tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-110359642024-03-13T05:49:22.416-05:00World Of ChessWebsite discusses topics regarding chess and the chess/coffee house lifestyle. Chess politics and news are also covered here.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger100125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-73585985141954346152010-05-23T11:34:00.000-05:002010-05-23T11:34:48.404-05:00Karpov and Kasparov Unite to Conquer FIDE PresidencyNobody could doubt <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Current-Heads-Federal-Subjects-Russia/dp/1155768361?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Kirsan Ilyumzhinov</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1155768361" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />’s devotion to chess. As president of the impoverished Russian republic of Kalmykia, he spent £60m building a Chess City where visitors could play in comfort. He made the game compulsory in schools and had a giant chess board with outsized pieces placed in the main square of his capital.<br />
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.<br />
Now two of the world’s greatest chess champions,<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Find-Right-Plan-Anatoly-Karpov/dp/1906388687?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank"> Anatoly Karpov</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1906388687" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Garry-Kasparov-Modern-Chess-Three/dp/1857446259?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Garry Kasparov</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1857446259" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />, once rivals across the board, are making common cause in an effort to get rid of Ilyumzhinov.<br />
In his opening attack <a href="http://www.amazon.com/My-Best-Games-Progress-Chess/dp/3283010021?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Karpov</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=3283010021" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> is said to have secured the backing of several national chess federations. But in a counter move the incumbent has secured the Kremlin’s support to stay on.<br />
<!--#include file="m63-article-related-attachements.html"--> “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 <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kramnik-My-Life-games-Vladimir/dp/1857442709?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Vladimir Kramnik</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1857442709" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />, another former world champion.<br />
“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.”<br />
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.<br />
Ilyumzhinov denies any wrongdoing and says he has led the federation successfully.<br />
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.<br />
Ilyumzhinov is unlikely to need such fundraisers. One of the former Soviet Union’s first multi-millionaires, he once boasted a fleet of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rolls-Royce-Bentley-Graham-Robson/dp/0896892387?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank"> Rolls-Royce</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0896892387" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />s.<br />
In 1993, aged 31, he became president of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kalmykia-subjects-Romanization-Administrative-divisions/dp/6130244053?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Kalmykia</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=6130244053" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> after promising to turn Europe’s only Buddhist nation into a “second Kuwait” where “every shepherd would have a cellphone”. This has yet to become a reality.<br />
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, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/London-Elista-Championship-Vladimir-Kasparov/dp/9056912194?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Elista</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=9056912194" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />, because “God intended Kalmykia to be known for chess”.<br />
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.<br />
"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.”Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-32304575301452501782010-05-22T11:16:00.002-05:002010-05-22T11:16:59.803-05:00Chess Power Struggle<div class="hn-byline">By Stuart Williams <span class="hn-date"></span></div>MOSCOW — It pitches a former world champion against the leader of the world's western-most Buddhist region who claims to have met aliens in his apartment.<br />
For good measure, it also features the chief economic adviser of the Kremlin and another former world champion who has turned into an implacable critic of the Russian authorities.<br />
This is the cast of a zany row that has broken out over Russia's candidate to head the World Chess Federation (FIDE), a struggle which has become a bitter test of guile and stamina reminiscent of famous battles on the board.<br />
The president of FIDE is Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, a fanatical chess player who has been leader of the largely Buddhist southern Russian region of Kalmykia since 1993.<br />
As well as his obsession with chess -- which has extended to building a self-styled Chess City in the regional Kalmyk capital of Elista -- Ilyumzhinov is known for eccentric behaviour that is not even confined to planet earth.<br />
He famously claimed to have been given a tour of a UFO by aliens in the late 1990s and last month solemnly revealed on a TV chat show that he had met extra-terrestrials in his Moscow apartment.<br />
The role of FIDE is to set the rules of chess and organise championships. To stand for its presidency, candidates must gain the backing of their national federation.<br />
The current mandate of Ilyumzhinov, who has been president of FIDE since 1995, expires in September and there are many in chess who would like the controversial figure to end his stint there.<br />
Ex-world champion Anatoly Karpov, known for grinding opponents into submission during his Soviet-era heyday, has challenged Ilyumzhinov, declaring that 15 years of his "disreputable administration is more than enough".<br />
Karpov has already been nominated as a candidate for the presidency in the September elections by several national chess federations including France. But winning the backing of Russia has proved more problematic.<br />
Karpov -- who has a US presidential-style campaign site <a href="http://www.karpov2010.org/">www.karpov2010.org</a> -- may have thought he had sewn up the backing of the Russian Chess Federation when a meeting on May 14 nominated him as Russia's candidate.<br />
But enter Arkady Dvorkovich -- best known as the chief economic advisor of President Dmitry Medvedev -- who also occupies the post of head of the Russian Chess Federation's supervisory board.<br />
Dvorkovich declared that the nomination was invalid as it had failed to meet the minimum quorum of participants and said his own letter of recommendation sufficed for Ilyumzhinov to be the candidate of the Russian chess federation.<br />
"I respect Anatoly Karpov as a great chess player but unlike Kirsan Ilyumzhinov he is an ineffective manager," spat Dvorkovich, who is normally quoted reeling out economic statistics.<br />
"I also think Anatoly Yevgenyevich's election campaign has been indecent and unethical."<br />
Karpov in turn accused Dvorkovich of staging a rival federation meeting on May 14 so he could then argue the minimum quorum was not met.<br />
"Our high-ranking official is unable to accept the defeat of his point of view in a democratic vote," Karpov wrote on his blog for Echo of Moscow radio station.<br />
With the latest battle looking like a long-drawn-out clash in which stalemate is not possible, Russia's current number one Vladimir Kramnik has called on both sides to use "only civilised methods of fighting".<br />
The chairman of the Russian chess federation, Alexander Bakh, meanwhile accused Dvorkovich of sending in private security guards to seal off offices at the federation in revenge for his support of Karpov.<br />
Karpov's campaign has also found a perhaps unlikely ally in the shape of his former great rival Garry Kasparov, the ex-world champion who now leads one of Russia's few anti-Kremlin political movements.<br />
Kasparov -- whose 1984 world championship clash with Karpov was so gruelling it was abandoned over fears for the health of both players -- has openly backed his ex-rival and attended a glitzy campaign gala in New York.<br />
The Soviet Union dominated world chess in the heyday of Kasparov and Karpov, benefiting from a system that encouraged children to take up the sport at the youngest age. But funding dwindled after the Soviet collapse.<br />
<!-- google_ad_section_end(name=article) --><span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-82772459081678817982010-05-21T18:51:00.000-05:002010-05-21T18:51:55.019-05:00US Chess Championship Final Four<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="h msg_meta" id="top"><tbody>
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</tbody></table><div class="scripthide cb" id="oh"><div class="exh"><a href="http://groups.google.com/groups/search?hl=en&enc_author=8TDSchQAAACGOufFi5SDtsfnL7wjcwDlANzlI28YMOqJoqdK4hA-xw&scoring=d" target="_top"></a> </div></div><div class="mb cb fontsize2 " id="body"> <div id="inbdy"> <a href="" name="msg_992b065ff5238604"></a>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE </div><div id="inbdy"></div><div id="inbdy"><br />
For more information, contact: </div><div id="inbdy"></div><div id="inbdy"><br />
Mike Wilmering <br />
Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis <br />
Cream of the Crop for Quad Final <br />
By FM Mike Klein <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Saint Louis, May 20, 2010 –<br />
<br />
Four players have survived and advanced to <br />
the quad finals of the 2010 U.S. Championship, but the results of <br />
round seven do not tell the full story. Though a casual glance will <br />
show that the top three boards ended in draws, the uncompromising play <br />
