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| Chess grows and grows | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Chess interest grows and grows - by Staff Reporter WINDHOEK - The 3rd Bank Windhoek Namibia National Junior Chess Championship, hosted under the auspices of the Namibia Chess Federation, was held from 23 to 25 July 2010, at David Bezuidenhout High School in Windhoek. Eleven-year-old Nicola Tjaronda and 15-year-old Julian Isaak took top honours in the respective male and female categories. “The turnout for the Junior Chess Championship is an indication that the sport, which engages and sharpens cognitive skills, is becoming popular in schools and that youth are developing an interest in it. “Bank Windhoek is proud to support this sport that develops the improvement of scholars and their cognitive skills, at the same time giving them an activity that keeps them entertained and busy,” said Riaan van Rooyen, Head of Corporate Communication and Social Investment at Bank Windhoek. “Chess interest is growing at an exciting rate. We are seeing more and more scholars taking it as a sport and they are so serious that they sacrifice whole weekends to partake in the tournaments. “This is of course with the support of their parents that we are thankful to. We are also grateful for Bank Windhoek that really is helping the National Chess Federation to make this a reality. Without them we would not have made it this far,” added Max Nitzborn, president of the Namibia Chess Federation. The annual Bank Windhoek Namibia National Junior Chess Championship saw invited players under the age of 20 competing. Nicola Tjaronda, who beat a university student along the way, began playing chess two years ago and is described by Nitzborn as a natural talent, while Isaak has been playing for the past four years. The rest of the results of the Bank Windhoek Namibia National Junior Chess Championship reads as follows: Females: Second was Lischen Mentile, followed by Dolly Tuaandi in third place. Males: Hange Tjingaete was second and Dantago Boois third. The ultimate purpose of hosting this particular tournament is to determine the Namibian National Junior Chess Champion for 2010, to promote chess as an intellectual, educational and recreational sporting outlet for youth and the broader Namibian population, and above all, to improve the standard of junior chess in Namibia. http://www.newera.com.na/article.php?articleid=12223 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-07-29T06:53:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World School Chess Championship 2010 - Photos by WGM Anastazia Karlovich | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The 6th World School Chess Championship (under 7, under 9, under 11, under 13, under 15 and under 17 years old - open and girls) is taking place between July the 20th, 2010 (arrival) and July 31st, 2010 (departure) in Kayseri, Turkey, under the aegis of the Turkish First Lady Hayrünnisa Gül. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:27:27 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fremont Open Next Weekend! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The New Fremont Chess Club promotes chess for both adults and advanced juniors with a wide variety of activities. In addition to rated games on Friday nights from 8-11pm, the club hosts weekend tournaments plus camps and lectures by Grandmasters or International Masters. Celebrities who taught in Fremont include 2008 US Champion GM Yury Shulman and the reputed trainer GM Gregory Kaidanov. Check out a recent interview with Shulman by high school student Aditya Kumar.The Fremont Open will take place next weekend, July 31 to August 1. The organizers hope to match the turnout from the past two years (average of 70). The early entries appear to be a bit sluggish, but the event seems like a good practice opportunity, especially for 1600 to 1900 rated players.
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Mon, 26 Jul 2010 03:38:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 14th Hogeschool Zeeland Chess Tournament - 7-14th August in Vlissingen, GM Krishnan Sasikiran top se | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The 14th Hogeschool Zeeland Chess Tournament is set to take place on 7-14th August in Vlissingen, Netehrlands. The tournament is organised by the Stichting Schaak Walcheren, and consists of 9 rounds, Swiss system. The rate of play is 40 moves in 2 hours, followed by 30 minutes for the completion of the game. A bye is only possible in the 2nd and 3rd round. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 21:51:54 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Christchurch girls' inter-school chess tournament | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Emilia ponders before she conquers By JO GILBERT - The Press Last updated 05:00 28/07/2010 The face said it all for seven-year-old Emilia Mackenzie at a Christchurch girls' inter-school chess tournament yesterday. The year 2 pupil was a member of the Selwyn House School team. More than 130 girls in years 2 to 13 from 20 city schools competed in the event, which is being hosted by Selwyn House. Emilia said she had been playing chess since the age of three, when she took up the game with her father. "Now I play against him and I win every time," she said. Emilia said she enjoyed the game because of the various moves. She practised at weekends and thought the tournament was "really, really good". A team from Fendalton School emerged victorious in the year 1-6 grade, narrowly beating Lincoln Primary School on a countback. Cobham Intermediate won the year 7-8 grade ahead of St Marks School from Opawa, and Christchurch Girls' High School ended Rangi Ruru's reign, winning the year 9-13 grade. The competition will continue today for 60 girls in the individual event. Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-07-28T00:10:00.000-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The 2010 Annual Susan Polgar Girls Invitational starts today | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() The 2010 Annual Susan Polgar Girls Invitational starts today Posted: July 25, 2010 - 12:37am http://lubbockonline.com The seventh annual Susan Polgar Girls Invitational, the most prestigious all-girls chess championship in the United States, will commence today in Lubbock. This prominent national championship will take place over six days, through Friday, on the Texas Tech campus. Each state can nominate one talented young female chess player, the top 18-year-old or younger from the state. Thousands of girls compete annually in local, state, regional, national and world events to earn the esteemed invitations. This year more than 40 participants from all across the United States are coming to town to do battle on the 64 squares. In addition to the championship, these fierce competitors will compete for chess prizes and scholarships. Rules and Conditions for the Susan Polgar Girls Invitational (SPGI) The annual Susan Polgar Girls Invitational, the most prestigious all-girls event in the United States, will be held at Texas Tech. The opening ceremony will be at 1 p.m. today. There will be a brand new format this year. • Instead of a six-day tournament, there will be a five-day intense world-class training program with Susan Polgar, followed by a six-round G/30 championship tournament. • The traditional Blitz, Puzzle Solving and Bughouse events will stay the same as previous years. • There will be many prizes awarded, including scholarship(s) to Texas Tech. Each state is allowed one representative. Official representative alternates could be substituted no later than June 25. (Susan Polgar and/or the new Polgar Committee may allow the host state to enter an additional qualified player.) Susan Polgar and/or the new Polgar Committee could allow exceptions to the June 1 entry/alternate deadline. Should the state affiliate fail to respond to the notice for this tournament, Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee could determine the candidate from that state. Players must be under the age of 19 as of Aug. 15. Players must have been enrolled in a school (up to 12th grade) located in the state they represent, in which the tournament is held. Home-schooled students who are under the age of 19 on Aug. 15 or students who have never attended college on a full-time basis prior to June 1 are eligible to represent the state in which they reside. Proof of eligibility will be the responsibility of the players and of the state official certifying the representative and alternate. • Exception: If a player graduates from high school early and is already attending college, she may still represent her state if nominated. This is the decision of each state affiliate. Players already enrolled in college are not eligible to receive the scholarship. In such cases scholarship(s) go to the next tournament winner. • Very important note: The participants of the Susan Polgar Girls Invitational do not have to be high school students. Any qualifier under the age of 19 by Aug. 15 is eligible! Players are required to furnish the organizer an emergency phone number and the e-mail address of a parent/guardian. There is no fee to participate in the 2010 SPGI; however, players are responsible for their own travel, room and meal expenses. If players choose to stay and/or dine on TTU’s campus, inexpensive accommodations are available. Please note that all reservations and registrations must have been made (and accommodation expenses prepaid) no later than June 25. Trophies / plaques will be awarded to the winners of the Susan Polgar Girls Invitational Puzzle Solving Championship, Blitz Championship and the Rapid Championship. The player with the highest combined score in the Puzzle Solving, Blitz and Rapid will be crowned the Susan Polgar Girls Invitational Grand Champion. Co-champions are recognized in the case of a tie, with each champion receiving a Grand Champion’s Plaque or Trophy. The Grand Champion (or Co-Champions) will automatically be invited to defend her/their title if she/they meet the age requirement. The player with the highest combined score in the Puzzle Solving, Blitz and Rapid will also receive a $1,000 scholarship to attend Texas Tech (equivalent to over $36,000 for an out-of-state student). The scholarship must begin the following year (fall 2011). A one-game playoff (G/5) will be held in the case of a tie for the TTU scholarship. The New Polgar Committee’s goal is to have all 50 states (including two representatives for California and two for Texas) and the District of Columbia represented. We strongly encourage each state and the District of Columbia affiliate to hold a scholastic championship tournament to determine each state’s champion and representative. Failing this, rating criteria may be acceptable. A scholastic girls’ champion or the highest-rated girls’ scholastic player in a state who has no state affiliate of the USCF should contact the Polgar Committee as soon as possible. Special invitation for this year only All past participants of the SPNI (Susan Polgar National Invitational 2004-09) are invited to participate in the 2010 SPGI. The idea is to have the past participants learn my method of training so they can go back home and share their knowledge with the younger players. However, registration must have been made no later than June 25, since space is limited. Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee and its members may elect to award wild cards each year for the Susan Polgar Girls Invitational. Special qualifying events The Polgar Committee will award automatic qualifying spots to the reigning winners in each section of the annual Susan Polgar National Open for Girls (Arizona) and the annual Susan Polgar World Open for Girls (Las Vegas). Champions of the past six years are: • 2009: Yang Dai (Virginia) • 2008: Courtney Jamison (Texas) • 2007: Julia Kerr (New York) and Eunice Rodriguez (Florida) • 2006: Abby Marshall (Virginia) • 2005: Anya Corke (California), Alisa Melekhina (Pennsylvania), Abby Marshall (Ohio) • 2004: Roza Eynullayeva (Massachusetts) Daily updates of this championship will be available at www.ChessDailyNews.com and www.TexasTechChess.blogspot.com. Spectators are welcome to attend the championship at the Rawls College of Business Rotunda at Texas Tech on Thursday from 1:30 to 5 p.m. and Friday from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The closing ceremony will take place at 1:30 p.m. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-07-25T07:51:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World School Chess Championship 2010 - Photos by WGM Anastazia Karlovich | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The 6th World School Chess Championship (under 7, under 9, under 11, under 13, under 15 and under 17 years old - open and girls) is taking place between July the 20th, 2010 (arrival) and July 31st, 2010 (departure) in Kayseri, Turkey, under the aegis of the Turkish First Lady Hayrünnisa Gül. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sat, 24 Jul 2010 23:39:00 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess Needs Promotion | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Source: Susan Polgar Chess needs proper promotion: Mirza Thursday, 22 Jul, 2010 ISLAMABAD: Shahzad Mirza, an outstanding chess player, has stressed the need for providing equal promotion opportunities to the mind game, the same way as cricket, hockey and other sports in Pakistan are promoted. “Every sport has its own worth and due to excessive promotion of cricket and hockey, people are not taking part in other games,” Shahzad told APP. He said there is a lot of passion among the youngsters for chess and that gives him hope that Pakistan can go a long way in this game. There is immense talent in the country and youngsters are keen to learn, which, he believes is an excellent thing for the development and growth of chess as a sport. “These youngsters have tremendous abilities to shine at the international level. Pakistan’s chess future can be bright if proper measures are taken for this game.” “Pakistan has a flair pool waiting to be polished. If a player does emerge, he is left to yearn for even a stipend rather than getting sponsors,” he said. He said mind games like chess need sponsorship and funding in Pakistan and it is due to the lack of proper support that the sport is not being promoted as it should be. “Even the public indifference to sports has grown. Interest can be generated by the media and educational institutes but in newspapers, news related to chess is less as compared to cricket and hockey,” he said. He further said that sports like cricket are played in schools and colleges while indoor games are not encouraged. “We should promote these games in schools and colleges as well so that it helps the younger chess players,” he said. He added that tournaments must be organized all over the country to encourage the youngsters and promote chess. – APP | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess with slogans | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Next month Australia goes to the polls. This means for the next month we will be bombarded with election ads and election slogans. Already the Labor party is quick off the mark with the Tal-like 'Moving Forward" its mantra. While I haven't come across the Liberal party slogan yet, I'm sure it will be more representative of the Petrosian school of chess. Of course we can sometimes reduce chess to a series of slogans. Of course we might refer to them by the more sophisticated name of 'aide-memoire' but they are essentially sayings designed to help us find out way through the difficulties at the board. In the following game I had a number of slogans running through my head. There was "Restrain, Blockade, Destroy" from Nimzovich, once White had an isolated d pawn. Then there was Karpov's "Restrict the mobility of your opponents pieces", which I did by surrounding the rook on h4 with pawns. Finally it was "The advantage of the exchange is decisive" from Euwe. Each of slogans moved me through the game, with the destruction of the isolated d pawn the final act. Yoon,Sunny - Press,Shaun [D48] ANU Winter Swiss, 21.07.2010 ![]() 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c6 4.e3 Nf6 5.Bd3 dxc4 6.Bxc4 b5 7.Bd3 a6 8.Nf3 Nbd7 9.0-0 c5 10.Re1 Bb7 11.a3 Bd6 12.h3 0-0 13.Nd2 cxd4 14.exd4 Qb6 15.Nde4 Bc7 16.Nxf6+ Nxf6 17.Ne4 Nxe4 18.Bxe4 Bxe4 19.Rxe4 Rfd8 20.Be3 Rd5 21.Rc1 Qb7 22.Rh4 Rc8 23.b4 Bb6 24.Rc2 g6 25.Qc1 Rxc2 26.Qxc2 Qc7 27.Qxc7 Bxc7 28.Kf1 Kg7 29.Ke2 h5 30.Kd3 f5 31.Kc3 Bd8 (D) 32.Rf4 g5 33.Rf3 g4 34.hxg4 hxg4 35.Rg3 Bh4 36.Bf4 Bxg3 37.Bxg3 Rd8 38.Be5+ Kf7 39.f3 gxf3 40.gxf3 Rc8+ 41.Kb3 Rc4 42.a4 Ke7 43.f4 Kd7 44.Bf6 Kc6 45.Be5 Kd5 46.axb5 axb5 47.Bg7 Rxd4 0-1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Thu, 22 Jul 2010 13:24:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Impressions from the 2010 World School Individual Chess Championships - by Sevan Muradian, founder o | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The 2010 World School Individual Chess Championships has been underway for the past 3 days in the beautiful city of Kayseri, Turkey. At this well executed event (more on this later), I have been fulfilling the role of Deputy Chief Arbiter for the Girls U7, U9, U11, U13, U15, and U17 sections. I was invited to this event back in May by the President of the Turkish Chess Federation (TCF), Mr. Ali Nihat Yazici, who is also running a campaign for the post of European Chess Federation President. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sat, 24 Jul 2010 11:46:22 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World School Chess Championship 2010 - 20-31st July in Kayseri, Turkey | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The first winner in each open age category is the FIDE World School Champion for 2010 and the first girl in each girl age category is the FIDE World Girl School Champions for 2010. According to the regulations they are awarded with the FIDE Candidate Master title. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Thu, 22 Jul 2010 20:54:53 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess needs proper promotion | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Chess needs proper promotion: Mirza Thursday, 22 Jul, 2010 ISLAMABAD: Shahzad Mirza, an outstanding chess player, has stressed the need for providing equal promotion opportunities to the mind game, the same way as cricket, hockey and other sports in Pakistan are promoted. “Every sport has its own worth and due to excessive promotion of cricket and hockey, people are not taking part in other games,” Shahzad told APP. He said there is a lot of passion among the youngsters for chess and that gives him hope that Pakistan can go a long way in this game. There is immense talent in the country and youngsters are keen to learn, which, he believes is an excellent thing for the development and growth of chess as a sport. “These youngsters have tremendous abilities to shine at the international level. Pakistan’s chess future can be bright if proper measures are taken for this game.” “Pakistan has a flair pool waiting to be polished. If a player does emerge, he is left to yearn for even a stipend rather than getting sponsors,” he said. He said mind games like chess need sponsorship and funding in Pakistan and it is due to the lack of proper support that the sport is not being promoted as it should be. “Even the public indifference to sports has grown. Interest can be generated by the media and educational institutes but in newspapers, news related to chess is less as compared to cricket and hockey,” he said. He further said that sports like cricket are played in schools and colleges while indoor games are not encouraged. “We should promote these games in schools and colleges as well so that it helps the younger chess players,” he said. He added that tournaments must be organized all over the country to encourage the youngsters and promote chess. – APP Source: http://www.dawn.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-07-22T06:29:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Review: Modern Ideas in Chess | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Even though it’s only 130 pages and looks decidedly modest in size, Modern Ideas in Chess by Richard Réti (1889-1929) is a real classic in chess literature. First published in 1923, Russell Enterprises recently published a “21st century” edition in English with figurine algebraic notation and a foreword by Andrew Soltis. I hadn’t read the book before. I wish I had. Modern Ideas in Chess is a compilation of 45 essays on the evolution of chess understanding from the mid-1850s until the 1920s. After almost ninety years, it is still as fresh and insightful as it was to contemporaries of the great Slowakian player. In fact, one of the reasons why the book still looks so modern is probably because of its compact size. Réti’s style of analysing is also very sober and his prose quite imaginative. Most importantly, he had an incredibly sharp eye when observing the chess style of his great predecessors. The book starts with some lucid chapters in praise of Paul Morphy, whom Réti saw as “the first positional player”. For instance, he points out that in the following position after 5.Ng5, a move “Morphy would certainly never have made”, players before Morphy often used to play 5…Ne5, because it looked attractive to protect the pawn at f7 and attack the bishop on c4 at the same time.
However, after 5…Ne5? 6.Bxf7+ Nxf7 7.Nxf7 Kxf7 8.Qh5+ g6 9.Qxc5 White has a clear advantage. Morphy, on the other hand, simply played 5…Nh6! and if White proceeds in similar fashion by taking on f7 and then picking up the bishop at c5,
Actually this example served as a good wake-up call to myself, since it made me realize chess is not about making nice moves, but about making good moves. (It’s the rule I tend to forget most in chess.) It is a point Réti makes time and again in his essays. Here’s another great example from his analysis of Morphy’s fourth match game against Anderssen in 1858, which is also a good illustration of Réti’s often original way of describing chess moves. Anderssen – Morphy
One of the things that make Réti’s book such an entertaining read, even today, is his constant comparison between great players. This is something that isn’t often seen those days. Kasparov, in his monumental My Great Predecessors series, explicitly says comparing players from the past is pointless because each great player contributed something valuable to the development of chess. This is in fact the same point of view Réti expresses in his book, but Réti doesn’t shy away from comparing the great players with concrete examples, which is something Kasparov never does. Steinitz-Chigorin 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.d3
Réti constantly comes back to the points he previously made, maintaining a clear line throughout the book. One of the highlights is the chapter on Capablanca. Probably my favourite fragment is where he describes a consultation game he once played together with the great Cuban. It proved to be a turning point in Réti’s own development as a chess player. Fähndrich & Kaufmann – Capablanca & Réti
Réti goes on to explain that Capablanca, of course, also had to develop his pieces in order to carry out any plan at all, but that the difference lies in “those particular and unusual moves” which made Capablanca so vastly superior. Again, he doesn’t shy away from comparing Capablanca’s new technique with that of the older masters. The following position is from a well-known line in the Four Knights game.
Réti first shows how in a game Tarrasch-Lasker from 1908, White developed normally by means of 11.Bg5, which develops a piece and looks in accordance with everything we know about chess. But then he points out that
(Interestingly, it seems that the move 11.Bg5 has prevailed after all, since it is by far the most popular choice in my database. But I was pleasantly surprised to see that last year, the strong Brazilian grandmaster Vescovi did play Capablanca’s 11.Qc3. In the end, of course, Réti’s point is not about the objective value of Qc3 over Bg5, but about Capa’s creative – and revolutionary – vision.) Réti’s description of chess evolution brings him, naturally, to the Hypermodernists. Interestingly, here not all attention goes out to Alekhine automatically. This is, of course, partly due to the fact that Alekhine hadn’t become World Champion yet at the time of Reti’s writing. In fact, Réti attributes a lot of Alkehine’s development of strength to Capablanca:
But besides Alekhine, Réti also pays tribute to now lesser-known players such as Gyula Breyer, and the book contains very interesting and nuanced portraits of Akiba Rubinstein and Efim Bogolyubov. (More nuanced than Kasparov’s, I’d say.) Réti’s open-mindedness and constant self-reflection also shows in the following fragment on the youngest generation (which included young Max Euwe):
![]() Richard Réti Tellingly, one of the very few fragments in the book from Réti’s own games is a crushing loss against Bogolyubov (Berlin 1919). It’s a pity that his own games and the impression he made on others are strangely absent from Modern Ideas in Chess. We have to be content with such marvellous quotes as:
It’s only fair that history has given Richard Réti, who died at the age of 40, a firm place in Caissa’s eternal Hall of Fame. His grand idea of chess as an ever developing science is still the foundation of every chess improvement book that appears on the market. But before buying those, you should read Modern Ideas in Chess. Small in size though it may be, in importance it is enormous. Links | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mon, 19 Jul 2010 13:00:47 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Former world chess champion visits Vietnam | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Former world chess champion visits Vietnam Last update 08:20, Wednesday, 21/07/2010 (GMT+7) VietNamNet Bridge – Russian former world chess champion Anatoly Evgenyevich Karpov arrived in HCM City on July 19 during his Asian tour to campaign for chair of the World Chess Federation (FIDE). Karpov, 59, was very friendly. He always smiled and was willing to talk to anybody who likes chess. He attended the opening ceremony of the National Young Rapid Chess Championship 2010 and shared his experience with young Vietnamese players. Before going to Malaysia, he talked with Tuoi Tre newspaper. Karpov: I think talent accounts for 20 percent of success and up to 80 percent is training hard and gaining experience from your own games.
