The San Miguel Open is a 7-round Swiss tournament taking place from 17-23 September 2018 in Trevias, Spain. Players receive 90 minutes for the entire game, plus a 30-second increment starting from move one. Live game with analysis will be provided daily with the best chess software competing in the Top Chess Engine Championship – [...]

It’s that time again – the Chess.com Isle of Man Chess International starts on 20 October 2018 at the Villa Marina, Douglas, and runs for nine days up to 28 October. Once again the line-up is going to be incredible… … with a couple of exceptions. Last year you will recall one of the key [...]

Here’s a game of my Dad’s which I thought was very well played. His moves were simple and logical and then he finished with a nice sacrifice with 23…Nxg2. Sam Davies

Ο Αχιλλέας Μητσάκος, ένας από τους πιο αγαπητούς ανθρώπους στο ελληνικό σκάκι, έφυγε χτες το βράδυ από τη ζωή σε ηλικία 88 ετών. Η προσφορά του Αχιλλέα Μητσάκου ήταν τεράστια και το κενό που αφήνει δυσαναπλήρωτο...

Back to last season’s games. Game 6 saw our B team facing a much weaker side from Wimbledon. My opponent went badly wrong in the opening and I was able to win in 13 moves. You don’t really want to see that game, though. You do? Oh well, if you insist. 1. e4 e5 2. … Continue reading "2017-18 Season (5)"

The World Junior Championship and World Girls Chess Championship under 20 were an 11-round Swiss open which took place in Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey from 5-15 September 2018. After 10 rounds, the Iranian chess phenom GM Parham Maghsoodloo was nearly perfect! He only lost half point to GM Firouzja. With 1 round to go, he already [...]

Οι προπονήσεις για τη σεζόν 2018-19 θα ξεκινήσουν την Δευτέρα 24 Σεπτεμβρίου. Αναλυτικά το πρόγραμμα θα ανακοινωθεί εντός των επόμενων ημερών. Για οποιαδήποτε πληροφορία μπορείτε να επισκεφθείτε τη έδρα του συλλόγου ή...

Teaching and coaching chess, I see a lot of frustration when it comes to learning the game and it’s not just felt by beginners! Advanced students face the same frustration as beginners, sometimes even more so. Frustration is part of the learning process. No matter how good your teacher or how good a learner you … Continue reading "Be an Optimist"

This was the last round game in my first congress after a long lay off. I was the highest graded player but struggled after pushing too hard in the early rounds for wins that weren’t there and struggling to draw and lose! I’ve used Chess Position Trainer in the past to help me memorise my … Continue reading "Chess Mess – Take the Centre!"

The RG Nezhemetdinov Cup in rapid chess (the Rapid Grand Prix of Russia stage)was held at 12.09 in Kazan. 121 players took part in the tournament. The victory in the tournament was won by the GM Maxim Chigaev (Kemerovo region) with 8,5 points out of 11. Second was GM Timur Gareev (USA) also with 8,5 [...]

Από τον νέο πρόεδρο (εκλεγμένο για τρίτη συνεχόμενη θητεία) της Παγκόσμιας Ομοσπονδίας για Σκακιστική Σύνθεση, Χάρη Φουγιαξή, έχουμε την παρακάτω σύνοψη των γεγονότων του Παγκόσμιου Συνέδριου Σκακιστικής Σύνθεσης 2018...

Here’s a nice video of a young person doing some chess hustling in Washington Square Garden. I can’t say I particularly approve of this kind of thing though it was showcased in the movie about Josh Waitzkin, Searching for Bobby Fischer. On the other hand I am interested in his Dad’s home schooling program. On … Continue reading "Chess Hustling for Kids"

The Satka Autumn Russian Cup Women is a 9-round Swiss tournament taking place from 11-19 September 2018 in Satka, Russia. Players receive 90 minutes for 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes to the end of the game, plus a 30-second increment starting from move one. Live game with analysis will be provided daily with the [...]

When you retreat a piece without being forced to, in most cases the idea is to reposition the piece. An example is in the Breyer variation of Ruy Lopez in which Black plays 9…Nc6-b8 in order to bring it to a better square on d7. Often you will notice that people overlook retreats in complex … Continue reading "Strategic Retreats"

The 5th Anogia “Fischer Memorial” GM-norm tournament is held from 11-19 September 2018 in Anogia, Crete, Greece. The tournament is part of the Heraklion IT Grand Prix, which is in its 8th year, and is part of a series of closed norm tournaments. It is a 10-player invitational round-robin event. Players receive 90 minutes for [...]