of the 2013 Ukrainian Championship, but his resilience and fighting spirit were the real clinchers. In the women's championship, Mariya Muzychuk stormed away and left her rivals 1.5 points behind. Illustrated report with games.

The first Geneva Chess Masters

6/27/2013 – The first Geneva Chess Masters is taking place from June 26th to 30th with eight players fighting for a spot in the final at a rate of 25 minutes + 10 seconds per move. In the lineup are Kramnik, Nakamura, Mamedyarov, Polgar, Pelletier, Bacrot, Edouard and Kosteniuk. In the first matches surprises already took place including a fantastic queen-sac in the notes. Report, pictures and video.

Dilijan WGP R9: Cmilyte, Stefanova win

6/27/2013 – Viktorija Cmilyte beat reigning women's world champion Anna Ushenina, while Antoaneta Stefanova took a full point from Olga Girya. The two leaders, Koneru Humpy and Anna Muzychuk drew their games, thus remaining in first and second place. You can enjoy pictures and a video from the free day outing to Lake Saven and the celestially lit Haghartsin Monastery in our round nine report.

210-move drama in Kiev

6/26/2013 – As we all know, chess can be heart-wrenching and cruel. In "one of the most depressing episodes ever in a GM game" (Malcolm Pein in The Telegraph) White defended the endgame of rook and knight vs rook and knight, a pawn down, for 124 moves. He then defended the ending of rook v rook and knight from move 172 to move 205. And then on move 206 he blundered. As we said: heart-wrenching.

‘A GM is a GM’? – FIDE title devaluation

6/26/2013 – Although much has been made of the rising Elos, little has been said of the FIDE titles that rely on them, and their increasing devaluation. It is not just the grandmaster title, but all titles that are losing their value, and even those dropping standards are being tossed aside as FIDE hands out titles to players who are underrated by hundreds of Elo. Here is a look at this worrisome trend.

Dilijan WGP R7+8: Humpy continues to lead

6/25/2013 – In round seven Indian GM Koneru Humpy beat former women's world champion Antoaneta Stefanova with the black pieces. Her main rival, Anna Muzychuk, also won, defeating Nana Dzagnidze. In round eight both top seeds drew, leaving Humpy, whose performance is 2710, with a half-point lead. Our report contains light notes on all games plus a video of the free day outing.

Tanzania: Breaking preconceptions (part 1/2)

6/25/2013 – After an epic story of overcoming adversity, the one-time handmade soap maker, Vinay Choudary, now owner of Tanzania's top internet provider, organized the Spicenet Open Chess Championship in Tanzania, and invited chess ambassadors GM Nigel Short and WGM Alina L'Ami to honor the event and give it a touch of class. Here is part one of a large illustrated report by Alina L'Ami

Game changer at four – youngest chess player

6/24/2013 – What is the earliest age at which a child can learn chess – actually master all the rules of the game, play at club level and participate in national-level tournaments? Wrong – earlier! Sparsh Bisht learnt the moves at three years and ten months, and four months later has been playing in tournaments against opponents double his age. He teaches us: never underestimate the mind of a child!

Alexander Ipatov: How to conquer fear

6/24/2013 – What is the most dangerous thing you have done as a chess grandmaster? Taking the b2-pawn in a Najdorf? Well, here's a young fellow who is willing to go further. Alexander Ipatov, 19, Junior World Champion, took a bungy leap from the Macau Tower, plunging from the tower's outer rim, 233 meters above the ground. It is all caught in a stomach-churning video. Watch it if you dare.

Tal Final: Gelfand wins, Carlsen clear second

6/23/2013 – The Tal Memorial has come to an end with a series of draws. Gelfand easily equalized against Kramnik, who just wanted the tournament to be over. Carlsen needed a win against Mamedyarov to emerge victorious in the event, but instead he could consider himself very lucky for holding the half point. Morozevich beat Nakamura with black in a strange game. Last round report with key game analysis.

Dilijan WGP R5+6: Humpy loses, regains the lead

6/23/2013 – In round five Indian GM Koneru Humpy drew her game and was overtaken by Anna Muszchuk, who defeated former women's world champion Antoaneta Stefanova. In round six the two played each other, and Humpy beat Anna to regain the lead, this time alone. Batchimeg Tuvshintugs of Mongolia is the surprise player who stand to gain a bunch of rating points – and who has the nicest shoes.