Q: To develop chess, which conditions does a country need?
Karpov: The prerequisite condition is a broad chess movement. Then chess players must show their professionalism. In addition, the assistance of the government and businesses is very important.
Q: What do you know about Vietnam’s chess?
Karpov: You have Le Quang Liem, who has played at world leading tournaments. I believe that Vietnam has many talents and it will be the home to many world chess champions.
Q: Chess players have good mathematical thinking. Is it better if you don’t play chess, but research mathematics?
Karpov: I don’t know, but chess helps life a lot. Through chess, people can train their discipline and logical thinking ability to perfect themselves and improve their memory.
Q: How does chess playing benefit students?
Karpov: Chess playing has really developed in the last two decades. More masters and grandmasters of chess have appeared. In many countries, chess is taught at schools. That’s the nursery to discover who will become grandmasters of chess and excellent mathematicians.
Q: If you are elected as FIDE Chair, what will you do to further develop chess?
Karpov: If I’m elected, I will exempt appointment fees for grandmaster and master titles and I will do my best to support chess playing movements in developing countries.
Developing chess must originate from mass movements, so I will set up at least one chess club for each age in nations with chess movements.
In Vietnam, I have thought of building two chess clubs, one in HCM City and one in Hanoi.
Source: Tuoi Tre | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-07-21T00:04:00.000-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Aim for more, be passionate in pursuit | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Aim for more, be passionate in pursuit: Anand tells students 19-Jul-2010 03:51:48 PM By: R Venkat Chennai: They asked him what dream he had during his formative years, which of his victories he cherishes most etc, but it was really a dream come true for budding sporting talents of Velammal Matric Higher Secondary School here exhanging ideas with world chess champion Viswanathan Anand. The school is one of the few educational institutions which gives equal importance to academics and sports. Answering an array of questions from India's future sporting stars, as it were, at a 'Laudation Ceremony' got up by the school, the four time world champion Anand said after distributing sports sholarships worth Rs 23 lakhs, " of course, you'll have a dream of becoming something. But take one objective at a time before you." Anand said pursuing a sport be it chess, basketball, tennis, table tennis et al successfully along with studies was much easier now compared to his childhood days. " I was lucky my parents allowed me to pursue sports, unsual those days. It is wonderful that Velammal does so much for sport", the Grand Master said. "We don't have this burden of explaining why we are doing something which is a more pleasant activity", Anand observed about combining sports and academics now. Source: http://www.mynews.in | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-07-19T09:28:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FIDE President in Zambia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() On the 6th of July the FIDE President, Head of Republic of Kalmykia Kirsan Ilyumzhinov arrived in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, to participate in Administrators seminar for the leaders of African Chess Federations. He addressed the guests of the seminar, participated in the presentation that was prepared and submitted by FIDE Commercial Director Mr. Geoffrey Borg, discussed with the leaders of African Chess Federations a number of the most urgent issues of chess development in the African continent. MEETINGS OF THE 7th of JULY 2010 On the 7th of July FIDE President continued his visit to Zambia and met with other leaders of African Chess Federations. Summing up the working visit of the FIDE President to Africa, we can describe it as very constructive and important for development of chess in this continent. After meeting with the Zambian Sports Minister it was decided that since new school year chess shall be introduced in Zambian schools as a facultative subject. At the meeting with 18 leaders of the Chess Federations a great number of important issues were discussed and many important decisions were taken: preparation of trainers and arbiters, participation of the teams in the 2010 Khanty-Mansiysk Olympiad. A sensational idea was expressed – for the first time in the history to organize in 2016 the first Chess Olympiad in Africa. Ilyumzhinov said: “to date we have 33 African countries as FIDE members. Our task is for the rest 20 to join FIDE in the nearest future”. ![]() FIDE President and President of Mozambique Chess Federation Mr. Pedro Lukas Chambule ![]() FIDE President and President of South Africa Chess Federation Ms. Emelia Ellappen ![]() | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wed, 07 Jul 2010 06:54:02 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess camps set for July, August in Shelby Township - Shelby Township Source Newspapers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wed, 14 Jul 2010 15:01:01 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Latin America and the Caribbean: working visits of FIDE President | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() On July, 10th 2010 FIDE President visited PERU. Please read the article here. On July, 9th 2010 FIDE President visited BOLIVIA. Please read the article here. FIDE President, Head of Republic of Kalmykia, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov continues his trip in the American continent. On July 12-13, he visited Costa Rica, where in the capital San Jose he met with the leaders of some chess federations of Central America. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov met with the President of Panama Chess Federation Mr. Alhan CARRERA and the General Secretary Mr. Jose PUJOL, the President of Guatemala Chess Federation Mr. Oscar FIGUEROA, FIDE Delegate of Costa Rica Chess Federation Mr. Mauricio CASTRO and Treasure Mr. Ernesto Dirzan ALVARADO. President of FIDE Zone 2.3 Mr. Erick HERNANDEZ was also present at the meeting. As in other countries the following issues were discussed in friendly atmosphere: preparation and organisation of the Chess Olympiad in Khanty-Mansiysk, possibility and difficulties of launching "Chess in Schools" programme, interaction with FIDE, government bodies and sponsors. The same issues were discussed at the meetings with NOC President of Costa Rica, Mr. Henry NUNEZ and Minister of Sports Mrs. Giselle GOYENAGA. Mr. Nunez has expressed the willingness to support the adoption of chess into Olympic Games. Minister of Sports said that in March 2011 a new stadium will be commissioned and the Chess Federation of Costa Rica will get there the premises at its disposal and invited FIDE President to take part in the Opening Ceremony. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, Continental President for Americas Jorge Vega, Zonal President Eric Hernandez and Consul of the Russian Embassy Tatiana Tarasova met with representatives of local media and visited national chess championship among women. ![]() Kirsan Ilyumzhinov with the President of Panama CF Alhan CARRERA and General Secretary of Panama CF Jose Carrillo PUYOL ![]() With President of Guatemala Chess Federation Oscar FIGUEROA ![]() With 2.3 Zonal President Erick HERNANDEZ ![]() With NOC President of Costa Rica Henry NUNEZ ![]() With Minister of Sports of Costa Rica Giselle GOYENAGA ![]() From left to right: Treasure of Costa Rica CF Ernesto Dirzan ALVARADO, FIDE President and FIDE Delegate of Costa Rica CF Mauricio CASTRO ![]() Press Conference ![]() ![]() San Jose ![]() ![]() ![]() FIDE President visited the National chess championship among women | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wed, 14 Jul 2010 06:52:20 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bound for chess glory | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Gifted Knox duo bound for chess glory By James Dimond July 15, 2010 GARY Kasparov beware: Ferntree Gully chess wonderkids Denise and Ethan Lim look bound for world domination. The brother and sister duo turned in sizzling performances at the recent state junior championships, where Ethan won the state under-eight title, and Denise placed second in the under-12 division. It comes after the gifted Wattle View Primary School students travelled to the Philippines to compete in an international competition between Asia-Pacific nations. Ethan placed eighth in the tournament’s under-eight division, while Denise placed an impressive 11th. In just grade two, Ethan already has two national titles to his name, while Denise was the under-10 national champion in 2009 and the under-12 national runner-up this year. Dad Yew Sze Lim introduced his kids to chess a few years ago, but it was only months before they were whipping him all over the chess board. Now the kids look set for international chess glory, with Denise keen to replicate the achievements of her heroes, the Polgar sisters, who are all international champions. Denise and Ethan are Knox Leader’s joint junior sports stars of the week. Source: http://knox-leader.whereilive.com.au | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-07-14T12:49:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Naef Bauhaus Chess Set by Josef Hartwig | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Naef Bauhaus Chess Set by Josef Hartwig Love chess? Love modernist design? You really do need this Naef Bauhaus Chess Set by Josef Hartwig. Yes, straight out of Bauhaus school, it was designed by Hartwig back in 1923, replacing the classic chess shapes with something cleaner and unmistakably Bauhaus - cubes, cylinders and balls in other words. The 32-piece set comes in its own Bauhaus-branded box, selling for £350. Source: http://www.retrotogo.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-07-12T07:25:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FIDE President in Zambia, Latin America, and the Carribean - Working visits of the FIDE President Ki | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| On the 6th of July the FIDE President, Head of Republic of Kalmykia Kirsan Ilyumzhinov arrived in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, to participate in Administrators seminar for the leaders of African Chess Federations. The main topics of the seminar was the organisation and management of National Federations in modern conditions, trainers' and arbiters' master-classes, exchange of experience of introducing chess in schools, presentations of the most successful projects in chess propaganda in the African continent. The representatives of more than 20 countries took part in this seminar and shall be discussing the most urgent issues of chess development during a period of three days, while getting acquainted with the best models of chess administration of the latest period. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mon, 12 Jul 2010 09:57:28 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Black Stars shine at 2010 World Open | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
While the Black Stars of Ghana were unable to convert penalty kicks to beat Uruguay in the 2010 World Cup, 15 hours away another group of Black stars would square off against competition from around the world. The World Open is a venue where people from every demographic group come to compete on the largest stage America has to offer. For players of African descent, the tournament serves a number of purposes. It is a time to reunite with friends and to pursue personal chess endeavors. There are norms and titles to earn and of course the attractive lure of big winnings. Of course each has an acute level of difficulty. Typically Black players have done well at this marquee tournament. In the 2010 World Open, Black players were well-represented in a diverse sea of players. In the Open section, there was GM Amon Simutowe who is finishing his Master’s degree at University of Texas-Dallas and has been accepted into eight elite schools for advanced study including Oxford, Harvard, Stanford, Columbia and Duke. The Zambian national has been occupied with his studies and has not had much of a chess appetite. However, he came with a student and ended on a respectable 5.5/9, but certainly not a great performance by his standards. Nevertheless, he played an interesting draw with GM Evgeny Najer, the 2008 champion. Kassa Korley will probably be getting his FM title soon as he approaches 2300. He entered the Open section with norms on his mind. The New York native has narrowly missed a couple of norms, but in this tournament he was never able to gain momentum and finished with an even score. There is no question that Korley is brimming with talent and needs opportunities to maintain the momentum. Sylvester Smarty decided to try the Open section and beat IM Marc Esserman in the first round. However, he stumbled for seven rounds before ending with a win and 3.5 points. In the high-octane under-2400 section, several heavy hitters entered this section including the legendary IM Emory Tate and red-hot Farai Mandizha. The Zimbabwean recently earned “IM-elect” status after earning a norm at the Philadelphia International. IM Oladapo Adu is a mainstay in the American circuit and is always a threat in this section.
Top boards in under-2400 section. Epic battle unfolds between IM Emory Tate and IM Oladapo Adu. A surging IM-elect Farai Mandizha enroute to a last round win against FM Ilye Figler. All three of these players were in the thick of things until the last two rounds. While Mandizha charged on, Tate dropped his last two games ousting him from contention and ending him on 5.5/9. One of the games he lost was to Adu, who finished with 7/9 and a share of joint 3rd. Mandizha closed with clear second on 7.5/9.
While these are great results, perhaps the best result among the Black players was turned by 12-year old Justus Williams. The scholastic All-American scored a strong 5.5/9 and including his win over FM Alexander Barnett. Lawyer Times finished strongly on 5.5/9 after losing three of first four games. FM Norman Rogers and Okechukwu Iwu scored even with 4.5/9. Three other scholastic stars played up a section. Experts Darrian Robinson (3/9), Josh Colas (2.5/8) and James Black, Jr. (2/8) took some harsh lessons, but gained valuable experience against tough competition. There seems to be a friendly competition as four scholastic players played up.
In the under-2200, Kola Adeyemi scored 6.5/9 for a share of 3rd place. Adekunle Ogunmefun was just out of the running with 6/9. Other plus scores were rising star Jehron Bryant who scored 5/9 as did Nigeria’s Abiye Williams. Some notable performances occurred in the under-1600 section. In the last round Khalee Ward was set to defend his 2008 under-1600 title and had 7.5/8 going into his last round encounter with Lerrenzo Davis who was on 7/8. Davis won the contest to take first place and a $10,345 paycheck. Ward settled for $3160.67. Also in the hunt was Brianna Conley who scored a spectacular 7/9 losing only one game. Brianna’s proud father Robert Conley remarked that this was her best performances. After the tournament, rising senior from Columbus, Ohio was headed to Harvard, Brown and Yale to look at schools. She will compete in the Polgar Girls later in the month.
Orrin Hudson of Besomeone, Inc. with Brianna Conley. Last but not least, was the performance of Dwayne “Vortex” Darby. He scored 7.5/9 under-900 section and was interviewed about his performance. He gave credit to his coaches and gave an acknowledgment to his high school team, “The Dark Knights”.
Standings: http://chesstournamentservices.com/cca/category/world-open/world-open-standings/ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fri, 09 Jul 2010 15:47:58 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Silicon Valley Challenge on Sunday! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
First of all, I apologize to my regular readers for this extended absence. I am battling an annoying intestinal ailment that has deprived me of much of my usual zest for over two months. Unfortunately, it is still not cured, although the doctors can't seem to find anything wrong in my medical test results. This year takes on a little more significance since Charles graduated from Saratoga High School and will begin classes at UC Berkeley next month. I began teaching him in 2004 and had the pleasure of watching him grow into a smart and confident young man. Charles was never one of my star students, but his success at big money tournaments (Las Vegas!) remains unparalleled by my students. I still remember watching him improve from 1394 to 1806 in the summer of 2005. He attributed that quantum leap to learning to pay attention to tempo in chess. In high school, Charles took over the leadership of the Saratoga High School club, extending the streak of state titles to a record six straight years. He also began organizing a couple of rated tournaments each year. Read about last year at this blog post. Over four years, a total of 350 players participated in 11 events, with an impressive peak of 62. Charles generously treats his players to free snacks and drinks, which may help explain why many come back each year.
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Fri, 09 Jul 2010 03:45:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| How to make chess more popular? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The report below was written and sent to us by WIM Olena Boytsun, who is General Secretary of the International Association of Chess Professionals (ACP) and working in marketing and PR for chess. Since June 2010 she is full time employed as Marketing Director of the Ukrainian Chess Federation. After the findings of the round table were published earlier this week by Chessbase, Olena also sent us the material, adding
We gladly publish the report, and invite our readers to join the discussion below in the comments section. By Olena Boytsun The main aim of the round table was to estimate already existing ways of chess game promotion and to develop plan of actions both for Ukraine and the international chess community. The questions of the target audience for chess projects, building the personal brand of a chess player, ways to improve the effectiveness of the implemented marketing decisions were reviewed. The participants defined the following factors as having a positive influence on the popularization of chess:
The importance of the control under the situation and the effective allocation of resources and contacts (including contacts with press) while providing the policy of development was also emphasized.
The main result of the round table is that participants developed propositions of practical application. The following propositions were supported:
On the invitation of FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov Olena Boytsun will present the results of the round table at the FIDE Presidential Board meeting in July 2010 in Norway. FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov identified several priority target groups to develop projects to promote chess. The first step is to focus the attention on the increasing number of fans and the development of children’s chess. In addition, Ilyumzhinov said that the recognition of chess an Olympic sport is one of the major challenges for FIDE.
Vadim Morohovsky, ACP President and Chairman of the Bank PIVDENNY, noted that the main purpose of the ACP is to protect the rights of professional players, but at the same time, the ACP also includes the development and chess and organizing special activities for children. International grandmaster Vassily Ivanchuk, among other things, noted that the knock-out system helps to promote chess, because inherent in such a system, an element of entertainment and wrestling helps to attract additional interest from the audience. Ivanchuk also suggested to add more activities in tournaments (seminars, lectures, simultaneous games and more) with the involvement of players.
Journalist and International Grandmaster Mikhail Golubev encouraged, in chess development policies, not to forget about existing resources and contacts, “not to alienate those who can help”. In particular, Golubev mentioned the situation with the chess representative of the news agency Associated Press. As a result of the fact that the date of the big chess events are postponed several times, the leading information agency was unable to plan their chess media coverage with their correspndent and therefore abolished their coverage. Golubev expressed the opinion that at this stage the popularization of chess depends on FIDE incomparably more than on the ACP, and referred to the transfer of a number of major events in 2008-2009, and urged “not to create a negative image of chess by making decisions that were not necessary.” Vassily Ivanchuk, Sergei Movsesian and Pavel Eljanov emphasized the desirability of introducing a separate rating list for rapid chess, because it is rapid chess that has great television potential. The clarity of the world championship cycle was also named among the necessary conditions for the successful promotion of the game of chess, because it is fighting for the world title that attracts the most attention from the media and the general public. International Grandmaster Vugar Gashimov raised the suggestion of organizing a team of professional chess managers, whose main task would be to ensure sponsorship and promotion of chess. International Grandmaster Ernesto Inarkiev supported the idea of special events in general, highlighting the interaction with kids as a priority. Among the reasons that in chess it is difficult to work with a personal manager, is primarily a financial issue, said Inarkiev. Paul Tregubov made a proposal to develop and distribute a special handbook for journalists and national federations with useful information for all interested groups. Ali Nihat Yazici, President of Turkish Chess Federation, shared the secrets of the “Turkish miracle”: in five years the popularity of chess in Turkey has increased by several times. Yazici emphasized the need for interaction between the national federation of state bodies, as government support is essential to the success of projects such as chess in schools. According to Yazici, the efficiency of the national federation is the key to a successful promotion of chess in each country. Photos © Boris Bukhman Links | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fri, 02 Jul 2010 10:37:17 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pitterson Wins Sub Zonal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() July 2nd, 2010 Checkmate - Pitterson Wins Sub Zonal, Gibson Leads Bahamians FIDE Master Jomo Pitterson of Jamaica broke the first place tie he shared with Woman Grandmaster Sarai Sanchez from Venezuela to win the Caribbean Chess Sub Zonal on Thursday at the School for Nursing at Grosvenors Close. FIDE Master Jomo Pitterson of Jamaica broke the first place tie he shared with Woman Grandmaster Sarai Sanchez from Venezuela to win the Caribbean Chess Sub Zonal on Thursday at the School for Nursing at Grosvenors Close. This is the first time the sub zonal was played in The Bahamas and in an English speaking country and it was deemed a success by members of The Bahamas Chess Federation (BCF) and the players that competed. Pitterson mentioned that he was not only proud about winning but also proud that he was able to win the first sub zonal played in The Bahamas. “There’s a lot of chess being played in the region and we normally don’t get to see the Bahamian players, so I’m excited to be apart of this,” he said. Martyn Castilho from Barabados and 14-year old Keron Cabralis from Trinidad and Tobago rounded out the top four and qualified for the Zonal tournament. Six Bahamian players competed but they did not fear to well against some of the more polished regional players. Ken Gibson was the highest ranked Bahamian player; he finished in 20th position. President of the BCF, Kean A. Smith, pointed out that our Bahamian players have a long way to go to compete on the level of other top chess players but that “we will catch-up.” Source: http://www.jonesbahamas.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-07-02T00:34:00.000-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 12 year old Bronx Chess Champ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() June 29, 2010, 4:06 PM ET Portrait of a Bronx Chess Champion, Age 12 By Joy Resmovits When Bronx student Justus Williams started third grade at P.S. 70, his mother, Latisha, urged him to take on chess. The hobby was “less common” than basketball, she said. But Justus wasn’t enthusiastic at first. “I thought I was going to be embarrassed,” he said. As it turned out, mom knew best. Justus, now 12 and completing sixth grade, is the highest-rated chess player in the U.S. in his age and gender group, and fourth overall in World Chess Federation international rankings for his age group. Justus found out recently that he will travel to Halkidiki, Greece in October to represent the U.S. in the 2010 World Youth Chess Championship. That’s after a summer filled with tournaments such as the Pan American Youth Chess Festival in Brazil and the World Open in Philadelphia. Justus first played at a Chess-in-the-Schools program in the Bronx’s P.S. 70, when he was in the third grade. His instructor Shaun Smith said Justus had more focus than his peers, and pushed himself to the top of the class—and the country—by fourth grade. “He’s a very mature sixth grader in that he’s stoic and adult-like,” Smith said. “He’s the quietest person. He’s very shy.” As he started winning, the champ began to see chess as less of a chore. “My mom didn’t have to push me to go to tournaments anymore,” he said. His grades got better, too. Smith, who coordinates Justus’s tournament play, started bringing him to more prestigious games when he hit fifth grade. He now practices one or two hours a day. How does a 12-year-old chess champ prepare to become a master? His mom figures that out. She makes sure Justus gets a good night’s sleep and steers him from junk food; healthier foods such as fruit and chicken salad help his mental stamina, she said. “It’s tempting for him to fall out of that because he sees other people there with the burgers and fries,” Latisha said. “He thinks, ‘Here I am, eating a salad, I look like the freak of the week.’ That’s the role I play, letting him know it’s okay.” Justus now attends middle school at I.S. 318 in Brooklyn–a 90-minute commute from home, but the school’s strong chess program makes it worthwhile, he said. Still, Justus said he gets nervous before tournaments. “After the first round when I win, I start to get comfortable,” he said. Regardless of what happens in Greece, Justus is confident he can achieve his goals: One, to become the youngest African-American chess master, and, later on, an international investment banker “because they make a lot of money,” he said. But, he added, “I’ll never quit chess—not while I’m winning.” Source: http://blogs.wsj.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-06-29T12:00:00.000-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Monday Questions (14) for GM Sebastian Siebrecht | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1. Please introduce yourself (name, age, nationality, etc.)! 2. What is your role in the chess world? 3. How did you develop your chess talent as a kid? 4. Who had a profound influence on your chess development? 5. What are your favourite sports besides chess? 6. What would be your advice for young people? 7. What has your main concern in life besides chess? 8. What is the best chess game you played? 9. What’s your connection with ‘Developing Chess Talent’? 10. What question do you miss and what would be your answer?