brought the tournament to within a whisker of a large tiebreaker for <br />
the four-player round robin. <br />
<br />
Board one was the first to finish, but the relatively peaceful draw <br />
between GM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Chess-Lessons-Grandmaster-Yury-Shulman/dp/0865459975?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Yury Shulman</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0865459975" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> and GM Alex Onischuk that qualified both for <br />
the quad did little to portend the action on the next two boards. “I <br />
had a little advantage, typical for a Queen’s Gambit Declined,” <br />
Shulman said. <br />
<br />
GM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gata-Kamsky-Genius-Stephen-Gordon/dp/0875682669?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Gata Kamsky</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0875682669" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />, needing only a draw as White against GM Alex Shabalov <br />
to earn his spot, began shaking his head in disbelief when he <br />
overlooked the cunning defense 22…Bg6 at the end of a long variation. <br />
He had only considered 22…Kg8, which wins for White after 23. Qd5+. <br />
Though short on time, Kamsky gathered himself and found a way to <br />
capture several pawns whilst simultaneously weakening Shabalov’s king. <br />
“It was a pretty unpleasant scenario,” Kamsky said. “I was looking to <br />
minimize the damage.” <br />
<br />
Kamsky then found what he called an “extremely strong defensive <br />
maneuver” – bringing his rook to the fourth rank to defend his king on <br />
the g-file. Black then ran low on time and after Shabalov whispered <br />
“draw,” Kamsky ran his clock down to 1:20 and agreed. <br />
<br />
In the post-mortem, Kamsky rattled off a multitude of variations. In <br />
case of 16…b5, Kamsky prepared 17. Nfxe5 Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Qxe5 19. h4! <br />
with the dual threats of 20. Bxh5 and 20. Bf3. Shabalov nodded in <br />
quiet appreciation of the cute move. <br />
<br />
The last qualifier for the finals would come down to board two. GM <br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Storming-Barricades-Larry-Christiansen/dp/1901983250?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Larry Christiansen</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1901983250" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />, a veteran of decades of championships, needed to <br />
win as he began the round one half point behind defending champion GM <br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Bullet-Chess-One-Minute-Mate/dp/1888690674?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Hikaru Nakamura</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1888690674" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />. Known for his attacking style, Christiansen built up <br />
a strong center and spatial advantage. “I was guardedly optimistic,” <br />
Christiansen said. <br />
<br />
Nakamura was not content playing passively and struck with the strange- <br />
looking thrust 8…g5. World Champion GM Viswanathan Anand, calling in <br />
from Spain live during the on-air commentary, questioned the move. <br />
“I’m not sure if Nakamura knows how to (play solidly),” Anand said. <br />
“But he doesn’t lack confidence, that’s for sure.” <br />
<br />
As the game petered out into a pawn-up endgame for Christiansen, the <br />
crowd at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis gathered <br />
around the monitors. Players who generally left the club after their <br />
games stayed to see the result. GM Maurice Ashley, commentating on the <br />
game, saw Christiansen move his rook around to press for the win. <br />
“You’re going to sit here and you’re going to suffer young man,” <br />
Ashley said of Christiansen’s mindset. Eventually, too many pawns were <br />
traded and Nakamura held on to qualify. <br />
<br />
“Basically I just forgot my preparation, but even so the result was <br />
pretty good,” Nakamura said. “I made some inexactitudes, as they say,” <br />
said Christiansen. “It’s kind of a letdown. The real tournament is <br />
over. It’s hard to get psyched up now.” <br />
<br />
The four players advancing to the finals are also the top four seeds. <br />
They also all enter the event with five points. “Everyone is in even <br />
conditions,” Shulman said. “Whoever will have some luck on his side <br />
will win the tournament. I’m still considered the underdog.” Nakamura <br />
agreed and cited himself, Kamsky and Onischuk as having all the <br />
pressure. <br />
<br />
The players now enter a rest day before the quad begins on Saturday. <br />
Shulman said he plans to attend a St. Louis Cardinals game, while <br />
Kamsky looked forward to the human chess match planned for the street <br />
outside the club. After rebuffing WGM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Chess-Bitch-Women-Ultimate-Intellectual/dp/189008509X?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Jennifer Shahade</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=189008509X" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />’s preference to <br />
see Kamsky as an f-pawn, the grandmaster said, “I prefer to be a <br />
knight because knights get to hop all over the place.” <br />
<br />
Nakamura also planned to rest on Friday, at least from chess. “I think <br />
I’m probably going to go out and buy some furniture for my apartment,” <br />
he said. Nakamura moved to downtown St. Louis less than two weeks ago. <br />
<br />
Six players entered the round with 3.5/6 and were mathematically <br />
alive, but their chances were dashed when Shabalov could not convert <br />
against Kamsky. The most disappointed was surely GM Alex Stripunsky, <br />
who would have qualified for the playoff as he beat GM Jesse Kraai. GM <br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Road-Chess-Improvement-Alex-Yermolinsky/dp/1901983242?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Alex Yermolinsky</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1901983242" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> held a draw against GM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Chess-Ben-Finegold-3/dp/B000RRAYWU?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Ben Finegold</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B000RRAYWU" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> on board five. <br />
<br />
GM Robert Hess rebounded from several losses to take out struggling GM <br />
Varuzhan Akobian, who remains the highest-rated player in the country <br />
never to win the U.S. Championship, though he remains younger than <br />
most of the field. <br />
<br />
In the tournament’s subplot of making grandmaster norms, IM Irina <br />
Krush is now within sight of her second norm. She took out GM <br />
Aleksandr Lenderman in round seven to get back to plus one. The two <br />
players share the same coach, but that did not prepare her for the <br />
opening. Krush said she was shocked to see Lenderman play the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Challenging-Grunfeld-Edward-Dearing/dp/9197524344?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Grunfeld Defense</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=9197524344" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />.<br />
She is assured of a norm with one point in the final two <br />
games. <br />
<br />
After tomorrow’s rest day, the top four players begin their three- <br />
round event on Saturday, while the rest of the field will play two <br />
more games starting on the same day. <br />
<br />
“We deserve a little break,” Kamsky said, the relief evident</div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-65907103993322971252010-05-19T08:41:00.000-05:002010-05-19T08:41:29.642-05:00New PC Chess Software: Battle vs Chess<span><span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Viva-Media-Fritz-Chess/dp/B000TYUXJ0?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Fritz Chess</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B000TYUXJ0" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px !important; padding-left: 0px !important; padding-right: 0px !important; padding-top: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Championship-Chess-Supercharged-Stunning-Graphics/dp/B000UEDV9S?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Championship Chess (Supercharged Chess with Stunning 3D Graphics!)</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B000UEDV9S" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px !important; padding-left: 0px !important; padding-right: 0px !important; padding-top: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span>Topware has released new screenshots from their upcoming game Battle vs Chess, developed by Zuxxez Entertainment.<br />
<br />
<span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Southpeak-40057-Battle-vs-Chess/dp/B003HO0RBS?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Battle vs Chess </a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B003HO0RBS" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px !important; padding-left: 0px !important; padding-right: 0px !important; padding-top: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span>is a new PC chess game combining classic Chess with 3D animated boards and pieces, online play, and all the modern features we've come to expect from PC games.<br />
If you were gaming on PCs during the Dark Ages, you may remember a very similar game called <span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Battle-Chess-Bundle-Jewel-Case/dp/B00005A9WS?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Battle Chess</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B00005A9WS" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px !important; padding-left: 0px !important; padding-right: 0px !important; padding-top: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span>, released in various iterations by <span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Interplay-Baldurs-Gate-Compilation/dp/B000PSRN6Q?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Interplay</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B000PSRN6Q" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px !important; padding-left: 0px !important; padding-right: 0px !important; padding-top: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span> in the late 1980's and early 90's for Amiga and Apple computers.<br />
