9/4/2016 – After three rounds, there are still 16 teams in the Open section still with perfect scores, and 13 in the Women's section. If this seems a lite, it bears remembering how many teams there are in the overall event. There were few surprise results in the Open section as far as matches go, at least on paper, but the games had promised something else in some cases. The real surprise of the day (aside from Nakmaura's brush with defeat) was China's draw against Vietnam in the Women's section in spite of a dominant Hou Yifan Report, photos, and GM analysis.

9/4/2016 – For the top teams the Chess Olympiad is a serious affair. They battle for points, prestige and medals. But the Olympiad is also a festival to celebrate the joys of chess and this is what Jamaica does. With a rating average of 2166 the Jamaican team are are ranked 115 of 180 teams but that does not diminish their joy of being in Baku. Ian Wilkinson, President of the Jamaica Chess Federation, sends an enthusiastic report about the start of the Olympiad.

9/3/2016 – Round two of the Baku Olympiad already saw a number of stiff matches with far more balanced opposition. Still, although there were some close calls in the Open section, with isolated upsets, the favorites still held all the way down to table 29 where the teenage Iranian team managed to hold the much higher rated Georgian team to 2-2. In the Women’s section however, the Filipinos pulled off a huge upset by actually defeating the 4th seed Georgian team, who outrated them by almost 350 Elo. Illustrated report with GM analysis.

9/2/2016 – The 2016 Baku Olympiad certainly lives up to its name with no fewer than 180 teams ranging from Russia to Djibouti in the Open section, and 140 teams in the Women's section. The opening round saw results that reflected the huge rating disparities, with the occasional heroic result, but the greatest surprise was without a doubt Bulgaria's draw against Sudan, in which two of the Bulgarian fell prey to their Sudanese opponents. Big report with GM commentary.

9/2/2016 – The 42nd Chess Olympiad is the most lavish in the history of chess. The budget for the tournament is said to be 13.3 million Euros. The playing venue is the Chrystal Hall in Baku, and yesterday, 1st September, the splendid opening ceremony showed how high the standards of the organisers are. President Ilham Aliyev was present at the event but it was not allowed to take pictures of him. Impressions...

8/31/2016 – The Olympiad in Baku is about to start, and naturally all eyes in the chess world will turn towards this huge event. However, the team competition is not the only noteworthy event taking place, there is also the very significant FIDE Congress held near the end. Here is a preview of what will be covered, from the proposed change to allow challenges for the title, to the Chief Arbiter report of the Candidates, and even changes in the Laws of Chess.

8/30/2016 – On Thursday, 1st September, the 42nd Chess Olympiad will begin in Baku. About 180 teams start in the Open and about 140 teams in the Women's Tournament. As a warm-up to the Olympiad we offer our readers a little quiz and invite you to predict the winners of Baku 2016. Please send in your answers before the start of the second round (3rd September, 1 pm CEST). Readers who answer all three questions correctly will take part in a lottery in which they can win a copy of the new Fritztrainer Master Class Vol. 07: Garry Kasparov.

10/7/2015 – "It is the best result of my life," said Sergey Karjakin, 25, after he won the 2015 FIDE World Chess Cup, the grueling 128-player elimination tournament that took 25 days and finished on Monday in Baku, Azerbaijan. Karjakin defeated Peter Svidler in the all-Russian final match 6:4. Huffington Post columnist Lubomir Kavalek provides analysis of the resounding first-round win – of Peter Svidler.

10/6/2015 – The tiebreak between Sergey Karjakin and Peter Svidler was dramatic and full of blunders and oversights. Thus Daniel King decided to summarize the match briefly and "to concentrate on what was really good". Pointing out Karjakin's "superb endgame technique" and his coolness under pressure, King concludes that "Karjakin was a deserving winner of the World Cup".

10/5/2015 – A titanic struggle, full of blunders, missed chances, hanging rooks and more. The only thing that this match didn't have was a single draw! After ten decisive games, Karjakin crowns himself as the winner of the 2015 World Cup in Baku. Today Svidler had more than one chance to win the event, but it was as if it was not destined to be. Analysis of every single game inside.

10/5/2015 – He won the first two games (of four) in the World Cup final. Then Peter Svidler blundered in game three and was outplayed by Sergey Karjakin in game four. Today, with the scores even, are the tiebreaks rapid and blitz games. You can watch the action live on Playchess – or right here in your browser (or on your tablet or smart phone). You can even start an engine and chat.