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Mon, 28 Jun 2010 22:30:06 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Najib Plays Chinese Chess At Lido Market During His Walkabout - Bernama | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Tue, 29 Jun 2010 13:29:02 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Serzh Sargsyan, Levon Aronian open junior chess school in Armavir - Information-Analytic Agency NEWS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Tue, 29 Jun 2010 08:46:52 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Un pomeriggio con Oleg Romanishin! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Beautiful Days In Roseto
For about twenty minutes of the interview young Lorenzo Pescatore has come to sit with us and listen, all along handling an icecream : a very special young man our Lorenzo, not only chess-wise ! The conversation is very pleasant and cordial : we don?t start with a question, but just talking about the state of Italian chess in general
Romanishin : Chess is definitely growing in Italy, as shown by the many tournaments held here. I have met many Italian players : I played against mariotti in Leningrad, in 1977, a very creative player, many times with Godena, who is an interesting player, very solid, and with many more. I also had the opportunity of holding a brief training session with Vocaturo and Piscopo, which was organised by Nicola Pienabarca. Scacchierando : what is your impression of Caruana ? Romanishin : Caruana is clearly a talented young player, but I couldn?t say more without knowing him personally and playing and analysing with him. S : Here you played against Axel Rombaldoni Romanishin : Yes, I?d played him in Bratto before. I won both times, but he?s a quality player, with good potential. Maybe , at the moment, he tends to overpress. I played twice against his brother Denis as well. S : when was your first time in Italy ? Romanishin : In 1978 I came to Genoa, for a Festa dell?Unità, holding various simultaneous events. I came back in 1984, where I played other simultaneous matche sin different cities. My first tournament was Reggio Emilia 1984/85. I have since come back to Italy many times and I?ve always enjoyed it, I like Italian food a lot, and I love the coffee. During the Frascati tournament in 2006 I had the chance to walk around Rome with my family, and have a coffee in Piazza di Spagna, I have very fond memories of that day. Before I leave ( to a tournament in Heviz, Hungary, on lake Balaton ) I want to spend a day walking around Rome again, I like that town very much. S : you learned to play chess when you were 5 ? Romanishin :Yes, with my father, who was a strong player, he was able to win the Lvov championship, our hometown. My father had a loit of books at home, and there was a nice ? chess ? atmosphere. I was the youngest in my family : my brothers also played, but were less dedicated. S . Chess was very popular in the Soviet Union, back then . Romanishin : Yes, definitely, it was the sport with the most following after football ! The government actively promoted the game, which was really very popular. Chess was talked about on mainstream media, not only on specialized publications, and there were radio shows. During the 1963 Botvinnik ? Petrosjan match ( Romanishin was 11 at the time ) , there was a news bulletin every hour, and the moves played were given. My father and I used to follow these games with a chessboard, analyzing while waiting for the following moves S : You then studied with Viktor Kart. Aside from being an excellent coach, was he also a strong player ? Romanishin : Not really, back then, he was a good Candidate Master ( a Russian CM of the time was usually strong modern-day FM strength ) , in some way he developed as a player with us, his first group of students, which was myself, Alexander beliavsy and Adrian Mikhalcisin. Stein?s successes, who was a good friend of Kart?s, boosted the chess scene in Lviv. In 1973 I won the Youth European championship, while Beliavsky won the World Championship. Viktor dedicated himself to us with passion and competence.
Beliavsky, Viktor Kart and Romanishin in Lviv celebrating Kart?s 80th birthday
( from chessbase : http://www.chessbase.com/newsprint.asp?newsid=5548 ) S : Did you develop rapidly as a player ? Romanishin : Yes, I became Candidate master at 14 and Master at 16. I obtained my IM title when I won the European championship and I became GM in 1976 ( by this time he had already taken part in 2 Soviet Championship finals, with a wonderful 2nd place in 1975 with Tal and Vaganjan, behind the winner Petrosjan ? other times, and other titles ! ) S : As a promising youngster, you were assisted by Tal. Romanishin : No, that?s not correct. I was sent to play a tournament with Tal. Then, in 1975, we played together again and became good friends. We had three training sessions together. In 1977 we were joint-winners of the Leningrad tournament, ahead of Karpov, Smyslov, Vaganjan, Taimanov, Ribli, Balashov, Beliavsky ? I have been very lucky, having had the opportunity of playing and working with great champions.
Mikhalcisin, Romanishin and Beliavsky ( chessbase )
S ; has your playing style been influenced by anyone in particular ? Romanishin : I wouldn?t say as much ? You learn from everyone, from many different styles. It was the strength of the Soviet Union , back then, there were many very strong players, who cultivated many different ideas. I have always valued the insights that different points of view can give you. I have played with nearly every player, even with Leonid Stejn ( said with a smile, remembering the great Ukrainian champion, who died prematurely ). Young players today work a lot with databases but have less opportunities to work with great champions. Chess has changed, it?s become quicker, maybe too much so, young players have the adequate energy for present-day Chess. After a 5 ? 6 hour game I am exhausted, and let?s not even talk about double rounds ? S : You are an attacking player, and an accomplished openings expert. Romanishin : It was easier once, to try theoretical novelties, if you were willing to work at the chessboard. Today, you play a novelty and after afew hours it is known all over the world. I have always played for the win, without much consideration to tournament tactics. When I have played with caution I have not always fared well. In 1975 I played a tournament in Olot, Spain. At one point I was leading with Csom and Filip, on 7.5. The following round I was paired with white against Csom, who used to play a kind of ? hedgehog ? formation. Before the game I came up with a novelty in the sequence 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 b6 4. e4 Bb7, playing Bd3 on my fifth move ( the move had already been tried by Huebner against Johannessen in Oslo the previous year, but databases weren?t around at the time, and Romanishin didn?t know that game ) . However, I didn?t want to take risks, I played a different move and lost badly. I was very unhappy about this, and I spent the whole night analysing the game and my new variation. At the end of the same year, in the Soviet Championship played in Yerevan, I played against Petrosjan and this time went ahead with Bd3, winning a nice game ! (http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1107067 ) The following day Lev Polugaevsky played the same way against Boris Gulko, and then it was taken up by Tal and many others. In that Championship I played another strong novelty against Geller. I remember Petrosjan telling me that even if I could play two novelties per tournament, I then had to play all the other games as well ! There is a little curiosity : in 1996, 21 years later, during the Yerevan Olympics, I went to a chemist and the man behind the counter exclaimed : ? I know you ! You destroyed our great Petrosjan in the 1975 championship ! ?. I found myself in a similar situation in the penultimate round of the Groningen tournament, in 1993, in a game where I had the black pieces against Beliavsky, which was decisive for qualification in the candidates tournament of the PCA. Two hours before the game I came up with a novelty in the Capablanca variation in the Nimzo-Indian, Qf5. ( 1.d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. cxd5 Qxd5 6. Nf3 Qf5 ) This time, as opposed to what happened with Bd3, I played it and won! ( http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1105910 ) . In the last round I played against Benjamin, I didn?t calculate ; I played for a win and everything went well and I finished on 7 out of 11. S : You played against many World Champions. Romanishin : Yes, many times. I am ahead on points with Tal, Petrosjan and Spassky, and with Kasparov also, even if I only played him when he was very young, before he became World Champion. I have a very bad score against Karpov. Talking about varieties of approaches, Karpov has a very global view of the board. When analysing a position, he tends to consider what pieces to exchange, which to improve, and formulate a general play rather than calculating variations. At the other end there is Ivanchuk, with whom I spent some time in training. Ivanchuk relies on his exceptional memory and calculation, with very deep variations, sometimes even fifteen moves ahead ! S : You won here in Roseto ! Romanishin : Oh yes, I did, but my opponents were quite helpful !
S : You have won many tournaments, do you remember how many ? Romanishin : No, not at all ! You then have to distinguish between different tournaments. A second or third place in a world class tournament is of considerable importance. I have won important tournaments, like Odessa 1974, Hastings 1976, the aforementioned Leningrad 1977, Jumala 1983, Moscow 1985, but I also remember with pleasure , for example, my second place in Tilburg 1979, half a point behind Karpov and ahead of many great players, such as Portisch, Larsen, Spassky, Timman, Smyslov, Huebner, Hort, Sax, Sosonko and Kavalek ? and extremely hard tournament ! S : Is there a game you are especially attached to ? Romanishin : All of them ! maybe I am especially proud of some of them, like the one against Tibor karolyi, in Tbilisi in 1986, with a nice sacrifice, an incredible game ( http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1118572 ) : Even the one against Amador Rodriguez, in 1977, a particularly interesting game, with many consecutive pawn moves, and, most definitely, my win against Spassky in Tilburg (http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1118162 ) and the games against Petrosjan and Beliavsky we already talked about. S : You have played in the Olypics with both the Soviet Union and the Ukraine. Romanishin : In 1978, in Buenos aires, I was selected since Karpov was playing his match with Korchnoj. I have been close to being selected on other occasions, but that was my only chance at the Olympics with the USSR , while in the European Championships I won 6 gold medals. With the Ukraine I have won two silver medals and two bronze. I don?t think much of the current team-point system. I am especially against FIDE?s ? zero tolerance ? rule, which I consider to be absolutely idiotic, particularly in a tournament like the Olypiads, with thousands of people in the playing hall. All you need is a little inconvenience to be late. It is a nonsensical rule for chess. In tennis, and Tennis has great TV obligations, you are allowed up to a quarter of an hour ! And in tennis , and in many other sports, the warm-up is held on the pitch, while in chess that isn?t the case. At Wijk Aan Zee you have to pay a penalty if you are late, the highest being in the A tournament. I think it?s a good compromise. S : You have been playing Chess for 50 years, do you still harbour the same passion for the game ? Romanishin : When I was younger I was more motivated, I was very ambitious. Today I make a living with chess, but yes, I still love them very much to this day. S : is there a champion of the past you particularly admire ? Romanishin : All of them ! As I mentioned about the Soviet School, the plurality of views and styles is an asset. I am sorry I was never able to play with Keres, he played his last Soviet Championship in 1973, while I played my first in 1974, but I still had the chance to get to know him ! ( said with a smile which was similar to the one he had remembering Stejn , a sign of respect and fondness for the memory )
The prize giving ceremony with the town councillor, Dr. Antonio Porrini Here the interview, which lasted over two hours, comes to an end, but not our afternoon with Oleg ! We offer to give him a lift to the prize-giving, which will be held in the town?s main square. While waiting for the ceremony to begin, we adjourn to a chessboard in the analysis room where Stefano asks Romanishin?s opinion about a few side-variations in the Nimzo-Indian. The result is a move order inversion which will of course remain secret ! We go to the prize-giving and we then walk Romanishin to buy his bus ticket, and checking with the hotel that he could get a lift to the station, and we are joined by IM Pap. We had a chance for further talks, and not only about chess. We talk about Rome, and it is immediately obvious the interest a Chess tournament in Rome could entail. Romanishin finds a common interest with Stefano in tennis, a sport that he discovered late in his life but that he likes a lot. Oleg has a 16 year old daughter who is a rather promising player, and is already playing in international youth tournaments. After the tournament in Balaton, Romanishin will play an Open in Germany, and his agenda is already fully booked well into September, but no further tournaments in Italy are planned for the moment. We return to the village and after dinner we part ways. On our way back to Rome Stefano and I look back on the nice days in Roseto and the wonderful afternoon. It really has been a great pleasure to get to know Oleg Mikhajlovic Romanishin ! ![]() Le belle giornate di Roseto Roseto, sabato 12 giugno, ore 14, il torneo si è appena concluso. Per il caffè del dopopranzo ci sediamo al bar con Oleg Mikhajlovhic Romanishin: è il momento della promessa intervista. Romanishin parla un inglese fluente, come già dimostrato nel magnifico stage tenuto mercoledì sera. Per fortuna Scacchierando è presente in forze, con LightKnight e Stefano Bellincampi che se la cavano molto meglio di me. Per una ventina di minuti si è seduto con noi ad ascoltare anche Lorenzo Pescatore, alle prese con un gelato. Giovanissimo speciale Lorenzo, scacchisticamente e non solo! Il clima della chiacchierata è immediatamente piacevole e cordiale: non si parte con una domanda ma parlando di scacchi azzurri.
Romanishin: Gli scacchi in Italia stanno sicuramente crescendo e si disputano molti tornei. Ho incontrato molti giocatori italiani: ho giocato con Mariotti, a Leningrado nel 1977, un giocatore molto creativo, molte volte con Godena, giocatore interessante, sempre molto solido, e con tanti altri. Ho anche avuto modo di tenere un breve training con Vocaturo e Piscopo, organizzato da Nicola Pienabarca. Scacchierando: Che impressione ha di Caruana? Romanishin: con tutta evidenza un giovane di talento, ma non saprei dire di più senza conoscerlo direttamente, giocarci e analizzare con lui. S. : Qui ha giocato con Axel Rombaldoni. Romanishin: Sì, l?avevo già incontrato a Bratto. Ho vinto entrambe le volte, anche se è un giovane con buone qualità e potenzialità. Forse, per ora, tende a sbilanciarsi troppo in attacco. Ho incontrato due volte anche Denis. S. : Quando è venuto per la prima volta in Italia? Romanishin: Nel 1978, a Genova, in occasione di una Festa dell?Unità, tenendo diverse simultanee. Sono tornato nel 1984, sempre per delle simultanee, in varie città. Il primo torneo è stato quello di Reggio Emilia 1984 / 85 . Da allora sono venuto molte volte e mi trovo sempre benissimo in Italia, mi piace molto la cucina e adoro il caffè. Durante il Torneo di Frascati, nel 2006, ho avuto modo di passeggiare per Roma con la mia famiglia e di prendere un caffè a Piazza di Spagna: ho un magnifico ricordo di quella giornata. Prima di ripartire (per un torneo in Ungheria, a Heviz, sul lago Balaton) mi fermerò un giorno?a passeggiare per Roma, città che mi piace moltissimo. S. : Ha imparato a giocare a 5 anni. Romanishin: Sì, con mio padre, che era un forte giocatore, ha vinto anche un Campionato di Leopoli (Lvov), la nostra città. Mio padre aveva molti libri e a casa c?era una bella atmosfera scacchistica. Io sono l?ultimogenito: anche i miei fratelli giocavano ma con minor dedizione. S. : C?era grande spazio per gli scacchi nell?Unione Sovietica di allora. Romanishin: Ah, sì, erano il gioco più seguito dopo il calcio! Il governo promuoveva il gioco, che era davvero molto diffuso. Si parlava di scacchi sui giornali, non solo su quelli specializzati ma anche sui quotidiani, e c?erano delle trasmissioni alla radio. Durante il match tra Botvinnik e Petrosjan, nel 1963 (Romanishin aveva allora 11 anni - ndr), c?era un aggiornamento ogni ora, con le mosse giocate. Io e mio padre seguivamo le partite alla scacchiera, analizzando e in attesa delle mosse successive. S. : Poi ha studiato con Viktor Kart. Oltre che un ottimo istruttore, Kart era un forte giocatore? Romanishin: Non proprio allora, era un buon Candidato Maestro (ricordando che un CM sovietico dell?epoca corrisponde almeno a un forte FM di oggi - ndr), in un certo qual modo è cresciuto anche lui con noi, il suo primo gruppo di allievi, con me, Alexander Beliavsky e Adrian Mikhalchishin. I successi di Stejn, buon amico di Kart, avevano entusiasmato l?ambiente scacchistico di Lviv. Nel 1973 io vinsi il titolo europeo dei giovani e Beliavsky vinse il mondiale. Viktor si dedicava con passione e capacità. Invitava forti giocatori per un periodo di allenamento con noi, ad esempio Korchnoj, nel 1976. Oggi vive in Germania, ha 80 anni, siamo ancora in contatto.
Beliavsky, Viktor Kart e Romanishin a Lviv in occasione del festeggiamento dell'80? compleanno di Kart (foto Chessbase - segnalo il bell'articolo http://www.chessbase.com/newsprint.asp?newsid=5548?) ? S. : La sua crescita è stata rapida? Romanishin: Abbastanza, sono diventato Candidato Maestro a 14 anni e Maestro a 16. Ho avuto il titolo di Maestro Internazionale con la vittoria all?europeo e sono arrivato a quello di GM nel 1976 (dopo aver già partecipato a due finali del Campionato Sovietico, con un fantastico secondo posto nel 1975, con Tal, Vaganjan, alle spalle di Petrosjan? Altri tempi e altri titoli! ? ndr). S. : Come giovane promettente fu affiancato a Tal. Romanishin: No, questo non è esatto. Sono stato mandato a giocare un torneo insieme a Tal. Poi, nel 1975, abbiamo giocato di nuovo insieme e siamo diventati ottimi amici. Abbiamo svolto tre periodi di training insieme. Nel 1977 abbiamo vinto a pari merito il torneo di Leningrado, davanti a Karpov, Smyslov, Vaganjan, Taimanov, Ribli, Balashov, Beliavsky? Io sono stato fortunato, ho avuto modo di giocare e lavorare con grandissimi campioni.
Mikhalchishin, Romanishin e Beliavsky?(foto Chessbase) ? S. : Il suo stile è stato ispirato da qualcuno in particolare? Romanishin: Non direi? Si apprende da tutti, da tanti diversi stili. Era la forza dell?Unione Sovietica di allora, c?erano tanti fortissimi giocatori, una grande diversità di idee e di fermenti. Ho sempre dato molto valore alla molteplicità dei punti di vista. Ho giocato con quasi tutti, anche con Leonid Stejn (detto con un sorriso, nel ricordo del grande campione ucraino, prematuramente scomparso). Oggi i giovani lavorano molto con i database ma hanno minori opportunità di allenarsi con i grandi campioni. Gli scacchi sono cambiati, sono diventati più veloci, forse troppo, i giovani hanno l?energia giusta per gli scacchi di oggi. Io dopo una partita di 5 ? 6 ore sono esausto, per non parlare di un doppio turno. S. : Lei è un attaccante e un grande teorico delle aperture. Romanishin: Era maggiormente possibile proporre novità teoriche una volta, se lavoravi molto alla scacchiera. Oggi giochi una novità e dopo poche ore è conosciuta in tutto il mondo. Io ho sempre giocato cercando la vittoria, senza calcoli rispetto al torneo. Quando ho usato prudenza non sempre è andata benissimo. Nel 1975 giocai un torneo ad Olot, in Spagna. Ad un certo punto della gara ero in testa con 7,5 insieme a Csom e Filip. Il turno dopo giocavo con il bianco contro Csom, che usava spesso una sorta di ?Riccio?. Pensai poco prima della partita a una novità nella sequenza 1.Cf3 Cf6 2.c4 e6 3.Cc3 b6 4.e4 Ab7 , giocando Ad3 al quinto tratto (la mossa era stata già sperimentata da Huebner contro Johannessen a Oslo, l?anno precedente, ma allora non c?erano i database e Romanishin non conosceva quella partita - ndr). Tuttavia non volli rischiare, giocai in modo diverso e persi malamente. Ci restai malissimo e passai tutta la notte ad analizzare la partita e la nuova variante. Alla fine dello stesso anno, al Campionato Sovietico disputato a Yerevan, giocai con Petrosjan e stavolta utilizzai Ad3: vinsi una bella partita! ( http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1107067?) Il giorno dopo Lev Polugaevsky giocò allo stesso modo contro Boris Gulko, poi è stata una variante giocata anche da Tal e da molti altri. In quel Campionato giocai un?altra buona novità contro Geller. Ricordo che Petrosjan mi disse che potevo anche giocare due buone novità a torneo ma che poi dovevo anche giocare tutte le altre partite! C?è una piccola curiosità successiva: nel 1996, 21 anni dopo, durante le Olimpiadi di Yerevan, andai in una farmacia e l?uomo dietro il banco esclamò: ?Io la conosco! Lei ha distrutto il nostro grande Petrosjan nel Campionato del 1975!?. Mi sono trovato in una situazione simile al penultimo turno di Groningen, nel 1993, in una partita con il nero contro Beliavsky, decisiva per la qualificazione al Torneo dei Candidati della PCA. Due ore prima della partita pensai ad una novità nella variante Capablanca della Nimzoindiana, con Donna f5 (1.d4 Cf6 2.c4 e6 3.Cc3 Ab4 4.Dc2 d5 5.cxd5 Dxd5 6.Cf3 Df5 ). Stavolta, a differenza di Ad3, la giocai e vinsi! ( http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1105910?) All?ultimo turno affrontai Benjamin, non feci calcoli, giocai per vincere e andò bene, chiudendo con 7 su 11. S. : Ha giocato con molti campioni del mondo. Romanishin: Si, molte volte. Sono in vantaggio con Tal, Petrosjan, Spassky, anche con Kasparov, anche se ho giocato con lui solo quando era molto giovane, prima che arrivasse al titolo mondiale. Ho uno score tremendamente negativo con Karpov. Parlando della molteplicità degli approcci, Karpov ha una visione della scacchiera molto globale: di fronte a una posizione tende a valutare quali pezzi cambiare, quali valorizzare, a formulare un piano generale più che varianti. All?estremo opposto c?è Ivanchuk, con il quale ho svolto un periodo di training. Ivanchuk si affida alle sue eccezionali capacità di memoria e di calcolo, con varianti profondissime, anche di una quindicina di mosse! S. : Ha vinto qui a Roseto! Romanishin: Oh si, ho vinto, ma gli avversari mi hanno aiutato!
