The power of the triple pawns – more endgames from Plovdiv

4/12/2012 – Our ChessBase Magazin expert Dr Karsten Müller continues to select interesting and instructive endings, again taken from the high-quality games of the European Individual Championship, with 350 participants, fifteen rated over 2700. Subjects: opposite colored bishops, duel rook vs bishop, deadly tripled pawns and Areshchenko's Attack. Good for training on some additional Elo points.

Second China Women's Master Tournament

4/12/2012 – The Second Women Masters is underway in Xi Shan, China. The first edition was won by GM Hou Yifan, however it is clear she is too strong for such a tournament, and in order to help her fulfill her ambitions, she will instead be playing in the Bangkok Open starting tomorrow. The strongest player is Ju Wenjun who has had a strong 2.5/3 start and leads on tiebreak. Report, pictures, and games.

Kramnik on Chess, Anand, Topalov and his future – Part 3

4/11/2012 – "When you’re 17 years old," says former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik, "it’s all fascinating and cool: parties, company, girls, alcohol... But then you grow tired of it, and want something else. Nowadays things are more moderate – I have a family, a child. But my house is still open for many people who often turn up without calling first or stay the night." Conclusion of a fascinating interview.

Magnus couldn't make it to Star Trek 2

4/11/2012 – We are not talking about watching the movie, but actually being in it. After seeing him in 60 Minutes star director JJ Abrams wanted Magnus Carlsen to play a chess master from a galaxy far, far away – but the Norwegian couldn't get a working permit for the US in time. He was also forced to turn down 100,000 Kroner offers from rich Russians for one-on-one games. This is not an April Fool's joke!

2012 Russian team championship starts strong

4/11/2012 – The 2012 Russian Team Championship is underway with eighteen teams and no fewer than twenty players rated over 2700, such as Sergey Karjakin, Fabiano Caruana, Alexander Morozevich, and more. As if in reply to the recent controversies, the tardiness rules in play allow one to arrive up to fifteen minutes late, but only if a US$68 fine is paid on the spot. Report with GM commentary.

The ChessBase April Fools revisited

4/10/2012 – Our report on the busting of the King's Gambit was well received. Normally we get between a few dozen 50 Facebook "likes", but this one recorded almost two thousand. And Alexa listed us as one of the top 10,000 web sites in the world for the first time since the London Chess Classic last December. Today we bring you more feedback from our readers, as a humorous interlude.

Dejan Bojkov: Chess Highways

4/10/2012 – The Bulgarian GM's third DVD for ChessBase isn't about openings, but instead aims to instruct amateur players on the power of queens, rooks and bishops in both the middle and endgame. 48 carefully selected games, all thoroughly explained. "The price of $39.95 might seem steep, compared to a book, but cheap for a 5½ hour lesson with a GM," writes IM John Donaldson in this review.

Gelfand: 'Nobody's invincible, nobody's immune to mistakes'

4/9/2012 – The next World Championship match is just a month away, and the players, World Champion Vishy Anand and Challenger Boris Gelfand are winding down their preparations. The latter, who lives in Israel, took time to speak to the press and assess his chances in the match. Gelfand also gives players some general advice on the use of computers. Video interview.

VI Georgy Agzamov Memorial – Tashkent Open 2012

4/9/2012 – The sixth edition of Agzamov Memorial, aka Tashkent Open, recently took place and attracted players from fourteen countries and sixteen grandmasters, including one over 2700. Dedicated to the first Uzbeki grandmaster, Georgy Agzamov, also known as the nightmare of top GMs who even beat Anand in an all-day blitz match, here is a large illustrated report by Jamshid Begmatov.

Top GM spent 1:43 min on move four – in Armageddon blitz!

4/8/2012 – It's a rapid chess knockout event with absolute world-class players. In a blitz Armageddon tiebreak game player A chooses the Petroff with the black pieces, and on move four he falls into a deep think – for almost two minutes! Can you guess who the player was – hint: one of the fastest in the world – and how the game ended? Watch this exciting Easter video with wonderful commentary.

Masters of our time: impatience and self-control in chess

4/8/2012 – Like everyone else in the chess world you probably know the terrors of the clock. But why do people spend too much time searching for a specific move? Are they striving for perfection or is it just indecision? Swedish scientist Patrik Gränsmark, who recently studied the effect of facing an attractive opponent, turns his attention to time trouble. Help him with his research and win $500.

Portisch wins 'Portisch 75' rapid tournament

4/7/2012 – On April 4th the Hungarian chess legend Lajos Portisch turned 75. In his honour a tournament was staged, in the fabulour Hilton Budapest Hotel, with four veteran GMs, three of whom had at one time been Candidates for the World Championship. The fourth was a close friend of the septuagenarian – which made the event particularly difficult for him. We bring you a big celebratory report.

