"Prestigious University Chess Invitational" taking place in Tianjin

11/28/2019 – Twelve prestigious universities from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan and China have sent chess squads to Tianjin. Nankai University is hosting the event as part of the celebrations of its 100-year anniversary. WGM QIYU ZHOU is in the coastal metropolis representing the University of Toronto. She sent us a pictorial report of her experience so far. | Pictured: Representatives of each university during the opening ceremony. | Photo: Liu Yi

Sinquefield Cup Ultimate moves and Closing Ceremony

8/29/2019 – The 2019 Sinquefield Cup playoff ended up with Ding Liren beating world champion Magnus Carlsen to win the title and take home $82.500. After two draws in the rapid games, the Chinese star beat Carlsen in both blitz encounters. The commentators and the world champion deservedly praised Ding's performance. Express report. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / Grand Chess Tour

Beat the Slav the classical way

The Slav has become one of the most popular defences against the advance of the d-pawn on the first move, and every ambitious d4-player faces the question how to successfully tackle this opening in tournament practice. The strongest attempt is considered to be the move 4. Nf3, leading to interesting positions which promise White good chances to get an advantage. Black's main replies are 4. dxc4 and 4. e6. On this DVD Rustam Kasimdzhanov investigates in detail the line 4. dxc4, in which he has great experience. Showing selected grandmaster games, the ex-world champion shares his knowledge with the viewer to explain how White has to place his pieces and which plans he has at his disposal.Learn the secrets of the dxc4-line and improve your chances of success with 1.d4