6/12/2010 – After nine rounds Dimtry Jakovenko was leading by half a point, ahead of Sergey Karjakin, with four players half a point behind the latter. In round ten Jakovenko lost to Alexander Onischuk, while Karjakin drew. The other results left four players in the lead before the final round. We bring you a pictorial report by our colleagues from ChessPro on caged animals and suckling pigs.

6/12/2010 – The 2009 tournament was a highlight of the chess year – and returned London to its former status as a great world centre of chess. The sponsors vowed to continue with the Chess Classic, and for this year's edition – from December 8 to 15 – they have secured the participation of the World Champion Vishy Anand plus the world number one Magnus Carlsen. This is an event you should not miss.

6/12/2010 – "For a Brighter Future" is the campaign slogan, the mission statement includes the fair allocation of tournaments, transparency, sustainable sponsorship, chess in schools and on the Internet. The German Chess Federation President, Prof. Robert von Weizsäcker (pronounced "fon why-tsecker"), is running for the European Union presidency, with a team of four grandmasters. Details.

6/11/2010 – In December 2009 Jaideep Unudurti conducted an indepth interview with Viswanathan Anand. Some of it was published in Mint – a collaboration between the Hindustan Times and the Wall Street Journal – but a lot fell on the cutting room floor. Thankfully Jaideep saved the entire interview, which provides deep insights into the personality of the current World Champion. Here's part two.

6/11/2010 – The event is taking place on June 4-14 2010. It was opened with pageantry and politics, with a spectacular Arabic dance number and with Morten Sand campaigning for the Norwegian city of Tromsø to stage the 2014 Chess Olympiad. International dignitaries, including FIDE Presidential candidate Anatoly Karpov, were informed. Pictures and videos by our colleagues at Europe Echecs.

6/11/2010 – A remarkably simple concept underlies the Spanish Exchange Variation: White swaps off all the pieces and wins the pawn ending. On his new Fritz Trainer DVD Andrew Martin explains you this concept, that was once brought to perfection by Bobby Fischer. "An excellent DVD", says Lance Martin at chesscafe.com.Buy it now or read more.

6/11/2010 – The following instructive bishop versus knight endgame arose in the encounter Lu Shanglei - Ji Dan, played during the Chinese Championships 2010 in Xinghua. With his strong central knight, White is dominating the bishop, which is tied to the defence of the pawns on c6 and g6. White also has a 3:2-pawn majority on the kingside, which is just waiting to be set in motion. But, despite these weighty positional advantages it is not a simple matter to crack open the black position. What do you think? Which continuation did Lu Shanglei choose in order to make progress? GM Karsten Müller for ChessBase Magazine Online.

6/10/2010 – The Russian newspaper Gazeta has published an indepth interview with FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, who says that he is suing rival Anatoly Karpov – but would shake his hand. And more remarkably assures us that he is "not an agent of any extraterrestrial intelligence." We also received a letter from FIDE Deputy President Makropoulos on the support Ilyumzhinov has received. Long read.

6/10/2010 – The FIDE ratings conference, held last week in Athens, Greece, spent quite a bit of time discussing the problem of rating inflation. Two different opinions met head on: one of chess statistician Jeff Sonas, USA, and one represented by Polish GM Bartlomiej Macieja. The subject matter is not easy to understand, but our colleague Michalis Kaloumenos made a serious effort to do so. Food for thought.

6/9/2010 – We have told you a number of times before, with great sincerity and enthusiasm: go play in the Arctic Chess Challenge in Tromsø, well within the Arctic Circle in northern Norway. There are many strong players and plenty of opportunities to make title norms. There is also a landscape to dream of, and social activities to make it a great summer adventure. Here is all the information you will need.

6/9/2010 – ... Black needed in this rapid game from the World Cup for his defensive bishop e5 which has to guard many squares. Which move is best in your opinion?

A) 36...Rd5
B) 36...Qc3
C) 36...Qa4

The solution is here, but first ponder over it with a larger version of the diagram.

6/8/2010 – Back in December 2009 Mint – a collaboration between the Hindustan Times and the Wall Street Journal – commissioned their journalist Jaideep Unudurti to do an indepth interview with World Champion Vishy Anand. The discussion lasted for an hour, and only a small section landed in the journal. Jaideep has thankfully transcribed the entire contents, which we will publish in three sections.