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Download New In Chess Yearbook 65

Price: € 30.95 Publisher: New In Chess, 2002 Edition: Hardcover ISBN: 90.5691.103.1 Pages: 240 Language: English
NIC Forum Readers from all over the world join in discussions of previous surveys. Both (grand)masters and club players shed their light on new opening developments and search together for the truth. Sosonko's Corner Everybody knows that the most vulnerable squares in the initial position are f7 and f2. Even Radjabov came into trouble when he neglected his weakest link against Zviagintsev. Genna Sosonko gives a whole range of examples from grandmaster practice. Book Review Based on reviews of 4 new monographs (by Yury Yakovich, John Emms, Jacob Aagaard and Jan Pinski) as well as a Bad Bishop Ches Video by Andrew Marin on the Scheming Scandinavavion, Glenn Flear tries a provide an answer to the question: What kind of opening books do you like? 36 NIC Surveys Yearbook 65 Sicilian: Moscow Variation 3.Bb5, by Boersma Sicilian: Dragon Variation, by Golubev Sicilian: Scheveningen Variation, by Karolyi Sicilian: Sveshnikov Variation 10...Bg7, by Rogozenko Sicilian: Sveshnikov Variation 10...f5, by Bosch Sicilian: Taimanov Variation, by Fogarasi Sicilian: Paulsen Variation, by Vilela Sicilian: Hyper-Accelerated Dragon 2...g6, by Van der Tak Sicilian: Alapin Variation, by Timoshenko Sicilian: 2.Nf3 e6 3.b3 b6, by Kuijf French: Winawer Variation, by Z. and I. Almasi French: Tarrasch Variation 3...Nc6, by Tiviakov Caro-Kann: Advance Variation, by Dautov Caro-Kann: Classical Variation, by Dautov Scandinavian: Main Line 2...Qxd5, by Llanos/Soppe Petroff: Nimzowitsch Variation 5.Nc3, by Bosch Petroff: Jaenisch Variation, by Boersma Ruy Lopez: Exchange Variation, by Van der Weide Ruy Lopez: Neo-Steinitz Variation, by Van der Tak Four Knights: Rubinstein Variation, by Lukacs/Hazai Two Knights: Traxler Gambit, by De Zeeuw Budapest Gambit: The Knight System 4.Nf3, by Panczyk/Ilczuk Slav: Krause Variation, by Lukacs/Hazai Slav: Noteboom Variation, by Beliavsky QGA: An Early Queen Move 5...Qc7, by Karolyi QGA: Classical Variation, by Doggers Nimzo-Indian: Vienna Variation, by Langeweg Grünfeld Indian: Exchange Variation, by Van de Mortel King’s Indian: Classical Main Line, by Sosonko King’s Indian: Averbakh Variation, by Beliavsky Benoni: Classical Main Line, by Marin Volga Gambit: Main Line, by Fogarasi English: Reversed Sicilian, by Marin English: Double Fianchetto Variation, by Van de Mortel English: Symmetrical Variation, by Greenfeld Réti: Schmid Benoni Reversed, by Van der Sterren

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Download New In Chess Yearbook 64

