Back in the United States, Aydin is climbing the national ranks. This year I became a national co-champion in the ninth grade, he said. And also I got fifth place in the twelfth-grade high school nationals.

Aydin has to travel to take part in his sport. Theres not too many tournaments around (the Midwest), he said. Usually I go to Chicago or St. Louis or we have to fly somewhere. He Skypes with a chess tutor in California.

Although Eva Turgut Satell joins her son during many of his chess competitions, she knows the sport is more of a father/son activity. He would rather be there, because he understands and can coach him, too, she said about her husband.

Aydin may enjoy chess, but the sport can take a toll. While attending the eighth grade in Mount Zion, Aydin missed more than 30 days of school. Theres a lot of making up I have to do, he said.

He is able to keep up, though. His current grade point average is 4.0, and he excels in math, which is beneficial for the game.

There is a lot of visualization in your head, he said. So it helps with calculating stuff.

Aydin Turgut plays a game of chess against his father, Tansel. Aydin has been playing chess since he was 2 years old, and has represented the United States in eight World Youth chess tournaments.

Now a sophomore atCulver Academy in Indiana, Aydin works with the schools administration and teachers to enable him to attend as many chess tournaments as possible. Future tournaments include a trip to Texas and possibly Portugal.

Read the original here:

Checkmate: Decatur teen a whiz on the world chess circuit - Herald & Review

In August 2019 an ambitious project was undertaken where six young talents ofIndia were to train under the 14th World Champion Vladimir Kramnik.Kramnik, who retired from chess in January 2019, had been quite busy with his post-retirement projects both in chess and beyond. However,seeing the talent crop of India and thepotential these youngsters possessed, he decided tofree up ten days in his schedule for the training camp.It was Frederic Friedel, the founder of ChessBase, who had conceived this idea just a few days after Kramnik retired from professional chess.

There was no question of talent in Indian chess. Kramnik was ready. What was now required was a sponsor, who would fund this entire project. After several months of searching, it was Microsense Networks Private Limited that came forward. Mr. Kailasanathan, the Managing Director of Microsense Private Limited and a former Tamil Nadu Chess State Champion in 1972,found this project in sync with the mission of Microsense. The company wants to create world class chess players in the years to come and training with Kramnik was sure to help them in their vision.

Participants of the August camp: Vladimir Kramnik withGM R. Praggnanandhaa, GM D. Gukesh, GMP. Iniyan, GM Prithu Gupta, IM Raunak Sadhwani (who was not a GM back then), IM Leon Mendonca and ChessBase India founders Sagar and Amruta | Photo: Amruta Mokal

Ten days of training with Kramnik proved to be immensely useful | Photo: Amruta Mokal

But the camp was not the end of it all. After its completion Vladimir was in touch withthe games of the students. He would regularly communicate with me about howa youngster had got it all wrong in the opening, oranother youngster had to simply get his act together in endgame technique. It was Kramnik'shigh level ofinvolvement in the projectand subsequent results of the students that convinced Kailasanathan and Microsense of the need to continue these camps.

Praggnanandhaa went on to become the World Youth Champion in the under-18 section and also won the London Chess Classic FIDE Open. Raunak Sadhwani scored his final GM norm with a tremendous performance at theGrand Swiss 2019 in Isle of Man and became India's 65th GM.

After becoming a GM, and speaking to ChessBase India Raunak mentioned:

I can say that Kramnik sir's camp was a life changing thing for me. In a few days he taught so many practical things:

All these were encouraging signs and Microsense decided to take things up anotch. The second camp was planned in January, but this time instead of eight Indians travelling toEurope, it was decided that Kramnik should come down to India. The last time Vladimir Kramnik was in the country was back inthe 90s when heplayed a match in Sanghi Nagar against Boris Gelfand. Vladimir agreed to the proposal. As the camp had beenvery useful to the youngsters, it was decided that the number of studentsshould be increased from 6 to 14. The logisticalarrangements wouldbe much less and it made sense to have more talents working with thelegend. Butof course, it would be too much for Kramnik to work with 14youngsters alone. Anotherworld-class player was required and the naturalchoice was India's five-time World Champion Vishy Anand.

Vishy Anand withKailasanathan (right), CEO of MicrosensePrivate Limited

At a felicitation ceremony held in Chennai in October 2019, Anand showed his keenness in joining the programas a trainer in the monthsto come. But in January,it wasn't really feasible for Vishy as he was participating in theTata Steel Chess tournament 2020 in Wijk AanZee.It is quite probable that Vishy would join in for the next camp. The search for a world-class player / trainer continued.

Boris Gelfand needs no introduction. He has been one of the greatest chess players ever tohave graced the game of chess. He fought against Vishy Anand in the World Championships 2012 and after the Classicalgames the score was tied at 6-6! Anand eventually won the rapidtiebreakers, but it was clear that Boris had been a worthy opponent for the four-time World Champion back then. Over the years, Gelfand has continued to fight at the highest leveland it is this very experience ofhis that made him a worthy partnerfor Vladimir Kramnik in the training camp.

