Looking back to Batumi: Wandering Kings

The defensive king: Mamedov vs Shankland

2018 was the most successful year in the career of US grandmaster Samuel Shankland so far: in April he won the US Championship, ahead of players such as Fabiano Caruana, Wesley So and Hikaru Nakamura, in May Shankland won the Capablanca Memorial, and in June he followed up with a victory at the American Continental Championship. At the Olympiad in Batumi, Shankland proved that he is indeed strong enough to deserve these successes: he played board four for the US team, scored 7 points from 10 games and thus added 3½ points to his current rating of 2722. Moreover, Shankland scored in important matches.

In round 8, when the US was playing against Azerbaijan and fought for gold, Shankland won with Black against Rauf Mamedov which helped the US to an important 2½-1½ victory. In the middlegame, with a number of pieces still on the board, Shankland suddenly started to walk his king from g8 to b8 to keep it better protected.

My Black Secrets in the Modern Italian

The Italian Game is considered a sound but quiet opening without early trades, giving rise to rich positions where plans are more important than forced variations. So shows black's plans on this DVD.

GM Daniel King had a closer look at the game

Shankland's king's march has a historical predecessor. At the Lone Pine Open 1976 Tigran Petrosian, world champion from 1963 to 1969, won with a similar manoeuvre against the USA International Master Jack Peters.

Learning from the World Champions

With famous classical examples from the works of the giants, the author talks in detail about principles of chess and methods of play that we can use during every stage of the game.

The aggressive king: Hillarp Persson vs Laurasas

The Swedish grandmaster and author Tiger Hillarp Persson is known for his original ideas and creative attacks. At the Olympiad in Batumi he played on board two for Sweden and scored 3½/7. However, his game against IM Tomas Laurusas from Lithuania in round 7 won the prize for the most brilliant game of the Olympiad.

Power Play 20: Test Your Attacking Chess

Grandmaster Daniel King presents ten exemplary attacking performances. At key moments he stops and asks you to play a move. King then gives feedback on the most plausible continuations. It’s the next best thing to having your own personal trainer!

GM Daniel King also had a closer look at this game

This king's march also has a historical predecessor. In a famous and spectacular game played at the Tilburg tournament, 1991, Nigel Short sent his king into the middlegame from g1 to h6 to mate his opponent, Dutch grandmaster Jan Timman.

Chess trainers, again and again, emphasise how important it is to study "the classics". Games such as Petrosian vs Peters and Short vs Timman show that this advice is more than nostalgia.

Links

• Official website
• Round 1: Li Chao is the biggest casualty
• Round 2: Improve your chess with the Olympians
• Round 3: Top seeds sail through!
• Round 4: Poles beat the mighty Russians!
• Round 5: Chinese men stunned, USA women are sole leaders
• Round 6: Poland, Azerbaijan lead in open and USA, Armenia in the women's
• Round 7: Batumi Olympiad Round 7: The medals are not too far away!
• Round 8: Batumi Olympiad Round 8: USA beats Azerbaijan in a thriller
• Round 9: Batumi Olympiad Round 9: Poland stuns USA
• Round 10: The mega duel between China and USA will decide the gold
• Round 11: How China conquered the double gold at the Batumi Olympiad 2018
• The best ever chess opening ceremony!
• In beautiful Batumi
• The closing ceremony that rocked Batumi
• Olympic highlights: A brilliancy in round 4