Price: € 30.95 Publisher: New In Chess, 2002 Edition: Hardcover ISBN: 90.5691.100.7 Pages: 240 Language: English
NIC Forum Readers from all over the world join in discussions of previous surveys. Both (grand)masters and club players shed their light on new opening developments and search together for the truth. Sosonko's Corner Inconspicuous games can have big consequences. According to Genna Sosonko a recently played game in a rapid tournament in Paris is bound to affect the theory of one of the most popular lines of the Slav Defence. Book Review Glenn Flear reviews two monographs (on the Grnfeld and the Alapin Sicilian) and two volumes in a new Everyman series: starting out. How does a novice to an opening get acquainted with a new line or system he wants to include in his repertoire? 35 NIC Surveys Yearbook 64 Sicilian: Najdorf Variation 6.Rg1, by Dorian Rogozenko Sicilian: Dragon Variation 9.0-0-0, by Van der Weide Sicilian: Classical Variation 6.Be2 Nd4, by Van der Weide Sicilian: Rauzer Variation 7...Be7, by Karolyi Sicilian: The Anti-Sveshnikov System 3...e5, by Rogozenko Sicilian: Taimanov Variation 7.Qd2, 8.0-0-0, by Fogarasi Pirc: Classical Variation 4.Nf3, by Nadyrkhanov French: MacCutcheon Variation 4...Bb4, by Almasi French: Rubinstein Variation 3...de4, by Van der Wiel Caro-Kann: Smyslov Variation 4...Nd7, by Stohl Alekhine: Larsen Variation 4...de5 5.Ne5 c6, by Bosch Petroff: Marshall Variation 6...Bd6, by Boersma Petroff: Jaenisch Variation 6...Be7, 7...Nc6, by Morgado Ruy Lopez: Bird Defence 3...Nd4, by Van der Tak Ruy Lopez: Berlin Variation 3...Nf6, by Almasi Ruy Lopez: Worrall Variation 6.Qe2, by Fogarasi Italian Game: Giuoco Piano 4.c3, 5.d3, by Lukacs/Hazai Scotch: Belgrade Gambit 5.Nd5, by Van der Tak Four Knights: Rubinstein Variation 4...Nd4, by Lukacs/Hazai Two Knights: Rare moves against 5...Ng4, by Panczyk/Ilczuk Queen's Gambit Declined: Blackburne Variation 5.Bf4, by Pliester Queen's Gambit Declined: Tartakower Variation 7...b6, by Pliester Queen's Gambit Declined: 4.Nf3 Nbd7, by Pelletier Slav: 4.Qc2, by Karolyi Slav: Krause Variation 7...Nd5, by Karolyi Tarrasch: Rubinstein Variation 7.dc5, by Bosch Queen's Gambit Accepted: Central Variation 3.e4 Nf6, by Lukacs/Hazai Nimzo-Indian: Rubinstein Variation 5.Bd3, by Rogozenko Nimzo-Indian: Rubinstein Variation 5.Ne2, by Shulman Grünfeld Indian: Russian Variation 7...a6, by lthof King's Indian: 4...0-0, by Gufeld King's Indian: Smyslov Variation 5.Bg5, by Langeweg Volga Gambit: Main Line 5.ba6, by Fogarasi English: Symmetrical Variation 4.e4, by Van der Sterren Réti: Kings Indian Reversed, by Langeweg

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Download New In Chess Yearbook 63

Price: € 23.00
Publisher: New In Chess, 2002
Edition: Paperback large
ISBN: 90.5691,096.5
Pages: 240
Language: English

NIC Forum
Letters from readers and contributors on the Botvinnik Variation of the Slav, the Marshall Variation in the Petroff, the King's Indian Four Pawns Attack, the Caro-Kann, the Keres Attack in the Sicilian, the Nimzo Indian, the 'Franco-Polish Gambit' and the Sicilian Scheveningen.
Sosonko's Column
Sosonko celebrates the 50st birthday of Iosif Dorfman, an acknowledged master of the opening.
Book Review
Glenn Flear reviews the latest repertoire books: Unusual Queens Gambit Declined (Ward); The Chigorin Defence (Bronznik); Meeting 1 e4 (Alexander Raetsky); Meeting 1.d4 (Aagaard & Lund); Opening for White according to Kramnik 1.Nf3 Volume 3 (Alexander Khalifman).
36 NIC Surveys Yearbook 63