S. : Ha vinto molti tornei, ricorda quanti? Romanishin: No, assolutamente! Poi bisogna distinguere tra i diversi tornei. Un secondo o terzo posto in una gara di valore mondiale ha un peso rilevante. Ho vinto tornei importanti, come a Odessa 1974, Hastings 1976, il già citato Leningrado 1977, Jurmala 1983, Mosca 1985, ma ricordo anche con piacere, ad esempio, il secondo posto a Tilburg 1979, a mezzo punto da Karpov e precedendo tanti grandissimi giocatori, come Portisch, Larsen, Spassky, Timman, Smyslov, Huebner, Hort, Sax, Sosonko e Kavalek? Un torneo durissimo! S. : C?è una partita a cui è maggiormente legato? Romanishin: Tutte! Forse di alcune sono particolarmente orgoglioso, come quella con Tibor Karolyi, a Tbilisi nel 1986, con un bel sacrificio, una partita incredibile (?http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1118572 ). Anche quella con Amador Rodriguez, nel 1977, una partita particolare,?con tantissime mosse consecutive di pedone. Poi sicuramente la vittoria con Spassky a Tilburg (?http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1118162 ), le già citate partite con Petrosjan e Beliavsky. S. : Ha giocato alle Olimpiadi sia con l?Unione Sovietica che con l?Ucraina. Romanishin: Nel 1978, a Buenos Aires, venni convocato in quanto mancava Karpov, impegnato per il match con Korchnoj. Sono stato vicino alla convocazione altre volte ma quella fu l?unica occasione olimpica con l?URSS, mentre ai Campionati Europei ho vinto sei medaglie d?oro. Con l?Ucraina alle Olimpiadi ho vinto due argenti e due bronzi. Non mi piace molto il sistema attuale delle Olimpiadi, con i punti squadra. Soprattutto non mi piace la tolleranza zero nell?arrivo alla scacchiera, una regola idiota, in particolare alle Olimpiadi, con migliaia di persone in sala. Basta nulla per un ritardo. E? una regola insensata per gli scacchi. Nel tennis, e il tennis ha grandi esigenze televisive, è ammesso un ritardo di un quarto d?ora! E nel tennis e in molti altri sport il riscaldamento pre - gara si svolge in campo, a scacchi non è così! A Wijk Aan Zee si paga una penale per il ritardo, più alta per il torneo A. E? già un buon compromesso. S. : Gioca a scacchi da 50 anni, ha ancora la stessa passione? Romanishin: Da giovane ero più motivato, avevo molte ambizioni. Oggi vivo di scacchi, e si, comunque, li amo molto tuttora. S. : C?è un campione del passato che le piace particolarmente? Romanishin: Tutti! E? come ho accennato per la scuola sovietica, la molteplicità di punti di vista e di stili è un valore. Mi dispiace non aver mai giocato con Keres, lui ha disputato il suo ultimo Campionato Sovietico nel 1973 e io il primo nel 1974. Ma l?ho conosciuto! (con un sorriso molto simile a quello fatto ricordando Stejn, con un segnale di stima, e di affetto per il ricordo ? ndr).
La premiazione, con l'Assessore al Turismo di Roseto, Dr. Antonio Porrini? Qui si conclude l?intervista, durata ben due ore, ma non il pomeriggio con Oleg! Ci offriamo di dargli un passaggio per la premiazione, che si svolgerà nella piazza del comune; nell?attesa ci troviamo davanti a una scacchiera della sala analisi e Stefano chiede a Romanishin delle valutazioni su alcune varianti minori della Nimzoindiana. Ne esce fuori una diversa sequenza di mosse, naturalmente segreta!! Si va alla premiazione e dopo accompagniamo Romanishin a fare il biglietto per il pullman, verificando in albergo la possibilità di essere accompagnato l?indomani mattina presto alla stazione. Alla compagnia si aggiunge il Maestro Internazionale Pap. In macchina si chiacchiera, non solo di scacchi. Si parla di Roma e risulta evidente l?interesse che susciterebbe un bel Festival nella città eterna. Romanishin trova un interesse in comune con Stefano nel tennis, sport che ha scoperto tardi ma che gli piace molto. Oleg ha anche una figlia sedicenne che è una buona promessa del tennis?e disputa già tornei internazionali giovanili. Dopo il torneo sul Balaton, Romanishin giocherà un open in Germania e il suo carnet di impegni è già pieno fino ai primi di settembre, senza la previsione per ora di altri tornei in Italia. Si torna al Villaggio?e dopo cena ci salutiamo con grande cordialità. In macchina verso Roma io e Stefano commentiamo le belle giornate di Roseto e lo splendido pomeriggio. E? stato davvero un grandissimo piacere conoscere Oleg Mikhajlovhic Romanishin! ? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-06-28T16:00:00+01:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FIDE to hold Africa Seminar in Zambia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FIDE is holding a seminar from July 5th-10th which will serve as administrative training for federation management. Each federation is having their flights and lodging paid for the five-day seminar. The seminar will take place at the Taj Pamodzi Hotel, a five-star establishment. There is an extensive agenda with the guest speakers including FIDE VP candidates Ali Nihat Yacizi and organizer Lewis Ncube, current FIDE VP. The agenda appears to be filled with useful activities and includes topics like: Chess-in-Schools, Federation-Government strategies, Federation Financing and Tournament Organization. This seminar may provide federations with an opportune moment for delegates to raise questions about the FIDE agenda for Africa. The organizers should be well-equipped to address these questions. Note: Each federation should send his/her application along with passport scans by 30th June 2010 to lewis.ncube@zamnet.zm, lewisncube@live.com, cfz@zamnet.zm or Chanda.Nsakanya@total.co.zm. Full details can be read in the invitation letter here. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sun, 27 Jun 2010 12:46:49 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Karpov campaigns in Bahamas | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FIDE is in the midst of a fierce campaign to elect the next head of the 158-member chess organization. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov is the current President and has waged a battle to extend his 15-year reign. His opponent is the 12th World Champion, Anatoly Karpov who has made inroads to many federations including several countries with schools in his name. Typically a challenger has to have a very clear strategy to prove they can do a better job than the incumbent. Thus, Karpov is making his rounds to different regions to make his point. Currently Karpov is visiting the subzonal 2.3.5 to present his platform to officials and players from 15 Caribbean nations. Chess journalist Michael ‘Mig’ Greengard of chessninja.com told The Chess Drum that Garry Kasparov is supporting Karpov’s thrust in the Caribbean after having visited Central America. Champions #12 and #13 have reached an unbreakable detente since their heated rivalry ended. Karpov recently had a fundraiser in New York and enlisted the support of world’s #1 player. Magnus Carlsen. The Karpov 2010 campaign is looking for an audience to explain their vision for the next era of chess. He will be in the Bahamas for three days and hopes to set up meetings with the delegations at the subzonal. Greengard who has joined the Karpov team:
If you are interested in speaking with Mr. Karpov, contact Mig Greengard at +917.495.9460 or at miggreengard@gmail.com. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sat, 26 Jun 2010 05:38:15 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010 ANU Open | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Only 4 weeks until the 2010 ANU Open & Chess Festival. This popular event is now in its 18th year(!) which puts it in with some of the longer running weekend events in this country. Once again the Festival will have the poplar 2 day weekend event, the outdoor simul to kick of proceedings, the ACT Go Championship alongside, as well as schools events for primary and high school students. The ANU Open will be on the weekend of the 24th and 25th of July at Fenner Hall, Northbourne Ave, Canberra. There is an Open event and and Under 1600 event. The Open is a true open (ie anyone can enter regardless of rating) and has a prize fund of $2200. The Under 1600 has a prize pool of $1100 making the total prize amount $3300. Both events are 7 round events played at the testing time limit of G/60m + 10s per move. Full details of this event plus details on how to enter can be found at Ian Rout's chess page. (Disclaimer: I am an *unpaid* official for this event) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fri, 25 Jun 2010 13:54:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Karpov and Kasparov Unite to Conquer FIDE Presidency | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nobody could doubt Kirsan Ilyumzhinov His flamboyant style as head of the world chess federation since 1995 has attracted frequent criticism, however; and the impression of eccentricity was compounded recently when he told Russian state television that aliens in yellow spacesuits had given him a tour of their craft. Now two of the world’s greatest chess champions, Anatoly Karpov In his opening attack Karpov “We’ve had enough of Ilyumzhinov. He’s no longer fit to head the federation. He must go,” said Karpov, whose campaign to head the game’s governing body is also supported by Vladimir Kramnik “So much could have been done in the last 15 years. Instead, Ilyumzhinov has simply placed his people in power, made a lot of unfulfilled promises and all but ended chances of attracting major sponsors because of his reputation.” Kasparov has accused Ilyumzhinov of running the world chess federation in the same authoritarian way that he rules his tiny country. “He not only believes he can disregard rules, he makes up his own,” said Kasparov. Ilyumzhinov denies any wrongdoing and says he has led the federation successfully. The clash is being closely watched by chess enthusiasts across the world. Last week Karpov and Kasparov held a fundraiser in New York attended by more than 100 Wall Street bankers who bid at an auction for the chance to play against Kasparov. Ilyumzhinov is unlikely to need such fundraisers. One of the former Soviet Union’s first multi-millionaires, he once boasted a fleet of Rolls-Royce In 1993, aged 31, he became president of Kalmykia He claims that as a young boy he played chess at night with a “black masked ghost” and despite protests from his impoverished people built Chess City on the outskirts of the capital, Elista His tales of extraterrestrial encounters, first recounted years ago, proved the last straw for the chess champions. He said he was falling asleep in his Moscow apartment when he heard someone calling him from the balcony and saw a “semi-transparent half-tube” that he entered to meet the human-like creatures. "I felt very comfortable with them,” said Ilyumzhinov. “I am often asked which language I used to talk to them. Perhaps it was on a level of the exchange of ideas. I asked them why they had not gone on television to reveal themselves to us humans. They replied that they are not yet ready.” | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sun, 23 May 2010 16:34:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess Scholar All Around Best | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kansas City Star May 16th,2010 During their first days at Lawrence High School, packs of sophomores are led into the gymnasium during a sort of guided tour and directed to scan the school’s state championship banners on the western wall. “You’ll notice there are no banners for league titles or winning a regional up there,” the newest Chesty Lions are told. “We don’t put up individual state titles either. Only team champions go on the wall.” Lawrence claims to have won 106 state titles, the most in Kansas, which makes it quite a shock to glance toward the gym’s east wall and see one name featured so prominently — Roy Wedge. A giant banner proclaims Wedge, a senior, as the 2009-10 Gatorade Kansas boys cross country runner of the year. Eventually, the slick black banner will be retired to a trophy case, but for now, it hangs in the gym. “Oh, don’t get me started on that,” Wedge says, shaking his head with an embarrassed smile when asked what he thinks of his banner being displayed in defiance of tradition. • • • There’s a little bit of Roy Wedge in everyone. That’s the essence of his charm. It makes him approachable and also keeps him humble. But when the sum of Roy Wedge is totaled, there’s nobody quite like him. “He makes his own category, honestly,” said fellow senior Lucy Daldorph, Wedge’s prom date. “We had to do something in my English class about what makes a man, what qualities define a man, and two or three times Roy Wedge was the list of what you have do to be a man.” It’s not hard to figure why. Academically, he’s a national merit finalist and Kansas AP Scholar who ranks eighth in a class of 410 with a 4.065 grade-point average and boasts a 35 score on the ACT. Wedge, who is headed to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to study computer science, helped the Lawrence string and symphonic orchestras achieve I ratings at state the last two years and finished third at the Kansas state chess tournament as a senior. He was 11th as a junior. But he’s more than a mere brainiac. Wedge also has been the top finisher for a Lions cross country team that claimed state titles each of the last two seasons, ending Shawnee Mission Northwest’s 14-year reign as 6A champs in the process. He was the state runner-up after being passed late in the race as a junior at Rim Rock Farm, but made sure no one would catch him last fall in winning state by more than 25 seconds. As much as he’d prefer to blend in, Wedge, who also reached the state track meet in three events last year and has won three varsity letters in swimming, seldom does. He can now add yet another distinction to his impressive personal résumé after being selected as The Star’s 2010 Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year. “Yeah, that’s nice. I did not see that coming,” Wedge said. “It’s a nice honor, but when I first found out, I was like, ‘Ah, I don’t want to be recognized again.’?” • • • It might seem odd to some that a genius, chess-playing, cross country runner, who can be seen most mornings walking down the hill to Lawrence High with a large binder in one arm and a viola case in the other hand, would be so revered by faculty and students alike. Wedge, who is soft-spoken and meticulous, doesn’t fit neatly into the mold of the typical high school hero. “He’s never done what most kids do,” his mother, Linda Wedge, said. As a first-grader at Wakarusa Valley Elementary in rural Lawrence, Wedge convinced the school’s principal to start a chess club. Wedge also spends part of his summer helping his dad, Phil Wedge, count migratory birds in several western Kansas counties as a member of the Jayhawk Audubon Society. The two start at the county line and count the birds observed in a three-minute period. They drive a half-mile and repeat the observation for 25 miles, with the younger Wedge taking notes for his dad, so the elder Wedge doesn’t have to turn away from the horizon. Using the drawing function on his calculator, Wedge wrote a chess program to ward off boredom in calculus class. “I wasted like a week in calculus class to do that,” he said. “It was during the review portion and I’d already had AP calculus. They were going over derivatives or something I’ve already done. I was trying to do Battleship, but the grid was too big for the screen.” Tinkering with code writing is one of Wedge’s favorite pastimes. “I’ve been messing around with the chess thing,” Wedge said, “and there’s a medieval computer game I have that I sort of understand how the code works, so I can mess it up.” • • • Wedge was the Class 6A runner-up at the Kansas state cross country meet in 2008, but he gives former captain Ben Wilson, who was something of a mentor, the lion’s share of the credit for the Lions’ title-winning breakthrough. “That’s him. That’s Roy,” Lawrence principal Matt Brungardt said. “That shows his humility, and maybe that’s one of the qualities people really like about Roy and something that draws him to them.” Ask Wedge about the time he placed sixth at the U.S. Junior National Chess Championships in 2008 and he responds with a perplexed look. “There’s probably some national tournament on my résumé,” Wedge said. “I don’t really remember.” Excellence seems to dog Wedge’s every undertaking, but he doesn’t feel the need to point that out. Perhaps that is why nobody seems to mind that Roy Wedge’s name hangs on that banner in the gym. “He probably doesn’t even care about that,” Lions assistant track coach Audrey Pope said. “That’s the best part about Roy. If you saw him in the hall, you’d never know he was this brilliant stud athlete. He flies under the radar.” Wedge’s quiet and kind nature only makes him more beloved by the Lawrence student body. “Everybody is just so impressed at how dedicated he is and purely good. He does everything so well, but he’s not pompous about it,” Daldorph said. “He doesn’t let it go to his head, and that’s really the deciding factor. Everybody appreciates that, because it’s not like he walks around wearing a crown. Well, actually he does because he won Homecoming King, but he doesn’t act like he’s better than anyone.” Of course, that personal résumé Wedge has constructed indicates otherwise. Ask any of the 153 members of The Roy Wedge Fan Club on Facebook, which reads in part: “From expert violist to king of cross country, Roy Wedge has graced the halls of LHS from his arrival, and hasn’t stopped impressing everyone since then. We all know that Roy is pretty much the coolest guy around, so why not show it?” Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/05/15/1948542/male-scholar-athlete-of-the-year.html#ixzz0o6xCTzYE | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sun, 16 May 2010 16:38:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kayden Troff: Utah's Chess Prodigy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ABC Channel 4 Salt Lake City, Utah Kayden Troff is a Utah chess prodigy! At age eleven he is the reigning Utah state champion for all ages for several time controls: Game in one hour, Game in 15 minutes (quick chess), Game in 5 minutes (speed chess), Chess960 (Fischer random chess) and Bughouse Chess (partner chess). He first demonstrated his amazing chess ability at the age of three, by which time he had learned to play by watching his father, Daniel Troff, teach and play against his older brothers. When Troff turned six, his father decided to have him tutored by Grandmaster Igor Ivanov. Ivanov was impressed with how well Kayden played! On January 24, 2009, Troff won the Utah Speed Chess Championship at age ten, becoming the youngest player to win that event, and by a huge margin. In that event he went 2-0 against Jeff Phillips, who was at the time Utah's only chess master and also the Utah player with the highest quick chess rating. On March 14, 2009, Troff won the Utah G/60 Championship (where each player has one hour to complete the whole game), also becoming the youngest player ever to win that event, by far. At this event he defeated the #1 seed, 73-year-old Hans Morrow, the oldest player in the tournament. Kayden's quick rating is the highest in Utah and, even more astonishingly, the highest of all US players under the age of 13 according to the rating list published by the USCF in June 2009. After the Utah G/60 championship win, the tournament director dubbed Kayden "Utah's Mozart of Chess." Kayden's rating achievement is made all the more impressive due to the limited opportunites he has to gain points, as Utah is short on high rated players. As of August 22, 2009 Kayden is the highest USCF standard rated active tournament player in Utah. Kayden's ambition is to become a Grandmaster, which will require a 2500 FIDE rating as well as three Grandmaster level performances in international tournaments. Kayden lives in West Jordan, Utah with his parents, Kim and Daniel, and brothers Jeremy and Zachary, both of whom also play chess at a high level for their age group. The Troff family runs a popular "TNT" Chess Camp in the Salt Lake City area, along with their family friend Scott Treiman, who won the 2009 Utah State Junior High School championship tournament. For more information please visit http://kaydentroff.blogspot.com. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wed, 23 Sep 2009 13:55:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess Champ Enthrals School Children | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Times of India HUBLI: In an effort to inspire the young to develop a passion for chess, chess champion Sharad Vaze played simultaneous chess with 20 schoolchildren in Hubli on Sunday. In a demonstration event organized by the Innerwheel Club of Hubli Midtown, 137 children got an opportunity to play with the champ. Children from 20 schools participated. One of the players, S Krishna of V S Pillay school won his match with Vaze. Vaze, who is also the founder president of the Challenger Chess Academy in Mumbai, gave tips to upcoming players. He recounted that he had broken his own record of playing with 133 children. Vaze has played simultaneous chess with schoolchildren across the country. He had recorded all the games and would present the VCD as a souvenir to Vishwanathan Anand, he said. Club president Nayan Vinod Kumar and others organised the event. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:40:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| USCF Cuts Scholastic's/FIDE Director Position | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Letter From Jerry Nash By Bill Hall August 26, 2009 Due to unfortunate but necessary cutbacks, the USCF is cutting the position of Scholastic and FIDE Director. Jerry Nash's last day in the office was Tuesday, August 25th. We are fortunate to be able to announce that Mr. Nash will continue his relationship with the Federation as our National Education Consultant. Jerry's focus will be primarily on working with individuals, schools, and communities in the role of a consultant to assist in the development of local scholastic and collegiate chess programs. He will also promote the training of educators to connect chess with the efforts to improve math skills, critical thinking skills, and life skills. Read his letter to the chess community below, and contact him directly at jerrynash@frontiernet.net - Bill Hall, USCF Executive Director August 26,2009 Dear Chess Community, Since March of 2005 it has been my privilege to serve as the Scholastic and FIDE Director of the United States Chess Federation. While unfortunate circumstances necessitate my leaving this position, I hope to maintain my connections with the chess community. It has been my pleasure to make the acquaintance of so many players, coaches, tournament directors, parents, and students who love the game of chess and use it to impact their communities. I will continue my relationship with the Federation as National Education Consultant. Working with individuals, schools, and communities, I hope to assist in the development of local scholastic and collegiate chess programs. I also plan to continue helping educators connect chess with the improvement of math skills, critical thinking skills, and life skills. I would like to thank all those with whom I have worked for having the opportunity to be a part of their efforts to make a difference in the lives of others. I have been blessed by these relationships. My hope and prayer is that we will discover the resources needed to face the challenges and fulfill the opportunities of the days ahead. Best regards, Jerry Nash http://main.uschess.org/content/view/9667/544/ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:18:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ousted members of Florida chess board sue to reclaim their volunteer positions | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ST.PETERSBURG TIMES By Luis Perez, Times Staff Writer Wednesday, August 26, 2009 ST. PETERSBURG — The future of chess belongs to the young. On this, these chess fanatics agree. As for everything else, well, they'll hash it out in court. Andrew Scherman, a chess master at 51, says he had the brainy board game's future at heart when he collected 16 written votes supporting him and two 20-somethings as officers of the Florida Chess Association. They won in a 2008 coup, giving them three seats on the statewide 13-member board. Then, a few months ago, the St. Petersburg Chess Club members were swept off the board like plastic pawns. The proxy votes, the other officers voted, were illegal. Check. But not mate, apparently. Scherman is a retired lawyer who has been butting heads in local chess politics for years. On July 21, he moved the game into Pinellas County Circuit Court. "It wouldn't be so bad if they just did it to me; I might have moved on," Scherman said. "But they did it to Skippy and Joe, too. They're punishing them. They are young. They are active. If you believe in anything about that kids are our future, you can see this is wrong." Skippy is Robert Foreman, 21. He and Joseph Virgin, 23, of Orlando are also plaintiffs. Board members Harvey Lerman, 71, and Chuck Hall, 44, call Scherman a troublemaker with an ax to grind and a possible conspiracy to take over the board. Lerman and Hall are officers of the Orlando-based Central Florida Chess Club, which Scherman describes as a rival group. Lerman and Hall disagree on that, but Scherman says the CFCC is jealous of his success. Both acknowledge that the SPCC is bigger and holds more tournaments. The 16 proxy votes were illegal, and not allowed under Robert's Rules of Order, Lerman said. He said the final insult was when Scherman tried to thrust 50 new members into the organization, paying $1,000 for their memberships in advance of next month's general election. That move was blocked, and the electorate frozen. "There's an old saying in local chess: 'Andrew is just being Andrew,' " said Lerman, a retired computer programmer. "It could be just that Andrew wants to control everything. We don't know what he wants to do with that control." The FCA, which has 17 regional affiliates in Florida, began in the 1940s. It has 300 members this year, down from 1,000 in 2001, and an annual budget of about $10,000. Comparatively, the Florida Scholastic Chess League, an FCA partner that promotes chess in schools, began in 1998, has 2,000 members and a $40,000 budget. Scherman's lawsuit, which seeks to restore him and the others to the board and to remove Lerman and Hall, does not contain a dollar figure. But Robert Persante, a Clearwater attorney who is defending them pro bono, said the FCA cannot afford a legal challenge. To prove that this fight isn't about him, Scherman notes that when he was kicked off the FCA board in 2001, he didn't sue. Persante was FCA president then. "This kind of turmoil is really nothing new," Persante said. "And when you step back and you look at it, that individuals have decided to file litigation because they have been removed from their volunteer positions, you begin to wonder. "I am saying that they have too much time on their hands." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wed, 26 Aug 2009 13:48:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tragic Coulsdon chess girl's mother pays tribute on her third anniversary | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sunday, August 23, 2009, 11:00By Brian Haran brian.haran@essnmedia.co.uk The grieving mother of a chess starlet who fell 65 feet to her death has spoken of the poignant moments this time of year brings. July 26 was the third anniversary of teenage prodigy Jessie Gilbert's fatal plunge from the eighth floor of a Czech hotel during an international tournament. And yesterday (Saturday) saw the start of the second annual Jessie Gilbert Celebration International Chess Festival in her memory. The 19-year-old, who had lived in Southdown Road, Woldingham, for most of her life, died a few months before she was due to give evidence against her father Ian, who had been accused of repeatedly raping her. Mr Gilbert, 50, was subsequently found not guilty at Guildford Crown Court of five charges of rape. Jessie, a former Croydon High School pupil, had won the women's world amateur chess championships when she was aged just 11. She was a long-standing member of Coulsdon Chess Fellowship - and yesterday saw the start of the nine-day tournament in her memory. Her mother Angela, 55, who now lives in Reigate, said: "The summer is hard for us with these two landmark events in our minds. "Jessie always wanted to stage her own chess tournament one day. "I just wish she was alive to see this. She was such a modest and self-effacing person, Jessie could have no concept just how much her death would affect so many people - and how much she would mean to them." Mrs Gilbert visits Jessie's grave in Redhill about three times a week. She added: "My other daughters have been determined to ensure they make successes of their lives, partly in Jessie's honour." Her oldest daughter Samantha, 24, is a qualified solicitor working in London. Anni , a 17-year-old pupil at Woldingham School, will take her A Levels next year and is hoping to study medicine at Oxford University, following the precise aspirations of Jessie. And Josie, 11, is transferring next term from Croydon High School to Woldingham School. Up to 40 players of all ages are expected to take part in the memorial chess tournament. Among them will be two chess grandmasters who are travelling down from Dundee and Manchester respectively. Scott Freeman, activities manager for Coulsdon Chess Fellowship, said: "I have known Jessie since she was eight years old. "We were all absolutely devastated to lose her but we see this annual tournament as an opportunity to celebrate her life as opposed to mourning her." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mon, 24 Aug 2009 15:58:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stars Gather in New York City For Premiere of Grown-Ups - TheCelebrityCafe.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Thu, 24 Jun 2010 14:36:25 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Justin Bieber, The Chess Master | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Justin Bieber, The Chess Master June 20, 2010 by Kathy Esmeraldo Filed under Celebrity News Before Justin Bieber became the hottest Tween Pop Sensation, wouldn’t we all like to know what was his life before the fame? Justin Bieber have a private tutor since he can’t go to school because of his very busy schedule, on his Seventeen interview, on what was he like in school? “I was on the basketball and chess teams..." ...We’ve seen him play basketball with Usher, but we sure would like to see him play chess. Justin Bieber is sure one hell of a talented guy. Source: http://zacquisha.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-06-21T07:49:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Justin Bieber The Chess Master, Miley Cyrus Message For Daddy - Zacquisha | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sun, 20 Jun 2010 14:38:22 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Karpov Releases His Platform | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1) Return FIDE to Its Federalist Origins 1.1) FIDE must serve the Federations, not the other way around. Many of the problems faced by FIDE today originate with the over-centralization of authority to the Presidential Board and the President. FIDE has lost touch with its membership and lost the essential input of the Federations, the organizers, and the players FIDE is supposed to serve. Leadership must be responsive and accountable. We are committed to a policy of open doors and public debate. The Karpov administration will lead, but lead with the contributions and consensus of FIDE's membership. Our policy will be one of enhanced regional empowerment, based on the philosophy that those closest to the situation are best aware of the challenges and opportunities they face. Regional leaders should be provided with greater autonomy and resources. Resources must be provided consistently rather than once every four years on the eve of FIDE elections. Past practices contaminate the electoral process. 1.2) Use technology to unify FIDE. A worldwide organization such as FIDE must maintain communication with all its members as well as facilitate communication among its members. Online discussion forums and federation mailing lists hosted by FIDE will provide an efficient means of achieving this. Standardized web pages under the FIDE domain will be available for every member federation. 1.3) FIDE can no longer be run for the benefit of FIDE. Taking money from the Federations and distributing a fraction back to Federations is not a business model. As discussed below in more detail, that model must change. We will reduce dues and fees paid to FIDE and develop programs to waive fees for certain Federations suffering financial hardship until they can stand on their own. No one should be deprived of the ability to promote or to play chess due to a Federation's sincere inability to sustain itself financially. At-risk Federations must be helped by FIDE, not punished. Also, we will not rely exclusively on Federations to support FIDE. Past policies ignored broad outreach for sponsorship thereby dramatically reducing FIDE's potential revenue. Reliance on income from Federations while failing to cultivate sponsorship has driven many Federations to the brink of bankruptcy. 1.4) How FIDE can help 1.4.1) Facilitate regional cooperation. Strength through unity and Gens Una Sumus are more than slogans; they have the practical advantages of combined resources, shared knowledge, and healthy competition. Neighboring Federations will receive support to host events and to develop training programs and sponsorship packages across borders. 1.4.2) Direct logistical support. Some Federations have little experience in organizing events, establishing clubs and scholastic programs, and coordinating team activities. Many more require assistance in advocating these activities in a way that can generate state and municipal support as well as commercial sponsorship. FIDE must provide such expertise. We will establish a directorate for logistical services staffed by professionals who are available to go on-site to provide assistance. 1.4.3) FIDE must provide material support and FIDE-directed development funds. As described below, a commercial and market-oriented global FIDE will develop several new sources of revenue. A substantial part of that revenue will be dedicated to assisting Federations with financial difficulties. FIDE currently takes more from many developing Federations than it gives in assistance funds, a counter-productive situation that must be reversed if chess is to thrive globally. 1.4.4) Commercial partnerships. FIDE must forge partnerships with vendors and service providers to leverage economies of scale and the FIDE brand to the advantage of member Federations. The global industry of manufacturers and vendors of chess supplies, books, software and online services are eager to reach every player in the world. At the same time, many financially at-risk Federations cannot afford to pay market rates for these products. In discussions with our campaign administration, several of the world's largest chess vendors and service providers have already expressed a willingness to partner with a new FIDE to offer discounts. Not out of charitable sentiment, but because it will be good business and enable them to reach broad groups of new customers and expand the popularity of chess. 2) The Development of a New Financial Foundation 2.1) A solid financial base. Much more money is needed in chess both to promote it at the national level and to create opportunities for professionals and amateurs to support themselves. We need to broaden dramatically the revenue base of support for chess by attracting sponsorship of several types. This will happen only after FIDE management is changed. Sponsors want to deal with people of proven integrity and reliability who have the experience and business acumen to deliver. 2.2) Image matters. Corporations become sponsors because they wish to be associated with chess. For years FIDE has been led by a person about whom much has been written and broadcast, almost all of which has damaged the image of the game. It is not surprising that sponsors have stayed away. We must improve the image of chess (our "Brand") to make chess more attractive to sponsors. Here is what we propose to do to achieve this goal. 2.2.1) Win-win for chess and for sponsors. Lead FIDE with integrity and through a team of skilled professionals located in major business centers throughout the world. Our team has the relationships to contact sponsors and the credibility to deliver. They also have the geographical proximity to deal directly and easily with major sponsors. Please note that we have already attracted significant sponsorship during our campaign stage. (These include a major computer software company and a leading broadcast network reaching thirty million people daily.) Once we control FIDE, we can enter into contracts on behalf of FIDE for additional sponsorship. 2.2.2) Revive the chess brand. Chess must become more visible to attract sponsors. In turn, sponsorship drives more people to chess, creating a positive cycle. First, we must reach out to our stars to help attract sponsors. We are already doing so with great success. Numerous meetings have occurred worldwide with potential sponsors as well as with other cultural and entertainment celebrities to enlist their support. Many have committed by joining our campaign or providing support to it. Second, we must organize events to link stars and the business community. Again, we have already begun doing this successfully, as with our kickoff party in NYC. Third, we must run FIDE professionally and with promotional skill to transform it (as has been done in other sports, from tennis in the 1970s to poker today) to appeal to a broader audience. We have already demonstrated in this superbly run international campaign our team's ability to function professionally at a very high level and to promote the game at the same time. Watch us continue to do this in the coming months as we promote chess worldwide using the campaign as a springboard. 2.2.3) Create programs worthy of support. Corporate, Individual and Government sponsors are more likely to support chess if we in the chess world create programs that attract them. Linking chess with education is one example. It is a natural fit for corporations, individuals and governments. We will propose to Federations specific chess programs for schools that our team has found successful already in several countries. If a given Federation wishes to implement it, we will work with that Federation to attract both international and national support. Similarly, we will propose training programs (discussed below) and will assist in attracting local sponsorship for the benefit of Federations. 2.2.4) Market chess, and chessplayers, as a desirable segment. Taken from a professional marketing perspective, the chess community is irresistible. We are global in reach, constantly online, affluent and educated. We are frequent travelers, early technology adapters, and avid consumers of every sort of media from video games to novels to internet news. But because of a lack of interest and ability, FIDE has never leveraged its unique position to market the sport and our greatest human resources: the players and fans. FIDE, through the regional and local knowledge of the Federations, must reach out and become the bridge that allows sponsors to reach the chess community in exchange for realizing the huge financial potential they offer. 2.2.5) Develop joint ventures. We must extend the FIDE brand offline and online into partnerships with successful and entrepreneurial companies. While FIDE has stood still and missed the vast opportunities of the internet age, many private companies have become profitable in the chess sector. Instead of seeking to tax them, compete with them, or seek rents from these companies, FIDE must learn from them and find out what we can offer each other in commercial partnerships. The entrepreneurs of the chess world are a tremendous asset. FIDE's global reach and, with a professional team in place, the ability to leverage the chess brand will make for many lucrative opportunities. Members of our team have already opened fruitful dialogues with several such companies and we look forward to sharing the benefits with the Federations and the entire chess community. 3) Chess Education and Training 3.1) Expand the base to elevate the peak. For FIDE, its member Federations, and players to thrive, we must expand the base of players, not focus only on the elite. Expanding the base increases the overall power of the chess brand, with all associated marketing and sponsorship opportunities. The larger the body of new and improving players, the greater economic opportunities will exist for professionals, from organizers to authors to coaches to Grandmasters to World Championship candidates. 3.2) Chess for its own sake. It is our passionate belief that the game of chess, both an art and a science, bestows many benefits for the young and old, and as such FIDE's mission should be to promote the game as widely as possible on its own merits. 3.3) Our players are also teachers and ambassadors. Many of the goals of our platform are perfectly complementary, and none more so than the link between promotion of the teaching of chess and the elevation of the popularity and status of chess in the world. Our elite players are our greatest ambassadors, as has been demonstrated throughout history and by this very campaign. And yet this resource has been squandered by the current FIDE administration's adversarial relationship with most of the chess elite. This must change, and it will change by giving the players an opportunity to give back to the game they love while giving them the recognition they deserve. 3.4) Sharing knowledge and promoting the game. A visit from strong Masters and Grandmasters is a dream for many regions and Federations. Accomplished players can provide both practical training skills and immeasurable inspiration. They also bring media attention that can produce lasting benefits. At the same time, many chess professionals are eager for an opportunity to travel and participate in training programs but have no idea where to start. FIDE, along with regional representatives, must fund and coordinate these missions. A number of well-known players have already pledged to us their participation in such programs. 4) Protecting and Upholding the Traditions of Chess 4.1) Preserve what makes chess special. It is no surprise that, as a former world champion who has dedicated his life to the game, Anatoly Karpov cares deeply about the traditions of chess at every level. It is not the intention of our administration to attempt to turn back the clock. The world changes and even a game as old and respected as chess can and must adapt. But we are committed to reviving and maintaining the traditions that have made chess a universal symbol of human thought as well as a popular pursuit that bridges the gaps of age, gender, language, and society. We can learn from the successes and failures of other sports, but we must also preserve the absolutely unique elements that give chess its special place in global culture. 4.2) The World Championship. For well over a century, predating FIDE itself, the crown jewel of the chess world has been the World Championship. Few titles are as hallowed in the history of sport. Even a mainstream, non-chessplaying public that has heard little of chess in the past dozen years has an instant and profound respect and fascination with the game of chess and our champions. This invaluable mystique has been damaged greatly during the last 15 years, as attempts to randomize results and a failure to promote events has dramatically reduced the profile of world championship matches. We will lead the way toward rebuilding the World Championship aura that captivated the world when Bobby Fischer took the title in 1972 and when Karpov and Kasparov battled through five consecutive world title matches. 4.2.1) The world champion, the championship title, and the championship cycle will be promoted consistently and treated with respect. Championship events must be scheduled well in advance so that proper promotion is allowed. This is essential for any serious sponsor and for the players. 4.2.2) The world championship match, as well as the qualifying and candidates events that lead to it, must be accorded special attention and respect. This means, but is not limited to, scheduling candidates events to allow for promotion as well as for preparation and recovery by the players, and holding matches of sufficient length to produce victors who will be credible world champions. 4.3) Excellence and credibility matter. The quality of the games should not be reduced nor chess results randomized by the drastic shortening of time controls or by the use of formats in championship events that cheapen the title. Chess cannot survive in a viable commercial form if it is trivialized to a simple pastime, governed by confusing or degrading rules, or made to appear as if the luckiest player is the victor. The perception of chess as a thinking person's game, as a crucible of the human mind, is an asset not a liability. For the world to take chess seriously as a sport, it must be taken seriously by us, the organizers and players. 4.3.1) An example of an arbitrary and damaging rule is the so-called "zero-tolerance" rule FIDE implemented last year that forfeits a player if he is not seated at the board when the clock is started. This has resulted in several high-profile embarrassments, including one in which the result of the Chinese national championship was affected when a participant was forfeited while present but unseated. We support high professional standards of behavior for players. But the players, and the game, must also be treated with respect. 4.3.2) FIDE must avoid the appearance of impropriety in competition. Even the remote possibility of receiving outside assistance during a game can lead to rumors and accusations that are damaging to the reputation of the sport and thus to the sponsors we need to attract. Preventative measures will be taken, severe penalties for violations will be established, and unfounded accusations will have consequences. 4.4) Time to play your best. Classical chess should maintain its preeminence at the professional level. Rapid and blitz formats will no doubt retain a degree of popularity with organizers and the public. They have their place as popular and entertaining forms of the game and FIDE should exploit these opportunities fully on a commercial level. But the struggle for excellence and the rigorous nature of the classical chess contest should remain the hallmark of the game. 4.5) Pride, Trust, and Unity. FIDE must take pride in our greatest players and work with them to develop into the ambassadors essential for the success of any popular sport. Players rightly feel as if they have been left to sink or swim by the world chess federation and their own Federations, which are often incapable of providing support and guidance. FIDE needs to assist with media outreach, media training, and a support structure for the players who have devoted their lives to the game. We believe professionalism, trust, and unity will produce great dividends. Working together, with World Champion Anatoly Karpov as the president of FIDE, there is no limit to what we will achieve. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Anand visits Ryan Schools | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Saturday, June 19, 2010 11:08:03 AM (IST) World Chess Champion Vishy Anand visits Ryan Schools News and Pics by Rons BantwalDaijiworld Media Network - Mumbai Mumbai, Jun 19: World chess champion Grandmaster Vishwanathan Anand visited the Ryan International Schools in Mumbai on Friday June 18 for an interactive session organized by the management team of the Ryan group. Such opportunities provided at Ryan schools motivate the students to be inspired by leaders in their respective field such as Vishwanathan Anand who is a world leader in the game of chess. The managing director of the Ryan International and Ryan Global Schools, Grace Pinto felicitated Vishwanathan Anand for recently being crowned as the World Chess Champion 2010. Vishwanathan (Vishy) Anand arrived in the school to a warm reception, which involved students, teachers and parents. Anand interacted at length with the students who asked multitude of questions such as “which was the most challenging game”, “when and why did you start playing chess” and “Is the “rook” stronger than a “bishop” or a “knight” among others which Anand answered very patiently. Anand was amazed when a grade fifth student asked him whether a bad start to the morning affects his game. Anand also played chess with students from different schools of Mumbai who gave a real tough competition to Anand while playing. Vishy admitted that the students played real good chess and real good opponents. Anand was full of praises for the young media journalist team comprising school students, who presented Anand with an Audio Visual film on his life. Anand and his wife Aruna were so pleased seeing the AV that they were reminiscent of memories of his success story. His comments on the school were “An enjoyable experience. A warm welcome in an excellent school by talented students and great teachers. I wish all the best to Grace and her schools.” Source: http://www.daijiworld.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-06-19T09:25:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Quattro chiacchere con? Evgeny Ellinovic Sveshnikov! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Beautiful Days in Roseto
www.scacchierando.net/dblog A very nice setting for an excellent chess festival, which will very probably be repeated in the future, with even more events which will enhance the “ chess citadel “ atmosphere which is charming this year’s participants. I had hoped to interview Sveshnikov back in 2008 , at the Cesenatico tournament, but I knew that the great player and theoretician didn’t speak English very well, ( neither do I, in any case … ) and neither is my Russian particularly fluent … :O) . Here, I was lucky to be helped out by Sandra, a beautiful Lithuanian girl. Sveshnikov agreed to the interview immediately, especially as he learns that I represent an amateur blog, whose only goal is the promotion of our game.
Scacchierando : You were born in Cheliabinsk, and currently live in Sveshnikov : Yes, I was born in Cheliabinsk , in 1950, I am 60 years old ( this was the wonderful article by chessbase to celebrate his 60th birthday www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=6124 ) but I can’t really say that I feel my age ! My mirror reflects an image that I have a hard time recognising … (Sveshnikov smiles broadly throughout the interview, sometimes with sly, playful humour, with an intelligent look in his eyes, the look of someone who is passionately interested in every aspect of life ) . I divide my time between Cheliabinsk, where my two daughters live, and S : At what age did you learn the game ? Sveshnikov : When I was two I used to play with checkers ! When I was five my father taught me the rules of chess. I played with him and my grandfather, and soon enough I was able to beat them , even if chess was still only a family pastime. Things changed when I was 8 ; I went to a summer camp, with kids of all ages, and competed in the chess tournament, which I won ! I consider it the first of the 93 tournaments I have won so far. The prize consisted in a wooden plaque with “ The Winner “ written on it, and I still have it ! I hope I will be able to reach the 100 mark sometime. S : You then played in the Pioneer palaces, did you have any teachers ? Sveshnikov : Yes, I started playing more frequently. I had only one teacher, a candidate ( a Russian candidate of the time is comparable in strength to a present-day FM or IM ) , Leonid Aronovitch Gratvol, who is 73 today and lives in
S : Apart from chess, were you able to complete your studies ? Sveshnikov : Yes, I earned a degree in engineering when I was 22 and following that I started work. I hadn’t done my ( compulsory ) military service, and when I was 24 I was asked if I wanted to serve in the army or, since I was a Master, if I wanted to play chess: I chose chess, and I rapidly became IM at 24 and GM at 27. When I was a boy I loved Geography and dreamed of seeing the whole world ; chess has given me the opportunity of doing so and there’s very few places where I haven’t been ! S : Did your interest in theory start early in your career ? I read that you have worked a lot with Gennadi Timoshchenko. Sveshnikov : Not really. Timoshchenko also lived in Cheliabinsk and after one of our games , which I won, he asked about my idea and the strategic themes I was working on, so we ended up working together for a while. I have always been interested in theoretical work, and I started to teach very early in my career, when I was 30. S : I thought that as a Latvian, and being a great attacker, you had had ties with the great Sveshnikov : No, not at all. Gratvol was my only coach. S : What success in your chess career do you remember more fondly ? Sveshnikov : I don’t think I have a favourite, as on the one hand I love the game on its whole, on the other hand I am more attached to single games, to creativity, nice combinations, to particular moments in a game. Botvinnik worked a lot to bring forth a scientific-mathematical view of chess, being, as he was, a pioneer on computer science research, which was a strong influence on the Russian school and the very development of chess. I have always preferred a more artistic and creative vision. S : Then you probably are an admirer of the great creative attackers, like Tal, Nezhmetdinov … Sveshnikov : Definitely. I knew Nezhmetdinov well, I shared a room with him during a one-month training session. An interesting and brilliant man, the only person I know capable of excelling both in checkers and chess. With Tal I have a plus score, 4-3 in my favour, I believe.
