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World Chess Championship 2012

Fri, 11 May 2012 23:49:00 CEST

The World Chess Championship between the Indian GM Viswanathan Anand and the Israeli GM Boris Gelfand held in Moscow from May 11th to 30th 2012.

Sveshnikov shock!

Mon, 14 May 2012 23:33:00 CEST

Sveshnikov Variation 11 Bxb5!? piece sac [B33] by International Master Richard Palliser

Tossing tempi to the wind!

Thu, 10 May 2012 13:29:00 CEST

Double Fianchetto [A30] with IM John Bartholomew

Bacrot's pet line

Sun, 29 Apr 2012 13:40:00 CEST

Giuoco Piano 6.Nbd2 [C50] with GM Victor Mikhalevski

Is the c3-Sicilian in trouble?

Sat, 21 Apr 2012 02:12:00 CEST

Anti-Sicilians - c3-Sicilian with 2...d5 [B22] by IM Sam Collins

A line which refuses to stay quiet!

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 02:25:00 CEST

Nimzo Indian 4 Qc2 0-0 5 e4 [E32] by GM John Emms

In the footsteps of Kramnik

Sat, 31 Mar 2012 22:03:00 CEST

King's Indian 9.b4 Bayonet Attack [E97] with IM David Vigorito

Deep opening preparation

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 21:39:00 CEST

Main Slav [D16] by GrandMaster Ruslan Scherbakov

The 100 year wait!

Sat, 24 Mar 2012 21:27:00 CET

Scotch Opening 4...Nf6, 8.Nd2 [C45] with GM Victor Mikhalevski

Too offbeat?

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 02:26:00 CET

French - Tarrasch Defence 3...h6 [C03] with GM Gawain Jones and IM Tom Rendle

Typing error?

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 02:16:00 CET

King's Indian 9.b4 Bayonet Attack [E97] with IM David Vigorito

Another young gun!

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 13:14:00 CET

Dragon Sicilian Yugoslav Attack 9 0-0-0 d5 10 exd5 with ...Bxd4 [B76] with GM Chris Ward

Tromp or Torre?

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 16:24:00 CET

The Trompowsky Opening 2...e6 [A45] by IM Richard Palliser

Gajewski is back!

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 14:43:00 CET

Spanish Opening - Gajewski Variation [C96] with GM Victor Mikhalevski

More pressure on the Grunfeld

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 23:43:00 CET

Grünfeld Defence Exchange Variation with 7.Be3, sharp 9.Nd2 line [D85] by GM Glenn Flear

Beat the Nimzo!

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:05:00 CET

Nimzo Indian 4 Qc2: Bareev Variation [E32] by GM John Emms

Attacking the Caro

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:38:00 CET

White plays for a sharp kingside attack by opening the g-file ... by GM Gawain Jones

Open Sicilian - Sveshnikov Variation

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:42:00 CET

Nakamura-Radjabov in the Sveshnikov, Novosibirsk Variation [B33] by International Master Richard Palliser

QGD Lasker's Defence 9.Rc1 [D56]

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:39:00 CET

Surprising K-side pawn assaults in Lasker's Defence... by GrandMaster Ruslan Scherbakov

Tata Steel 2012

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:48:00 CET

The first super-GM tournament of the year, featuring Magnus Carlsen, is the traditional Wijk aan Zee event which takes place from the 14th to the 29th of January 2012. This is arguably the strongest ever edition and includes seven from the World's top ten in the featured A-Group.

ELO ratings

Thu, 05 May 2011 18:17:00 CEST

Information on Elo rating changes is always important for leading players as many invitations are dependant on having a high enough rating. For chess players and fans everywhere it's the main measure of a player's form. World Champion Viswanathan Anand stays at the top of the May 2011 rating list.

Volokitin wins the Donostia Chess Festival

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 22:37:00 CET

Eleventh seed Andrei Volokitin won a strong event in Donostia (the Basque name for San Sebastian, in the Spanish Basque country) and took home the 20,000 Euros first prize. The event from the 28th of December to the 5th of January celebrated the centenary of the famous San Sebastian tournaments of 2011 and 2012 won by Capablanca and Rubinstein.