• Sicilian: Hungarian Variation 4.Qd4, by Van der Sterren
• Sicilian: Najdorf Variation 6.Bc4 b5, by Mikhalchishin
• Sicilian: Dragon Variation 9.g4, by Ceteras
• Sicilian: English Attack 6.Be3, by Lukacs/Hazai
• Sicilian: The Anti-Sveshnikov System 3...e5, by Rogozenko
• Sicilian: Paulsen Variation 5.c4, by Fogarasi
• Sicilian: Alapin Variation 2...d5, by Gavrilov
• Pirc: Classical Variation 4.Nf3, by Marin
• Kings Fianchetto: Gurgenidze Variation 3...c6 4.f4 d5, by Avrukh
• French: Burn Variation 4...de4, by Sosonko
• French: Winawer Variation 6...Qc7 7.Qg4 f6, by Karolyi
• French: Tarrasch Variation 3...Nf6, by Tiviakov
• Alekhine: Modern Variation 4...g6, by Van der Tak
• Petroff: Marshall Variation 6...Bd6, by Morgado
• Petroff: Jaenisch Variation 6...Nc6, by Pliester
• Ruy Lopez: Berlin Variation 3...Nf6, by Z.Almasi
• Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack 8...d5, by Van der Tak
• Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack 8...d5, by Van der Tak
• Ruy Lopez: Chigorin Variation 9...Na5, by Karolyi
• Scotch: Classical Variation 4...Bc5, by Lukacs/Hazai
• Philidor: The Original Philidor 3...f5, by Van der Tak
• Two Knights: Traxler Gambit 5.d4, by De Zeeuw
• Owens Defence: 3.Nc3, by Glek
• Queens Gambit Declined: Blackburne Variation 5.Bf4, by Rustemov
• Queens Gambit Declined: Cambridge Springs Variation 7.cd5, by Rogozenko
• Slav: Krause Variation 6.Ne5, by Flear
• Nimzo-Indian: A Nimzo-Queens Indian Hybrid 4.Nf3 b6, by Pliester
• Bogo-Indian: 4.Bd2 Qe7, by Boersma
• Queens Indian: Petrosian System 4.a3 c5, by Cebalo
• Grnfeld Indian: 5.Bg5 dc4, by Pavlovic
• Kings Indian: Glek Variation 7...Na6, by Glek
• Benoni: The Modern Main Line 6.Nf3, by Marin
• Old Indian: Main Line 8.Rb1, by Adla/Glavina
• Queens Pawn Opening: Colle Variation 3.e3, by Langeweg
• English: The Anti-Grnfeld Line 7.h4, by Vilela
• Rti: Capablanca Variation 3...Bg4, by Langeweg
  
  
  
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Download New In Chess Yearbook 62

Price: € 30.95 Publisher: New In Chess, 2002 Edition: Hardcover ISBN: 90.5691.094.9 Pages: 240 Language: English
Philidor: Hanham Variation 3...Nd7, by OlthofVienna: The Romantic 5.Qf3, by Van der TakAlbin's Counter Gambit: Main Line with 5.g3, by NIC EditorsQueen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation 3...Be7, by KarolyiSlav: Meran Variation 8...Bd6, by Langeweg Contents NIC Forum Letters from readers and contributors on the Modern Benoni, Caro-Kann, Queen's Indian, Pirc, Sicilian Cobra, Ruy Lopez, Ponziani, Scotch Mieses, Sicilian Scheveningen, Scandinavian and Anti-Benoni Sosonko's Column Sosonko's secret weapon against the Semi-Slav: 5.g3! Book Review Glenn Flear reviews books on the Latvian Gambit (Kosten), Scandinavian (Melts), The Lion (Van Rekom/Jansen), French 3.Nc3 (Pedersen) and Sicilian Sozin (Golubev). 36 NIC Surveys Yearbook 62 Sicilian: Poisoned Pawn Variation 8.Nb3, by Bosch Sicilian: Sozin Variation 7.a4, by Emms Sicilian: Chinese Dragon Variation 10...Rb8, by Henris Sicilian: Scheveningen Variation 6.Be2, by Mikhalchishin Sicilian: Rauzer Variation 6...Bd7, by Van der Weide Sicilian: Taimanov Variation 6.Be3 a6 7.Bd3, by Golubev Sicilian: Kan Variation 5...Bc5, by Bosch Pirc: The Czech System 4.h3, by Karolyi King's Fianchetto: Early Creativity with 4.Bg5, by Hendriks French: Rubinstein Variation 3...de4, by Olthof French: Winawer Variation 7.Nf3, by Pelletier French: Tarrasch Variation 3...Nf6, by Tiviakov Caro-Kann: Advance Variation 4.Nc3 a6, by Magomedov Caro-Kann: Smyslov Variation 4...Nd7, by Karolyi Ruy Lopez: Berlin Variation with Bd7, by Z.Almasi Ruy Lopez: Chigorin Variation 9...Na5, by Lukacs & Hazai Scotch: Classical Variation 5.Nc6, by Flear Philidor: Hanham Variation 3...Nd7, by Olthof Vienna: The Romantic 5.Qf3, by Van der Tak Albin's Counter Gambit: Main Line with 5.g3, by NIC Editors Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation 3...Be7, by Karolyi Slav: Meran Variation 8...Bd6, by Langeweg Tarrasch: Delaying Nc3, by Bosch Queen's Gambit Accepted: Varna Variation 7.Bb3, by Dautov Nimzo-Indian: Classical Variation 4.Qc2 (I), by Van der Wiel Nimzo-Indian: Classical Variation 4.Qc2 (II), by Van der Wiel Queen's Indian: Classical Variation 4.e3, by Pavlovic Grnfeld Indian: Exchange Variation 7.Nf3 , by Bosch King's Indian: Classical Main Line 9.Bg5, by Lukacs & Hazai King's Indian: Four Pawns Attack 6.Nf3, by Flear Volga Gambit: Fianchetto Variation 9.Nh3, by Fogarasi Dutch: Leningrad Variation 7...Qe8, by Lukacs & Hazai English: Closed Sicilian Reversed 6...h5, by Langeweg English: Sacrificing the c-pawn 6.Nc3, by Sosonko English: Protecting the c-pawn 6.Nd2, by Sosonko Rti : Lasker Variation 5...h6 or 5...e6, by Van der Sterren  HotFile | Part 1 of 1 |

