30 June 2010
Hello Everybody,
Chess is one sport where you can analyze your mistake at every step! In the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2010 fans say England lost to Germany and Mexico to Argentina after two controversial referee decisions! What if both Mexico and Germany knew how to remain calm?
In an interview to Big Think Karpov spoke about remaining calm even after making a poor move and other interesting concepts.
Question: How do you remain calm after you realize you’ve made a poor move?Anatoly Karpov: No, this is a very important and this is good question because many people would call back the situation, they missed chances, and then of course it will spoil the rest of the game. But it is concerning not only special situation during the game, but also the bad result of previous game for the next game you play. So, in my life, I tried and I succeeded in many cases to forget everything that was in the past.So, of course you need to make some analysis and not to repeat mistakes, but it’s extremely important to accept situation like it is, the real situation, not with thoughts of regrets of what you missed and okay, two moves ago you had winning position now, you have to defend a difficult position and probably you might lose the game. So, this thought shouldn’t be when you play chess game. And so later on maybe you analyze and then you will, how to say, make some conclusions.But during the game… and this is also very important part for chess education because chess is getting ideas how to accept the real situation and how to be objective. To be objective and to meet unexpected situations and to adapt to this immediately and to start to think and to solve the problems. You have to develop this. I don’t think it comes from your childhood or with birth.”
So, what if Mexico and England had kept their calm instead of letting a controversial decision disturb their stability?
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
30 June 2010
Hi Everyone,
World Champion Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand says chess helps children improve at academics. The World Champion also said chess must be introduced at the junior level in schools. Anand added, chess helps build concentration and helps students strategise more.
Meanwhile, Anand is taking a break from chess, after defending the world title. He’s watching the 2010 FIFA Football World Cup on the television every day! And, he’s rooting for Spain because it’s his “second home”. You can read the full interview with Anand here.
And, speaking of Anand, here is the last and final game from Anand and Topalov’s World Championship Match just a few weeks ago. Do you remember it? Possibly, the 34. … Qe8 will go down as the most well-known Queen retreat in modern chess history!
PGN: 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. Rc1 c6 10. Be2 Nxc3 11. Rxc3 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Nd7 13. O-O b6 14. Bd3 c5 15. Be4 Rb8 16. Qc2 Nf6 17. dxc5 Nxe4 18. Qxe4 bxc5 19. Qc2 Bb7 20. Nd2 Rfd8 21. f3 Ba6 22. Rf2 Rd7 23. g3 Rbd8 24. Kg2 Bd3 25. Qc1 Ba6 26. Ra3 Bb7 27. Nb3 Rc7 28. Na5 Ba8 29. Nc4 e5 30. e4 f5 31. exf5 e4 32. fxe4 Qxe4+ 33. Kh3 Rd4 34. Ne3 Qe8 35. g4 h5 36. Kh4 g5+ 37. fxg6 Qxg6 38. Qf1 Rxg4+ 39. Kh3 Re7 40. Rf8+ Kg7 41. Nf5+ Kh7 42. Rg3 Rxg3+ 43. hxg3 Qg4+ 44. Kh2 Re2+ 45. Kg1 Rg2+ 46. Qxg2 Bxg2 47. Kxg2 Qe2+ 48. Kh3 c4 49. a4 a5 50. Rf6 Kg8 51. Nh6+ Kg7 52. Rb6 Qe4 53. Kh2 Kh7 54. Rd6 Qe5 55. Nf7 Qxb2+ 56. Kh3 Qg7 0-1
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
30 June 2010
Introduction, Alphonse dictating the book
Hello Everyone,
An important historical source of information about chess and other indoor diversions, this beautifully illustrated manuscript of 98 leaves was completed in 1283 by order of Alfonso The Wise (1221-84), King of Castile and Leon.
The first of the seven parts is devoted wholly to chess, and contains 103 problems both Arabic and European. The fourth part contains 14 fairy problems and descriptions of several unorthodox games, including forms of great chess and must capture chess. Two significant departures from the laws of Shatranj are noted.
– The Oxford Companion to Chess,
by David Hooper & Kenneth Whyld
There is very little matter available on the manuscript but you can check this interesting and painstakingly built website – possibly the only one on the Internet – for more information about the Alfonso MS.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s www.chessblog.com
30 June 2010
The special table made for Fischer-Spassky
1972 World Chess Championship match.
Hello Everyone!
Every chess lover knows about the hype surrounding the 1972 World Chess Championship between Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky. It was a key time in chess history. The match was played not only with special chess sets but also special tables that were made-to-order specially for the match. Three tables were made for the historic match.
According to The New York Times, one of those tables is now up for sale! The owner of this table is 77 years old. Both Fischer and Spassky had signed the tables. The Match Organizing Committee chairman is also willing to certify that the table up for sale is authentic.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also read her personal blog at
30 June 2010
Lilit Mkrtchian now in second spot at Grand Prix.
Hello Everyone!
Grandmaster Nana Dzagnidze is sailing strong and bright at the Jermuk Women’s Chess Grand Prix-2010. In the sixth round she maintained her lead by beating Tatiana Kosintseva. Kosintseva was in second spot behind Dzagnidze in the fifth round.
Meanwhile, IM Lilit Mkrtchian beat GM Maia Chiburdanidze to jump to second spot behind Nana. In the other rounds WGM Shen Yang beat Fierro Baquero Martha L. Fierro is yet to score any points in the Grand Prix.
GM Xu Yuhua also beat WGM Kovanova Baira and GM Hou Yifan beat GM Pia Cramling. GM Antoaneta Stefanova also beat IM Elina Danielian making it an all-White-win day at the Grand Prix.
