Isenegger Memorial Study Tourney

ARVES Isenegger Memorial Tourney (Part one)

Yochanan Afek on the endgame studies in Bern WCCF congress 2014

This tourney commemorates the well-known endgame study composer Samuel Isenegger (2.11.1899 – 15.11.1964), who was born in Bern the Swiss capital and passed away fifty years ago. A repeating motif in his studies – pawns fighting pieces – was selected as the theme of this event. A Jenever tourney record of 33 entries by 20 composers from 11 countries. The general standard proved exceptionally high, especially for such a short deadline.

Dorette and Harold van der Heijden, Composition GM Davit Gurgenidze, endgame expert John Roycroft

My thanks go to Harold van der Heijden for sacrificing a whole day in Bern to check the entries for originality, soundness and thematic validity; to ARVES officials Marcel van Herck and Luc Palmans for their technical and moral support; and to all participants worldwide whose enthusiasm and creativity turned this tourney to a remarkable success.

Pawns fighting pieces, in the spirit of David vs. Goliath encounters, have always been popular. However this event has shown that with and without the help of modern technology it is still possible to delve even deeper and enrich this sub-genre with new findings. Since the power of the pawns is at the focus of attention, play following promotion or under-promotion was not considered thematic. Quite a few composers have shown interesting realizations of the Festina Lente theme (choosing the shorter first move of a pawn). Thus this award might offer considerable contribution to the research of this theme.

To reduce the absolute dependence on the silicon services I set myself a clear criterion for the selecting process: displaying series of reciprocal Zugzwangs only was insufficient for being highly placed in the final standings. I still truly believe that it is essential to demonstrate evident artistic contents accessible to the human mind and senses in order to have a fair chance for a prize.

A bottle of the quality Dutch drink Jenever was sent to the tourney winner Oleg Pervakov (and arrived safely to Moscow!) while a second bottle was given in the prize-giving in Bern to John Nunn, the only awarded composer attending the congress. Details about cooks and anticipations will be personally sent to the authors of the few disqualified entries. The preliminary ranking was published on the official website and here is my complete award which includes a couple of minor changes.

First prize: Oleg Pervakov, Moscow

An original and lively battle of opening lines and mutual sacrifices is highlighted by the Festina Lente thematic motif and the logical try which ends up in a stalemate. This is in fact one of the only entries to show a real tactical duel between well coordinated pawns and a group of enemy pieces. A genuine breath-taking drama from start to end!

Oleg Pervakov, 54, a chess journalist living in Moscow, is an International
Grandmaster and International Judge for chess compositions

2nd/3rd prize: Victor Aberman & Richard Becker (both USA)

Both magnificent miniatures share a common pivotal idea: A cautious and subtle march of a pair of connected passers assisted by the white king and a third passer. In Aberman's entry the pawn pair chases a knight away, masterfully handling a series of reciprocal zugzwangs and positional draw pitfalls (with a kind of cyclic pawn sacrifices), while Becker achieves it with an impressive systematic march to tame a surprisingly helpless rook. Aberman's study is more complex and subtle and requires a considerable study, while Becker's one is pretty much eye catching in its clarity and purity without the need for too many supportive side-lines.

Victor Aberman, 61, is a programmer and lives in Los Angeles, USA

4th prize: Martin Minski, Germany

A colourful blend of classical motifs makes it a cheerful contribution to the theme: A double Novotny, sacrificial counter-play, model mates and even an under-promotion to conclude a delicious meal.

Martin Minski, 45, is a mathematics teacher living in Berlin, Germany.
He is a Fide Master and International Judge for chess compositions

Yochanan Afek (born April 1952 in Tel Aviv) is an Israeli chess player, composer, trainer and arbiter, the only person to possess international titles at four different facets of chess, being an International Master, International Master of the chess compositions, International Arbiter and International Arbiter of the chess compositions.

– More award winning studies from the Isenegger Memorial Tourney to follow soon –

The Alexander Rueb Vereniging voor SchaakEindspelStudie (ARVES), founded in October 1988 in Amsterdam, is a Dutch-Flemish Association for chess players who are specially interested in endgame studies. The World Federation for Chess Composition (WFCC) works on disseminating and encouraging chess composition throughout the world.