In the first row, on the far left, 15 year old Karpov. Behind him, always on the far left, a 17 year old Sveshnikov. S : You have met many world champions … Sveshnikov : Many ! My overall score against World Champions is nearly level, 22 – 23. Besides Tal, I have played with Smyslov, Petrosjan, Spassky, Karpov, Kasparov, Kramnik and Anand. I don’t consider the Fide knock-out tournament winners World Champions. As far as I’m concerned, the title went from Kasparov to Kramnik and then Anand. S : What are your memories of the Chess Olympiad in Sveshnikov : In general I don’t like Chess Olympiads very much. I have played in many team competitions, sometimes with flattering results. Concerning S : Chess requires a lot of time and effort. Does it take more than it gives ? Sveshnikov : Everyone is looking for something in Chess, and Chess has a lot to offer. I have always had a great passion for it, and I still find it wonderful.
2 wins and a loss against the mighty Smyslov. S : You support the idea that it should be necessary to introduce rules protecting the great players, giving them copyright of the games they play. Sveshnikov : Absolutely. Games are instantly available to anyone all over the world. It would be enough to introduce a small fee for watching live games to change things. Also, databases make playing and creating very difficult. It’s too easy to become a GM nowadays, and too many grandmasters limit themselves to “ push pieces around “. The elbow room for creativity is far too small today S : Could Chess 960, Fischer Random, be a new frontier ? Sveshnikov : I don’t like Chess 960, many starting positions are too unnatural or unbalanced ( we had some trouble communicating at this point , and we hope to have rendered Sveshnikov’s thoughts correctly, as our interpreter had no knowledge of Chess ) S : A last question , which champion of the past have you loved the most ? Sveshnikov : Well, loving chess, all of them ! But I might add that I hold in great esteem not especially, or not only, the World Champions, but also the great innovators. The names of Paulsen, Chigorin, Nimzowitsch spring to mind. In a more modern setting, I would name Boleslavsky, Geller and Polugayevsky. These are men who have ventured to a deeper level of understanding, who have explored not only the practical, or competitive side of chess , but the game in its entirety. Maybe, like the great explorers of old, they are the true winners in the history of chess. Here the interview came to a close, a one hour walk through history and the vision of a great such as Evgeny Sveshnikov. And talking about great innovators … Mark Taimanov described the Sveshnikov variation of the Sicilian Defence as the last great innovation in Openings theory. Last night, on the 8th of June, Sveshnikov held his coaching session talking about openings, starting from very simple concepts known to all chess players. Slowly though, still using those concepts such as occupation of the centre, piece development and safety ( not only of the king ) , the wonder of the chessboard as seen through the eyes of the great player and researcher started to find its way in the perception of the participants. And Sveshnikov definitely felt that, passionately giving is all for three hours, only wrapping things up at one o’clock in the morning ! A regard for openings very much tied to ideas of centre occupation with pawns, very coherent with the openings developed by him. A closing detail : talking with Petrosian and Karpov about the pawn to e5 push, he was told that he couldn’t play like that, that it just wasn’t right. “ But I think history has concluded otherwise “, were the parting words of Evgeny Ellinovic Sveshnikov.
www.scacchierando.net/dblog Le belle giornate di Roseto
Dopo tante giornate di pioggia il sole ha deciso di intervenire sin dall’inizio del torneo qui a Roseto, ponendo l’ultimo tassello per una manifestazione davvero bella, che fruisce dei pregi di un villaggio sul mare, dalle ottime attrezzature e dagli spazi ampi, a partire dalla sala di gioco, situata nella sala congressi dell’hotel. Ci si incontra, si rinnovano o instaurano conoscenze ed amicizie, e gli scacchi sono un po’ dappertutto, dai tavolini della struttura a quelli delle verande delle villette che compongono la zona residence. Un bel clima per un ottimo festival, che verrà con ogni probabilità riproposto, incrementando con apposite iniziative quell’aspetto di cittadella degli scacchi che già quest’anno sta affascinando i partecipanti.
Avevo sperato di intervistare Sveshnikov già a Cesenatico 2008 ma sapevo che il grande campione e teorico non parla molto l’inglese (nemmeno o, peraltro...) e il mio russo non è particolarmente fluente… Scacchierando: Lei è nato a Cheliabinsk e vive a Riga. Sveshnikov: Sì, a Cheliabinsk, nel 1950. Ho 60 anni (segnalo il bell'articolo di Chessbase in occasione del suo 60mo compleanno www.chessbase.com/ S. : A che età ha imparato a giocare? Sveshnikov: A due anni giocavo con una scacchiera e le pedine della dama! A 5 anni mio padre mi ha insegnato le regole degli scacchi. Giocavo con lui e con mio nonno, e abbastanza presto sono arrivato a batterli entrambi, anche se gli scacchi restavano solo un passatempo familiare. Le cose sono cambiate quando avevo 8 anni, partecipando ad un campeggio estivo, con ragazzi di tutte le età. Venne organizzato un torneo di scacchi e lo vinsi! Lo considero il primo dei 93 tornei che ho vinto fino ad oggi. Il premio era una grande targa di legno con inciso “Il vincitore” e lo conservo tutt’ora! E quanto alle vittorie spero di arrivare a quota 100.
S. : Poi, ha giocato nelle Case dei Pionieri, ha avuto dei maestri? Sveshnikov: Sì, ho cominciato a giocare più assiduamente. Ho avuto un unico maestro, un candidato (non ci si inganni, un candidato maestro russo dell’epoca corrisponde a un MF o IM di oggi! - ndr), Leonid Aronovitch Gratvol, che oggi ha 73 anni e vive in Israele, siamo ancora in contatto. Non sono mai stato comunque un bambino prodigio. La mia crescita è avvenuta lentamente, studiando con impegno grazie alla mia passione per il gioco. S. : Oltre agli scacchi ha portato avanti anche gli studi? Sveshnikov: Sì, mi sono laureato in ingegneria a 22 anni e ho iniziato a lavorare. Non avevo ancora fatto il servizio militare e a 24 anni mi fu chiesto se volevo svolgerlo normalmente o, in quanto Maestro, se volevo giocare a scacchi. Scelsi gli scacchi, diventando rapidamente Maestro Internazionale e Grande Maestro a 27 anni. Da piccolo adoravo la geografia e sognavo di vedere tutto il mondo; gli scacchi mi hanno aiutato a farlo e sono pochi i luoghi dove non sono stato! S. : Ha avuto da subito l’interesse per l’approfondimento teorico? Ho letto che ha lavorato molto con Gennadi Timoshchenko. Sveshnikov: Non proprio. Anche Timoshchenko viveva a Cheliabinsk e dopo una nostra partita, in cui vinsi, mi chiese delle mie idee e degli sviluppi strategici su cui ero impegnato, lavorando insieme per un po’. Sono sempre stato interessato dal lavoro teorico e peraltro ho iniziato molto presto, a 30 anni, ad insegnare.
S. : Pensavo che come lettone e grande attaccante avesse avuto dei legami con la grande scuola di Riga, ma mi sembra di capire che non sia stato così… Sveshnikov: No, in effetti no, Gratvol è stato il mio unico insegnante. S. : Quale successo della sua carriera ricorda più volentieri? Sveshnikov: Forse nessuno in particolare, da un lato amo il gioco nel suo insieme, dall’altro sono a volte legato più alle singole partite, alla creatività, alle belle combinazioni, momenti del gioco che mi entusiasmano. Botvinnik ha lavorato molto per una visione scientifico–matematica degli scacchi, anche come pioniere della ricerca informatica, influenzando la scuola russa e lo stesso sviluppo moderno degli scacchi. Io ho sempre preferito una visone più artistica e creativa. S. : Quindi dovrebbe apprezzare particolarmente i grandi attaccanti creativi, come Tal, Nezhmetdinov… Sveshnikov: Certamente. Ho conosciuto bene Nezhmetdinov, dividendo con lui la stanza per un mese durante una fase di training. Un uomo interessante e geniale, l’unico che conoscessi capace di eccellere sia nella dama che negli scacchi. Con Tal ho uno score positivo, 4 a 3 per me, mi sembra.
In prima fila, all'estrema sinistra, il 15enne Karpov. Alle sue spalle, sempre all'estrema sinistra, Sveshnikov, qui 17enne (foto Chessbase)
S. : Ha incontrato molti campioni del mondo… Sveshnikov: Tanti! Il mio punteggio complessivo contro i campioni del mondo è quasi alla pari, 22 a 23. Otre a Tal ho giocato con Smyslov, Petrosjan, Spassky, Karpov, Kasparov, Kramnik, Anand. Non considero tra i campioni del mondo i vincitori dei tornei knock-out della Fide, per me il titolo è passato da Kasparov a Kramnik ad Anand. S. : Che ricordo ha dell’Olimpiade di Torino? Sveshnikov: In generale non amo particolarmente le Olimpiadi. Ho giocato in molte competizioni a squadre, in particolare agli europei, anche con risultati lusinghieri. Di Torino ricordo particolarmente la sala di gioco, davvero splendida. Ho giocato molte volte in Italia, la prima occasione fu a Marina Romea, nel 1977. Mi piace molto la Sicilia, dove ho vinto anche un torneo. Mi sembra di aver vinto sei tornei in Italia. S. : Gli scacchi richiedono molto tempo e grande impegno. Prendono più di quello che danno? Sveshnikov: Ognuno cerca qualcosa negli scacchi e gli scacchi offrono molto. Io ho sempre avuto una grande passione e li trovo sempre meravigliosi.
2 vittorie e 1 sconfitta per Evgeny contro il grandissimo Smyslov
S. : Lei sostiene che sarebbe necessario introdurre delle regole per tutelare i grandi giocatori, dando loro i diritti sulle partite che giocano. Sveshnikov: Assolutamente. Le partite in pochi istanti sono disponibili in tutto il mondo. Basterebbero pochi centesimi da parte di chi segue le partite in diretta per cambiare le cose. E i database rendono molto difficile giocare, innovare. Oggi è troppo facile diventare GM e troppi Grandi Maestri si limitano a “muovere i pezzi”. Lo spazio per creare si è troppo ridotto. S. : Gli scacchi 960, il Fischer random, possono essere una frontiera? Sveshnikov: Non mi piacciono gli scacchi 960, molte posizioni iniziali sono troppo innaturali o sbilanciate (qui e in qualche altro punto abbiamo avuto qualche difficoltà a capire e speriamo di aver interpretato bene il pensiero di Sveshnikov, dato che la nostra interprete non conosceva affatto gli scacchi - ndr). S. : Un’ultima domanda, il campione del passato che ha amato di più? Sveshnikov: Ah, amando gli scacchi, tutti! Forse, ho una grandissima considerazione non tanto, o non solo, per i campioni del mondo quanto per i grandi innovatori. Mi vengono in mente Paulsen, Chigorin, Nimzowitsch, soprattutto. In epoca più moderna citerei Boleslavsky, Geller, lo stesso Polugaevsky. Sono uomini che hanno intrapreso un viaggio più profondo di conoscenza, che non hanno esplorato solo la partita ma il gioco nella sua interezza. Forse, come grandi esploratori, sono i veri vincitori della storia degli scacchi.
Qui si è chiusa l’intervista, una passeggiata per oltre un’ora nella storia e nella visione degli scacchi di un grande come Evgeny Sveshnikov. E parlando di grandi innovatori… Mark Taimanov ha definito la variante Sveshnikov della Siciliana come l’ultima grande acquisizione della teoria delle aperture. Ieri sera, 8 giugno, lo stage. Sveshnikov ha parlato delle aperture, partendo da concetti semplicissimi e noti a tutti gli scacchisti. Pian piano, però, continuando ad utilizzare come guida l’occupazione del centro, lo sviluppo dei pezzi e la sicurezza (non solo del re), il fascino della visione della scacchiera del grande giocatore e ricercatore si è fatto strada nella percezione dei partecipanti. E Sveshnikov l’ha sentito, spendendosi con passione per tre ore, fino all’una di notte! Una considerazione dell’apertura molto legata all’occupazione del centro con i pedoni, coerente con le linee di apertura da lui sviluppate. Un ultimo dettaglio: parlando con loro della spinta e5, Petrosjan e Karpov gli dicevano che non poteva giocare così, che non poteva essere giusto. “Ma credo che la storia abbia detto il contrario”, ha concluso Evgeny Ellinovic Sveshnikov! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-06-16T14:00:00+01:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nigel Bryant makes “Expert”! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Two of a kind may not win many poker hands, but in chess a pair it is certainly something to applaud. Chess not only has a pair of siblings, but a pair of twin siblings who have now found chess success at an early age. Nigel Bryant is the latest having broken the crucial 2000-level barrier. Nigel’s younger twin Jehron accomplished the feat earlier this year. Nigel accomplished this feat at New York’s May Open scoring a respectable 2.5/4 featuring a draw with National Master Yevgeni Margulis. This is yet another of the promising talent that now makes way for the largest collection of Masters in the African-American community since the 80s. Kassa Korley has graduated on to reach 2300-level and is clearly on course to make International Master. There are a large cadre of Candidate Masters (2100-2199) and Experts (2000-2099) mostly coming from the New York area. This development is due to a rich chess culture, regular strong opposition and several programs that provide young players with an environment to reach there dreams. Nigel has been encouraged by his peers and wrote a very warm comment to his twin,
Now Nigel has joined his brother and several of his friends, notably Justus Williams and Josh Colas, two of the most promising talents who are U.S. All-Americans. Derrick Bryant made these comments about the twins.
Perhaps the biggest fan of the Nigel and Jehron would be Belinda Pura, the proud mother. A native of the Philippines, she stated that the country would be reading accomplishments of her sons. Given the rich chess talent that the country produces, Filipinos can claim an “assist” here. Both of the Bryant twins will be at the World Open in a couple of weeks to make an impact amongst the 1200 players scheduled to compete. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wed, 16 Jun 2010 13:32:29 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Morongwa security renews Chess sponsorship - The Bostwana Gazette | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wed, 16 Jun 2010 10:19:13 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ram S Krishnan wins 1st Chess960 title - Organised by Megha Chess Academy at Hall of Chess, Nehru St | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Top seed Ram S Krishnan (Elo 2342) adapted himself to this new form of chess, and was in difficulty in all but one game. "This unusual type of castling at middle game can sometimes put one in a fix", said the new Chess960 champion. Following Ram in the second and third places were D S Shashaank, Jawahar Vidyalaya, Chennai and G Jaswant, St. Johns School, Mandaveli, Chennai. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tue, 15 Jun 2010 09:31:39 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Drum Beats in Africa! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
On May 15th, I left Chicago’s O’Hare airport for a long journey to Africa. I finally set foot in Africa on May 18th in Johannesburg, South Africa. My trip was delayed two days because of a passport issues. I finally got my passport corrected, boarded my flight and flew a smooth 15 hours over the Atlantic Ocean, Namibia and Botswana. I was amazed at the wide variety of movies on the entertainment system. I settled for “Blind Side”, “Fight” and Arabic language movie “Ameerika”. I landed at Oliver Tambo Airport in Johannesburg at around 5:20pm and a driver came to pick me up. World Cup fever was in full force as the airport was festooned with all types of paraphernalia of the pending football tournament.
World Cup fever is everywhere in Africa! After a 40-minute drive from the airport, I arrived at the Garden Court Hotel, a nice accommodation sitting across from the Nelson Mandela Court. Since I was delayed two days, my plans to meet with officials in CHESSA, the official federation of South Africa, fell through. I had informed Rista DeBeer of CHESSA that I would miss our scheduled meeting. I had intended on meeting IM Watu Kobese, but it turns out he would be in Angola for BCI tournament. I did make contact with a Ph.D. classmate who has lived in South Africa for 12 years. That would be the only night I spend in the city.
My group consisted of thirty professors from around the U.S. on a “Faculty development Tour”. They already had visits to Vodocom, Chamber of Commerce and the University of Pretoria. Before heading to Kenya, we visited Soweto, the Mandela Museum and the Apartheid Museum before catching the five-hour flight to Nairobi, Kenya. Soweto is always a historic treasure to visit as there are many landmarks to commemorate the successful struggle against apartheid. This was my second time to South Africa and while I did not see the squatter camps this time, these landmarks are reminders that the struggle continues (a luta continua). The flight to Nairobi was uneventful and we set down in Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at around 7:30pm. As we exited customs, we were met with a crush of people waiting for other travelers. After accounting for all 30 in our group, we boarded the vans and then set out on the dark roads of Nairobi. Artistically arranged billboards dotted the roads with the illuminated lights overhead. As a frequent traveler, I have learned not to spend time talking to fellow travelers instead of silently taking in the new scenery. Interesting view. We arrived at the famous Stanley Hotel, reputed to one of the best accommodations in Nairobi. The lobby is one of the most important features of a hotel and the Stanley lived up to its billing. Prior to my trip I had posted messages on the Kenya Chess Forum and made contact with the chess players via e-mail. They stated that the hotel is in the middle of the commercial section and that I would be close to the chess club. After a couple of grueling days visiting Kenyan businesses and traversing the streets of Nairobi, I arranged with some of the local players to visit the chess club. The days were very interesting as I was able to get an idea of the pace of Kenya. In one instance, I experienced the stifling Nairobi traffic. Once I got to the hotel it had begun to rain a bit. This means that traffic would intensify. There are so many potholes in Kenya that one has to be careful not to land in a water-filled crater. I finally made contact with the Kenya players and was picked up by Mehul Gohil and Kim Bhari during the rainy evening.
Daaim Shabazz signing a Wilbert Paige booklet for Githinji Hinga.
Daaim Shabazz with Mehul Gohil and Kim Bhari. The club resided in an office building on the 2nd level and the room resembled a small lounging area. There were several tables arranged and there were players engaged in blitz battles. I presented club members with several copies of the Wilbert Paige Memorial booklet and dozens of monogrammed ink pens. After taking several pictures I played a round of blitz games with several players. The games were interesting apart from a few blunders and sluggish play on my part. I was well-received at the club and it was a wonderful evening. On the next morning, we took a drive from Nairobi to Arusha, Tanzania. It was a tortuous road filled with massive potholes and in total disrepair. Our driver weaved as if he were navigating an obstacle course in a sports competition. Apart from the weaving and bobbing, the scenery was idyllic… beautiful plants and flowers, tropical trees, huge termite mounds and sights of the Maasai herding their cattle were common on the four-hour journey. There were stretches of the road that were paved with brand new black top. The Chinese have been making quite a bit of progress in improving the infrastructure and they could be seen on the road in their hard hats.
Idyllic view of mountains in Tanzania. Arriving to Tanzania, we were shown Mount Kilimanjaro in the distance. It is a handsome structure that was partially covered by clouds on our Nairobi-Arusha drive, yet it yielded an imposing presence. We saw many of the beautiful man-made mud structures that are characterized in racist literature, but that are absolutely stunning and ingenious. We arrived in Arusha, but our hotel had a power outage on a few of the floors, so we have to change venue. Tanzania is a country that shows a lot of character and not the typical commercialization that strips the cultural uniqueness. The streets were bustling and in the outskirts there were countless road markets. The country is very lush with all types of foliage, gardens on the roadsides and miles of coffee and corn plantations. In the city, there were hawkers everywhere and if you step out of the hotel, they were ready to sell you an array of overpriced souvenirs. In one episode, one gentleman wanted to sell me a ski cap and and a bracelet for 55,000 shillings. Of course it is overpriced, but I told him I wanted the ski cap with the Tanzanian flag. He said 45,000 shillings. I asked him for a calculator and quickly showed him that the cap he was trying to sell me was about US$34.00. “That’s not a good price,” I told him. The same cap I can get for US$5.00 in the states. I eventually gave him 10,000 shillings (US$7.00) for it. The price haggling was good fun. After sending the night in Arusha, we took a road trip to Ngorongoro. As we drove, the acacia trees were a staple in landscaping and children were seen fetching water and being industrious. There were also a number of schools off in the distance. The Maasai warriors were never too far out of view. We stopped for bathroom breaks, but many were urged not to photograph the locals unless permission was granted. We finally arrived at the Ngorongoro Lodge which set on a coffee plantation. It couldn’t help to think about my coffee plant of 19 years.
Young Maasai apprentices The thing that I most remember about Tanzania is its greenery. There were plots of plants and flowers along the road for miles. Animals were grazing just short of cars and trucks whizzing past. We were sometimes stopped by a caravan of cows crossing the road. We visited a large coffee plantation and were given a tour of how coffee is produced from the tree to the roasting. We also visited a lush banana plantation which gave us an opportunity to understand why people in Africa sometimes live off US$1.00 a day.
There were rows and rows of banana trees at different stages of development. We also ran into other fruits such as passion fruit, papayas, avocados and limes. There were also a pumpkin patch and a rice plantation. We got quite an extensive explanation of banana processing and how they were harvested. While I knew about the nine-month gestation period for bananas, I never knew how they sprouted and that they bore a pretty, purple bulbous flower at the end of the stem. We visited a volcano crater, the home of a abundant array of wild animals. We saw wildlife in all its magnificent… wildebeest, zebras, warthogs, gazelles, bucks, elephants, lions, cheetahs and baboons. The most exciting part of the trip was climbing 4,000 feet up the crater on a precipitous slope of mud. We stopped once or twice to get a fantastic view of nature’s creation. However, there was nothing guarding us from a fatal tumble over the cliff. Nothing but a skillful driver. It was nerve-wrecking for some of the passengers as the wheels were only a few feet from the edge.