Wang Yue dominates Hastings

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 21:33:00 CET

The traditional Hastings tournament was won by the Chinese star Wang Yue. He finished ahead of the field after never being in danger throughout the nine rounds of the tournament. The Indian contingent impressed and took four of the top seven places, with Babu Lalith and Sundar Shyam both obtaining GM norms.

Anish Giri top in Reggio Emilia

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 09:46:00 CET

The 17 year-old Dutch star won the prestigious category 20 Reggio Emilia tournament after his closest rivals both lost in the last round. The table demonstrates how close it was with three players finishing just behind the leader. Hikaru Nakamura was leading by some way at one point, but a disastrous run-in, including his last round loss, cost him dear.

Vachier-Lagrave wins Port-Marly

Sun, 08 Jan 2012 20:46:00 CET

The sports complex 'Les Pyramides' in Port-Marly (eastern suburbs of Paris) was the venue for the first leg of the new French Federation Rapidplay Grand Prix. Ten 2600 plus players were present including many of the leading French players, including their highest-rated player Etienne Bacrot. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (French No.2) beat the young Brazilian GM Alexander Fier in the final.

Jobava is European Rapidplay Champion

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 21:08:00 CET

The Georgian GM Baadur Jobava finished ahead of a group of seven to win the 2011 Championship in Warsaw, Poland. In second place was the young Russian Sanan Sjugirov, and in third the local player Robert Kempinski.

Melkumyan wins European Blitz in Warsaw

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 22:51:00 CET

The European Blitz and Rapid Championships are taking place in Warsaw, Poland. The new European Blitz Champion is Hrant Melkumyan, which is something of a surprise result, as the Armenian was only the 28th seed. Aleksey Dreev took silver and Radoslaw Wojtaszek bronze.

World Mind Games Festival in China

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 16:44:00 CET

The World Mind Games Festival in Beijing takes place from the 8th to the 16th of December in Beijing. Apart from Chess, there are also tournaments involving Bridge, Draughts, Go and Chinese Chess. There are three disciplines in the chess section, Quickplay, Blitz and Blindfold.

Jan Timman is 60!

Wed, 14 Dec 2011 09:25:00 CET

The Dutch GM, and former World No.2, has turned 60-years-old today. Once known as an openings pioneer, he has in recent years been closely involved in endgame studies and analysis, which explains why New in Chess have organized a endgame study tournament to commemorate his 60th birthday.

London Chess Classic 2011

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 17:38:00 CET

This year's London Classic features the World's top four, the leading US player, and the majority of the English National team. The venue is the Olympia Conference Centre, Kensington, and play will take place from the 3rd to the 12th of December 2011. Magnus Carlsen, who was 21 a few days ago, is back in town, having won the first two editions of the tournament. For some recent annotated games featuring Magnus Carlsen, see the Notable Games section where the Tal memorial comes under scrutiny!

Gros Xake Taldea wins the Spanish Team Championship 2011

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 08:50:00 CET

The Spanish Team Championship 2011 took place in the Spanish enclave of Melilla (situated on the North African coast) from the 21st to the 26th of November. It's the first time that Gros (a suburb of San Sebastian) have become Spanish Champions. In the photo, (in blue from left to right) there are Pablo San Segundo, Ruslan Ponomariov, Alexei Shirov, Etienne Bacrot, Luc Van Wely, and kneeling, IM Santiago Gonzalez de la Torre.

World Youth Championships

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 15:49:00 CET

This year the World Youth Championships took place from the 18th to the 26th of November in Caldas Novas, Brazil, perhaps the biggest hydro-thermal resort in the World. The Armenian Samvel Ter-Sahakyan won the Under-18s open by a whole point, while Meri Arabidze from Georgia became the World Girls (u-18) Champion. Russia with three golds was the most successful country.

Vladimir Okhotnik wins World Seniors

Sun, 27 Nov 2011 12:05:00 CET

The 21st World Senior Championships took place in Rijeka, Croatia from the 15th to the 26th of November. A last round victory with Black enabled Vladimir Okhotnik (now of France, formerly of the Ukraine) to beat Bojan Kurajica, and finish the tournament with 9/11. The Russian Galina Strutinskaya is the new Women's Senior Champion.

Tal Memorial in Moscow

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 15:21:00 CET

Michael Tal was born 75 years ago in Riga, and his annual memorial is particularly strong this time around with seven of the World's top ten competing. The ten player round robin takes place from the 16th to the 25th of November in the Pashkov House ( a mansion opposite the Kremlin) in Moscow, Russia.

