War Time Chess

Грати в шахи

Vrede vir Ukraine!!
Al hierdie foto’s – soos jy kan sien – is van Twitter. Ek gee nie kommentaar – lees asb. die tweet met die bygaande foto.
Ek hoop net dat Poo Tin tot sy sinne sal kom en ophou om hierdie mooi land en sy mooi mense so koelbloedig te vernietig, maar soos ons hom ken, weet ons dat dit nie sommer sal gebeur nie. Hierdie oorlog tussen – eintlik – die VSA (my mening) en Rusland maak dat Ukraine onnodiglik ‘suffer’.

Photo: Atef Safadi – skaak terwyl jy vir jou veiligheid onder in ‘n ‘bunker’ sit en nie weet of jy die volgende dag gaan leef nie.

People play chess at Taras Shevchenko park in downtown Kyiv on Sunday, 10th April 2022

Chess in Odessa – a beaufitul city – before this ugly War

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Chess and Charlize

Charlize in 2019 at the South African Closed Chess Championship

Charlize in Batumi, Georgia, in 2018

Credit: Reint Dykema and Chess dot com

When there is an opportunity, I do like to blog about chess players from Africa as they don’t get the exposure they should get. Even more so if it is a high profile player and a female! I was quite surprised to find this article about Charlize on Chess.com and was quite excited to know there are more young female players, from South Africa, in this great game! I didn’t copy the complete interview on my blog and you can follow the link to read more about her and to view more other photos of this talented young player.

Quick Bio: Chalize van Zyl age 20

Occupation:                                      Student (BA Media, Communications and Culture)

Rating:                                              1686 (FIDE) / 1801 (CHESSA)

SA rank:                                             9^th (FIDE) / 7^th (CHESSA)

Title:                                                  Woman International Master (WIM)

Number of Olympiads played:           1 (2018)

An interview conducted by WCM beccrajoy

At what age did you start playing chess, and who introduced you to it?

My Dad taught my sister and me when I was about 7 – he tried earlier, but we just weren’t into it. I started playing tournaments at 8, and when I was 9, I went overseas.

What’s your earliest chess memory?

My memory’s not that good, but I remember in one of my first tournaments, the only point I got was against my sister. We had both lost all our games, so we played in the last round. No one was watching us, and we ended up playing with just our kings until someone came and told us it was a draw!

How did you prepare for the South African Closed Chess Championships?

I did a lot of tactics in the days leading up to the closed. I did a bit on the opening, because I wanted to experiment a bit and change my lines, but not much. So, it was mainly hours and hours of tactics, and Puzzle Rush too. I’m addicted to Puzzle Rush – I don’t know if it was really training, but I couldn’t stop playing!

What is the highlight of your chess career?

When I was 13 I won the African Zonals, which is when I won my WIM title. And I broke a record for being the youngest South African to get the title.

Please click HERE to read the complete article.

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African Youth Chess Championships 2012

Registration is open for the African Youth Chess Championships – the closing date is 31st August 2012.

The tournament will be held in Pretoria, Gauteng, one of the 3 Capital Cities of South Africa from 28 September 2012 (official arrival date) to 08 October 2012 (official departure date) at the Faircity Roodevallei Hotel & Conference Centre (Roodevallei). Players will be accommodated at Roodevallei.

Click HERE for more details about the tournament. You will also find a link to live games and photos.[All links will always open in a new window on my blog]

The Venue of the African Youth Chess Championships – see the link for more details of the Venue.

Update: 13/10/2012

Phew, what a task to get all these results displayed in a format easier than an excel document! Why should it so difficult to publish results in a table easy for anyone to observe. Well, I’ve done it now and I hope you find it useful to look at the results and to see where South Africa’s future in Chess lies?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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South African Women’s Open 2012

Bloemfontein [ˈblum.fɔn.ˌtɛi̯n] is the capital city of the Free State Province of South Africa and, as the judicial capital of the nation, one of South Africa’s three national capitals – the other two being Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Pretoria, the administrative capital.

Bloemfontein is popularly and poetically known as “the city of roses”, owing to the abundance of these flowers and the annual rose festival held there. The city’s Sesotho name is Mangaung, meaning “place of cheetahs”.

Logo – Free State Chess

The South African Women’s Open Chess Championships start tomorrow – 9th August [Women’s day in South Africa too!] in Bloemfontein. The Venue is Kruitberg Primary School. The tournamnent ends on the 12th August. I hope for some results and photos from Chessa, whilst the tournament is on, meanwhile – enjoy some photos of the capital.

Results: SA Women’s Open 2012 -please click on the image for a larger view

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South African Open 2012

It’s time for the South African Open Chess Championships! Follow the Official Site with all the details. There’s also a link to ‘Live’ games! So, a very exciting tournament to look forward to with a ‘Live’ link! As you can see, it’s going to take place in the Newlands Rugby Stadium, Cape Town.

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Kasparov in South Africa

World Chess Champion, Gary Kasparov is visiting South Africa!! Kasparov was the top rated player for 21 years.  He will be playing some chess on the 12th November. Pres Zuma has recently launched the MOVES FOR LIFE Chess development programme. From the link:

Kasparov comes from Moscow to South Africa on 12 November to form a joint venture with Tshwane/Pretoria based chess educational project Moves for Life (MFL).

13th Chess World Champion, Garry Kasparov, has announced that he wishes to link his Kasparov Chess Foundation to MFL to take the successful MFL formula to other African countries.

He has added that he plans to work with MFL to make Johannesburg the chess capital of Africa

Kasparov stated:. “I was greatly inspired by the words of President Zuma last October, when he spoke so movingly on the many benefits of chess for children – and of his remarkable connection to my beloved game. I am happy to join him and the South African Moves for Life programme in a commitment to bringing chess to schools across the country and for turning Johannesburg into the continental capital for chess.”

Kasparov will be visiting South Africa as the guest of MFL from the 12th – 15th November to promote the Kasparov Chess Foundation link up with the Moves for Life programme.

The Moves for Life programme was launched by President Zuma last year and has since expanded to over 50 schools around the country, resulting in measurable improvement in maths and science performance amongst children

Watu Kobese, Moves for Life trustee and one of South Afriva’s top chess players Operations says: “The game of chess impacts positively on Maths, Science and comprehension abilities while also imparting valuable life skills to children. In learning to play chess, children are mastering a wide range of skills such as pattern recognition, classifying information, reasoning by analogy, following principles, calculating possible sequences of events and critical thinking — which in fact helps with all their academic subjects,”

President Jacob Zuma, is clear that there is a place for chess in South Africa’s education system. When President Zuma launched the MFL initiative in 2010, he highlighted the benefits of chess saying, “We want to convince parents and teachers that chess is one of the most powerful tools available to strengthen and enhance a child’s mind.”

Moves for Life is now training over 6000 children per week and has trained more than 200 educators in 2011 both to teach chess in schools and also as an extra-curricular activity.. According to Kasparov, “The Moves for Life programme is already doing a wonderful job and we expect to cooperate and aid them in developing both their chess and sponsorship efforts. To promote our activities, chess in the media, and to inspire the grassroots, I will personally donate my time, to train South Africa’s most promising young players as well as the country’s elite teams, as I have done in the United States with great success.

The mission of the Kasparov Chess Foundation: Africa will be to bring the many educational benefits of chess to children throughout Africa by providing a complete chess curriculum with associated enrichment programs. The foundation promotes the playing of chess as a cognitive learning tool in classes and in after-school programmes for primary and high schools. The Moves for Life programme has both the South African experience as well as the material developed uniquely for the African situation. Through collaboration both KCF and MFL will be able to optimise all available resources and reach their respective goals.

“Chess is an individual sport, but promoting chess is not. With your support, Johannesburg will take a prominent place alongside New York, Brussels and Sao Paulo,” says Kasparov.

In June this year the Kasparov Chess Foundation launched its European leg, based in Brussels. The Foundation has ambitious plans to develop a programme for the entire European Union. On September 20th, the Kasparov Chess Foundation Europe presented its proposal at the Headquarters of the European Union.

Update: Saturday 12/11/2011
 Was really disappointed when reading on CHESSA’s site about MFL, Kasparov, etc. I agree, MFL is a PRIVATE company and HERE is Dr Kemm,  one of the 5 trustees of MFL and hopefully he will do something to get CHESSA also involved in this important visit – a visit our Chess players look forward to.  This is a visit that happens only ONCE in a life time and Chess South Africa is not even fully involved! MFL: You CAN do something about it.

Update [again] – Saturday 19/11/2011

If you are interested to read Mickey’s reaction as a MFL-trustee – you can read his comments in the comments box. It’s sad to know that MFL actually contacted CHESSA and that CHESSA asked MFL to cancel Kasparov’s visit. I think CHESSA needs to ‘grow up’ and show that they are there for the Chess community in South Africa and that they are serious about developing Chess in South Africa. CHESSA’s article is misleading the general public about their role in Kasparov’s visit. CHESSA is obviously not thinking about their international image.

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Chess as a Slow Dance of Seduction

It’s a long time since I’ve blogged something chessy – so here goes… time is tight! I don’t even have enough time to play a proper chess game. Luckily, it’s almost Easter Hols and then I might have a few spare hours to play a game or two. I do miss playing chess though! I’ve come across this movie-article and thought to share it with you. The movies can’t go without chess! It’s Spring and trees around us are almost covered in blossoms. This flower-pic was taken in August last year. I hate these bees we have here, they are surely not friendly and look quite scary.

In ‘Queen to Play’ Sandrine Bonnaire plays a chambermaid empowered by playing chess.

Chess as a Slow Dance of Seduction

By STEPHEN HOLDEN

Published: March 31, 2011

Caroline Bottaro’s tangy comic bonbon, “Queen to Play,” plucks the game of chess out of the metaphorical realm of spy thrillers and reimagines it as a fable about relationships and upward mobility. Adapted from Bertina Henrichs’s novel “The Chess Player,” this slight but captivating movie (Ms. Bottaro’s directorial debut) compares the strategies of chess to the erotic maneuvers in a flirtatious pas de deux that may be more satisfying than actual sex. At the same time, a woman’s winning the game symbolizes female empowerment in a man’s world and ascent from working-class drudgery to the bourgeoisie.

Hélène (Sandrine Bonnaire), the movie’s sly, middle-aged Cinderella, is an attractive chambermaid at a luxury hotel in Corsica. While going about her chores, she observes a chess game being played by a sexy American couple (Jennifer Beals and Dominic Gould) on the balcony of their suite. Stealthy moves accompanied by insinuating eye contact culminate with the woman’s defeating the man and flashing Hélène a smile of conspiratorial glee.

Hélène takes the hint, and at a birthday party for her husband, a handsome dockworker named Ange (Francis Renaud), she presents him with an electronic chess set in the hopes of reigniting the spark in their marriage. Ange is mystified and vaguely annoyed by the gift. When he expresses no interest in learning the game, Hélène begins teaching herself to play and quickly becomes obsessed.

“Queen to Play” is a lighthearted, grown-up fairy tale in which chess consumes Hélène’s imagination and transforms her life. As she mops a black-and-white checkered floor, it becomes a surreal dreamscape. At a restaurant she makes chess pieces out of crumbled bread and pushes them around the squares of the red-and-white tablecloth.

The intimate looks exchanged by the characters as they compete for advantage in a game in which the queen is the most powerful piece tell us as much about them as anything they say. Sometimes chess even suggests a mental striptease in which the players shed their defenses as they exchange glances and dare each other to go forward. At other times it conjures a war between the sexes, with Hélène the feminist upstart challenging male dominance.

Avid to learn more, she discovers a chess set in the house of Dr. Kröger (Kevin Kline, in his first entirely French-speaking role), a widowed American professor for whom she works as a part-time housecleaner. She volunteers to clean his place in exchange for weekly chess lessons. A mysterious figure suffering from an unidentified lung ailment, Kröger agrees. When, after only a few lessons, she is regularly beating him, he urges her to enter a local tournament.

In small but significant ways, “Queen to Play” defies expectations. It dangles the possibility of an affair between Hélène and Kröger in games that the film likens to courtship rituals in a classic screwball comedy. But their flirtation is never physically consummated.

Hélène’s relationships with her husband and rebellious teenage daughter, Lisa (Alexandra Gentil), undergo surprising transformations. Ange, initially threatened by Hélène’s passion, which keeps her out late and distracts her from housework, is initially so suspicious that he follows her to a lesson and spies on her. But once he realizes that she has a gift, his jealousy turns to admiration, and the flame of desire is rekindled. Lisa, who is so ashamed and contemptuous of her parents for being “poor” that she refuses to invite boyfriends to the house, becomes her mother’s fervent champion.

Ms. Bonnaire’s Hélène subtly evolves from a harried, resentful domestic wearing a perpetually hurt expression into a woman who discovers her power. Mr. Kline, as the haughty, secretive professor with a kind heart under a prickly exterior gives one of his finest screen performances, executed with minute fluctuations in his body language.

In their most delicious scene Hélène and Kröger play an imaginary game of chess away from the board. Gazing into each other’s eyes, they engage in what has the ring of intellectual pillow talk. Although the conversation is entirely chaste, in the intensity with which they study each other’s signals, they might as well be newlyweds.

QUEEN TO PLAY

Opens on Friday in Manhattan.

Directed by Caroline Bottaro; written by Ms. Bottaro and Caroline Maly, based on the novel “The Chess Player,” by Bertina Henrichs; director of photography, Jean-Claude Larrieu; edited by Tina Baz Le Gal; music by Nicola Piovani; set design by Emmanuel de Chauvigny; costumes by Dorothée Guiraud; produced by Dominique Besneard and Michel Feller; released by Zeitgeist Films. In French, with English subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 36 minutes. This film is not rated.

WITH: Sandrine Bonnaire (Hélène), Kevin Kline (Dr. Kröger), Francis Renaud (Ange), Jennifer Beals (the American Woman), Dominic Gould (the American Man), Valérie Lagrange (Maria) and Alexandra Gentil (Lisa).

A version of this review appeared in print on April 1, 2011, on page C8 of the New York edition..

Source: http://movies.nytimes.com/2011/04/01/movies/kevin-kline-in-caroline-bottaros-queen-to-play-review.html

Time is tight – enjoy!

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South African Open 2010

It is time to enter for the South African Open 2010. Click the image for the Official website of the organisers: Ramlodi. The link is also on my blog’s side bar. Last year we had 3 GM’s to play in this tournament online from different continents and it was the first Fide tournament to be played online. You can visit the official website or follow some of the links here. Games/photos will be followed and blogged here as results will become available during the tournament.
Please click here for the ONLINE entry form. [Links will open in a new window] NON-Citizens of South Africa: Click click here to pay via PayPal or visit the Official site for the same link.
 

The Venue: Tswane University of Technology [Pretoria]

Venue: Inside [Theunis Bester Hall] – see more pics on the Official site.

Schedule SA Open 2010 or click on this PDF-link to download the schedule.
SA Open 2010 Schedule in PDF

History of the South Africa Chess Open Championships
The Cape Town Chess Club is the oldest chess club in the country, boasting an un-interruped existence since its foundation in 1885! However, it is almost certainly not the first club that was formed. Besides the reference above to a club which met in Cape Town in 1847, the Grahamstown Journal of 29 December 1969 reports the result of a match of three games played by correspondence that year between Amateur Chess Club of Port Elizabeth and the Grahamstown Chess Club. Grahamstown won all three games.
The 1st SA Championship, Cape Town 1892
At the Cape Town Chess Club’s 7th Annual General Meeting in March 1892, J.H. Clark, one of the club’s most prominent member introduced a proposal that a general chess tournament, open to all chess players in South Africa, be held in Cape Town under the auspices of the Cape Town Chess
Club. This proposal was received with enthusiasm and the club set about organising the tournament. The Metropolitan Hall in Burg Street was the venue. The tournament was opened by the club’s President, the Bishop of Cape Town, and others on the platform were General Cameron, officer commanding the local British forces. Prize money offered amounted to £25. The rate of play was 25 moves per hour, with sessions of four hours duration, but few games lasted that long. Eleven players were accepted for the Championship proper and ten played in the Minor tournament, both being round-robins. The tournament was to last six days, during which the contestants had to play 10 games. This heavy schedule was quite acceptable to all, it seems. Rivett and Roberts each scored 9½ out of 10. They then contested two games to break the tie, the first beginning at 4pm on the sixth day of the tournament. Roberts won this and at 7:30pm that same day the second game commenced. Rivett was successful so the title was shared.

The 2nd SA Championship, Cape Town 1897
After a lapse of five years the Cape Town Chess Club again took the initiative and staged the second SA Championship in 1897. The committee has budgeted for a total expenditure of £200 and it is noteworthy that the full amount was subscribed by donors, among whom was President Steyn of Orange Free State, who gave £5. The Prizes in the Championship were £30, £20, £10 and £5, with a further £10 for consolation prizes. For the Minor tournament, which attracted a field of 11, £25 was
allocated for prizes. The tournament was in fact a triumph for the Cape Town players, for after Roberts came Cameron
with 9 points and then another club representative Friedman was tied with Kummel for third and fourth placings, each scoring 8½.
The 3rd SA Championship, Durban 1899
The 4th SA Championship, Johannesburg 1903
The 5th SA Championship, Cape Town 1906

Source: Ramlodi.co.za

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Chess and the little green men from space

In the Chess World the Russian Chess Federation was under sieged…it seemed. Read on this link what happened. Kasparov and Karpov are both involved in this FIDE-matter. [The link will open in a new window.] There are some little green men –dressed in yellow – involved too. I hope you enjoy my edited image. [click on the image for a larger view] See original images
HERE and also here. You can see Mr Spock playing chess in Star Trek here.
See two more edited images of  ‘Flash’ Karpov here on my blogger-blog.

Image: chessgames

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Anand-Topalov fighting it out

Anand in Sofia – Anand and Topalov are going to fight the mother battle of all battles. [chess of course!] I hope [if you’re a chess player] that you’re going to follow their games with me. Anand is my favourite and my money is on him. Those of you who don’t know anything about these players…they are THE big chess-engines of the world of chess…and they’re playing in Sofia[Bulgaria]. Anand is from India and Topalov from Bulgaria. Anand is the current World Champion and Topalov the challenger.

What is said about Anand- ‘….extreme efficiency, his splendid personality…’ -watch the videos about Anand and Topalov on the official site…

Anand is the fastest thinking chess player

Ah…they look so handsome… – is that what he’s thinking [haha]

Enjoy the music of the Hungarian Rhapsody no2 [unfortunately not the Bulgarian Rhapsody…but let’s pretend lol -also not the complete music file]

Topalov…hmmm…wonder if he’s going to beat me up!..