Kramnik and Gelfand: Rivals on the chess board, and friends off it!| Photo: Amruta Mokal

Master Class Vol.11: Vladimir Kramnik

This DVD allows you to learn from the example of one of the best players in the history of chess and from the explanations of the authors (Pelletier, Marin, Mller and Reeh) how to successfully organise your games strategically, consequently how to keep y

More...

The trainers weredecided,it was now time to select the students. The list of the top players in the country between the age of 12-16 was created. Some players above the age of 16 were also considered. However, the main aim was to have the best and youngest players of India attend the camp. This list of probable candidates was submitted to Kramnik and Gelfand, who went over the names with great care and selected the 8 players in addition to the six who already were in the first camp.

2602 at the age of 14! Pragg is one of the finest young talents, not just in India but also all over the world.

Praggnanandhaa | Photo:Lennart Ootes

Arjun Erigaisi has raced to an Elo of 2575. The 16-year-oldhas been extremely consistent andwe have seen his Elo climb upwards for quite some timenow. He was part of the first camp as well, but a last minute injury meant that he had to miss it. It's wonderful to have Arjun in the second training camp.

Arjun Erigaisi | Photo:Lennart Ootes

The second youngest GM in thehistory of chess and a tremendous talent.

D. Gukesh | Photo:Lennart Ootes

India'slatest GM.His performance at the FIDE Grand Swiss 2019 where he was unbeaten for seven rounds against some of the best players in the world including Sergey Karjakin drew attention from all corners of the world.

Raunak Sadhwani | Photo: Amruta Mokal

GM P. Iniyan hails from Erode, a place with absolutely no chess culture. For a GM to emerge from such a town, at such a tender age, shows Iniyan's talent.

P. Iniyan | Photo:Lennart Ootes

Arjun Kalyan has already scored3 GM norms and is on the brink of becoming India's next GM.

Arjun Kalyan | Photo: Sagar Shah

India's 64th GM isclearly the one who plays the least number of tournaments amongall of these youngsters. The fact that he could become a GM by playingsuch few events, shows what a consistent player he is.

Sreeshwan Maralakshikari is a talentto watch out for. Just 13 years old, he is already an IM. Financial difficulties and lack of structured training have proved to be impediments in this youngster's progress, but with this camp, he should be able to make headway towards his GM title pretty soon.

Sreeshwan Maralakshikari | Photo: Amruta Mokal

A gutsy youngster who has never let anyoff the boardobstacles come in between his journey towardschess excellence. Aditya had an accident before the event and hence will be joining in the camp remotely.

Aditya Mittal | Photo: Niklesh Jain

Gaining in strength every day, thisyoungster from Goa is sure to become a GM soon. Check outLeon's symphonyon the board which he created at the World Juniors 2019.

Leon Mendonca| Photo: Amruta Mokal

He became an IMjust at the age of 11 years and 8 months. BharatSubramaniyamknows no fear andin the next few months will be looking forward to breaking Karjakin's youngest GM world record.

BharatSubramaniyam | Photo:Lennart Ootes

When it comes to women's chess in India, R. Vaishali is one of the best. She already is a WGM, has two IM norms, but more importantly she has alsoscored a GM norm recently.

R. Vaishali | Photo:Lennart Ootes

You only need to seeRaahil Mullick's couple of wins at the Abu Dhabi Masters 2019 against 2600 rated opponentsto know how talented he is!

Learn from the Classics

Sagar Shah shows you on this DVD how you can use typical patterns used by the Master of the past in your own games. From opening play to middlegame themes.

More...

Raahil Mullick shows Sagar two sparkling wins

Rakshitta Ravi is just 14, is already a WIM and has twoWGM norms.

Rakshitta Ravi | Photo:Lennart Ootes

Note:WIM Divya Deshmukh was invited to the camp. However, due to other commitments, shewill not be able tobe a part of the camp. She was replaced byR. Vaishali in the camp.

When is it held:The first session will begin onJanuary8thand the last day of the camp will beJanuary17th, 2020.

How many hours each day:Each day the training camp will have six hours of training divided into twothree-hour sessions

Whereis it held:The camp is held in a villa on the East Coast Road in Chennai and no parents are allowed to be a part of the camp. It's a residential training program.

How will the students be taught:There will be two groups created and trainingthat will happen in two separate rooms. Each group willget time with both Kramnik and Gelfand for training.

Innovations:There are several innovations that will be seen at the training camp:Firstly a Michelin Starred chef will be preparing food for the youngsters throughout the event. Secondly a yoga expert will train the youngsters.

ChessBase India founders Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal will bepresent at the venue as the managers of this entire camp and also to bring you further updates.Initiator of the training camps, Frederic Friedel fromChessBase International, will also be visiting.

