Tag: candidates

Chess reading for the week – Apr 14th

From Chess.com forum : “What music do you listen while playing chess?”
Yes, some people do like listening to music while playing chess. Although this kind of thing is unheard of in the Super GM club, I had a first hand experience when I was paired against GM Mark Paragua and he had his earphones on during the game! I lost that game and drew solace from the fact that maybe he had more inspiration and peace (than me), thanks to the music in his ears!
Head to the forum to see what people like listening to when they play chess!

From chess-news.ru : “The Match Should Be Held On Neutral Territory”
Aaand the politics has just begun. Now with MC “refusing” (not confirmed) to play in Chennai (not confirmed either), the venue for the World Chess Championship is like the Higgs boson; its there but its not. As an Indian Chess fan, watching the Anand vs Carlsen match in person, in Chennai, will be my biggest Chess moment!
“India is not a neutral territory and in addition it will be hard for Magnus to play there because of the climate and food.”
More details in a Norwegian paper (use Auto translate!)

From indianexpress.com : All square: Be it home or away
A nice article on “home advantage” and if it makes any difference in the game of Chess. Talking of Chennai, here is another nice article on the effects of the match on the Indian chess scene.
“Chess, unlike football or cricket, is largely unaffected by factors like the crowd, referee bias, fatigue of the travelling side and familiarity with playing conditions. With all these parameters eliminated, a study used multiple regression analysis to see if home advantage in chess could negate a difference in player strength, as indicated by their rating points (another measure rather unique to the sport, making such a study possible). The advantage of playing at home in this board game proved to be statistically insignificant (Sorqvist).”

From streathambrixtonchess blog : Decisive moment
A nice article with some interesting “decisive” positions from historical as well as critical moments from the Candidates. Do not forget to put on your Chess glasses for this post!
“After showing 0.00 for about an hour, suddenly the online analysis engine went mad after 50.g6?? – and so, as a result, did the viewer.
So what I’m saying is, in a way, that I wish the online engine had been quicker off the mark, or that mine had, because that way, I’d have known. I understand, at the same time, that not knowing is part of chess, part of its very nature, just as the goal that shouldn’t have stood is an intrinsic part of football. Pachman didn’t know for sure what had happened in Bronstein-Keres, and that was twenty-two years down the track. That’s the mystery.”

Thanks to all for the birthday wishes. 50! It is almost worth getting old to hear so many kind thoughts! April 13 of ’13, my lucky number!

There was a lot of “Kasparov” in the news recently since the former champ received a human rights award and he “is ready to help Carlsen against Anand” which he again denied as rumors and also celebrated his 50th birthday on April the 13th (luckily it was a Saturday)!

Not sure when was the last time FIDE wished the World Champion Anand or the World #1 Carlsen on their birthday, but here are kind wishes to Kasparov from the FIDE board. Politicians make interesting bed fellas!

Russian Dissident & Chess Champion Wins Human Rights Award
I think Gary is probably the only Chess player who has suffered cuts and bruises in off-the-board violence.
“UN Watch has decided to grant the Morris B. Abram Human Rights Award to Garry Kasparov for his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in Russia,” said executive director Hillel Neuer. “Mr. Kasparov is not only one of the world’s smartest men, he is also among its bravest.”

From chess-news.ru : Born to Play Chess
Nice collection of birthday wishes from his former coach Nikitin to his last conqueror Kramnik.
“At least he visited Zurich and commentated the games which was very interesting, it was pleasant to see him there, everyone was really happy that he came. Let’s hope that he will have chess as a priority. It seems to me that the politics and these kinds of activities … Well, of course that is his choice, but I think that Kasparov is born for something else.” – Kramnik
Kramnik has also been in the news for some awesome extensive interviews (unfortunately in Russian). Hope you did not miss the first part (English). He also has a second big interview here (Russian, but can use Auto translate), or just wait for a proper english translation to appear.
After the brilliant performance in the Candidates, we would have loved to see Big Vlad in action in the super strong Norway tournament in May, but looks like he is not playing in Norway.

Chess reading for the week – Apr 6th

Here are some interesting chess posts for the week:


From blogs.smithsonianmag.com : How the Chess Set Got Its Look and Feel
A pretty interesting read on the history of Chess pieces!
    “Prior to 1849, there was no such thing as a “normal chess set.” At least not like we think of it today.
    By the 19th century, chess clubs and competitions began to appear all around the world, it became necessary to use a standardized set that would enable players from different cultures to compete without getting confused.
    In 1849, that challenge would be met by the “Staunton” Chess Set. Despite its name, the iconic set was not designed by Howard Staunton. According to the most widely told origin story, the Staunton set was designed by architect Nathan Cook”

Vishy Anand & Magnus Carlsen in the news
Ofcourse, the whole chess world and media outlets are talking about the Champ Viswanathan Anand and his challenger Magnus Carlsen, and rightly so. 

Here are links to the most interesting interviews I liked:

From blogs.wsj : Q&A: Inside the Mind of the World’s Top Chess Player
A pretty fascinating Q&A where the champ talks about pretty much everything; from his earlier days, chess in India, his preparation style, his favorite Indian city to play chess in, and his favorite chess player (mine too)!

From dnaindia.com : “I can detect my opponent’s emotions”
Another interesting piece with some nice quotes.
    Asked whether chess players made for good actors while making moves, he answered with a straight face. “I would say, yes and no. After one level, the opponent can guess that you are bluffing with a straight face. In my case, I can make out whether a player is nervous by the level of his breathing. I can detect his emotions, what he is thinking. So it’s very necessary to keep your emotions to yourself,”
Asked if he would like his son to follow his footsteps, he said, “I’ll introduce him to chess. But I won’t force him. It’s up to him what to choose,”

From deccanherald : Anand hails concept of Maharashtra Chess League
A chess league in India, first of its kind! They have even managed to get some sponsors. Kudos!
    “Countries that have very organised chess structure, have a chess league at the core. Those countries, like Germany for example, where I play in a league, have six or seven levels of leagues, with top two teams being promoted to the higher level, and bottom two teams being relegated to the lower level,” said Anand.