Women's World Championship in Tirana

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 23:36:00 CET

The Tirana international Hotel in Tirana, Albania is the venue for the all-Asian clash between Humpy Koneru and Hou Yifan for the World Championship crown. The ten game match will take place until the 30th of November.

European Team Championships 2011

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 06:43:00 CET

The nine round European Team Championships start today in Greece in the Porto Carras resort, which is on the Halkidiki peninsular, about a hundred kilometres from Thessaloniki. Russia are top seeds in both events with 38 teams competing in the Open and 28 in the Women's event.

Bastia

Sat, 22 Oct 2011 22:59:00 CEST

The15th edition of the Bastia tournament has begun. This year the event is a nine-round FIDE-rated swiss followed by a rapidplay knock-out event. Bastia is the main town in Corsica, a French island in the Mediterranean. There are 170-odd players in the open with over 20 nationalities present.

US news

Mon, 30 May 2011 12:25:00 CEST

Over the coming months I will focusing on chess happenings in the USA. Naturally the exploits of their best known players, US Champion Gata Kamsky, and rising world star Hikaru Nakamura will be of particular interest. However, the US chess scene in general intrigues many Europeans as the tournaments there are so different from those of the Old World.

Unive Tournament in Hoogeveen, Netherlands

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 12:06:00 CEST

The 15th Unive Tournament 2011 in Hoogeveen, Netherlands is underway. The featured event is a the Crown Group, a four-player double-round robin with Vladimir Kramnik, Anish Giri, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Judit Polgar with an average rating of 2732!

Women's Grand Prix in Nalchik

Fri, 14 Oct 2011 09:00:00 CEST

The third event in the Women's Grand Prix takes place in Nalchik, Russia from the 9th to the 21st of October. Nalchik is a spa town situated in the northern Caucasus. Twelve of the leading female players in the world are involved, the Kosintseva sisters, Kateryna Lahno and Ju Wenjun being amongst the favourites.

Saratov

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:01:00 CEST

The Governer's cup In Saratov, Russia takes place from the 8th to the 20th of October. A twelve player round robin involving several members of the Saratov team that won the European Club Championship in 2009 and 2010. Saratov has a population nearing one million and is about 460 miles south-east of Moscow on the Volga river.

12th Poikovsky tournament

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 21:02:00 CEST

The small town of Poikovsky in Siberia, Russia has organized an event in honneur of former World champion Anatoly Karpov since 2000. This year the ten player round robin runs from the 4th to the 13th of October and is headed by Sergey Karjakin.

4th final Grand Slam: Sao Paulo and Bilbao

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 08:27:00 CEST

The 4th Grand Slam final has taken the unprecendented step of organizing the first half in South America, and then moving onto Bilbao for the return legs of this double round robin. Sao Paulo, the largest city in Brazil (and along with Buenos Aires one of the two largest in the continent) is where all the action starts. The World's top three are amongst the six invited players.

Kasparov by a short head

Sun, 09 Oct 2011 22:35:00 CEST

A Blitz match between Garry Kasparov and Nigel Short ended in a close-run 4.5-3.5 win for the favourite after Kasparov won the last game with the black pieces. The match in Leuven, Belgium celebrated the fifth anniversary of the 'Your Next Move' site.

Sadler sizzles in Oslo

Sun, 09 Oct 2011 21:44:00 CEST

Englishman Matthew Sadler has been in hot form since his 'coming back' from an extended sabbatical of several years. Following on from a fine performance in the Sants open in Barcelona, here in the Oslo International he finished a full 1.5 points ahead of the second-placed player Spike Ernst.

European Team Championships

Sun, 25 Sep 2011 18:05:00 CEST

Rogaska Slatina in Slovenia is the venue for the 2011 European Team Championships, for both mixed and women's teams. The first round is on the 25th of September and the final one is a week later on the 1st of October. More than half the world's 2700-plus players are present! Alexander Grischuk is top board for the highest seeds Socar, whereas Hou Yifanis leads Monaco in the Women's event.

Kasparov in action!