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Kremlin seizes Russian Chess Federation offices

Kremlin seizes Russian Chess Federation offices; no pawn pun intended

For those of you following the titillating chess scandal unfolding in Moscow, today brings new, exciting, dangerous developments.

As Carl Schrek reported in Foreign Policy this week, the Kremlin has been starting to meddle a bit in the nomination of Russia’s candidate for the presidency of the international press federation, or FIDE. Brief backstory: On May 14, the Russian Chess Federation narrowly nominated Soviet chess superstar Anatoly Karpov to be its candidate. Across town, another meeting, just shy of a quorum, renominated the zany incumbent, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov.

You may remember Kirsan Ilyumzhinov from such world events like running a tiny autonomous majority Buddhist Russian republic on the Caspian Sea; being friends with Saddam Hussein, Chuck Norris, and Muammar Qaddafi; being so inspired by his meeting with Pope John Paul II that he built a massive Catholic church for the republic’s one (1) Catholic; and being questioned in the Russian parliament over his 1997 tour of an alien spaceship during which Ilyumzhinov may or may not have shared sensitive state secrets with “humanoid aliens.”

Ilyumzhinov is a chess fanatic who has made chess mandatory in Kalmyk schools. As president of FIDE for the last 15 years, he introduced “speed chess,” which has taken the sport to the popsy level of speed dating.

And now that he has a serious opponent for the Russian nomination, the Kremlin is stepping up to defend him. First, Arkady Dvorkovich, the Duke-educated president’s deputy, called the nominating votes illegitimate. Then he went and seized to the offices of the Russian Chess Federation.

Today, at around 2:15 Moscow time, black suited men from the private security firm “Peper” arrived at the Federation’s offices, and presented Federation president Aleksandr Bakh with a diktat signed by Dvorkovich saying that Peper was now in charge. They then kicked out the regular security guards and sealed off some rooms in the building as a helpless Bakh called the police.

Dvorkovich, whose father was a chess arbiter, has spent the last few days saying that Ilyumzhinov is the better, more experienced candidate, and the question is, why does the Kremlin even give a shit?

It might have something to do with the uncontested election of Russian politician Alexander Zhukov to head the Russian Olympic Committee. Zhukov, an avid chessman himself, has sworn that he will make chess an Olympic sport because it is a sport that is “advantageous for Russia.” That is, it might pad Russia’s future medal counts which flopped so mightily in Vancouver. To do that, the Kremlin apparently wants its own stooge on the FIDE throne. Karpov, backed by the toxic Kremlin critic and persona non grata Garry Kasparov, probably doesn’t seem like a safe gamble.

Second, Ilyumzhinov has kept Kalmykia firmly, calmly under his rule since 1993, which is nice in a region that is becoming more and more restive and dangerous. Third, Kalmykia has some nice oil and gas, and straddles a geostrategically precious corner of the Caspian sea, potentially perfect for building a pipeline to, say, India. This could easily be a little reward for a strategically located and very loyal Ilyumzhinov.

I also can’t believe I just wrote 500 words about a chess scandal

Source : True/Slant

---

The invasion of the Chess Club coincided with the seizure of the Club's bank account and the official website, which quickly posted a photo and message from the same Arkady Dvorkovich. RCF Chairman Alexander Bakh (photo right), who supported Karpov, was ejected from his office. Said Bakh:

"At around 4 p.m. a member of the private security firm "Peper" presented a contract for guarding the premises of the Chess Club. Employees sealed my office, the accountant's office, and another room and placed a guard at the entrance. But according to statutes of the Federation, only the Chairman can sign such documents. Under the old regulations the president and I could. I gave a statement to the police pointing out the illegality of the security service's actions, since they did not verify the legality of the signed order."

