Georgian Championship 2012 + Kasparov's visit

5/30/2012 – In our previous report we brought you pictures of the leading players, with frank and candid comments on their careers, interests and hobbies. The second part is dedicated to lesser-known but still very interesting Georgian players, and to the visit on the final day by Garry Kasparov, who signed an agreement with the national Department of Education for a program of Chess in Schools.

WCh Tiebreak: Anand draws final game, retains title!

5/30/2012 – The fourth game of the tiebreak brought a tangible advantage for Challenger Boris Gelfand, who needed to win with the black pieces to stay in the match. But World Champion Vishy Anand kept things under control and found a very neat solution to the problems. With a draw the World Champion won the tiebreak 2.5-1.5 and keeps his title. Full report with photos, videos and GM analysis.

Kavalek in Huffington: Viswanathan Anand Retains World Chess Title

5/30/2012 – The young Anand used to finish classical games under an hour – before he matured and took more time to think. But speed was always his friend. Gelfand didn't have bad results in the past tiebreaking games, but long deliberations against Anand spoiled some of his promising positions, as GM Lubomir Kavalek shows us in his Huffington Post column – hot off the press.

World Championship – Tiebreak preview and prediction

5/29/2012 – Tomorrow, Wednesday, at 12:00h (High Noon) Moscow time, the tiebreak games for the World Championship begin – four rapid games, five pairs of blitz, and then if necessary Armageddon. Who has the better chances? GM Daniel King examins this question – with annotated game examples. We also bring you an pictorial report on the many interesting personalities in Moscow.

Chess Problems: Obstruction!

5/29/2012 – In his last column problem expert David Friedgood explained the self-block, which is a special case of today's theme: obstruction. This occurs when a piece moves to a square so that another piece is prevented from occupying it. We are given two examples that show the basic idea – one with three beautifully engineered variations – and two problems to solve. An entertaining challenge.

Jobava wins Georgian Championship with 2½ point lead

5/28/2012 – It is his third time (after 2003 and 2007): 28-year-old GM Baadur Jobava, rated 2721, won the title in the Chess Palace in Tbilisi with consummate ease. We asked our reporter WIM Sopho Nikoladze, to provide portraits of the players with personal data. This left her initially frustrated – "they are all chess professionals and like football", but she dug deeper and produced some frank and candid details.

World Championship G12 – Draw in 22 moves

5/28/2012 – It has been an underwhelming match, but there can be no peace, as the rules will not allow it. After a very strange game, Anand entered an endgame a pawn up, and although he was slightly better and Gelfand had 16 minutes for 18 moves, they drew! This means that the classical world champion will be decided by rapid games, and possibly blitz. Full report with GM commentary, pictures and videos.

Asian Nations Cup – China wins both sections

5/27/2012 – The 2012 Asian Team Championship in Zaozhuang, Shandong, China brought resounding victories for China in both the open and women's sections. In fact both the China 1 and China 2 teams took medals. India took Silver in the men's, the China 1 women's team scored a 9.0/9 clean sweep. Once again our Iranian colleague has provided us with exemplary must-watch video reports.

Kramnik speaks: My Path to the Top

5/27/2012 – This ChessBase DVD was produced in 2007, when Vladimir Kramnik was still world champion. On it he describes the nirvana of attending the Botvinnik School, of being nominated for the Olympiad in 1992 by Garry Kasparov, how he went on to dethrone his mentor. Apart from narrative and analysis the DVD also includes previous interviews with ChessBase. Review by Prof. Nagesh Havanur.

World Championship G11 – Anand draws with a Nimzo Indian

5/26/2012 – It was the penultimate game of the match, and the last white for Gelfand. The game was a Nimzo-Indian once more, and though it ended in a draw after 25 moves, the tension came from Gelfand’s extensive use of the clock, leaving him with only twelve minutes when they shook hands. Will Anand go all out with white in the last game, or prefer the rapid playoffs? Pictures, videos, GM commentary.

Kavalek in Huffington: US Chess Champ Hikaru Nakamura (Part 2)

5/25/2012 – Two best U.S. grandmasters, the defending champion Gata Kamsky and the top-rated American Hikaru Nakamura, went neck-to-neck in the 11-round robin, leaving others far behind them. Hikaru was a half point behind Kamsky with two rounds to go. They met in the penultimate round and Nakamura scored the most needed victory – with black. GM Lubomir Kavalek annotates the key games.

Secret Story

5/25/2012 – Unless you have been living in a cave for the past ten years, the words “Big Brother” will first evoke thoughts of the world-wide TV phenomenon, rather than George Orwell’s classic novel. France has a particular spin-off that is now entering its sixth season, called Secret Story, starting tonight. Why are we publishing this? It is because this season, there is a chess player in the group.