Round 6 results
——————–
- IM Mkrtchian Lilit-GM Chiburdanidze Maia 1-0
- GM Dzagnidze Nana-GM Kosintseva Tatiana 1-0
- WGM Shen Yang-Fierro Baquero Martha L 1-0
- GM Xu Yuhua-WGM Kovanova Baira 1-0
- GM Hou Yifan-GM Cramling Pia 1-0
- GM Stefanova Antoaneta-IM Danielian Elina 1-0
Standings after Round 6
——————————–
1. GM Dzagnidze Nana 2478 GEO 5½
2. IM Mkrtchian Lilit 2477 ARM 4½
3. GM Kosintseva Tatiana 2534 RUS 4
4. WGMShen Yang 2452 CHN 3½
5. GM Hou Yifan 2589 CHN 3½
6. GM Stefanova Antoaneta 2560 BUL 3
7. IM Danielian Elina 2473 ARM 3
8. GM Xu Yuhua 2484 CHN 3
9. GM Chiburdanidze Maia 2514 GEO 2½
10. GM Cramling Pia 2536 SWE 2
11. WGMKovanova Baira 2366 RUS 1½
12. IM Fierro B. Martha L 2363 ECU 0
You can check the tournament website for interviews and other updates. You can see key moments in all the games here.
Here are the games from the top two boards. You can run them in our pgnplayer or watch in flash below.
PGN: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Nge2 d5 6. a3 Be7 7. cxd5 exd5 8. g3 a5 9. Bg2 Na6 10. O-O Re8 11. f3 c5 12. Bd2 b6 13. Be1 Nc7 14. Bf2 Ba6 15. Qd2 cxd4 16. exd4 Bf8 17. Rfe1 Ne6 18. Nc1 b5 19. Nd3 b4 20. Na4 bxa3 21. bxa3 Bb5 22. Nc3 Ba6 23. Ne5 Qd6 24. f4 Nc7 25. Qa2 Rad8 26. Na4 Nd7 27. Rac1 Bb5 28. Nc5 Nxc5 29. Rxc5 Bc4 30. Qd2 Qb6 31. Nxc4 Rxe1+ 32. Qxe1 dxc4 33. Rc6 Qa7 34. d5 Qb8 35. Bb6 Re8 36. Qxa5 Na8 37. Bf2 Qb3 38. Ra6 c3 39. Rc6 Qd1+ 40. Bf1 c2 41. Qc3 Re2 42. d6 Nb6 43. Bxb6 Re1 44. Qxe1 Qxe1 45. d7 c1=Q 46. Rxc1 Qxc1 47. d8=Q Qxa3 48. Qd5 Qc1 49. Kg2 Qc2+ 50. Bf2 Qc7 51. Bc4 1-0
PGN: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qc2 Nbd7 11. e4 Bxf1 12. Kxf1 Qc8 13. Qc6 e5 14. Ne2 exd4 15. Nxd4 Ne5 16. Qc2 Qa6+ 17. Kg1 Rad8 18. f3 c5 19. Nf5 Qc4 20. Qb1 Rd3 21. Rf1 Rb3 22. Bxf6 gxf6 23. Qe1 Rxb2 24. Qg3+ Ng6 25. h4 h5 26. Rd1 Kh7 27. Kh2 Rg8 28. Ne3 Qe6 29. Rd5 Ne5 30. Qf4 c4 31. Rg1 c3 32. Rc1 Rb3 33. Nf5 Rg6 34. Nd4 Qxd5 35. exd5 Nd3 36. Qc7 1-0
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
29 June 2010
Can you recognize this chess player? And, where was this photo taken?
This person has played chess for 50 cents a game at Sixth Avenue, New York, during hard times. He later started playing chess for a dollar a game at an arcade.
—————- Another hint ——————-
If you still cannot guess then we must tell you that he was also on the cover of Chess Review magazine once and was doing very well in another industry before the Depression of 1929!
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
29 June 2010
Hello Everyone!
What if while playing online with your opponent, thousands of miles away, you could still play via a chessboard instead of a computer screen? That’s possible nowadays with several digital boards available in the market. But, the problem is, you still have to move your opponent’s pieces!
So, how about a chess robotic arm to take care of your opponent’s moves? We found this nice video on the Internet.
There have been different types of chess robots developed over the last three decades. Chessbot, as shown in the video, uses a Lynxmotion AL5D robotic arm to pick up and move pieces. The arm is mounted on a mobile platform that aligns it perfectlay to any square on the board.
Of course, ChessBot does not understand the game of Chess and is only a mechanical user interface that does what it is told – by a human or chess engine interface!
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
29 June 2010
Tatiana Kosintseva
Hello Everyone!
There were only two draws during the fifth round at the Jermuk Women’s Grand Prix Chess Tournament-2010 Both Nana Dzagnidze and Tatiana Kosintseva won their games to stay steady in the number 1 and 2 spots. Kosintseva beat the veteran Maia Chiburdanidze while Dzagnidze beat Fierro.
The Jermuk Grand Prix is also being held in celebration of the 00th anniversary of the famous chess composer Genrikh Kasparian.
Genrikh Kasparyan, born in Tbilisi, Armenia, is considered to have been one of the greatest composers of chess endgame studies. Kasparyan was also an active chess player, winning the Armenian championship ten times (from 1934 to 1956, including two ties with future World Champion Tigran Petrosian) and the Tiflis championship three times (1931, 1937, 1945).
