Qatar 2015 round one: A day of surprises

12/21/2015 – Usually the initial games at Open are smooth sailing for the top seeds – but not in the Qatar Masters Open 2015. There were so many upsets. Magnus Carlsen drew his game, and amongst the 2700+ players, so did Harikrishna, Jakovenko and Ivanchuk. Wei Yi and Nikita Vitiugov were two super GMs who went back with a nil on the scoreboard, while GM Pavel Tregubov lost to an untitled 12-year-old Iranian. Giant illustrated report from Doha.

Summer in San Salvador (part two)

12/21/2015 – Finishing the vivid illustrated report on the San Salvador Open, the photographing/reporting/globetrotting player headed off to bright sunny Mexico, but instead of a plane hop, took a bus that took her through Guatemala, where she took some time off to enjoy it and share her impressions. Here are the further photographic impressions by Alina L' Ami.

Qatar Masters R1: Video analysis by Daniel King

12/21/2015 – The Qatar Masters is probably the strongest open in chess history. A lot of surprises happened in round 1. The World Champion Magnus Carlsen only drew his game against Batsiashvili. Anish Giri on the contrary won a nice game today against a young IM from India. Daniel King went on to use that game as his game of the day. Click here for the video...

Interview with David Howell, British KO Champ

12/20/2015 – David Howell has once again proved that he is a force to be reckoned with in British chess. After adding another British title to his belt, David Howell is now £20,000 richer and closer to his goal of being back in the top 30 in the world. The inaugural British Knockout Chess Championships just took place in Kensington, London and seeks to revolutionize British chess.

Qatar 2015 Rd1: Surprises, upsets – what a start!

12/20/2015 – In a massive open with many of the best players in the world, upsets are expected, but even the most jaded viewers were left gawking in round one. The first and foremost was Magnus Carlsen held to a draw with white by IM Nino Batsiashvili. While that stood out, so did 11-year-old Abdusattorov’s draw against GM Sam Shankland. Express report with all results and games.

Summer in San Salvador (part one)

12/20/2015 – Enjoying a much needed relief from the below freezing temperatures in the northern hemisphere, Alina L'Ami travels to Latin America where the sunny climate reigns. First on the list was San Salvador, where the second San Salvador Open took place, won convincingly by Evgeny Romanov with 8.0/9. In the hectic schedule, time was found to visit ancient pyramids.

Qatar Masters starts on Sunday

12/20/2015 – It is one of the biggest events of the year 2015. We count 77 GMs, with top stars like Magnus Carlsen, Vladimir Kramnik, Anish Giri, Wesley So, Vassily Ivanchuk at the top. The average rating of the entire field of 141 players is 2526. The Opening dinner took place on Saturday and we bring you some candid pictures of the players and of Doha, captured by Amruta Mokal.

Hou Yifan dismantles Evgeny Najer in Shanghai

12/19/2015 – The Chinese Chess Association and the Russian Chess Federation jointly hosted the Russian-Chinese ‘Match of Friendship’ on December 13-15 in Shanghai. It included an exhibition rapid-and-blitz match between the 2015 European Champion GM Evgeny Najer and the world’s strongest female player Hou Yifan. The Chinese super-talent won it 9.5-4.5. Big pictorial report.

2015 Ukrainian Ch: Comebacks and Cinderella

12/19/2015 – It was a tight race to the end for the Ukrainian Championships, with nothing decided in either the Men’s or Women’s event until the very last round. Andrei Volokitin snatched the title in the 11th hour for his second title in 11 years. In the Women’s Championship, Anastasia Rakhmangulova, the second lowest rated in the field, took sole first in a Cinderella win.

Huffington: Carlsen Wins Grand Chess Tour

12/19/2015 – Many chess fans complained about the cumbersome tie-breaking rules of the Grand Chess Tour. The three-way tie for first in London was decided by a playoff in which Vachier-Lagrave beat Anish Giri, but then a single loss to Carlsen decided the tournament and an overall Tour victory. In his Huffington Post column GM Lubomir Kavalek analyses key games and tells us how the Chess Grand Tour points could have been simplified.

Watch the University Challenge on Monday

12/18/2015 – It is one of the oldest quiz shows, pitting teams of students from two British colleges against each other, with questions that are anything but trivial or easy. There is no prize money involved – the participants compete solely for the honour of representing their alma mater. Why do we tell you all this? Because for the first time in over a thousand shows a chess grandmaster is involved.

Strike or own goal?

12/18/2015 – 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.