<br />
Topware plans to take the basic concept—<span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Winning-Moves-1091-Stress-Chess/dp/B0007Q1IO4?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Chess </a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B0007Q1IO4" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px !important; padding-left: 0px !important; padding-right: 0px !important; padding-top: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span>with animated pieces and various 'kill animations'—and bring it into the 21st century with a powerful Chess engine called '<span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Learn-Play-Chess-Fritz-Chesster/dp/B0000950SM?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Fritz</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B0000950SM" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px !important; padding-left: 0px !important; padding-right: 0px !important; padding-top: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span>'. The game will also feature unlockable content, online multiplayer play, and special game modes. (You'll get whole new, modern, and attractive ways of getting your butt kicked at Chess by the computer or some clown on the Internet who can type LOLZ NOOB at you.)<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Battle vs Chess will be released for PC, Mac, and "next-gen consoles and handhelds". The game is set to release August 2010 (delayed from its previously announced May 2010).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-76464062304483409952010-05-18T21:12:00.001-05:002010-05-18T21:13:22.558-05:00Us Chess Championship: Log-jam at the Top of the Leader BoardFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE <br />
For more information, contact: <br />
Mike Wilmering <br />
Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis <br />
<br />
<br />
Log-jam at the Top of Leader Board <br />
<br />
By FM Mike Klein <br />
<br />
<br />
Saint Louis, May 17, 2010 –<br />
<br />
With the top four players battling to <br />
draws on the top two boards, a trio of other players used the fourth <br />
round of the 2010 U.S Championship to draw even. <br />
<br />
On board one, GM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Bullet-Chess-One-Minute-Mate/dp/1888690674?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Hikaru Nakamura</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1888690674" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> and GM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Chess-Life-King-Alexander-Onischuk/dp/B001TMFTV8?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Alexander Onischuk</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B001TMFTV8" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> had the quickest <br />
game of the day. After a few brief fireworks out of the opening, <br />
Onischuk continued his usual solid ways to earn the half point as <br />
Black. He has now extended his record U.S. Championship unbeaten <br />
streak to 45 games. His only loss was in the 2004/5 event, and <br />
Onischuk came in to the tournament with the third highest lifetime win <br />
percentage ever, behind <a href="http://www.amazon.com/My-Memorable-Games-Bobby-Fischer/dp/190638830X?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Bobby Fischer</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=190638830X" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Ideas-Behind-Chess-Openings-Algebraic/dp/0812917561?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Reuben Fine</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0812917561" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />. <br />
<br />
Nakamura’s choice of the Vienna Gambit surprised Onischuk, even though <br />
he previously played it at the 2007 U.S. Championship and at last <br />
month’s Saint Louis Open. “I was kind of shocked,” Onischuk said. He <br />
studied about 10 different openings prior to the game. Asked which one <br />
he most expected, Onischuk quipped, “All of them!” <br />
<br />
“We’re just trying not to lose against each other and beat everyone <br />
else,” Namakura said. By “each other” he meant himself, Onischuk and <br />
GM Gata Kamsky, the only players with ratings above 2700 USCF. <br />
<br />
In the game, Nakamura curiously inverted his king and queen in the <br />
first 10 moves. “I don’t think beginners should look at this game,” he <br />
said. “It violates everything a grandmaster says.” <br />
<br />
Grandmasters also say to put rooks on the seventh rank, but if <br />
Nakamura had tried the winning attempt 21. axb6 axb6 22. Ra7, Onischuk <br />
had intended the stunning sacrifice 22…Rf4!, which would have been his <br />
second brilliant exchange sac in as many rounds. Nakamura however saw <br />
the move and eschewed the variation, thinking 22. Rhf1 won. “I simply <br />
miscalculated,” he said, “I thought I would be winning this endgame.” <br />
<br />
On board two, GM Varuzhan Akobian played a solid opening but soon <br />
found himself under duress from GM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gata-Kamsky-Genius-Stephen-Gordon/dp/0875682669?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Gata Kamsky</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0875682669" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />’s extra space and <br />
eventual passed d-pawn. Watching the game, GM Jesse Kraai thought <br />
Kamsky would squeeze out the point. “Kamsky does this kind of garbage <br />
all the time,” Kraai joked. “You think he’s worse, then he gets you.” <br />
But Akobian’s defense held up and the two agreed to terms after 53 <br />
moves. <br />
<br />
On boards 3-5, players playing Black went 3-0. Joining the leaders on <br />
three points out of four was GM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Chess-Lessons-Grandmaster-Yury-Shulman/dp/0865459975?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Yury Shulman</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0865459975" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />, who snatched a loose <br />
pawn from GM Robert Hess and lived to tell the tale. “I didn’t think <br />
it would be so easy for Black to keep the pawn, but it turns out I <br />
don’t have anything,” a despondent Hess said at the post-game press <br />
conference. “A pawn is a pawn,” Shulman said. Hess did not offer any <br />
improvements and seemed dissatisfied with his game. <br />
<br />
Shulman, seeded fifth, will now have to play up for the first time in <br />
round five. “Quite often you play against your teammates,” he said of <br />
his likely pairing with national squad comrades. “I don’t have any <br />
(special) strategy.” <br />
<br />
GM Alex Stripunsky also won as Black. Just after making the time <br />
control, GM Jaan Ehlvest went in for a crowd-pleasing rook sacrifice. <br />
The audience at the chess club initially thought it was forced <br />
checkmate, but Stripunsky jettisoned a bishop and a rook to give his <br />
king space and rebuff the attack. <br />
<br />
The final member of the three-point score group is GM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Storming-Barricades-Larry-Christiansen/dp/1901983250?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Larry Christiansen</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1901983250" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />, who caught up to the leaders with a self-admitted <br />
imperfect game. “Be3 was a lemon,” Christiansen said of his <br />
opponent’s, GM Alex Shabalov’s, eighth move. “It is a novelty that <br />
will not live in infamy. But with Shaba, you always wonder about a <br />
miracle attack.” Though Shabalov had to retreat this bishop and his <br />
queen to their home squares a few moves later, Christiansan said he <br />
played “barely well enough to win.” <br />
<br />
On board six GM Alex Yermolinsky beat GM Sergey Kudrin and on board <br />
seven GM Jesse Kraai made it two in a row with a win over GM Joel <br />
Benjamin. Yermolinsky and Kraai both have 2.5/4. <br />
<br />
“The last three games have been really messy,” Kraai said. “I feel <br />
this is the only game I played well.” Convinced that Benjamin had a <br />
plan against his usual 1. c4, Kraai looked for inspiration elsewhere. <br />
His providence, he explained, was part zoological and part <br />
supernatural. Kraai said that Panda “infected me” and convinced him to <br />
play 1. e4, then attack. “He has some sort of hormonal imbalance,” <br />
Kraai said. “They sometimes let him out of the zoo and you’ll see him <br />
around here. I like to channel him during my games.” <br />
<br />
The elephant in the room, or in this case the Panda, was none other <br />
than GM Josh Friedel, Kraai’s old roommate who is at the championship. <br />
<br />
Benjamin was good-humored about the game, thought he admitted the loss <br />
“pretty much ends my tournament.” Still, IM Greg Shahade, co-creator <br />
of the new format, said that he expects 4.5/7 to possibly qualify for <br />
the tiebreaker into the quad final. Benjamin, at 1.5/4, would need <br />
three wins in three games to get to the mark. <br />
<br />
The final five games were all draws, though IM <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Chess-International-Masters-Nadanian-Bogatyrchuk/dp/1155858255?ie=UTF8&tag=chessmasterin-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Irina Krush</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=chessmasterin-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1155858255" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> missed a <br />
win for the second game in a row. Coming off a disappointing 113-move <br />
loss in round three, she entered a rook-and-bishop versus rook endgame <br />
against GM Ray Robson. She missed the zwischenzug 66…Ra7 67. Ke1 Rf7, <br />
winning immediately. She has now played 12 hours and 206 chess moves <br />