The results of 5th round games
————————————
- Kosintseva – Chiburdanidze 1-0
- Stefanova – Mkrtchian 0-1
- Fierro – Dzagnidze 0-1
- Kovanova – Yang 0-1
- Danielian – Yifan 1/2-1/2
- Cramling – Yuhua 1/2-1/2
Standings after 5 rounds
—————————–
1. GM Dzagnidze Nana 2478 GEO 4½
2. GM Kosintseva Tatiana 2534 RUS 4
3. IM Mkrtchian Lilit 2477 ARM 3½
4. IM Danielian Elina 2473 ARM 3
5. WGM Shen Yang 2452 CHN 2½
6. GM Hou Yifan 2589 CHN 2½
7. GM Chiburdanidze Maia 2514 GEO 2½
8. GM Stefanova Antoaneta 2560 BUL 2
9. GM Cramling Pia 2536 SWE 2
10. GM Xu Yuhua 2484 CHN 2
11. WGM Kovanova Baira 2366 RUS 1½
12. IM Fierro B. Martha L 2363 ECU 0
You can see the key moments in all the games here. Meanwhile, here is the game between Kosintseva and Chiburdanidze. You can run it in our pgnplayer or watch the flash below.
PGN: 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. Nf3 e6 5. Be2 Ne7 6. O-O Bg6 7. Nbd2 Nf5 8. Nb3 Nd7 9. a4 Be7 10. a5 O-O 11. g4 Nh4 12. Nxh4 Bxh4 13. f4 f6 14. Be3 Qe7 15. exf6 Nxf6 16. Nd2 h6 17. Nf3 Nh7 18. Ne5 Be8 19. Bd3 g5 20. f5 Rf6 21. Qd2 Qg7 22. Rf3 Nf8 23. Raf1 Rd8 24. c3 a6 25. fxe6 Rxf3 26. Nxf3 Ng6 27. Bf5 Qe7 28.
b4 Rd6 29. Ne5 Nf8 30. Nf3 Ng6 31. Qe2 Rxe6 32. Bxe6+ Qxe6 33. Ne5 Kh7 34. Qf3 Ne7 35. Qf8 Ng6 36. Qf5 Qxf5 37. gxf5 Nf8 38. Kg2 Bh5 39. Bf2 Bxf2 40. Rxf2 Kg7 41. f6+ Kg8 42. Nd3 Ne6 43. Nc5 Nf4+ 44. Kf1 Bg4 45. h4 Kf7 46. hxg5 hxg5 47. Nxb7 Bh3+ 48. Kg1 Kxf6 49. Nc5 Bc8 50. Nd3 Kf5 51. Nxf4 gxf4 52. Re2 1-0 From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
28 June 2010
The second qualification internet tournament for the upcoming Women’s World Blitz Championship took place on June 24th on the Playchess Server. The first 5 players are qualified for the Semi-finals in Moscow, you can see them in the table below.
See you all in Moscow for the semi-finals and finals of this great event! You can read the official FIDE tournament regulations for the Women’s Blitz World Championship.
Here are the full results of the first qualification tournament:
—————–
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | |||||||
| 1 | Munkhchuluun | 2440 | + 1/21 | + 1/47 | – 1/31 | – 1/7 | + ½/3 | – 0/2 | + 1/9 | + 0/5 | – 1/10 | – 1/13 | + 1/29 | – 1/4 | + 1/6 | + 1/14 | – 1/8 | – 1/15 | + ½/11 | 14.0 / 17 | |||
| 2 | Irina Krush | 2390 | – 1/18 | + 1/23 | – 1/28 | + ½/29 | – 1/5 | + 1/1 | – ½/7 | – ½/3 | + 0/4 | + 1/9 | – 1/12 | – ½/8 | + 1/19 | + 1/13 | – ½/6 | + 1/10 | + 1/15 | 13.5 / 17 | 171.00 | ||
| 3 | Sourisblanche | 2644 | – 1/32 | – 1/40 | + ½/9 | + 1/12 | – ½/1 | + ½/4 | – 1/29 | + ½/2 | – 1/5 | + ½/7 | + 1/6 | – 1/13 | + ½/8 | – 1/15 | + 1/10 | – ½/11 | + 1/14 | 13.5 / 17 | 169.00 | ||
| 4 | S-Gvetadze | – 1/43 | – 1/51 | + 0/5 | – 1/6 | + 1/8 | – ½/3 | + 1/42 | + 1/7 | – 1/2 | – 0/29 | + 1/9 | + 0/1 | – 1/12 | + 1/11 | – 1/14 | + 1/13 | – 1/20 | 13.5 / 17 | 154.50 | |||
| 5 | Marichka | 2733 | + 1/30 | + 0/9 | – 1/4 | – 1/33 | + 0/2 | – 1/25 | + 1/6 | – 1/1 | + 0/3 | – 1/24 | + 0/13 | – 1/7 | – 0/14 | + 1/29 | – 1/23 | + 1/18 | – ½/8 | 11.5 / 17 | |||
| 6 | Tan_tan | 2226 | – 1/34 | – 1/27 | + 0/7 | + 0/4 | – 1/23 | + 1/13 | – 0/5 | – 1/16 | + ½/12 | + 1/10 | – 0/3 | + 1/29 | – 0/1 | – 1/19 | + ½/2 | – 1/9 | + 1/18 | 11.0 / 17 | |||
| 7 | Belusi | 2673 | + 1/38 | – 1/10 | – 1/6 | + 0/1 | + 1/44 | – 1/14 | + ½/2 | – 0/4 | + ½/29 | – ½/3 | – ½/18 | + 0/5 | – 0/9 | + ½/23 | + 1/21 | – 1/17 | – 1/13 | 10.5 / 17 | |||
| 8 | Odontuya | + 0/40 | – 1/38 | + 1/10 | – 1/19 | – 0/4 | + 1/26 | + 0/11 | – 1/25 | + 0/13 | – 1/14 | – 1/15 | + ½/2 | – ½/3 | + ½/9 | + 0/1 | – 1/23 | + ½/5 | 10.0 / 17 | ||||
