Sochi R11+12: more fighting chess, Aronian leads

8/14/2008 – Four games decided in round eleven, with the others well fought; then three unmemorable draws, two hard-fought ones and one beautifully instructive strategic win by Peter Svidler in round twelve. The Second FIDE Grand Prix in Sochi nears its end. Aronian is in the lead, but can still be caught or overtaken. Games on Playchess.com. Note: the final round starts an hour earlier.

Ilyumzhinov: Do not mix politics and sport

8/14/2008 – In reply to a recent appeal by a number of participants to move the forthcoming World Chess Championship from Nalchik to a safer location, FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov writes: "In the current situation I appeal to all not to mix politics and sport, and not to involve FIDE and the world chess community into political, territorial and other disputes." Statement by Ilyumzhinov.

Arik Braun, Harika lead in Junior World Championship

8/14/2008 – This event in Gaziantep, Turkey, has become very exciting, with two clear leaders two rounds before the end. German IM Arik Braun is being chased by GMs Howell, Safarli, Rodshtein, Negi and others. In the girls' section India's Harika Dronavalli is half a point ahead of Ukrainian Mariya Muzychuk. Anything can happen in the final rounds. Giant pictorial report by Özgür Akman.

Sochi R13: Aronian wins Second FIDE Grand Prix

8/14/2008 – Armenian GM Levon Aronian defeated Alexander Grischuk to take clear first in the Grand Prix tournament, finishing with 8.5/13 points and a performance of 2816. Second is Teimour Radjabov, who beat his main rival Sergey Karjakin with the black pieces. Kamsky, Jakovenko and Svidler won their games against Navara, Cheparinov and Gashimov. Final report with games and statistics.

Rybka vs Meyer – pawn and two move handicap match

8/14/2008 – Before the rating system players were generally classified by the handicap a stronger player could give them. The chess program Rybka has a higher rating than any human, and recently it beat GM Roman Dzindzichashvili in a pawn and move handicap game. Would it be able to acquit itself similarly against an IM who got a pawn and two moves handicap? It would and it did.

Veteran Smyslov overwhelms the rising star of chess

8/13/2008 – 1971. Anatoly Karpov, 20, is on his way to the world championship – which he wins four years later. But on his way he encounters a future predecessor. Vassily Smyslov, 50, was the seventh world champion. The key encounter results in an overwhelming victory for the older man. In his Wednesday night Playchess lecture Dennis Monokroussos shows us what is to be learnt form this game. Enjoy.

Sochi R10: fighting chess, five decisive games after rest day

8/12/2008 – It obviously did them good: the players at the Second FIDE Grand Prix Tournament in Sochi came back in a fighting mood. Two fighting draws and five decisive games provided great entertainment for the spectators. After the dust had settled, four GMs were in the lead, with three lurking half a point behind. We bring you results, videos and highlights from the games.

Appeal to FIDE: move the Women's World Championship

8/12/2008 – "We express our worry about the current dangerous situation near Cabardino-Balkaria," writes a group of participants in the Women's World Championship scheduled to take placed from August 28th to September 18th 2008 in Nalchik, a city in the Caucasus region of southern Russia. The proximity to the Russian-Georgian armed conflict region is the reason. Open letter.

Staunton Memorial: Adams lead by a full point

8/12/2008 – This is Michael Adams' third appearance in the Staunton Memorial, and his cumulative score with the white pieces is 11.5/13! In this year's edition Adams is leading with 4.5/5 points and has displayed a stunning performance of 2886. Second is Dutch GM Loek van Wely with 3.5/5, followed by Smeets, Timman and Short with 3.0/5 each. 87-year-old Bob Wade still has to score. Rounds 3-5 reports.

Anand on how it feels to be an Indian sportsman

8/11/2008 – "In Mexico City, when I stood on the podium (after winning the World Chess Championship last year) and they played the national anthem, I did feel a lump in my throat," says Vishy Anand. "As the Olympics begin, I am keenly waiting to see my fellow colleagues stand on that podium with the Indian tri-colour." His wish was granted. Interview, with statistics and video impressions from Mainz.

Sochi R09: Wang Yue wins two, joins Cheparinov in the lead

8/10/2008 – After drawing all his games in the first seven rounds Chinese GM Wang Yue suddenly galvanised into action, beating Boris Gelfand (with the black pieces) in round eight and then the tournament leader Teimour Radjabov, who fell into 3-7th place. Wang joins Ivan Cheparinov in the plus two lead, with four rounds to go in this event. Sunday is a free day. Report after round nine.

Adams and Timman lead in Staunton memorial

8/10/2008 – The drawing of lots was conducted in the usual manner – by racing mechanical cars through an image of Garry Kasparov. In round one Adams demolished Smeets with the black pieces, in round two Nigel Short missed a win in one against Jan Timman, for which he would have won the Best Game prize, a chess set crafted from US Air Force weapons-grade aluminium. Round 1-2 reports.

