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hosted by Chess Queen™ & 12th Women's World Chess Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Chessdom Launches USA Specific Chess News Site Version
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
We found an interesting chess news at popular chess news site Chessdom.com. They have launched a USA-specific chess site version. Their main site receives more than 9 million visitors from 4,7 million unique IP addresses and 79 million page views marked the year 2012 as a huge success. A major role in the record breaking statistics was played by the language versions (Russian, Spanish, and Bulgarian), yet the highest activity prize goes to the USA as the country with most visitors on the website, constituting 10,59% of the total visitors.
To honor their USA readers, they decided to create a dedicated part of the website, focusing specifically on US tournaments, players, and chess enthusiasts: usa.chessdom.com From Alexandra Kosteniuk's www.chessblog.com Also see her personal blog at www.chessqueen.com Don't miss Chess Queen™ YouTube Channel
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012 Hi everyone, Everyone seems to be focused on the exciting London Chess Classic. So, here's a quick compilation of some chess news links that you could browse while watching the London Chess Classic Round 7 live at the official website. Meanwhile, here are some of the top chess news links this weekend: Astana Chess Federation holds chess tournament for veterans: The Astana Chess Federation is now actively popularizing chess in the capital. This time, veterans of war and labour clashed in the mind battle on the black-and-white board. Recently, the Federation has been organizing chess tournaments among students and government employees. The tournament, which was held under the Swiss system included seven rounds, was attended by more than a dozen of veterans of the Almaty district of the capital. The winners of the tournament sere awarded with diplomas and valuable gifts. The winner also gained the grand prize, the First Place Cup.
Chess champ gives back to the game he loves: Prescott - Tom Green learned how to play chess in the fourth grade, but it wasn't until a year later while living in Oregon that he became enamored with the game. At the time, Green's uncle was serving in the Navy and stationed in the western Pacific American territory of Guam. Green's aunt was there, too, and she mailed him a letter asking him a basic question. "She said, 'You send me the money and I can get you either a mahjong set (Chinese board game) or a chess set. Which would you like?' " Green recalled Thursday. Green, who had saved some cash that he earned from picking berries in an orchard as a youngster, didn't hesitate. He sent his aunt $42.50 for a hand-carved ivory chess set, and he's been playing ever since. Today, Green is a 65-year-old gifted veteran player from Prescott who teaches a Chess Fundamentals class that's part of a special interest group in the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Yavapai College.
Lunch with the FT: Magnus Carlsen: The 22-year-old Norwegian is set to become the highest-rated chess player of all time. Martin Sandbu meets him in a Lebanese restaurant in London. High quality global journalism requires investment. It had not occurred to me that diet could be an important part of success at chess before I had lunch with the world’s number one chess player. But Magnus Carlsen’s nutritional needs caused some headaches. The first choice, a Chinese restaurant that is apparently one of Carlsen’s London favourites, turned out to be closed. The second, another Chinese in Soho the FT proposed as a substitute, was rejected by Carlsen the day before the lunch.
6-8 February 2013, Moscow (Russia): Objective: To educate and certify Organizers on an international basis. The seminar is organized during the Moscow Chess Open by the FIDE Events’ Commission (EVE), the Russian State Social University (RSSU) and the Moscow Chess Federation with the support of the Russian Chess Federation.
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
Of course by now the Internet and international media is flooded with news reports of the 2012 Anand-Gelfand World Chess Championship. There are so many lovely videos to watch and articles to read. We are trying to bring only the best to you. Here are two more videos for you to enjoy. Both are from the tiebreak day.
Stay tuned for all the latest chess news and chess updates with Chess Blog. We have the Tal Chess Memorial coming up and the Batumi Women's World Chess Rapid and Blitz beginning.
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
Looking around for chess news we found three chess news reports of a 'different' kind. Cool enough to feature on the Chess Blog - right?
Fox & Friends host Steve Doocy invited former advisor to Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, Joe Trippi, on the program to discuss a possible shake up in the Obama White House. Trippi used oversized chess pieces with the images of White House cabinet secretaries and staffers to represent the current administration and moved those pieces around, presumably, as Obama would in a hypothetical second term. Read more here.
Ten Eugene garden designers and landscape architects have teamed up to present BLOOM: The Art of Gardens, an exhibit inspired by gardens from around the world. The event, which continues through Mother's Day, May 13, is being held at Fifth Street Public Market and the new Inn at the 5th. Displays include Taste of Tuscany, Le Jardin Royal and Sunshine in Oregon, but the attention-getter is Game of Thrones, a giant chess board with moveable pieces fashioned out of Agave spheres at Eugene garden event.boxwood. The show is free. Read more here.