| 9 | Chess gigant | 2143 | + 1/22 | – 1/5 | – ½/3 | + 1/42 | – ½/29 | + ½/12 | – 0/1 | + 1/11 | + 1/14 | – 0/2 | – 0/4 | + 1/10 | + 1/7 | – ½/8 | – 0/13 | + 0/6 | – ½/19 | 9.5 / 17 | 173.50 | ||
| 10 | Lemon-tree | 2067 | – 1/53 | + 0/7 | – 0/8 | + 1/34 | + 1/15 | – ½/11 | – 1/19 | + 1/23 | + 0/1 | – 0/6 | + 1/24 | – 0/9 | + 1/18 | + 1/12 | – 0/3 | – 0/2 | + 1/25 | 9.5 / 17 | 158.00 | ||
| 11 | VCmilyte | 2322 | – 0/23 | + 1/18 | – 1/36 | + 0/13 | – 1/30 | + ½/10 | – 1/8 | – 0/9 | + 0/24 | – ½/31 | + ½/20 | – 1/38 | + 1/25 | – 0/4 | + 1/12 | + ½/3 | – ½/1 | 9.5 / 17 | 157.00 | ||
| 12 | Meenakshi | + 1/33 | – 1/26 | + 1/44 | – 0/3 | + ½/20 | – ½/9 | + 0/14 | – 1/42 | – ½/6 | + 1/23 | + 0/2 | – 1/18 | + 0/4 | – 0/10 | – 0/11 | + 1/30 | – 1/22 | 9.5 / 17 | 152.50 | |||
| 13 | Joasia | 2093 | – 1/16 | + 1/42 | + 0/29 | – 1/11 | + 0/14 | – 0/6 | + 1/18 | – 1/33 | – 1/8 | + 0/1 | – 1/5 | + 0/3 | + 1/20 | – 0/2 | + 1/9 | – 0/4 | + 0/7 | 9.0 / 17 | 171.00 | ||
| 14 | Deimante | 2332 | + 1/35 | – 0/31 | + 1/40 | + 1/25 | – 1/13 | + 0/7 | – 1/12 | + 0/29 | – 0/9 | + 0/8 | – 1/39 | – 1/16 | + 1/5 | – 0/1 | + 0/4 | + 1/19 | – 0/3 | 9.0 / 17 | 160.00 | ||
| 15 | Vimeba | + 1/32 | – 0/19 | + 1/37 | – 0/10 | – 0/18 | + 1/45 | – 1/30 | + 1/26 | – 1/16 | + 0/8 | + 1/31 | – 1/29 | + 0/3 | – 1/17 | + 0/1 | – 0/2 | 9.0 / 16 | 141.00 | ||||
| 16 | Goldenheart | + 0/13 | – 1/37 | + 0/33 | – 1/36 | + 0/19 | – 1/30 | – 1/43 | + 0/6 | – 1/25 | + 0/15 | – 1/26 | + 0/14 | – 0/17 | + 1/39 | + 0/22 | – 1/24 | + 1/23 | 9.0 / 17 | 133.50 | |||
| 17 | Evelyn Moncayo | + 1/50 | + 0/32 | – 1/49 | + 1/34 | – 1/26 | – 0/24 | + 1/39 | + 0/18 | – 0/25 | – 1/35 | + 1/16 | – 1/20 | + 0/15 | + 0/7 | – 1/37 | 9.0 / 15 | 104.50 | |||||
| 18 | Baya | 1792 | + 0/2 | – 0/11 | + 1/22 | – 1/43 | – 0/42 | + 1/15 | – 0/13 | + 1/36 | + 1/33 | – 1/17 | + ½/7 | + 0/12 | – 0/10 | – 1/24 | + 1/29 | – 0/5 | – 0/6 | 8.5 / 17 | 148.00 | ||
| 19 | Ana Matnadze | 2449 | – 0/47 | – ½/21 | + 1/15 | + 0/8 | – 1/16 | – 1/32 | + 0/10 | – 0/31 | + 1/22 | + ½/20 | – 1/23 | + 1/25 | – 0/2 | + 0/6 | + 1/28 | – 0/14 | + ½/9 | 8.5 / 17 | 145.00 | ||
| 20 | TheQueen | 2321 | + 1/49 | + 0/28 | – 1/30 | + 1/31 | – ½/12 | + 0/29 | – 0/23 | – 1/22 | + 0/42 | – ½/19 | – ½/11 | + 1/24 | – 0/13 | + 0/17 | – 1/25 | – 1/21 | + 0/4 | 8.5 / 17 | 135.00 | 2234.00 | |
| 21 | WIM from VT | 1836 | – 0/1 | + ½/19 | – ½/24 | + ½/39 | – 0/26 | – 0/22 | + ½/37 | + 1/35 | – 0/36 | – 1/41 | + 1/30 | + ½/34 | – 1/31 | + 1/33 | – 0/7 | + 0/20 | – 1/27 | 8.5 / 17 | 135.00 | 2172.00 | |
| 22 | Tipitip | – 0/9 | + 0/30 | – 0/18 | + ½/49 | – 1/35 | + 1/21 | – 1/34 | + 0/20 | – 0/19 | + ½/26 | + ½/32 | – 1/27 | – 0/33 | + 1/38 | – 1/16 | – 1/29 | + 0/12 | 8.5 / 17 | 127.50 | |||
| 23 | GliGlu | 1737 | + 1/11 | – 0/2 | + ½/26 | – 1/38 | + 0/6 | – 1/24 | + 1/20 | – 0/10 | + 1/31 | – 0/12 | + 0/19 | + 1/33 | – 1/39 | – ½/7 | + 0/5 | + 0/8 | – 0/16 | 8.0 / 17 | 154.00 | ||
| 24 | Helenak5 | 2150 | – 0/28 | – ½/35 | + ½/21 | – 1/26 | + ½/31 | + 0/23 | – 1/32 | + 1/17 | – 1/11 | + 0/5 | – 0/10 | – 0/20 | + 1/38 | + 0/18 | – ½/27 | + 0/16 | – 1/34 | 8.0 / 17 | 140.50 | ||
| 25 | Sanda81 | 2099 | + 0/41 | – 1/45 | + 1/27 | – 0/14 | – 1/28 | + 0/5 | – 1/38 | + 0/8 | + 0/16 | – 1/36 | + 1/17 | – 0/19 | – 0/11 | + 1/30 | + 0/20 | – 1/39 | – 0/10 | 8.0 / 17 | 135.00 | ||
| 26 | Arevik | 2295 | – 1/52 | + 0/12 | – ½/23 | + 0/24 | + 1/21 | – 0/8 | + 0/17 | + 1/32 | – 0/15 | – ½/22 | + 0/16 | + 0/28 | – 1/41 | – 1/34 | + ½/39 | – ½/37 | – 1/31 | 8.0 / 17 | 127.50 | ||
| 27 | Lenna | – 1/39 | + 0/6 | – 0/25 | + 0/30 | – 1/37 | + 0/38 | – 0/36 | + ½/34 | – 0/35 | – 1/45 | + 1/41 | + 0/22 | – 1/32 | + 1/31 | + ½/24 | – 1/28 | + 0/21 | 8.0 / 17 | 121.50 | |||