in the last two rounds. <br />
<br />
After her loss yesterday, Krush said she received lots of thoughtful <br />
emails from chess friends. She said she wanted to fight hard today to <br />
validate her support group. After the game Krush reminisced about her <br />
missed chances and how a few different moves could have allowed her to <br />
win all four games. “I still love chess,” she said without any hint of <br />
insincerity.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-65471112174243425622010-05-18T20:54:00.001-05:002010-05-18T20:56:35.229-05:00Carlsen Vs Anand 2007Carlsen vs Anand 2007<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEGZlUCFNU4">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEGZlUCFNU4</a><br />
<br />
Could this be a preview of the next championship? Has Carlsen improved enough under the mentoring of Kasparov to capture the title from Anand?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-49503430903701416862010-05-17T10:00:00.001-05:002010-05-17T10:01:46.359-05:00Why Kasparov Supports KarpovBy Larry Parr<br />
with permission<br />
<br />
KASPAROV'S SPEECH TO THE RUSSIAN CHESS FEDERATION <br />
<br />
I could answer some questions, but maybe I would rather address a <br />
common falsification of facts that is going on in the world. Even <br />
though we live in the age of the Internet and other modern <br />
technologies, some news spread slowly. There are a few myths in the <br />
chess world on which people try to base their ungrounded decisions. <br />
The situation itself is somewhat surreal: I and Karpov have clashed at <br />
this very building a couple of times, we have always been antagonists. <br />
<br />
<br />
A lot of issues have been sorted out, sometimes everything ended in an <br />
ideologic debate, sometimes in "bad peace". It has always been a <br />
confrontation. As you might understand, today is a totally different <br />
case. I believe this day is very important for Russian chess. The sole <br />
fact that there is a dilemma, and it it seriously discussed - Karpov <br />
or Ilyumzhinov - seems strange to me. Not because it's a candidate <br />
master vs a world champion; but because nowadays in chess and the <br />
professional world in general reputation is the key factor. I don't <br />
think there is any challenge in determining who is more reputable. <br />
It's a disgrace that they are trying to impose the 15-year old (as <br />
Ilyumzhinov's reign) mythology on the Russian Chess Federation. <br />
<br />
<br />
The other members of the Supervisory Board (who haven't joined us) are <br />
under the impression that the whole world supports Ilyumzhinov. It's a <br />
lie. I haven't been in the chess circles for a while, but I visit a <br />
lot of countries. I can estimate in what condition the world is. That <br />
statement is not true. In fact, the chess world is in a disastrous <br />
condition. The leading chess website - ChessBase - has posted a <br />
trivia. People had to guess where the 6th Grand Prix stage will take <br />
place. Baku, Jermuk, Sochi, Nalchik, Elista, where will the next one <br />
be? The answer was Astrakhan, to form a circle on the map. Just think <br />
about the names of the cities! (Then some polite remarks aimed at <br />
showing he means no offense towards the locations). When we were <br />
playing with Karpov, where was it? Moscow, London, New York, Seville, <br />
Leon. And where are we today? It didn't happen just all of a sudden. <br />
Chess is not at the circumference because everywhere else it is not <br />
taken seriously. And it's not just a problem of world's chess, it's a <br />
problem for Russia. When all the world media is showing the FIDE <br />
president recalling his meeting with aliens. One can live in the world <br />
of hallucinations. But when the future of chess depends on such <br />
people... <br />
<br />
<br />
It's obvious that this situation won't change, and everyone <br />
understands it in (lists countries). You have been provided with a <br />
presentation by Anatoly Evgenievich Karpov with a list of the <br />
countries which support him. The chess countries (USA, Germany, <br />
England, Spain, Switzerland) are on the list. Also many others <br />
(mentions them). Even Ukraine. I.e. the countries which have <br />
traditionally been supporting Ilyumzhinov. Just think about it. This <br />
support stands for something. Supporting someone at an early stage is <br />
a risky step. It's a serious risk to oppose the current President (who <br />
has been the head of FIDE for 15 years) at such an early stage of the <br />
elections. The situation has changed dramatically. 21 countries <br />
already, before the elections, are supporting Karpov. About half of <br />
them have been supporting Ilyumzhinov before. Ukraine - it's actually <br />
a very uncommon thing. Previously they have been supporting Iyumzhnov <br />
vs Bessel Kok, now they have expressed their support for Karpov...Per <br />
Anatoly Evgenievich request I have been communicating with many <br />
leaders of chess federations and grandmasters. <br />
<br />
<br />
Everyone is afraid of just one myth: that in Khanty-Mansiisk [where <br />
the elections will take place] everyone will be "buried". Today's <br />
meeting will be decisive in the confrontation. People somehow believe <br />
that Ilyumzhinov controls everything in Russia. Today we have a chance <br />
to show that it is not the truth. Kirsan has no support in the world, <br />
all the can rely upon is the so-called "administrative resource." <br />
Dvorkovich, Ilyumzhinov, Magomedov? And Karpov? How can one compare <br />
them? <br />
<br />
<br />
This discussion is extremely important. It's not only about Russian <br />
chess, it's about the future of world chess. These things are <br />
interconnected. The agenda which we were supposed to discuss today has <br />
some unreal items. Let's talk about the real problems. We can't win 3 <br />
Chess Olympiads in a row. I have been brought up in the system of <br />
coordinates where 2nd place was a failure. Has something happened? Now <br />
people approach it in a different way. For the first time since 1921 <br />
(Lasker-Capablanca) no Russian (or Soviet) representative is playing <br />
at the WC match. Look at our teeenagers. Karjakin (although he is not <br />
a teenager already) and came from Ukraine. Anyway, it's clear that he <br />
is not a future world champion due to...(pauses) format. We are on the <br />
decline everywhere. That's what we should be discussing. Today we have <br />
a great chance to start affecting the process. Not by hiring <br />
legionaries from (names countries), but by working with Karpov's <br />
strong team. This can be discussed properly. And where is Ilyumzhinov? <br />
Why is Kirsan not here? Why is he not telling us about aliens, his <br />
connections, banks, Chess City, New Vasiuki? He has nothing to say <br />
because 15 years is a lot of time. It has been understood everywhere. <br />
The only reason why not everyone has supported Karpov already is that <br />
they are afraid and waiting for the decision here. We have to prove <br />
that it's not like that. It's a house of cards. A great chess player <br />
on one side and a cardsharper on the other. You have the power to <br />
change this. <br />
<br />
<br />
If you have any questions on the situation in the world, feel free to <br />
ask. I know it pretty well, and have contacted a great number of <br />
people during the last two months. I am surprised. I also had the same <br />
instincts: everyone in Africa and the Carribean region is bribed; and <br />
then you start talking to people and see that people have understood <br />
everything. They are contacted once in 4 years, and then forgot about. <br />
They want changes, they want to see grandmasters, some programs. <br />
Campomanes (although we had many controversies with him), at least <br />
tried to do something. Not much, but now nothing is being done at all. <br />
This situation can be changed, because the potential of chess is <br />
absolutely incredible. Modern technologies would allow create chess <br />
communities on the Internet, but nothing of that type has been done. <br />
Once again, we're faced with some sort of delirium: David Kaplan is <br />
going to teach us how to live. We have got more professional <br />
experience. And the reaction from the federations that have already <br />
supported Karpov show us that it is the right moment, people are ready <br />
for a change. <br />
<br />
<br />
Any questions?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-19869741441328217752010-05-16T11:38:00.002-05:002010-05-16T11:38:57.378-05:00Chess Scholar All Around BestKansas City Star<br />
May 16th,2010<br />
<br />
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.<br />
<br />
“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.”<br />
<br />
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.<br />
<br />
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.<br />
<br />
“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.<br />
<br />
• • •<br />
<br />
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.<br />
<br />
But when the sum of Roy Wedge is totaled, there’s nobody quite like him.<br />
<br />
“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.”<br />
<br />
It’s not hard to figure why.<br />
<br />
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.<br />
<br />
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.<br />
<br />
But he’s more than a mere brainiac.<br />
<br />
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.<br />
<br />
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.<br />
<br />
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.<br />
<br />
“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.’ ”<br />
<br />
• • •<br />
<br />
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.<br />
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Wedge, who is soft-spoken and meticulous, doesn’t fit neatly into the mold of the typical high school hero.<br />
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“He’s never done what most kids do,” his mother, Linda Wedge, said.<br />
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As a first-grader at Wakarusa Valley Elementary in rural Lawrence, Wedge convinced the school’s principal to start a chess club.<br />