Press Conference – Sofia

Postal Items devoted to the Anand-Topalov Chess tournament in Sofia [Bulgaria]

Please click HERE to visit the official site of Anand-Topalov to read more or to play through their games. The first game starts on the 24th April. [see the playing schedule] You will also find this link on the sidebar of my blog.[top] Images in this post are all from the Official site of Anand/Topalov. 
 

Click on the image for a larger view…This is the schedule of Anand’s and Topalov’s games.

Map of Bulgaria / Sofia – image: Topnews

The History of Chess…only a few images from the video on the Official site.

See the video on the Official site – link in this post [and on the sidebar of my blog] about the History of Chess. These images are from the video.

40-hour ride to defend the title
New Delhi: World champion Viswanathan Anand Tuesday reached Sofia, Bulgaria, after a strenuous 40-hour road journey from Germany as all flights were cancelled due to the volcanic ash floating across European airspace.

The 40-year old world champion had requested a postponement of the World chess championship match against Veselin Topalov, by three days, but his appeal was rejected by the organising committee.

Not used to travelling such long distances on road along with the refusal to grant a three-day postponement could give Anand’s challenger, Topalov, a significant advantage.

Anand had planned to reach the venue on April 16, which is one week before the first game on April 23. But he arrived four days behind schedule due to factors beyond his control.

Anand might miss the press conference but will attend the opening ceremony according to his wife Aruna Anand. Not rescheduling the games will mean Topalov could have the same advantage that Anatoly Karpov enjoyed in the world title match, in Lausanne, in 1998.

“The news from us is that we reached here safely,” said Aruna Anand.

Had Alexander Alekhine been in Anand’s place, he would have sought a postponement of at least a week as world champions ruled and challengers were at the mercy of champions. Sometimes a handicap is a better way to start a match and Anand can turn the disadvantage into a driving force in the 12-game series.

Earlier, the organising committee had received an e-mailed request for a postponement from Anand and also a word from Fide about the situation.

However, the committee said that the press conference could be postponed but not the opening ceremony scheduled on April 21 because invitations to all official guests, sponsors, politicians, television stations and the media was already sent. Also since many commercial contracts have been signed, there would be serious penalties if any changes were made.

The championship is to be formally inaugurated on April 21 with the first of the 14 games to begin on April 23.

Source:

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100421/jsp/sports/story_12362406.jsp

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Racking braincells

Benjamin Franklin playing chess…’And lastly, we learn by chess the habit of not being discouraged by present bad appearances in the state of our affairs; the habit of hoping for a favorable chance, and that of preserving in the search of resources.’ -Benjamin Franklin, ‘The Morals of Chess’

 

I like playing chess on  chesscube for a couple of reasons…I always find someone to play a quick realtime game -my time is little and I’m not anymore interested in playing games going on for ages – I like the interface and the colours. This first game was played today and I was just on time to win this game…as I’m always in a hurry…I try to think fast, move fast – and sometimes end up with fast blunders too. My opponent spent 7 minutes before he decided to sacrifice his Queen -and in the process I did the same and won his Bishop. I have the pgn-file for you to follow if interested.

Click on the image for a clearer view

B01 -Scandinavian (center counter) 1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Qxd5 3. Nc3 Qd8 4. Bc4 e6 5. Nf3 Bd7 6. d3 h6 7. O-O Bc6 8. Bf4 Nf6 9. Nb5 Bxb5 10. Bxb5+ c6 11. Bc4 Nbd7 12. a3 Bc5 13. b4 Bb6 14. Ne5 O-O 15. Nxd7 Qxd7 16. Be5 Bd4 17. Bxf6 Bxf6 18. Rb1 Bd4 19. Qg4 Rad8 20. Kh1 Qd6 21. f4 a6 22. f5 Bb6 23. fxe6 Bc7 24. g3 Kh8 25. exf7 b5 26. Bb3 c5 27. bxc5 Qc6+ 28. Kg1 Qxc5+ 29. Kg2 a5 30. Rf5 Qc6+ 31. Kh3 a4 32. Qe4 Qxe4 33. dxe4 axb3 34. cxb3 Bd6 35. b4 Bc7 36. e5 Rd3 37. e6 Bd6 38. Re1 Be7 39. Ree5 Rxa3 40. Rxb5 Ra7 41. Rbd5 Bf6 42. b5 Rb7 43. Rd1 Be7 44. Rd7 Rb6 45. Rxe7 g6 46. Re8 Kg7 47. Rf1 Rxe6 48. Rxf8 Rf6 49. Rxf6 Kxf6 50. b6 Ke7 51. b7 Kxf8 52. b8=Q+ Kxf7 53. Qc7+ Kf6 54. Qd6+ Kf7 55. Qd5+ Kf6 56. Qd6+ Kf7 57. Qe5 g5 58. Qf5+ Kg7 59. Qe6 Kf8 0-1

image:animalartistry.co.uk

Mmmm…I always keep my Knights as long as I can…wonder if you can spot in this next game why…I have some of the colours of chesscube on this image too. Very visual for someone like me…This player resigned the game.

Click on the image for a clearer view

C41 – Philidor’s Defence -1. e4  e5 2. Nf3  d6 3. Nc3  Bg4 4. Bb5+  c6 5. Bc4  Bxf3 6. Qxf3  Qe7 7. d3  h6 8. O-O  Nd7 9. b4  Ngf6 10. b5  c5 11. Nd5  Qd8 12. Nxf6+  Nxf6 13. Bd5  Rb8 14. c4  Be7 15. Rb1  O-O 16. a4  b6 17. Bd2  Ne8 18. Ra1  Bf6 19. a5  Kh8 20. Bc6  Nc7 21. axb6  axb6 22. Qf5  Ne6 23. Bd5  Nd4 24. Qg4  Nb3 25. Ra2  Nd4 26. Bc3  Nb3 27. Bc6  Be7 28. f4  f6 29. fxe5  dxe5 30. Ra3  Nd4 31. Qd7  Qxd7 32. Bxd7  Rbd8 33. Ra7  Ne2+ 34. Kh1  Nxc3 35. Bf5  Bd6 36. Rb7  Ne2 37. Rxb6  Nf4 38. Rf3  Bc7 39. Rc6  Bd6 40. g3  Ne2 41. b6  Nd4 42. Rxd6  Rxd6 43. Rf1  Rxb6  0-1

Don’t forget! Anand-vs-Topalov – Sofia 21st April

http://www.anand-topalov.com/

Image: Official site…Playing Hall – Central Military Club, Sofia

Schedule: Anand vs Topalov – click on the image for a larger view

The scene where Anand and Topalov will play – image: chessdom

Here’s a song from Elton John to enjoy…Your Song

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Are we not all a pawn in their game?

 Bob Dylan Playing chess – Image:hardingsimpole.co.uk

 

Only A Pawn In Their Game – Bob Dylan

A bullet from the back of a bush took Medgar Evers’ blood.
A finger fired the trigger to his name.
A handle hid out in the dark
A hand set the spark
Two eyes took the aim
Behind a man’s brain
But he can’t be blamed
He’s only a pawn in their game.

A South politician preaches to the poor white man,
“You got more than the blacks, don’t complain.
You’re better than them, you been born with white skin,” they explain.
And the Negro’s name
Is used it is plain
For the politician’s gain
As he rises to fame
And the poor white remains
On the caboose of the train
But it ain’t him to blame
He’s only a pawn in their game.

The deputy sheriffs, the soldiers, the governors get paid,
And the marshals and cops get the same,
But the poor white man’s used in the hands of them all like a tool.
He’s taught in his school
From the start by the rule
That the laws are with him
To protect his white skin
To keep up his hate
So he never thinks straight
‘Bout the shape that he’s in
But it ain’t him to blame
He’s only a pawn in their game.

From the poverty shacks, he looks from the cracks to the tracks,
And the hoof beats pound in his brain.
And he’s taught how to walk in a pack
Shoot in the back
With his fist in a clinch
To hang and to lynch
To hide ‘neath the hood
To kill with no pain
Like a dog on a chain
He ain’t got no name
But it ain’t him to blame
He’s only a pawn in their game.

Today, Medgar Evers was buried from the bullet he caught.
They lowered him down as a king.
But when the shadowy sun sets on the one
That fired the gun
He’ll see by his grave
On the stone that remains
Carved next to his name
His epitaph plain:
Only a pawn in their game.

Comments from youtube: Remember, he wrote this song at a time when a black man couldn’t serve a white man a burger at McDonalds, or even use the same restroom or drinking fountain. He just called it like it was. The poor white men of those times were just as much victims as the blacks. They were used as pawns in a game. Why does it sound so…familiar?

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Chess-kids

These two images were posted on Zee’s blog about a year ago. Her husband helped his boss with a project for his daughter – in Primary School. He made this lovely chess set for her!  Unfortunately, he didn’t get the highest marks as it wasn’t made by the girl herself. [hehe–stoute kabouter!] I think next time she will think twice before asking uncle Zee to do her school project. [*wink]

Connie is one of my online chess-friends – and keen blogreader – and we had some good chats about his 8year old twins. They are both keen chess players and even advised him about his moves against me. He was also informed by them that he didn’t stand a chance in our last game…[guess what, he wasn’t impressed with their prediction, hehe] …two clever girls if you ask me. They took part in a tournament during August – in the Northern Cape region and have been selected to take part in the national Junior Chess Championships which takes place in December. Congrats to him and his family, I know the girls will do well. He’s sent me the tourney details and photos a while ago, but busy me, didn’t have the time to do a proper entry about them. So, here goes! I’ve quoted Connie’s comments here – in Afrikaans.  His twins took the first two places. Enjoy the photos. If you don’t know the Northern Cape Province of South Africa, it is a vast area. You easily travel 400km from one town to another and that makes it difficult for all children to take part in chess activities in the Province, although some parents club together and share the travel costs. There were 7 rounds but u/8 played only 5 rounds and the remaining 3 rounds were only friendlies.

North Cape Chess – u/8 – 21 & 22 AUGUST – DE AAR

Results after round 5

No Name               Score
1 BERNIZE            5.0         

2 MARILIZE         4.0 

3 STETHEN           2.5

4 JESSICA             2.0 

5 CHRISSIE           1.0 

6 ALBERT               0.5

Die doel was om die spelers wat by die ander toernooie goed gevaar het verder uit te sif vir die spanne vir die SA Juniors. O/8 is egter heel oopgestel omdat daar nie genoeg spelers was nie soos ek jou vertel het. Daar was omtrent 180 spelers almal saam, dis nou van o/8 tot seniors. O/8 was daar 8. Een het kort voor die begin ontrek en ‘n ander moes o/10 deelneem omdat hy in voor Des. verjaar. Die ses wat oorgebly het is nou almal in die o/8 span wat gaan deelneem in Des.(4 spelers en 2 reserwes). Daar was 7 rondtes vir alle ouderdomme maar vir die o/8 het net die eerste 5 getel. Die ander 2 was net vriendskaplike spelle.

Hulle het elke spel Wit begin met e4 en swart e5. Daarna was dit of Bc4 of Nf3. Dieselfde patroon ook met swart. Party spelle het hulle sommer Bc4 gevolg met 3. Df3 ( wat ek juis vir hulle gese het nie om te doen nie!) Dit het gevolg dat 2 van hulle 14 spelle nie eens 3 minute geduur het nie.(Scholars mate) Jy sal sien op een van die fotos, toe ek bo by die gallery kom om hulle af te neem, was Marelize reeds klaar. Bernize was in die foto nog besig om teen Stethen te speel.

Die was hulle 4de Amptelike toernooi. Daar was ook ‘n paar vriendskaplike spelle tussen hulle skool, Newton Laerskool, en Kimberley Junior. In hulle skoolspan is hulle nommer 1 en 2. Nommer 3 Ryno Annandale, is die een wat ontrek het by De Aar.

Hulle altwee se gunsteling kleur is wit, Bernize beweer hier dis nie so nie maar haar kwaadgeid as sy swart moet speel vertel ‘n ander storie… Daar is ongelukkig nie voor Desember nog ‘n amptelike toernooi nie. Dorpe in die Noord-Kaap is baie ver uitmekaar. Die 3 groot dorpe is almal omtrent 400 kilos uitmekaar wat die reelings en vervoer nogal duur maak. Noord Kaap skaak beoog wel informele toernooie vir oefening sowel as fondsinsameling. As ek moet skat speel die 2 ongeveer tussen 6 en 8 ure skaak per week. Partykeer minder, partykeer meer. Hulle oefen ook nou op die o/12 juffrou se aandrang saam met die o/12’s.

Please click on the images for a large, clearer view

Connie’s twins can be seen left and rigt at the end-table busy having serious chess-discussions with the boys.

Hmm…shall I move my bishop to D5 or….

Chess tournaments can be very exhausting for any 7-8 year old and the dads were clever to know that…or was it the mums!

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Lewis chessmen reunited

Click on the image for a clear view

I would love to have a chess set like the Lewis chess-men! Have you seen them in the British Museum? They are beautiful!

Lewis chessmen reunited after 170 years for tour of ScotlandFigures carved from whale teeth and walrus ivory found in Western Isles at some point before 1831
They were worked from polished walrus ivory and whale teeth by Norse craftsmen more than 800 years ago, and weigh in at less than 245 grams.

Now, more than 170 years after the Lewis chessmen were found buried under a Scottish beach, many will be reunited after years of wrangling.

The Scottish culture minister, Michael Russell, and Bonnie Greer, the deputy chair of the British Museum’s trustees, confirmed 30 of the 93 chess pieces will be reunited for the first time in more than a century for a tour of Scotland.

The Lewis chessmen have puzzled historians and irritated Scottish nationalists since they were found on a beach on Uig, on the west side of Lewis in the Western Isles, at some point before 1831.

Some believe they may have been buried for safekeeping by a merchant travelling from Norway to Ireland; others think they belonged to a nobleman in what was then a powerful island kingdom linked to Norway.

The set was broken up after being exhibited by the Scottish Society of Antiquaries in 1831, which could not afford to buy it. An Edinburgh dealer sold the pieces for 80 guineas to the British Museum, which now holds 82 of them. The remaining 11 are kept by the National Museum of Scotland.

Russell said the Scottish National party government firmly believed the entire set belonged in Scotland, but had compromised with the British Museum.

Nationalists claim the controversy is akin to the row over the Elgin marbles, but others say the chessmen were freely sold when Scotland could not afford them.

Source:Here

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South Africa’s Woman Chess Grandmaster!

FIDE has recognised the achievements of Melissa Greeff [15] by indicating that she will be awarded the prestigious title of International Woman Grandmaster.CONGRATULATIONS Melissa!! You do us PROUD!  Baie Geluk, Melissa, ons het hiervoor gewag, ons het eintlik geweet jy’s  reeds ‘n Grandmaster, ons het slegs vir die aankondiging gewag! We already knew you were one… we’ve been waiting for the announcement only!! [news:official site: chessa.co.za]

You can see her Fide profile on this link. The link will open in a new window.

Click on this link this link to see her games during the “First Saturday” tournament in Budapest and on this link to play through her games interactively on chessgames and 365chess. Links will open in a new window.

Melissa – 15 year old student in her school uniform- photo:

herschel.org.za/news/senior-news/165/check-mate

Melissa vs Groetz at the Arctic Chess Challenge

The same time, congratulations to the Springboks! You are still my heroes when it comes to rugby!

The following message from Jennifer Shahade  to Melissa:

Nikita: Send my congrats to WGM Greef! Her family was so hospitable when I was in SA, hope to visit again sometime soon.

[message on her site: jennifershahade.com]

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Have a bit of fun! – Create some graffiti online

Have a bit of fun by using the Graffiti Generator and create your own graffiti! I’ve chosen chess-words. On the 2nd and 3rd images I’ve written “skaak” which is the Afrikaans for “chess”. You will find all sorts of tools to enhance your own, you can even move the letters around – as you can see on the last two images, or you can lock some of the letters to enhance only others, like in my first image. Can you spot the letters I “locked”?  I used this site for my primary kids to explore graffiti as part of an art project while studying  Banksy’s art.  I hope you find it fun playing around with!
ClickHERE to create your own graffiti. Once you’re on the graffiti-site, you need to load a font- which is on the left bar- and then you start with your text.
On this link you will find a newspaper article about the Berlin-wall-graffiti and graffiti-images from the wall that went on  display in South Africa in 1990. The article is in Afrikaans, but you can view the images!  If you click on the article, you get taken to a list of images from the Berlin Wall. All links in this post will open in a new window.

Some of the Berlin-wall-graffiti-art which you will find on the above link.

Hier in London kry jy dele wat baie meer graffiti as ander dele het. Indien jy ‘n area wil beoordeel aan hoe “gegoed/swak” die area is, moet jy baie beslis kyk na die hoeveelheid  graffiti wat in die area voorkom. Areas waar daar meer graffiti as in ander areas is, is baie beslis minder-“gegoede” areas om te bly. Dus… kies jou area reg en jy sit nie met die “gemors” nie. 

About Banksy…

He is one of the art world’s most famous names –  whose graffiti works sell for hundreds of thousands to fans including Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

But for years the true identity of the artist Banksy has been a closely guarded secret, known to just a handful of friends.

Now a Mail on Sunday investigation has uncovered compelling evidence suggesting that the artist is former public schoolboy Robin Gunningham.

The notion that Banksy is Gunningham, 34, who was educated at the £9,240-a-year Bristol Cathedral School, will shock the artist’s fans, fond of their hero’s ‘anti-establishment’ stance.

Banksy has become renowned for his use of stencils to spray illegal images on public walls. Some councils and businesses have begun to protect his creations and his works have been sold to celebrities, including Jolie and Pitt.

Rumours have persisted that the artist is called Robin Banks, that he is from Bristol, and that his parents think he is a painter and decorator.

The only concrete clue until now has been a photograph taken in Jamaica four years ago of a man with a bag of spray cans by his feet.

Gunningham’s former school pal Scott Nurse said: ‘He was one of three people in my year who were extremely talented at art. I am not at all surprised if he is Banksy.’

Read the  article here and see more art of Banksy too.

 

Of course there is graffiti AND graffiti and on this image you can see what “AND graffiti” looks like. Councils in England have a huge problem with graffiti like this. Councils recognise graffiti has a negative impact on the environment, is illegal and is the most common type of property vandalism contributing to people’s fear of crime. View this image HERE.

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African Individual Chess Tournament 2009

 

The African Individual Chess Championships are now taking place in Tripoli,  Libya. It started the 21st July and it continues till the 30th July2009.

 WIM Melissa Greeff – RSA

Congratulations to:

Melissa Greeff

For winning the
African Individual Chess Championship 2009
–   Women section
Click on this link,which will open in a new window, to play through some of her games on 365chess and chessgames you can play through more games of Melissa. On this link you can view her games played in Budapest during the First  Saturday tournament early July 2009 or you can follow the link of First Saturday to play through her games interactively.