On the dark squares

4/7/2012 – Following a double exchange sacrifice, White had just blocked her opponent's threats in the d-file with 22.Bb3-d5 (diagram) and now was ready to play 23.Qh6. What is the best defence for Black against this?
A) 22...Kf8
B) 22...Qd6
C) 22...??

ChessBase Magazine, larger diagram and solution.

2012 Chinese Championship – Ding Liren completes hat trick

4/7/2012 – With three rounds to spare, Ding Liren was in the lead, and his only real rival was 17-year-old Yu Yangyi, whom he faced and held in round nine. 19-year-old Liren won with 8.0/11, making him the youngest player to achieve a hat trick. Yu Yangyi came in second and Ni Hua came third. In the Women's championship WGM Huang Qian won the title on tiebreak. Report with GM commentary.

Chess Olympiad in Istanbul – official web site up

4/6/2012 – The 40th Chess Olympiad is scheduled to take place in the Turkish metropole of Istanbul, from August 27 to September 10th, 2012. With just over four months to go the national federations will have to make haste with the arrangements. The official web site, launched this week, provides information on rules, travel and accommodation. Details, contacts, videos.

First India-Israel chess match is won by hosts

4/6/2012 – This premiere event took place in New Delhi, India, and was intended to commemorate the year 2012, which is special for both the Indian and Israeli chess communities because of the World Championship match in May 10th in Moscow. In a series of blindfold, rapid and blitz games the higher-ranked Indian GMs defeated their Israeli counterparts with a 29.5-18.5 score. Report, games and videos.

Vladimir Kramnik – My Path to the Top

4/6/2012 – Vladimir Kramnik needs no introduction, and aside from being in the top five players for some 20 years, he is also the only player in history to defeat Garry Kasparov in match. In his review, Albert Silver describes this games collection as less about his ascent to chess Olympus, as it is a detailed inside look into world championship match preparation. Read why it is the ultimate test of fire.

European Seniors Championship in Rogaška Slatina

4/5/2012 – This event, staged in an idyllically beautiful spa town in Slovenia, was open to any player who had reached his 59th birthday by January 1st 2012 – and to females who had reached their 49th birthday on that day. Seniors, says tournament director GM Adrian Mikhalchishin, are being generally neglected in favour of youth, although chess can provide invaluable mental therapy for the aged.

Judit Polgar – projects and videos

4/5/2012 – Judit Polgar recently informed us of an upcoming software project, Judit Polgar – Chess Playground, to teach chess to children. The small video trailer posted at the site is very cute and promises to help parents draw their kids into the royal game. A perfect complement to our own Blackeye Chess for the iPhone and iPad. Furthermore, she linked us to a lovely video on her recent trip to Brazil.

The ChessBase April Fool's prank

4/4/2012 – Over the years – over a decade, actually – it has become progressively more difficult for us to hide our traditional (and very popular) April Fool's stories. And keep them entertaining in the process. Armed insurgents with advanced Google searches and forum discussions are waiting to hunt them down. This year we used a particularly devious tactic involving the South Pacific town of Pago Pago.

Kramnik on Chess, Anand, Topalov and his future – Part 2

4/4/2012 – The indepth interview by GM Vlad Tkachiev with former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik was avidly received by our readers – with an unusually large number posting part one on their Facebook pages. It dealt with chess in general and his main rivals Kasparov and Anand. In part two he speaks critically about Veselin Topalov, about retirement and his own future in the game.

Scholastic Chess in Hawaii is Booming!

4/4/2012 – Hawaii is generally off of the chess radar. It’s not home to any GMs or IMs, although there is one FIDE Master and a few National Masters. Rated events are few and far between. In truth, many of Hawaii's players get in more rated chess on the U.S. Mainland (mostly at the big opens in Las Vegas or national scholastic events) than at home in Hawaii. Pictorial report by Beau Mueller.

Chinese Championship 2012 – Two teens lead

4/4/2012 – It is a sign of the times that a national championship as strong as that of China has four teenagers out of eleven players, two of whom are in the clear lead. 19-year-old Ding Liren is close to winning his third title, followed closely by 17-year-old Yu Yangyi, whom he faces in the next round. During the rest day, Hou Yifan gave a simul, interview, and even had a statue inaugurated in her honor.

Endgame Magic with GM Karsten Müller and WFM Sabrina Chevannes

4/3/2012 – Endgame knowledge is not easy to acquire and is thus a valuable weapon. In his Endgame Magic Show on Playchess, the well-known endgame expert GM Karsten Müller will assist you with a bunch of practical endgames. He shows how to handle the positions, which will help improve your results. The special guest is WFM Sabrina Chevannes. An example and more information.