2/1/2017 – Moldovan GM and trainer Victor Bologan has played the Modern Pirc all his life. It brought him a lot of success – like winning the New York Open 1997, the strongest open of that time, with four wins with Black in the Modern Pirc. "This opening is actually a mixture of the Caro-Kann and the Pirc – very flexible and rich," Bologan says. "By studying it you will definitely refresh your chess brain and get a lot of new ideas." Improve your results with his instructions.
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Victor Bologan The Modern Pirc
Viktor Bologan has played the Pirc all his life and explains why he likes this opening:
"Strong grandmasters, International Masters or amateurs often ask me what they should play with Black against 1.e4 if they want to play for a win. Sometimes I say ‘Just play your opening and play it well’. But sometimes you need to or want to get your opponent out of his comfort zone, out of his preparation. This often happens in open tournaments where you have to play for a win with both colors.
I have played the Modern Pirc all my life and it has brought me a lot of success. For example, in the New York Open 1997, the strongest open of that time, I won four games with Black in the Modern Pirc, which helped me to win the tournament.
The Modern Pirc is actually a mixture of the Caro-Kann and the Pirc. In many lines Black combines the ideas of the classical Pirc, in which the fianchettoed bishop is important, with the Caro-Kann idea to fight for the center with c6-d5. The Modern Pirc is a very flexible and rich opening. By studying The Modern Pirc you will definitely refresh your chess brain and get a lot of new ideas.”
The DVD offers Black a complete repertoire against e4 and is useful for players of all levels.
Video running time: 4 h 42 min (English)
With interactive training including video feedback
EXTRA: Database with 50 model games
Including ChessBase Reader
Price: €29.90; €25.13 without VAT (for customers outside the EU); $27.14 (without VAT)
Seven-minute sample video of Victor Bologan's Modern Pirc
Victor Bologan
Victor Bologan is a pupil of the top Moldovan trainer Vecheslav Chebanenko. For many years Bologan has been the number one in Moldova and has represented his country in ten Chess Olympiads. He has won over 50 international events. His greatest successes were in 2003, when he first won the Aeroflot Open and then the famous Dortmund Tournament, ahead of Kramnik and Anand.
Bologan has extensive experience as a trainer and has also published five chess books and 22 ChessBase DVDs.
FIDE World Cup 2025 with analyses by Adams, Bluebaum, Donchenko, Shankland, Wei Yi and many more. Opening videos by Blohberger, King and Marin. 11 exciting opening articles with new repertoire ideas and much more.
GM Blohberger presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
GM Blohberger presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
GM Blohberger presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
Opening videos: Sipke Ernst brings the Ulvestad Variation up to date + Part II of ‘Mikhalchishin's Miniatures’. Special: Jan Werle shows highlights from the FIDE Grand Swiss 2025 in the video. ‘Lucky bag’ with 40 analyses by Ganguly, Illingworth et al.
€14.90
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Victor Bologan
