International Chess Federation FIDE announced the FIDE Grand Swiss 2021 to be held from 25th October – 8th November in Isle of the Man. The event will be limited to 164 participants, with 114 players in Open section and 50 players in Women section. Top 100 from the FIDE rating list, together with nine FIDE [...]

In past articles we’ve looked at the importance of preparing your pawns for endgame play. In the remaining articles in this series, we’re going to look at the role the pieces play in endgame preparation. Most beginners first learn Queen and King as well as King and Rook mating patterns. The reason for this is … Continue reading "Preparing for the Endgame Seven" The post...

FIDE President and Russian CF President are campaigning through the state agency TASS to move the 2022 Chess Olympiad from Belarus to Russia. In successive interviews for the Russian agency the two officials are certain that “Russia could host the World Chess Olympiad 2022 instead of Belarus”. “Belarus refused to host the Chess Olympiad in [...]

A tactic that occurs quite often at GM level is the threaten the higher rated player with a draw. This can be especially unpleasant if the rating favourite is Black as playing to win with Black is fraught with risk in such situations. The following game shows how effective this can be, Black playing a … Continue reading "The Threat of a Draw" The post The Threat of a Draw appeared first on...

Έφυγε σήμερα από τη ζωή ο Βύρων Τσορμπατζόγλου, ένας αγαπητός άνθρωπος με πολυετή παρουσία στο ελληνικό σκάκι και με ακάματη προσήλωση και προσφορά στη διατησία τόσο σε ελληνικό όσο και σε διεθνές επίπεδο. Καθώς και...

“A sacrifice is best refuted by accepting it” Wilhelm Steinitz A few of my students continue playing online chess. Their play and results are up and down. They alternate nonchalantly between periods of nice play and inspiration, with others of relaxed and carefree play. One got an opportunity to play over the board in a … Continue reading "Sac Or No Sac? (2)" The post Sac Or No Sac? (2)...

Perhaps you think the Stafford Gambit is too risky: you prefer a quieter life and are happy to trade pieces off and reach an ending. You can still play the Petroff Defence, using a very different psychological weapon that’s also reasonably sound. We’ll start again with 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5. We’ll … Continue reading "Copycat" The post Copycat appeared first on The...

If only all important decisions were decided using the logic and reasoning skills employed in chess. It’s the eve of the presidential election here and a serious crossroads for American democracy. Either way, a Democratic ot Republican win, there’s the potential for some serious civil unrest. In short, I’m frightened for my fellow countrymen and … Continue reading "If...

Δημοσίευση από το δισέλιδο αφιέρωμα στην εφημερίδα «Αυγή» της Κυριακής 1 Νοεμβρίου 2020 στους αγώνες του Ντουμπρόβνικ. Η Ολυμπιάδα του Ντουμπρόβνικ ήταν η πρώτη Ολυμπιάδα που διοργανώθηκε μετά τη λήξη του Β’ Παγκοσμίου...

One of my favourite players is the Ukrainian Grandmaster Oleg Romanishin who shot to stardom in the late 1970s. Although he has never seriously challenged for the World Championship he was recognised as one of the World’s best and most original players for a number of years. Being a fan I borrowed a number of … Continue reading "A Romanishin Speciality" The post A Romanishin...

“Believe in yourself. You are braver than you think, more talented than you know, and capable of more than you imagine.” Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart This past week my students offered me two more positions as good material for this subject. In one hand it is interesting to see them being … Continue reading "Students Analysis (3)" The post Students Analysis (3) appeared first...