GM Bassem Amin from Egypt…winner of the men’s section

Image: Chessbase
Final Results/Rankings: Women after round 9

1 WIM Greeff Melissa RSA 2038 7
2 WIM Mezioud Amina ALG 2035 7
3 WGM Mona Khaled EGY 2094 6,5
4 WIM Solomons Anzel RSA 1932 6,5
5 WFM Latreche Sabrina ALG 1964 6,5
6 WCM Beddar Karima ALG 1803 5,5
7 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra EGY 1913 4,5
8  Abdulgader Amira LBA  4,5
9  Rahal Mawadda LBA  4
10  Matoussi Amina TUN 1755 4
11  Elansary Eman EGY  3,5
12 WFM Mudongo Boikhutso BOT 1905 3,5
13 WFM Elfelo Khouled LBA  3,5
14  Elgohary Myada EGY 1683 3,5
15  Al Jahani Marwah LBA  2
16  Al Felo Ekhlas LBA 0

 List of players Women
1 Abdulgader Amira 0 LBA
2 Al Felo Ekhlas 0 LBA
3 Al Jahani Marwah 0 LBA
4 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra 1913 EGY
5 WCM Beddar Karima 1803 ALG
6 Elansary Eman 0 EGY
7 WFM Elfelo Khouled 0 LBA
8 Elgohary Myada 1683 EGY
9 WIM Greeff Melissa 2038 RSA
10 WFM Latreche Sabrina 1964 ALG
11 Matoussi Amina 1755 TUN
12 WIM Mezioud Amina 2035 ALG
13 WGM Mona Khaled 2094 EGY
14 WFM Mudongo Boikhutso 1905 BOT
15 Rahal Mawadda 0 LBA
16 WIM Solomons Anzel 1932 RSA

 

Results of Women: African Individual Chess Championships – Round 1

Results- Women: African Individual CC: Round 2 – please click on images for a clear view.

Rank after Round 2 -Women: Top 5 positions

1 WFM Latreche Sabrina ALG 1964
 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra EGY 1913
 WCM Beddar Karima ALG 1803
4 WIM Greeff Melissa RSA 2038
5 WIM Solomons Anzel RSA 1932

Pairings/Results – Women
Round 3 on 2009/07/23 at 15:00
 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra vs  WFM Latreche Sabrina–0-1
 WIM Solomons Anzel vs WCM Beddar Karima– 1-0
 WGM Mona Khaled vs  WIM Greeff Melissa –1-0
 WIM Mezioud Amina  vs  Al Jahani Marwah –1-0
 Elansary Eman vs  Elgohary Myada –1-0
 Rahal Mawadda vs  Abdulgader Amira–1/2
 WFM Mudongo Boikhutso vs  WFM Elfelo Khouled–1/2
 Al Felo Ekhlas vs   Matoussi Amina–0-1

Pairings/Results: Women
Round 4 on 2009/07/24 at 15:00

WFM Latreche Sabrina   vs   WIM Solomons Anzel–0-1
WCM Beddar Karima   vs  WGM Mona Khaled–0-1  
Elansary Eman   vs  WIM Mezioud Amina–0-1 
Abdulgader Amira   vs  WIM Alaa el Din Yosra–0-1  
WIM Greeff Melissa   vs    Rahal Mawadda–1-0  
Elgohary Myada    vs   Matoussi Amina–0-1 
Al Jahani Marwah   vs WFM Mudongo Boikhutso–0-1 
WFM Elfelo Khouled  vs   Al Felo Ekhlas–1-0 

Rank after Round 3

1 WFM Latreche Sabrina ALG 1964
2 WIM Solomons Anzel RSA 1932
3 WCM Beddar Karima ALG 1803
4 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra EGY 1913
5 WGM Mona Khaled EGY 2094
6  Elansary Eman EGY
7 WIM Mezioud Amina ALG 2035
8 WIM Greeff Melissa RSA 2038
9  Abdulgader Amira LBA
10  Rahal Mawadda LBA
11  Al Jahani Marwah LBA
12  Elgohary Myada EGY 1683
13  Matoussi Amina TUN 1755
14 WFM Mudongo Boikhutso BOT 1905
  WFM Elfelo Khouled LBA
16  Al Felo Ekhlas LBA

Ranking after round 4: South Africans...1.Anzel Solomons and position 6. Melissa Greeff

Pairings/Results: Women
Round 5 on 2009/07/25 at 15:00

WIM Solomons Anzel vs   WIM Alaa el Din Yosra –1-0
WGM Mona Khaled vs   WFM Latreche Sabrina –1/2 
WIM Mezioud Amina vs  WIM Greeff Melissa –0-1
Matoussi Amina  vs WCM Beddar Karima –0-1
Rahal Mawadda  vs  Elansary Eman –1-0
WFM Elfelo Khouled  vs Abdulgader Amira –0-1
WFM Mudongo Boikhutso vs   Elgohary Myada–1-0 
Al Felo Ekhlas vs  Al Jahani Marwah–0-1

Rank after Round 5- Women

1 WIM Solomons Anzel RSA 1932 – 4,5
2 WFM Latreche Sabrina ALG 1964- 3,5
3 WGM Mona Khaled EGY 2094- 3,5
4 WIM Greeff Melissa RSA 2038- 3,5
5 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra EGY 1913-3
6 WCM Beddar Karima ALG 1803-3
7 WIM Mezioud Amina ALG 2035-3
8  Abdulgader Amira LBA -2,5
9  Rahal Mawadda LBA -2,5
10 WFM Mudongo Boikhutso BOT 1905-2,5
11  Elansary Eman EGY -2
12  Al Jahani Marwah LBA -2
13  Matoussi Amina TUN 1755-2
14 WFM Elfelo Khouled LBA -1,5
15  Elgohary Myada EGY 1683-1
16  Al Felo Ekhlas LBA- 0

Pairings/Results: Women
Round 6 on 2009/07/27 at 15:00
 
WGM Mona Khaled  3½ vs 4½ WIM Solomons Anzel (RSA)–1-0
WIM Greeff Melissa  3½(RSA) vs 3½ WFM Latreche Sabrina–1-0
WIM Alaa el Din Yosra  3 vs 3 WIM Mezioud Amina–0-1 
WCM Beddar Karima  3 vs 2½  Abdulgader Amira–1-0
Rahal Mawadda  2½ vs 2½ WFM Mudongo Boikhutso–0-1
Matoussi Amina  2 vs 1½ WFM Elfelo Khouled–0-1
Al Jahani Marwah  2 vs 1  Elgohary Myada–0-1 
Elansary Eman  2 vs 0  Al Felo Ekhlas–1-0

Rank after Round 6 – Top 11 only: Women

1 WIM Solomons Anzel RSA 1932
2 WGM Mona Khaled EGY 2094
3 WIM Greeff Melissa RSA 2038
4 WCM Beddar Karima ALG 1803
5 WIM Mezioud Amina ALG 2035
6 WFM Latreche Sabrina ALG 1964
7 WFM Mudongo Boikhutso BOT 1905
8 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra EGY 1913
9  Elansary Eman EGY
10  Rahal Mawadda LBA
11  Abdulgader Amira LBA

Pairings/Results: Women
Round 7 on 2009/07/28 at 15:00

WIM Mezioud Amina  4 vs 4½ WGM Mona Khaled–1-0
WCM Beddar Karima  4 vs 4½ WIM Greeff Melissa –1/2
WIM Solomons Anzel  4½ vs 3½ WFM Mudongo Boikhutso–1-0 
WFM Latreche Sabrina  3½ vs 2  Matoussi Amina–1-0
WIM Alaa el Din Yosra  3 vs 3  Elansary Eman–1/2  
WFM Elfelo Khouled  2½ vs 2  Al Jahani Marwah–1-0
Elgohary Myada  2 vs 2½  Rahal Mawadda–1/2
Abdulgader Amira  2½  vs 0  Al Felo Ekhlas–1-0

Rank after Round 7: Top 11 only: Women

1 WIM Solomons Anzel RSA 1932 5,5
2 WIM Greeff Melissa RSA 2038 5,0
3 WIM Mezioud Amina ALG 2035 5,0
4 WFM Latreche Sabrina ALG 1964 4,5
5 WGM Mona Khaled EGY 2094 4,5
6 WCM Beddar Karima ALG 1803 4,5
7 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra EGY 1913 3,5
8  Elansary Eman EGY  3,5
9  Abdulgader Amira LBA  3,5
10 WFM Mudongo Boikhutso BOT 1905 3,5
11 WFM Elfelo Khouled LBA  3,5

 Pairings/Results:Women
Round 8 on 2009/07/29 at 15:00

WIM Mezioud Amina  5 vs 5½ WIM Solomons Anzel–1-0
WIM Greeff Melissa  5 vs 3½ WIM Alaa el Din Yosra–1-0 
WFM Latreche Sabrina  4½ vs 4½ WCM Beddar Karima–1-0
Elansary Eman  3½ vs 4½ WGM Mona Khaled–0-1 
Elgohary Myada  2½ vs 3½ WFM Elfelo Khouled–1-0  
WFM Mudongo Boikhutso  3½ vs 2  Matoussi Amina–0-1
 Al Jahani Marwah  2 vs 3½  Abdulgader Amira–0-1  
Al Felo Ekhlas  0 vs 3  Rahal Mawadda–0-1

Pairings/Results – The final round! – Women
Round 9 on 2009/07/30 at 09:00

1 Abdulgader Amira  4½ vs 6 WIM Greeff Melissa–0-1  
2 Rahal Mawadda  4 vs  6 WIM Mezioud Amina–0-1 
3 WGM Mona Khaled  5½ vs 3½ WFM Mudongo Boikhutso–1-0
4 WFM Elfelo Khouled  3½ vs 5½ WFM Latreche Sabrina–0-1  
5 WIM Solomons Anzel  5½ vs 3½  Elgohary Myada–1-0  
6 WCM Beddar Karima  4½ vs 2  Al Jahani Marwah–1-0  
7 Matoussi Amina  3 vs 3½  Elansary Eman–1-0  
8 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra  3½ vs 0  Al Felo Ekhlas–1-0  

Rank after Round 8: Women

1 WIM Greeff Melissa RSA 2038 6
2 WIM Mezioud Amina ALG 2035 6
3 WIM Solomons Anzel RSA 1932 5,5
4 WFM Latreche Sabrina ALG 1964 5,5
5 WGM Mona Khaled EGY 2094 5,5
6 WCM Beddar Karima ALG 1803 4,5
7  Abdulgader Amira LBA  4,5
8  Rahal Mawadda LBA  4
9 WIM Alaa el Din Yosra EGY 1913 3,5
10  Elansary Eman EGY  3,5
11 WFM Mudongo Boikhutso BOT 1905 3,5
12 WFM Elfelo Khouled LBA  3,5
13  Elgohary Myada EGY 1683 3,5
14  Matoussi Amina TUN 1755 3
15  Al Jahani Marwah LBA  2
16  Al Felo Ekhlas LBA 0

 Please click this link for more details/results about the African Individual Chess Championships – Women section.  Update: Results of the men’s section have only emerged today – 24th July -…there are all sorts of “issues” around this tournament.
Read here about it. The link will open in a new window.

For the results of the MEN’s section,  please click the link which will open in a new window.

 Alphabetical list of players: MEN

1 IM Abdel Razik Khaled 2462 EGY
2 IM Abdelnabbi Imed 2452 EGY
3 GM Adly Ahmed 2548 EGY
4  Al-Zayat Ahmed 1969 LBA
5 GM Amin Bassem 2551 EGY
6 IM Arab Adlane 2432 ALG
7 FM Asabri Hussien 2220 LBA
8 GM Belkhodja Slim 2467 TUN
9 FM Chahrani Ibrahim 2280 LBA
10  Degondo Simplice Armel 0 IVC
11 GM El Gindy Essam 2501 EGY
12  El Kamel Adel Mahmoud 2239 TUN
13 IM Ezat Mohamed 2459 EGY
14 IM Frhat Ali 2397 EGY
15  Gator Mosab 0 LBA
16 IM Haddouche Mohamed 2329 ALG
17  Humrana Mostafa 2114 LBA
18 IM Kaabi Mejdi 2313 TUN
19 IM Kobese Watu 2391 RSA
20 FM Njili Kamel 2318 TUN
21  Nyazi Nehad 2237 EGY
22  Oatlhotze Providence 2164 BOT
23  Obiamiwe Paul 2043 NGR
24  Ranaivoharisoa Alain 2083 MAD
25 GM Rizouk Aimen 2506 ALG
26  Salem Ali Maoloud 2131 LBA
27 IM Sarwat Walaa 2390 EGY
28  Shabash Abdullatief Mohamed 2193 LBA
29 GM Simutowe Amon 2481 ZAM
30 IM Solomon Kenny 2351 RSA
31 CM Solomons Deon 2210 RSA
32 CM Van Den Heever Donovan 2254 RSA
33 IM Wageih Kareim 2253 EGY
34 CM Zaibi Amir 2123 TUN

Pairings/Results: Men
Round 4 on 2009/07/24 at 15:00
 
IM Abdelnabbi Imed  2½ ½ – ½ 2½ GM Adly Ahmed 
IM Ezat Mohamed  2½ ½ – ½ 2½ GM El Gindy Essam 
IM Abdel Razik Khaled  2½ 1 – 0 2½ IM Solomon Kenny 
GM Amin Bassem  2 1 – 0 2 IM Kobese Watu 
IM Sarwat Walaa  2 ½ – ½ 2 GM Simutowe Amon 
Humrana Mostafa  2 0 – 1 1½ GM Belkhodja Slim 
GM Rizouk Aimen  1½ 1 – 0 1½ CM Solomons Deon 
CM Van Den Heever Donovan  1½ 0 – 1 1½ FM Njili Kamel 
IM Kaabi Mejdi  1½ 1 – 0 1½ IM Wageih Kareim 
El Kamel Adel Mahmoud  1½ 0 – 1 1 FM Chahrani Ibrahim 
IM Frhat Ali  1 1 – 0 1  Gator Mosab 
FM Asabri Hussien  1 0 – 1 1 CM Zaibi Amir 
Ranaivoharisoa Alain  1 ½ – ½ 1  Oatlhotze Providence
Nyazi Nehad  ½ 1 – 0 ½  Obiamiwe Paul 
Shabash Abdullatief Mohamed  ½ 1 – 0 ½  Al-Zayat Ahmed
Degondo Simplice Armel  ½ 0 – 1 ½  Salem Ali Maoloud 

Pairings/Results:Men
Round 5 on 2009/07/25 at 15:00

GM Adly Ahmed 3 vs 3½ IM Abdel Razik Khaled–1/2
GM El Gindy Essam 3 vs 3 GM Amin Bassem–1/2
IM Abdelnabbi Imed 3 vs 3 IM Ezat Mohamed–1/2
FM Njili Kamel 2½ vs 2½ GM Rizouk Aimen–1/2
GM Simutowe Amon 2½ vs 2½ IM Haddouche Mohamed–1/2
GM Belkhodja Slim 2½ vs 2½ IM Kaabi Mejdi–1-0
IM Arab Adlane 2½ vs 2½ IM Sarwat Walaa–0-1
IM Solomon Kenny 2½ vs 2 IM Frhat Ali–1/2
IM Kobese Watu 2 vs 2 FM Chahrani Ibrahim–1-0
CM Zaibi Amir 2 vs 2 Humrana Mostafa–1-0
CM Solomons Deon 1½ vs 1½ CM Van Den Heever Donovan–0-1
IM Wageih Kareim 1½ vs 1½ Shabash Abdullatief Mohamed–1-0
Oatlhotze Providence 1½ vs 1½ El Kamel Adel Mahmoud–1/2
Salem Ali Maoloud 1½ vs 1½ Nyazi Nehad–0-1
Gator Mosab 1 vs 1½ Ranaivoharisoa Alain–0-1
Al-Zayat Ahmed ½ vs 1 FM Asabri Hussien–1/2
Obiamiwe Paul ½ vs ½ Degondo Simplice Armel–0-1

African Individual -Results round 6: Men – please click on the image for a clearer view.

Rank after Round 5: Men

1 IM Abdel Razik Khaled EGY 2462-4
2 GM El Gindy Essam EGY 2501-3,5
3 IM Abdelnabbi Imed EGY 2452-3,5
4 IM Ezat Mohamed EGY 2459-3,5
5 GM Adly Ahmed EGY 2548-3,5
6 GM Amin Bassem EGY 2551-3,5
7 IM Sarwat Walaa EGY 2390-3,5
8 GM Belkhodja Slim TUN 2467-3,5
9 IM Solomon Kenny RSA 2351-3
10 GM Simutowe Amon ZAM 2481-3
11 IM Kobese Watu RSA 2391-3
12 IM Haddouche Mohamed ALG 2329-3
13 GM Rizouk Aimen ALG 2506-3
14 FM Njili Kamel TUN 2318-3
15 CM Zaibi Amir TUN 2123-3
16 IM Arab Adlane ALG 2432-2,5
17 IM Kaabi Mejdi TUN 2313-2,5
18 IM Wageih Kareim EGY 2253-2,5
19 CM Van Den Heever Donovan RSA 2254-2,5
20 IM Frhat Ali EGY 2397-2,5
21  Ranaivoharisoa Alain MAD 2083-2,5
22  Nyazi Nehad EGY 2237-2,5
23  Humrana Mostafa LBA 2114-2
24 FM Chahrani Ibrahim LBA 2280-2
25  El Kamel Adel Mahmoud TUN 2239-2
26  Oatlhotze Providence BOT 2164-2
27 FM Asabri Hussien LBA 2220-1,5
28 CM Solomons Deon RSA 2210-1,5
29  Salem Ali Maoloud LBA 2131-1,5
30  Shabash Abdullatief Mohamed LBA 2193-1,5
31  Degondo Simplice Armel IVC -1,5
32  Gator Mosab LBA -1
33  Al-Zayat Ahmed LBA 1969-1
34  Obiamiwe Paul NGR 2043-0,5

Ranking  after Round 6 – Top 11 only:Men

1 IM Abdel Razik Khaled 2462 EGY 
2 GM Adly Ahmed 2548 EGY
3 GM Amin Bassem 2551 EGY
4 GM Belkhodja Slim 2467 TUN
5 GM El Gindy Essam 2501 EGY
6 IM Abdelnabbi Imed 2452 EGY
7 IM Ezat Mohamed 2459 EGY 
8 IM Solomon Kenny 2351 RSA
9 GM Simutowe Amon 2481 ZAM
10 IM Sarwat Walaa 2390 EGY
11 IM Kobese Watu 2391 RSA

African Individual: Results round 7 – Men…please click on the image for a clearer view.