From NYTimes blog : A Conversation With: Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand
The champ talking about the NIIT Chess Academy.
    “Yes, there are plans to expand. We recently have introduced the Academy in Dubai, Botswana and South Africa especially after working with the governments of the latter two countries. My idea is to have the epicenter in India because of the N.I.I.T. network and also to give back to my country.”

From indianexpress.com : “Carlsen will be ridiculously difficult to play against”
I remember “seeing” Vishy online for most part of the Candidates. Once when I asked him if he is going to watch all the games online; “I am finding it hard to leave!” came the answer! He was awake till 1am catching some games till the very end. What a champ!
Interesting answers to some very interesting interview Qs
    “I managed to catch most of the games. I didn’t need to stay up late because most had ended by midnight and I was able to go to sleep.”
    “Firstly, he (Carlsen) is not from my generation. There is a difference in age and outlook. When I played Kramnik, Topalov and Gelfand, I read them in a certain way. And even then, I thought that if I end up playing Vlady this time, it would be a different Vlady from the one I played before. He (Carlsen) is from a different generation and Carlsen is also one of the most talented players from any generation.”

From bangaloremirror.com : ‘I will have to improve my game’
When asked if it will be a mother of all matches as it will be between the world champion and the world #1:
“Magnus is one of those talents that happens once a century. In that sense, it will be unique for me.”

From chess-news.ru : Magnus Carlsen, “The Privileges of the World Champion are Not Fair”
    “I still Think That the privileges of the World Champion are not Fair. As for the system, I think that the round-robin system is good, because that gives the strongest players better chances to win. If you want to have a world champion who sits on his crown for two years then you have to have a serious system to choose a challenger.”

Gary has to give his comments, and we do like to hear his opinion. After all he is the most important retired chess guy. He spoke about the weird rules, Carlsen’s weakness, Anand and was all praises for Kramnik!
    “The tournament showed that the rumors of the death of classical chess somewhat exaggerated. 
Anand is an experienced fighter, he is able to strongly hold the match.
I can hardly be called a big fan of Kramnik, but he really played brilliantly.” (Translated text)

From chess.com forums : What has India got to do with the “Indian” openings?
Some interesting discussion at the chess.com forums. It never occurred to me why the name Kings Indian defence or Nimzo Indian defence! You may find the answer in that discussion!

Heard saying

I think it could be much more fair if the World chess champion played in London and then the best first two players played for the title.
Funny cartoon
© 2013, José Diaz

Chess reading for the week – March 22

Here are some interesting chess posts for the week:

From Chessvibes.com : Open letter: “Please store and publish games including times”
I personally support this idea. It would nice to study master games knowing what was “home-cooked” and what came out of the grey matter.
“For instance the recent played game Ivanchuk-Svidler in the 3rd round of the London Candidates: Ivanchuk ran out of time at an early stage in the game and although his position wasn’t lost, he eventually lost on time. Who would recall these circumstances when reenact the game from a database that doesn’t provide clock time information? Technically it should be possible”

From chess-news.ru : Hikaru Nakamura’s Open Letter Vis-a-Vis the Grand Prix Series
Open letter sent by the manager of GM Hikaru Nakamura.
“It is with great disappointment that the chess world has recently learned, indirectly, that Agon is unable to fulfill its obligations in finding the funding for the Lisbon leg of the Grand Prix. Whether or not the funding has been found for further stages of the Grand Prix is ​​unclear as well.”

From chess-news.ru : Andrew Paulson: “I Found It Particularly Absurd That the Player Would Publish an Open Letter”
Paulson’s theory over using the outrageous red color pieces is frankly absurd. Also has his comments about the above open letter from GM Nakamura.
“Historically, chess pieces were made of ivory and coral – traditionally they were red and white. So from a purely historical point of view we can say there’s some justification here. Making the pieces red was necessary in order to make them stand out from black and white; my feeling at the moment is that on the tablets, on decent computers they’re perfectly readable as long as the screen has a good resolution.”

From polygon.com : Ex-convict creates chess-based puzzle game to teach children to make better choices
“I’m trying to spark the idea into anyone else who comes from my circumstances that they can do anything they put their mind to,” Brown said. “If you disguise learning with fun, a child will return for more.
Brown was arrested in 1999 after robbing two men of $110 and their driver’s licenses, and began serving his 10-year sentence the following year. During that time he focused on playing chess to keep himself out of conflict with the guards and other inmates. While in solitary confinement, he and other prisoners would draw chess boards on the floor and call out moves between cells in order to play. Two years before he was released, Brown sent his mother detailed blueprints of what eventually would become Chess King.”

From The Indian Express: India back in reckoning to host World Chess Championship
Take this news with a tspoon of salt. Going by past history, it can cause severe heart break if you are an Indian chess fan.
“The WCC final was one of the topics on the agenda when FIDE vice president Ali Nihat Yazici met Singh earlier this year. Yazici also confirmed the possibility. “The main subjects (of discussion with the minister) as you may guess were CIS (FIDE’s Chess in Schools program) in India and the World Championship match. For me it looks like India may host the next World Chess Championship match between WCC GM Anand and his challenger. Let’s wait and see,” he said.”

♔ Magnus on why he comes 10-15mins early for the round: “Honestly, I’m just dead nervous about the zero tolerance rule.”