World Championship G6 – A sixth draw; Kasparov comments

5/18/2012 – It was a sixth straight draw, and though no significant advantage was ever achieved, the chances were Gelfand's, which was in itself both promising and worrisome. Promising as he got a small edge, but worrisome as Anand has held Gelfand so easily with Black so far. Perhaps the highlight was the surprise commentator: Garry Kasparov. Full report with analysis by GM Gilberto Milos.

US Championship – Kamsky takes lead with two rounds to go

5/18/2012 – It was an unexpected turn of events, in which a bit of good fortune was Gata Kamsky's reward for years of hard work. In round nine, tied with Nakamura, Kamsky saw Seirawan walk into some years old preparation that ended the game with a spectacular finish. Nakamura was not so lucky as he toiled for 121 moves against Lenderman before shaking hands. Illustrated report with video summaries.

World Championship G5 – Sveshnikov drawn in 27 moves

5/17/2012 – In the fifth game Anand and Gelfand played 17 moves of theory, after which White deviated from the previous 2009 game and seemed to get a small advantage. However Anand allowed his Israeli challenger to trade down and after ten more moves there was nothing left to play for. Full report with pictures and videos, as well as double analysis by GM Romain Edouard and IM Malcolm Pein.

Sigeman: Caruana wins Sigeman with 2852 performance

5/16/2012 – He is the hottest chess talent – still a junior but number eight in the world. Italian/American GM Fabiano Caruana won his last two games in the Hipp Theater in Malmo, Sweden. His 2852 performance should contribute seven points to his FIDE rating. Hungarian GM Peter Leko celebrated his "comeback" with the second place and a respectable 2792 performance. Big closing report.

Chess and Art in Dnipropetrovsk

5/16/2012 – It is hard to pronounce, but a great place live, study, or go out. And for chess. The industrial metropolis in southern Ukraine has just staged a Week of Chess and Art, initiated by Irina Filatova, the sister of the main sponsor of the World Championship in Moscow. Students of Dnipropetrovsk art schools presented their work on chess at the Historical Museum. WIM Olena Boytsun reports.

World Championship G4 reflections – it's the computers!

5/16/2012 – Two exciting games, two rather dull efforts, and a scoreboard that shows 2-2 with four consecutive draws. Some chess fans are starting to feel disappointed and searching for someone or something to blame. The shortness of the match contributes to the problem, by making the players especially cautious. But the main problem lies elsewhere, as Steve Giddins boldly proposes. Food for thought.

World Championship Rest Day 2 – Daniel King opines on action and lack of

5/16/2012 – Today, GM Daniel King did a private broadcast on the action until now, and more specifically commented on the lack of action many have been grumbling about. To further spice up the show, he read the comments by Steve Giddins on computers and chess, and had something to say about that as well. Still, it is not just a talk show, and he compares Anand to ... Petrosian!

US Championship – Kamsky joins Nakamura in lead

5/16/2012 – One thing must be said about the US championship, on top of the great organization and live coverage open to all, and that is that it is anything but boring. In round five, Nakamura had taken the sole lead, but Kamsky was not about to give up his title that easily, and in round seven caught up as the two lead by a full point. GM Ramirez beat Kaidanov in one of the craziest games of his career.

World Championship: Interviews, reflections, chess sets

5/16/2012 – Is the Championship in Moscow, without a Russian player, an audience success? Can chess ever be that? Yes it can, says chief organiser Ilya Levitov, who has a 21st Century formula to bring chess to a wide audience – and make events pay for themselves. Compelling. We also get a tour of chess sets and pictures in the Tretyakov Museum. Must-watch interview by Europe Echecs.

World Championship G3 – Anand tantalizingly close to first win

5/15/2012 – Game three came tantalizing close to a first decisive result, but alas, the audience was left wanting once more. Surprised by Gelfand's Grünfeld in game one, Anand came prepared with an offbeat variation, seeking to just play chess. After a deeply passed pawn on d6 it seemed he would be victorious, but Gelfand saved the game. Daniel King shows us how Anand could probably have won. Update.

Negi wins 11th Asian Continental Chess Championship

5/15/2012 – Parimarjan Negi of India, once the world's youngest grandmaster, has won the very strong Asian Championship. In the women's section Irine Kharisma Sukandar of Indonesia triumphed. The highlight of the championship was the exceptional video reporting by Iranian FIDE official Mehrdad Pahlevanzadeh. Take time, watch these reports with the two enchanting Vietnamese anchors.

World Championship G4 – Gelfand unable to dent Anand's Semi-Slav

5/15/2012 – As in game two, the players stuck to their guns, showing the Semi-Slav was here to stay. Despite a slight modification, Gelfand's preparation was insufficient to generate any winning chances and the game remained both tame and balanced throughout. This also means it lacked excitement and though lasting ten more moves than before, the result was never in doubt. Report with GM analysis.

