Rook Endgames - Lesson 13 - Rook & Pawn versus Rook Part 1

When learning rook and pawn endgames it is really a good idea to start with the absolute basics. By this I'm referring to scenarios in which both sides have a rook but one player has a pawn too. If only rooks were involved then a defender could adequately prevent a pawn from promoting simply by getting behind it. However, the presence of kings naturally complicates things. Essentially, I'm going to split Rook and Pawn vs Rook Endgame lessons into two parts: one in which the defending king is able to blockade the pawn and the other where it cannot. I this lesson we will deal with the former. So lets get things going. Defending King on the Case By...

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Rook Endgames - Lesson 12 - Rook versus more Pawns

The topics up for discussion in this section include situations in which the rook is up against several pawns. Of course there are millions of scenarios that could be dreamt up in this category, while factors such as how far advanced the pawns are and how strong they are in terms of whether they are connected or isolated certainly come into play. However, first up I'd have to observe that the title in itself is deceptive. One mustn't forget that we are really talking about king and rook versus king and pawns. The king with the rook must be able to have a major role if the rook is to triumph.TIP: The first step in these situations is to identify...

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Rook Endgames - Lesson 11 - Rook versus Connected Pawns

NOTE: Generally connected pawns are superior to isolated pawns in rook endings.Though I am obviously making quite a lot of them in these lessons, usually I am wary of making generalizations, as it is nearly always possible to find exceptions to the rule. Clearly, two connected passed pawns on their home squares aren't going to be as worrying to someone as two isolated ones on the seventh rank, and the above note refers to pawns of similar advancement.I will return to the isolated versus connected pawns debate with rooks present in future lessons but for now let me talk about situations involving a rook against connected pawns.Nobody can deny...

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MTel Masters Cancelled - Full Interview with Silvio Danailov

There will be no MTel Masters this year. The sponsor is not willing to support both the tournament and the upcoming World Championship match in Sofia, between Anand and Topalov. This was revealed already five days ago by Silvio Danailov in an interview with Bulgarian newspaper Trud, but only emerged in the chess media yesterday.On March 26th Bulgarian daily Trud published an interview with Silvio Danailov, organizer, manager of Veselin Topalov and executive director of the Grand Slam Chess Association. Yesterday Chessdom published a full English translation. The most newsworthy is the final part.Silvio Danailov speaks out his mind in a long interview Mtel...

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A Master of the Slow Game, Who’s a Speed Demon ?

The best players in the world are ranked on their ability to play slow, or classical, chess, in which each side has at least a few hours for a game. None of them are slouches at blitz chess, in which an entire game lasts five minutes or less, but it puts a premium on tactical skill and quick thinking — which is usually the forte of younger players.  So it is not surprising that Magnus Carlsen, 19, who is the No. 1-ranked player in the world in classical chess, and 22-year-old Hikaru Nakamura, No. 17, look to be the best in the world at blitz chess. Carlsen, a Norwegian, is the reigning world blitz champion, having won the title...

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Can Karpov Be President of Chess Federation?

The former world champion Anatoly Karpov announced on 13th March,2010 that he was running for president of the World Chess Federation.Karpov is trying to unseat Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, who has been president of the federation (known as FIDE, its initials in French), since 1995. Ilyumzhinov is also the president of Kalmykia, a small Russian republic on the Caspian Sea.The federation president is elected for a five-year term, and there is no limit on how many times he (or she) can be re-elected.Karpov would not be the first ex-champion to serve as FIDE’s president. Max Euwe, the fifth world champion (1935-37), led the federation from 1970-78, a period...

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Vasily Smyslov, 1921-2010, An Appreciation

It is not surprising that accolades have poured in from all over the world on the death of Vasily Smyslov, the seventh world champion. Though Smyslov was the titleholder for only a year, he was among the world’s best players for decades and his games had a certain clarity to them that was widely admired. He did not play speculatively like Mikhail Tal, or adhere to a set of scientific principals, like his great rival, Mikhail Botvinnik. He was not stubbornly dogmatic, like Bobby Fischer, or a technician, like Anatoly Karpov. Though he drew inspiration from Alexander Alekhine, his style was unique. Boris Spassky has often been described as a “universal”...

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The Singer Vasily Smyslov - Listen him Sing

Although Vassily Vassilievich Smyslov, who died last Saturday, was best known as a chess player and World Champion, he had a great love for music. "My study of chess was accompanied by a strong attraction to music," he wrote, "and it was probably thanks to this that from childhood I became accustomed to thinking of chess as an art." Listen to Smyslov sing Stenka RazinVasily Smyslov, 1921 – 2010Vasily Smyslov died on 27th March 2010 in Moscow, just three days after his 89th birthday. He had checked into the Botkin Clinic earlier in the week, complaining of heart problems.Smyslov in Reykjavik"The news of our dear friend Vasily Vasiliyevich...

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Gareyev Captures JNBS UWI Masters in Jamaica

This is not just any event – it took place on the campus grounds of the University of the West Indies at Mona, Jamaica, nestled in a lush valley, one of the most scenic areas in Greater Kingston. On the free day participants could typically scramble up waterfalls or swim with dolphins. The chess action was dominated by Uzbek GM Timur Gareyev from the University of Texas.Timur Gareyev captures JNBS UWI MastersBy Zachary Ramsay, UWI Chess SocietyUzbek grandmaster Timur Gareyev from the University of Texas in Brownsville completed his domination of the JNBS UWI Masters when he defeated Jamaican FIDE Master Jomo Pitterson at the Assembly Hall,...

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Chess Classic Mainz 2010 - Back to the Roots

The world economic crisis is being felt in chess. In Bulgaria the the annual MTel tournament has been cancelled this year, and the very popular Mainz Chess Classic has been reduced to a three-day simul and open. Still, two world champions are part of the former, and a very large elite field of GMs is expected to play in the latter, which carries a prize fund of €30,000.Press release Chess Classic Mainz 2010 – Back to the roots"Making a virtue out of necessity" is the central theme of the 17th Chess Classic Mainz. From 06 – 08 August 2010 the major international rapid chess event in the world will be played in Mainz....

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Vasily Smyslov Obituary

Vasily Smyslov, who has died aged 89, was world chess champion for a year in 1957-58 and among the game's best players for more than two decades. At his peak, Smyslov was renowned for his strategic and end- game play, and more recently he set new achievement records for a grandmaster in old age, reaching the world title semi-finals at 63 and maintaining his strength into his 70s. Yet chess was only his second career option, after he failed to become a singer with the Bolshoi Theatre. Smyslov was born in Moscow. He learned chess at six from his father, a player of master strength who once won a game from the future world champion Alexander...

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