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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.<br />
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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.<br />
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Using the drawing function on his calculator, Wedge wrote a chess program to ward off boredom in calculus class.<br />
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“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.”<br />
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Tinkering with code writing is one of Wedge’s favorite pastimes.<br />
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“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.”<br />
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• • •<br />
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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.<br />
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“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.”<br />
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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.<br />
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“There’s probably some national tournament on my résumé,” Wedge said. “I don’t really remember.”<br />
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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.<br />
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“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.”<br />
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Wedge’s quiet and kind nature only makes him more beloved by the Lawrence student body.<br />
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“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.”<br />
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Of course, that personal résumé Wedge has constructed indicates otherwise.<br />
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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?”<br />
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Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/05/15/1948542/male-scholar-athlete-of-the-year.html#ixzz0o6xCTzYEUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-36714733659866424512010-05-15T12:50:00.000-05:002010-05-15T12:52:36.891-05:00Anand is World ChampionFrom:English.news.cn 2010-05-14 07:34:50 <br /><br /><br /><br />SOFIA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Defending champion Viswanathan Anand, 40, was officially crowned here on Thursday as the world chess champion for the 2010-2011.<br /><br />The Indian grandmaster retained his title against Veselin Topalov in 12-game match achieving 6.5 points while the challenger managed to get 5.5 points.<br /><br />Chief Arbiter Panaqiotis Nikolopoulos declared Anand the world champion at the official closing ceremony attended by Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov, head of the organizing committee, and the FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov.<br /><br />Ilyumzhinov crowned Anand with winner's ribbon, laurel wreath and a gold medal, Borisov gave him a Cup, and the organizing committee greeted Anand with his favorite song.<br /><br />Checks from the price fund, 1.2 million euros (about 1.6 million dollars) for Anand and 800,000 euros (about 1.07 million dollars) for Topalov, were not provided to them at this ceremony.<br /><br />"It was not so heavy for eight-million Bulgaria to lose with one point only against one-billion India," Borisov told the ceremony.<br /><br />"We are ready for revenge," Borisov added.<br /><br />The first game in this match started on April 24 when Topalov with whites won. Followed Anand's victory, a tie and a second success for Anand.<br /><br />Fifth, sixth and seventh game were draws but Topalov came back into the match winning the eight game for 4-4. After new three ties and 5.5-5.5, the 12th game on Tuesday was decisive whether it would be tie-break games but Anand with blacks won this game and the matchUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-25921751442631094962009-09-23T08:55:00.002-05:002009-09-23T09:00:40.756-05:00Kayden Troff: Utah's Chess Prodigy<em>ABC Channel 4 Salt Lake City, Utah</em><br /><br />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).<br /><br />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!<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />As of August 22, 2009 Kayden is the highest USCF standard rated active tournament player in Utah.<br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />For more information please visit http://kaydentroff.blogspot.com.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-5057922685074455952009-09-10T08:55:00.000-05:002009-09-10T08:56:43.610-05:00Astronaut Fuglesang in trouble – in space chess game<strong>Astronaut Fuglesang in trouble – in space chess game</strong><br /><em>09.09.2009 Chessbase</em><br />On August 28 Swedish astronaut Christer Fuglesang blasted off into space, on the 128th mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program. He conducted a seven-hour space walk at the International Space Station, and also continued his chess game against the readers of a Swedish newspaper. Both the astronaut, who has a tough position, and his opponents have lovely prizes waiting for them.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-49077853867157647632009-09-05T11:54:00.001-05:002009-09-05T11:56:11.932-05:00Bulgaria Bids to Host Chess World ChampionshipBulgaria Bids to Host Chess World Championship<span style="font-weight:bold;"></span><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;"> byPetar Kostadinov</span><br /><br />Bulgaria wants to host the 2010 world chess crown match between Bulgarian grandmaster Vesselin Topalov and world champion Viswanathan Anand, Prime Minister Boiko Borissov said on September 3 2009.<br /><br />"We have a duty to stand behind our champion and give him the opportunity to play in his home country," Borissov said after meeting Topalov and manager Silvio Danailov.<br /><br />Borissov accepted the invitation to head the committee that will attempt to secure Sofia as the host city and called upon Bulgarian businesses and institutions to sponsor the event.<br /><br />Costs were estimated at about six million leva and Borissov said that plan B was for the state to cover the expenses.<br /><br />The deadline for submitting bids for hosting the match is September 30 2009, while the showdown itself is tentatively scheduled for early-2010. So far, interest in hosting the match has been shown by the Chechen capital Grozny, Dubai and Delhi.<br /><br />Topalov won the right to challenge Anand for the title after winning the chess crown pretenders match against American Gata Kamsky on February 26 2009. Topalov's superb performance forced Kamsky to concede on the 45th move of the seventh match, with one game to spare.<br /><br />Topalov, the 2005 world champion in the world chess federation FIDE championship, but lost it in the unification match to Professional Chess Association champion Vladimir Kramnik. Topalov and Anand, the two top-ranked grandmasters in the FIDE rankings, was initially scheduled to be played in 2009, but has been postponed.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-59947563719878730632009-09-04T14:39:00.000-05:002009-09-04T14:40:20.229-05:00Man Murdered in Chess Game<em>IOWA CITY, Iowa - </em><br /><br />According to a court filing, an Iowa City man will plead guilty to a lesser charge in the death of his opponent in a chess game. <br /><br />The filing made Thursday in Johnson County District Court says David Christian will plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter on Sept. 25. <br /><br />Police say Christian and Michael Alan Steward were playing chess and drinking at Christian's residence on Oct. 19, 2008, when a quarrel turned violent. They say Christian apparently trapped Steward's neck between his legs and squeezed until Steward was dead. <br /><br />Christian originally faced a charge of second-degree murder, which could have landed him in prison for 50 years. The voluntary manslaughter charge has a maximum 10-year sentence.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-45923488768906112632009-08-31T11:40:00.000-05:002009-08-31T11:42:18.939-05:00Chess Champ Enthrals School Children<em>The Times of India</em><br /><br />HUBLI: In an effort to inspire the young to develop a passion for chess, chess champion Sharad Vaze played simultaneous chess with 20 schoolchildren <br />in Hubli on Sunday. <br /><br />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. <br /><br />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. <br /><br />Club president Nayan Vinod Kumar and others organised the event.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-61380288207117767932009-08-30T10:33:00.000-05:002009-08-30T10:35:04.570-05:00Kuala Lumpur: Chess Recognized as a SPORT<span style="font-style:italic;">Ministry Ready To Support Development Of Chess As A Sport - Ahmad Shabery</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 (Bernama)</span><br /><br /> -- The Ministry of Youth and Sports has agreed to include chess in their development programme due to the increasing popularity of the sport.<br /><br />Its Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek said as a first step, the ministry would discuss with the Malaysian Chess Federation to identify and draw up a development programme.<br /><br />"We need to take the initial step towards producing grandmasters for the future," he told reporters after opening the Malaysia Chess Festival here on Saturday.<br /><br />"We need more publicity and to promote the sport aggressively to bring in the fans to see such games. For example, bowling and cricket were deemed boring sports before but due to improvisation of the rules and competition times, it is now well accepted by the public."<br /><br />Ahmad Shabery said the ministry would try to provide financial support for the Federation to organise more competitions at the national level.<br /><br />"Apart from the government's support and assistance, the Federation must also put in its own effort and try to find their own sponsors," he said.