Carsten Hensel on Kramnik and the World Championship cycle

7/11/2007 – After his victory in Dortmund world champion Vladimir Kramnik came to Hamburg for a few days, to record his first DVD with ChessBase. With him was his manager Carsten Hensel, who also looks after the interests of Hungarian chess star Peter Leko. During the recording sessions with Kramnik there was ample time to talk to Carsten and get his take on the situation in world chess. Interview.

40 days to go and 50 years ago…

7/10/2007 – The fourth edition of the Dato’ Arthur Tan Championship begins on August 26, 2007 in Kuala Lumpur. It is an 11-round FIDE-rated event, with time control of 90 min + 30 sec increment from the first move. The tournament is sponsored by chess philanthropist Dato’ Tan Chin Nam, the total prize money for this year’s competition is US $21,000. Here are impressions of what awaits you.

First International Carinthian Chess Festival

7/10/2007 – The Carinthian (German: Kärnten) town of Velden has 2000 inhabitants and is famous for its mountains and lakes. And swans. And sports car festivals. And a chess tournament, which will hopefully become an annual event. This year it was equipped with eight GMs, one WGM, ten IMs, two WIMs, ten FMs and one WFM. Big photo report by Meri Grigoryan.

Aronian: the world championship should be decided in a match

7/9/2007 – Levon Aronian is one of the hot favourites for the world championship in Mexico City this September. What does he think of his chances, what does he think about the format? In an article in the German broadsheet Neues Deutschland, born in Armenian and now living in Berlin, speaks about these and other subjects relating to the inclusion of Veselin Topalov in the FIDE cycle. Interview.

ChessBase Light 2007 - part 7

7/9/2007 – Our ChessBase Workshop series continues with a discussion of engine analysis in ChessBase Light 2007. In Part Seven, you'll learn about an alternative engine analysis display -- "Scroll main line" -- and the useful information it can provide you. Find out more in the latest ChessBase Workshop.

Topalov beats Kasimdzhanov, faces Anand in the final

7/8/2007 – Just as Anand had done on the previous day, Veselin Topalov took a 2-0 lead in the second semifinal of the rapid chess tournament in León. His opponent fought bravely and won the third game, but in the final encounter was drawn and the 2.5:1.5 final score meant that Topalov advances to the final and plays against Anand on Sunday. Watch the action on Playchess.com.

Viswanathan Anand wins León for the seventh time

7/8/2007 – The Magistral Ciudad de León tournament has been held since 1988, in differents formats. In the 20th edition it was once again the Indian superstar Vishy Anand who was victorious, beating Bulgaria's Veselin Topalov convincingly with a 3:1 score in the final on Sunday. It was Anand's third consecutive win, and his seventh overall in León. Now with new pictures pictures.

Anand beats Ponomariov in 20th León rapid

7/7/2007 – The 20th Ciudad de León chess tournament is being held from 4th to 9th July 2007, with four World Champions taking part: Viswanathan Anand, current number 1 in the FIDE ratings, Veselin Topalov, second in the FIDE list, Ruslan Ponomariov and Rustam Kasimdzhanov. All four have held the title of FIDE World Champion in the past. Round one report.

Ivanchuk wins yet another super-tournament

7/7/2007 – There are times when he is quite unstoppable. After winning the Aerosvit tournament in Foros the Ukrainian GM took the Third Pivdenny Bank rapid chess tournament in Odessa, beating out the "other chuk", Alexander Grischuk, in the final round. Behind this pair we find the likes of Radjabov, Shirov, Gelfand, Bacrot and Korchnoi. Big illustrated report by Misha Savinov.

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.