"Our vision and mission are to build India as a powerful chess-playing nation" The man with thevision the MD of MicrosenseNetworks Private Limited S. Kailasanathan

Read more:

Kramnik and Gelfand train top juniors - Chessbase News

Fahad Rahman in action against Puranik Abhimanyu at the Intl GM Chess in Mumbai BCF

Grandmaster Ziaur Rahman is in joint second place with 14 other players, on 4.5 points, while Tahsin Tajwar Zia has one point

International Master Mohammad Fahad Rahman is in joint-first in the EKA IIFL Investment Managers 5th International Grandmaster Chess Tournament with four other players, with all of them on five points after the sixth round.

The tournament is being held in Mumbai, India

Grandmaster Ziaur Rahman is in joint second place with 14 other players, on 4.5 points, while Tahsin Tajwar Zia has one point.

In the sixth round, IM Fahad beat Indian 2580 rated GM Puranik Abhimanyu, GM Zia beat IM Srijit PAul of India and Tahsin lost to Gaikwad Siddhant of India.

Meanwhile, Marzouq Chowdhury earned 4.5 points and Azher Hossain earned 3.5 points after the 7th round games in the EKA IIFL Investment Managers 5th Mumbai Junior Under-13 FIDE Rating Chess Tournament.

Original post:

Fahad in five-way lead at 5th International GM Chess - Dhaka Tribune

Kasparov tweeted that there isnt any doubt today that Stalin joined Hitler in invading Poland. Ryan Kelly/PAP/EPA

Russian chess legend and political activist Garry Kasparov has entered the fray surrounding controversial comments made by Vladimir Putin that suggested Poland was in part responsible for the start of the Second World War.

Taking to Twitter, Kasparov tweeted a picture of a newspaper from September 1939 carrying the headline Russia Enters War: Invades Poland.

Above it Kasparov, who is a fierce critic of Putin and his polices, wrote: There wasnt any doubt on 17 Sep 1939 that Stalin invaded Poland as Hitlers partner, and there isnt any doubt today.

Morawiecki accused Putin of repeatedly lying about Poland.Marcin Obara/PAP

His words will add to the maelstrom of controversy surrounding Putins comments, in which he also called the man who was Polands pre-war ambassador to Berlin as an anti-Semitic pig, and increase fears that Russia is trying to whitewash over the Soviet invasion of eastern Poland in September 1939, an act of war carried out in accordance with the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact.

Putins statement prompted Mateusz Morawiecki, the prime minister, to dispense with diplomatic niceties and issue a stinging response in which he accused the Russian leader of "repeatedly lying" about Poland.

Putins words have increased fears Russia is determine to re-write history.MIKHAEL KLIMENTYEV / SPUTNIK / KREMLIN POOL/PAP/EPA

The statement reflected widespread anger with Putin that was not just confined to Poland.

Georgette Mosbacher, the US ambassador to Warsaw, tweeted: Dear President Putin, Hitler and Stalin colluded to start WWII. That is a fact. Poland is a victim of this horrible conflict.

Original post:

Chess legend Kasparov says there is no doubt Stalin invaded Poland as Hitler's partner - The First News

If playing chess is something that takes your fancy then why not take part in the Isle of Wight Chess Club which is spread over 4 towns.

There are currently 4 places to play chess on the island, these include Ryde, Sandown, Shanklin & Freshwater.

Coaching is available for anyone wishing to take part, they currently have beginners, social, club and country players among their current groups.

Ryde Lawn Tennis and CroquetClub(clubhouse)

Playstreet Lane Ryde PO33 3LJ

Mondays 12:00 to 14:00

Shanklin Age Concern Cafe

106 Regent Street Shanklin PO37 7AP

Tuesdays 14:00 to 16:00

FreshwaterConservativeClub(upstairs room)

Queens Road Freshwater PO40 9ES

Tuesdays from 19:00

Sandown ConservativeClub (main room/bar)

92 Station Ave Sandown PO36 8HD

Thursdays from 19:00

For more information, you can contact John Wrench on 01983 852829 or 07913 227402.

Read more:

ISLE OF WIGHT CHESS CLUBS SPREAD OVER 4 LOCATIONS - Island Echo

The New Year presents the prospect of another beginning and all the anticipation and hope for a bright future.

In the movie Pawn Sacrifice, the possibilities at the beginning of each new chess game are explored in the story of Bobby Fischer, the World Chess Champion from 1972-1975. Fischer was a brilliant, somewhat disturbed, young man who beat Russian player Boris Spassky during the Cold War and transformed the game by inventing a new variant of chess which randomized starting positions, compelling players to rely on their talent and creativity rather than memorization.

One of the quotes in the movie which both affirms the possibilities in each beginning as well as the wonder of Gods expanding creation was an observation made by Father Lombardy, a Roman Catholic priest who was Fischers confidant and coach. He said. After the first four moves, there are 300 million options before a chess player. Thats more than the stars in the sky.

As we move into another beginning and consider the options before us as well as the stars above us, let us find hope in the premises of our faith and the character of our Creator implicit in the biblical story of creation. Here we find the retelling of a well-known fable in antiquity about the beginning; however, this author tells the story with a different emphasis to affirm the Hebrew peoples belief in the goodness of God and Gods creation.