| 28 | SuRpRiSoNA | 1547 | + 1/24 | – 1/20 | + 0/2 | – 0/44 | + 0/25 | – 0/31 | + 0/39 | – 1/45 | + 0/30 | – 1/40 | + 0/36 | – 1/26 | + 1/35 | + 1/37 | – 0/19 | + 0/27 | + 1/38 | 8.0 / 17 | 121.00 | ||
| 29 | Pourkashiyan | 2456 | + 1/51 | + 1/36 | – 1/13 | – ½/2 | + ½/9 | – 1/20 | + 0/3 | – 1/14 | – ½/7 | + 1/4 | – 0/1 | – 0/6 | + 0/15 | – 0/5 | – 0/18 | + 0/22 | 7.5 / 16 | ||||
| 30 | Chessyeti | 1976 | – 0/5 | – 1/22 | + 0/20 | – 1/27 | + 0/11 | + 0/16 | – 1/41 | + 0/15 | – 1/28 | + 0/39 | – 0/21 | – 1/32 | + 1/36 | – 0/25 | + 1/33 | – 0/12 | + 0/40 | 7.0 / 17 | 136.50 | ||
| 31 | SU131276 | 1557 | – 1/54 | + 1/14 | + 0/1 | – 0/20 | – ½/24 | + 1/28 | – 0/33 | + 1/19 | – 0/23 | + ½/11 | + ½/38 | – 0/15 | + 0/21 | – 0/27 | + ½/40 | – 1/32 | + 0/26 | 7.0 / 17 | 133.00 | ||
| 32 | Kharmunova | 1882 | + 0/3 | – 0/15 | + ½/45 | – 1/17 | – 1/39 | + 0/19 | + 0/24 | – 0/26 | – 0/34 | + 1/37 | – ½/22 | + 0/30 | + 0/27 | – 1/40 | + 1/41 | + 0/31 | – 1/33 | 7.0 / 17 | 127.00 | ||
| 33 | Siranush | 2133 | – 0/12 | + 1/52 | – 1/16 | + 0/5 | + 1/41 | – 0/42 | + 1/31 | + 0/13 | – 0/18 | – 0/38 | + 1/35 | – 0/23 | + 1/22 | – 0/21 | – 0/30 | + 1/40 | + 0/32 | 7.0 / 17 | 123.00 | ||
| 34 | Lupita | 1666 | + 0/6 | – 0/43 | + 1/51 | – 0/10 | + 1/36 | – 0/17 | + 0/22 | – ½/27 | + 1/32 | – 0/35 | + 1/40 | – ½/21 | – 0/37 | + 0/26 | + 1/50 | – 1/38 | + 0/24 | 7.0 / 17 | 113.50 | ||
| 35 | Anitah | 1747 | – 0/14 | + ½/24 | + 0/39 | – 0/45 | + 0/22 | – 1/37 | + 1/40 | – 0/21 | + 1/27 | + 1/34 | – 0/33 | + 0/17 | – 0/28 | + 1/36 | – 0/38 | – ½/41 | + 1/50 | 7.0 / 17 | 113.00 | ||
| 36 | Chessgirls | 1985 | + 1/55 | – 0/29 | + 0/11 | + 0/16 | – 0/34 | – 1/40 | + 1/27 | – 0/18 | + 1/21 | + 0/25 | – 1/28 | + 0/39 | – 0/30 | – 0/35 | + 0/37 | + 1/50 | – 1/41 | 7.0 / 17 | 112.50 | ||
| 37 | yanjaa | 1966 | + 0/42 | + 0/16 | – 1/49 | – 0/15 | + 0/27 | + 0/35 | – ½/21 | + 0/41 | – 1/48 | – 0/32 | + 1/45 | – 1/40 | + 1/34 | – 0/28 | – 1/36 | + ½/26 | + 0/17 | 7.0 / 17 | 107.00 | ||
| 38 | lilaDragon | 1962 | – 0/7 | + 0/8 | – 1/52 | + 0/23 | – 1/40 | – 1/27 | + 0/25 | – 0/39 | + 1/41 | + 1/33 | – ½/31 | + 0/11 | – 0/24 | – 0/22 | + 1/35 | + 0/34 | – 0/28 | 6.5 / 17 | 124.00 | ||
| 39 | Anna Sharevich | 2090 | + 0/27 | – 1/35 | – ½/21 | + 0/32 | + ½/45 | – 1/28 | + 1/38 | – 0/17 | – 1/30 | + 0/14 | – 1/36 | + 0/23 | – 0/16 | – ½/26 | + 0/25 | 6.5 / 15 | 112.00 | ||||
| 40 | Merry Poppies | 2016 | – 1/8 | + 0/3 | – 0/14 | – 0/41 | + 0/38 | + 0/36 | – 0/35 | – 1/48 | + 1/45 | + 0/28 | – 0/34 | + 0/37 | + 1/50 | + 0/32 | – ½/31 | – 0/33 | – 1/30 | 5.5 / 17 | 111.50 | ||
| 41 | Nicobeni2010 | – 1/25 | + 0/44 | – 0/46 | + 1/40 | – 0/33 | + 0/43 | + 0/30 | – 1/37 | – 0/38 | + 0/21 | – 0/27 | – 1/45 | + 0/26 | + 1/50 | – 0/32 | + ½/35 | + 0/36 | 5.5 / 17 | 96.50 | |||
| 42 | H. Dronavalli | 2705 | – 1/37 | – 0/13 | + 1/43 | – 0/9 | + 1/18 | + 1/33 | – 0/4 | + 0/12 | – 1/20 | 5.0 / 9 | |||||||||||
| 43 | YanFong | 2058 | + 0/4 | + 1/34 | – 0/42 | + 0/18 | – 1/45 | – 1/41 | + 0/16 | 3.0 / 7 | 50.50 | ||||||||||||
| 44 | Enkhtuul | 2281 | + 1/45 | – 1/41 | – 0/12 | + 1/28 | – 0/7 | 3.0 / 5 | 35.50 | ||||||||||||||
| 45 | Hausfrau | 1704 | – 0/44 | + 0/25 | – ½/32 | + 1/35 | + 0/43 | – ½/39 | – 0/15 | + 0/28 | – 0/40 | + 0/27 | – 0/37 | + 0/41 | 2.0 / 12 | 77.50 | |||||||
| 46 | Gubancs | 2142 | – 1/49 | + 1/41 | 2.0 / 2 | 6.00 | |||||||||||||||||
| 47 | Barisovic2 | 1845 | + 1/19 | – 0/1 | 1.0 / 2 | 22.50 | |||||||||||||||||
| 48 | Sima-bina | + 1/50 | + 0/40 | + 0/37 | 1.0 / 3 | 12.50 | |||||||||||||||||
