3/21/2024 – Judit and Sofia Polgar joined last Thursday (March 14) to play in a simultaneous exhibition in the German parliament (Bundestag) in a moving tribute to the Israeli hostages held by Hamas. The aim of the initiative is to strengthen the ties between countries and to promote solidarity between people. The prestigious initiative has been recognized by UNESCO for promoting interracial dialogue through the game of chess. | Press Release by Yochanan Afek, photos: Judit Polgar/Chess 4 All

12/22/2022 – The Israeli Championships took place on December 5-13 in the southern city of Arad, with a prize fund of 110 thousands NIS. The surprising winner was 20-year-old IM Ido Gorshtein, while IM Yuliya Shvayger defended her title in the women’s competition. | Pictured: FIDE Arbiter Ilana Glaz, Yuliya Shvayger, Avital Boruchovsky, Gil Boruchovsky (General Director of ICF), Ido Gorshtein, Ori Kochavi, Flory Sterling, Deputy Mayor of Arad. | Photos: Dr. Mark Livshitz

12/19/2021 – The Israel Open Championship saw 102 players compete in nine Swiss rounds for the top honours as well as for the 80,000 NIS prize-fund. Quite a few of the country’s best junior players were among the participants. GM Tamir Nabaty, the highest rated participant, emerged winner despite an early defeat, ahead of GM Evgeny Postny and Israel’s best female player IM Marsel Efroimsky. Report by Yochanan Afek. | Photo: Ritvo photography.

3/12/2021 – After having been twice postponed due to the Corona restrictions, the 40th edition of the Israeli Championships are now taking place (March 7-15) at the Leonardo Plaza Hotel in Haifa. Four players are sharing the lead in the open section after six rounds. Among the women, top seed Yuliya Shvayger is currently the sole leader. | Photo: Dorit Ritvo Wolfoviz

4/15/2019 – The 2019 season of the Israeli Team Championship finished last week in Ramat Aviv. Ashdod obtained their seventh national title, led by Emil Sutovsky and a host of international reinforcements, including Pavel Eljanov and Alexander Moiseenko. Beer-Sheva Levant, led by Maxim Rodshtein, finished in second place, while Kfar Saba A, with Israeli champion Tamir Nabaty on board one, took home the bronze medals. YOCHANAN AFEK sent a report from the Western Asian country. | Photos: Dr. Mark Livshitz

2/2/2019 – After Magnus Carlsen and Vladislav Kovalev won the Tata Steel Masters and Challengers tournaments, the ARVES Chess Endgame Studies Association organised a study solving competition in Wijk aan Zee for the tenth time. Former woman Dutch champion Anne Haast — the youngest participant — was the surprising winner. YOCHANAN AFEK composed three out of the nine studies that were used in the event and sent a report from the North Sea coastal city. | Photos: Harry Gielen

12/29/2018 – The end of the year saw Israel organising its national championships in Maalot Tarshiha. In the open section, 54-year-old Alon Greenfeld won his second national title after having received the trophy for the first time back in 1984. He tied on 6½ points with Evgeny Postny, but was declared winner on tie-breaks. Amongst the women, rating favourite Yuliya Shvayger (pictured with Moshe Slav, chairman of the Israel Chess Federation) finished on top after edging Marsel Efroimski on Sonneborn-Berger score. | Photos: Dr. Mark Livshitz

7/14/2018 – Small local rivalries are a big part of club-level chess. In Spakenburg, a small Dutch village, two strong amateur teams are located next to each other and have frequent confrontations. The squads are known as "the red" and "the blue", much like Arsenal and Chelsea in England, or Inter and Milan in Italy. YOCHANAN AFEK sent a report describing the rapid tournament they organized: it took place in a football stadium and was won by a computer. | Pictured: Kevin van Brummelen | Photos: Frans Peeters