If we can trust that life began in goodness, we can go forward into life with courage and expectation. The evil in the world is not due to some relentless fate; it is a contradiction of the Creators purpose. God does not secretly wish ill for creation or delight in punishing us for some known or unknown wrong committed along the way. Quite the contrary, my friends, God is delighted in our well-being and peaceful coexistence and glorified when our lives are creative, loving, and shining brightly.

When Gods abiding presence came into the world to partake in the human experience, the light of an eastern star announced Christs arrival and another beginning. This light of Epiphany, which led strangers to the Christ child, symbolizes another belief at the heart of our faith. Namely, that Gods redeeming presence is intended for all whom God created and not limited to a chosen few. No human being is excluded from Gods justice and mercy.

Our faith affirms the God who was in the beginning, the God who makes all our beginnings possible and the God who will see our beginnings through to the end. In this New Year as we consider the options and strategies that outnumber the stars in the sky, may this chess analogy offered by American statesman and scientist Benjamin Franklin be a source of inspiration in the way we live our lives.

Chess teaches foresight, by having to plan ahead; vigilance, by having to keep watch over the whole chess board; caution, by having to restrain ourselves from making hasty moves; and finally, we learn from chess the greatest maxim in life that even when everything seems to be going badly for us we should not lose heart, but always hoping for a change for the better, steadfastly continue searching for the solution to our problems.

As it was in the beginning, is now and evermore shall be. Thanks be to God.

Rev. Dr. Blythe Denham Kieffer is pastor and head of staff at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Springfield.

See the rest here:

Kieffer: Finding hope in another beginning - The State Journal-Register

It is ironical that despite shattering many chess records and being the strongest and the highest-rated women chess player (Judit Polgar is the highest-rated player ever but played only in Open section) for many years, a World title proved elusive for 32-year-old Koneru Humpy. Incredibly, it came her way at Moscow when she triumphed in the Womens World Rapid Chess Championship last week after starting as the 13th seed.

The youngest ever to win a World junior title at 14 years, the youngest woman in the world to earn the GM title at that time, Asian Champion, British Womens Champion and numerous titles in Age Categories, none doubted that winning the Womens World Championship would be a natural transgression for Humpy. One of her best performances was at the North Urals Cup, Russia which featured the top ten women players of that time.

Her troubled equation with AICF (Indian chess federation) resulted in her missing a few prestigious events. In fact, in 2015 AICF moved the FIDE Ethics Commission to ban Humpy and take necessary action against her and strip her of the GM and other titles after she withdrew midway through the Commonwealth Championship. It was the Association of Chess Professionals which stood strongly behind Humpy and asked FIDE for a fair enquiry.

Always calm, shy and soft spoken, Humpy always keeps a low profile off-board but once at the chequered board, her personality undergoes a dramatic transformation.

Her brand of fighting chess, dislike for any short draws, made her a feared opponent. Returningbackto chess after two years, after the birth of her daughter, her recent triumph might just spur her on to settle some unfinished business -- that of winning the Womens World Chess Championship. Excerpts...

Your thoughts on this Womans World Rapid chess title?

To be honest, I didnt think that a gold medal and title would come my way when I started the event. I had modest expectations of a medal of any hue. It is no secret that I am more a classical player and the shorter time control formats have never really been my cup of tea. After glancing at the final 12thround pairings, I realised that I had an opportunity to secure silver if I beat Tan Zhongyi. I had the advantage of the White pieces and refused a draw offer and went on to win the game to force a tie for top place. At this point I realised that I had a golden opportunity though it would not be too easy. Adapting to the Blitz format was not easy and I ended up losing the first tie-break because of slow play, that too with the White pieces. I opted for the Modern Defence and tried to complicate as the pressure was high to score a win and stay in the hunt for the title. This was literally a game where I gambled! After winning the game and forcing a tie, the Armageddon too was taxing but by then I was comfortable with the time and position both! It was just my day. After so many years of hard work, finally a World Champion title as a reward. I was so happy and relieved to finally, finally have the tag of World Champion.

Did you make any specific preparation for the World Championship?

I hardly had time as I played the Grand Prix at Monaco where I finished second. There was a 10-day break in between but I played the European Club Cup. With so manybacktobackevents, it was difficult to specifically prepare for this event.

Your father Ashok has been your only coach. Does he still continue to be so?

It has been a while since we stopped working at the board as for the last few years I am preparing on my own. He is more of a mentor and guide now. We discuss strategy for the tournament and things like which opening to play and other things. The fundamentals ingrained by my father have been very strong and have stood the test of time.

From 2007 you were practically the highest rated woman player for a few years, yet the World title eluded you. Do you wonder why?

Yes, I do think it really appears strange. On hindsight, I feel like I played my best chess ever in World championships but the title never came my way and the best I managed was a bronze. I kept getting knocked out. Maybe I was unlucky. We dont know what life will throw at us in the future. We can only focus on doing our job to the best of our ability and see what comes our way.

