Human Chess Festival Video from Marostica, Italy

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012

Hi everyone,

According to tradition, a human chess festival is held every two years in the quaint village of Marostica, Italy. Here is the latest chess festival video from the beautiful show - creativity+romance+fun and lots of traditional costumes. Enjoy your chess.

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
www.chessblog.com

Also see her personal blog at
www.chessqueen.com
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The chess dance of human triumph - chess video from Cebu City

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012


Hi everyone,


We found this interesting chess video with an equally interesting title. There were no descriptions though. But, we tweaked the title a bit and hope you would enjoy the video too. We guess it's the Cebu Chess Festival - the attempt to organize the world's biggest chess tournament. We await details on that. If you've got a chess video to share, don't forget to send it in.





From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
www.chessblog.com
Also see her personal blog at
www.chessqueen.com

Vietnam's chess festival held in Spring

Chess blog for latest news and trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011

Hi everyone,

This chess story is about the Spring festival held in Vietname. It's about the traditional form of chess played in the country. In the past most Vietnamese people were farmers whose farming depended completely on nature. This meant that they all had leisure time to attend many festivals during and after the Lunar New Year Festival (Tet). They included wrestling and chess contests.

The different kinds of chess

There are different types of chess (Co) that are popular among the players in Vietnam. Co Tuong (Chinese chess), Co Vua (king chess) and Co Vay (GO chess) are included in the country’s official tournaments.
In addition to these are Co Ngu Hanh (five basic elements chess), Co Caro (noughts and crosses), Co Chan Cho (dog-leg chess), Co Hum Lon (tiger and pig chess), Co Tam Giac (triangle chess) and Co Quan Su (military chess). However, Chinese chess is the most popular, particularly in the Spring tournament.

Chess masters

According to legend, De Thich was the Chess God. As a chess expert, he knew all secrets of the game and could turn every failure into a success. Now he is worshipped in a Hanoi pagoda named Chua Vua. Tournament festival is held there every year, which attracts a large number of players from all parts of the country. The names of winners for three consecutive years are engraved in a stone stele. It is also said that Truong Ba, a wordly man, was the chess rival of De Thich.

Another legend says that people from Bac Ninh province are best chess players. This is proved by vestiges on Lan Kha mountain in Tien Du district. There was a woodcutter named Vuong Chat from Sop village. After he reached the top of the mount, he saw two genies playing chess. Chat watched them until the handle of his axe was rotten. He must have been a good chess player to enjoy such a long game.

In the 17th century, chess master Vu Huyen from Duong An, Hai Duong province defeated his rival from the Ming dynasty in 30 moves.

It is agreed that a good chess player should carefully observe the chessboard to grasp the whole situation before making any move.

Chess festival culture

A chess tournament is often held in village festivals. Sometimes, it lasts a week. Co Boi is another variety of Chinese chess but the pawns are wooden boards with a handle and the chessboard is a squared plot of land. The player sits on a tower behind the king. He orders a member of the organising board to move the pawns. Before the game, all players have to pass a skill test.
In Co Nguoi or human chess, the ground is marked as a chessboard with men standing for red pieces and women standing for black pieces. These are controlled by the players in the rhythm of drumbeats.

Chess festival constitutes an interesting aspect of Vietnamese culture. It lasts until the fourth lunar month. Currently, chess tournaments are held on any occasion during the year.

You can read further here.

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
www.chessblog.com
Also see her personal blog at
www.chessqueen.com

Mexico City to host fantastic chess festival

Chess news and chess trivia blog (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2010

Hi Everyone,

Mexico City is all set to host a fantastic chess festival from November 13-21. In fact, the venue is going to be the largest university in Latin America - the National Autonomous University of Mexico - which is celebrating its centenary.

The chess celebrations will include live shows, concerts, films, exhibitions, workshops, competitions, tributes, multimedia shows and seminars, all related to chess and its many facets and expressions.

Wow!

Some events will include simuls by the twelfth and thirteenth world chess champions Anatoly Karpov and Gary Kasparov, the Ibero-American Chess Championships 2010, Foursquare Grandmaster Tournament and the First Great International Chess Open 2010 UNAM. The World Champions will also lecture on chess and its life-related aspects.

Special tributes will be paid to Juan Jose Arreola and Bobby Fisher through conferences, seminars, multimedia displays and giant chess shows.

Two seminars will have international experts speaking on the history of chess and the importance of chess in education. An exhibition of the works of 12 artists - focusing on chess - will also open at the venue.

Also, the present Art in check, an area where 12 artists have developed around chess pieces. A special Quadrangular Tournament Elite will feature Veselin Topalov, Vassily Ivanchuk, Judit Polgar and Manuel Leon Hoyos

One of the most attractive exhibitions will be a replica of the Turkish Kempelen, the amazing automaton created in the eighteenth century by Wolfgang von Kempelen, who allegedly was able to think and, of course, to play chess.

We will keep you updated.

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's

www.chessblog.com

Also see her personal blog at

www.chessqueen.com