| 49 | Bjk_çarþý | 1726 | – 0/20 | + 0/46 | + 0/37 | – ½/22 | + 0/17 | 0.5 / 5 | |||||||||||||||
| 50 | (Bye) | – 0/17 | – 0/48 | – 0/40 | – 0/41 | – 0/34 | – 0/36 | – 0/35 | 0.0 / 7 | 42.00 | |||||||||||||
| 51 | Kimberly Ann P | 1869 | – 0/29 | + 0/4 | – 0/34 | 0.0 / 3 | 28.00 | ||||||||||||||||
| 52 | Buji | 1704 | + 0/26 | – 0/33 | + 0/38 | 0.0 / 3 | 21.50 | ||||||||||||||||
| 53 | Selfishplayer | + 0/10 | 0.0 / 1 | 9.50 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 54 | Sabrina7 | 2166 | + 0/31 | 0.0 / 1 | 7.00 | 133.00 | |||||||||||||||||
| 55 | Ponting | – 0/36 | 0.0 / 1 | 7.00 | 112.50 | ||||||||||||||||||
Posted by Alexandra Kosteniuk
Women’s World Chess Champion
28 June 2010
Hello Everyone!
Sometimes, you make a move without being too sure. Certainly, a bad plan is better than no plan at all. But if you practice enough, you will be able to come up with good planning in your middlegame.
Look at the following puzzle and decide which would be the best move for White.
Position after 23. … Ke8
Make an assessment of the position and see which of the following plans is the best.
- Black’s Queenside pawn weakness is compensated by the advantage of double Bishops. There is no way of making real progress but 24. Qf2 looks nice as Black must guard his isolated c-pawn.
- An infiltration on d6 with the Bishop is possible so 24. Bf4 seems most logical. In this way White can get rid of one of Black’s Bishops and then focus on the isolated pawns.
- Black is all tied up in protecting his pawns on the Queenside. So, White can run his Knight to a better position in the centre or on the Kingside by 24. Nc3.
- White’s advantage is his Queenside pawn majority so he should try and create a passed pawn. The best strategy is to go for 24. a3.
- White has a good Queenside infiltration possible via b6 square so why not begin by Qa5?
—— Think a little before looking at the answer ——–
Black does have the two Bishops but the f3 pawn is holding up against any attack on the b7-g2 diagonal. Exchanging one of the Bishops would significantly expose Black’s weakness of pawns on the Queenside so, the exchanging of the Bishops seems the best possible option in this situation. This is how the game proceeded.
Hector-Timman, Malmo, 2003
24. Bf4 Bf8
25. h4 Be7
26. h5 f6?!
27. Bd6 e5
28. Nxc5 Bxd6
29. Nxb7 Be7
30. Nd6+ Bxd6
31. Rxd6 Qb7
32. Qa5 Qa7+
33. Qb6 1-0
Hope you enjoyed this nice middlegame study.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
28 June 2010
A photo from one of the chess shops in New York.
Hello Everybody!
New York has two such stores – the Village Chess Shop and the Chess Forum – which are just yards away from each other on Thompson Street in Greenwich Village. But the owners of the shops are not ‘delighted’. You can read an interesting tale about their ‘match’ in The Wall Street Journal.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
28 June 2010
Hello Everyone!
You must be knowing your 1.e4 and 1. d4 openings but do you roll your eyes when your opponent starts off with something like 1.b4 or 1.g4?
Do you know the answers to the following questions?
1. Which opening move characterizes the Grob opening or Grob’s Attack?
2. What is Benko’s Opening?
3. What is the Encyclopedia of Chess Openings (ECO) designation for irregular openings?
4. Which opening is more commonly known as the Dunst Opening?
5. Which of the following is a name for 1.h4?
Check your knowledge of unusual openings in an interesting quiz we found here. The questions are fun to answer.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
28 June 2010
Hello Everyone!