Edward Winter's Chess Explorations (7)

8/10/2008 – Mr Jones, a bookshop owner, wants to stock only the very best chess volumes which are in print, and he has a headache. Not surprisingly, he feels overwhelmed by the flood of books on the market, so which are the very best in the various categories? The Editor of Chess Notes makes a few suggestions and invites further proposals from readers.

The Dzindzi – Rybka 3 Handicap Match

8/9/2008 – Chess with material handicaps was played by Philidor, Staunton, Morphy and Steinitz. Particularly popular was “pawn and move”, with Black missing his f7 pawn. Naturally you find the grandmaster playing the handicapped side. But can a strong GM beat a computer when playing with the handicap pawn and move? Roman Dzindzichashvili tried it against Rybka 3.0. IM Larry Kaufman reports.

The Great ChessBase Simul Hunt (1)

8/8/2008 – Last month we launched the Great ChessBase Simul Hunt, and many games have already been received from readers. A guest contributor, the German grandmaster and author Karsten Müller, has selected and annotated three of the most interesting games submitted so far, including a victory by Bobby Fischer in a 1962 simultaneous display in Denmark. Replay and enjoy the games.

Sochi R07: Karjakin beats Al-Modiahki, as bomb blast rocks Sochi

8/7/2008 – After slightly more than half the event 34 of a total of 49 games have ended in draws. That is a high 70 percent. White won 12 games (=24%) and Black three games (=6%). With his win Sergey Karjakin advanced into the group of seven players with 50% scores. Cheparinov and Radjabov lead. On Thursday a bomb blast rocked the city of Sochi, killing two and injuring 13. Round seven report.

Curacao 2008 – above and below the water

8/7/2008 – Until the last round Spanish IM Luis Javier Bernal Moro led by a full point, with a GM norm in his pocket. Then came disaster in the final game and the first place was taken on tiebreak by GM Larry Christiansen. But not all the action was above the water. In Curacao people are preparing for underwater chess. During the test the players found the kibitzing stingrays quite disconcerting.

Sochi R06: Radjabov and Cheparinov lead in Sochi

8/6/2008 – For a while Ivan Cheparinov, the Bulgarian GM who assists Veselin Topalov, was in the clear lead. In round five he lost a wild and chaotic game to Teimour Radjabov, who also got a slightly lucky win against Boris Gelfand in round six. But Cheparinov bounced back with his own victory against Alexander Grischuk. Now Radjabov and Cheparinov lead in the FIDE Grand Prix. Round six report.

History in the making at historical Simpson's

8/6/2008 – "In the summer, an Englishman's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of chess", as Alfred Lord Tennyson almost said. For the past few years, August in London has meant international chess of a calibre rarely seen in England, and this year is no different. Next to Adams, Sokolov, Short and van Wely we see 87-year-old IM Bob Wade participating. Everyone's rooting for the octogenarian.

Vallejo vs Nepomniachtchi – two young lions in a display of ferocity

8/6/2008 – Two of the strongest young players in the world today are Ian Nepomniachtchi and Francisco Vallejo Pons. Ian is 18, born in the same year as Carlsen and Karjakin; Paco Vallejo is a veteran at 25, and has scored wins over Anand, Kramnik and Topalov. In his Wednesday night Playchess lecture Dennis Monokroussos looks at a dramatic encounter between the two. Do not miss.

World Junior Championship starts in Gaziantep

8/6/2008 – The World Junior Championship is being held in Gaziantep, the Economic Centre of Turkey, from 2 to 16 August. The event has 22 GMs, five WGMs, 23 IMs, 14 WIMs, 15 FMs and 27 WFMs among the 195 players from 60 countries playing in the championship. Guess who is equal second, after four rounds, in the boy's section. A 14-year-old Chinese girl! Illustrated report.

Mainz 2008: photographic impressions by Fred Lucas

8/6/2008 – In an age when two billion photographers are loose on the planet it is good to see a few professionals who take their work seriously. One is Fred Lucas of The Netherlands, who was providing us with stunning portraits before digital cameras became essentially a grocery store item. Fred was in Mainz, busy and creative. Here is a sample of his work.

Mainz 2008: Ian Nepomniachtchi wins Ordix Open

8/5/2008 – It was a dramatic last round: when other title contenders were playing short draws Ian Nepomniachtchi showed his fighting spirit and beat world-class GM Evgeny Bareev. "Nepo" shared the top place with Pavel Eljanov (but beat him on tiebreak points). A splendid performance was given by Kateryna Lahno, 18, who scored half a point less and ended up in fifth place. Big illustrated report.

Vladimir Kramnik wins a new corporate sponsor

8/5/2008 – "Chess is a competition of intellect and endurance, of risk and estimation," says the new sponsor. "This very philosophy, completely shared by «EUROCEMENT group, induced the company to pay a huge attention to the chess tournaments throughout its sponsorship activities." Press release.