Rank after Round 7: Top 11 positions:Men

1  GM Adly Ahmed EGY 2548 5,5
2  GM Amin Bassem EGY 2551 5,5
3  IM Abdel Razik Khaled EGY 2462 4,5
4  GM El Gindy Essam EGY 2501 4,5
5  IM Solomon Kenny RSA 2351 4,5
6  IM Sarwat Walaa EGY 2390 4,5
7  GM Simutowe Amon ZAM 2481 4,5
8  IM Kobese Watu RSA 2391 4,5
9  GM Belkhodja Slim TUN 2467 4,5
10  IM Abdelnabbi Imed EGY 2452 4,0
11  IM Haddouche Mohamed ALG 2329 4,0

African Individual: Results round 8: Men

African Individual CC: Men -Results round 9 – The final round!

Please click on the image for a clearer view!

Rank after Round 8: Men – Top 20

1  GM Amin Bassem EGY 2551 6,5
2  IM Abdel Razik Khaled EGY 2462 5,5
3  GM Adly Ahmed EGY 2548 5,5
4  GM El Gindy Essam EGY 2501 5,5
5  IM Sarwat Walaa EGY 2390 5,5
6  IM Haddouche Mohamed ALG 2329 5
7  GM Rizouk Aimen ALG 2506 5
8  IM Abdelnabbi Imed EGY 2452 4,5
9  IM Ezat Mohamed EGY 2459 4,5
10  IM Solomon Kenny RSA 2351 4,5
11  GM Simutowe Amon ZAM 2481 4,5
12  IM Kobese Watu RSA 2391 4,5
13  GM Belkhodja Slim TUN 2467 4,5
14   El Kamel Adel Mahmoud TUN 2239 4,5
15   Nyazi Nehad EGY 2237 4,5
16  IM Arab Adlane ALG 2432 4
17  CM Zaibi Amir TUN 2123 4
18  IM Kaabi Mejdi TUN 2313 4
19  CM Van Den Heever Donovan RSA 2254 4
20   Ranaivoharisoa Alain MAD 2083 4

Final Results/Ranking: Men – Top 12 positions

Read Full Post »

South African Open Chess Championship 2009

 CHESSA: Click on Chessa’s logo – first image in this post –  and it will take you to the official site of Chess South Africa. The link will open in a new window. Click here to follow some of the games live on Chesscube. If you are not registered on Chesscube, it will take you a few seconds and you can watch live games. You can click on “play” to register. Games start 18:30 and 9:30 local time. The final round on Saturday – 11th July – starts at 11:00-16:00 local time. To follow the games, you need to go to the SA Open-room on Chesscube (on the chatroom-list). Enjoy!

Images: SAOpen2009.com

In Cape Town, the South African Open 2009 is taking place, it started yesterday. Players from all over the world are taking part.  GM G Jones (ENG), GM D Komavor (UKR) and a few FM’s and IM’s are taking part too –  from countries other than South Africa. Exciting news: Ryan van Rensburg (2106) (SA) drew a game against  GM Dimitri Komarov (2530) (UKR).  Ryan has also beaten IM Watu Kobese (2493) (SA) in round 7 and in round 8 he drew a game against IM MABUSELA, JM (2244)! Ryan drew in round 9 his game against IM P Wang (2453) and in round 10: Ryan drew his game against FM NP van der Nat (2322) and also,   FM CCA De Villiers -2179- (SA) drew against GM G Jones-2550-(ENG).

GM A Simutowe (Zambia) is the winner of the SA Open 2009. Please click HERE for the final results. The link will open in a new window. Visit the next link to see some photos of the players.

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2009/07/14/sa-open/

GM Amon Simutowe from Zambia. He gained his third norm (rating of 2500) and qualified as a GM, the first for Africa, south of the Sahara. Please click here to play through his games on chessgames.com. The link will open in a new window.

From Chesscube: The South African Open is being contested by 208 with the following nations being represented in the field: AUS, ENG, EB, EK, FRA, GER, HUN, KEN, MAW, MOZ, NAM, NWP, NZL, RSA, UK, UKR, WP, ZIM. With 2 GM’s, a handful of IM’s, and a couple of FM’s/CM’s in the field, you are for sure to see good chess. There are 3 games being played live exclusively to ChessCube of SA Open. To watch these games all you have to do is go into the SA room and you can watch straight away. Games are commencing at 9:30 and 18.30 each day – local time.

In a world first for chess, some of the matches will be played online. This is a format many internet chess players have been waiting for – an online event being played simultaneously over 2 continents, yet officially recognized and rated by FIDE!

From Melbourne, Australia, behind the computer screens will be GM Gawain Jones (GBR, ELO 2550), IM Puchen Wang (NZL, ELO 2453), IM Mirko Rujevic (AUS, ELO 2282), and IM Leonid Sandler (AUS, ELO 2332) on standby. On the other end of the computer terminal at Cape Town, South Africa, will sit their opponents. The South African opponents will be paired each round, as will all the other players, using the Swiss Pairing system. This means that three different South African players will play online every round.

“Having these players compete in the tournament from another location using the Internet is a world first. Each Australian player will use a computer to connect to ChessCube and play their game, and will be supervised by the arbiter on that side. Similarly the players paired against them in Cape Town will play their games online using a computer, and will be supervised by an arbiter on this side,” commented Mr. Mark Levitt, founder of ChessCube. FIDE rated event over the internet! FIDE have agreed to officially rate the games played over the Internet.
ChessCube powering the community and the SA Open
ChessCube as a playing platform has been bringing innovative ideas into online chess playing for the last couple of months, turning into one of the busiest and most populated web chess servers with player peaks reaching over 3000 players online simultaneously, and a growing base that has eclipsed half a million users. The platform has turned into something that the chess world has been missing at previous online chess communities – it is a place where one can socialize and have fun at the same time.

Now ChessCube are taking a step further and create a tournament, part of which will take place online, and will be officially recognized by FIDE.- source: chessdom

All links in this post will open in a new window. You can also find the link to the official site of the SA Open 2009 on my blog’s side bar.(top)

At the same time, the African Youth Chess Championships are taking place in Cape Town too. This is a very first for Africa and South Africa has been fortunate to be chosen to host the tournament. Please follow this link to follow the results.

Schedule – please click on the image for a larger view

Click here for the Official site of Chess South Africa – Chessa – This championship started in Cape Town yesterday.  The venue is Wynberg Boys High School in Cape Town. Click here for the venue-details.
Chess Cube is a South African chess site to publish the results and you can follow the results/pairings on this link, another site where you can play chess online too. I’m quite sure you will be impressed with the interface of Chess Cube. Click here to play chess on chesscube. Chess Cube is also the site which the English Chess Federation uses for playing chess. You will find different chat rooms on Chess Cube for different countries too, so, have your chat in your language if you wish!
Chessa chess calendar. Follow this link for all details of chess tournaments in South Africa throughout the year.

Top 40 Chess players in South Africa, Anzel Solomons (F) is in position 41 with a rating of 2043
On this link you can see the complete list of the top 100 chess players in South Africa as by 28th April 2009.

RESULTS: SA OPEN 2009

Results of the first 13 players in round 1. Please click HERE for pairings in round 2 and you will find the menu to more results on the top menu-bar.

On these  3 images you can see the scores of the first 38 players after round 2. On the official site – link in this post and on my side bar – you will find links to more results and the pairings. Click on the images for a larger view.

SA Open 2009: Results round 3 – top 14 players

SA Open 2009: Pairings round 4 – top 13 boards

SA Open round 4: results – top 14

SA Open : Pairings round 5 – Top 14 boards

SA Open: Results round 5 – Top 14 players

SA Open: Results round 6 – Top 14 players

SA Open: Results round 7 – Top 14 players

SA Open: Results round 8: Top 14 players

SA Open 2009: Results round 9- top 14 players

SA Open 2009: Results Round 10 – top 14 players

SA Open 2009: Results round 10: Position 15-28

SA Open 2009: Results round 11 – Top 14 players

Chess games of participants  during the SA Open via the internet on Chesscube

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.03”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Jones, G”]
[Black “Smit, L”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2550”]
[BlackElo “1848”]
[ECO “C45”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e5 2. Nf3  Nc6 3. d4  exd4 4. Nxd4  Bc5 5. Nxc6  bxc6 6. Bd3  d6 7. O-O  Ne7 8. Nd2  O-O 9. Nb3  Bb6 10. c4  Be6 11. Kh1  f5 12. Qc2  fxe4 13. Bxe4  h6 14. c5  dxc5 15. Nxc5  Bd5 16. Be3  Qc8 17. Rfd1  Bxe4 18. Qxe4  Nd5 19. Rac1  Re8 20. Qc4  Kh8 21. Bd4  Qf5 22. Re1  Nf4 23. Re3  Rxe3 24. fxe3  Nh5 25. Rf1  Qg6 26. Kg1  Rd8 27. b4  Rd5 28. Nb3  Kh7 29. Rc1  Bxd4 30. Nxd4  Re5 31. Qxc6  Qd3 32. Qc2  Rxe3 33. Qxd3+  Rxd3 34. Nb3  Rd7 35. Rc6  Nf4 36. Ra6  Nd3 37. b5  Re7 38. h4  Re1+ 39. Kh2  Re2 40. Rxa7  Nf4 41. Kg3  Nxg2 42. Nd4  Rb2 43. Rxc7  Rxa2 44. b6  Rb2 45. b7  Ne3 46. Nc6  Nd5 47. Rd7  Rb3+ 48. Kf2  Nf6 49. Re7  Nd5 50. Rd7  Nf6 51. Rf7  Kg6 52. Re7  Nd5 53. Re6+  Kf7 54. Rd6  Rxb7 55. Nd8+   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.03”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Wang, P”]
[Black “Akande, T”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2453”]
[BlackElo “1830”]
[ECO “C88”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e5 2. Nf3  Nc6 3. Bb5  a6 4. Ba4  Nf6 5. O-O  Be7 6. Re1  b5 7. Bb3  d6 8. c3  O-O 9. h3  Bb7 10. d4  Re8 11. Nbd2  Bf8 12. d5  Ne7 13. Nf1  h6 14. N3h2  c6 15. dxc6  Bxc6 16. Qf3  Ng6 17. Ng4  a5 18. a3  a4 19. Ba2  Bd7 20. Ng3  Nh4 21. Nxf6+  Qxf6 22. Qxf6  gxf6 23. Nh5  Bg7 24. Bxh6  Bh8 25. Rad1  Ra6 26. Be3  Bxh3 27. gxh3  Nf3+ 28. Kf1  Nxe1 29. Kxe1  Re7 30. Ke2  Kh7 31. Ng3  Bg7 32. Nf5  Rd7 33. Rd5   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.03”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Rujevic, M”]
[Black “Swanson, D”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2282”]
[BlackElo “1818”]
[ECO “C18”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Qa5 7. Bd2 c4 8. Qg4 g6 9. h4 h5 10. Qf4 Nc6 11. Nf3 Nce7 12. Ng5 Nf5 13. f3 Qc7 14. g4 hxg4 15. fxg4 Ng7 16. a4 f5 17. exf6 Qxf4 18. Bxf4 Nxf6 19. Be5 Ke7 20. Be2 Bd7 21. Bxf6+ Kxf6 22. Rf1+ Nf5 23. gxf5 1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.04”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Lewis, M”]
[Black “Jones, G”]
[Result “0-1”]
[WhiteElo “2038”]
[BlackElo “2550”]
[ECO “A57”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. d4  Nf6 2. c4  c5 3. d5  b5 4. cxb5  a6 5. b6  g6 6. Nc3  Qxb6 7. e4  d6 8. Be2  Bg7 9. Nf3  O-O 10. O-O  Bg4 11. Nd2  Bxe2 12. Qxe2  Nbd7 13. Kh1  Qc7 14. Nc4  Nb6 15. Bd2  Nxc4 16. Qxc4  Nd7 17. f4  Rfb8 18. b3  Rb4 19. Qe2  Rb7 20. Rac1  Nb6 21. Nd1  a5 22. Bc3  a4 23. Bxg7  Kxg7 24. b4  Nd7 25. a3  Qb6 26. bxc5  Nxc5 27. Rc3  Qb5 28. Qxb5  Rxb5 29. Nf2  Rb3 30. Rfc1  Rab8 31. g3  Rxc3 32. Rxc3  Rb3 33. Rc2  Rxa3 34. e5  Rb3 35. exd6  exd6 36. Kg2  a3 37. Ra2  Na4 38. Nd1  Rb2+ 39. Nxb2  axb2  0-1

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.04”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Vermaak, F”]
[Black “Wang, P”]
[Result “0-1”]
[WhiteElo “1953”]
[BlackElo “2453”]
[ECO “B12”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  c6 2. d4  d5 3. e5  c5 4. dxc5  Nc6 5. Nc3  e6 6. Nf3  Bxc5 7. Bd3  f6 8. exf6  Nxf6 9. Bg5  O-O 10. O-O  Bd7 11. Qe2  Qc7 12. Bh4  Rae8 13. Rae1  a6 14. Bg3  Qd8 15. Ne5  Nxe5 16. Bxe5  Re7 17. Nb1  Be8 18. Bxf6  Rxf6 19. Nd2  e5 20. b4  Bxb4 21. c4  e4 22. Bc2  Qc7 23. Rc1  Qf4 24. Nb3  Rh6 25. g3  Qf5 26. f4  Qh3 27. cxd5  Bb5 28. Qg2  Bxf1 29. Rxf1  Qxg2+ 30. Kxg2  e3 31. d6  Rxd6  0-1

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.04”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Cruywagen, J”]
[Black “Rujevic, M”]
[Result “0-1”]
[WhiteElo “1931”]
[BlackElo “2282”]
[ECO “C77”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e5 2. Nf3  Nc6 3. Bb5  a6 4. Ba4  Nf6 5. d3  b5 6. Bb3  Be7 7. O-O  d6 8. c3  O-O 9. Nbd2  Na5 10. Bc2  c5 11. Re1  Re8 12. Nf1  Bf8 13. Bg5  h6 14. Bd2  Nc6 15. Ng3  g6 16. a4  b4 17. h3  Be6 18. Bb3  Bxb3 19. Qxb3  Rb8 20. c4  Bg7 21. Be3  Nd7 22. Nh2  Nd4 23. Qd1  b3 24. Bxd4  cxd4 25. a5  Nc5 26. Ne2  h5 27. f4  Bh6 28. Rf1  Rb7 29. Rf3  Ne6 30. g3  Rf8 31. Kg2  Kh7 32. f5  Nc5 33. Nc1  Qg5 34. Ne2  Kg8 35. Nf1  Qd8 36. Qe1  gxf5 37. exf5  f6 38. Nd2  d5 39. cxd5  Qxd5 40. Nf1  Nxd3 41. Qb1  e4 42. Rf2  Nxf2 43. Kxf2  e3+ 44. Kg1  d3  0-1

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.04”]
[Round “3”]
[White “Jones, G”]
[Black “Van Der Nat, N”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2550”]
[BlackElo “2322”]
[ECO “B23”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  c5 2. Nc3  Nc6 3. f4  g6 4. Nf3  Bg7 5. Bb5  Nd4 6. O-O  a6 7. Bd3  d6 8. Nxd4  cxd4 9. Ne2  Nf6 10. Kh1  O-O 11. Nxd4  Nxe4 12. Bxe4  Bxd4 13. Qf3  Rb8 14. c3  Bg7 15. f5  b5 16. d4  Qc7 17. Bg5  b4 18. Rae1  h6 19. Bd2  bxc3 20. bxc3  gxf5 21. Qg3  Kh7 22. Rxf5  Bxf5 23. Bxf5+  Kh8 24. Qh3  e6 25. Bd3  Rfe8 26. Bxh6  f5 27. Re3  Bxd4 28. Rg3  Qh7 29. cxd4  Rg8 30. d5  Rg6 31. Rxg6  Qxg6 32. dxe6  Qxe6 33. Be3+  Kg8 34. Bxf5  Qe7 35. Be6+  Kg7 36. Qh6#   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.04”]
[Round “3”]
[White “Wang, P”]
[Black “Mabusela, J”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2453”]
[BlackElo “2244”]
[ECO “A05”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. Nf3  Nf6 2. c4  e6 3. Nc3  c5 4. g3  b6 5. Bg2  Bb7 6. O-O  Be7 7. d4  cxd4 8. Qxd4  Nc6 9. Qd3  O-O 10. Rd1  Qc8 11. Bg5  Rd8 12. Rac1  h6 13. Bf4  d5 14. cxd5  Nxd5 15. Nxd5  Rxd5 16. Qb3  Rc5 17. Rxc5  Bxc5 18. a3  Ne7 19. Qd3  a5 20. h4  Nd5 21. Be5  Qe8 22. e4  Ne7 23. b4  axb4 24. axb4  Bxb4 25. Bxg7  Kxg7 26. Qd4+  Kh7 27. Qxb4  Ra4 28. Qxb6  Bxe4 29. Rd8  Qc6 30. Qb2  Ng8 31. Ne5   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.04”]
[Round “3”]
[White “Rujevic, M”]
[Black “McCallum, B”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2282”]
[BlackElo “1614”]
[ECO “B62”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  c5 2. Nf3  d6 3. d4  cxd4 4. Nxd4  Nf6 5. Nc3  Nc6 6. Bg5  e6 7. Be2  Be7 8. O-O  O-O 9. Ndb5  Ne8 10. Bxe7  Qxe7 11. f4  a6 12. Nd4  Nxd4 13. Qxd4  Bd7 14. Rad1  Bc6 15. Bf3  e5 16. Qe3  Nc7 17. f5  Rad8 18. a4  b5 19. a5  b4 20. Nd5  Bxd5 21. exd5  f6 22. Be2  Rb8 23. Rf4  Qf7 24. Rg4  Kh8 25. Qd2  Qd7 26. Rxb4  Qxf5 27. Rb6  Qe4 28. b3  Rxb6 29. axb6  Nb5 30. Bxb5  axb5 31. Ra1  h6 32. b7   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.05”]
[Round “4”]
[White “Amini, D”]
[Black “Jones, G”]
[Result “0-1”]
[WhiteElo “1675”]
[BlackElo “2550”]
[ECO “E71”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. d4  Nf6 2. c4  g6 3. Nc3  Bg7 4. e4  d6 5. h3  O-O 6. Nf3  Qe8 7. Be2  e5 8. dxe5  dxe5 9. Be3  b6 10. O-O  Bb7 11. Qc2  c5 12. Nd5  Nc6 13. Nc7  Qb8 14. Nxa8  Qxa8 15. Nd2  Nxe4 16. Bf3  Nxd2 17. Qxd2  Rd8 18. Bd5  Nd4 19. Bxb7  Qxb7 20. Kh1  f5 21. Bg5  Rd7 22. Rad1  f4 23. f3  Rd6 24. Qe1  Qa6 25. Qe4  h6 26. Qa8+  Kh7 27. Be7  Rc6 28. b3  Rc8 29. Qd5  Nf5 30. Qd7  Rg8 31. Rf2  Kh8 32. Qe6  Qc8 33. Qxc8  Rxc8 34. Rd8+  Rxd8 35. Bxd8  e4 36. fxe4  Ng3+ 37. Kh2  Be5 38. Rf3  Nxe4 39. Kg1  Bd4+ 40. Kh1  Be5 41. a4  g5 42. Kg1  Kg7 43. Rd3  Bd4+ 44. Kf1  Kg6 45. a5  bxa5 46. Bxa5  Ng3+ 47. Ke1  Kf5 48. b4  Ke4 49. Rf3  Nf5 50. bxc5  Bxc5 51. Bd2  Nh4 52. Rb3  Nxg2+ 53. Kf1  Nh4 54. Bb4  Bd4 55. c5  Kd5 56. Rd3  Nf5 57. Ke2  h5 58. Rd1  g4 59. hxg4  hxg4 60. Bc3  f3+ 61. Kd3  Bxc3 62. Kxc3+  Kxc5 63. Ra1  Ng3  0-1