Zein Bertacchi, a passionate and gourmet cook who is often seen as the chief volunteer at the food counter during chess tournaments won a ” Best Cook” Award at the Beit Sitti Kitchen in Amman, Jordan. Zein is a Microbiologist who works at Good Shepherd Hospital in Infection Control. Through her passion and talent for cooking she has helped Chess Without Borders raise over $70,000 by selling, organizing and preparing food at Chess Tournaments along with other volunteers. Zein was one of the founders of the philanthropic movement for the chess program since its inception in 2003 when Rishi Sethi invited her to help raise funds for various charities around the world while students played in chess tournaments.Through the creative use of her talent and spirit of service she has inspired many young students and parent volunteers to join in this venture enabling the organization to win awards. Read more here.
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
We are always looking for interesting chess news. Here is a nice analytical article from Dylan Loeb McClain in The New York Times. Vaibhav Suri became India’s newest grandmaster last Sunday when he won the Luc Open in Lille, France. At 15 years, 2 months and 21 days old, he is the 27th youngest grandmaster in history.
Some players who have become a grandmaster at such a young age have gone on to join the elite, but others have floundered. And some relatively late bloomers have risen to the top.
Sergey Karjakin, 22, who was born in Ukraine, holds the record as the youngest grandmaster (12 years, 7 months) and is among the successful prodigies: he is now No. 6 in the world. The top-ranked player, Magnus Carlsen, 21, of Norway, became a grandmaster four months after his 13th birthday.
But the Chinese player Bu Xiangzhi, 26, who was also a 13-year-old grandmaster, peaked at No. 22 in 2008 and has fallen to No. 98. Wesley So — who earned the title four years ago, when he was 14 — is the Philippines’ top player, but his rating has stagnated and he has fallen to No. 104.
On the other hand, Levon Aronian, 29, of Armenia became a grandmaster at 17 but did not break into the top 100 until three years later. He is now No. 2. The world champion, Viswanathan Anand, 42, who inspired a generation of Indian players, was 18 when he became a grandmaster. (Anand begins his defense of the title on Friday against Boris Gelfand of Israel. Suri has a classical style of play, but he is also opportunistic. A good example of his ability was his win over Artashes Minasian of Armenia in the Aeroflot Open in February.
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
It feels good when we hear about children learning chess. Here some interesting chess reports about children and chess today on the Internet. Enjoy. Let us know if you were part of any of these chess events for children and do send us more photographs.
Knight moves - Chess club hopes to attract more members:A group of chess enthusiasts has begun meeting on the first and third Wednesdays of the month at PBC Studios, 128 W. Central St. The members meet from 6 to 9 p.m. and are looking for new talent to join. Charlie Myers organized the Madison County Chess Association in February. Read more here.
Kids learn game strategy and how to play chess at Bogota Library:For children looking to learn or play chess, the Bogota Public Library offers a weekly chess program 4 to 6 p.m. on Thursdays. Although adults may also join, the program is largely comprised children between the ages of 6 and 10. Around a dozen children practiced their chess moves March 29 at the library's Thursday afternoon Chess program. Volunteer Jonathan Schwartz, the instructor, (blue hoodie) looks on as the kids play against one another.Schwartz teaches the participants the rules of the game, what each chess piece means, how and where to move them and general strategy. "There’s been a chess program for kids off and on for several years. The new teacher has volunteered his time starting last summer, and he’s continued through the year," said Nikki Spiegel, children’s coordinator at the library. Read more here.
When parents play along with kids:At most kids’ chess tournaments, the parents are relegated to waiting in hallways or parking lots while the children compete. At last Saturday’s second annual “Mini Me” Charity Chess Tournament, sponsored by the Chess Club of Fairfield County (CCFC), parents were plucked from the sidelines to play as a team with their child. Read more here.
Got a chess news or article about children? Share it on Chess Blog.
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
More chess news from Pakistan. National chess master and Pakistan No 3 Wasim Akram caused a major upset in the 2nd Pakistan Chess Players Association (PCPA) Open Chess Championship Zahiruddin Farooqui Trophy underway at Beach Luxury Hotel when he beat defending champion Mahmood Lodhi in the the event’s fourth round.
Four times national champion and Pakistan No 2 Tanveer Gilani also fell into difficulties against national master Asad Rampuri. Asad was in a better position against his counterpart but failed in maneuvering his pieces correctly before losing the game. But Tanveer’s joy was short-lived as Lodhi beat him in 57 moves in the fifth round to bounce back in the event.
