3/17/2013 – 'Andrew Martin has been a fixture in the DVD market for many years now,' writes Colin Potts in Chess Cafe. 'His easy delivery makes him a particular favorite among junior players. He does not talk down to his audience, but he is plain-spoken and enjoyable company. Do not let the cheeky chappy cockney demeanor fool you, though; he is eloquent, knowledgeable, and intelligently incisive'.

3/16/2013 – With the ghost of a drawfest from the previous Candidates cycle, and the sedate first round, Carlsen’s quick draw with Kramnik caused some consternation. This was soon dissipated as Gelfand missed a deadly Bh6+ and succumbed to Aronian, while Radjabov concluded a deadly vice against Ivanchuk for the second point. The Candidates is certainly heating up. Now with GM analyis.

3/16/2013 – During the Tata Steel Chess Tournament this January there was a special study composing tourney, which produced 89 entries, of which 20 received awards. Tournament judge Yochanan Afek has been showing us the prize-winning studies, with explanations of their solutions. After parts one and two here is part three.

3/15/2013 – Peter Svidler vs Vladimir Kramnik finished as a draw in 23 moves. Levon Aronian vs Magnus Carlsen lasted 31 moves before a draw was agreed. Gelfand-Radjabov lasted 36 moves and Ivanchuk-Grischuk 44. Anyone hoping for major upsets or heroic wins will have to wait until the players shrug off their caution. Full report with pictures, video and GM analysis.

3/15/2013 – On March 9-10, the Nancy stage of the French Rapid Grand Prix was held, bringing in several elite players, as well as a platoon of enthusiasts. Of the 210 players who came, only sixteen would qualify for the Sunday knockout stage. The surprise of the event was Vladimir Dobrov, who beat several 2700s to make it to the final, but ultimately lost to Vladislav Tkachiev in a powerful attack.

3/15/2013 – The Candidates Tournament for the World Championship 2013 starts on Friday. The main sponsor is the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic SOCAR, which has sponsored elite events chess in the past. The players are all in London, and on Thursday there was a brief ceremony at which FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov official opened the event. Ray Morris-Hill sent us pictures.

3/15/2013 – "Many of you must have heard about sports betting and odds offered by bookmakers," writes Peter Zhdanov. While he is in no way interested in making money by placing bets, the analytical aspect of the problem seemed to him to be worth researching. His article is a lesson in how to precisely work out the odds in a team tournaments.

3/14/2013 – He broke onto the world chess scene at the Manila Olympiad 1992, a 16-year-old protégé of Garry Kasparov, whom he defeated in the World Championship match 2000 in London. He was dethroned by Vishy Anand in 2008, where he stated that he was only "loaning the title to Anand". The London Candidates is a first step in retrieving it. Michael von Keitz provides a portrait and full statistics.

3/14/2013 – The UK registered charity Chess in Schools and Communities has announced a project to deliver chess to all 64 primary schools in Newham and teach 20,000 children how to play the game. This was celebrated with an educational morning of chess in a library in East Village – and then with a glamorous launch party at Morton's Club in Mayfair. Take a look at who was there.

3/14/2013 – Alina L'Ami was part of the Romanian team at the FIDE Women's World Team Championship, and also our reporter and photographer. In her closing report the 2353 rated WGM searches for explanations for the inconsistency of play in women's chess – which also provides the main ingredient for a very exciting events. Here are Alina's musing and pictorial impressions from the closing day.

3/13/2013 – He is the top concern – the "main rival" – for the tournament favourite Magnus Carlsen. Armenian GM Levon Aronian, whose encounters with the Norwegian superstar are many and memorable, started his international career as the World Under-12 Champion in 1994. A steady climb took him to a permanent slot as number two or three place on the FIDE world rankings. Three days before the upcoming Candidates Tournament, where he will face Carlsen in round one, Michael von Keitz provides an Aronian portrait with full statistics.

3/13/2013 – "In my review of Chess for Novices, Vol. 1 I enjoyed the presentation," writes Steve Goldberg in his Chess Cafereview. "It a nice introduction to chess for a player who knows nothing more than how the pieces move. I titled the review "First Chess Steps." Now I have had the chance to review Chess for Novices, Vol. 2 and I am very impressed." The new review is called 'Bigger Chess Steps'