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.05”]
[Round “4”]
[White “Phiri, R”]
[Black “Wang, P”]
[Result “0-1”]
[WhiteElo “2145”]
[BlackElo “2453”]
[ECO “D86”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. d4  Nf6 2. c4  g6 3. Nc3  d5 4. cxd5  Nxd5 5. e4  Nxc3 6. bxc3  Bg7 7. Bc4  c5 8. Ne2  O-O 9. O-O  Nc6 10. Be3  Bd7 11. Rb1  cxd4 12. cxd4  Rc8 13. Bd3  Na5 14. d5  b6 15. Ba6  Ra8 16. Qd3  Bc8 17. Rfc1  Bxa6 18. Qxa6  Qd7 19. Qd3  Rac8 20. Bd4  Bxd4 21. Qxd4  Qd6 22. Rc3  e5 23. Qd3  Rxc3 24. Qxc3  Nb7 25. f3  f5 26. Rd1  fxe4 27. fxe4  Nc5 28. Qe3  Rf7 29. Nc3  a6 30. Rf1  b5 31. Rxf7  Kxf7 32. Nd1  Nd7 33. h3  a5 34. Qf2+  Ke7 35. Qh4+  Nf6 36. Nf2  h5 37. Qg5  Kf7 38. Nd3  Nxe4 39. Qxe5  Qxe5 40. Nxe5+  Kf6 41. Nc6  a4 42. a3  Nc3 43. d6  Ke6 44. Ne5  Kxd6 45. Nxg6  b4 46. Nh4  b3 47. Nf5+  Kc5  0-1

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.05”]
[Round “4”]
[White “Peretz, L”]
[Black “Rujevic, M”]
[Result “0-1”]
[WhiteElo “1875”]
[BlackElo “2282”]
[ECO “A48”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. d4  Nf6 2. Nf3  g6 3. Bf4  Bg7 4. Qd2  O-O 5. Bh6  d6 6. Bxg7  Kxg7 7. Nc3  c6 8. e4  Bg4 9. Ng5  Qa5 10. h3  Bc8 11. Be2  h6 12. Nf3  Nbd7 13. O-O  e5 14. Rae1  Re8 15. Bc4  Re7 16. a3  Nf8 17. Re3  Qc7 18. Rfe1  a5 19. Nh2  b5 20. Ba2  b4 21. Ne2  Qb6 22. dxe5  dxe5 23. Ng3  Be6 24. Bb1  Rd8 25. Qc1  bxa3 26. bxa3  Red7 27. c4  Qc5 28. Rc3  Rd2 29. Rf1  Bc8 30. Nf3  R2d6 31. Kh1  Ne6 32. Nxe5  Qxe5 33. f4  Nxf4 34. Rcf3  g5 35. Qe1  Rd2 36. R3f2  Rxf2 37. Qxf2  Qd4 38. Qf3  Be6 39. e5  Qxe5 40. Qxc6  Rd2 41. Be4  Nxe4 42. Nxe4  Rc2 43. Nd6  Nh5 44. Ne8+  Kg6 45. Qf3  Ng3+ 46. Kg1  Nxf1 47. Qd3+  Qf5  0-1

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.05”]
[Round “5”]
[White “Jones, G”]
[Black “Rujevic, M”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2550”]
[BlackElo “2282”]
[ECO “C69”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e5 2. Nf3  Nc6 3. Bb5  a6 4. Bxc6  dxc6 5. O-O  Bg4 6. h3  h5 7. d3  Qf6 8. Be3  Bxf3 9. Qxf3  Qxf3 10. gxf3  Bd6 11. Nd2  Ne7 12. Rfb1  g5 13. Kf1  f6 14. b4  Ng6 15. Ke2  Nf8 16. a4  Ne6 17. Nc4  Kd7 18. c3  Rhg8 19. Na5  b6 20. Nb3  Kc8 21. a5  b5 22. d4  Kb7 23. Nc5+  Bxc5 24. bxc5  Rad8 25. Rd1  Rge8 26. dxe5  fxe5 27. Rxd8  Rxd8 28. Rg1  Rg8 29. h4  g4 30. fxg4  hxg4 31. h5  Nf4+ 32. Bxf4  exf4 33. h6  g3 34. Kf3  Rg6 35. Rh1  g2 36. Rg1  Rxh6 37. Rxg2  Rh3+ 38. Kxf4  Rxc3 39. e5  Rxc5 40. e6  Rc2 41. Ke3  Rc1 42. Kd2  Rh1 43. f4  Rh8 44. f5  Kc8 45. f6  Kd8 46. Ke3  c5 47. f7  Rf8 48. Rg8  Ke7 49. Ke4  c4 50. Ke5  c3 51. Rxf8   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.05”]
[Round “5”]
[White “Wang, P”]
[Black “Simutowe, A”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[WhiteElo “2453”]
[BlackElo “2481”]
[ECO “B28”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  c5 2. Nf3  a6 3. c3  d5 4. exd5  Qxd5 5. d4  Nf6 6. Be3  cxd4 7. cxd4  e6 8. Nc3  Qa5 9. Bd3  b5 10. O-O  Bb7 11. Re1  Nbd7  1/2-1/2

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.06”]
[Round “6”]
[White “Simutowe, A”]
[Black “Jones, G”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[WhiteElo “2481”]
[BlackElo “2550”]
[ECO “B22”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  c5 2. c3  d5 3. exd5  Qxd5 4. d4  Nc6 5. Nf3  Bg4 6. Be2  cxd4 7. cxd4  e6 8. Nc3  Qa5 9. Be3  Nf6 10. Qb3  Qb4 11. Qxb4  Bxb4 12. h3  Bh5 13. O-O  O-O 14. Rac1  Rfd8 15. Rfd1  Nd5 16. Kf1  Nxe3+ 17. fxe3  f6 18. Ne4  Bf7 19. Nc5  Bxc5 20. Rxc5  Nb4 21. a3  b6 22. Rc4  Nd5 23. Kf2  Be8 24. e4  Nf4 25. Bf1  Bb5 26. Rc3  Bxf1 27. Kxf1  f5 28. Re1  Rd6 29. g3  fxe4 30. Rxe4  Nd5  1/2-1/2

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.06”]
[Round “6”]
[White “Masango, S”]
[Black “Wang, P”]
[Result “0-1”]
[WhiteElo “2130”]
[BlackElo “2453”]
[ECO “D91”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. d4  Nf6 2. c4  g6 3. Nc3  d5 4. Nf3  Bg7 5. Bg5  Ne4 6. cxd5  Nxg5 7. Nxg5  e6 8. Qd2  h6 9. Nf3  exd5 10. e3  O-O 11. Bd3  c6 12. O-O  Qe7 13. e4  dxe4 14. Nxe4  Be6 15. Rfe1  Nd7 16. Qf4  Rad8 17. h4  Kh8 18. Qg3  Qb4 19. a3  Qb6 20. Nd6  Bxd4 21. Rxe6  Bxf2+ 22. Qxf2  fxe6 23. Ne4  Ne5 24. Qxb6  Nxf3+ 25. gxf3  axb6 26. Be2  Rf4 27. h5  gxh5 28. Kf2  h4 29. Rg1  Rdf8 30. Ke3  h3 31. Rh1  Rh4 32. Rh2  Rf5 33. Bf1  Rfh5 34. Nf2  Re5+ 35. Ne4  Reh5 36. Nf2  Kg7 37. Rxh3  Rxh3 38. Bxh3  Kf6 39. Ne4+  Ke7 40. Bf1  Rh2 41. Nf2  Rh5 42. f4  e5 43. fxe5  Rxe5+ 44. Ne4  Rh5 45. Nf2  Kd6 46. Ne4+  Ke5 47. Nf2  Rg5 48. Nd3+  Kf6 49. Nf2  Rg1 50. Ke2  h5 51. Bh3  Rg7 52. Bc8  Ke5 53. Nd3+  Ke4 54. a4  h4 55. Nf2+  Kd4 56. Kf3  Rg3+ 57. Kf4  Rg7 58. b4  Kc4 59. a5  Kxb4 60. axb6  Kb5 61. Ne4  Kxb6 62. Be6  Kc7 63. Ng5  Kd6 64. Bc8  b5 65. Nf3  Rg8 66. Bf5  Rh8 67. Kg4  Rg8+ 68. Kf4  Rh8 69. Kg4  h3 70. Kg3  Rg8+ 71. Kf4  Rf8 72. Kg4  c5 73. Nh2  c4 74. Be4  Rh8 75. Kf3  Kc5 76. Ke3  b4 77. Bf5  b3 78. Kd2  Rf8  0-1

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.06”]
[Round “6”]
[White “Rujevic, M”]
[Black “Mabusela, J”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[WhiteElo “2282”]
[BlackElo “2244”]
[ECO “C11”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e6 2. d4  d5 3. Nc3  Nf6 4. e5  Nfd7 5. f4  c5 6. Nf3  Nc6 7. Be3  cxd4 8. Nxd4  Bc5 9. Qd2  O-O 10. O-O-O  a6 11. Nb3  Bb4 12. a3  Be7 13. Ne2  b5 14. Ned4  Nxd4 15. Bxd4  Nb6 16. Qa5  Rb8 17. Nc5  Nc4 18. Qxd8  Rxd8 19. Bd3  Na5 20. Rhe1  Nc6 21. Bf2  a5 22. g4  a4 23. c3  d4 24. cxd4  Nxd4 25. Ne4  Bb7 26. Nd6  Nb3+ 27. Kb1  Bxd6 28. exd6  Bd5 29. f5  Bf3 30. fxe6  fxe6 31. Be2  Be4+ 32. Bd3  Bf3 33. Be2  Be4+ 34. Bd3  Bf3  1/2-1/2

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.07”]
[Round “7”]
[White “Jones, G”]
[Black “Wang, P”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[WhiteElo “2550”]
[BlackElo “2453”]
[ECO “C03”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e6 2. d4  d5 3. Nd2  dxe4 4. Nxe4  Nd7 5. Nf3  Ngf6 6. Nxf6+  Nxf6 7. g3  b6 8. Bb5+  Bd7 9. Bxd7+  Qxd7 10. O-O  Bd6 11. Qe2  O-O 12. Bg5  Be7 13. c4  Rfe8 14. Rad1  h6 15. Ne5  Qc8 16. Bxf6  Bxf6 17. Nc6  e5 18. dxe5  Re6 19. Qf3  Qe8 20. exf6  Qxc6 21. Qxc6  Rxc6 22. Rfe1  Rxf6 23. Rd7  c5 24. h4  h5 25. Kg2  a5 26. f4  g6 27. Kf3  Rc8 28. Red1  Re8 29. Rb7  Kg7 30. Rd3  Re1 31. Rb3  Ree6 32. Rd7  Rd6 33. Rd3   1/2-1/2

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.07”]
[Round “7”]
[White “Makoto, R”]
[Black “Rujevic, M”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2157”]
[BlackElo “2282”]
[ECO “A05”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. Nf3  Nf6 2. d4  g6 3. g3  Bg7 4. Bg2  O-O 5. c4  d6 6. O-O  Nbd7 7. Nc3  c6 8. h3  e5 9. e4  Re8 10. Re1  Qc7 11. Be3  a5 12. Rc1  Qb8 13. Qd2  b5 14. dxe5  dxe5 15. cxb5  cxb5 16. Nd5  Nxd5 17. exd5  Bb7 18. d6  Nf6 19. Rc7  Ne4 20. Qd3  Ra6 21. Ng5  Rxd6 22. Qxb5  Nxg5 23. Rxb7  Nxh3+ 24. Bxh3  Qd8 25. Rd7  Rxd7 26. Qxd7  Qxd7  1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.08”]
[Round “8”]
[White “Komarov, D”]
[Black “Jones, G”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[WhiteElo “2530”]
[BlackElo “2550”]
[ECO “A48”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. d4  Nf6 2. Nf3  g6 3. c4  Bg7 4. Nc3  O-O 5. e4  d6 6. Be2  e5 7. O-O  Nc6 8. d5  Ne7 9. b4  c6 10. Nd2  a5 11. bxa5  Qxa5  1/2-1/2

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.08”]
[Round “8”]
[White “Wang, P”]
[Black “Mosethle, K”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2453”]
[BlackElo “2169”]
[ECO “B90”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  c5 2. Nf3  d6 3. d4  cxd4 4. Nxd4  Nf6 5. Nc3  a6 6. Be3  e5 7. Nf3  Qc7 8. a4  b6 9. Be2  Bb7 10. Nd2  d5 11. Nxd5  Nxd5 12. exd5  Bxd5 13. O-O  Be7 14. Bf3  Bxf3 15. Qxf3  Nc6 16. Qg3  O-O 17. Bh6  Bf6 18. Ne4  Qe7 19. c3  Kh8 20. Nxf6  Qxf6 21. Be3  Rab8 22. f4  e4 23. f5  h6 24. Rad1  Rfd8 25. Rxd8+  Rxd8 26. Bxb6  Rd2 27. b4  Rd3 28. Qf4  Rxc3 29. Qxe4  Rb3 30. Bc5  Rb2 31. h4  Kh7 32. Rd1  Nxb4 33. Bd4  Qd6 34. f6+  g6 35. Qe7  Qd5 36. Bxb2  Qxd1+ 37. Kh2   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.08”]
[Round “8”]
[White “Rujevic, M”]
[Black “Solomons, R”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[WhiteElo “2282”]
[BlackElo “1921”]
[ECO “B23”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  c5 2. Nc3  a6 3. a4  b6 4. Nf3  d6 5. d4  cxd4 6. Nxd4  Nf6 7. Bd3  e6 8. O-O  Be7 9. f4  Qc7 10. Qe2  Nbd7 11. Bd2  Bb7 12. Rae1  Nc5 13. Kh1  O-O 14. b4  Nxd3 15. cxd3  Rac8 16. Rc1  Qb8 17. Qf2  Rfe8 18. Nc2  Ba8 19. Ne3  d5 20. exd5  Nxd5 21. Ncxd5  Bxd5 22. Nxd5  exd5 23. Bc3  b5 24. a5  Qd6 25. Qb2  Qg6 26. Rf3  Qd6 27. Rb1  Bf6 28. Bxf6  Qxf6 29. Qxf6  gxf6 30. Kg1  Rc2 31. Rf2  Rec8 32. g4  R8c3 33. g5  Kg7 34. h4  Kg6 35. f5+  Kh5 36. gxf6  Kxh4 37. Re1  Kg5 38. Rxc2  Rxc2 39. Re5  Kxf6 40. Rxd5  Ke7 41. Kf1  Rb2 42. Rd4  h5 43. Rh4  Rd2 44. Rxh5  Rxd3 45. Rh6  Rd6 46. Rh4  Kf6 47. Rh5  Ke5 48. Ke2  Rf6 49. Ke3  Rxf5 50. Rh8  Rf6 51. Rb8  Kd5 52. Kd3  Re6 53. Rf8  f6 54. Rf7  Ke5 55. Ke3  Rd6 56. Rf8  Rc6 57. Re8+  Kf5 58. Rb8  Ke5 59. Re8+  Kd5 60. Kd3  f5 61. Rf8  Ke5 62. Rb8  Rc4 63. Rb6  Rxb4 64. Rxa6  Ra4 65. Ra8  Kf4 66. a6  Kf3 67. a7  f4 68. Kc3  Rc4+ 69. Kb3  Rc7 70. Kb4  Rb7 71. Kc3  b4+ 72. Kb3  Kf2  1/2-1/2

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.09”]
[Round “9”]
[White “Jones, G”]
[Black “Mabusela, J”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2550”]
[BlackElo “2244”]
[ECO “C07”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e6 2. d4  d5 3. Nd2  c5 4. Ngf3  Nc6 5. exd5  exd5 6. Bb5  Bd6 7. dxc5  Bxc5 8. O-O  Ne7 9. Nb3  Bd6 10. Re1  O-O 11. Bg5  Qc7 12. Bh4  Nf5 13. Bg3  Nxg3 14. hxg3  a6 15. Bd3  Qb6 16. Re3  h6 17. Qd2  Nb4 18. Nfd4  Nxd3 19. Qxd3  Bd7 20. Nf5  Bxf5 21. Qxf5  a5 22. a4  Rac8 23. Rd1  d4 24. Nxd4  Qxb2 25. Rb3  Qa2 26. Rxb7  Bc5 27. Nb3  Bb4 28. Rxf7  Rxf7 29. Qxc8+  Rf8 30. Qc4+  Kh8 31. Nxa5  Qxc4 32. Nxc4  Rc8  1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.09”]
[Round “9”]
[White “Van Rensburg, R”]
[Black “Wang, P”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[WhiteElo “2106”]
[BlackElo “2453”]
[ECO “D11”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. d4  d5 2. c4  c6 3. Nf3  Nf6 4. Qb3  g6 5. Nc3  Bg7 6. g3  O-O 7. Bg2  dxc4 8. Qxc4  Be6 9. Qd3  Na6 10. O-O  Nb4 11. Qd1  h6 12. Re1  Nbd5 13. e4  Nxc3 14. bxc3  Qa5 15. Qc2  Qh5 16. Rb1  b5 17. Ne5  Ng4 18. Nxg4  Bxg4 19. Qd3  Rad8 20. f3  Be6 21. Qc2  Bc4 22. Qf2  f5 23. exf5  Qxf5 24. Ba3  Rfe8 25. f4  Bd5 26. Rb2  e6  1/2-1/2