World Championship G10 – An offbeat Sicilian is flavor of the day

5/24/2012 – With two whites to go, Anand chose 1.e4 as one means to try and keep his opponent off-balance. Gelfand was ready with his Sicilian, and even Vishy's 3.Bb5, and fairly offbeat 5.b3, were replied to nearly instantly. The queens came off by move eleven after which the position remained equal until their handshake at move 25. Illustrated report with GM analysis and videos.

Asian Nations Cup – China dominates

5/24/2012 – The 2012 Asian Team Championship is underway from May 19 to May 26 in Zaozhuang, Shandong, China. The event brings together many of Asia's top players including Wang Hao (2730), Krishnan Saskiran (2720), Le Quang Liem (2703), and more. In the men's event, China has dominated with a stellar Wang Hao while they won the women's event in a clean sweep. Illustrated report with videos.

WCh 103 years ago

5/24/2012 – The first player is planning 28.Bd3 with the idea 29.exf5 in order to upgrade his light-squared bishop and give his rooks more space again. A move of which black piece counters this manoeuvre?
A) knight e6
B) rook f8
C) pawn g6

ChessBase Magazine, larger diagram and solution.

FIDE Grand Prix 2013 in Lisbon, Madrid, Berlin, Paris

5/24/2012 – At last! – we hear you exclaim. These big chess events with the finest players in the world, deserve to be held in big Western cities, instead of Chelyabinsk or Tashkent (the venues of the two upcoming 2012 GPs). And, as we are hearing in the grapevine, the prize fund is to be doubled. The names of all eligible players are given in this FIDE press release.

Chess Match: Blondes vs Brunettes in Moscow

5/23/2012 – Eric van Reem is a German Lufthansa employee and chess organiser. He is also a member of Team Anand and the hero of the last World Championship in Sofia, when he arranged a 40-hour transportation for Vishy when an Icelandic volcano paralysed most of Europe. Eric is maintaining a blog on the World Championship, and has thankfully reported pictorially on an important side event.

Video commentary and impressions from Moscow

5/23/2012 – Believe it or not we have more on the World Championship. First our most prolific trainer and commentator GM Daniel King asks whether the 17-move win by Anand in game eight was the shortest in World Championship history (spoiler: it was!). He looks at the second shortest game – from 1886! Then GM Robert Fontaine takes us on a fascinating video tour of the chess-riddled Russian capital. Enjoy.

World Championship G9 – Anand saves a tough game to a draw

5/23/2012 – After an almost embarrassing defeat in round eight, Gelfand regrouped and won a moral victory in round nine. Anand went for the Nimzo-Indian, and Gelfand once more showed an edge with white. Despite clearly having the better chances, he was unable to maneuver to a win, and drew after making Anand suffer until move 49. Full report with pictures, video and GM commentary.

Chesska defends World Champion title in Robot Chess

5/23/2012 – Picture this: two massive industrial robots playing five-minute blitz in a Moscow park, for a world championship title no less. To warm things up Alexander Grischuk risked his life playing a six-game match against the challenger, a robot named KUKA from Germany. He remained uninjured – except for his ego, after a 1.5:4.5 loss. Do not miss the HD video at the end of our report.

New queen, new luck?

5/22/2012 – In view of White's manyfold threats Black's only hope is to promote his passed e-pawn, yet of course this must happen with check. In other words, 43...Rg3+ here leads to ...
A) ... victory for White
B) ... perpetual
C) ... victory for Black

ChessBase Magazine, larger diagram and solution.

Impressions of the World Championship in Moscow

5/22/2012 – It's another free day, and after the drama of games seven and eight, time to catch our collective breaths. We have been providing you with a lot of information – games, analysis, videos. Here as a change is a personal view of what it is like to attend such an event. IM Venkatachalam Saravanan, who hails from Anand's home town of Chennai, has sent us a report. Guess who impressed him the most.

Kavalek in Huffington: US Chess Champ Hikaru Nakamura (Part 1)

5/22/2012 – They fought gallantly and when it was over on Saturday afternoon, the horse, I'll Have Another, and the chessplayer, Hikaru Nakamura, 24, were declared winners almost at the same time. Nakamura wanted the title badly. He was rated number seven in the world and it was a matter of prestige for him. GM Lubomir Kavalek annotates some of the key games.

Nakamura and Krush win US Championship

5/21/2012 – It was a dramatic finish to one of the most exciting US Championships in years. Nakamura was the slight favorite, but with two rounds to go, Kamsky had taken the sole lead. Then in round ten, Hikaru pulled out the big guns and beat Kamsky, followed by a win over Seirawan in the final round. Krush beat Zatonskih in a playoff for the Women's title. Final report with video and GM commentary.