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 10:30:00 CEST

Garry Kasparov may be retired, and officially inactive, but he occasionally indulges in an exhibition match or two. Last week-end he beat Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 1.5-0.5 in a rapid match in Clichy, in the suburbs of Paris. An indication that despite his 'retirement' he hasn't lost his touch!

Moscow too strong for Saint Petersburg

Tue, 20 Sep 2011 09:25:00 CEST

Gazprom sponsorship enabled the 22nd match between Russia's two main cities to go ahead this year in Saint Petersburg. Moscow, on paper the stronger side on all ten boards, won with a late surge but the home team tied the first set of games and pushed the capital close in the second and final round.

World Cup Khanty Mansiysk 2011

Sat, 27 Aug 2011 19:29:00 CEST

The FIDE World Cup is about to begin with most of the World's 2700-plus players involved. The event takes place from the 28th of August to the 20th of September and the venue will again be Khanty Mansiysk, a Siberian boom town which has already been the venue for many a top class chess event in recent years.

Shenzhen Women's Grand Prix

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 18:46:00 CEST

In the latest Women's Grand Prix, Hou Yifan is the top seed, and local hero in an event taking place in Shenzhen, China. The twelve participants need to finish as high as possible in the table to obtain good Grad Prix points. At the end of the series of six events, the leading player will get a chance to challenge Hou Yifan in a match for the World Championship.

100 years of Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 13:41:00 CEST

It's one hundred years since the birth of the sixth World Champion Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik and Russian Federation is organizing a series of events to celeberate this fact. Botvinnik played a whole series of matches and tournaments for the tile and was World champion (with a couple of short breaks)from 1948 until 1963.

Vachier-Lagrave is French Champion

Thu, 25 Aug 2011 23:34:00 CEST

After a closely fought contest, top seed Maxime Vachier-Lagrave edged out a group of four players who were only half-a-point behind. In the last round Vachier-Lagrave drew with Black against Etienne Bacrot, whereas pre-round co-leader Laurent Fressinet went down to Christian Bauer. Despite complaints that there were too many short draws, the Championship in Caen (in Normandy, Northern France) was still one of the most exciting for years.

Sergei Zhigalko takes Baku

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 16:07:00 CEST

The Baku open is one of the strongest in the international calendar, with five 2700 players participating this year. Seventh seed Sergei Zhigalko of Belarus topped the field on 7/9, with Dimitry Andreikin and Emil Sutovsky half-a-point behind.

Dariusz Swiercz is World Junior Champion

Wed, 17 Aug 2011 11:47:00 CEST

The World Junior Championships in Chennai (Viswanathan Anand's birthplace, formerly known as Madras), India, was full of surprises with the Polish prodigy Dariusz Swiercz finishing ahead of the Armenian hopeful Robert Hovhannisyan on Tie-break. Local player Sahaj Grover completed the podium. Deysi Cori of Peru is World Girl's Champion.

Russian Championship Super Final

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 00:21:00 CEST

Eight of the strongest Russian Grandmasters battle it out in the Russian Championship Super Final in Moscow. The event takes place from the 8th to the 15th of August.

The Rostov Women's Grand Prix

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 14:47:00 CEST

Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia is the venue for the first in a new series of Grand Prix events for Women. Seven of the World's Top Ten are involved including the World Champion Hou Yifan. A tournament that qualifies for being the strongest ever for women!

Adams and Short top the British Championship

Fri, 05 Aug 2011 23:43:00 CEST

The strongest British Championships for years, featuring virtually all the leading players, has been taking place in Sheffield, England. The top two seeds, Michael Adams and Nigel Short, finished neck-and-neck on 8½/11. A rapidplay match tomorrow will determine the overall champion for 2011.

The 44th Biel (Switzerland) festival

Tue, 19 Jul 2011 11:42:00 CEST

This year the Biel ACCENTUS Grandmaster tournament runs from the 18th of July until the 29th. The presence of Magnus Carlsen will be complemented with young guns Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Fabiano Caruana. Local hero Yannick Pelletier will also have to cope with the dynamic duo Alexei Shirov and Alexander Morozevich in the six player double-round robin.

Dortmund 2011

Thu, 21 Jul 2011 23:17:00 CEST

The 39th Sparkassen Dortmund Chess Meeting takes place from the 21st to the 31st of July 2011. Vladimir Kramnik is the top seed in a strong six-player double round robin.