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.09”]
[Round “9”]
[White “Quirk, T”]
[Black “Rujevic, M”]
[Result “0-1”]
[WhiteElo “1495”]
[BlackElo “2282”]
[ECO “B01”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  d5 2. exd5  Qxd5 3. Nf3  e5 4. Nc3  Qe6 5. Bb5+  c6 6. Ba4  Bd6 7. O-O  Ne7 8. Re1  f5 9. d4  e4 10. Bg5  O-O 11. d5  Qg6 12. Bxe7  Bxe7 13. Nd4  Rd8 14. Nce2  Bd6 15. f4  cxd5 16. Bb3  Bc5 17. Kh1  Nc6 18. Nb5  Qf7 19. Qd2  a6 20. Nbc3  Be6 21. Rad1  d4 22. Bxe6  Qxe6 23. Na4  Bb4 24. c3  dxc3 25. Qe3  cxb2  0-1

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.10”]
[Round “10”]
[White “De Villiers, C”]
[Black “Jones, G”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[WhiteElo “2179”]
[BlackElo “2550”]
[ECO “E76”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. d4  Nf6 2. c4  g6 3. Nc3  Bg7 4. e4  d6 5. f4  O-O 6. Nf3  Na6 7. e5  Nd7 8. c5  c6 9. Bxa6  bxa6 10. Be3  Rb8 11. O-O  Rxb2 12. Qa4  Nb8 13. Qa3  Rb7 14. cxd6  exd6 15. Ne4  d5 16. Nd6  Qe7 17. Bf2  Rb6 18. Bh4  f6 19. Rae1  Be6 20. Re3  Qd7 21. exf6  Bxf6 22. Bxf6  Rxf6 23. Ne5  Qd8 24. Ng4  Bxg4 25. Re8+  Qxe8 26. Nxe8  Re6 27. h3  Rxe8 28. hxg4  Re2 29. Rf3  Rb1+ 30. Kh2  Rbb2 31. Re3  Rxg2+ 32. Kh1  Rge2 33. Rxe2  Rxe2 34. Qd6  Re8 35. Qc7  a5 36. f5  gxf5 37. gxf5  Rf8 38. f6  Rxf6 39. Qxb8+  Kg7 40. Qxa7+  Kg6 41. Qxa5  Kf5 42. Qc7  Rh6+ 43. Kg2  Ke4 44. Qe5+  Kd3 45. Kf2  Rh1 46. Qe3+  Kc4 47. Kg2  Rb1 48. Qe2+  Kc3 49. Qe3+  Kc4 50. Kf2  Rb2+ 51. Kf3  Rxa2 52. Kf4  Ra8 53. Qe7  Kxd4 54. Qb4+  Kd3 55. Qb6  Ra4+ 56. Ke5  Re4+ 57. Kd6  Rc4 58. Qb1+  Kd2 59. Qxh7  d4 60. Qh2+  Kc3 61. Qe5  Kb3 62. Qe4  Kc3 63. Qe1+  Kc2 64. Qe2+  Kc3 65. Qe1+  Kc2 66. Qe2+  Kb3 67. Qd3+  Kb4 68. Qb1+  Kc3 69. Qa1+  Kd2 70. Qb2+  Ke3 71. Qb6  Rc2 72. Ke5  c5 73. Qh6+  Kd3 74. Qg6+  Kc3 75. Qg1  Kc4 76. Qg8+  Kc3 77. Qg1  Kb2 78. Ke4  Rc3 79. Qf2+  Kb3 80. Qf7+  Kb2 81. Qf2+  Ka3 82. Qd2  Kb3 83. Qd1+  Kb2 84. Qe2+  Kb3 85. Qb5+  Ka2 86. Qa6+  Kb1 87. Qb5+  Kc1 88. Qf1+  Kd2 89. Qf2+  Kd1 90. Qf1+  Kc2 91. Qe2+  Kc1  1/2-1/2

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.10”]
[Round “10”]
[White “Komarov, D”]
[Black “Wang, P”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2530”]
[BlackElo “2453”]
[ECO “A11”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. c4  c6 2. Nf3  d5 3. e3  Nf6 4. Nc3  e6 5. d4  Nbd7 6. Qc2  b6 7. Bd3  Bb7 8. O-O  Be7 9. b3  Rc8 10. Bb2  dxc4 11. bxc4  c5 12. d5  exd5 13. cxd5  Nxd5 14. Nxd5  Bxd5 15. Rad1  Bf6 16. Ba6  Bxf3 17. gxf3  Rc7 18. Bxf6  Qxf6 19. Bb5  Ke7 20. Bxd7  Rxd7 21. Qe4+  Qe6 22. Rxd7+  Kxd7 23. Qb7+   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.10”]
[Round “10”]
[White “Rujevic, M”]
[Black “Mare, M”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2282”]
[BlackElo “1828”]
[ECO “C33”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e5 2. f4  exf4 3. Bc4  Qh4+ 4. Kf1  Nc6 5. Nf3  Qh5 6. d4  d6 7. Bxf4  Bg4 8. c3  O-O-O 9. Nbd2  Nge7 10. d5  Ne5 11. Be2  N7g6 12. Be3  f5 13. Nd4  fxe4 14. h3  Bxe2+ 15. Qxe2  Qh4 16. Bf2  Qh6 17. Nxe4  Nf4 18. Qd2  Nxd5 19. Qxh6  gxh6 20. Kg1  Be7 21. Rd1  Nf4 22. Nf5  Rde8 23. Nxh6  Nfd3 24. b3  Ref8 25. Bg3  Nf4 26. Kh2  Nfg6 27. c4  Bh4 28. Rhf1  Bxg3+ 29. Nxg3  Rxf1 30. Rxf1  Rf8 31. Rxf8+  Nxf8 32. Ne4  Nd3 33. Nf5  Nc1 34. Nc3  Kd7 35. Nd4  c6 36. g4  Ne6 37. Nf3  h6 38. Kg3  Ke7 39. Ne1  Kf6 40. h4  Nc5 41. Kf3  N1d3 42. Nc2  Ne5+ 43. Kg3  a5 44. Nd4  Nf7 45. Kf4  Nd3+ 46. Ke3  Nde5 47. Ne4+  Ke7 48. Kf4  Ng6+ 49. Kg3  d5 50. cxd5  cxd5 51. Nf5+  Ke6 52. Nc5+  Ke5 53. Nxb7  a4 54. bxa4  d4 55. Nc5  Kd5 56. Nb3  Kc4 57. Nfxd4  Nd6 58. a5  Kb4 59. a6  Nc8 60. Nc6+  Ka3 61. a7  Nb6 62. Nbd4  Kxa2 63. Nf5  h5 64. gxh5  Nf8 65. Nce7  Kb3 66. Nd5  Na8 67. Nf6  Kc4 68. Kf4  Kc5 69. Kg5  Kb6 70. h6  Kxa7 71. h7  Nxh7+ 72. Nxh7  Nc7 73. h5   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.11”]
[Round “11”]
[White “Jones, G”]
[Black “Simotowe, M”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2550”]
[BlackElo “2110”]
[ECO “C42”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e5 2. Nf3  Nf6 3. Nxe5  d6 4. Nf3  Nxe4 5. c4  Be7 6. Nc3  Nxc3 7. dxc3  O-O 8. Qc2  Nd7 9. Bd3  Nf6 10. Be3  c6 11. h3  Qa5 12. Bd4  Re8 13. b4  Qc7 14. O-O-O  g6 15. Rhe1  Nh5 16. Qd2  Be6 17. g4  Ng7 18. Qh6  f6 19. Ng5   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.11”]
[Round “11”]
[White “Wang, P”]
[Black “De Villiers, C”]
[Result “1-0”]
[WhiteElo “2453”]
[BlackElo “2179”]
[ECO “B30”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  c5 2. Nf3  Nc6 3. c3  d5 4. exd5  Qxd5 5. d4  Bg4 6. Be2  e6 7. h3  Bh5 8. c4  Qd6 9. d5  exd5 10. cxd5  Bxf3 11. Bxf3  Nd4 12. Nc3  Nf6 13. Be3  Nxf3+ 14. Qxf3  Be7 15. O-O-O  O-O 16. Bf4  Qa6 17. d6  Bd8 18. Rhe1  Ba5 19. Kb1  Bxc3 20. Qxc3  Nd7 21. Re7  Qa4 22. Qf3  c4 23. Rd4  Qb5 24. Rd5  Qc6 25. Rd4  Qb5 26. a4  Qxa4 27. Bh6  gxh6 28. Rg4+  Kh8 29. Rxd7   1-0

[Event “SA Open”]
[Site chesscube.com]
[Date “2009.07.11”]
[Round “11”]
[White “Meintjies, J”]
[Black “Rujevic, M”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[WhiteElo “1915”]
[BlackElo “2282”]
[ECO “C77”]
[Time “1:30:00”]
[TimeControl “1½ hours + 30”]

1. e4  e5 2. Nf3  Nc6 3. Bb5  a6 4. Ba4  Nf6 5. d4  Nxe4 6. Qe2  Nd6 7. dxe5  Nf5 8. Qe4  g6  1/2-1/2

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African Youth Chess Championship 2009

Click on the logo of CHESSA – (first image in this post) Chess South Africa – to visit the official site of Chess in South Africa. The link will open in a new window. You will find a link to the results on the Official site. I will try my best to get hold of results too as I am eager to blog this tournament. I have contacted some of the officials today – 1st July – and waiting to hear from them.
For pairings of all the rounds -and  results- please click here on this Chessa-link. The link will open in a new window.

Image: CHESSA

Players at the African Youth CC: Nina de Swart vs Ezet Roos and in the top image: two SA girls

The African Youth Chess Championship event is an historic first as it is the First African Age Group Championship taking place on the Continent. The first move was made by the Chessa President and Mr Dabilani Buthali, from the African Chess Union.

Table Mountain, Cape Town

Visit Cape Tourism and on this link Tourism Cape Town

Image: Cape Tourism

Image: Cape Tourism

Image: Tourism Cape Town

African Youth Chess Championship 2009: Schedule

30th June to 9th July 2009
 Cape Town – South Africa

Chess South Africa, under the auspices of the African Chess Union, has the pleasure of inviting all African Federations affiliated to FIDE to participate at the 1stAfrican Youth Chess Championship.

PRIZES
The winner of each age group (girls and boys) will have the personal right to participate in the 2009 World Youth Chess Championships in Turkey.
The winners in every age category (girls: WFM, WCM and boys: FM, CM) will be awarded FIDE Titles respectively as under

1 player in 1st place: FM Title
2 players in 1st place: 1st player FM Title. 2nd player CM Title
3 or more players in 1st place: 1st player FM, 2nd player CM and 3rd player CM.

Deadline for registration was 25th April 2009.
Click HERE for the Official site of Chess South Africa (CHESSA) to read all the details. The link will open in a new window.

PAIRINGS ROUND 6

Pairings round 6: boys U10, U12, U14  – click on the images for a larger view. Scores can also be seen

Pairings round 6: boys U16, U18

Pairings round 6: Girls U10, U12, U14

Pairings round 6: Girls U16, U18

Final Results: African Youth Chess Championships – click on the image for a larger view.

The Management of Mid Gauteng Chess Union are proud to announce that Stefan du Toit has won the under 14 Section and is therefore the new under 14 African Youth Champion.  Stephan has been awarded the Fide Master Title!  A fantastic performance by Roland Bezuidenhout has awarded him the second place in the under 12 section.  The Management and Members congratulate you both on these excellent accomplishments.

Image: mg.chess.org.za

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SA Women’s Open Chess Championships 2009

CHESSA

SA Women players  fltr: Anzel Solomons, Melissa Greeff, Carmen de Jager and Monique Sischy

Image:CHESSA

Schedule

Results: Round 3 – top 10

Pairings: Round 4 – top 10

SA Women’s Open: Results after round 4 – top 10

SA Women’s Open: Pairings round 5- top 10

SA Women’s Open CC: Results after round 5 – top 10

SA Women’s Open CC: Pairings round 6: top 10

SA Women’s Open Chess Championship 2009: Final Results of the top 20 positions in this Championship.

Congratulations to Melissa Greeff as winner of the South African Women’s Open Chess Championship 2009.

The Top 4 players in the  SA Women’s Open CC: Melissa the Champion on the far right – image from CHESSA, the official site. Other players frtl:Anzel Solomons, Ezet Roos and Yolandi Sutil are all sharing the limelight with Melissa.

South Africa’s Top 20 Female players as by 28th April 2009. Click on
this link to see the complete list of the Top 100 females in South Africa.

I clearly almost missed out on the SA Women’s Open Chess Championships!  This tournament is taking place at the Woodlands Boulevard shopping centre in Pretoria East. It started the 30th April and it ends Sunday 3rd May! All links will open in a new window. CHESSA is the official body of South African Chess. Please click here to follow the results. – if you follow the link and it’s inactive, then they’re busy updating the site with the results. I’ve tried it this morning – please check back later.Some of our top players like Anzel Solomons, Monique Sischy, Melissa Greeff, Carmen de Jager and Ezet Roos are also playing in this Tournament.

Players at the SA Women’s Open CC…Anzel Solomons and Melissa Greeff on board 1 in round 4 – image: CHESSA the official site.

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Melodies of love

Classical music and chess are two of my “melodies of love”..if you know what I mean..and today I want to share Dolannes Melody, by the master himself, the French artist, Jean-Claude Borelly! If you’re a chess player, try playing a game while listening to this music, you surely will have a good game. Wasn’t it Philidor that was a composer too…and a world chess champion! Today’s chess game, which I played on  Chesscube, was really one of  “those” games – for me…a plain silly start. No excuses. Sometimes you play (well me, not you) and you make certain moves and you don’t know what on earth caused you those moves. If you look at these images, you will see what I mean. You see, this is “typical-me”..Frailty, thy name is woman!) not thinking about the game, but just playing for the fun of it..and then, suddenly, the tables get turned…and your opponent refused to move as he knows he’s in trouble…and..”The rest is silence.” I wonder if you will identify some quotes I’ve used here and know from which play? You can now play through two games interactively. Down in this post you will find the links to play through it. Game 2 is a game I’ve played earlier tonight on Chesscube. My opponent is a 1708 strong player. I beat him in our first round and in the second I lost due to a silly Knight-move! If it wasn’t for my Knight-move, I could have beaten him, but that shows you again.. absent-minded-me! Please click on the images for a larger view.

You will see how he used his Knight (my favourite piece – see how I used my Knights later on!) to “spoil” it for me! –“O! what a rogue and peasant slave am I!”

–“Let me be cruel, not unnatural; I will speak daggers to her, but use none.”

“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.”

..hmmm…first Knight to move in with a Knight-fork…”Why, look you now, how unworthy a thing you make of me. You would play upon me; you would seem to know my stops; you would pluck out the heart of my mystery.”

..and my second ready to slay his King..another Knight-fork…gmf! that will teach him to chase my Dame around and slaughter my men! –“The rest is silence..

And my dearest opponent begged me to stop..and on his knees he prayed his last prayers…his poor King in rags! –“The play’s the thing, wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the King!”  –“Now cracks a noble heart. Good-night, sweet prince; And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.”

Do you think it’s true what Kasparov said?

Game 1: Please click HERE to play through the game. The game will open in a new window.

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nb5 Kd7 5. Nxc7 Rb8 6. Nb5 Ra8 7. Bc7 Qe8 8. Be5 Ne4 9. Nc7 Qd8 10. Nxa8 f6 11. Bc7 Qe8 12. Bf4 e6 13. Nc7 Qe7 14. Nb5 Qf7 15. Nd6 Bxd6 16. Bxd6 Nxd6 17. e3 a6 18. Nf3 Rd8 19. Qd2 Ne4 20. Qd3 g6 21. h3 f5 22. a4 Nb4 23. Qb3 Qe7 24. c3 Nc6 25. c4 Na5 26. Qb6 Nc6 27. b4 Nxb4 28. cxd5 Nc2+ 29. Kd1 Nxa1 30. Ne5+ Ke8 31. f3 Nf2+ 32. Kc1 Nxh1 33. Bb5+ axb5 34. Qxb5+ Bd7 35. Qxb7 Qa3+ 36. Kd2 Nb3+ 37. Kc2 Na5 0-1

Game 2: Please click HERE to play through the game.

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Bg4 4. d5 Bxf3 5. Qxf3 a6 6. Nc3 h6 7. Bd3 Nf6 8. O-O Nbd7 9. Re1 Qe7 10. Qd1 Nb6 11. b3 Qd7 12. a4 Be7 13. a5 Nc8 14. b4 O-O 15. Ne2 Nh7 16. Ng3 Bg5 17. Bxg5 Nxg5 18. Qh5 Ne7 19. Be2 Ng6 20. Bg4 Qd8 21. Nf5 Nf4 22. Qh4 Qf6 23. Qg3 Rab8 24. h4 Nh7 25. Bd1 Ng6 26. Nxh6+ gxh6 27. h5 Kh8 28. hxg6 Qxg6 29. Qh3 Rg8 30. Bf3 Ng5 31. Qg3 Nxf3+ 32. Qxf3 Rg7 33. Re3 Rbg8 34. g3 Rh7 35. Qe2 h5 36. Rd1 h4 37. Rdd3 h3 38. Kh2 Qg4 39. Qxg4 Rxg4 40. Rc3 f6 41. Re2 Rgg7 42. Rf3 Rf7 43. Rf5 Rh6 44. g4 Kg7 45. Rh5 Rxh5 46. gxh5 Kh6 47. Kxh3 Kxh5 48. Kg2 Rg7+ 49. Kf1 Rg5 50. Re3 f5 51. Rh3+ Kg4 52. Rg3+ Kf4 53. Rxg5 Kxg5 54. exf5 Kxf5 55. Ke2 Ke4 56. Kd2 Kxd5 57. Kd3 e4+ 58. Ke3 Ke5 59. c3 d5 60. f4+ Kf5 61. Kd4 c6 62. Ke3 Ke6 63. Ke2 Kf5 64. Ke3 Kf6 65. Ke2 Ke6 66. Ke3 Kf5 67. Kd4 Kg4 68. Ke5 e3 69. f5 e2 70. f6 e1=Q+ 71. Kd6 Qg3+ 72. Kc5 Qc7 0-1

Update: Game 3…Another game I played on Chess cube….my opponent’s time ran out…although he was about to lose the game too…please click HERE to play through the game where I played white. Out of desperation he forced me to capture his Queen in order to have a lost myself, but I didn’t mind that much as I knew I had a Pawn-advantage. I loved the position of my Knights during the middle-game as I could use them effectively.