Stunning view of the crater! On our second visit to an animal conservation, we saw a lot of giraffes and many of the animals mentioned. We rode by a colony of baboons and for about 10 minutes, we watched them socialize in their human-like ways. The giraffes were the most interesting and I was exposed to their “necking” ritual in which two males compete for a mate. On the third animal safari, we went on foot and came within 30 meters of animals. As we approached a herd of buffalo, they watched us closely for about 10 minutes. We were able to walk the trails of the animals and to see how they managed their habitat and co-existed. Fascinating!
Crested Crane, national bird of Uganda
On the walking safari, we came face-to-face with the animals.
No introduction is needed.
The handsome Superb Starling. In this set of pictures to follow, I have chosen approximately 140 photos for this segment. The last set is dedicated to Tanzanian wildlife and nature. Links to all the pictures are also included if you’d like to take the time to view them. The total is close to 600. Enjoy! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sun, 13 Jun 2010 17:07:20 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Morongwa Security Increase Chess Sponsorship - Mmegi Online | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Mon, 14 Jun 2010 15:04:49 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Former Champions Find Success Beyond the Board - New York Times | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sun, 13 Jun 2010 02:44:48 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Live chess for Chess Olympiad 2014 - Magnus Carlsen and second graders in Norway | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Magnus Carlsen participated in a live chess pieces game in front of the parliament in Løvebakken on Tuesday morning. World number one played against Labour politician Kåre Simonsen, and the pieces were second graders from the Battle School. The game was part of the promotion of the Chess Olympiad 2014 in Tromso. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Thu, 10 Jun 2010 08:41:38 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess gives students a ticket to college | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Chess Helps Gives Some Philly Students a Ticket to College by KYW's Jim Melwert For the first time, five students from the Philadelphia School District are receiving scholarships for local colleges, all for playing chess. The students are from the Philadelphia Youth Chess Challenge run by ASAP, the After School Activities Partnership. Recognizing the award winners, Mayor Michael Nutter cited a recent study showing the ASAP chess players scored better on PSSAs and had better attendance: "It's not a coincidence, the two are actually connected." Bok High senior Anthony Upsey will be attending Philadelphia Community College in the fall on one of the scholarships, he says chess has taught him patience: "Chess also taught me to think ahead, not only in chess, but in life. If I make a certain decision without thinking it through, there may be consequences that I would not like." Source: http://www.kyw1060.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-06-08T00:10:00.000-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ilyumzhinov ups the stakes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
By Colin McGourty Ilyumzhinov takes Karpov to courtIn an on-line interview with Gazeta.ru, Ilyumzhinov said that the case against Karpov was being brought by the FIDE Presidential Council before courts in Moscow (where Karpov is resident), an international court (where FIDE is registered) and the FIDE Ethics Commission. The charge is libel for Karpov’s alleged comments about corruption in FIDE, a topic that was already covered three weeks ago in an article by Arne (and see Mig Greengard’s comments below it). The legal case looks weak, and Mark Crowther may well be correct when he writes at TWIC that it seems “a completely empty threat”. Perhaps that explains why in the interview Ilyumzhinov focussed on the less newsworthy Ethics Commission. A court case might drag on and damage both candidates, but could the Ethics Commission come to a quick ruling that would exclude Karpov from running in the election? Legal threats are, however, a double-edged sword. In the same interview Ilyumzhinov responded to the question of why Karpov and Kasparov have united against him:
Setting aside the dubious content, the above echoes earlier statements by Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Russian Chess Federation Arkadij Dvorkovich which provoked Karpov to respond with an official letter on his campaign website: “It is ironic that Mr. Dvorkovich libels me as pursuing the presidency of FIDE for improper purposes”. Makropoulos: ‘Only dirt’FIDE Deputy President Georgios Makropoulos, if anything, went even further in an interview a few days ago. He says only “dirt” is coming from Karpov, that he “doesn’t like to work”, that, “Gary can write a programme for Anatoly. But Anatoly himself can’t”. Kasparov is exploiting the campaign for his own political ends and, to cap it all, “Karpov is being used as a Trojan horse”, according to Makropoulos, in order to end the one-country, one-vote system (the “logic” seems to be that Russia already has great influence now despite only having one vote). Another almost surreal example of the depths to which the campaign has sunk came in an interview Karpov gave to argumenti.ru:
New vote!?
Still, perhaps it’s worth taking a step back from these recriminations to try and assess the current campaign on the level of ideas and normal debate. The following comparison pays particular attention to the opinions of well-known GMs, as well as comments on Russian chess forums (where the debate has been fiercest): Ilyumzhinov:
Cons: The question of finance works both ways. Should a reputable international organisation have a president who, in the interview where he announced suing Karpov, also boasted: “For 15 years I was his sponsor. I personally set aside a few million American dollars from my fund and the money of my businessmen friends…”? Major sponsors may be wary of becoming involved with Ilyumzhinov, even if they do not credit, for instance, the accusations of the Jabloko political party, who said that the nomination of Ilyumzhinov brought shame on Russia (they refer to the murder of the Kalmykia opposition journalist, Larisa Yudina). Apart from these serious issues, Ilyumzhinov has also lately become something of a figure of fun. In the same interview, instead of laughing off his alien comments, he addressed the topic in total seriousness, adding:
Despite the above, Ilyumzhinov himself is perhaps not even the main issue. Chess players seem almost unanimously united against Ilyumzhinov’s team, with Makropoulos (now confirmed on the new ticket), the focus of much anger for his alleged contempt for grandmasters and his handling of chess finances. In a recent Russian radio interview on poker, Grischuk said he had no enthusiasm for either candidate but would, if forced, come down in favour of Ilyumzhinov. But he mentioned that he could only ever actually support Ilyumzhinov if Makropoulos and others were removed from the ticket. Karpov:
Cons: For now his programme, ticket and potential sponsors remain a mystery (Khalifman calls his campaign “words, words, words”), with some sub-elite grandmasters worried that the money the World Cup and similar knockout events provided will disappear. Also, although his self-destructive tendencies in interviews are no match for Ilyumzhinov, Shipov and others have noted his tendency to go overboard on self-promotion when mentioning e.g. his medals from Yeltsin and Putin, or the extraordinary number of schools in his name. Though, at times, you perhaps want to cheer him on:
The other dominant issue has been Kasparov, whose involvement has provoked predictable questions about his motivation, and divided opinion. Karpov is adamant that politics are not involved, and that his condition for working with Kasparov was focussing solely on chess. In fact, he even half-joked:
Which is a reminder that the FIDE elections are still three months away! Karpov’s team had an early lead, with only Turkey having come out in support of Ilyumzhinov at one point. In the interview mentioned above Makropoulos claimed that countries had adopted a waiting stance after Karpov persuaded them that Ilyumzhinov might not even be a candidate. That now seems to have changed, with the Ilyumzhinov campaign website claiming the support of 35 federations. Ticket announced; more candidates!?They have also announced their ticket. As well as confirming Makropoulos’ involvement the other name that perhaps stands out is that of Ignatius Leong as General Secretary. The Karpov campaign site had previously quoted Leong as saying that he would not stand beyond the current term… Where does the campaign go from here? All that’s certain is that we can expect many more twists and turns in the coming months. One likelihood is that it’s all about to become even more complicated. In the same interview where Ilyumzhinov managed to mention libel, and aliens, and that Karpov was “his friend”, he also added:
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Sat, 05 Jun 2010 09:47:05 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Poikovsky: Bologan, Jakovenko, Karjakin, Riazantsev on 1.5/2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 11th edition of the tournament named after 12th World Champion Anatoly Karpov takes place June 2-13 in Poikovsky, Russia. For the first time the tournament now has not 10, but 12 players. In this round-robin of 11 rounds, the rest day is on June 8th. Poikovsky is located in the Nefteyugansk region of the Khanty-Mansiysk autonomous area. It’s about 150km eastern of Khanty-Mansiysk. Its name comes from the nearby river Poyka. The population is close to 30,000 people and the main economic drive is the extraction of oil and gas. Eleven years ago local authorities decided that a big chess tournament would do the region well. A year later a chess school for children was opened, like the tournament named after Anatoly Karpov. This year the chess school celebrated its 10th anniversary on June 1st, International Children’s Day. The festivities were opened by Karpov himself. In the 11th tournament there are two players who never missed a single event in Poikovsky: Bologan and Onischuk. Jobava, Karjakin and Vitiugov make their debut this year. Motylev is defending his 2009 title. Evgeny Surov posted a first photo report on Chesspro, where many players can be seen planting a tree in Poikovsky, including Anatoly Karpov himself. Top seed this year is Sergei Karjakin, who just finished the ACP World Rapid Cup successfully a few days ago. He and the other finalist in Odessa, Dmitry Jakovenko, started with 1.5/2, and so did Viktor Bologan and Alexander Riazantsev. ![]() Games rounds 1-2Game viewer by ChessTempo Links | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Thu, 03 Jun 2010 14:03:37 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| City Council Honors 6-time State Champs | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENDATION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SARATOGA HONORING THE SARATOGA HIGH SCHOOL CHESS TEAM WHEREAS, Six members of the Saratoga High School Chess Team competed at the CalChess State Chess Championship on April 17th and 18th, 2010 and won the team championship for the varsity section; and WHEREAS, this Chess Championship was the sixth consecutive championship for the Saratoga High School Chess Team which is a record for the State; and WHEREAS, the Saratoga High School Chess Team competed in chess competitions throughout the 2009/2010 school year and won the Santa Clara County high school chess championship, with four of the team members placing in the top five finishers, and came in 2nd place in the regional high school league chess championship; and WHEREAS, the team has been self-motivated and trained throughout the year for this championship; and WHEREAS, National Master Michael Aigner was the professional coach for the team and trained them in chess technique but also imparted on the team a deep appreciation of the benefits of strategic thinking, hard work and training for all efforts in life; and WHEREAS, in recognition thereof it is appropriate to extend to them the special honors and highest commendations of the community of Saratoga. ![]() NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the City Council of the City of Saratoga does hereby congratulate and commend the members of the Saratoga High School Chess Team for this outstanding achievement. 2nd day of June 2010 Kathleen M. King, Mayor City of Saratoga (Team members from left to right: Coach Fpawn, Charles Sun, Kevin Garbe, Rolland Wu, Evan Ye and Brian Wai. Not present: Sankash Shankar.) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fri, 04 Jun 2010 06:01:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FIDE sues Karpov for libel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() FIDE sues chess ex-champion Anatoli Karpov for libel 19:43, June 03, 2010 President of the World Chess Federation (FIDE) Kirsan Ilyumzhinov sued former world chess champion Anatoly Karpov for libel, Moscow's Gazeta daily reported on Thursday. "This is the first time during my 20-year career when I reported to a court. Now I applied to FIDE ethical commission in Italy and filed a claim to a (Moscow's district) court," Ilyumzhinov, who is also president of Kalmykia republic in southern Russia, said. Anatoly Karpov earlier accused FIDE of corruption. Karpov, the twelfth world champion, was nominated for the post of FIDE president to be elected this fall. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov was another nominee for the chair. Ilyumzhinov stressed that he fell no personal offense for Karpov. Current election campaign in FIDE has been marred by the scandals from the start. In May, a group of supporters of Anatoly Karpov and another ex-champion Garry Kasparov broke into the Chess House in downtown Moscow and seized the property. "Karpov and Kasparov exhausted themselves as the chess players, that is why they try to draw public attention with the inadequate behavior," Ilyumzhinov said. If re-elected, FIDE head, whose hobbies include, besides chess, boxing, promised to lobby the chess to become a mandatory subject in the schools in Russia and other countries. FIDE comprises of over 170 national chess federations. Source: http://english.peopledaily.com.cn | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-06-03T08:51:00.000-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leonard Barden on Chess | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fide, the International Chess Federation, holds its five-yearly presidential election in September and it is turning nasty. The incumbent since 1995 is Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, controversial ruler of Russia's semi-autonomous Caucasian state Kalmykia. In his early years as Fide president Ilyumzhinov built a 'chess city', made the game mandatory in Kalmyk schools, and financed grandmaster chess so generously that his dubious human rights record and eccentric claim to have met "humanoid aliens" were shrugged off. But recently Fide's excessive reliance on ex-Soviet tournament venues and an autocratic rule change where a player loses if not seated at the board at the start have provoked a deluge of criticism. Ilyumzhinov will be opposed by Anatoly Karpov, all-time world No3 and backed by Garry Kasparov, all-time No1, abortive challenger for the 2008 Russian presidency and a fierce Kremlin critic. K and K, supported by the current world No1 Magnus Carlsen, held a fund-raiser in New York which raised over $100,000 for the Karpov campaign. A similar evening with Kasparov and Nigel Short is planned for Simpsons in the Strand, London, in August. K and K believe they can attract more Western sponsors to chess. Many Western chess federations including the US and England have announced support for Karpov but Fide has 161 member nations, not far off the 200-plus of Fifa and the IOC, and Ilyumzhinov has won the last three elections with the help of sweeteners to third world delegates. Karpov is famous enough to turn some small countries his way, but the vote will be during the biennial team Olympiad at Khanty-Mansiysk in Siberia, a favoured Ilyumzhinov site. An ugly fight for the Russian federation vote shows that the contest has a wider significance than just for chess. A majority chose K and K but a rival group led by the economist and presidential aide Arkady Dvorkovich first claimed a technical win then sent in security men to evict the pro-Karpov officials. Kalmykia's strategic position and its oil and gas, plus Kremlin hostility to Kasparov, may prove a key to this bitter contest. 3141 1 Bxf7+! Kxf7 2 Rc7+! Kf8 (if Nxc7 3 Qxg5 or Kg8 3 Qxe6+ Kh8 4 Qf7) 3 Qh8+ Qg8 4 Qf6+ mates. guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fri, 28 May 2010 23:15:02 GMT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4yo Jett's up for chess challenge - Coolum & North Shore News | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Thu, 03 Jun 2010 00:12:40 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Meeting with FIDE | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| As mentioned in this post, a couple of FIDE officials, Geoffrey Borg and Ignatius Leong, were paying a visit to Australia and New Zealand to discuss chess development in Oceania. The other reason for the visit was to hold an arbiters seminar for prospective Australia arbiters (in conjunction with the ACF), but that seemed not to have happened. Wearing my PNG hat I caught up with them over breakfast today, along with PNG team captain Brian Jones. It was fairly free-wheeling discussion but there were a number of points I felt important. Geoffrey Borg stressed the importance of good management practice in federations, which is hardly surprising given his background in business management. He stated it best when he said "Just because you are volunteer administrators, doesn't mean you can't be professional administrators". His other good point was that federations who take a mainly hands off approach to chess organisation do not reap the benefits of junior chess. While a federation need not be intrusive in what it does, it needs to provide enough extra levels of activity to capture the players when the move up from 'schools' chess. Also look forward to a greater level of visibility from FIDE in the region, with a Oceania Development Officer being proposed as a way of building up chess in the existing federations, as well as encouraging new federations to be formed. Of course this discussion took place with the upcoming FIDE elections in the background. While this was touched upon lightly, it wasn't a significant part of the meeting. But from a completely different source (ie NOT from todays meeting) comes a suggestion that a third candidate may enter the contest. Who that is not public, and at this stage completely unknown to me. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wed, 02 Jun 2010 13:18:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess exhibition to benefit YMCA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Chess exhibition to benefit YMCA The Monmouth Chess School and Club will host Dr. Edward Allen, U. S. Chess Federation National Master, Life Master and two-time New Jersey State chess champion, to give a 20-board simultaneous exhibition starting at 1 p.m. on Sunday, June 6. The event will take place at The Community YMCA Children’s Cultural Center, 51 Monmouth St. All proceeds from the event will benefit the Community YMCA Strong Kids Campaign. The board fee is $25. Observer-suggested donation is $15. Please indicate your preference to play white or black. Allen will play black on up to half of the boards. Signups are on a first-come, first-served basis. Reserve your board with the board fee of $25 payable to The Community YMCA Strong Kids Campaign. For more information or to reserve a space, contact Michael Koblentz, 732-219- 0916 or email to learnchess@optonline.net. Source: http://hub.gmnews.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-06-01T11:13:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess make you smart | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Or do smart people play chess? I tend to gravitate towards the former claim, as I have met plenty of smart people who can't play chess, but far fewer chess players who weren't that smart. And anyone who has tried to get a foot in the door of the "Chess-in-Schools" coaching would also agree, as this is the sort of argument that carries a lot of weight with school principals. Here is an article from Lawrence Journal (Kansas, USA) which lays out some of the benefits for the local school kids. Probably the most important point in the article isn't the intellectual benefit that chess gives, but the social benefit. So not only does chess make you smart, it also makes you friends! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mon, 31 May 2010 13:25:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2nd SCS International Grandmaster Chess tournament - Martyn Kravtsiv leads, 13-year-old Vaibhav Suri | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Delhi school boy Vaibhav Suri stole the show as he shocked Bangladesh GM Enamul Hossain to secure his maiden GM norm. He also became an IM, getting his third and final norm in the process. Showing little nerves, Vaibhav converted a tiny advantage arising in the French game. He later gained a pawn in the minor pieces ending to eventually sign an important victory. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sat, 29 May 2010 00:39:56 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Students play chess pieces - Tampa Tribune | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wed, 26 May 2010 04:16:13 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Review: Genius in the Background | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Genius in the Background by Tibor Károlyi and Nick Aplin (published by Quality Chess) is a book about, well, geniuses in the background. As Károlyi writes in the preface:
In other words, the presentation of these unknown heroes is not only interesting, but also useful. For me, they shed some special light on the development and choices of such great players as Topalov and Kasparov that have in my view so far not been emphasized. In the chapter about Topalov’s former coach, Petko Atanasov, the choice of openings for the young Veselin is discussed. It turns out that Atanasov, rather surprisingly, taught Topalov the Old Indian Defence against 1.d4 and the French against 1.e4. Atanatov adds that at some point Topalov “refused to play it and started to play the Sicilian Defence instead.” Quite telling if you ask me. Karolyi gives some interesting, excellently annotated examples from Atanasov’s own games, showing how his preference for exchange sacrifices influenced Topalov:
Despite the obvious achievements of these geniuses in the background, there’s often more than a touch of melancholy in the words of the former trainers. Asked about his current relationship with Topalov, Atanasov embarks on a somewhat bitter personal story:
Such extreme honesty, almost painful to read, makes for fascinating background information on both Topalov’s chess career and his country’s current efforts to promote chess and is a valuable contribution to chess literature. However, not all of the book’s interviews with former trainers, are quite so compelling. In the chapter on Alexander Shakarov, one of Kasparov’s earliest trainers, questions are often answered in such a brief way that they one raise more questions than they answer:
Obviously not satisfied with these short answers, the interviewer tries again, but Shakarov prefers to stay on the surface:
Once again, the interviewer feels there must be more to it than this, but he’s in for another disappointment:
Reading this interview, I’m left with the feeling that Shakarov didn’t exactly have a huge role in this period, and I wonder how important he actually was to Kasparov’s development. How close was he to Kasparov, anyway? According to Károlyi, he and Kasparov analysed and annotated about two dozens of games together, but I can’t help wondering whether this was perhaps Botvinnik or Nikitin delegating the analyses and Kasparov doing most of the work? When asked if he was present during the final game of the 1985 World Championship match against Karpov, Shakarov only says “No, I was not in the tournament hall during that game.” It’s all a little puzzling, if you ask me. On the other hand, the book convincingly shows that Alexander Shakarov was a truly great chess player himself, and the games section of the chapter dedicated to him is one of the highlights of the book. Here’s an example of what Károlyi calls Shakarov’s influence on Kasparov’s ability to “execute brilliant attacking ideas on the edge of the board”.
In this fragment, Károlyi shows his great annotation skills (the analyses are much more elaborate than they are reproduced here) and his ability to see patterns in games and player’s qualities. Károlyi is always looking for comparisons between teacher and pupil, trying to make connections between past and present and linking skills and sometimes lack thereof. Genius in the Background isn’t about chess trainers only. It’s a much more ambitious project than that. There’s a chapter on the development of chess culture in Singapore. It features elaborate and loving portraits of endgame study composers Yochanan Afek and Karsten Müller. And indeed much, much more. One of the most fascinating chapters is about the remarkable Laszlo Lindner (1916-2004), a Hungarian chess player and endgame composer who survived the Nazi concentration camp Bor, now part of Serbia. Lindner actually recorded some chess games he played in the camp against the later Hungarian chess champion Tibor Florian. The games were played on a small chess set Florian managed to bring inside the camp. The player hid behind their barracks and the moves were scribbled in a notebook by Lindner, a picture of which is reproduced in the book. I can’t help quoting one game in full.