Karpov has released his own letter in reaction to these events, and also in response to a letter Dvorkovich sent out to the world's chess federations claiming that Karpov's election on May 14 was invalid. In it, Karpov makes the point that Dvorkovich's claims about the invalidity of the RCF are only relevant to tax status.

The Central Chess Club in Moscow

Karpov's letter

Dear Colleagues,
A few days ago, Arkady Dvorkovich issued a letter to all chess federations admitting that he scheduled the Russian Chess Federation Supervisory Council meeting on May 14th. At that meeting, an open vote occurred with a quorum present electing me as the RCF’s candidate for FIDE President. In the face of the evidence I presented – the original RCF meeting announcement – Mr. Dvorkovich now appears to concede it was always supposed to take place at the Botvinnik Central Chess Club. He and Kirsan Ilyumzhinov previously falsely stated to the press that the meeting was originally scheduled for a different location.
It must be understood that Mr. Dvorkovich’s latest letter is a personal one and does not represent the will of the RCF, which openly voted against him on this issue. In his letter, he presents a new set of phony justifications to challenge the results of an election which took place in full accordance with current regulations. Mr. Dvorkovich virtually accuses himself of failing to register the NGO he was appointed to supervise. Regardless, he well knows that State registration relates only to banking and tax matters, and not the internal activities of the NGO. Moreover, Mr. Dvorkovich has repeatedly pretended to act on behalf of the Russian Chess Federation – the same RCF he now says is an illegitimate organization. It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that he will say anything to attack the election results regardless of consistency or accuracy. My nomination from the RCF is a matter of public record.
Mr. Dvorkovich’s position in the Russian Chess Federation was granted by the Russian Congress, the same Congress that granted Mr. Alexander Bakh his position. The difference between the two positions is that Mr. Bakh, not Mr. Dvorkovich, was assigned the right to sign documents on behalf of the Russian Chess Federation. Accordingly, Mr. Dvorkovich has no authority to act unilaterally on behalf of the Russian Chess Federation. He attempts to place himself above the law and above the elected council members, but his statements carry no power. It is worth noting that following the guidelines of President Medvedev, the Gossoviet of Russia (State Council) recently ordered senior government officials to step down from directing national sports organizations.
It is ironic that Mr. Dvorkovich libels me as pursuing the presidency of FIDE for improper purposes. I was not aware that there is significant money involved in chess at the moment. Perhaps Mr. Dvorkovich can enlighten us all about the financial dealings of FIDE and his involvement.
In attempting to overturn the formal vote of the Supervisory Council, Mr. Dvorkovich has organized a hostile takeover of the Russian Chess Federation. It began with the official website of the Federation and the seizure and of the RCF’s bank accounts. Then on May 20, three men from a private security force took over of the Central Chess Club, expelled Mr. Bakh from his office, and sealed all documents present – all with no court order or other legal justification. They carried only a paper with Mr. Dvorkovich’s signature. While Mr. Ilyumzhinov’s loss in the vote may have been embarrassing to Mr. Dvorkovich, his displeasure does not make the vote “illegitimate” or justify illegal acts by a senior governmental official. Knocking the pieces off the board when you lose does not change the result.
I won an open vote among numerous delegates across Russia and will proudly represent my country as I have for years, with dignity and integrity. I care deeply about our great game of chess, its traditions and its future. My thanks to all of my supporters. I will not let you down.
Several federations have already contacted me to discuss a distinct issue arising from Mr. Dvorkovich's letter – namely his efforts to intimidate other federations from supporting me. This is of course a profoundly disturbing action by a senior government official in the host country of the upcoming election and will no doubt be the subject of much discussion.

Source : Chessbase

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Ilyumzhinov Plays Dirty in Moscow

On May 14, the Supervisory Council of the Russian Chess Federation attempted to hold a meeting in Moscow. Things had already gotten weird, with Council president Arkady Dvorkovich, also an aide to Russian president Medvedev, coming out in advance for Ilyumzhinov. So far in advance, in fact, that he announced on his own three weeks earlier that the RCF was nominating Ilyumzhinov. He did this after "talking to several Council members on the phone" and writing a letter of nomination that didn't have the signature of Alexander Bakh, the only person in the RCF empowered to sign things.