<br /><br />Meanwhile, its President Tan Sri Ramli Ngah Talib in welcoming the government's initiative to support the sport, said the federation would do its part to further promote the sport.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-34456169267304057152009-08-28T06:57:00.000-05:002009-08-28T06:58:01.318-05:00Online chess Business ChessCube Receives US $1.25m VC FundingOnline chess Business ChessCube Receives US $1.25m VC Funding<br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Written by content team 27 August 2009<br /></span><br />ChessCube has concluded a US$1.25m funding agreement with Venture Capital fund, InVenFin (Pty) Ltd. InVenFin, the VC-focused subsidiary of VenFin Limited, invests in intellectual property-based start-ups with global potential. This transaction brings ChessCube’s total funding to date to US$1.8m. The partnership between ChessCube.com and InVenfin will allow ChessCube.com to become the most recognized and loved online brand for chess enthusiasts.<br /><br />ChessCube is an online chess site, which allows players of all skill levels to compete and learn chess, while socializing with others. With a potential market of over fifty million active chess players in the world, ChessCube.com has already attracted over 650,000 registered users across 207 countries – making it one of the leaders in the growing online chess market.<br /><br />Mark Levitt, CEO and founder of ChessCube says, “We are delighted to have InVenFin on board as our partner. Over and above the valuable capital injection, InVenFin gives us access to an international business network, and their team of experts in branding, product strategy, intellectual property management and corporate structuring. This investment allows ChessCube to focus on establishing itself as the world leader in online chess.”<br /><br />InVenFin’s Stuart Gast says, “ChessCube’s innovative product offering has impressed us, along with the strong team led by Mark. The social gaming space is growing rapidly worldwide, and we believe ChessCube represents an excellent entrance for us into this world. We look forward to assisting ChessCube achieve its aspirations.”<br /><br />Vinny Lingham, CEO of San Francisco-based Yola.com, was an early investor in ChessCube. “As a keen chess player myself, it is particularly exciting to be part of an innovative chess venture,” said Lingham. “This investment by InVenFin further highlights the potential of Cape Town as the technology hub of Africa - which I like to dub Silicon Cape. ChessCube has enormous potential to dominate the massive global chess players’ market.”<br /><br />ChessCube enables all levels of chess players to play live chess against other like-minded players, in various forms of the game. The focus at ChessCube.com is enjoying the game of chess in a positive and fun environment.<br /><br />ChessCube.com also offers interactive chess videos written by international grandmasters. Unlike DVDs, these videos interact with each user, offering them personalised instruction – an outstanding innovation that earned ChessCube a Semi-final placing in the 2008 Adobe Max Awards in San Francisco.<br /><br />World history was recently made by ChessCube when, during its recent sponsorship of the 2009 South African Open, along with the 400 participants at a Cape Town venue, for the first time in history three grandmasters and masters participated from a second venue in Melbourne, Australia. FIDE, the world chess federation, worked with ChessCube to ensure that the games, which were played across the Internet, were officially rated, setting a new precedent that could see tournaments using this technology in the future.<br /><br />ChessCube continues to innovate and build on its award-winning chess playing platform from its Cape Town headquarters.<br /><br />Mark Levitt CEO of ChessCube at ChessCube center<br /><br />About ChessCube<br /><br />ChessCube (www.chesscube.com) was launched in May 2007 from its Cape Town headquarters. It has since grown into a community of over 650,000 avid chess players, and continues to grow at a rapid pace. ChessCube is an innovative, live chess platform, allowing competition and education within a social community. Mark Levitt, founder and CEO of ChessCube, is four times South African Chess Champion. ChessCube’s investors include InVenfin, Vinny Lingham and Michael Leeman.<br /><br />For more information or images, please contact Mark Levitt (mark@chesscube.com) or Sarah Blake (sarah@chesscube.com).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-90733290963071797752009-08-27T08:18:00.000-05:002009-08-27T08:19:24.354-05:00USCF Cuts Scholastic's/FIDE Director PositionLetter From Jerry Nash <br /><em>By Bill Hall </em><br /> <br />August 26, 2009 <br /> <br />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<br /> <br />- Bill Hall, USCF Executive Director <br /><br />August 26,2009<br /><br />Dear Chess Community,<br /><br />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.<br /><br /> 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. <br /><br />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. <br /><br />Best regards, <br />Jerry Nash <br /><br /> <br />http://main.uschess.org/content/view/9667/544/Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-82938026875470971262009-08-26T08:48:00.001-05:002009-08-26T08:50:15.629-05:00Ousted members of Florida chess board sue to reclaim their volunteer positions<em>ST.PETERSBURG TIMES<br />By Luis Perez, Times Staff Writer <br />Wednesday, August 26, 2009 </em><br /><br />ST. PETERSBURG — The future of chess belongs to the young. On this, these chess fanatics agree.<br /><br />As for everything else, well, they'll hash it out in court.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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. <br /><br />Check. But not mate, apparently.<br /><br />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. <br /><br />"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."<br /><br />Skippy is Robert Foreman, 21. He and Joseph Virgin, 23, of Orlando are also plaintiffs.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />"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."<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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. <br /><br />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.<br /><br />"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.<br /><br />"I am saying that they have too much time on their hands."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-83209891605091039422009-08-25T14:47:00.001-05:002009-08-25T14:47:58.759-05:00Street Chess: Reality TV Promo<object width="320" height="240" ><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://www.facebook.com/v/255899700345" /><embed src="http://www.facebook.com/v/255899700345" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="240"></embed></object>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-73177650345019039872009-08-25T10:39:00.001-05:002009-08-25T10:39:59.426-05:00Cuban Chess Players Attend World CupCuban chess players attend World Cup <br /> <br /> <br /><em>www.chinaview.cn</em> <br /><br /> <br /> HAVANA, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) -- Cuban chess players Leinier Dominguez, Lazaro Bruzon and Fidel Corrales will represent Cuba at the World Cup of Khanty-Mainsysk, Russia from Nov.20 to Dec.15, authorities said on Monday. <br /><br /> Dominguez got direct entry with his world ranking while Bruzon and Corrales went through after the qualification matches. <br /><br /> Bulgarian Vesselin Topalove, Ukranian Vassily Ivanchuk, Russians Alexander Morozevich and Valdimir Kramnik will also attend the event.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-23935347120249071682009-08-24T10:58:00.000-05:002009-08-24T10:59:36.215-05:00Tragic Coulsdon chess girl's mother pays tribute on her third anniversary<em>Sunday, August 23, 2009, 11:00By Brian Haran<br />brian.haran@essnmedia.co.uk</em><br /><br /><br /><br />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.<br />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.<br />And yesterday (Saturday) saw the start of the second annual Jessie Gilbert Celebration International Chess Festival in her memory.<br /> 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.<br />Mr Gilbert, 50, was subsequently found not guilty at Guildford Crown Court of five charges of rape.<br />Jessie, a former Croydon High School pupil, had won the women's world amateur chess championships when she was aged just 11.<br />She was a long-standing member of Coulsdon Chess Fellowship - and yesterday saw the start of the nine-day tournament in her memory.<br />Her mother Angela, 55, who now lives in Reigate, said: "The summer is hard for us with these two landmark events in our minds.<br />"Jessie always wanted to stage her own chess tournament one day.<br />"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."<br />Mrs Gilbert visits Jessie's grave in Redhill about three times a week.<br />She added: "My other daughters have been determined to ensure they make successes of their lives, partly in Jessie's honour."<br />Her oldest daughter Samantha, 24, is a qualified solicitor working in London.<br />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.<br />And Josie, 11, is transferring next term from Croydon High School to Woldingham School.<br />Up to 40 players of all ages are expected to take part in the memorial chess tournament.<br />Among them will be two chess grandmasters who are travelling down from Dundee and Manchester respectively.<br />Scott Freeman, activities manager for Coulsdon Chess Fellowship, said: "I have known Jessie since she was eight years old.<br />"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."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-3683343757667625162009-08-21T08:42:00.001-05:002009-08-21T08:45:06.543-05:00Malaysia's Main Man of Chess<strong><em>The Star Online</em></strong><em>By By QUAH SENG SUN</em><br />Datuk Tan Chin Nam is regarded as the driving force behind chess in Malaysia.<br /><br />IT’S been nine months since I last met Datuk Tan Chin Nam in Penang. That Sunday in November, he was still basking in the glory of winning the 2008 Melbourne Cup in Australia. It was an unprecedented and historical win for him: the only horse owner ever to win that coveted cup four times.