Karlovich: a pictorial review of Aerosvit-2008

6/23/2008 – The tournament finished a few days ago, with a stunning victory by the youngest participant, 17-year-old Magnus Carlsen. It was a great success, with over 100,000 visitors to the official web site. Television teams and journalists from many different countries were there. We bring final impressions by WGM Anastasiya Karlovich, who also conducted a short interview with Sergey Karjakin.

In the news: rogue trader loses bank £60 million

6/23/2008 – A rogue trader is an authorised employee making unauthorised trades on behalf of their employer. The most famous rogue trader is Nick Leeson, who lost Barings Bank £827 million in 1995 and received a 6½-year jail sentence. The latest case of a £60 million loss for a London bank is smaller fry, but made it to all the broadsheets last week. Find out why we are telling you all this.

Chess in Iran – players and venues of the national league

6/23/2008 – The Iranian Premiere League has a total of sixty players, fifty-six of them holders of international ratings. There are five GMs, with more – including super-GMs – to come. The rounds take place in different cities throughout the country. If you don't know the Si o Se Pol in Esfahan or the Ganjnameh of Hamedan, you will after you have read this pictorial report by Arash Akbarinia.

Edward Winter's Chess Explorations (3)

6/21/2008 – A week ago the Editor of Chess Notes chronicled many old masters’ choices of their best games. Now, for readers' convenience and for the record, he has prepared two follow-up articles, giving all the game-scores (some 40 in all) as text, PGN and in replayable form. There are also additional comments on the games and suggestions for further reading. See Part I now.

Anand on the Origins of Chess

6/20/2008 – Who invented chess? Listening to Russian GMs at the 1991 Reggio Emilia tournament the young Vishy Anand got the impression that they owned the game. "But didn't we Indians invent chess?" he asked himself. In an essay in TIME Magazine the reigning World Champion looks at the origins of the game and its route from India to Persia to Spain, one that reflects his own chess journey.

Ilija Penušliski

6/19/2008 – Blurb... Link.

Armageddon and Football – reader feedback

6/19/2008 – The US Championship, "between a woman with a Russian-sounding name and another woman with a Russian-sounding name," was decided by "the most ridiculous tie breaker in sports history," writes an AOL blogger. On this side of the Atlantic we were taken to task for carelessly naming regions from an archipelago that lies to the northwest of Europe. Excerpts from your letters with addenda.

There is a lot to relearn in chess strategy

6/19/2008 – What long-term strategical implications do the moves 1.e4 c5 carry with them? Well, any at all? Yes, says none less than former world champion Rustam Kasimdzhanov. His DVD "Strategy – Step by Step" is a real eye-opener for most of us. Starting with the very first moves of the games he analyses six of his strategic masterpieces in great depth. Buy it now or read more.

Aerosvit 2008: Carlsen wins by a full point

6/19/2008 – Alexei Shirov and Andrei Volokitin scored final round victories, while Vassily Ivanchuk won another game, this time against Pavel Eljanov in a queen ending. Magnus Carlsen held Ukrainian co-prodigy Sergey Karjakin to a draw to take the category 19 tournament by a full point, with a 2877 performance. He will be number two in the next world rankings – if FIDE rates this event.

Aerosvit 2008: Carlsen wins with a round to spare

6/18/2008 – Vassily Ivanchuk defeated Loek van Wely with the black pieces to join Pavel Eljanov (who drew against Karjakin) in second place. Alexei Shirov defeated Peter Svidler in a Slav, and Magnus Carlsen drew a marathon 79-move game against birthday boy Andrei Volokitin. With a round to go Carlsen is a point and a half ahead and therefore already the winner of Aerosvit 2008. Round ten report.

Chess in Iran – the Premier League

6/17/2008 – Ten teams are part of this league, which is played on weekends (Fridays in Iran) in different cities all over Iran. The first rounds started this year, 1387 according to the Iranian calendar. Sixty players, including five GMs, four IMs and nine FMs were present – one was very sadly missed: GM Karen Asrian, who passed away tragically last week. Pictorial report by Arash Akbarinia.

Sergey Karjakin at eighteen – simply frightening

6/17/2008 – He began as the ultimate chess prodigy, an assistant to a world championship candidate at eleven, the youngest grandmaster in history at twelve and a half. On Wednesday night our Playchess lecturer Dennis Monokroussos shows us how today, at 18, Sergey Karjakin is able to combine positional and tactical motifs to match the best players in the world. The show is free.