Karpov protested and Dvorkovich backed down somewhat and both sides girded for the May 14 meeting in Moscow. Things got a little wild even before the meeting. Dvorkovich caught wind that Karpov may have lined up a vote and enough votes to gain the nomination. So he announced a postponement of the meeting, which was ignored by Karpov supporters since they knew the only reason for a postponement was to avoid a vote. Dvorkovich then tried to move the meeting to a new location, one under his control, suggesting his own office or the offices at a bank owned by one of Ilyumzhinov's supporters. When all that failed, Dvorkovich and other Ilyumzhinov supporters on the Council boycotted the meeting, where the now-famous vote took place with 17 of the 32 Council members staying and voting for Karpov. (Council members are elected from all over Russia.)

Dvorkovich and Ilyumzhinov immediately attacked from just about every angle. The vote was invalid because A) Dvorkovich already nominated Ilyumzhinov himself or B) Dvorkovich didn't attend the meeting so the meeting didn't count or C) the meeting was supposed to take place at Dvorkovich's offices (Ilyumzhinov actually wrote this in his letter of protest but it was pointed out that the original announcement -- with the location as the Chess Club -- was still up on the RCF website. Oops. Though my favorite part of the letter is when he made fun of the delegates for voting with a show of hands. Yes, Kirsan, that is what democracy looks like. Scary, isn't it!) or D) the recent (February) reformulation of the RCF's structure and statutes had not been registered with the government agency that manages federations and other NGOs, so the RCF didn't really exist and the entire vote was a dream sequence.

Remarkably, it's D they seem to have settled on now, which makes you wonder what exactly Dvorkovich was planning to do at the meeting before he tried to cancel it. If none of the decisions the organization takes are binding, what were they doing there? And the NGO registry is about tax and banking status, not about internal affairs of the federation, so who cares? In an impressive attempt to thread this needle, Dvorkovich is now saying that since he (along with Council Chairman Alexander Bakh) was appointed to his position by the Congress, his position and authority are real despite the lack of registration with the feds. Unfortunately, Dvorkovich's post was not given the authority to sign papers for the RCF, Bakh's was, and Bakh supports Karpov. (Though, and this is important, Bakh didn't try to nominate Karpov unilaterally, instead holding an open vote.)

When Karpov won the May 14 vote I wasn't surprised. What surprised me is that it happened at all. Most readers know my day job with Kasparov is largely dedicated to The Other Russia and related pro-democracy initiatives in Russia, so I'm intimately familiar with the way state power is flexed there, although I am safe in Brooklyn instead of marching in the streets or having my offices raided on a monthly basis, for which I am very grateful. And with Dvorkovich being a presidential aide, and not a disposable one -- he is in charge of the Skolkovo "innovation center," the Kremlin's comically doomed attempt to create an artificial Silicon Valley near Moscow -- I figured that if Dvorkovich were worried the building would be locked down and the delegates dispersed, or threatened and then dispersed.

When that didn't happen, I took it as another sign that Ilyumzhinov's shield of political protection in Russia wasn't what it used to be. The other signs were how Ilyumzhinov's tales of an alien encounter hit the Russian press and then were even brought up in the Russian Duma. The rumblings in the Russian chess countryside were also getting some traction and there were actually more than 17 Karpov supporters on the Council, though a few decided it was too risky to show up. (Note that some of the most politically vulnerable Council members, from Moscow and St. Petersburg, bailed. Many of the votes came from areas most distant from the center, where there is typically less fear of Moscow.)

But it turns out Dvorkovich hadn't really left old methods behind, he was just slow to put them into action. As detailed in Gazeta.ru, with excerpts and more up in English on Chessbase here, Dvorkovich sent in a private security team to secure the Chess Club, kick Bakh out, and also shut everyone else out of the RCF website and bank accounts. This, we recall, by someone who doesn't have the authority to sign papers on behalf of the RCF and whose chosen candidate just lost a vote. This lack of signing authority is mostly because he is a government official. After several scandals and, later, poor performance by Russia at the Winter Games in Vancouver, Medvedev called for officials to stop meddling in sports federations. Dvorkovich was appointed RCF president because his father was a famous Soviet/Russian chess figure, but old hand Bakh was put on watch with signing powers so they weren't giving authority to a Medvedev aide.