Wasim Akram leads with five points, Mahmood Lodhi and Pakistan No 34 Khurram Qureshi were tied for the second spot with four points, No 10 Riasat Ali Nazim, No 8 Syed Wahid Hussain and No 4 Anwar Qureshi, Tanveer Gilani, Jahangir Ahmed and Asif Abbasi are tied at third position with 3.5 points.
The third day’s matches were watched by visiting British Grandmaster Nigel Short who is a guest-of-honour at the event. “I wouldn’t object to coaching in Pakistan if given an offer if you can find sponsorship to arrange that. I wouldn’t have the slightest problem with that,” he said.
The grandmaster would be playing chess with 12 young players of the country. Read further here.
GM Maurice Ashley on inspiring African-American generation of young chess players
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hello everyone,
Here is a nice feature and interview on Grandmaster Maurice Ashley. Maurice Ashley, 45, is one of just 1,000 ches grandmasters in the world. He's also the only African-American and he's hoping to use that status to inspire a new, younger generation of African-Americans to take up the sport.
There are some 1,000 chess grandmasters around the world, but just one of them is an African-American.
Maurice Ashley, 45, wasn't even good enough to play on his high school chess team, but he worked hard at it and 11 years ago reached the rank of grandmaster.
There are three African-American chess players looking to join Ashley atop the list of grandmasters. All from New York, they've reached the rank of master, the level before grandmaster, before they even had their 13th birthdays. It took Ashley 14 years to move from master, which he reached at age 20, to grandmaster.
"I remember back in the day, growing up in Brownsville, Brooklyn, you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone to play chess against — much less have kids, barely teenagers, being master's of the game," Ashley said. "So it's pretty cool to see these kids who are fierce competitors, and pretty average kids at that. They're not just chess geeks as one might imagine."
Now Ashley, who learned the game when he was growing up in Jamaica, makes chess his life. He travels the world tutoring and inspiring students in the game of chess. Sometimes he'll play an entire room full of students.
He didn't really become serious about chess, he says, until he got to Brooklyn Tech High School, after his family moved to New York City.
"I saw a friend playing the game. I knew the rules — I was a pretty smart kid and game play — so I played him," Ashley said. "He crushed me. I didn't quite understand why that was."
Ashley said he had a destiny moment when he saw a book about chess in the library. He figured if he read it, learned the strategies and then went back to his friend, he'd be able to win.
"He crushed me again," Ashley said. "It turned out he'd read that book and nine other books, and that's when I realized how much knowledge was indeed power."
Ashley said chess players now have to be much more creative and prolific to maintain the status of grandmaster nowadays, because technology has made it easier for chess players to trade information about the latest moves and strategies they've seen.
Ashley said being the only African-American grandmaster is important to him — in that he wants to be a role model to younger generations.
"I had an intense passion, bordering on an obsession, for this game. It completely consumed my life," he said. "I wanted to be great at it."
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
Some more chess tournament news from Africa. Top Zambian chess player Kennedy Katowa beat defending champion Robert Gwaze to win the Zimbabwe Open Chess Championship title with eight points after 11 rounds. International master Gwaze, who was the defending champion in the tournament, had to settle for second place on 7,5 points where he was tied with Emerald Mushore, Rodwell Mukoto, Judah Simulundu, Mwali Chitumbo and Thomas Zulu. Colleta Wakuruwarehwa was the best woman chess player in the tournament.
The Zimbabwe Open Chess Championship is the country’s flagship tournament and has been hosted annually since 1961. They allow players from Zambia.
GM Francisco Vallejo Pons wins 21st Annual North American Chess Open
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hello everyone,
Some cool chess news from America via www.chessdom.com. It's about how chess was played at a casino. But, of course, we talk about the 21st Annual North American Chess Open that was held at Bally’s Casino Resort, 3645 Las Vegas, Nevada, from December 26-29, 2011.
The event had 7 sections: Open, Under 2300, Under 2100, Under 1900, Under 1700, Under 1500 and Under 1250. The projected prize fund was $120,000 with $90,000 guaranteed.
GM Francisco Vallejo Pons won the Open Section with an undefeated 6/7. A final round draw with GM Varuzhan Akobian was enough to secure the title for the well known Spaniard.
Akobian, GM Ivan Sokolov and Roman Yankovsky finished 2nd-4th with 5½/7.
