ChessBase Magazine Online

Nalchik rest day: the Chereksky gorge and Blue Lake
22.04.2009 – There are two rest days in the FIDE Grand Prix tournaments, and they are used to give the players an outing in the local surroundings. After round five in Nalchik they were taken to the spectacular Chereksky region of Kabardino-Balkaria, which contains the second-deepest lake in the world. "It is difficult to describe in words the beauty surrounding us," said Levon Aronian. Pictorial.
 

Nalchik R6: Grischuk loses, Aronian wins to take lead
22.04.2009 – Forget Sunday's table. In round six Shakhriyar Mamedyarov beat the leader Alexander Grischuk, while Levon Aronian beat a completely out-of-form Vassily Ivanchuk. Peter Svidler won with black against Pavel Eljanov and Vladimir Akopian moved up the ladder with a victory over Sergey Karjakin. Now Aronian leads, with four players behind him. Full report with commentary.
 

Sambuev and Friedel win Thrilling Toronto Tournament
21.04.2009 – The 2009 PWC Toronto Open Chess Championship took place from April 17th to 19th, 2009 – five rounds Swiss, prize fund $17,000+, entry fee $90 + bring your own clocks. Two players, Russian GM Bator Sambuev, 2498, and US GM Joshua Friedel took first place, with 5.0/5 points, leaving the likes of Nakamura, Perelshteyn and Shabalov in their wake. Illustrated report and games.
 

Jennifer Shahade – getting back at Marcel Duchamp
21.04.2009 – In 1963 the artist Marcel Duchamp posed for a picture at the Pasadena Art Museum in which he played a game of chess against a naked model. Inspired by this picture and the circumstances surrounding it two-time US Women's Champion WGM Jennifer Shahade, who has worked on a book on Duchamp, engaged in a one-sided nude chess game at the Philidelphia Soundstages. Here's the video.
 

'Magnificent Chess Tournament' in Jamaica
20.04.2009 – Magnificent Chess Limited (MCL) is a new and innovative enterprise to revolutionize the mindset of Jamaican people and their Caribbean neighbours, through the democratization of the art of learning, teaching and playing chess. The organisers hosted a tournament which was duly won by the only GM in the Master's section, Alfonso Romero Holmes. Big pictorial report from Jamaica.
 

Nalchik R5: Kasimdzhanov and Akopian win
19.04.2009 – A day of surprise results: Vladimir Akopian, who has been languishing with 1.0/4 alone at the bottom of the table, beat second-placed Gata Kamsky in a titanic R+B vs R ending over 98 moves (Kamsky missed a number of drawing chances, the simplest on move 93). Vassily Ivanchuk self-destructed with the white pieces in 25 moves against Rustam Kasimdzhanov. Report with commentary.
 

Nalchik R4: Kamsky beats Svidler, Grischuk leads
18.04.2009 – Just before the time control Peter Svidler sacrificed an exchange and messed up his position. He defended tenaciously, but his opponent Gata Kamsky ground him down in 74 moves. All other games were drawn, Alexander Grischuk leads the event with 3.0/4 points. Full report with pictures and commentary – and excerpts from an interesting interview with Boris Spassky.
 

Tactics – you can never get enough of them
17.04.2009 – The tactics column for ChessBase Magazine is written by IM Oliver Reeh. The database which he produces for each issue has an introductory text, followed by six quite simple exercises. These are also printed in the booklet and you can solve them there on paper. Take a look in our ChessBase Magazine blog, where you can download the tactics page or watch a tactics video from CBM 129.
 

Nalchik R3: four wins, Aronian drops a point
17.04.2009 – High drama at the Fourth FIDE Grand Prix: Sergey Karjakin took the 2-0 leader Levon Aronian to the cleaners in a 34-move slugfest; Alexander Grischuk continued his excellent form with a win over Rustam Kasimdzhanov (in time trouble); Alekseev outplayed Eljanov and Leko did the same to Akopian. We bring you pictures plus commentary by birthday boy Sergey Shipov.
 

Nalchik R2: Svidler and Aronian score
16.04.2009 – Peter Svidler profited from an over-optimistic combination that didn't work, unleashed by Vassily Ivanchuk. Levon Aronian nursed a small advantage into a promising knight endgame in which he won in 94 moves ("a perfect endgame, a textbook example of converting the advantage" – Shipov). It was Aronian's second win in two rounds. All other games were drawn. Pictures and GM commentary.
 

Big pictorial: Après Chess in Dagomys
16.04.2009 – For the third time we bring you a "final report" on the Russian Team Championship and Leagues in Dagomys-Sochi, southern Russian. It features pictures taken mainly after the end of the event – prize giving and medal distribution, the closing party. There are a number of faces you probably have not seen before. Here's a megabyte and a half of pictures by Irina Sudakova and Elena Mikheeva.
 

Anand’s difficult struggle
15.04.2009 – It is no simple business for World Champion Anand to play on first board in the German Bundesliga with black against a player who is ranked 180 points below him. The pressure is on to win at any cost. In his game against Solingen’s Daniel Stellwagen, Anand accomplished this with a flourish. Visit our ChessBase Magazine Blog or check it out directly in this article by GMs Stohl and Postny.