10/5/2015 – After trailing 0-2 in the final of the World Cup in Baku Sergey Karjakin had to win twice to reach the tiebreaks. Which he did. With a lot of luck in game three but a deserved win in game four. After an early exchange of queens Karjakin found ways to put Peter Svidler under pressure. Daniel King analyses highlights of this quietly dramatic game.

10/4/2015 – It won't go down in history as one of the best games of chess, but at least there weren't any major blunders in the fourth game of the finals of the World Cup. Svidler's choice of opening left him in a passive position and shortly after concluding theory his position deteriorated. Karjakin's pressure and Svidler's missed chances mean that tomorrow we go into Tie Breaks!

10/3/2015 – After getting crushed in game one of the World Cup final, and blundering badly in game two, Sergey Karjakin was a hair's breath away from booking his ticket back home. But then in a very promising position (move 28) Peter Svidler blundered and Sergey was able to clinch game three. The score is now 1:2, and in the must-win game four he has white. Game three report.

10/2/2015 – It started out as a classical struggle between titans. Long things with calculations, backed by positional prowess. Karjakin played his typical 1.e4, while Svidler contended with the solid Breyer defense in the Spanish. Svidler was doing an excellent job of holding on, Karjakin couldn't find a way through. It all seemed headed to a draw... when Karjakin blundered horribly... twice!

10/1/2015 – He simply played a perfect game. His development was good, his pawn breaks timely, and Karjakin simply couldn't cope with this precarious position. Despite Black's extra pawn, Svidler's pieces coordinated much better and created real pressure all over the board, especially on the long white diagonal. Karjakin blundered in an already very difficult position, and Svidler leads one to nothing.

10/1/2015 – It’s an all-Russian finale in Baku which promises to be extremely well matched. In this article we try to dissect the two finalists with regards to their previous encounters, style of play and opening choices. An extra US $40,000 and the Word Cup title are at stake. We bring you analysis, predictions and, as an extra, a video of Peter Svidler trying out his second favourite sport!

9/30/2015 – A lot of tension and turnarounds, cool chess and a surprising end - the tiebreak between Sergey Karjakin and Pavel Eljanov offered a lot of excitement. After all, a lot of prestige and money were at stake. The winner would advance to the World Cup final and qualify for the Candidates Tournament 2016. Daniel King looks at dramatic moments of an intense fight.

9/29/2015 – It could not have been more exciting, or more unpredictable. Karjakin advances to the finals, but by the skin of his teeth. He lost his first game but came back with excellent positional play in round four. Eljanov had him against the ropes in game five, but blundered massively and lost. Again, Eljanov was winning, but missed... a three fold repetition! Karjakin is a finalist and in the Candidates.

9/28/2015 – Giri is a player that is very solid, and he rarely loses. However he was unable to show that he is also a super player in a must-win situation. Svidler gave him no chances, and as an expert pointed out, Giri was unable to "heat up water enough to even make tea". Svidler is in the finals and the candidates. Meanwhile in the other bracket, after a fourteen move draw they go to tiebreaks.

9/27/2015 – Fans who worried that only two games left would mean a more cautious, sedate day at the World Cup saw their concerns quickly dispelled. Svidler was the first to end his game with a resounding victory over Giri with black, while Eljanov will be kicking himself for not sharing in the joy after obtaining a winning position in the opening. Report with analysis by Daniel King and Sagar Shah.

9/27/2015 – Starting with 128 players and hundreds of games, there has been a lot of great fighting chess with spectacular wins, catastrophic finishes, and naturally missed chances. Here is a preliminary selection of moments from the games, some easy, some hard, moves to find, avoid, and save. Can you do as well as these elite players? How many you can solve?

9/27/2015 – Only four players remain in the World Cup 2015: Anish Giri plays against Peter Svidler and Sergey Karjakin against Pavel Eljanov. In this article we talk about the route taken by these four players to the semi-finals, the statistics of their games, their best and their most lucky moments – and predict who will enter the finals.

9/26/2015 – Two tiebreaks had to decide who will advance to the semifinals of the World Cup in Baku: Peter Svidler vs Wei Yi and Sergey Karjakin vs Shakhriyar Mamedyarov. Both rapid matches ended in a draw and both matches were decided in blitz. In two videos English Grandmaster Daniel King looks at the highlights and the most dramatic points.