Open section final standings: 1. GM Francisco Vallejo Pons – 6.0 ($9261.00 prize) 2-4. GM Varuzhan Akobian, GM Ivan Sokolov and Roman Yankovsky – 5.5 ($2633.34 each) 5-10. GM Alexander Shabalov, IM Marc Tyler Arnold, IM Adam Hunt, IM Enrico Sevillano ($658.25 each), IM Mackenzie Molner and IM Jake Kleiman ($1680.00 each) – 5.0 11. GM Nikola Mitkov – 4.5 ($363.00) etc (62 players)
American chess talent GM Nakamura launches website
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
For all fans of American Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, here's some nice chess news. The grandmaster has launched his brand new website which you can check by clicking on the photo below. Have fun.
Why chess robots have trouble 'grasping' the game!
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
The New Scientist recently had an interesting article about how robots are still less efficient at 'grasping' than humans. That makes them still steps behind humans. If you read our news about the Chess Terminator developed by Chess Queen Alexandra Kosteniuk's father Konstantin Kosteniuk, you would like to read this article too. Here it is. Enjoy.
Chess robots have trouble grasping the game
(Image: Jeffrey Sylvester/Getty Images)
Deep Blue's victory over Gary Kasparov in 1997 may have shown how computers can outsmart people, but if the game is taken into the physical world, humans still win hands down.
That's because, for all their software smarts, robots remain clumsy at manipulating real-world objects. A robotic chess competition held in August, for example, showed that even robotic arms used for precise work on industrial manufacturing lines have trouble when asked to negotiate a noisy, chaotic real-world environment.
The contest, held at the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence annual conference in San Francisco, California, had a number of automatons competing to see who could best move pieces quickly, accurately and legally in accordance with the rules of chess.
Some teams used vision systems to identify where pieces were, but none attempted to distinguish between a rook and a knight, for example. Instead they relied upon remembering where pieces were last placed to identify them and move them accordingly.
The bots quickly ran into snags - their vision systems often misread moves, which led to confusion as to what piece had moved, and where the other pieces were on the board.
One approach, by robotics company Road Narrows, used a commercially available fixed robotic arm normally used for light industrial applications without any vision at all. The winner was a team led by Mike Ferguson at the University of Albany, in New York, which had a mobile robot with an arm attached. Despite the many variables introduced when moving a robot around, the droid's vision system managed to keep track of the board and pieces as it moved about, says Mike Stilman, one of the event's organisers, of Georgia Institute of Technology, in Atlanta.
But even Ferguson's bot is a long way from earning the title "grand master" - all the teams' chess tactics came from a standard open source program that wouldn't have given Deep Blue a run for its money. But the creation of a software champion chess program wasn't just about winning, Stilman says - it was about gaining an insight into how the human mind works in order to build smarter machines. By bringing the challenge into the real world, the hope is to do the same for the physical problems of robotics, he says.
Secret chess photo on Christmas: Santa Claus trains on Chess King!
Merry Chess Christmas Everyone! We are happy to share this chess news scoop with you. Here is a secret photo taken during Santa Claus' secret chess training session. We have come to know he has been trying Chess King! So sing along... Chess Bells, Chess Bells all the way, Oh what fun it is to play Chess King in the snow... Oh! what fun it is to train on Chess King, Oh! Chess King all the way...
In case Santa visits you too for a game of chess do let us know!Also, What do you think of Chess Queen's new 3D logo? Leave your comments here.
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hi everyone,
Here is a very readable article from The Huffington Post. Grandmaster Lubomir Kavalek has written a very nice tribute to Vaclav Havel who passed away recently.
President Vaclav Havel died last Sunday and the sad news spread quickly. The Czechs lost one of their best statesmen - a good, modest man who was respected throughout the world. Thousands walked on Wednesday behind his casket from the center of Prague, across the Charles Bridge to the Prague Castle. Czech and foreign dignitaries will pay their last respects to Havel at a funeral ceremony in the St. Vitus cathedral on Friday.
Havel became perhaps the only head of state who played - and won - an actual chess game during a ceremonial opening of a chess tournament. It happened in Prague in 1990 and here is the account I wrote around that time...
Go on, you cannot resist reading the full article! Enjoy.
Top chess video from first Fide chess world cup in 1982 - Seirawan versus Karpov
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
Time to sit back and enjoy this super chess video. Uploaded by Sirb0b1. It's Yasser Seirawan (USA) - Anatoly Karpov (RUS) in the first Fide World Chess Cup, 1982!
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hi everyone
Here is the latest tournament chess news update via www.fide.com. The eighth round of the the Team Chess Championship as part of the Arab Games was held on Wednesday.