25th World Senior Chess Championship

12/18/2015 – The 25th World Senior Chess Championships in Acqui Terme, Italy, was an amazing event. The four groups drew more than three hundred participants, including over 100 titled players, among them 18 GMs and 34 IMs. Georgian chess legend GM Nona Gaprindashvili won the Women’s 65+ section with 7.0/9, GM Predrag Nikolic the Open 50+ with 9.5/11. Report from a Jamaican perspective by Ian Wilkinson.

A Magnuficent Sunday at the LCC 2015 (2)

12/17/2015 – After the regular games at the London Chess Classic 2015 three players, Magnus Carlsen, Anish Giri and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave had tied for the top spot. In the rapid playoffs MVL eliminated Giri but then succumbed to the World Champion in the finals. Magnus Carlsen thus not only became the London winner but also the Grand Chess Tour Champion. Big pictorial report with instructive analysis by Sagar Shah.

The knight wants to have control

12/16/2015 – Every week ChessBase magazine author and renowned endgame expert Karsten Müller presents a remarkable or particularly instructive endgame in his blog. A click on the diagram opens a larger board. Test your endgame skills, improve and have fun!

A Magnuficent Sunday at the LCC 2015 (1)

12/16/2015 – Okay, it is not in the OED, the word does describe the super Sunday at the London Chess Classic 2015. Anish Giri and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave went into the final round leading with 5.0/8 points. Both drew their games, while World Champion Magnus Carlsen, trailing half a point behind, managed to outwit Alexander Grischuk to force a tiebreak. Sagar Shah watched it all unfold and sent us a two-part in-depth report.

Chess books on computers and tablets

12/15/2015 – Technology now enables us to keep an entire chess library on a portable electronic device and to play over the moves on screen while reading your favourite book. Grandmaster John Nunn, author and Director at the prominent publishers Gambit, talks about the growing range of books his company is converting to app format, to run on iPads, Android tablets and smartphones. You can try it out for free.

Agon/FIDE sign record-breaking media deal

12/15/2015 – Agon is the commercial partner of FIDE, NRK a leadin Norwegian TV network. The latter has paid a record sum to secure long-term broadcasting rights for World Championship events on TV, from now until 2020. NRK has developed exciting ways to make chess interesting for TV audiences in countries around the world. The exact amount of the deal was not revealed, but it is in the low seven figures.

LCC R9: Video analysis by Daniel King

12/14/2015 – Before the last round 5 players could still win the tournament. After Giri and MVL drew their games it was Carlsen vs Grischuk to decide wether it's a three-way or two-way tie break. Daniel King picked this game and a game from the tie break for his highlights video. In his usual manner Daniel King explains the ideas of the players in a comprehensive and lively way. Click here for the video...

ChessBase Account: test and register

12/14/2015 – Of course you can simply test it – completely free of charge, for three months. But at some stage you will want to create a proper ChessBase Account which will give you full and permanent access to our new services – Playchess, Live Database, My Games Cloud, etc. They run in a browser on Windows, Mac, iPads, Androids, smartphones. Here are step-by-step instructions on how to register.

London Rd9: Three-way playoff, Carlsen is champion

12/14/2015 – Three players finished with 5.5/9 points, leading to a very exciting three-way playoff. Due to the nature of the rules, Vachier-Lagrave and Giri first squared off, with MVL prevailing in a dramatic turnaround. He then faced Carlsen for the title. More playoff tension, but in the end Magnus Carlsen claimed both the London Classic title and the Grand Chess Tour. Express report.

LCC R08: Giri wins, exciting finish expected

12/13/2015 – The eighth round produced only one decisive game – Anish Giri beating Hikaru Nakamura. However, the other games were filled excitement, most notable being Carlsen’s draw against Topalov, where the 50 move rule hampered the World Champion’s chance to win the game. The last round promises to be an especially exciting one as five players have a chance to win the title. We have an illustrated round eight report with lots of pictures and game analysis.

Ivanchuk wins ACP Masters in Ashdod

12/12/2015 – Vassily Ivanchuk from Ukraine is the winner of the ACP Masters rapid super tournament that ended on Thursday in the Israeli city of Ashdod. The Ukraine No.1 beat Frenchman Etienne Bacrot in the final match with a flawless two wins and one draw to take home the title and the US$10 thousand first prize. Here is the final illustrated report.

London Rd8: Giri joins MVL in the lead

12/12/2015 – It was not for lack of trying, but round eight saw four of the five games draw, a scene the fans are all too familiar with. The only win was Anish Giri's victory over Hikaru Nakamura, still not recovered from yesterday's disheartening loss. Magnus Carlsen pressed Vesselin Topalov for the longest time, but could not crack the Bulgarian. Express report with video analysis by Daniel King.