“An exchange sacrifice occurs when one player gives up a rook for a minor piece. It is often used to destroy the enemy pawn structure (…), to establish a minor piece on a strong square (…), to improve one’s own pawn structure (…), or to gain time for development…” Wikipedia Last week we looked at … Continue reading "The Exchange Sacrifice (2)"

Στην Αγία Πετρούπολη, σε αίθουσα δίπλα στον ποταμό Νέβα, αρχίζει ανήμερα των Χριστουγέννων (τελετή έναρξης) μια κορυφαία διοργάνωση της χρονιάς: τα Παγκόσμια Πρωταθλήματα Ράπιντ και Μπλιτς 2018. Σε συνέχεια μιας...

In training games with my Dad I’ve noticed that he plays the King’s Indian Attack quite well. It seems that he has been playing it on and off for around 45 years and had some good scalps with both Black and White. Here’s one of them against a player who is now a 2555 rated … Continue reading "The King’s Indian Attack"

Let’s start with these moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. Bc4 You’ve seen these before. Now there are two popular moves for Black here: Bc5, which you’ve just seen, and… 3… Nf6 If you want to go for the PIN ATTACK you might think it doesn’t matter much whether you play Nc3 or … Continue reading "Chess Openings for Heroes (Exclusive Extract 3)"

Yes, this seems like a rather strange title for a chess article. No, it’s not some new opening I’ve developed, although it would be a great name for an opening if only to hear Grandmasters utter it’s name on instructional DVDs. “Today we’re going to look at some mainline variations of the Thank My Wife … Continue reading "Thank My Wife, Please!"

The US Chess Federation is pleased to announce that Grandmaster (GM) Leinier Domínguez, originally from Cuba and currently living in Miami, Florida, has successfully switched federations from the Cuban Chess Federation and will now play under the United States flag. Domínguez says, “I am very excited about this new stage in my career and I [...]

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΥΓΕΝΝΙΑΤΙΚΟΣ ΜΑΡΑΘΩΝΙΟΣ ΝΑΙ ΣΤΟ ΣΚΑΚΙ Ανοιχτό rapid τουρνουά με ελβετικό σύστημα 7 γύρων με διεθνή αξιολόγηση ELO FIDE Rapid και ανοιχτό blitzτουρνουά με ελβετικό σύστημα 9 γύρων με διεθνή αξιολόγηση ELO FIDE Blitz Τo Σάββατο...

Χριστουγεννιάτικο Νεανικό Τουρνουά Rapid «Ναι» Στο Σκάκι Ανοιχτό rapid τουρνουά με ελβετικό σύστημα 7 γύρων με διεθνή αξιολόγηση ELO FIDE Rapid Την Κυριακή, 23 Δεκεμβρίου 2018, στο Δημοτικό Κέντρο Άθλησης  & Αναψυχής...

Mate in two (1906) by Frank Moss Bennett Την πρώτη Κυριακή του νέου έτους, 6 Ιανουαρίου 2019 (ώρα 11.30-14.00) θα πραγματοποιηθεί το 6ο Κύπελλο Ελλάδας στη Λύση Σκακιστικών Προβλημάτων. Το Κύπελλο Λύσης έχει πια καθιερωθεί ως θεσμός, παίρνοντας...

Sam Davies wrote a nice article on Monday about how he trains himself with his Dad and where he talked about Black’s f5-f4 plan in Queen’s Gambit Declined. Similarly Black has to achieve either a …e5 or …c5 lever in order to develop his light square bishop and to free his game. This is where … Continue reading "The …c5 Lever in the Queen’s Gambit Declined"

Interview with Mark Lefler and Larry Kaufman

American Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura defeated Frenchman Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the London Chess Classic and Grand Chess Tour Final by the super-slim margin of 15-13 – the win of a single blitz game – after a nail-biting sequence of seven draws. After several rapid and blitz games where the difference between the two players hardly ever [...]

“An exchange sacrifice occurs when one player gives up a rook for a minor piece. It is often used to destroy the enemy pawn structure (…), to establish a minor piece on a strong square (…), to improve one’s own pawn structure (…), or to gain time for development…” Wikipedia Sacrificing material in chess is … Continue reading "The Exchange Sacrifice...

Milunka Lazarević, Woman Grandmaster, journalist, International Arbiter, Honorary FIDE member, passed away on 15th December at the age of 86. She learned to play chess in the family, adding the game to a wide range of high school interests, including acting, guitar, poetry and singing in a choir. Soon she became champion of Novi Sad [...]

Gawain Jones on Monday ensured his victory in the British Knockout Championship with 2 Rapid wins over fellow English GM Luke McShane, taking him to an insurmountable 17-3 lead without any need for points in the Blitz portion of the match. In the first Rapid game, McShane – desperately needing a win to get back [...]