World Team Championship in Ningbo, China

Sun, 17 Jul 2011 20:40:00 CEST

China is again the focus of the chess world's attention with the start of the World Team Championship in Ningo. The best teams from all the main continents will compete in a nine round robin team event. Levon Aronian (2805) and eighteen 2700s are playing!

Hangzhou (China)

Fri, 15 Jul 2011 21:22:00 CEST

The strongest women's closed tournament of all time is taking place in Hangzhou, China from the 13th to the 24th of July. Hou Yifan is the favourite, but the Kosintseva sisters are only slightly lower rated. All the games were drawn in the first round.

Indian Summer in Paris

Thu, 14 Jul 2011 11:23:00 CEST

The annual Paris Championships took place from the 2nd to the 10th of July. The top section was won by Arun Prasad who finished ahead of several higher-rated players. Sergey Fedorchuk and Ruben Felgaer were half-a-point behind on 6.5/9.

Greek Team Championship

Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:14:00 CEST

The 2011 Greek Team Championship took place in Eretria from the 3rd to the 8th of July. Several top players took part in the seven round event which mixed elite, female and junior players from 34 teams. The favourites Peristeri (with Ivanchuk on board 1) finished in first place.

Anish Giri is Dutch champion

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 23:58:00 CEST

The Dutch Championship has finished with Anish Giri, who turned 17 during the event, finishing two clear points ahead of Ivan Sokolov in second place. The ten player round robin took place from the 25th of June to the 5th of July in Boxtel.

The Commonwealth and South African open

Sun, 03 Jul 2011 22:52:00 CEST

In one of the most important events taking place in Africa this year, Gawain Jones edged Nigel Short on tie-break, both players scoring 9.5/11. This prestigious event took place in Ekurhuleni in the Gauteng region (Johannesburg and Pretoria).

Caruana on top in Delhi

Sat, 02 Jul 2011 23:03:00 CEST

The AAII event in Delhi featured five youthful players and Indian No.2 Sasikiran, who must have felt like a veteran (at 30 years old) in this company! Italian Fabiano Caruana led throughout and, despite a ninth round loss to Laznicka, always looked deemed to win the event. Hou Yifan finished bottom as her poor run of form continues.

Morozevich wins the Russian Higher League

Sun, 26 Jun 2011 18:59:00 CEST

The Russian Higher League took place from the 15th to the 26th of June in Taganrog, which can be found on the sea of Azov near Rostov-on-Don. Apart from being one of the most westerly points in Russia, the city of Taganrog is famous for being the birthplace of Anton Chekhov. Alexander Morozevich, a former World Top Ten player, finished ahead of a strong field.

Ponomariov is Ukrainian Champion

Fri, 24 Jun 2011 11:24:00 CEST

Ruslan Ponomariov finished at the top of a tough field in Kiev. This result was in doubt until he won with Black against Alexander Moiseenko in the last round.

Magnus Carlsen and Vassily Ivanchuk in action

Sun, 12 Jun 2011 21:04:00 CEST

The 5th King's Tournament in Medias, in the vicinity of Bazna, Romania, is underway. The six-player double round robin is particularly strong this year. Magnus Carlsen is back from a short break with a fine win over Hikaru Nakamura, whereas Vassily Ivanchuk also had a great opening day after downing Teimour Radjabov in a King's Indian.

French league 2011 from Mulhouse

Tue, 31 May 2011 11:52:00 CEST

The French league is one of the strongest in Europe and now known as the Top 12 after a new format was introduced this season. We will be following the final rounds daily as all dozen squads battle it out for the 2011 championship prize. At the lower end of the table, the bottom three will be relegated.

Leon 2011

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 21:42:00 CEST

The annual Léon masters in Spain takes place from the 3rd-5th of June 2011. A draw in the first game, followed by an explosive attacking display by the World champion were on display on the first day. So Anand leads Shirov 1.5-0.5 with four games to go over the next two days.

Candidates matches 2011

Thu, 05 May 2011 21:55:00 CEST

Candidates matches 2011 is underway !! 3rd to 27th of May in Kazan, the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan.

Ivanchuk likes the Capablanca Memorial!

Sun, 22 May 2011 17:18:00 CEST

The 46th Capablanca Memorial took place from May 10-21, 2011, in Havana, Cuba. Once again Vassily Ivanchuk got himself to the top of the standings, but this time is was harder going and only a win over Le Quang Liem in the last round enabled him to catch the Vietnamese No.1.

