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Close your eyes and play quickly
14.03.2002
– The Amber chess tournament, staged once a year by Dutch millionaire J.J. van
Oosterom (and named after his daughter Melody Amber) is unique in its format.
Each day the participants play one rapid chess game, and after that one blindfold
game. This year the event, which starts on March 16, features Kramnik, Ivanchuk,
Shirov, Morozevich, Topalov, and a bunch of other top GMs. More.
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Do not underestimate this man!
14.03.2002
– Emanuel Lasker became world champion in 1894 and kept this title for an incredible
27 years. His chess career continued unabated even after he had lost his title
to Capablanca. The new ChessBase biography focuses on the question on why Lasker
has stood somewhat in the shadow of his two successors. The answer is simple:
until now nobody has understood the way he played. You will find more details
here.
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The start of a beautiful friendship?
11.03.2002
– Remember the Kasparov remark after the FIDE world championship
– the one about not knowing Ponomariov if he sat down beside him? Kasparov
now certainly knows who this young man is and what he’s capable
of – and we think he quite likes him! They happily chatted and joked their
way through the closing ceremony in Linares. Read all about it in John Hendersons
final reports, with pictures and annotated games, on our
Linares 2000 page.
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News Flash: Kasparov wins Linares with 8/12
10.03.2002
– In his final game against Alexei Shirov it was Garry Kasparov who set the board
on fire, winning a beautiful miniture with the black pieces. The other two games
were drawn, so that Kasparov leads the field by 1.5 points in his eighth win
in eleven Linares tournaments. Full reports and pictures will follow, in the
meantime the final results and games are to be found on our
Linares 2000 page.
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Hasta la vista, Ruslan
10.03.2002
– Why doesn't FIDE champion Ruslan Ponomariov stop to analyse or converse
in idle chit-chat with other players after his games? Why does he run instead
as fast as he can to get back to his room? Is it colossal
arrogance, as some would believe, or a deep-rooted shyness? John
Henderson put all his investigative efforts into solving the mystery. The solution may
come as something of a surprise to the chess world. Read all about it in his illustrated
report on round 12.
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Kasparov beats Ponomariov in Linares summit
09.03.2002
– Well, then that would be settled, wouldn't it? Garry Kasparov taught the FIDE champion Ruslan
Ponomariov, twenty years his junior, a bitter lesson. In their decisive game
Kasparov was clearly better, then seemed to lose control. But in his own time
trouble he played daring, fighting chess and overwehlmed his opponent to show
the world who is still in charge. Many hundreds of visitors watched the live action
on our Fritz 7
server. And Spanish talent Paco Vallejo gave his fans grounds for celebration
with his first win in this tournament, against Alexei Shirov. The games and
illustrated reports are to be found on our
Linares 2000 page.
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The men behind the champions
09.03.2002
– The term "second" comes from the good old days when gentlemen settled
disputes by a duel with pistols or swords at dawn. In chess, the seconds have less dangerous tasks – like guarding three gigabytes of preparation of their masters. Our correspondent John Henderson
takes a look at some of the seconds in Linares in his illustrated
report on round 11.
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Ponomariov joins Kasparov at the top
08.03.2002
– Nobody expected this to happen – least of all Garry Kasparov, who has
viewed the FIDE world championship titel as somewhat of a joke. But two rounds
before the end of the Linares tournament FIDE Champ Ruslan Ponomariov, 18 years
of age, has actually caught up with the perennial winner Kasparov. Tomorrow
the titanic struggle will be decided in the game of games between the two. You
will find the games played so far and illustrated reports on our
Linares 2000 page.
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Accepting the pawn sacrifice
08.03.2002
– Vishy Anand does it, Kasparov, Kortschnoj, Ivanchuk, Lautier do it -- so let's do it,
let's take the pawn. The Queen's Gambit Accepted is a postmodern opening which combines
and reinforces classical and hypermodern ideas of positional play, and Boris
Schipkov one of the leading experts in this area. Read all about our latest
ChessBase training CD here.
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Linares – following the games on the Fritz 7 server
08.03.2002
– After being spoilt by two decisive games in each round we are back to draws
in Linares. All three games ended with a division of point, but all were interesting
to watch. If you have Fritz 7 you can visit the "Broadcast" room where
the moves are transmitted live, with lively discussion and analysis by the visitors.
If you missed it today you will find the games as well as a new report from
round 10 on our
Linares 2000 page.
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They're back and they're angry!
06.03.2002
– Keep away from wounded lions, the wise man said. After losing dismally to Ponomariov
the previous day, Micky Adams took it out on Shirov, whom he felled with terrible
tactical blows in 31 moves. Vassily Ivanchuk, who has just lost to Shirov, crushed
Francisco Vallejo Ponsin 23 moves. Anand and Kasparov drew their hard-fought
encounter. Annotations, reports and pictures will follow, the games are already
available on our
Linares 2000 page.
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