How much time do you devote to chess?

It used to be a tough, disciplined grind of 8 to 10 hours every day without a break -- even on Sunday. I would spend half a day working on chess. Now I spend about three to four hours every day. After the arrival of my daughter, things have changed. I no longer work on festivals and few other days. I have to do a balancing act but I never miss any opportunity that I can spend working on chess.

How much had chess changed after your comeback?

There are a lot of changes. I realised that most of the preparation I had done a couple of yearsbackor earlier was not at all useful or had become redundant. With powerful engines, chess has changed. Younger generation play the best possible opening. When I became a GM, we did not have such exposure to technology. These days if you dont become a GM by 12 or 13 years then there is virtually no future for you as a chess player.

How do you look at the current crop of youngsters?

When I made a comeback at Gibraltar, I met a few of them, most of them just 15 or 16 years old and already enjoying an Elo 2500 to 2600 rating. Frankly, I am overawed and sometimes I feel that I am already a veteran!

Which are your next events and are you expecting invitations to niche events?

Nothing is planned yet but maybe February or March. I have received a few invitations but I have become a bit choosy now. I cannot play all events but play in all official FIDE events. This title has sort of rekindled my hunger for winning a World Womens title.

More here:

Koneru Humpy: Back to the forefront - Deccan Herald

Another complete year of exciting chess has ended2019 has had the most power-packed schedule in recent years with elite tournaments, official events and strong opens. Overall, it was a fun year that gave us plenty of awesome games.

The strong chess players of Chess.com's content team (@peterdoggers, @danielrensch, @samcopeland, @Luisfsiles,@mikeklein, @gmkrikor, @Isaacsteincamp, @coachjkane, @fischwitsch and @rakesh) had the fun and tiring(!) task of short-listing and then ranking the year's most memorable games.

(Note that our columnist @Gserper wrote about his most memorable10 games of 2019 as well and it's quite a different list!)

Each person next voted on his 10 favorite games with the top game getting 10 points, the 10th-best game getting one point, and so forth.

Below you'll find the list of the games finishing in 10th to first places.

We kick-start our countdown with this fascinating win by the eventual winner, Valentina Gunina, at the Cairns Cup. Playing as White, Gunina shows immense attacking prowess as she blows away Marie Sebag, who was making her comeback to top-level chess after a short absence.

Gunina plays a typical Sicilian style with a free-flowing attack on the kingside even though Sebag hasn't castled. The computer dislikes White's overambitious playbut Sebag errs. Gunina then executes the attack to perfection with all her pieces and forces resignation!

Two games tie with the score of 30 points, but the Dubov-Giri game ranks behind Carlsen-Ding that is much more significant. Daniil Dubov is also the only player to have two top-10 wins in 2019.

This win by Dubov is true to his style. Get an advantage out of the opening. Complicate things and go for a wild attack. Then win!

Dubov plays the brilliant 19.0-0-0 to win an absolutely crazy game. His king doesn't have any pawn in front of him but still is completely safe! Then all of Dubov's pieces combine to create havoc. In the end, his knights dazzle beautifully, and he crashes through against the solid Anish Giri.

This game was beautifully played by both sides in the blitz playoff of the Sinquefield Cup.Apart from being an astounding game, it is also historically important becauseMagnus Carlsen lost a playoff match for the first time in more than 10 matches and 12 years!

Ding Liren was already leading the playoff and expected Carlsen to come "all guns blazing." Ding equalized comfortably as Black in the Spanish and then put pressure along the c-file. Carlsen complicated matters as expected, and a slugfest was underway. In wild complications, Ding kept his cool and gave up material for the initiative. Carlsen risked more, but Ding was ready. He gave up his queen and made good use of Carlsen's weakened position in what may be the best blitz game of the year!

The following game was essential in July to determine two candidates' spots from the FIDE Grand Prix. EventuallyAlexander Grischuk and Ian Nepomniachtchi qualified, but Maxime Vachier-Lagrave should be proud of his effort.

Grischuk played an offbeat line against the Grunfeld. It later transposed into a Benko with the inclusion of h4 for White. Vachier-Lagrave played energetic chess and never really allowed White to get back in the game. Interestingly, Grischuk's rook went to a3 on the 10th move and didn't move again in the game!

Meanwhile, the Frenchman used both his rooks and his bishop beautifully and wrecked White's position completely. Domination personified!

The following game was played at the world's strongest open, the FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss. In round eight, David Anton Guijaro uncorked an idea researched by his trainer and deviated from theory. Anton took a full hour for his next move and then only 19 seconds on the following move to sacrifice a piece.

White's initiative was more than clear, and his play was precise. Grischuk's king made more moves than his queenside pieces! Finally Anton's attack crashed through, and Grischuk stretched out his hand in resignation.

