Fourth of July Shirov celebration

7/5/2007 – Alexei Shirov is not just one of the world’s very best grandmasters; he’s one of the most popular players, too. His ability to create “fire on board” and successfully navigate his way through the blaze has made him a fan favorite since he burst on the world scene in 1990. In his Thursday night lecture our Playchess trainer Dennis Monokroussos shows us how we can learn from Shirov.

Tradition preserved and celebrated in Hastings

7/4/2007 – In a world of rapid change and, some would say, crumbling values, it is always nice to come across a small oasis, where time has stood still to an extent, and the great traditions of the past are still upheld. In the chess world, one such place is the Hastings & St Leonards Chess Club, on the south-east coast of England. Past and present.

Anand tops the July 2007 FIDE ratings

7/3/2007 – For the second time in succession India's greatest ever chess player, Viswanathan Anand, is listed as the strongest player on the planet. Anand gained six points to reach 2792 and open a hefty 23-point gap to the next-strongest players, Veselin Topalov and Vladimir Kramnik, who are once again dead equal at 2769 points. Here are ratings and statistics from the corrected FIDE list.

GM Maxim Sorokin dies after traffic accident

7/3/2007 – The chief trainer of the Elista Grandmaster School, and second of Candidates finalist Sergei Rublevsky, was on his way from the Kalmykian capital to the airport in Volgograd when his car was involved in a traffic accident. Max Sorokin was taken to hospital and diagnosed as having non-life threatening injuries. But a week later, just as he seemed on the path to recovery, he suddenly passed away.

South African Open in Cape Town

7/3/2007 – The South African Open, which takes place June 29 to July 6, 2007, is under way in Rondebosch Cape Town, with a field of 189 players. The tournament, organised by Chess Western Province has R 53,100 of prizes up for grabs. Play started during a typical Cape winter that has deluged the region with rainfall and blew everyone's hats off. Pictorial report.

Edward Winter presents: Unsolved Chess Mysteries (9)

7/3/2007 – Why did Reuben Fine withdraw from the 1948 world championship? Did Capablanca lose an 11-move game to Mary Bain? Was Staunton criticized by Morphy for playing ‘some devilish bad games’? Did Alekhine play Najdorf blindfold? Was Tartakower a parachutist? These and other mysteries from Chess Notes are discussed by Edward Winter. Readers are invited to join in the hunt for clues.

Dynamic, tactical, and positional in one

7/2/2007 – The Czech Benoni comes with an early ...e5, closed structures, and little theory to master. Andrew Martin on his new DVD recommends this underestimated setup not only to the ambitious club player but points out that even a top-player like Nisipeanu shows good results with it. Time to check the Czech Benoni. Buy the DVD now or read more.

Anand remains on top of the chess world

7/1/2007 – The July 2007 FIDE rating list shows India's Vishy Anand still in place one, followed by Vladimir Kramnik and Veselin Topalov. Vassily Ivanchuk has advanced to fourth place. The list is punctual, as usual, but it also contains some obvious errors (e.g. two players named Michael Adams in the top 30). These are sure to be corrected in the next few days. Until then here are the top 30 players.

Dortmund R7: all games drawn, Kramnik wins for the eighth time

7/1/2007 – Vladimir Kramnik and the Dortmund Super-GM seem to be a marriage made in heaven. For the eighth time the current world champion took first place, after all games in the final round were drawn. They were, we must add, fighting draws, especially the 107-move marathon Leko-Mamedyarov. Alekseev, Leko and Anand shared 2nd-4th place, a point behind the winner. Illustrated report.

Dortmund R6: Kramnik, Leko win, Kramnik takes full point lead

6/30/2007 – By beating Arkadij Naiditsch in round six world champion Vladimir Kramnik has taken a one-point lead, and a draw against Alekseev in tomorrow's final round will give him yet another tournament victory in Dortmund. Leko scored his first full point, with a long grind against Gelfand, but Anand failed to convert a highly promising-looking position against Alekseev. Report and games.

Chess for Zebras – a Starbucks-Gambit publication

6/30/2007 – What is the best environment for a chess grandmaster to write an instructive book? The cafes in South-West London, and Starbucks in Barnes. "I find I work best when surrounded by benign-looking people who don’t want to talk to me," says GM Jonathan Rowson, who produced the very successful Gambit book "Chess for Zebras". Jonathan gives us a frank insight into the creative writing process.

Alice and the chess art of Marina Valuiska

6/29/2007 – She works as a lecturer in the Department of Criminology of the National Law Academy of Ukraine, and is an active member of the Academy chess club, successful in local championship. Marina Valuiska is also a budding proponent of "litho-art", inspired by the works of Lewis Carroll and by her chess activities. Join us as we visit her photo exhibition.