12th Women's European Championship in Tbilisi Georgia

Sat, 07 May 2011 16:30:00 CEST

The Championship will take place in Tbilisi, Georgia from the 7th to the 18th of May. Georgia being renowned for it's successful female players, both now and in previous years. Many of the World champions such as Maia Chiburdanidze and Nona Gaprindishvili came from this small Caucasian country. Pia Cramling of Sweden was the 2010 Champion. Most of the leading European players are present including the Kosintseva sisters and home-bred Nana Dzagnidze.

4NCL: Pride & Prejudice are Champions.

Thu, 05 May 2011 15:59:00 CEST

Pride & Prejudice, the London based team run by Claire Summerscale, has become champions of the British league for the first time. Although the 4NCL (Four Nations Chess League) is no longer one of the strongest in Europe, it still attracts a number of high-ranking GMs. On top board, in the crucial last round encounter between the title contenders, Luke McShane and Michael Adams were last to finish.

Saint Louis US Championships 2011

Fri, 22 Apr 2011 05:46:00 CEST

US Championships 2011 featuring Gata Kamsky are underway. Saint Louis is again the hosts in the sixteen-player event from the 15th to the 28th of April 2011.

Russian Team Championships decided by tie-breaks

Mon, 25 Apr 2011 10:37:00 CEST

The Championships took place in Olginka (Krasnodar). In both events the leaders finished neck-and-neck and had to be decided using tie-breaking methods. In the end it was a double victory for ShSM-64. The ShSM-64 team were declared champions ahead of Tomsk in the Men's event and their Women's team edged out Giporechtrans.

Dubai Open

Fri, 22 Apr 2011 14:14:00 CEST

The Sheikh Rashid Bin Hamdan Al Maktoum Cup took place from April 9th to 19th, 2011 in the Dubai Chess and Culture Club. Indian GM Abhijeet Gupta finished a half point ahead of four others to become undisputed champion of the 13th edition.

11th Thailand Open 2011

Mon, 18 Apr 2011 21:29:00 CEST

The 2011 Thailand open in Pattaya finished with the three favourites tied in the lead. Jan Gustafsson (in the photo), Nigel Short, Francisco Vallejo finished on 7.5/9 with the German getting the nod on tie-break.

US Championships

Sat, 16 Apr 2011 12:07:41 CEST

The USA Championships have begun in St. Louis with a unusual format, which is new to 2011 and highly original. The champion Gata Kamsky is the favorite this year in the absence of US No.1 Hikaru Nakamura.
The presence of 50-year-old Yasser Seirawan, who rarely plays these days, will add some spice to the pot.

Baden-Baden have won the Bundesliga

Mon, 11 Apr 2011 15:13:00 CEST

The best known national team competition finished this week-end. Baden-Baden finished first in the fifteen round league event that ran from October 2010 to April 2011.

Ding Liren is Chinese Champion

Sun, 10 Apr 2011 15:19:00 CEST

Ding Liren was an impressive two points ahead in the 2011 Chinese championships. The favourite Wang Yue finished well down the field and behind the 17-year-old Hou Yifan. In the women's event Xiaowen Zhang was the surprise winner.

Flashback to Aix-les-Bains

Wed, 06 Apr 2011 13:45:00 CEST

The dust has settled and we can take a closer look at the results in the 12th European Championships in Aix-les-Bains, France. This was undoubtedly the strongest tournament, in depth, in Western Europe for quite some time, and will take some beating in future.

Vladimir Potkin, first amongst four

Fri, 01 Apr 2011 14:35:00 CEST

Vladimir Potkin was placed first on performance ahead of Radoslaw Wojtaszek, Judit Polgar and Alexander Moiseenko. The champion is one of seven Russians amongst the World Championship qualifiers.

Twelve share the lead in Aix-les-bains!

Wed, 30 Mar 2011 15:38:00 CEST

Several other players have made it to the leading score of 7/10 including Judit Polgar. In order to get into the top 23, synonymous with qualification for the World championship, 8/11 will be required.