It’s funny when you search for “chess” on Google, or even Twitter or Facebook, you’d be surprised, quite often you get results not about our favorite game, but about the “Chess – The musical”! I bet you’ve heard the theme of the musical “One Night in Bangkok” (see below for a YouTube version of it).
Have you seen Chess – The musical? It has now been running for 25 years! Lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, formerly of ABBA, have made Chess as one of the most popular musicals ever.
Chess came seventh in a BBC Radio 2 listeners’ poll of the United Kingdom’s ‘Number One Essential Musicals’.
The story of the Musical is a romantic triangle. It involves two chess players. The woman who manages one player falls in love with the other. You can read more details about the Musical at wikipedia. There is also a nice article about the musical here.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also read her personal blog at
28 June 2010
Nana Dzagnidze
Hi Everybody!
Twenty three-year-old Grandmaster Nana Dzagnidze of Georgia has pulled ahead with a half point lead at the Women’s Grand Prix-2010 being held in Jermuk, Armenia. She won the first three games and drew the fourth-round game on Sunday.
Dzagnidze is closely followed by GM Tatiana Kosintseva. Tatiana’s sister, IM Nadezhda, is assisting her at the tournament.
Meanwhile, 16-year-old talented Chinese player, Hou Yifan, who lost her first two games seems to have got over her disappointing start with two straight wins.
Round 4 results
———————
———————
- Mkrtchian Lilit – Kosintseva Tatiana ½ – ½
- Chiburdanidze Maia – Fierro Martha 1-0
- Dzagnidze Nana – Kovanova Baira 1-0
- Shen Yang – Cramling Pia ½ – ½
- Xu Yuhua – Danielian Elina ½ – ½
- Hou Yifan – Stefanova Antoaneta 1-0
Standings after 4 rounds
———————————
———————————
1. GM Dzagnidze Nana 2478 GEO 3½
2. GM Kosintseva Tatiana 2534 RUS 3
3. IM Danielian Elina 2473 ARM 2½
4. IM Mkrtchian Lilit 2477 ARM 2½
5. GM Chiburdanidze Maia 2514 GEO 2½
6. GM Hou Yifan 2589 CHN 2
7. GM Stefanova Antoaneta 2560 BUL 2
8. GM Cramling Pia 2536 SWE 1½€‹
9. WGM Shen Yang 2452 CHN 1½€‹
10. GM Xu Yuhua 2484 CHN 1½
11. WGM Kovanova Baira 2366 RUS 1½
12. IM Fierro Baquero M. L 2363 ECU 0
Here is the game in which Hou Yifan destroyed former World Champion Antoaneta Stefanova’s Caro Kann in a sharp struggle during the 4th round.
PGN: 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. f3 g6 4. Nc3 Bg7 5. Be3 Qb6 6. Rb1 e5 7. Nge2 Ne7 8. Bf2 Qa5 9. dxe5 Bxe5 10. Bh4 dxe4 11. b4 Qc7 12. Nxe4 O-O 13. Bf6 Nd5 14. Bxe5 Qxe5 15. Qd4 Qxd4 16. Nxd4 Rd8 17. Kf2 b5 18. Ne2 a5 19. bxa5 Bf5 20. Rd1 Nd7 21. N2g3 Bxe4 22. fxe4 Nc3 23. Rd3 b4 24. a3 c5 25. axb4 cxb4 26. Be2 Rxa5 27. Bg4 Ra7 28. Rd4 Kf8 29. Ne2 Ke7 30. Nxc3 bxc3 31. Rhd1 f5 32. exf5 Rf8 33. Re1+ Kd8 34. Re3 gxf5 35. Be2 Rc7 36. Bb5 Rf7 37. Red3 Kc8 38. Bxd7+ Rcxd7 39. Rxd7 Rxd7 40. Rxd7 Kxd7 41. Ke3 1-0
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see her personal blog at
27 June 2010
Hi Everybody!
Here’s another seemingly impossible game for White. Don’t scroll down for the answer till you have studied the position.
Black has their Queen, never mind the White pawn mass
down the kingside. But, can White avoid losing?
Or even win?
down the kingside. But, can White avoid losing?
Or even win?
— DON’T LOOK UNTIL YOU’VE STUDIED THE POSITION —
Well! In this nice endgame study it seems the Black Queen just may take all the white pawns and leave White with nothing to battle with.
What can White do with a Knight and King? Can White really trap the Black Queen with all those pawns?
— IF YOU DON’T SEE THE SOLUTION KEEP THINKING —
Well! Yes! White can win!
Here is how the game went.
1. Nd5+ Kf8
2. Nf6 Qh8
3. g7+ Qxg7 (Kxg7)
4. h6 (+) Qh8 (Kf8)
5. Kd8 Qxh6
6. Nd7+ K anywhere
7. gh 1-0
Hope you enjoyed this study.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see my personal blog at
27 June 2010
Hello Everyone!
Are you interested in chess fiction? Here’s a book with some of the best chess short stories in the world. The Masters of Technique includes contributions by Katherine Neville, Stephen Carter, Michael Griffith, Paul Eggers, Wells Tower, Patrick Somerville, Edward Falco and Mark Coggins and others.
The compilation is edited by Howard Goldowsky and the unique aspect of the book is that the proceeds go to charitable chess organizations! Professor Mark N. Taylor has written an entertaining foreword. You can read a detailed review of the book and more about the writer at chesscafe.com.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see my personal blog at
27 June 2010
Nana Dzagnidze
Hello Everyone!