<br /><br />Prior to the Malaysia Chess Festival starting tomorrow, I sat down with him again and this time, it was at his office at Menara Tan&Tan in Kuala Lumpur. This time, instead of horses, he turned his attention to the other interest in his life, which is chess.<br /><br />This game of kings has taken up much of his free time, effort, and money since 1974. In that year, he was elected president of the Malaysian Chess Federation. But despite stepping down in 1986, he could never get chess out of his life. He remains the main engine behind chess in this country. It is estimated that in the past 35 years, he has poured at least RM10mil into the game.<br /><br />“People remarked that I am stupid to put so much of my money into chess when I cannot see the return from there,” he remarked. “They say that if I had invested this sum and the time I’ve spent on chess into my business, I would have earned back my capital many times over. Am I stupid? Of course, I’m stupid!”<br /><br />Then, as he leaned forward as if to confide in me, Tan boomed: “But you know what? It’s not all about money. I did it because of personal joy. I enjoy chess just like I enjoy horse racing. But I’ve already achieved the peak in horses.<br /><br /> <br />Grand plans: ‘I am embarking on the Malaysia chess project to take the Malaysian chess culture to a higher plane,’ says Datuk Tan Chin Nam.<br /> <br />“In chess, there’s still much to do and I like to see other people enjoy the game and succeed in the game. There’s the joy of watching a young child of seven or eight beaming when he succeeds. I think that chess is valuable to the community as an intellectual sport endeavour. It’s incomparable.”<br /><br />How does he see the direction of chess in Malaysia in the next five to 10 years?<br /><br />“I am very certain the progress will be phenomenal. To achieve this, I am embarking on the Malaysia chess project to take the Malaysian chess culture to a higher plane,” he said.<br /><br />“Various Asean governments already support chess to a great degree, including Vietnam, Singapore, the Philippines and Indonesia. Malaysia is the one exception that can do better. So my proposal is that the Government can help chess the same way that it already supports other sports. For example, let foreign professional chess players into Malaysia to raise our standard to the full international level.<br /><br />“Our neighbours give strong foreign players permanent residencies or even citizenship. Singapore has about 10 of them. In Vietnam, even more. For instance, China’s grandmaster Zhang Zhong is a permanent resident in Singapore and plays for Singapore.<br /><br />“In Malaysia, we don’t even have a grandmaster. If we get a competent core of grandmasters here, I believe the effort will be self-sustaining. You have the grandmasters teaching younger players and once they reach that level, it doesn’t go back down. For example, England achieved it in the 1960s, same with Indonesia, India and China. Self-sustaining, so that it continues on its own.<br /><br />“The Malaysia chess project also involves organising high-level tournaments. We already have some success putting Malaysia on the international chess map. Saturday is the start of the sixth Malaysia Chess Festival. I’m committed to the next five years of the Arthur Tan Malaysia open, which is the festival’s centrepiece.<br /><br />“Making it a success means it’s a great chess festival for tourism. We put Malaysia on the chess map and we have people coming from all over the world to take part in our tournaments. But it’s very expensive for them just to come: plane fare, accommodation, entry fee.<br /><br />“Why should it be so expensive? What if the entry fee is reduced? The numbers will increase. I foresee 2,000 players in the future. It’s not impossible. Make it free even, and we’ll have 3,000, including friends and relatives. That’s chess tourism.”<br /><br />But all these plans would require money and a lot of fund-raising, I remind him.<br /><br />“Right now, my Tan Chin Nam Foundation awards scholarships to needy university students. I’m asking my people to see how a separate fund can be set up and properly administered within the foundation specifically for chess development.<br /><br />“I’m considering a decent donation to the chess part of the foundation. It’ll be a challenge, if I give a donation, to persuade the Government and the big corporations to back me up ringgit for ringgit. I estimate the chess portion of the foundation will require several million to make chess self-sustaining in Malaysia. One idea is that if I offer one-third of the amount, then the Government can add its third and corporations and others can provide the remainder. So that’s the challenge.”<br /><br />I asked about the chess centre that was set up on the fourth floor of the Wilayah Complex in Kuala Lumpur in February this year. This centre, as well as the Malaysia open, was dedicated to Arthur Tan, his son who passed away in Australia in 2004.<br /><br />Arthur grew up in a chess-playing family, competing against siblings and relatives, and playing across the board and over the Internet. People who knew him said he could talk business 24 hours a day, reminding them of his father.<br /><br />He had a similar business management style. In Malaysia, his projects included the Bukit Belimbing residential project and the Sierramas. In Australia, he managed and developed portions of the Como Hotel shopping and residential project in Melbourne.<br /><br />“The Dato’ Arthur Tan Chess Centre was set up near the beginning of the year. I realised that the Malaysian chess public would need a practical centre to take part in activities and raise the level of the game. It’s something that my son himself would have liked to do.<br /><br />“The chess centre is a focal point of the Malaysia chess project. It’s also meant for enjoyment, with plans to create a congenial coffeehouse atmosphere for everyone – from students to businessmen – to socialise. For too long, I’ve been in chess organising that I haven’t even begun to enjoy myself more in my chess games. Starting soon, I want to be a playing member. I will play more chess.”<br /><br />What would Tan consider as his biggest achievements on the world stage?<br /><br />“I value greatly the award of Commander of the Legion of Grandmasters given to me by Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, the president of the World Chess Federation, when Fide celebrated its 75th anniversary in 1999. Only 20 people worldwide were recognised. And a few years earlier, I was given direct membership in Fide. Very few people are direct members of Fide, all others are national chess federations.<br /><br />“I was also a deputy president of Fide for four years from 1982 and was part of its executive board until 1990. In 1990 and 1994, the leading members of the exco – the main representatives from Asia, Europe, the Middle East and South America – offered me, in effect, the Fide presidency. But I declined to run both times. I couldn’t be visiting a hundred or more countries. The time wasn’t right. There were other priorities in my business back here.<br /><br />“Rapid chess was proposed by me, so that more people can take part in short tournaments and events. It took years for rapid chess to be accepted. If I remember, countries in the West, like Bulgaria, objected to it but after several years, the Fide family has come around to support it. Today, rapid chess is used not only for weekend events but also as a tie-break system at high-level matches.<br /><br />“So you see, all these efforts have been good public relations for Malaysia,” said Tan.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-53070431700900054552009-08-20T06:50:00.000-05:002009-08-20T06:51:05.736-05:00Malaysian Chess PLayers Sweep TournamentKUALA LUMPUR, Aug 19 (Bernama)<br /><br /><br /><br /> -- Malaysian chess players made a clean sweep of all the four gold medals offered in chess competitions on the final day of the Asean Para Games (KL 09) at the National Sports Council's Commonwealth Hall here on Wednesday.<br /><br />With the four gold medals won on Wednesday, the last of the 20 gold medals offered in chess competitions, Malaysia ended their campaign in the Games with eight gold medals, surpassing the six gold target set earlier.<br /><br />Nur Feiqah Maulud Mohd Halil and Choo Min Wang lived up to their top billing by winning the women's and men's individual events and later led their respective teams to win the team gold in both events.<br /><br />The two gold medals won on Wednesday increased Nur Feiqah's personal gold medal tally in the Games to four but the young petite lass remained modest and gracious in her celebrations.<br /><br />"This victory is a win for all and a team effort. It will not have been possible if not for the support and guidance from the coaches and officials," she told Bernama here on Wednesday.<br /><br />Nur Feiqah whose two gold medals came through the women's B1/B2/B3 category events, hopes to repeat a similar feat at the next Asean Para Games to be hosted by Indonesia in 2011.<br /><br />"Though I will be busy with my studies, I hope to continue playing and learning the techniques of the game," said Nur Feiqah who teamed up with Athirah Azman and Teo Suat Mui for the team gold in the same event.<br /><br />Meanwhile, Choo who swept the men's individual in the B1/B2/B3 event, partnered Mah Hassan Omar and Shahruddin Sidek for the team gold in the same event.<br /><br />Team manager Abdul Latif Mohammad said he was more than satisfied with the performances of his charges as they were able to surpass their initial target of six gold medals.<br /><br />"Having performed well here, it will be important to identify new talents to repeat a similar feat in Indonesia two years later," he said.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-71200469601956099232009-08-19T10:16:00.001-05:002009-08-19T10:18:29.617-05:00Laszlo Nagy:Chess Promoter Helped Bring Down Berlin WallSOPRONPUSZTA, Hungary – It was a picnic that changed the course of history.<br /><br />Twenty years ago Wednesday, members of Hungary's budding opposition organized a picnic at the border with Austria to press for greater political freedom and promote friendship with their Western neighbors.