Dvorkovich's brute force tactics are tragic on several levels. The story has hit the news and the blogs in Russia, disappointing many who are still holding out a tiny bit of optimism for liberalization from Medvedev -- and especially a young minister like Dvorkovich who is supposed to be beyond the Putin/siloviki mentality. On a more immediate level for us here in chessland, it indicates how deeply Ilyumzhinov must have dug himself and many others into things they can't afford to let go. Otherwise it's very hard to imagine someone of Dvorkovich's position allowing himself to get dragged into this with a fringe figure like Ilyumzhinov. That is, things with nothing to do with chess. But we have enough scary stuff going on without getting into their motivations.

Now we have Dvorkovich sending out letters to federations saying Karpov wasn't nominated by Russia (see reasons A-D above, plus a few more tossed in, including actually accusing Karpov of corrupt motivations). Karpov won the vote, Dvorkovich has the force of arms, and both have mailing lists and plenty of time. Dvorkovich surely has the levers to manufacture just about any result he wants now that he has cracked down hard. He could have a friendly judge declare the vote for Karpov invalid or probably create an entirely new RCF council and appoint his horse and dog to it, or simply declare that his original nomination of Karpov is the law of the land. Dvorkovich is basically saying he is the RCF. Ilyumzhinov will obviously support him. Will FIDE's member federations believe them? Or believe the video of the May 14 vote? It seems like an ideal opportunity to remind federations that this sort of thuggery is exactly the sort of behavior we would like to see cleaned up, and that they have a chance to strike a blow for this in September. And while I'm not nominating Karpov for sainthood, he did get the 17 votes and he's not going to send the MiB to roust you.

It's all quite depressing. Ilyumzhinov will try to keep Karpov off the ballot or try to force him to run from France or Germany. Ilyumzhinov will claim forever that he has the Russian nomination. What is the procedure to deal with a rogue FIDE president, by the way?

Source : Daily Dirt

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Saint Louis LIVE HUMAN chess game

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Topalov Interviewed after his WCC debacle

The interview with former World Champion Veselin Topalov was provided by the head of the Anand-Topalov World Championship match press office, Mr. Boyko Hristov.

- Grandmaster Topalov, regardless of the outcome, during the match between you and Viswanathan Anand we watched your dominance in the openings when you played with the white pieces. What caused this fact?

- During my preparation for the match, my manager, Silvio Danailov, and I decided to approach something non-standard and to seek additional resources to increase the advantage over my opponent. It turned out that there is such a possibility. We found that in Bulgaria is installed and running one of the most powerful supercomputers in the world - Blue Gene/P of IBM. And because the computers and the chess software are necessary components in the preparation of the modern grandmasters, we decided to use the vast computational power of this machine.

The IBM's Blue Gene/P has 8192 processors and you can imagine how huge the possibilities we are talking about. The problem was the fact that in the world currently there is no chess software whose source code is written to work with such a multiprocessor platform. However, Silvio and I, did not give up and he managed to gather an international team of leading experts who have created a project for a chess program that can use the computing power of this extraordinary supercomputer. And now is the time to express my great thanks to the General Manager of IBM Bulgaria Mr. Alexander Rakov and the IT architect of the company Mr. Yovko Lambrev for the access to the resources of Blue Gene/P they provided to us. They have made enormous efforts that our idea become a reality.

I want to thank the Prime Minister of Bulgaria Mr. Boyko Borisov too, who allowed us the access to the supercomputer, which as you know is state owned. So ultimately, even though I lost the match, I managed to achieve a dominance over Anand in the openings in all games, in which I played with the white pieces. This advantage was demonstrated very clear especially in the first game, when I won fast and with decisive priority.

- What's next for GM Veselin Topalov from now on?

- Short break and chess again. In my closest plans, however, it's included an initiative to increase young people's interest in relation of the high technologies and the artificial intelligence, which will be held under my patronage in cooperation with IBM Bulgaria. I will do it because of my direct experience I know how important computers and high technologies are and will be for our future and the career development of the young people.

In a few days we will announce an essay contest among high school students from Sofia concerning a topic in the field of high technologies. The First five best students will form a representative team which will play a mini chess tournament/three games/against the IBM's supercomputer Blue Gene/P.

After each of the games I'm going to comment on the game and will give my advice to the young players. IBM Bulgaria will arrange for the finalists meetings with its leading experts to get them acquainted with the vast world of high technologies. If all goes as we imagine, the initiative will become annual.

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