1. d4 h5 2. e4 e6 3. e5 f5 4. Bf4 Ne7 5. Bg5 h4 6. Bb5 b6 7. Bxe7 Bxe7 8. h3 Bb7 9. f3 Bb4+ 10. c3 Be7 11. Nd2 a6 12. Ba4 b5 13. Bc2 Nc6 14. Nb3 b4 15. c4 d5 16. c5 Bg5 17. Bd3 Be3 18. Be2 Bxd4 19. Nxd4 Nxe5 20. Nxe6 Qd7 21. Nd4 Rh5 22. Qd2 Rg5 23. Qxg5 Qe7 24. Qxf5 Rd8 25. Kf2 Bc8 26. Qc2 c6 27. Re1 Qg5 28. b3 Qg3+ 29. Kf1 Kf7 30. Bd3 Re8 31. Re2 Qg5 32. Bf5 Bxf5 33. Nxf5 Re6 34. Nd4 Nd3 35. Nxe6 Qc1+ 36. Qxc1 Nxc1 37. Nd8+ 1-0

Now, for the climax! Do enjoy Dolannes Melody and if you like it, I’ve got a link – Grumpy Boss’s blog – where you can download it from rapidshare. But you also have to download the Rar-software to unzip it…good luck, it’s worth doing it for a wonderful piece of music like this, and you not only get the one track, but the complete album! Follow the link.
Dolannes Melody
Jean-Claude Borelly

http://grumpyscorner.blogspot.com/2007/08/jean-claude-borelly-dolannes-melody.html

This is the Youtube-movie with Dolannes Melody.

The Piano version

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Dresden Games

If you click on the logo, you will get taken to the official site of Dresden and the “Live” image will take you straight to the “live”-games-link. On this link you can play through games played in round 8. Players from the SA team and also GM’s like Boris Gelfand, Magnus Carlsen, Ivan Cheparinov, Alexei Shirov, Topalov, Yelena Dembo, Nigel Short, Peter Leko, etc. The link will open in a new window. You can now play through two games, I will add more soon when I’ve got more time!
Please click HERE to play through the game of Kamsky and Ivanchuck and a few other players in round 11, the final round on chess.com. The link will open in a new window.
http://chessaleeinlondon.blogspot.com/2008/11/dresden-olympiad-2008.html

On this next link you can play through games of round 6. The SA-team games plus games of Kramnik and Ivanchuk. The link will also open in a new window.

http://chessaleeinlondon.blogspot.com/2008/11/south-africa-dresden-and-round-6.html

See more chess graphics and results of the SA-team on this link which will open in a new window.

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/11/20/dresden-chess-olympiad-2008/

GM Eduardo Iturrizaga..Watu Kobese’s opponent in round 9

More games to play through will be added soon, also games of about 15 GM’s. So, keep watching this space!

Statistics of Eduardo

Statistics of Watu

Watu Kobese..image: chessaol

Melissa Greeff Image: chessaol.wordpress.com

Melissa: Statistics…Melissa has a personal score of 6.5 so far at the Olympiad, a score not many other females could equal in this tournament. Well done to Melissa!

Results of the ladies after round 10…you can see Melissa having 7 out of 9…she didn’t play in round 5.

Please click HERE to play through the game of Melissa Greeff in round 9 played on the 22nd November at the Chess Olympiad 2008. Links in this post will all open in new windows.

Please click HERE to play through Watu Kobese’s game played in round 9.

Please click HERE to play through the game of Kenny Solomon played in round 9.

Please click HERE to play through the game of Carmen de Jager in round 9.

Please click HERE to play through the game of Anzel Solomons played in round 9.

Please click HERE to play through the game of Daniel Cawdery played in round 9 vs Jose Sequera Paolini of Venezuela.

Melissa Greeff round 10 move 27

Dresden round 10 Melissa Greeff  end position…1/2

Round 10 move list: Melissa Greeff, see the last move with the chess graphics

Dresden round 10: Results of the ladies – SA vs Scotland

Image: chessaol.wordpress.com

Kenny’s game – 1/2

Dresden round 10: Results of the men’s team

Dresden round 11: Results of the SA Ladies against UAE…3-1..well done ladies!

SA ladies on the left..image: chessaol.wordpress.com

Dresden round 11 Results of the SA men against IPCA (International Chess Organisation for Physically Disabled)…3-1..well done boys!

SA men on the right..image: chessaol.wordpress.com

The Gaprindashvili Cup – click on the image for a clear view, or follow this link: The link will open in a new window.

http://chessforall.co.za/tournaments/tourreps/olympiad_dresden/newsitems.php?page=newsitems/olym_dres_n10.html 

 

Dresden top 10 Africa countries…South Africa is second in the Africa-group image: chessforall.co.za

Dresden: Top 20 countries: Gaprindashvilicup

Dresden rankings: SA ranked in position no 58

Dresden final standings: Top 20 countries after round 11 – click on the image for a clear view. South Africa is in position 56.

Dresden Top 10 Women: Image: chess.com

Countries represented at Dresden

Please click HERE to play through the game of Cheparinov in round 9.

Please click HERE to play through the game of Radjabov in round 9.
more games of the masters to follow a bit later!

Radjabov: Image: Official site of Dresden

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South Africa at Dresden 2008

Please click HERE to see more results of games played in round 1 and round 2. The link will open in a new window. At the bottom of this post you will find a link to play through games of round 5, where South Africa played Luxembourg.

On this link you can play through games played in round 6. The link will open in a new window.

http://chessaleeinlondon.blogspot.com/2008/11/south-africa-dresden-and-round-6.html

 

Click on the top image/logo to access the official site of Dresen 2008, it will open in a new window and on the “live” image for the live games.

 

South African players: Men

South African players: Ladies

Dresden Schedule

The South African women’s team at Dresden

All images in this post: HERE the official chess blog of Chess SA. The link will open in a new window.

Carmen de Jager

Monique Sischy

Melissa Greeff

Jenine Ellappen

Anzel Solomons

Henry Steel

Watu Kobese

Please click HERE to play through a game of Watu Kobese against Jennifer Shahade played in Philadelphia in June 1998. The game was Kobese’s.

Kenny Solomon

Johannes Mabusela

Daniel Cawdery

Some of the round 3 results- click on images for  larger view

Melissa Greeff round 3 move 39 …0-1

Melissa Greeff round 3 move list

 

Daniel Cawdery round 3 end position 1/2

Daniel Cawdery round 3 move list

Monique Sischy round 3 end position 0-1

Monique Sischy round 3 move list

Round 4  16 Nov women’s team against Norway and men’s team against Pakistan

Melissa round 4 move 18

Jenine round 4 move 17

Anzel round 4 move 17

Monique round 4 move 17

Daniel round 4 move 17

Henry round 4 move 14

Kenny round 4 move 12

Johannes round 4 move 12

 

South Africa vs Pakistan Images from players: chesssaol.wordpress.com

South African Ladies’ team vs Latvia

Results of the ladies’ team after round 4

Results of the men’s team after round 4

Round 5 results: South Africa vs Luxembourg 17th November 2008

Henry Steel vs Jeitz Christian Dresden round 5…1-0

Mietek Bakalarz vs Kenny Solomon Dresden round 5 …0-1

Pierre Gengler vs Johannes Mabusela Dresden round 5…1/2

Watu Kobese vs Fred Berend Dresden round 5…1-0

Watu Kobese round 5 move list

Kaydanovich vs Monique Sischy Dresden round 5…0-1

Round 5 Monique Sischy move list

Anzel Solomons vs Gelina Melnik Dresden round 5 …1-0
Please click HERE to play interactively through the games of round 5. The link will open in a new window.

Results: Ladies Round 6 South Africa vs Egypt

Results: Men Round 6 South Africa vs Italy

 

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Chess and the 7 dimensions of life

Images: chesshouse.com

I have a couple of articles/posts on my blog about chess and the link between chess and academic performance, the  research  that was done by various people, the reasons why your child should play chess etc. Today’s article is no difference and I’ve added an article about chess and the 7 dimensions, which you might enjoy and then 3 of my own games. I’ve taken out my opponents’ nicknames this time. Two games were friendlies and the last game was a rated game. As Ray mentioned the other day on his blog- (if you love playing chess, please play him on chess.com, his blog-link is on my blog roll and you can leave him a message on his blog, but be aware, he’s no softy when it comes to chess! Don’t come back to me crying! lol!) -that I used to blog only games where my opponents were defeated…(no comments…:) Anyway…I have blogged  awhile ago some of my games where I was the complete loser!  Enjoy the games here…You will notice that I played white in all three the games. You can play through these games, the game-links will open in a new window. If you wanna play me, I do play now on chess.com. If you follow the link on my sidebar, register, then you will automatically be a friend of me and we can play!

You will also find an article you might not be able to read…that’s Afrikaans! The article is about Ezet, she took part in the World Youth Championships that ended last week in Vietnam. The link of the Saffa-players and their results is also available to be viewed. On this link here you can find the official site of the World Youth Chess Championships in Vietnam. The link will open in a new window.
http://wycc2008.vietnamchess.com/index.php

Chess Improves Academic Performance
Chess has long been recognized throughout the world as a builder of strong intellects, but only recently has the United States begun to recognize chess’s ability to improve the cognitive abilities, rational thinking and reasoning of even the least promising children. Chess brings out latent abilities that have not been reached by traditional educational means. It promotes logical thinking, instills a sense of self‑confidence and self‑worth, and improves communication and pattern recognition skills. It teaches the values of hard work, concentration, objectivity, and commitment. As former World Chess Champion Emmanuel Lasker said, “On the chessboard lies and hypocrisy do not survive long.”

In Marina, CA, an experiment with chess indicated that after only 20 days of instruction, students’ academic performance improved dramatically. George L Stephenson, chairman of the Marina JHS math department, reported that 55% of students showed significant improvement in academic performance after this brief smattering of chess instruction.

Similarly, a 5‑year study of 7th and 8th graders by Robert Ferguson of the Bradford, PA School District showed that test scores improved 173% for students regularly engaged in chess classes, compared with only 4.56% for children participating in other forms of “enrichment activities” including Future Problem Solving, Dungeons and Dragons, Problem Solving with Computers, independent study, and creative writing. A Watson‑Glaser Thinking Appraisal evaluation showed overwhelmingly that chess improved critical thinking skills more than the other methods of enrichment.

Educators at the Roberto Clemente School (C.I.S. 166) in New York report that chess has improved not only academic scores, but social performance as well. In 1988, Joyce Brown, an assistant principal and supervisor of the school’s Special Education department, and teacher Florence Mirin began studying the effect of chess on their Special Education students. When the study began, they had 15 children enrolled in chess classes; two years later they had 398‑

“The effects have been remarkable,” Brown says. “Not only have the reading and math skills of these children soared, their ability to socialize has increased substantially, too. Our studies have shown that incidents of suspension. and outside altercations have decreased by at least 60% since these children became interested in chess.”

Connie Wingate, Principal, P.S. 123 in New York, says of a New York City school chess program, “This is wonderful! This is marvelous! This is stupendous! It’s the finest thing that ever happened to this school. I am most sincere. It has been an absolute plus for the students who were directly involved as well as for the rest of the school… If I could say one thing to funders, it would be this. If they ever walked down 140th St. and 8th Ave. and had the opportunity to see where our children come from, they would know that these children deserve every single break that they can get. They are trying, through chess, to apply themselves and do something to better themselves. And that filters into the entire school and community… More than anything else, chess makes a difference… what it has done for these children is simply beyond anything that I can describe. The highest scoring student in out school is a member of the chess team. He became the highest scoring kid in the school after he joined the chess team. All four are in the top quarter of the school, and they weren’t before. Academically, they are doing much better in class, and it’s in no small part because of chess. Just how they feel about themselves, their self‑esteem, makes them all winners.”

Jo Bruno, Principal, P.S. 189, ‑Brooklyn, NY:. “In‑chess tournaments the child gets the opportunity of seeing more variety and diversity. There are kids who have more money than they have, but chess is a common denominator. They are all equal on the chessboard. I believe it is connected academically and to the intellectual development of children. I see them able to attend to something for more than an hour and a half. I am stunned. Some of them could not attend to things for more than 20 minutes.”

Jerome Fishman, Guidance Counselor, C.J.H.S 231, Queens, NY: “I like the aspect of socialization. You get into friendly, competitive activity where no one gets hurt. Instead of two bodies slamming into each other like in football, you’ve got the meeting of two minds. It’s strategic, and you use logic to plan an attack scheme. Aside from being good for the cognitive development of these youngsters, chess develops their social skills, too. It makes them feel they belong. Whenever we get a child transferred from another school who may have maladaptive behavior, our principal (Dr. Wilton Anderson) suggests chess as a way of helping him find his niche. It also helps kids learn how to be better friends. They analyze the game and talk it over afterwards. I even had a couple of kids who never had much in common start going to each other’s houses to play chess and swap Chess Life magazines. We’ve got kids literally lining up in front of the school at 6:45 am to get a little chess in before classes start.”

Source for most of the above: New York City Schools Chess Program by Christine Palm, copyright 1990
https://www.chesshouse.com/articles.asp?id=115

http://knightofchess.com/34/the-role-of-chess-in-modern-education/

http://knightofchess.com/31/chess-makes-kids-smarter/

On this link you will find these articles to read.
Articles on Chess.. The link will open in a new window.
Chess Improves Academic Performance
More Schools Learn Power of Checkmate
Chess Makes Kids Smarter
From Street Kids to Royal Knights
Role of Chess in Modern Education
One Boy’s Chess Story
Chess is the Gymnasium of the Mind
Chess and Education

World Youth Chess Championships…see the official link in top of this entry.

http://www.sajca.com/wycc2008.html Uitslae van die Suid-Afrikaanse spelers. Die link sal in ‘n nuwe venster oopmaak.
 

Ezet het aan die Wêreld Junior Skaakkampioenskappe deelgeneem en op die link kan die uitslae gevind word.
 Ezet Roos, ’n gr. 11-leerling van die Afrikaanse Hoër Meisieskool in Pretoria, gaan in Oktober vanjaar baie min van haar skoolbank sien.
Dié talentvolle skaakspeler gaan aan twee toernooie in dié maand deelneem. Sy gaan eers na Beijing vir die World Mind Games en daarna na Viëtnam om aan die Wêreldjeugkampioenskap deel te neem.

Ezet het al ses keer na dié kampioenskap gegaan en het al elke jaar sedert sy tien jaar oud was Suid-Afrikaanse kleure gekry.

Ezet het ook haar skaakvermoëns in verskeie lande ten toon gestel.

“Ek was al in Spanje, Griekeland, Rusland en Turkye. Rusland is ’n vreemde land, maar die mense speel baie goed skaak. Hulle begin baie jonger as ons speel.”

Hoewel sy meen die Oos-Europese lande se gehalte van spel is veel beter as hier, sê sy Suid-Afrikaners hoef glad nie terug te staan vir lande soos Australië of Nieu-Seeland nie.

“Ons sukkel dalk teen lande soos Rusland, maar verder doen ons heel oukei.”

Volgens haar vereis skaak ’n ander soort fiksheid as ander sportsoorte.

“Mense dink skaak is nie ’n sport nie, maar net soos ander sportsoorte is dit onvoorspelbaar. Jy kan so hard oefen soos jy wil, maar jy weet nooit wat gaan gebeur nie.

“As jy in toernooie speel, moet jy vyf uur lank konsentreer. Jy is dalk nie soos met ander sporte uitasem nie, maar dit maak my baie moeg en ná ’n wedstryd wil ek net slaap.”

http://www.news24.com/Beeld/Sport/Skolesport/0,,3-63-2372_2385625,00.html

Chess game 1

Nikita1 vs. Bg

Chess game 2

Nikita1 vs. The…

Chess game 3

Nikita1 vs. bir..

“The chessboard is the world, the pieces are the phenomena of the Universe, the rules of the game are what we call the laws of Nature and the player on the other side is hidden from us”
(Thomas Huxley)

 7 – Dimensions of Life article submitted by: Dr J Slobodzien The link of the article is at the bottom of the post and it will open in a new window.

1. Social / Cultural Dimension – I started seeing that your chess pieces are like family members and significant others in your life that you try to protect the best you can. We are all alike (black or white in chess) and we try to move and communicate in ways that will support our mutual goals. Unfortunately though, you end up losing the ones you love.

2. Medical/ Physical Dimension – In order to maintain a healthy body we must maintain a balance of moving (exercise), eating (our opponents pieces), and resting (knowing when not to move).

3. Mental/ Emotional Dimension – Chess forces us to think really hard about our actions, the consequences of our actions, and how our behavior affects others and the world around us. It also gives us opportunities to experience and deal with emotions – like anger, revenge, grief, and joy, etc.

4. Educational/ Occupational Dimension – Chess develops our attention span, concentration abilities, and memory – so that we can learn, be trained and skilled, and maintain satisfying work experiences.

5. Spiritual/ Religious Dimension – I didn’t notice a spiritual side to chess until one of my pawns first got transformed (born-again) into a Queen. At that point, I realized that our weakest members in life have the potential to become our strongest heroes. Chess also develops our faith in a set of organized beliefs and practices much like religion.

6. Legal/ Financial Dimension – Chess teaches us that there are consequences for not obeying the law (not playing by the rules of the game). There are also rewards for logically and systematically making the right moves in life.

7. Self-Control/ Higher Power Control Dimension- Chess teaches us that even though we may follow all the rules, all of the time – we do not have total control of our destiny (who wins the game and who loses). As Thomas Huxley so eloquently put it in his famous quote above (“the player on the other side is hidden”).

http://searchwarp.com/swa305229.htm

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Anand is the World Chess Champion – again!

Anand…vs…Kramnik

Please click HERE to play through the games of Anand/Kramnik on the site of nytimes(gambit). The link will open in a new window.

Images: Official site

 

 

 Follow THIS LINK on my blog to see the results of all their games, move-by-move, also to follow many other links to sites with games played previously, including a link to the Official site…and…on THIS LINK ..also on my blog, you can go through annotated movies of their games played through the WCC 2008. Enjoy! Links will open in a new window.

News Article from the BBC:

Anand retains world chess title

Anand said he had given one of his best-ever performances
India’s Viswanathan Anand has retained his FIDE World Chess Championship title by beating Russia’s Vladimir Kramnik in the German city of Bonn.

Anand won three games, drew seven times and lost once en route to winning the competition by 6.5 points to 4.5.

He and Kramnik will share the total prize fund of 1.5m euros ($1.94m).

Anand became FIDE world champion last year by winning a tournament in Mexico, where Kramnik was again runner-up. Anand first won the title in 2000.

Kramnik, the Classical World Chess Champion, had competed in the 2007 World Chess Federation (FIDE) world championship with the understanding that if he lost, he would get a chance to reclaim the title by playing a match against the winner in 2008.

“Vladimir pushed me into giving my all. I’ve given one of my best-ever performances here in Bonn,” Anand, 38, told the AFP news agency after his victory on Wednesday.

“I tried everything, but it just wasn’t enough. Life is like that and defeat is part of it,” Kramnik conceded.

Anand, who was born in the southern Indian city of Madras (Chennai), divides his time between India and Spain.