Six now lead in Aix-les-Bains

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 12:41:00 CEST

Vladimir Potkin has been caught by four players in the chasing group, Nikita Vitiugov, Rauf Mamedov, Markus Ragger, Voirel Iordachescu and Mircea-Emilian Parligras. There are rounds to go in the 12th European Individual Championship

It's Potkin on 6/7 leading the way

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 15:24:00 CEST

The current leader Vladimir Potkin, and last year's champion Ian Nepomniachtchi together just before today's game. Just about all the leading group drew as, the target of qualifying for the next World Championship is making those well-placed fairly cautious.

Potkin followed by 14 others

Sun, 27 Mar 2011 12:45:00 CEST

Draws on the top boards have left Vladimir Potkin still leading on 5.5/6, and ahead by half-a-point from the chasing pack of fourteen players on 5/6. Tomorrow's game is the last before the rest day.

Vladimir Potkin alone on 5/5

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 15:33:00 CET

Three players are on 4.5/5 half-a-point behind Vladimir Potkin. These are former European champion Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu, Mircea-Emilian Parligras (both of Roumania) and the young French IM Anthony Wirig who has surprised many observers with his excellent play so-far.

Vladimir Potkin and Boris Savchenko on 4/4

Fri, 25 Mar 2011 12:35:00 CET

Only two players, both Russian, have a perfect score after four rounds of the 12th European Individual Championships in Aix-les-Bains. Nineteen players have 3.5/4 including former champion Emil Sutovsky and Women's No.1 Judit Polgar.

Moiseenko and Nisipeanu amongst the leaders

Thu, 24 Mar 2011 15:04:00 CET

Twelve players have a perfect 3/3, but none of the nine 2700+s have. The highest-rated players on 100% being Alexander Moiseenko and Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu, the 26th and 27th seeds.

Status quo for the leaders

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 15:44:00 CET

Levon Aronian continues to dominate the Blindfold event, and with his 8/10 has already ensured top spot. Magnus Carlsen is doing even better in the rapidplay with 8.5/10, and has two points more than his closest rival.

Aix-les-Bains: The second round

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 15:29:00 CET

Aix-les-Bains (in eastern France near the Alps) was bathed in sunshine today for the second round of the European individual Championship. The most notable surprises on the top boards were Fabiano Caruana losing with White to Alexander Kovchan, and Sebastian Mazé downing Sergei Zhigalko.

Aronian wins the final Melody Amber

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 15:01:00 CET

Levon Aronian did enough to stay a full point clear of Magnus Carlsen, while Viswanathan Anand came home in third place. An exciting event over the last twenty years, the chess world will miss the Melody Amber, as an era comes to a close.

Many surprises in Aix-les-bains

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 07:47:00 CET

Dmitry Jakovenko was the biggest seed to lose today, but many others failed to win. A really unusual series of results that will leave many household names playing catch up in the 12th European Individual Championship.

European Individual Championship

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 07:52:00 CET

The 12th European Championship will be held in Aix‐les‐Bains, France, from March 21st (day of arrival) to April 3rd (day of departure) 2011. There will be around 400 players, almost half of them GMs, from an estimated 47 countries.

Aronian still edges Carlsen

Sun, 20 Mar 2011 07:53:00 CET

Levon Aronian won his rapid game against Viswanathan Anand, while Magnus Carlsen was victorious over Veselin Topalov. Vassily Ivanchuk continues to move up the field and is now equal third.

Six make seven in Reykjavik

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 07:57:00 CET

Three Ukrainians were amongst the six players in the leadng group on 7/9 at the MP Rejkyavik open, and of these Yurij Kuzubov had the best tie-break. A total of 29 GMs were amongst the 166 participants in this year's event.

Nancy Rapid and Blitz

Mon, 14 Mar 2011 12:32:00 CET

As you may note from the photograph of the ten leading players, there were strong participants in the 9th International Chess Festival of Meurthe and Moselle. Laurent Fressinet won the Blitz on Saturday and was awarded the title of French Rapidplay Champion on Sunday. A good week-end for him!

Anand has highest ever rating!

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 07:44:00 CET

Apart from Viswanathan Anand edging Magnus Carlsen for the number one spot since the new rating list came out at the beginning of this month, two other players have made good progress in the top ten, Vassily Ivanchuk (back to fifth!) and Hikaru Nakamura (now at eighth). Other rising players from the young generation are Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, David Navara and Nikita Vitiugov.