<br /><br />Some 600 East Germans got word of the event and turned up among the estimated 10,000 participants. They had a plan: to take advantage of an excursion across the border to escape to Austria.<br /><br />Hungarian President Laszelo Solyom and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were taking part Wednesday in festivities Wednesday marking the 20th anniversary of the "Pan-European Picnic," which helped precipitate the fall nearly three months later of the Berlin Wall.<br /><br />One of the key factors allowing the Germans to escape: the decision by a Hungarian border guard commander not to stop them as they pushed through to freedom.<br /><br />Lt. Col. Arpad Bella and five of his men had been expecting a Hungarian delegation to cross the border at Sopronpuszta by bus, visit a nearby Austrian town as a symbol of the new era of glasnost — or openness — under reformist Soviet leader Mikail Gorbachev, and return to Hungary.<br /><br />Instead, at the planned time of 3 p.m., Bella suddenly found himself face to face with 150 East Germans marching up the road to the border gate, which had been closed since 1948.<br /><br />"I had about 20 seconds to think about it until they got here," said Bella, 63, during an interview where the gate once stood.<br /><br />"Had the five of us confronted the Germans, they would have (overwhelmed us)."<br /><br />Once the initial group got through hundreds more East Germans joined them. Still vivid in Bella's mind was the reactions of the Germans, including many young people and families with small children, once they were on the other side.<br /><br />"They embraced, they kissed, they cried and laughed in their joy. Some sat down right across the border, others had to be stopped by the Austrian guards because they kept running and didn't believe they were in Austria," Bella said. "It was in incredible experience for them."<br /><br />Laszlo Nagy, one of the organizers of the picnic, was startled by the East Germans' actions, who left behind hundreds of cars and other possessions near the border for the chance to make the short walk to a new life in the West.<br /><br />"Some of them were waiting for this moment for 20 or 30 years," Nagy said. "They left behind everything ... because freedom has the greatest value."<br /><br />Dirk Mennenga was one the "Ossies," a nickname for East Germans, who made it to Austria on that day. He had come to Hungary from Dresden.<br /><br />"We had planned beforehand that we would try to cross the border through Hungary," Mennenga said. "We didn't know how easy or difficult it would be."<br /><br />After seeing flyers promoting the picnic, Mennenga thought the event could provide an opportunity to escape West.<br /><br />"It was a very emotional situation," Mennenga said. "There was a sole border guard. A young Hungarian man kept pointing the way and before we knew it we were in Austria."<br /><br />While Bella was unaware of the East Germans' intentions, behind the scenes the Hungarian government had already decided that it would somehow let them go West. <br /><br />Miklos Nemeth, Hungary's last prime minister of the communist era, said the picnic and the East Germans' breakthrough on that day was one in a series of steps that brought democracy to most of the Soviet bloc within a year. <br /><br />"It was a planned process on behalf of the government, but it was a transition where everyone was also seeking to secure their own future," Nemeth said. <br /><br />With 80,000 Soviet troops stationed in Hungary, Nemeth said it was difficult to know how Moscow would react to the unprecedented events. <br /><br />"In my mind this was an important event, a test," Nemeth said. "And fortunately, Arpad Bella ... although he did not get any information, he decided in the right way." <br /><br />Tens of thousands of East Germans had traveled to Hungary as expectations mounted that the more moderate Communist country might open its borders to the West. <br /><br />They lived in makeshift shelters in Budapest on the grounds of the West German Embassy and at a tent city set up by a Catholic parish. <br /><br />In the weeks after the picnic, East Germans continued to make attempts to cross the border, although many were still turned back. Then, on Sept. 11, Hungary began allowing all East Germans to travel West. <br /><br />Bella continued his career as a border guard for several more years before retiring in 1996, later even working as a consultant on developing aspects of the Schengen agreement, which now allows for borderless travel within 25 European countries. <br /><br />"I didn't think of myself as a hero. How could I? I wasn't even sure I'd be around for another week," Bella said. "If the Russians had wanted to come, they would have swept us aside like nothing." <br /><br />For Nagy, the significance of the events of Aug. 19 has grown over the past 20 years. <br /><br />"At the time, we didn't feel like we were making history," Nagy said. "It was the world's greatest garden party."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11035964.post-49908535132281708382009-08-18T08:12:00.001-05:002009-08-18T08:13:44.874-05:00Cheats,Spies,Crooks and Commies<em>Washington Post</em><br /><br />Nikolai Krylenko, the Soviet Commissar of Justice and Prosecutor General, used to sentence innocent people to death in show trials in the 1930s, until he himself perished in 1938 in Stalin's Great Purge. He neglected his work by spending too much time on chess and mountain climbing, his accusers claimed. In chess, Krylenko had a vision: He wanted to export the game as part of Soviet culture and to establish Soviet domination in the chess world. He began a ruthless game, playing with human pawns ¿ the Soviet chess masters and champions. In 1948, Mikhail Botvinnik won the world title. The aim was achieved. <br /><br />Since 1931, Botvinnik was regarded as the best Soviet player and everybody thought that he, and only he, had the right to be World Champion, David Bronstein explained in "The Sorcerer's Apprentice." (The second, updated and enlarged edition of Bronstein's classic was recently published by New in Chess.) With the championship came political power, and Botvinnik and his helpers used it. In 1951, Bronstein's father was not allowed to go to Moscow to see his son in the world championship match against Botvinnik. Bronstein smuggled him in anyway and almost won the match. It ended in a 12-12 tie, but there was no love lost between Botvinnik and Bronstein through the end of their lives. Shortly before he died, Botvinnik got irritated when someone mentioned Bronstein's name. Botvinnik said, "Please never mention his name in my presence ever again; he is my enemy!" Upon learning of Botvinnik's death, Bronstein quipped: "What a surprise; he was human after all!" <br /><br />The history of Soviet chess is full of personal quarrels and intrigues. The former world champion and Soviet grandmaster Boris Spassky once compared Soviet players to spiders in a bottle, biting and kicking each other, sometimes literally, as Viktor Korchnoi and Tigran Petrosian did during one of their Candidates games. A partition under the table was installed next time they met. <br /><br />The Soviet players, however, united against a common foreign enemy. According to Bobby Fischer, the American Sammy Reshevsky was the best player in the world in the early 1950s. Bronstein revealed that during the 1953 Candidates tournament in Zurich, the Soviet players were asked to help Vassily Smyslov finish ahead of Reshevsky and therefore prevent the American grandmaster to reach the world championship match against Botvinnik. It was not necessary. Smyslov played too well and won the event. When the Soviet players ganged up on Fischer in the 1962 Candidates tournament in Curacao, playing hard against him but making quick draws among themselves, he called them "cheating commies" and demanded change from tournament to matches. After the change was made, Fischer was unstoppable and in 1972 won the world title. <br /><br /><br />The world championship matches in 1978 and 1981 between Anatoly Karpov and Korchnoi, who defected from Soviet Union in 1976, were politically motivated. Many shadowy figures, KGB agents and parapsychologists kept coming and going during these contests. Karpov won both encounters. A few years later, with the appearance of Garry Kasparov, the Soviets had suddenly two players capable of winning the world title. <br /><br />The first world championship match between Karpov and Kasparov in 1984 in Moscow was the longest in history. The final outcome was discussed high up in the Soviet Politburo and in the offices of the KGB. The players were on a destructive collision course and there were fears the long match would inflict lasting damage, both physical and mental. The maneuvers behind the scenes intensified and the match was stopped without a decision after 48 games in February 1985. Kasparov won the next title match in December 1985. The continuation of the feud between the last two Soviet world champions is described in a new book, "Garry Kasparov on Modern Chess, Part Three: Kasparov vs. Karpov 1986-1987," released by Everyman Chess. <br /><br />In the summer of 1986 in London, Kasparov and Karpov sat down over the board and for the first time two Soviet players contested the world title in a Western country. Newspapers covered the match on front pages, reporting on the clash between a good communist and a bad one. During the first 12 games in the English capital, both players behaved well, but when the match moved for the second half to the Soviet city of Leningrad, all hell broke loose. Kasparov wrote about treason and bribery after he lost three straight games. He named those who betrayed him and the crooks who tried to bribe them. He was still the world champion when the next match was played in Seville, Spain, in 1987, but he barely hung onto the title in the end. In a must-win situation, he won the last game. The murky world of Soviet chess, the stories behind the scenes and game analyses make for fascinating reading, but did Kasparov tell all? For example, his gamesmanship during the 11th game in Seville, unparalleled in the history of the world championships, is not mentioned. After Karpov blundered, Kasparov openly laughed in his face. One has the feeling there are more tales to be told.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0