9/10/2016 – The first-move advantage in chess is historically varified. Statistics for the last 165 years show that White consistently wins between 52 and 56 percent of the games. Some chess theorists have challenged the view that this is solely a consequence of being able to make the first move. GM András Adorján wrote a series of books on the theme "Black is OK!", arguing that the general perception that White has an advantage is founded more in psychology than reality. András conducted an experiment to test his theory.

9/10/2016 – Eugenio Torre from the Philippines, Asia's first grandmaster, is a phenomenon. In Baku he plays his 23rd Olympiad, more than any other player in chess history. Torre, who once qualified for the Candidate Matches and at his peak was number 17 in the world, gave his olympic debut in Siegen 1970 and since then has won three bronze medals for his results on board one. He is 64 years old, but still very strong. In Baku he plays on board three for the Philippines and started with 6.0/7 and an Elo-performance of 2712. A short tribute.

9/10/2016 – The Ukrainian team seems to be in good shape at the Olympiad in Baku. They beat Russia and China and only lost to the USA. After seven rounds they have 12 from 14 possible team points and share second to seventh place, and are only one point behind the leading US team. However, one prominent player is missing in the line-up of the Ukrainians: Vassily Ivanchuk. Where is the Ukrainian top player? Well, he is playing an open in Poland - a draughts tournament.

9/10/2016 – What an astonishing round it was! It literally saw all the previous leaders suffer setbacks. The biggest headline was without question the crushing victory of Team USA over India by 3.5-0.5. But this was not the only eye-opener. Previous co-leaders Netherlands lost badly to Latvia 3-1 and China, ranked third, lost 3-1 to England. Russia's 3.5-0.5 win over the Czechs sets up a double-date with the USA. In the Women's event, Russia was held to a draw by Poland, while China beat Ukraine. Full report, results and GM analysis.

9/9/2016 – During the first week of August the city of Belgrade hosted the 40th World Chess Solving Championship. Brian Stephenson, a member of the British Chess Problem Society, ran the Championship and chose the problems for the participants to solve. In the September issue of CHESS Magazine he presented two of the studies, and the solution to one from the May issue. Our readers are challenged to solve them, especially one that has a prize attached to it.

9/9/2016 – Tactics can seem deceptively simple, particularly when seeing an engine analysing grandmaster games. Strange, however, how difficult it is to find the right move and to calculate variations properly when playing yourself. It is easier if you solve tactical puzzles regularly. In the ChessBase Magazine and his tactics column Oliver Reeh helps you to do so.

9/9/2016 – With the field at the top winnowed down to a handful the matches of the day were of paramount importance. The big match between Holland and India was epic: The Dutch started strong on all boards, but the Indians rallied and emerged victorious. The Ukrainians, who had shared the lead, faced Team USA, and it was Caruana's victory over Eljanov that decided their fate. The Women's event was no less dramatic as the Ukrainians squandered a sure win to draw with Russia, while China was held to a draw by Romania. Here is the report with instructive notes by GM Elshan Moradiabadi.

9/8/2016 – After five gruelling rounds at the Olympiad 2016 comes the rest day. And the Indian team used it to be together and having a nice time. AICF President Venketrama Raja took the teams out for a lunch. We have some very candid and interesting pictures and also videos showcasing the physical strength of the Indian players! We have videos of their feats, and there is also a chance for you to win the latest Master Class Vol.07: Kasparov DVD as a prize!

9/8/2016 – He used to be a very strong chess grandmaster, one of the 40 best in the world. But at eighteen he abandoned chess to study economics, and went on to become a leader in the field. We met Kenneth Rogoff over a year ago in Munich, Germany, where he and GM Helmut Pfleger exchanged chess memories. Ken also delivered a remarkable lecture on the curse of paper currency. Today his book on the subject has been released – to keen world-wide attention.

9/7/2016 – Most chessplayer wonder, at least occasionally, how good they are. Of course, rating offers an answer but this answer often seems wrong. Indeed, sometimes you play far worse than your rating indicates, sometimes you do much better. The latter games should encourage you as they indicate what you are able to do. You "only" have to play such games more often, more consistently. Which might lead to less agony and more ecstasy.

9/7/2016 – Chess booms in the US. The US team is one of the favorites to win the Open Section of the Olympiad in Baku and the US American juniors achieve success after success. In the Wall Street Journal GM Alejandro Ramirez analyses this phenomenon, concluding that "the new model for U.S. chess success is a uniquely American recipe: private sponsorship combined with school programs and a dollop of vintage Soviet chess know-how". See article in the Wall Street Journal.

9/7/2016 – Maybe on day six of the Olympiad the players have firmly settled in and feel more and more inspired by the Olympic spirit, or they decided to try particularly hard before the free day after round five, or they were looking forward to the legendary Bermuda Party that invited players on Tuesday evening - but whatever the reason, round five in Baku brought many brilliancies. Daniel King presents three of them.