Replaying these games, knowing in which circumstances they must have been played, is a weird sensation. Who knows what might have caused Florian to resign in this position? And this is only the beginning of an utterly haunting chapter on a truly extraordinary character in 20th century chess history. Genius in the Background is a unique book, a one-of-a-kind experience in chess literature. It’s beautifully published and extremely well-researched and annotated. Sure, some chapters are more interesting than others, but the overall concept is so gripping that that’s easily forgiven. If you are interested in more than – or from time to time even a bit bored by – the constant stream of daily chess news, then this is the right book for you. Personally, I think everyone should read it. Links | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wed, 26 May 2010 07:49:19 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oldest Woman Aussie Chesser | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Graeme Gardiner dropped in to make a comment on my post yesterday about the Old Man of Aussie Chess. How about Grand Old Woman, he asked. Indeed. I know of Evelyn Koshnitsky, who is 95, and now I am reminded of Nell Van De Graaff, also aged 95! Not quite sure if Mrs Koshnitsky still has the time or even the energy to play a game, but Graeme hopes that Nell will make an appearance in the upcoming Gold Coast Open (26-27 June). Speaking of women in the Australian chess scene, my googling for some info led me to a gem of a post by Cathy Chua. This one's apparently a portion that didn't quite make the cut for her book, "Australian Chess at the Top". Koshnitsky’s patrons were grown women, of course, and to create a player of top class it was surely necessary to begin with much younger pupils. That is where the second creator of mountains enters. Evelyn Koshnitsky has made her life’s work the promotion of chess among the young and her special passion has been to get girls to play. First in Sydney and then in Adelaide from the early 1960s when the couple moved there she cajoled, begged and bullied support. Manpower, money, venues – she is an expert at getting what she wants from parents, schools, government, business – whoever might have something of use. I wonder if she has any more posts like this one. Read in "Computers, women and things like that". | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tue, 25 May 2010 11:46:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sydney Morris… Middle School Champ! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Birmingham, Alabama is perhaps known more for its Civil Rights legacy than for chess. Chess in Alabama has not met a renaissance although the state has produced several strong players. The lack of such a presence may make it difficult to find models to emulate. However, scholastic chess has blossomed in spite of this fact. In Birmingham, Charles Smith has been able to carve a niche in helping to foster chess development on the scholastic level. One of his pupils is 12-year old Sydney Morris who recently won the Birmingham Middle School Championship with 5/5. In doing so, she will represent her state in the Polgar National Invitational July 25-30 at Texas Tech University. Source: http://blog.al.com/birmingham-news-stories/2010/05/birminghams_sydney_morris_is_s.html | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tue, 25 May 2010 09:54:25 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fremont girls prove chess isn't just for boys - Inside Bay Area | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Mon, 24 May 2010 15:09:13 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2nd SCS Chess Cup - 36 Grandmasters and 40 International Masters in India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| After providing a historic boost to chess in Orissa last year(June 7 to 14), SCS International Open Grand Master Chess Tournament is back again to carry the momentum to greater heights. The second edition of the tournament, the biggest of its kind in Asia, will be organized by Star Chess School, under the auspices of Orissa Chess Ad-hoc Committee and All India Chess Federation at hotel Swosti Plaza in Bhubaneswar from May 22 to 30, 2010. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sun, 23 May 2010 14:56:56 +0200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Carlsen, Giri, Kasparov and Kramnik all helped Anand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Right after the end of the World Championship match, Viswanathan Anand revealed his team of seconds. As it turned out, the same names as two years ago in Bonn worked for the Indian: GMs Surya Ganguly, Rustam Kasimdzhanov, Peter Heine Nielsen and Radoslaw Wojtaszek. However, this week Anand revealed another, quite interesting list of helpers: Magnus Carlsen, Anish Giri, Garry Kasparov and Vladimir Kramnik. In a remarkable interview with Frederic Friedel and GM Jan Gustafsson, held last Monday on Playchess, Anand first tells about his cooperation with world’s number one Magnus Carlsen, who worked with Anand before.
Carlsen worked with the retired, 13th World Champion Garry Kasparov last year and in fact Kasparov also offered his help to Anand himself. The Indian said about him:
Frederic Friedel, one of the founders of Chessbase and the editor of the English news page, then reveals that he put Anand in touch with Vladimir Kramnik, his opponent in the previous World Championship match. Anand about Kramnik’s assistance:
The fourth name on Anand’s ‘remote seconds list’ is the Dutch super-talent GM Anish Giri:
We recommend reading one of the most remarkable and revealing interviews we’ve ever seen on Chessbase. Part 1 is here, and part 2 here. In the interview several times “Topalov’s computer cluster” is mentioned, and in fact today we received a brief interview with Topalov, from the World Championship organizers, in which this is explained:
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Thu, 20 May 2010 09:56:37 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Players silently match wits over chess board - Las Vegas Sun | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sat, 22 May 2010 09:09:39 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess win nets Dallas 6th-grader $40000 scholarship to UTD - Dallas Morning News | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Fri, 21 May 2010 07:29:40 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "One of a kind" SPICE | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Texas Tech chess institute head Susan Polgar stresses game's importance during match with reporter Posted: May 21, 2010 - 12:31am By Matthew McGowan Nobody expected it to be pretty. She's a grandmaster, the highest honor a chess player can earn. I occasionally challenge, and frequently lose to, strangers online. She has won international acclaim and holds myriad world records. I take pointers from 13-year-old amateurs in Sweden. So who knows what I was thinking, challenging Susan Polgar to a game a chess. Mental illness, perhaps. Or maybe hubris. I like to think it was just another gauche act of daily journalism - you know, a work hazard. But whatever the reason, I found myself sitting across a chess board from Susan Polgar on Wednesday morning. Yeah. Call your bookies and place your bets, folks. No surprises here. She won - twice. Of course, I had no delusions of victory going into this thing, but I did have the faintest hope that maybe, just maybe, she would have to pause and think just once before moving a piece. She didn't, as far as I could tell. Polgar, one of the best players in the game's history, took no mercy. I watched helplessly as my pieces - my doomed minions - disappeared from the board. The first game lasted only a few minutes, and even most of that passed during the question-and-answer pauses between moves. Pretty soon my king was cowering in the back-left corner of the board, his entire posse helpless on the sidelines. "Checkmate," Polgar smiled. Ouch. "Play again?" I asked. My opponent nodded and we were off. I put the notebook down and vowed to concentrate this time. She immediately took me off guard and had her queen on the offensive. The queen, as I understand it, is a piece used best in the middle- and end-phases of the game. But Polgar undoubtedly knows all the strategic norms ... which means she's allowed to break them. Her white queen shirked my pawns and landed deep behind my lines, where she took my rook - so much for my counterattack! - in seconds. Within minutes, my king was again cornered. Then came the second checkmate. You may not know it just by looking at Polgar - soft-spoken and patient with constantly calculating eyes - but she's one of the most skilled chess players in the world. She made history in Pamplona, Spain, on Jan. 1, 1991, when she became the first woman to earn a grandmaster title on men's terms. Her title, she said, gave women access to what had historically been a boys club. Natural, raw talent? I wondered. No, she said. A lot of hard work. "One of the main ingredients of success is to be motivated and driven, in addition to knowledge," she continued. Polgar came across a chess set as a bored 4-year-old in search of "a new toy." She vaguely remembers that day, she now says, but she brought it to her mother - a school teacher in their home town of Budapest, Hungary - and asked if she could show her how to play. Her mother had never played, so the young Polgar waited for her father, now a retired psychologist, to come home and teach her. He was delighted, she said, that his daughter had taken an interest. It took her less than a year to become Budapest's youth champion. She won her first world title at the age of 12. By 15, she ranked as the No. 1 female player in the world. And that, she said, is the beauty of chess. No matter their color, gender, socio-economic status or age, anybody can play. "That's one of the best things about chess," she said. "It's an equalizer between all those things. I enjoyed the feeling that I could play with grown men and I could have a fair game." My own introduction to chess also came at a young age. I was no older than 5 years old when my father called me into his study, where he was puffing on his pipe and staring down at a peculiar array of little wooden figurines. It didn't take me long to appreciate the dazzling choreography of the game. The knights and their L-shaped tracks. The bishops and long-range diagonal threat. The helpless king. The henchmen-like rooks on the flanks. The eight pawns - they're the grunts. And then there's the queen, the doomsday weapon with unrestricted motion. Mastering all the dynamics takes time, study and plenty of practice. I played a few tournaments back in grade school, but not much since, I told my opponent, except for a few quick games online or chance game against an acquaintance. "It's never too late to start again," Polgar, always the educator and advocate, reminded me without pause. I surveyed the board and nodded, "You're absolutely right." Chess is, after all, hard not to love. To me, it's the perfect game - a potent combustion of space, motion and wit. According to the U.S. Chess Federation, the game's roots stretch back some 1,400 years to ancient India. Persian merchants brought it to Europe in the 11th century, where some of the eastern pieces were renamed to fit western norms - bishop, queen, etc. - but their range of motion was still restricted, thus slowing the game and blunting its intensity. Then, in Europe in the 15th century, the game Polgar and I played this week was born when the rules were changed to allow longer movement ranges. This, in turn, unbridled a faster pace of play and yielded more excitement. Nobody knows exactly who, or which group, was responsible for the major changes all those centuries ago, but they clearly hit the mark. Today, the game is played by millions, but it's still mostly a men's game. Women comprise between 3 and 5 percent of U.S. Chess Federation members, according to the group's numbers. That's one of Polgar's priorities today. She moved to New York City from Budapest in 1994 and began touring the country on exhibition tours and lecture circuits. She even came through Lubbock in 2005, where the seeds of Texas Tech's Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence (SPICE) were planted. She returned as a commencement speaker in May 2007, when the university announced it would create the institute. Polgar knew Tech was offering a "one-of-a-kind" opportunity through SPICE, so she moved to the Hub City with her two sons, now ages 9 and 11 (and, yes, they both play chess). She has also written several books on the game and coaches Tech's team, which has won many national and even international titles under her guidance. But there's more work to do, she said. The game has yet to find a broader pop-culture foothold. If poker can land a television slot, she said, why not chess? "Certainly, chess has the merits and worthiness to make it popular," she said. "Unfortunately, we haven't it made it there yet, but I believe it's only a matter of time." Source: Avalanche Journal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-05-21T08:14:00.001-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stevenson Elementary School's Chess Team wins big at national event - Bellevue Reporter | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wed, 19 May 2010 00:28:10 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| From farmer to chess champion | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
From farmer to chess champion Anupma Tripathi, Hindustan Times New Delhi, May 16, 2010 First Published: 00:41 IST(16/5/2010) Last Updated: 00:43 IST(16/5/2010) Zambia has produced just one Grandmaster so far, but this little fact hasn't deterred Zambians from taking up chess and dreaming of making it big one day. Phiri Richmond, from the Zambian capital Lusaka, is one such dreamer. He is here to participate in the Parsvnath Commonwealth Chess Championship. Born to a family of farmers, the 22-year-old is the youngest of seven siblings. "My family grows and keeps all kind of stuff," says Richmond. "From keeping pigs, to growing tomatoes, bananas, peas, baby corn and other vegetables." By his own admission, coming to India and playing the Championship wouldn't have been possible, had it not been for his sponsors who spotted him at the African Ch’ship in 2006. " I finished third in the championship. Later, the Green Eagles Club approached me and I grabbed the offer," said the Zambian champion, who has an ELO rating of 2165. There's been no looking back for Richmond. In 2006, he clinched gold at the Chess Olympiad in Turin. The African won the 'junior champion' title for two consecutive years (2007-08) and claimed the national championship in 2008. Interestingly, none of his siblings play chess. But at this point, Richmond is quick to add, " The important thing is they don't stop me from playing either. I remember, in 2004 I was about to quit school for the love of the game. But my parents asked me to quit chess instead. They wanted me to concentrate on studies. That was a difficult experience." He belongs to Zambia's 'Chewa' tribe, and fluent in the tribal dialect. When asked to say something in his native tongues, Richmond rattles off a line that translates into, " Wait for me. I can make it big." Source: http://www.hindustantimes.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2010-05-16T00:18:00.000-05:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Torrey Pines pitcher shows power at plate - San Diego Union Tribune | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Thu, 13 May 2010 07:07:17 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chess Club Tournament - Telegraph Neighbors | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Thu, 13 May 2010 11:44:25 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World School Chess Championship 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() The Government of Turkey and the Turkish Chess Federation (TCF), have the honour to invite all the FIDE member Chess Federations around the world to participate in the World School Chess Championship 2010 (under 7, under 9, under 11, under 13, under 15 and under 17 years old - open and girls) which will take place in Kayseri, Türkiye, between July 20th, 2010 (arrival) and July 31st, 2010 (departure). TCF aims to organise an excellent event with your participation. TCF aims for a record participation in these events. We hope to achieve more than 800 players and 500 accompanying persons. We are ready to accommodate over 1.500 participants. We want to make a significant impact with global media coverage and special attention to chess. The event will be organised under the auspieces of the First Lady of Turkish Republic, Honorary Mrs.Hayrunissa GUL. That is the reason, Turkish Chess Federation aims to break record of participants and federations for this event and there will be a lot of supports for participating federations. Please see regulations item 2.6 2.6 Special offer for CACDEC members: Federations, which are in the list of FIDE CACDEC, is offered a special condition. Any CACDEC member federation participates to event with at least one player in any category will be given 10 electronic chess clocks and 10 chess sets by Turkish Chess Federation from TACTIC Project. Moreover, for those federation participants up to 500€ travel expense of one player from Europe, and up to 1.000€ from other continents will be covered by TCF. For example, if an American Federation which is member of CACDEC comes to event with 3 players, 1.000€ will be paid by getting the flight ticket of a player. Also accommodation (full board) will be provided for one player for each participating federation (maximum one player not each age category) by TCF free of charge. All federations, either CACDED member or not will be given one room free hospitality for the event in 4 stars hotels. I ask kindly to all my collegues to support the event by sending minimum one player representing their federation. Ali Nihat YAZICI President of Turkish Chess Federation ICO and IA More information can be found at http://wscc2010.tsf.org.tr/ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wed, 12 May 2010 12:10:35 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shaker Heights middle and high school students are chess champions - Sun Star Courier (blog) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sun, 09 May 2010 12:22:42 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Can I checkmate with this? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() I spent yesterday running an interschools chess competition for 130 children. While some kids had played competition chess before, a majority had not. This necessitated a brief explanation of some of the more important chess rules (touch move, winning on time etc). Probably the trickiest section is explaining what is an isn't a drawn position. King v King is easy, and King and single minor piece usually makes sense (although in at least one game the player with a bishop was certainly making an effort to win). However King+2 Knights v King occasionally provokes discussion, as although the mate isn't forced, it can still happen. And of course once you add extra pieces, then anything can happen (and in schools chess, often does). For example, if it was 2 knights versus 2 knights, I would suggest the players play on, especially if they reached the following position (which is actually a problem by FJ Prokop, 1929). White has a mate in 4, and in most lines, doesn't even need both knights! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sat, 08 May 2010 13:20:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bay Area Results from Elementary Nationals | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Northern California Standings (updated after round 2) (click here for full results) K-6
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Sat, 08 May 2010 05:07:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| I'm a Perfect Square | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Thank you to all of my friends and fans who sent birthday wishes yesterday. I really appreciate the many friends that I have, ranging from my youngest elementary age students to chess veterans who began playing during the Fischer boom of the 1960s and early 1970s. Amazingly, I personally know at least six fans of the royal game who also were born on May 6, including two of my private students plus a resident of the East Bay's famed GM house (Jesse Kraai). There's a lot going on in the world of chess this week. Foremost is the World Championship match between defending champion Viswanathan Anand and challenger Veselin Topalov. The score is tied at 5.0 with two games remaining on Sunday and Tuesday, starting at 5:00am Pacific time. If they are still tied, then rapid and blitz playoffs are scheduled for Thursday. Let's go Vishy!!! Back in the USA, the Bert Lerner National Elementary Championship began in Atlanta. The crowd of 2000+ participants includes 55 enthusiastic youngsters from Northern California. Many of the elite local players flew east, including: Daniel Liu (K-6), Kesav Viswanadha (K-5), FM Tanuj Vasudeva (K-3), Allan Beilin (K-5), Cameron Wheeler (K-5) and the severely underrated Michael Wang (K-3). A pair of Fremont schools are hunting for big team trophies: 2009 national champ Mission San Jose Elementary and crosstown punching bag Weibel Elementary both have over 15 kids. Click here for updated standings and pairings from Atlanta. Finally, I hope to play in the Powell G/45 tournament tomorrow at the Mechanics' Institute. I expect to see many of my students. Will preteen terror NM Yian Liou win for the second month in a row? Can any of my lower rated kids scalp an expert or a master? And will I perform well enough to eek my USCF rating back above my lifetime floor of 2200. Wish us all good luck! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sat, 08 May 2010 03:49:00 +0000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| More than playing chess... - Seattle Post Intelligencer (blog) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wed, 05 May 2010 20:03:48 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chegwin School chess team repeats as state champion - The Reporter | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Thu, 06 May 2010 09:28:46 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Freedom Chess Academy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
I always love to promote volunteer projects ... check out this site for the Alabama-based "Freedom Chess Academy"![]() Their mission as stated: "Freedom Chess Academy is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote chess training and play in Tuscaloosa and western Alabama. We offer a variety of free events for chess players of all levels. Classes are held at the Boys & Girls Clubs of West Alabama, Tuscaloosa Public Library, FOCUS on Senior Citizens, the Tuscaloosa Salvation Army Shelter and, through a partnership with the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa Magnet Middle School. (For class dates/times, see the class schedule below.) Chess instructors use the Scholastic Chess Series curriculum, which allows students to learn quickly while having fun. Many of our students compete in -- and win -- chess tournaments." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PHOTOS: A complex chess competition - San Luis Obispo Tribune | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Mon, 03 May 2010 05:40:36 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Daily Planner: May 4 - Enterprise-Record | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Mon, 03 May 2010 07:26:44 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| He likes tennis... and loves chess - Charlotte Observer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sun, 02 May 2010 04:46:14 GMT+00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pole Position – aprile | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Update 30 aprileBaku, Azerbaigian – Giunge alla quinta edizione la “President’s Cup”, dedicata in verità all’ex Presidente dell’Azerbaigian, deceduto nel 2003, Heydar Aliyev (l’attuale Presidente è suo figlio Ilham). Nelle prime tre edizioni il formato scelto era stato quello dell’open, nella quarta si era invece assistito ad un match tra Azerbaigian e Resto del Mondo a cadenza rapid, dove i pur forti giocatori locali non avevano potuto resistere ad una micidiale formazione composta da Anand, Kramnik, Shirov e Karjakin! Quest’anno otto sono i partecipanti, quattro locali e quattro “stranieri”, ma il formato scelto è quello di un girone all’italiana di sola andata, quindi tutti contro tutti. Questi i giocatori invitati: Strano il mancato invito di Vugar Gashimov, ma l’Azerbaigian certo non sorprende in questo campo: in precedenza lo stesso Mamedyarov, a Torino 2006, non aveva preso parte alla squadra olimpica azera per problemi con la propria federazione. Cadenza 25’ a testa; due turni previsti il 29 aprile, tre il 30 e gli ultimi due il primo maggio. Il 2 maggio si terrà un torneo blitz. Immagini dal sito ufficiale
And the Winner is!
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| 1 | IM | Petrov Marijan | BUL | 2526 |
| 2 | IM | Grigorov Grigor | BUL | 2510 |
| 3 | IM | Esen Baris | TUR | 2506 |
| 4 | GM | Antic Dejan | SRB | 2502 |
| 5 | IM | Erdogdu Mert | TUR | 2502 |
| 6 | GM | Bezgodov Alexei | RUS | 2497 |
| 7 | GM | Vocaturo Daniele | ITA | 2489 |
| 8 | GM | Georgiev Krum | BUL | 2447 |
| 9 | GM | Velikov Petar | BUL | 2423 |
| 10 | IM | Piscopo Pierluigi | ITA | 2418 |
Sono inoltre presenti:
| 19 | FM | Stella Andrea | ITA | 2283 |
| 29 | WFM | Chierici Marianna | ITA | 2094 |
Sono previsti nove turni di gioco.
Cadenza: 90′ x 40 mosse + 30′ per terminare, sempre con abbuono di 30″.
Primo premio di 1.000 euro.
Piuttosto variegato l’orario d’inizio delle partite:
Monday April 5th 16:00 Round 1
Tuesday April 6th 10:00 Round 2
Tuesday April 6th 17:00 Round 3
Wednesday April 7th 16:00 Round 4
Thursday April 8th 16:00 Round 5
Friday April 9th 10:00 Round 6
Friday April 9th 17:00 Round 7
Saturday April 10th 16:00 Round 8
Sunday April 11th 09:30 Round 9
Questo il quadro completo delle competizioni di scacchi organizzate presso il “Festival dei Giochi”:
A) European Individual School Championship dal 5 all’11 Aprile
B) Open Thessaloniki 2010 dal 5 all’11 Aprile
C) International Open Blitz, l’11 Aprile
D) Campionato Europeo Seniores Rapid, 8-9 Aprile
E) Campionato Europeo Seniores, dal 10 al 18 Aprile

Vitaly Tseshkovsky, Russia!
[Biker - 06/04]
Dubai, Emirati Arabi Uniti – Il 12° Dubai Open è previsto dal 5 al 13 aprile. E’ questo un torneo che per montepremi, confort di soggiorno e inviti non lesinati attira sempre un folto gruppo di GM anche di ottimo livello: l’edizione 2010 non fa eccezione.
Questa la “Top 20” del 12° Dubai Open
Nove turni di gioco. Cadenza 90′ con incremento di 30″ a mossa. Primo premio di 8.000 $.
Il 9 aprile è previsto un giorno di riposo (solo per alcuni, visto che è in programma un torneo ‘Blitz’). Doppio turno il 10 aprile.