7/10/2018 – The "Gideon Japhet Cup" ended in Jerusalem on Friday, July 6th. Grandmaster Ian Nepomniachtchi slipped into the lead in the double-round rapid tournament finishing ahead by a full point over four other protagonists with equally well-known names: Peter Svidler (Russia), Vassily Ivanchuk (Ukraine), Boris Gelfand (Israel) and Georg Meier (Germany) finished with 5 points each. The Ukrainian Anna Muzychuk came sixth with 4.0 / 10. In the parallel open Arkadij Naiditsch won with 6.0 / 7 in front of five players with 5½ points respectively. | Pictured: Gelfand and Ivanchuk relax after the tournament | Photo: Ritvo Photography

7/5/2018 – Fierce chess battles at the Gideon Japhet Memorial rapid cup have led to the first place being up for grabs going into the last two rounds on Friday. Not only are Ian Nepomniachtchi and Georg Meier currently ahead by half a point, they face each other in the final two games! In the ACP Open group, Arkadij Naiditsch conceded his first draw but has 5½ out of 6 with one round to play, and is poised to win the tournament. | Photo: Ritvo Photography

6/29/2018 – Elite rapid chess and more in the Israeli city of Jerusalem. Nepomniachtchi, Svidler, Ivanchuk, Gelfand, Meier and Anna Muzychuk star in the 4th edition of the Gideon Japhet Memorial, beginning July 1st. | Pictured: The prize giving podium of the third Japhet tournament 2016 | Photo: Ritvo photography

4/17/2018 – Prof. Johann van Hulst, a teacher, parliamentarian, active chess player until his last days passed away last month in Amsterdam at the age of 107. For his humanitarian actions, saving over 600 Jewish children during World War II, he received the Yad Vashem distinction "Righteous Among the Nations" from the State of Israel in 1972. | Pictured: On January 28, 2011, Van Hulst celebrated his centenary in Wijk aan Zee | Photo: Alina l'Ami

2/15/2018 – Solving endgame studies is a highly recommended method of making you a much more creative player by improving your endgame understanding, sharpening your tactical sense and calculative skills, equipping you with a whole arsenal of conventional as well as out of the box weapons. Yet first and foremost it is a great fun provided you face human and friendly challenges and keep your silicon monsters switched off for a change. | Pictured: The winner, GM Twan Burg (left) & IM P.Peelen | Photo: Harry Gielen

2/7/2018 – Jan Timman turned 66 years old on December 14th, 2017, and received an unusual gift from his friend of 50 years, IM Hans Bohm: a study competition launched in his honour. 66 composers from around the world competed for a 2000 euro prize fund. Noted study expert Yochanan Afek brings us the highlights — pull up a chair, settle in, and enjoy. | Pictured (clockwise from left): The jury: Jan Timman, Hans Böhm, Yochanan Afek, Harold van der Heijden | Photo: Dorette van der Heijden

7/21/2017 – Georg Meier wins 20th Maccabiah top group ahead of Alexander Moiseenko, while Tal Baron took the B group. Yochanan Afek sends stories, photos and highlights | Photos: Ritvo Photography

7/12/2017 – National Cup games, in chess and in other sports, are usually run in a “knock out” system with half of the remaining competitors eliminated in each round. For already more than a generation, Israeli chess has been adopting a more innovative and dynamic method to run this traditional enterprise. At the end of the league season, 40 teams from the top divisions regroup for a day of real fun: A five-round rapid Swiss competition with almost all the country’s top players taking part.

7/7/2017 – German Grandmaster Georg Meier is an early leader in Jerusalem after three rounds. Yochanan Afek sent us this report of early highlights, including a "Greek gift". Dutch GM David Klein (pictured in his Maccabiah t-shirt) is also in the top group. | Photo: Ritvo Photography

6/27/2017 – A while ago we brought you the prize-winners of the composition tournaments, run by Yochanan Afek for the Chess Informant (Šahovski Informator). Today we present the "honourable mentions", special prizes and commendations, for you to enjoy. The studies are given on JavaScript boards where you can enter move to analyse – and the full solutions are provided at the end, where you can check the lines with engine support, all on the report page.