The leaderboard remained the same as before. Egypt beat Yemen thereby ensuring a first place. Ahmed Adly, Amin Bassem defeated their opponents while Hasan Ibrahim Labib, Mohamed Ezat drew their games Qatar beat the Emirates to stay second before the last round. Morocco was stronger in the match against Jordan and won with 3.5:0.5 score. Moroccan team stays on the third place 1 point behind of Qatari team. The team from Iraq still has chances for medals as they won the match against Somali. In the women's section, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and Iraq won their matches while the leader of tournament Algeria had a rest day.
Before the last round Algeria leads with 14 points and needs a draw in the last round to win the competition as a nearest team Jordan is 2 points behind. Egypt is on the third place and Iraq placed fourth.
When chess makes you smile in Turkey at the women's world team chess event!
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hi everyone,
One reason you can smile away in Turkey right now is of course chess! Can you name all these lovely ladies playing at the women's world team chess event currently on in Mardin, Turkey?
Meanwhile, the chess news update from the event. Round 4 did not bring many surprises. China won against Vietnam 3-1, scoring on the two lower boards (Zhao Xue - Nguyen Thi Thanh An 1-0 and Hoang Thi Nhu - Tan Zhongyi Y 1-0) and remain in the lead with a perfect match score. India scored 3,5 board points against Armenia. Only Lilit Mkrtchian was able to draw against Harika Dronavalli on the second board. India is on second place with 7 match points. The close encounter between Georgia and Russia ended in a draw – players shared points in all the games. The fourth board fight between Valentina Gunina and Nino Khurtsidze was the last game of the round. Ukraine crushed Greece 3,5 – 0,5 and Turkey took an upper hand on RSA 3-1. However, South African players scored first board points as Anzel Solomons made a draw against Kubra Ozturk and Lauren Van Niekerk shared a point with Yesim Patel.
Standings after 4 rounds: China – 8; India – 7; Russia – 6; Georgia – 5; Vietnam, Turkey – 4; Ukraine – 3; Armenia – 2; Greece – 1; RSA – 0. You can access the official website here.
Fantastic new chess novel on the horizon - Los Voraces 2019
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hi everyone,
What makes a beautiful chess morning? Surely, some chess news from the literary world. This nice article in the Boston Globe set us for a chess mood this Monday. Harold Dondis and Patrick Wolff have written a nice review. Here it is:
Agatha Christie awake and return! You have a rival in the chess world, one Andrew Soltis, a premier columnist for Chess Life for many years, a NY Post chess columnist and author of many chess texts, and an accomplished tournament player. He has written a book, “Los Voraces 2019’’ (McFarland) or shall we say a chess satire wrapped in an engaging mystery that competes with the very best of whodunits.
“Los Voraces’’ concerns a tournament heavily endowed in the will of a deceased wealthy businessman that provides abundant and irresistible appearance fees and prizes for the greatest Grandmasters, who then play in the 2800 rated range. Los Voraces is a tiny town somewhere in New Mexico virtually cut off from civilization. The tycoon’s will provides funding that will attract the world’s greatest Grandmasters. The tournament must be private. It is held annually to host a collection of dedicated, in some cases narcissistic and omnipotent, achievers, including the world champion Grushevsky. They come from various nations and engulf this small town. The narrator receives excellent pay as arbiter of the tournament, and apparently as caretaker of the sometimes childish, venomous, and unmannered group of geniuses.
The arbiter manages pretty well until, prior to the commencement of the tourney, the Grandmaster Attila Gabor from Hungary falls to the floor with a fatal heart attack. The unpopular Gabor was not going to be missed by his contemporaries, and his death swelled the prize fund. No problem there, except the narrator seemed to find that odd pills had been substituted for Gabor’s heart medicine. The atmosphere turns acrid, as a groupie finds a coral snake in her purse and goes on to heaven. Then a Dutch Grandmaster expires as he seals a move for adjournment. The arbiter, nevertheless, keeps control of his flock, who are given to such eccentricities as agreeing to a draw the night before and then shaking hands at the tournament without making a move - a no-move draw.
The narrator not only reports on the progress of the tournament but also includes the chess games, including a draw in which eight queens appear on the board. It is best for the reader to postpone review of the games until finished with the narration, or else the mystery will take longer to read than “War and Peace.’’ Soltis’s descriptions of the players, their habits, their machinations, and the chess world are salted with wry prose, anecdotes, proverbs, and excellent quotes that make this a remarkable satire. He cites former world champion Tigran Petrosian as stating that every chess position has a weakness, even if it is imperceptible. Who can quarrel with that?
As for who killed these innocent people - no, we will not tell.
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12th Women's World Chess Champion
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