Fighting chess marked the third round of the Jermuk Women’s Chess Grand Prix. The third round results included:
- Danielian – Yang 1-0
- Yifan – Mkrtchian 1-0
- Stefanova – Xuhua 1-0
- Fierro – Kosintseva 0-1
- Cramling – Dzagnidze 1/2-1/2
- Kovanova – Chiburdanidze 1/2-1/2.
The talented Hou Yifan also notched up a win after two losses in the first two rounds. Fierro B. Martha L has no wins in the tournament so far. Dzagnidze and Kosintseva lead with 2.5 points each.
1. GM Dzagnidze Nana 2478 GEO 2½
2. GM Kosintseva Tatiana 2534 RUS 2½
3. IM Danielian Elina 2473 ARM 2
4. GM Stefanova Antoaneta 2560 BUL 2
5. IM Mkrtchian Lilit 2477 ARM 2
6. GM Chiburdanidze Maia 2514 GEO 1½
7. WGM Kovanova Baira 2366 RUS 1½
8. GM Xu Yuhua 2484 CHN 1
9. WGM Shen Yang 2452 CHN 1
10. GM Cramling Pia 2536 SWE 1
11. GM Hou Yifan 2589 CHN 1
12. IM Fierro B. Martha L 2363 ECU 0
You can read about key moments in all the games here. You can also track the tournament progress at the official website.
Meanwhile, here is the nice game between Hou Yifan and Mkrtchian. You can run it in our pgnplayer or watch the flash below. Nothing much happened in the opening and Yifan did go for a not-so-reasonable pawn sacrifice but Mkrtchian failed to handle the assault giving Yifan her first point of the tournament.
The Fide Women Grand Prix is a new series of six elite tournaments spread over two years. They are part of the Women’s World Championship cycle which now becomes an annual event. This year the Champion will be determined in the Women;s Knockout World Championship which will be held in Turkey. Next year, 2011, the World Champion will face the winner of the Grand Prix series 2009/2010. You can read more statistics here.
PGN: 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 Be7 4. Ngf3 Nf6 5. e5 Nfd7 6. Bd3 c5 7. c3 Nc6 8. O-O a5 9. a4 cxd4 10. cxd4 Nb4 11. Bb5 O-O 12. Nb1 Nb8 13. Nc3 Bd7 14. Re1 N8c6 15. Bf4 Na7 16. Bf1 Rb8 17. Re3 b5 18. h4 Bxh4 19. Nxh4 Qxh4 20. Bg3 Qg5 21. axb5 Nxb5 22. Ne2 Ra8 23. Bh2 Qf5 24. Nf4 Qc2 25. Qg4 Nxd4 26. Nh5 Qg6 27. Qh3 Nf5 28. Rf3 Rfc8 29. Rf4 Nh6 30. Nf6+ gxf6 31. Rxf6 Qg7 32. Rxh6 Kh8 33. Bf4 Rg8 34. Bg5 1-0
26 June 2010
Hello everyone!
Jean Hoffman wrote to ask us to spread the word about their next 9 Queens Academy on Sunday, June 27 from 2-4 pm at the Sahuaro Girl Scout Resource Center in Tucson, Arizona, USA. They will offer free chess lessons for women and girls of all ages and abilities and host the first ever “Ladies Checkmate Challenge.” Prizes available for all female players including beginners. For more information visit the 9Queens website.
9 Queens is grateful to Bookmans– the official sponsor to the Tucson Queens Academy series and to the Sahuaro Girl Scout Council for hosting the fun!
Posted on Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also visit her personal chess blog
26 June 2010
Queen Elizabeth II showing President Jacob Zuma
of South Africa a chess set that was given
to her by Nelson Mandela.
Hello Everyone!
President Jacob Zuma of South Africa had visited Buckingham Palace, London during a State visit in March this year. There, Queen Elizabeth had shown him a chess set that Nelson Mandela gave her in 1996! You can read about it at The New York Times Chess Blog.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also see my personal blog at
26 June 2010
US Women’s Defending
Chess Champion Anna Zatonskih
Hello Everyone!
Saint Louis will host the 2010 US Women’s Chess Championship and the 2010 US Junior Closed Championship from July 9-20. The 2010 US Championship took place in Saint Louis last month.
Both the championships will include 10 players who will fight for the crown through nine rounds of tournament play. Reigning US Women’s Champion Anna Zatonskih and current US Junior Champ Ray Robson will also be defending their title.
Grandmaster commentary will be provided by GM Ben Finegold and WGM Jennifer Shahade. Saint Louis resident and #1-ranked U.S. player GM Hikaru Nakamura will also provide special commentary for two days yet to be determined.
The field for the 2010 U.S. Women’s Championship is as follows:
- IM Anna Zatonskih: Defending Champion
- IM Irina Krush: Rating
- WGM Camilla Baginskaite: Rating
- WGM Sabina Foisor: Rating
- WGM Katerina Rohonyan: Wildcard
- WIM Alisa Melekhina: Rating
- WFM Iryna Zenyuk: U.S. Women’s Open Champion
- WFM Abby Marshall: Rating
- WFM Tatev Abrahamyan: Rating
- WIM Beatriz Marinello: Rating
- GM Ray Robson: Defending Champion
- IM Sam Shankland: Rating
- FM John Bryant: Rating
- FM Darwin Yang: Rating
- FM Stephen Zierk: Rating
- FM Conrad Holt: Rating
- Parker Zhao: Rating
- Warren Harper: Rating
- Tyler Hughes: Rating
- Eric Rosen: U.S. Junior Open Champion
The 2010 US Women’s Championship will feature a $65,000 prize fund, the largest prize fund in the history of the tournament. The breakdown is as follows with the winner taking $16,000.
The 2010 US Junior Championship will also feature a record-breaking prize fund. The ten participants will fight for $10,300 in prizes and will also receive a laptop computer as a part of their prize. The winner will receive $3,000.
From Alexandra Kosteniuk’s
Also visit my personal blog at