47th Capablanca Memorial won by Ivanchuk

5/15/2012 – While it was Leinier Domínguez's dream to shine in front of his home crowd, the plan was foiled by a certain Ukrainian who not only seized the lead but never let go of it. To add insult to injury, Vassily Ivanchuk beat him twice in their encounters. Still, while all seemed lost, a heroic last-round win against second-place Ian Nepomniachtchi gave him a tie for second-third. Final report.

ChessBase 25 Composing Tourney Awards – Part four

5/15/2012 – We come to the Honourable Mentions and the Commendations in the tourney. Four studies by composers from the USA, Hungary, Norway and Germany. One of the studies was the successful correction of an earlier attempt which had a "cook" in the second move. The tourney judge, Dr John Nunn, presents each study and then explains it in a way that even non-experts can understand. Enjoy.

World Championship G2 – Rest day video reports and pictures

5/14/2012 – Sunday is a rest day in Moscow – opportunity for us to catch up on the masses of material pouring in. We bring you videos with rest day reflections by GM Daniel King on Playchess, a round two report by French chess magazine reporter GM Robert Fontaine, and game two analysis by chess trainer Andrew Martin. In addition some wonderful photos by Anastasia Karlovich and Alexey Yushenkov.

US Championship – Nakamura takes sole lead

5/13/2012 – The competition has certainly been heated as the top-rated players were unable to stamp their authority until now. Reigning champion Gata Kamsky, was taken by surprise by last-minute replacement Gregory Kaidanov in round four, which Hikaru Nakamura took advantage of by beating Kaidanov in round five for the sole lead. Three are tied for first in the women's competition. Illustrated report.

Edward Winter's Chess Explorations (83)

5/13/2012 – The fascinating history of the world chess championship has long been plagued by a lack of proper documentation, and many myths and controversies have arisen. The Editor of Chess Notes has written a range of detailed articles covering everything from early occurrences of the title ‘world chess champion’ to a catalogue of books about many of today’s leading players, including Anand and Gelfand.

Sigeman: Caruana leads, Grandelius in second place

5/13/2012 – Fabiano Caruana is number eight in the world. With two wins and a draw, and a 2940 performance, he has taken the lead in the 20-year jubilee of the Sigeman Chess Tournament. In second place is Sweden's most interviewed chess player, dredlocked Nils Grandelius, who is known for Grandelius innovative playing style. The dredlocked GM is totally fearless, as his games in Malmö show.

US Championship – Favorites lead, with wins all around

5/12/2012 – It is perhaps symptomatic of chess players more reared on swiss opens than round robins, but whatever the reason, even the presence of world top players such as Nakamura and Kamsky have not changed the fact that nearly all players have at least one win. Nothing is decided yet in this event with live video GM commentary, and beautiful online coverage. Rounds two and three.

Top seed Khotenashvili wins Georgian Women Championship

5/12/2012 – After eight rounds WIM Meri Arabidze, rated 2337, was in the lead, a full point ahead of top seed Bela Khotenashvili, 2490. In round nine the two clashed and Bela beat Meri, who went on to draw and then lose a game. Bela on the other hand won and drew, so that on the final scoreboard she was the sole winner and 2012 Georgian Women's Champion. Player portraits by WIM Sopho Nikoladze.

World Championship G2 – Anand shows his hand as Semi-Slav is played

5/12/2012 – Although the second game failed to develop the tension that might have led to a decisive victory, it did answer an important question: what did Anand have planned as his main black weapon? Against Topalov it had been the Grünfeld, then the stultified Catalan. This time the Semi-Slav was chosen, though it developed into a calm position that ended in a draw. Express report with GM commentary.

World Championship – Opening ceremony, Anand has white

5/11/2012 – The World Chess Championship was opened in the Tretyakov Gallery on Thursday in spectacular style and with plenty of prominence. There was the playing of anthems, speeches by dignitaries, and the drawing of colours – Anand will play white in the first game. But the highlight is the musical part of the evening, which includes a pre-teen pianist whom we shall call the Magnus Carlsen of Music.

Fit for the WCh?

5/11/2012 – Today is the first game of the title match between Anand and Gelfand (13.00 live on Playchess.com), so the sophisticated kibitzer should exercise calculating long variations. In this position the liquidation sequence 14...Nxe5 15.dxe5 Bxe5 16.Nxd5 Bxa1 17.Qxa1 Nxd5 18.Bxd5 Qxd5 19.Qxg7 leads to ...
A)... advantage for White since the rook h8 drops;
B)... advantage for Black after 19...Bh3;
C)... an unclear position.
ChessBase Magazine, larger diagram and solution.

World Championship G1 – a fighting draw sets the tone

5/11/2012 – In the most anticipated match of the year, the World Championship got under way with Vishy Anand against challenger Boris Gelfand. It was neither the cataclysmic opener of his match against Topalov in 2010 nor a dull draw, though draw it was. The game was a fascinating Grünfeld, which has been summarised for us by IM Malcolm Pein. Full report with pictures and commentary.