Watch David Anton on his win vs. Alexander Grischuk from Chess.com on http://www.twitch.tv

This game wasn't played at the highest level, but thanks to social media, it didn't go unnoticed. The two next games feature strong international masters beating super-grandmasters in tactical skirmishes and with black pieces!

Mikheil Mchedlishvili is an Olympic player for Georgia while his opponent is a strong Indian IM, who is nicknamed Indian Tal. Rathnakaran K was relatively unknown at the global level but not anymore. If you think my compatriot's nickname is unwarranted, please check for yourself!

In this game, Rathnakaran doesn't go for the normal recapture and gives up his queen on move eight! He gains tremendous compensation in terms of development advantage, activity and initiative. His play is far from perfect, but the energy and style in which Black plays are sure to leave a smile on your face!

Danish-American IM Kassa Korley scored a sensational win over seasoned campaigner Alexander Moiseenko of Ukraine at the Xtracon Open in Denmark. In this game, Korley played an idea that two others had already played, including himself!

Korley's knights maneuver majestically to blow up White's kingside. He then shows no mercy to his former-2700 opponent and mates in 25 moves!

This incredible game was played in the recently concluded European Club Cup. Croatian number-one, Ivan Saric, is a seasoned campaigner and has had great results, but none of his former games features such an immense material imbalance.

Saric started with a side line in the French Winawer. A typical fight ensued with the position being closed but with plenty of tactical possibilities. Saric sacrificed some material and then some more. On move 51, the position imbalance was bishop, knight and six pawns for White versus two rooks, bishop and a pawn for Black. Saric then played beautifully (but Black missed a draw on move 65)a spectacular game with high instructive value.

A strong contender for game of the year is this thrilling one played at the European Team Championship in November.Dubov, who also was on World Champion Magnus Carlsen's team during last year's world championship match, is well-known for his opening preparations. He uses an interesting idea of castling queenside on move eight in the Queen's Gambit.

Dubov continues his explosive play on the kingside and manages to open several files. In the middlegame, he suddenly shifts gears and goes on a rampage. In typical Tal style, he sacrifices one piece after another. He literally drags Black's king from g8 and finally catches him on a2! Rasmus Svane was gracious to allow checkmate in one of the best attacking games of the year.

The year 2019 was definitely the breakthrough for the former Iranian prodigyAlireza Firouzja. The youngster had an absolutely topsy-turvy year having crossed 2700 and having to switch federations to play in the World Rapid & Blitz Championships. In this game, he was on the receiving end of an amazing queen sacrifice by the Indian grandmaster Murali Karthikeyan.

This theme is very similar to the one in Nezhmetdinov vs. Chernikovin 1962. Karthikeyan's game is more impressive because it wasn't played in the Romantic era of chess and he isn't always an attacking player like Nezhmetdinov.

Sit back, relax and enjoy the best game of 2019!

What makes a game stand out from others? A brilliant king hunt, a positional squeeze, an endgame masterclass or a brilliant opening novelty that wins?

What's clear from the results is that the bar is very high this year.Magnus Carlsenhad an amazing year but doesn't have a win featured. Maybe his unbeaten 107-streak is the reason. Many weird and bizarre games happened. Carlsen and Vidit Gujrathidrew in just five moveswhile David Howell and Harikrishna Pentala played for 236 to split the point.

Two honorable mentions that are notable wins happened too late to be considered:

Several fantastic games received double-digit points but nevertheless did not make it into the top-10:

Think we have overlooked a game? Have a favoritegame of your own? How much do you agree with our scoring?Let us know in the comments!

Read this article:

The 10 Best Chess Games Of 2019 - Chess.com

The world No 1 dominated his rivals in 2019, winning 10 elite tournaments, but is expected play less in his title defence year

Hikaru Nakamura v Jan-Krzysztof Duda, world blitz 2019. Can you find a win for Black

(to move)? Duda, Polands No 1, got it wrong.

Magnus Carlsen ended his vintage year of 2019 as he began it, as a superb all-round player who outclasses his rivals. Carlsen won at Wijk in January last year and at Moscow in December where he took both the world 30-minute rapid and the five-minute blitz crowns, losing only one game out of 38.

Overall the Norwegian, 29, won 10 elite tournaments over the year, with just two odd failures at speed in St Louis and at Fischer Random in Oslo. The standout difference between todays champion and Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov is that Carlsen has been far more active than the other legends in their peak years, taking on new challenges with hardly a break. And in his spare time he briefly became world No 1 in Fantasy Premier League. True, Kasparov was No 1 for some 21 years while Carlsen is eight years and counting.

Carlsens style has become sharper since he worked in 2018 with AlphaZero and the creative tactician Daniil Dubov: For me it is easier to play for a win. Perhaps the others risk more if they do so. I think thats the brutal truth. If you are a bit better you can afford to take more risks.

It will be different in 2020, as Carlsen has already announced: I will definitely play less. I have played a lot this year and my level of energy has become empty at the end. Not realistic to play as much in 2020, he said.