Tiviakov and Peng retain Dutch Championships

6/29/2007 – The main championship ended in a tie between defending champion Sergey Tiviakov and 20-year-old Daniel Stellwagen. Tiviakov won the two-game rapid playoff. In the Ladies' championship defending Peng Zhaoquin again won with a two point lead. It is her eighth (!) successive championship and ninth in all. We bring you inimitable visual impressions through the eyes of photographer Fred Lucas.

Dortmund R5: all games drawn

6/29/2007 – Today's fifth round in Dortmund saw all four games drawn, and none of them terribly exciting. The drawing average is now exactly 75% (15 out of 20 games) with five white and no black wins. Vladimir Kramnik retains the lead on 3.5/5, followed by Vishy Anand and Evgeny Alekseev at 3.0/5. Report and games.

Vassily Ivanchuk wins Second Aerosvit 2007

6/29/2007 – His young colleague Sergey Karjakin had been leading for most of the tournament, but in the end strength and experience decided the event. With a black-game victory over Alexei Shirov veteran Vassily Ivanchuk took the sole lead and held it to the end. Second by half a point was Karjakin, followed by Onischuk, Svidler, van Wely and Shirov half a point further down. Final report.

Aerosvit: Ukraines in the lead – and bring up the rear

6/28/2007 – Ukrainian Wunderkind Sergei Karjakin, 17, and his older and one assumes wiser compatriot Vassily Ivanchuk, 38, are leading in the Aerosvit tournament in Foros, both without any losses and 6.0/9 points. Alexei Shirov is in hot pursuit with 5.5/9. At the bottom of table we find the third Ukraine, Pavel Eljanov, who is not having a great tournament. Big illustrated report.

Dortmund R4: Kramnik, Anand win, Kramnik leads

6/27/2007 – Vladimir Kramnik defeated Magnus Carlsen in convincing style to chalk up a second victory in four games. Vishy Anand outplayed Arkadij Naiditsch to join Alekseev at 2.5/4 points. With Alekseev drawing against Leko, and Gelfand doing the same against Mamedyarov, the World Champion now leads alone on 3.0/4.

On patterns and formations in chess

6/27/2007 – Are there certain formations that always work in chess? Like the Yugoslav Attack against the Sicilian Dragon? Or the Grand Prix against the Najdorf? And do they work in principle or only against weaker players? In his Thursday night lecture our Playchess trainer Dennis Monokroussos shows us what happens when the you try them against the greatest player of all time.

ChessBase Light 2007 - part 6

6/27/2007 – In Part Six of our series describing the new 2007 version of ChessBase Light we examine the variation board and "show threat" features of the engine analysis pane. Discover these useful tools and new tricks in the latest edition of ChessBase Workshop.

Dr. Susan Polgar, Texas Tech's new Chess Star

6/26/2007 – Susan Polgar, former women's world champion and holder of a number of world championship and Olympiad titles, will serve as director of new institute and coach of the Knight Raiders chess team of Texas Tech University. At the inauguration Susan received an honorary doctoral degree and addressed the 2007 graduating class in a remarkable speech which you can watch in HQ video.

17-year-old Sergey leads Aerosvit Super-GM

6/26/2007 – Magnus the Magnificent has been in the news recently, but remember Sergey Karjakin? The child prodigy, youngest grandmaster in history (at twelve!)? He has been quitely doing his thing in the Second Aerosvit Super-GM, where he leads after seven rounds, ahead of Ivanchuk, Shirov and Svidler, with a 2856 performance.

Dortmund R3: all games drawn

6/26/2007 – The two favourites, Anand and Kramnik, played unmemorable 21-move draws, both with the black pieces. Leko got nothing out of Naiditsch's rare Nimzowitsch Variation – the game was drawn in 38 moves. Carlsen tried a long squeeze against Alekseev in an anti-Queen's Indian line, but the Russian's defences held. A fairly calm day in Dortmund.

Veselin Topalov and the new FIDE world championship cycle

6/24/2007 – At the Presidential Board meeting, which is currently being held in Tallinn, Estonia, FIDE has introduced a new Grand Prix series and a new world championship cycle. With a high-ranking Bulgarian delegation presenting a case for Veselin Topalov to enter the world championship FIDE made some special rules to govern the 2007-2009 stage. We have tried to decipher the new system.

Dortmund R2: Kramnik and Alekseev win

6/24/2007 – Dortmund newbie Evgeny Alekseev (picture), rated 2679, systematically outplayed first round winner Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, rated 2757 and score his first full point. Vladimir Kramnik ground down the stubbornly defending Boris Gelfand to join Alekseev in the lead with 1.5/2 points. The other games – Anand vs Leko and Naiditsch vs Carlsen – were both drawn. Full report with games and pictures.