Tal 08: Gelfand still leads, Carlsen now second

6/22/2013 – Gelfand was held to a draw easily by Mamedyarov while Carlsen beat Nakamura and is now in second place. With the correct results tomorrow Carlsen might even win the tournament with a last minute streak. Caruana beat Morozevich in a complex game and ties for third alongside Mamedyarov, Nakamura and Andreikin. Report, standings and pictures

Ponomariov and Muzychuk lead Ukrainian Ch

6/21/2013 – Although the Russian Championship can claim to have the strongest national championship in the world, the Ukrainian Championship is a close second. In this year’s twelve-player men's lineup there are no fewer than five players rated 2700 or higher, and two other players are regular members of that elite group. At the midway point, Ponomariov and Muzychuk lead.

Tal 07: Gelfand beats Nakamura, Kramnik loses

6/21/2013 – Two games were clear highlights from the rest. Nakamura tried to punish Gelfand's Sveshnikov and it backfired, as the Israeli obtained the pair of bishops and a surprisingly strong attack which he used to convert the full point. Andreikin beat Kramnik after the latter strangely blundered. Kramnik is now in last place. Standings, report and pictures.

Edward Winter's Chess Explorations (99)

6/21/2013 – Did Gibaud lose an ultra-brief game to Lazard in the Paris championship of 1924? The Editor of Chess Notes points out that the moves 1 d4 Nf6 2 Nd2 e5 3 dxe5 Ng4 4 h3 Ne3 5 White resigns have regularly been given in chess literature (with, as usual, writers copying from each other without verification), but did they ever occur over the board? Another investigation.

Dilijan WGP R4: Three wins, Humpy joins the leaders

6/20/2013 – India's top female player, GM Koneru Humpy, scored a second win, this time against Russian GM Tatiana Kosintseva, as did another top seed, Anna Muzychuk, with black against Viktorija Cmilyte. Both join Elina Danielian in the lead, after the Armenian GM lost her game to Olga Girya. With her first win the Russian WGM moved from last to seventh place. Illustrated report with annotated games.

Chessboxing documentary – The King's Discipline

6/20/2013 – David Bitton is a Canadian independent filmmaker who for the past three years has been working on the first feature length documentary about chessboxing, telling the story of three visionaries who are struggling to transform the sport from underground cult curiosity into a respected and recognized mainstream phenomenon. Bitton is is currently crowd-funding the project on kickstarter.

Tal 06: Nakamura on Fire

6/19/2013 – Nakamura took down the World Champion, regaining the solo lead in the tournament and achieving 2789 in the live ratings list. Gelfand missed an important chance against an overeager Carlsen. Kramnik held Caruana to a draw in a wacky game. Morozevich and Andreikin played long endgames against Karjakin and Mamedyarov but couldn't bring the full point home. GM Analysis, pictures.

Coming next week: 1st Geneva Chess Masters

6/19/2013 – Vladimir Kramnik, Hikaru Nakamura, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Judit Polgar – these are some of the stars that will participate in an eight-player rapid chess knock-out event from the 26th to the 30th of June 2013 in the Théâtre Pitoëff in Geneva, Switzerland. Two 25 min + 10 sec games, then two blitz and an armageddon decide who will proceed to the next round. There will be live coverage and commentary.

Rombaldoni: "He never calculated moves"

6/19/2013 – The very talented Italian IM Axel Rombaldoni, aiming for a final GM norm, recently travelled to Bulgaria to play in a GM tournament. First he discovered that most of the grandmasters had cancelled their participation, and then in round seven he faced the reason for the cancellation: FM Borislav Ivanov, who has been accused of computer cheating. Alex tells us what it is like to play Ivanov.

Dilijan WGP R3: Batchimeg, Stefanova win

6/19/2013 – The lowest seed in the tournament, Batchimeg Tuvshintugs, scored a second consecutive win in round three of the FIDE Gran Prix in Armenia. In spite of a loss in round one the Mongolian WGM stands to gain 12 rating points. Antoaneta Stefanova defeated Tatiana Kosintseva with the black pieces. Nana Dzagnidze leads with 2.5/3 points. Illustrated report with game summaries.