Maurice Ashley rounds up Bilbao today!

10/8/2011 – This afternoon from New York, at 4 PM EST and 10 PM Paris, the dynamic and popular commentator GM Maurice Ashley will be the guest host of the Bilbao round up show on Playchess, where he will not only summarize the action of the day, but he will also take questions from the spectators. This show is free for Premium subscribers so consider upgrading if you haven't already. Don't miss it!

Bilbao Masters – Nakamura steamrolls Aronian; Carlsen wins too

10/8/2011 – Mathematically, Ivanchuk can still be caught, though Carlsen and Nakamura are the likeliest candidates. While Ivanchuk and Anand drew after a long duel, Carlsen was staring at a draw until Vallejo blundered a piece. Meanwhile, Nakamura completely outplayed Aronian in an equal endgame for a brilliant win. Report, videos, and notes by GM Romain Edouard.

CBM Blog: Triumphs and tribulations of Vassily Ivanchuk

10/8/2011 – He dominated the first half of the Grand Slam in São Paulo, got robbed at gun-point when he was leaving, started with a brilliant victory in the first round of the second leg, and yesterday lost a probably drawn rook ending in desperate time trouble against bottom seed Francisco Vallejo. We reported on round seven, and now bring you additional endgame analysis by GM Karsten Müller.

Congestion on the third rank

10/7/2011 – White has brought up all his heavy artillery on the kingside. A move with which piece gives him a decisive attack now?
A) queen
B) rook
C) bishop


The solution is here, but first ponder over it with a larger version of the diagram.

Comeback kid Sadler leads in Oslo International

10/7/2011 – This Norwegian tournament has two heroes: on the one hand, the successful author Hans Olav Lahlum, who has saved the Gausdal tradition by creating and sponsoring a new event after the former disappeared. The second is the British GM Matthew Sadler, who, after a protracted absence from chess, is back with a vengeance. Big report with pictures by GM Sergei Tiviakov.

Bilbao Masters – Vallejo overcomes Ivanchuk

10/7/2011 – It was a round full of tough chess, and fascinating games for all tastes. The first game to finish was Anand against Nakamura in a Ruy Lopez Berlin that went the distance. Aronian found himself suffering throughout the game against Carlsen though he survived. Vallejo beat Ivanchuk, when the latter faltered in time trouble. Illustrated report with video and annotations by GM Romain Edouard.

Bilbao Grand Slam leg starts today

10/6/2011 – After an exciting first half in São Paulo, Brazil, the players have now settled down and, hopefully, adjusted to the five hours' time difference. Today is the first round of the second half in Bilbao, Spain. Top match: Magnus Carlsen vs Vishy Anand. Playchess will broadcast it all live. To get you in the mood here are pictures from the opening ceremony and some interesting video reports.

Saint-Petersburg CF wins the European Chess Cup

10/6/2011 – The seven-round event, which took place in Rogaska Slatina, Slovenia, had 65 men's and 12 women's teams participating. It was won by St Petersburg, headed by World Cup winner Peter Svidler. Second was SOCAR, headed by Teimour Radjabov, who scored 4.5/5 points with a 3019 performance. Teimour, we hear, is to get married on October 7th. Full illustrated report.

Bilbao Masters – Ivanchuk runs over Nakamura

10/6/2011 – One would have been justified in thinking that after his fifth round loss to Carlsen, and the terrible incident that marred his trip to Bilbao, Ivanchuk would be unable to continue his Grand Slam Masters ravage. However, the tire marks he left on Nakamura, after he ran over the American's Sicilian, dismissed this thought. The other games drew. Pictorial and video with analysis by GM Romain Edouard.

Clock simul: Topalov vs the Irish national team

10/5/2011 – On Monday 3rd of October 2011 GM Veselin Topalov, Elo 2768, played a clock simul exhibition match in Dublin against the Irish team, consisiting of GM Alexander Baburin, 2535, IM Sam Collins, 2436, IM Alex Lopez, 2414 and IM Mark Quinn, 2398. The final score: 2-2, with a win apiece for each side. Owing to a firewall problem a live broadcast was not possible. Report with games and videos.

Historical banter: Grouch and Kashdan on chess

10/5/2011 – And now, as the Pythons were wont to say, for something completely different. The immortal Groucho Marx of Marx Brothers fame, did a quiz show for radio and then for TV, from 1947. It was mainly used to showcase his ad-libbing talent. In one show he had chess GM Isaac Kashdan, whom he calls "Ashcan", as a guest and joked around about chess. Take a break and watch this rare footage.

Kavalek in Huffington: The Most Treacherous Defense in Chess

10/5/2011 – Named after the Austrian master Ernst Grünfeld, the defense has been around for nearly 90 years. At first, it was looked upon with suspicion: giving White a strong pawn center that could only be tickled by Black's dark bishop and other pieces didn't seem to be a fair deal. In this week's column GM Lubomir Kavalek tells us how he taught a World Championship challenger how to play the Grünfeld.