Aerosvit 2008: Eljanov and Nisipeanu win, Carlsen leads

6/17/2008 – Romania's Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu defeated Alexei Shirov after a fatal king move by the latter. Magnus Carlsen played a 16-move draw today, while one of his nearest rivals, Ukrainian GM Pavel Eljanov, defeated compatriot Andrei Volokitin to come within theoretical striking distance. With two rounds to go Carlsen leads by a point and a half. And before we forget: Happy Birthday, Pyotr!

'Global Chess' Art Exhibition in Druten

6/16/2008 – The city of Druten in The Netherlands is paying host to an exposition of chess paintings and artifacts – "Schaakkunst" in Dutch. They include new works and new artists, fifteen in all, who have produced a wide variety of realistic and surrealistic objects, most of which you can buy in the online chess shop. We bring you some sample paintings that make for a visual treat.

Aerosvit 2008: Ivanchuk, van Wely, Alekseev win

6/16/2008 – Vassily Ivanchuk defeated Alexei Shirov on the black side of an Exchange Gruenfeld, in 36 moves. With this he advanced into the group of three "chasing" Magnus Carlsen, who is two full points ahead. Evgeny Alekseev beat Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu and Loek van Wely beat Andrei Volokitin. Carlsen drew against tail-ender Alexander Onischuk. Round eight report.

US Women's Armageddon – reactions from our readers

6/15/2008 – The final tiebreak game that decided the 2008 US Women's Chess Championship in favour of Anna Zatonskih led to a protest by Irina Krush, who lost in a controversial manner. The critical phase was caught on video, which our readers could view in slow motion. "This film has been dissected as much as the Zapruder JFK assassination film," writes Julian Wan of Ann Arbor, USA. Selected letters.

Asrian Memorial: Aronian catches Leko in the final rounds

6/15/2008 – The Karen Asrian Memorial rapid chess tournament in Yerevan ended today with a clear victory for Armenia's top GM Levon Aronian, who defeated Michael Adams 1½:½ in the last two games; while Peter Leko, who had been leading most of the time, lost ½:1½ to Alexander Morozevich. The draw average in this event was 65%. Final report.

Aerosvit 2008: Carlsen continues to win

6/15/2008 – "Where were we? Ah, yes, the winning streak..." Magnus Carlsen came out of the free day refreshed and ready to rumble. His opponent, Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu, playing white, went down to the typical relentless pressure exerted by the 17-year-old Norwegian. Magnus once again has a performance of over 3000. Report with pictures of a new weapon against the Petroff.

Edward Winter's Chess Explorations (3)

6/14/2008 – Masters are occasionally invited to nominate their single best game, and here the Editor of Chess Notes chronicles the sometimes surprising choices made by the old-timers (particularly in the first half of the last century), as well as nominations for the greatest masterpiece of all time and, even, a proposal for the 'perfect game'.

Peter Leko leads Karen Asrian Memorial in Yerevan

6/14/2008 – It started as the "Chess Giants Yerevan 2008", but after the sudden and tragic death of top Armenian GM Karen Asrian at the age of 28, the Armenian Chess Federation decided to interrupt the event for a few days, and then rename it to the "Karen Asrian Memorial". This will be the name it will bear in the future. The tournament ends tomorrow. Round twelve report.

Aerosvit 2008: All games drawn, Carlsen leads at halftime

6/13/2008 – Naturally it couldn't go on forever. Magnus Carlsen, the ultimate fighter, took a break in round six and drew in eighteen moves against Evgeny Alexeev. All other games were drawn. At halftime Carlsen leads by a point and a half, ahead of two young Ukrainian grandmasters. Saturday is a free day. Round six report with beautiful pictorial impressions by WGM Anastasiya Karlovich.

Aerosvit 2008: Carlsen wins yet again, 3100 performance

6/13/2008 – This is becoming quite incredible: Magnus Carlsen beat Alexei Shirov (who blundered in a drawn position on move 61). His score is now 4.5/5, with a performance just a point shy of 3100. If the world rankings were published today he would be number two behind Vishy Anand. Three other games were decided in a day of exciting chess. Round five report.

Survey: the role of talent and training in chess

6/12/2008 – What is the most important factor in chess excellence? Is it a natural talent for the game, have it or give up? Or is it motivation and training, talent being a minor factor? Dr Robert Howard of the University of New South Wales in Australia is a psychologist who is carrying out a online survey on this subject. Anyone with an FIDE rating is invited to participate.

Levon Aronian – a future world champion?

6/11/2008 – He is not the usual child prodigy. His rise into the upper echelons of world chess in the last few years has nonetheless been dramatic, and our Playchess lecturer Dennis Monokroussos believes that top Armenian GM Levon Aronian has as good a shot as anyone to become a world champion sometime in the near future. Dennis illustrates this in his Wednesday night show.