Three major targets remain. At Tata Steel Wijk aan Zee starting on 11 January he can break Sergei Tiviakovs record of 110 classical games unbeaten. Carlsen missed out on a 2900 classical rating despite getting near it in mid-year, so this can be a 2020 target. His current rating is 2872 and his all-time peak remains at 2889.

Perhaps most of all, Carlsen will want to defend his title more convincingly than in 2014, when with the scores level at 2.5 each Vishy Anand missed a simple winning chance, or 2016 and 2018 when the classical scores were tied at 6-6 before Carlsen defeated Sergey Karjakin and Fabiano Caruana in speed tie-breaks. As of now, Caruana and Chinas Ding Liren are the favourites to win the candidates in March and Carlsen respects them both as serious contenders.

Aside from Carlsen, the main talking point at Moscow was Alireza Firouzja, who quit his native Iran due to its ban on playing Israelis and will probably represent France, where he now lives.

The 16-year-old is already perceived as a potential world title challenger in the mid 2020s, so the dramatic end to his blitz game with the champion, where he missed several wins before his controversial loss on time, has become compulsive viewing.

The final position, where Carlsen had a lone bishop and a tablebase draw, was a loss for Firouzja under Fide rules because a mating position was legally possible. The teen often plays blitz games on websites where the rule is different, so that WK a8 WP a6 v BK c7 BN c8 with White to move and 1 a7 Nb6 mate is forced, may become a draw online if White loses on time and the server then decrees that Black lacks mating material.

Firouzja requested to see the Fide rule in print, an action paralleled long ago when Yuri Averbakh and Viktor Korchnoi were not sure of the rules on castling. His appeal against the result was doomed to fail because he had not complained during the game when he alleged he was disturbed by Carlsen speaking in Norwegian. Carlsen was magnanimous afterwards, but such incidents can have lasting effects on relationships between players.

Hastings has its final two rounds on Saturday and Sunday afternoon (2.15pm start). Online viewing is available on two different sites and includes computer commentary.

3652 1...Bxg2+! 2Rxg2 and now Duda fell for 2...Re1+?? 3 Rg1 Qc1 4 Rxh5+! Instead 2...Qc1+! 3 Qg1 (3 Rg1 Rxh2+) Re1 wins for Black.

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Chess: Carlsen wins speed titles after controversial game with rising star - The Guardian

This article was submitted in response to the call for ideas issued by the co-chairs of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, Eric Schmidt and Robert Work. It addresses the first question (part a.), which asks how will artificial intelligence affect the character and/or the nature of war.

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Will artificial intelligence (AI) change warfare? Its hard to say. AI itself is not new the first AI neural network was designed in 1943. But AI as a critical factor in competitions is relatively novel and, as a result, theres not much data to draw from. However, the data that does exist is striking. Perhaps the most interesting examples are in the world of chess. The game has been teaching military strategists the ways of war for hundreds of years and has been a testbed for AI development for decades.

Military officials have been paying attention. Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work famously used freestyle (or Centaur) chess to promote the third offset strategy, where humans and computers work together, combining human strategy and computer speed to eliminate blunders while allowing humans to focus on the big picture. Since then, AI and supercomputers have continued to reshape how chess is played. Technology has helped to level the playing field the side with the weaker starting position is no longer at such a disadvantage. Likewise, intimidation from the threat of superhuman computers has occasionally led to some unorthodox behaviors, even in human-only matches.

The experience of AI in the chess world should be instructive for defense strategists. As AI enters combat, it will first be used just in training and in identifying mistakes before they are made. Next, improvements will make it a legitimate teammate, and if it advances to superhuman ability in even narrow domains of warfighting, as it has in chess then it could steer combat in directions that are unpredictable for both humans and machines.

What Does Chess Say About AI-Human Interaction?

Will AI replace soldiers in war? The experience of using AI and machine learning in chess suggests not. Even though the best chess today is played by computers alone, humans remain the focus of the chess world. The world computer chess championship at the International Conference on Machine Learning in Stockholm attracted a crowd of only three when I strolled by last year. In contrast, the human championship was streamed around the globe to millions. In human-only chess though, AI features heavily in the planning process, the results of which are called prep. Militaries are anticipating a similar planning role for AI, and even automated systems without humans rely on a planning process to provide prep for the machines. The shift toward AI for that process will affect how wars are fought.

To start, computers are likely to have an equalizing effect on combat as they have had in chess. The difference in ability among the top competitors in chess has grown smaller, and the advantage of moving first has become less advantageous. That was evident in last years human-only chess championship where competitors had the closest ratings ever in a championship, and the best-of-12 match had 12 straight draws for the first time. There have been more draws than wins in every championship since 2005, and though it is not exactly known why, many believe it is due to the influence of superhuman computers aiding underdogs, teaching defensive play, or simply perfecting the game.

AI is likely to level the military playing field because progress is being driven by commercial industry and academia which will likely disseminate their developments more widely than militaries. That does not guarantee all militaries will benefit equally. Perhaps some countries could have better computers or will be able to pay for more of them, or have superior data to train with. But the open nature of computing resources makes cutting-edge technology available to all, even if that is not the only reason for equalization.