13th Open International in L'île de la Réunion

10/4/2011 – Réunion? Where on earth is that? It is a chunk of France floating between Madagascar and Mauritius, a tropical paradise, where an open tournament is currently being held. Our on-site reporter is WGM Kruttika Nadig of India, who has sent us a wittily written and wonderfully illustrated report with her first impressions. We welcome Kruttika to our permanent team of contributors.

São Paulo Masters – Highway robbery in São Paulo!

10/4/2011 – In a tragic end to the São Paulo leg of the Grand Slam Masters, Vassily Ivanchuk and his wife were robbed at gunpoint in the hotel driveway, before boarding the taxi that was to take them to the airport. To make things worse, his wife's passports were taken, and she could no longer accompany him to Bilbao, instead forced to return to Ukraine. Ivanchuk has threatened to abandon the tournament.

A history of cheating in chess (2)

10/4/2011 – Coaching players during the game is probably the most widespread form of cheating (rivaled only perhaps by bribery and the throwing of games). Although this practice began long before the advent of chess playing machines, computers have added a new and dramatic dimension to this method of cheating in chess. You will never guess: who were the pioneers of cheating with computers?

Duel of chess legends Garry Kasparov and Nigel Short

10/3/2011 – They slugged it out for the World Championship in London in 1993. Now, 18 years later, the two are back at the board for an eight-game blitz match in Belgium. Sponsors and organisers are "Your Next Move", an initiative that supports chess as a sport and aims at creating an impetus among young people aged six to twelve. Visit this event if you can.

CBM Blog: Race of passed pawns + a hiding place

10/3/2011 – Oh bother – more chess training and study, further improvement of your tournament results. Wait, that's a good thing, isn't it? Free lessons from a world-renowned endgame expert, every few days. This time GM Karsten Müller, who has a PhD in mathematics, shows us two practical examples from games played in recent months. Take a break to hone your chess skills.

São Paulo Masters – Nakamura, Carlsen win, Nakamura in second place

10/3/2011 – Magnus Carlsen defeated Vassily Ivanchuk in a French Defence in a line used successfully in 1997 by Morozevich. US GM Hikaru Nakamura, who we can feel must have a new trainer, played the English against Paco Vallejo. He beat the luckless Spaniard (–4, +1) and has now taken second place in this event. Find out the secret side of Carlsen in the large illustrated report by Albert Silver.

Edward Winter's Chess Explorations (70)

10/3/2011 – The Editor of Chess Notes puts forward a range of practical suggestions for authors and columnists. How to make the best use of limited time and resources? What to write about and what to avoid? And perhaps the trickiest question of all: how to react when it all goes wrong? For chess writers everywhere, we proudly present the ultimate survival guide.

Only the tip of the iceberg

10/2/2011 – The game Aronian-Ivanchuk from last Friday was a great fight full of drama and tactics. From the wealth of variations, may it suffice to name only three in this critical position (after 25...Bf3+). How would you assess each of them?
A) 26.Kc2 Rfc8+ 27.Kb1
B) 26.Rxf3 Qxf3+ 27.Be2 Qxf6 28.g5
C) 26.Rxf3 Qxf3+ 27.Be2 Qh1+ 28.Kc2

The solution is here, but first ponder over it with a larger version of the diagram.

CBM Blog: Dominating the queen – a Knightmare

10/2/2011 – Ready for some more endgame lessons from GM Karsten Müller? He shows us how, in a queen ending, the activity of the queens and the safety of the kings is of paramount importance. In the second example a knight has to make an important decision on which path to take – White went astray and lost instead of winning. Find out why, learn and become a better player.

São Paulo Masters – Ivanchuk and Anand score, Ivanchuk leads

10/1/2011 – Vassily Ivanchuk won his third game in a row in round four, beating Levon Aronian with the black pieces. World Champion Viswanathan Anand also scored a black victory against Spanish GM Francisco Vallejo. The game Magnus Carlsen vs Hikaru Nakamura ended in a draw, which left Ivanchuk with a five-point lead (in the Bilbao 3-1-0 system). Large illustrated report by Albert Silver.

Beauty Queens and Battling Knights

9/30/2011 – Male chess players choose riskier and more aggressive chess openings when playing against attractive women compared to when playing against less attractive women, although the Elo rating and style of play are the same. The scientists who have found this out are asking our readers to participate in a one-minute survey of their own behavior. You can win $500 if you do.

São Paulo Masters – Both Carlsen and Anand lose

9/30/2011 – In terms of statistical oddities, round three ranks right up there. Not only did Carlsen, the highest ranked player, lose to Vallejo, but Anand also lost to Ivanchuk. This not only meant the top rated players in the world lost in the same round in the same tournament, but both are now the tail-enders of the event. Report on round three and rest day by Albert Silver with analysis by GM Moradiabadi.