AI Favors the Underdog and Increases Uncertainty

AI seems to confer a distinct benefit to the underdog. In chess, black goes second and is at a significant disadvantage as a result. Fabiano Caruana, a well-known American chess player, claimed that computers are benefiting black. He added that computer analysis helps reveal many playable variations and moves that were once considered dubious or unplayable. In a military context, the ways to exert an advantage can be relatively obvious, but AI planning tools could be adept at searching and evaluating the large space of possible courses of action for the weaker side. This would be an unwelcome change for the United States, which has benefited from many years of military superiority.

Other theories exist for explaining the underdogs improvement in chess. It may be that computers are simply driving chess toward its optimum outcome, which some argue is a tie. In war it could instead be that perfect play leads to victory rather than a draw. Unlike chess, the competitors are not constrained to the same pieces or set of moves. Then again, in a limited war where mass destruction is off the table, both sides aim to impose their will while restricting their own pieces and moves. If perfect play in managing escalation does lead to stalemate, then AI-enhanced planning or decision-making could drive toward that outcome.

However, superhuman computers do not always drive humans toward perfect play and can in fact drive them away from it. This happened in a bizarre turn in last years chess world championship, held in London. The Queens Gambit Declined, one of the most famous openings that players memorize, was used to kick off the second of the 12 games in the London match, but on the tenth move, the challenger, Caruana, playing as black, didnt choose either of the standard next moves in the progression. During planning, his computers helped him find a move that past centuries had all but ignored. When the champion Magnus Carlsen, who is now the highest-rated player in history, was asked how he felt upon seeing the move, he recounted being so worried that his actual response cant be reproduced here.

It is not so much that Caruana had found a new move that was stronger than the standard options. In fact, it may have even been weaker. But it rattled Carlsen because, as he said, The difference now is that Im facing not only the analytical team of Fabiano himself and his helpers but also his computer help. That makes the situation quite a bit different. Carlsen suddenly found himself in a theater without the aid of electrical devices, having only his analytical might against what had become essentially a superhuman computer opponent.

His response might presage things to come in warfare. The strongest moves available to Carlsen were ones that the computer would have certainly analyzed and his challenger would have prepared for. Therefore, Carlsens best options were either ones that were certainly safe or ones that were strange enough that they would not have been studied by the computer.

When asked afterward if he had considered a relatively obvious option that he didnt chose seven moves later in the game, Carlsen joked that Yeah, I have some instincts I figured that [Caruana] was still in prep and that was the perfect combination. Fear of the computer drove the champion, arguably historys best chess player, to forego a move that appeared to be the perfect combination in favor of a safer defensive position, a wise move if Caruana was in fact still in prep.

In war, there will be many options for avoiding the superhuman computing abilities of an adversary. A combatant without the aid of advanced technology may choose to withdraw or retreat upon observing the adversary doing something unexpected. Alternatively, the out-computed combatant might drive the conflict toward unforeseen situations where data is limited or does not exist, so as to nullify the role of the computer. That increases uncertainty for everyone involved.

How Will the U.S. Military Fare in a Future AI World?

The advantage may not always go the competitor with the most conventional capabilities or even the one that has made the most computing investment. Imagine the United States fighting against an adversary that can jam or otherwise interfere with communications to those supercomputers. Warfighters may find themselves, like Carlsen, in a theater without the aid of their powerful AI, up against the full analytical might of the adversary and their team of computers. Any unexpected action taken by the adversary at that point (e.g., repositioning their ground troops or launching missile strikes against unlikely locations) would be cause for panic. The natural assumption would be that adversary computers found a superior course of action that had accounted for the most likely American responses many moves into the future. The best options then, from the U.S. perspective, become those that are either extremely cautious, or those that are so unpredictable that they would not have been accounted for by either side.

AI-enabled computers might be an equalizer to help underdogs find new playable options. However, this isnt the only lesson that chess can teach us about the impact of AI-enabled supercomputers and war. For now, while humans still dominate strategy, there will still be times where the computer provides advantages in speed or in avoiding blunders. When the computer overmatch becomes significant and apparent, though, strange behaviors should be expected from the humans.

Ideally, humans deprived of their computer assistants would retreat or switch to safe and conservative decisions only. But the rules of war are not as strict as the rules of chess. If an enemy turns out to be someone aided by feckless computers, instead of superhuman computers aided by feckless humans, it may be wise to anticipate more inventive perhaps even reckless human behavior.

Andrew Lohn is a senior information scientist at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation. His research topics have included military applications of AI and machine learning. He is also co-author of How Might Artificial Intelligence Affect the Risk of Nuclear War? (RAND, 2018).

Image: U.S. Marine Corps (Photo by Lance Cpl. Scott Jenkins)

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What Chess Can Teach Us About the Future of AI and War - War on the Rocks