Known as the “Tiger from Madras”, his achievements have triggered huge interest in the game in India with chess clubs mushrooming in many parts of the country.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7698743.stm

http://gambit.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/29/anand-is-world-champion-again/

http://gambit.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/28/hold-the-coronation-kramnik-draws-game-9-wins-game-10/

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Anand vs Kramnik 2008

 

Anand is Officially the winner of the WCC 2008!

 

Images: Official site

Kramnik and Anand draw colours…

Annotated Videos of Anand and Kramnik ‘s games can be played through on this link, it is on my blog (the “movies” page) and the link will open in a new window. You can also click on that page (top of my blog)

Game 1…Kramnik and Anand…

Image: Official site…Anand vs Kramnik

The World Chess Championships 2008 has started! Anand vs Kramnik! The two Chess Engines of the World!

1. Please click HERE to play through their 2008 World Chess Championships games on chessgames. The link will open in a new window.
2. Please click HERE if you want to read more about the two players, play through more games or if you want some games in algebraic notation. The link will open in a new window.

3. Please click HERE if you want to play through previous games of Anand and Kramnik on the Official site. The link will open in a new window.

4. On The Official site you can follow the games LIVE. The link will open in a new window. If you click on the top image/logo in this post, it will take you to the Official site’s homepage. The link will open in a new window.
5. If you click HERE you can view a list of games played by Anand/Kramik..it’s a Wiki-link and it will open in a new window. Find similar links in the second link of this post where you can also find some games in algebraic notation.

Games start 2pm for UK local time, 9 am Eastern USA time

Standings: After Game 9
Results of the games between Anand and Kramnik
Game 1 Kramnik vs Anand…1/2

Game 2 Anand vs Kramnik…1/2

Game 3 Kramnik vs Anand…0-1

Game 4 Anand vs Kramnik…1/2

Game 5 Kramnik vs Anand…0-1

Game 6 Anand vs Kramnik…1-0

Game 7 Anand vs Kramnik… 1/2

Game 8 Kramnik vs Anand … 1/2

Game 9 Anand vs Kramnik … 1/2

Game 10 Kramnik vs Anand..1-0

Game 11 Anand vs Kramnik.. 1/2

Kramnik vs Anand…game 1…opening

Kramnik vs Anand…game 1 move 11

Kramnik vs Anand…game 1 move 21

Kramnik vs Anand…game 1 end position

Game 1 move list

GAME/Round 2…Anand vs Kramnik….

Game 2 15th October 2008…move 11

Anand vs Kramnik ….Game 2 move 17

Anand vs Kramnik game 2 move 24

Anand vs Kramnik game 2 Final position…1/2

Kramnik vs Anand..Game 3 move 7

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 14

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 20

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 25

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 30

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 move 33

Kramnik vs Anand…Game 3 end position 0-1

Game 3 move list

Anand vs Kramnik…Game 4 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik…Game 4 move 12

Anand vs Kramnik… Game 4 move 19

Anand vs Kramnik…Game 4 move 24

Anand vs Kramnik…Game 4 endposition

Game 4 move list

Kramnik vs Anand…game 5 move 7

Kramnik vs Anand…game 5 move 14

Kramnik vs Anand…game 5 move 21

Kramnik vs Anand…game 5 end position

Game 5 move list

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 14

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 20

 

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 27

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 34

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 move 39

Anand vs Kramnik game 6 final position

Game 6 move list

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 13

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 19

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 25
 

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 move 31

Anand vs Kramnik Game 7 end position

 
Game 7 move list

Kramnik vs Anand game 8 move 7

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 move 14

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 move 21

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 move 28

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 move 36

Kramnik vs Anand Game 8 final position

Game 8 move list

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 14

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 19

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 27

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 32

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 move 41

Anand vs Kramnik Game 9 end position

Game 9 move list

Kramnik vs Anand Game 10 move 7

Kramnik vs Anand Game 10 move 18

Kramnik vs Anand Game 10 move 23

Kramnik vs Anand Game 10 Final position

 
Game 10 move list

Anand vs Kramnik Game 11 move 7

Anand vs Kramnik Game 11 move 13

Anand vs Kramnik Game 11 end position

Anand vs Kramnik Game 11 move list

On this link of Chessgames you can play through Kramnik and Anand’s games where they played one another before. On link 1 in this post you can play through the current games of the championships in Bonn.  A new window will open when you click on the link!

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Dance of the Knights

I’ve seen Romeo and Juliet ages ago, I can only recall certain parts of it, think I need to go and see it again. The Dance of the Knights is quite fresh in my mind…I’ve found the music for you to download too if you want to! Take a listen and enjoy the youtube movie. You can also read about the “Knight’s tour” in chess…almost like the “Dance of the Knights”;) The music was composed by Prokofiev and was also the theme music of the tv program  “The Apprentice”. If you click on links, it will open in a new window.

Download the music here.

Images: Wikipedia
….

History..links open in a new window.
The pattern of a Knight’s Tour on a half-board has been presented in verse form (as a literary constraint) in the highly stylized Sanskrit  poem Kavyalankara written by the 9th century Kashmiri poet Rudrata, which discusses the art of poetry, especially with relation to theater (Natyashastra). As was often the practice in ornate Sanskrit poetry, the syllabic patterns of this poem elucidate a completely different motif, in this case an open knight’s tour on a half-chessboard.

The first algorithm for completing the Knight’s Tour was Warnsdorff’s algorithm, first described in 1823 by H. C. Warnsdorff. Read more on this link.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knight’s_tour

 

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Benefits of Chess in Education

This document- benefitsofchessinedscreen2 -has got all the information you’re looking for. The benefits of chess and also research that was done. The link will open in a new window.

CHESS IMPROVES ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
Chess has long been recognized throughout the world as a builder of strong intellects, but only recently has the United States begun to recognize chess’s ability to improve the cognitive abilities, rational thinking and reasoning of even the least promising children. Chess brings out latent abilities that have not been reached by traditional educational means. It promotes logical thinking, instills a sense of selfconfidence, and self-worth, improves communication and pattern recognition skills. It teaches the values of hard work, concentration, objectivity, and, commitment. As former World Chess Champion Emmanuel Lasker said, “On the chessboard lies and hypocrisy do not survive long.”

….in chess, unlike in many other sports, you don’t ever have to retire. Age is also not a factor when you’re looking for an opponent –young can play old and old can play young.
Chess develops memory. The chess theory is complicated and many players memorize different opening variations. You will also learn to recognize various patterns and remember lengthy variations.
Chess improves concentration. During the game you are focused on only one main goal — to checkmate and become the victor.
Chess develops logical thinking. Chess requires some understanding of logical strategy. For example, you will know that it is important to bring your pieces out into the game at the beginning, to keep your king safe at all times, not to make big weaknesses in your position and not to blunder your pieces away for free. (Although you will find yourself doing that occasionally through your chess career. Mistakes are inevitable and chess, like life, is a never-ending learning process.)
Chess promotes imagination and creativity. It encourages you to be inventive. There are an indefinite amount of beautiful combinations yet to be constructed.
Chess teaches independence. You are forced to make important decisions influenced
only by your own judgment.
Chess develops the capability to predict and foresee consequences of actions. It teaches you to look both ways before crossing the street.
Chess inspires self-motivation. It encourages the search of the best move, the best plan, and the most beautiful continuation out of the endless possibilities. It encourages the everlasting aim towards progress, always steering to ignite the flame of victory.
Chess shows that success rewards hard work. The more you practice, the better you’ll become. You should be ready to lose and learn from your mistakes. One of the greatest players ever, Capablanca said, “You may learn much more from a game you lose than from a game you win. You will have to lose hundreds of games before becoming a good player.”
Chess and Science. Chess develops the scientific way of thinking. While playing, you generate numerous variations in your mind. You explore new ideas, try to predict their outcomes and interpret surprising revelations. You decide on a hypothesis, and then you make your move and test it.
Chess and Technology. What do chess players do during the game? Just like computers they engage in a search for the better move in a limited amount of time. What are you doing right now? You are using a computer as a tool for learning.
Chess and Mathematics. You don’t have to be a genius to figure this one out. Chess involves an infinite number of calculations, anything from counting the number of attackers and defenders in the event of a simple exchange to calculating lengthy continuations. And you use your head to calculate, not some little machine.
Chess and Research. There are millions of chess resources out there for every aspect of the game. You can even collect your own chess library. In life, is it important to know how to find, organize and use boundless amounts of information. Chess gives you a perfect example and opportunity to do just that.
Chess and Art. In the Great Soviet Encyclopedia chess is defined as “an art appearing in the form of a game.” If you thought you could never be an artist, chess proves you wrong. Chess enables the artist hiding within you to come out. Your imagination will run wild with endless possibilities on the 64 squares. You will paint pictures in your mind of ideal positions and perfect outposts for your soldiers. As a chess artist you will have an original style and personality.
Chess and Psychology. Chess is a test of patience, nerves, will power and concentration. It enhances your ability to interact with other people. It tests your sportsmanship in a competitive environment.
Chess improves schoolwork and grades. Numerous studies have proven that kids obtain a higher reading level, math level and a greater learning ability overall as a result of playing chess. For all those reasons mentioned above and more, chess playing kids do better at school and therefore have a better chance to succeed in life.
Chess opens up the world for you. You don’t need to be a high ranked player to enter big important competitions. Even tournaments such as the US Open and the World Open welcome players of all strengths. Chess provides you with plenty of opportunities to travel not only all around the country but also around the world. Chess is a universal language and you can communicate with anyone over the checkered plain.
Chess enables you to meet many interesting people. You will make life-long friendships with people you meet through chess.
Chess is cheap. You don’t need big fancy equipment to play chess. In fact, all you may need is your computer! (And we really hope you have one of those, or else something fishy is going on here.) It is also good to have a chess set at home to practice with family members, to take to a friend’s house or even to your local neighborhood park to get everyone interested in the game.
CHESS IS FUN! Dude, this isn’t just another one of those board games. No chess game ever repeats itself, which means you create more and more new ideas each game. It never gets boring. You always have so much to look forward to. Every game you are the general of an army and you alone decide the destiny of your soldiers. You can sacrifice them, trade them, pin them, fork them, lose them, defend them, or order them to break through any barriers and surround the enemy king. You’ve got the power!

On this link on my blog you can read more about chess and maths… https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2007/08/28/maths-and-chess/

On this next link…how your kids can work with money when they know everything about chess..

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2007/12/30/teach-your-kids-chessand-they-know-how-to-work-with-money/

Celone (2001) “Chess significantly increased student scores in non-verbal intelligence, which reflected increased abilities in abstract reasoning and problem solving.”

Smith and Sullivan (1997) “Chess education has a substantial positive effect on analytical thinking skills which are important in math, engineering and the physical sciences. The impact was particularly strong among girls.”

Rifner (1992) “Problem solving skills that chess teaches will transfer to tasks in other academic domains, including reading comprehension and math, and to enhanced performance on standardized tests of academic achievement.”

Van Zyl (1991)(South Africa) “Chess nourishes latent learning abilities, and reinforces skills in logical and abstract thinking, impulse control, endurance and determination. This was manifest as a significant improvement in both verbal and non-verbal IQ scores after three years of chess instruction.”

Liptrap (1997). “Students receiving chess instruction scored significantly higher in standardized tests of both math and reading.”

 Chess is fast track to brainier kids
Hero of US movie teaches local schools the art

April 10, 2006 Edition 1

Robyn Cohen

Fifteen years ago, David MacEnulty began teaching chess at a school in the South Bronx in New York. His students – many came from unstable backgrounds – not only turned into champions but developed self-esteem and excelled in their careers after leaving school.

MacEnulty’s experiences are fictionalised in Knights of the South Bronx, a film starring Ted Danson, which premiered on American TV late last year.

David MacEnulty is the author of three books, published by Random House: The Chess Kids Book of Tactics, The Chess Kids Book of the King and Pawn Endgame, and The Chess Kids Book of Checkmate.

He has written six e-books (two in collaboration with grandmaster Miron Sher) for the Official US Chess Federation Software and produced three videos of chess instruction.

David Berman, a South African who lives in New York for nine months of the year, saw the film in the US. Berman, who is a hedge fund manager, lives in Bantry Bay with his family for the rest of the time. Somehow, between the deal making and commuting between the Big Apple and Mother City, he also finds time for chess.

He is passionate about the game and has taught his children to play from a young age. Shortly after seeing Knights of the South Bronx on TV, he was at a chess tournament in which his son Yaakov was playing.

Someone pointed out MacEnulty: “You see that guy over there – he is the one in the film.” Berman promptly invited MacEnulty to Cape Town – “to go to the beach, maybe play a little chess”. That meeting grew exponentially to a chess road show in our city which has sparked an excited reaction from children and staff at local schools.

The film was screened at the Labia in Orange Street and received standing ovations. Schools phoned the two Davids begging them to visit.

During their two weeks in Cape Town, they went to about 20 schools; sometimes with 300-400 pupils attending. They went to private and disadvantaged schools; addressed student and staff bodies after screening the film and answered questions.

The response was “unbelievable” – with children and teachers clamouring for more. They want chess at school.

Berman’s motivation in bringing MacEnultyto Cape Town? His reason, he said, was to produce “conclusive evidence that chess makes kids smarter. It enhances creativity, problem solving, memory, concentration, self-esteem, maturity and other abilities that a parent or teacher would desire”.

I attended a screening at a school in the southern suburbs and, despite poor sound and picture quality and constant interruptions, the children were riveted.

It is a classic story of triumph over adversity with chess as the ticket out of a life with limited prospects.

MacEnulty as mentor and teacher extraordinaire provided a catalyst, motivating children to excel at chess and apply their newly acquired self-esteem to other aspects of their lives.

After the screening, MacEnulty answered questions. In the flesh he is even more charismatic than Ted Danson and it is easy to see why this dynamic teacher has inspired so many children to stretch their brains in directions they had never considered possible.

He also has a terrific sense of humour. The film, he admits, is a somewhat fictionalised account of the facts. In real life, it took his team years to get to championship status – not the one year depicted in the film.

There’s a moving scene in the film where a child plays chess with his dad who is in prison. This did not happen in real life. The jails were far away, but it is true that several of the children had parents behind bars.

The characters are largely composites of the real-life children he taught. But, as with the real life children, he had to teach the child actors how to play chess. As to whether his wife is still moaning about his life as a lowly substitute teacher (as depicted in the film): “Well, let’s put it this way, I no longer have a wife.”

In the film he is a corporate type who has ended up in the Bronx as a substitute teacher, but the real MacEnulty was employed as chess coach. He has also been an actor and musician.

Still, it makes for a compelling film and the star is undoubtedly chess – which is the bottom line. It gets the message across, loud and clear, and children throughout city schools are buying into the prospect of getting into this game.

That is good news for parents and teachers. Research indicates that chess accelerates learning skills in a huge way. The two Davids cited a number of dazzling statistics showing chess can improve IQ and comprehension retention rates.

They were results of a survey undertaken by the America’s Foundation for Chess (AF4C). Numerous studies confirm the benefits of chess instruction on students and academic performance, especially maths and reading. The studies all pointed out that “there is a positive effect of chess on intellectual achievement; not a single report fails to find such a connection”.

The researchers investigated and documented the impact of chess on a broad spectrum of academic areas: improved performance by students of diverse ages, intellectual abilities, economic and cultural backgrounds.

Chess, they report, has made a difference to children all over the world. For example, Smith and Cage (2000) observed southern, rural, black, secondary school students and found students who were taught chess scored “significantly higher on all measures of academic achievement, including math, spatial analysis, and non-verbal reasoning ability”.

Closer to home, there is Van Zyl (1991), who studied South African high school students. After three years of chess instruction, he concluded that there was a “significant improvement in both verbal and non-verbal IQ scores”.

He surmised that “chess nourishes latent learning abilities and reinforces skills in logical and abstract thinking, impulse control, endurance and determination”. The studies cited in this survey are impressive.

As a parent, it seems we all need to get wise to the benefits of chess. That is easier said than done. Our children’s concentration spans are often ambushed by TV, cellphones and other distractions.

Let’s face it, it is easier to switch on the telly than to haul out a chess board. Not all of us know how to play. “You don’t know how to play – why should we?” chorus the children – and they are correct.

As with everything, it is not enough to extol the virtues of a topic. It has to be presented in a way which makes it exciting.

Take the following example: My husband taught our children (then in grade 1 and 2) the rudiments of the game and they loved it. They attended sessions with chess whiz kids at their school and had a great time. The young teachers – national champions – gave prizes to their students which added to the excitement.

It ended when the young mentors were unable to continue due to their schedules at middle school.

My daughters learnt chess at school, but soon gave up. Why? It was boring. The teaching lacked the buzz they had been accustomed to. Chess was not part of the curriculum. It was the grudge activity where pariahs hung out because they had no one else to play with at break. Or that was the perception.

In actual fact, there were some seriously good players at the school but it seems that if you were a newcomer, this wasn’t an exciting gig.

I have seen children playing the game at home, but they would not go near a board at school because it wasn’t cool; because the teacher shouted or because they felt inadequate, playing with the brains of the school.

It seems this is not uncommon. Berman e-mailed comments to me from Peter, a SA chess coach who cautions: “Just a warning: I see the old disease of schools supporting only the top 15 players and maybe a few reserves. Chess is for all; it is a language; it helps all pupils to bring order into their academic careers and speed.”

Indeed, chess teachers need to take cognisance of the abilities of all students and need to frame the learning process as an exciting adventure – just as MacEnulty has done at the schools he has taught at in the Bronx and elsewhere.

There is a need to train the trainer. Berman is doing everything in his power to get MacEnulty back in town during the winter holidays (June/July) to run programmes with teachers.

The long-term goal would be to get chess into schools as part of the curriculum – taught during school hours. Chess is for all and with that in mind, they are hoping to get funding so the game can benefit all children.

Berman is also keen on twinning schools to encourage social interaction. A programme like this takes funding, and Berman is hedging his moves and encouraging corporations and others to make some good financial moves in getting chess into action at curriculum level.

The day after watching the film and hearing MacEnulty speak, my daughters and their friends hauled out the chess board and dusted it off. They played a game on Saturday evening which went on for hours. They were all exhausted and remarked that it was a jol, but that they were tired – their brains were sore.

Source:http://www.capetimes.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=272&fArticleId=3197176


Image from the movie: Knights of the South Bronx

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Chess game 33

It’s been months since I’ve blogged one of my chess games! These games here were on draft for about a month and I’ve thought to get them out here now. I’m not going to say a lot about it, – like previous games – all I want to say is, play through the games, read what I’ve said and hey! the Grandmasters are busy playing and some of them finished the British Champs last week…I was definitely not invited,- not this year, and last year I was way to busy playing chess to go! hehehe..- so what you get here, is really, really a few games of a novice in comparing to those Grandmasters! and a few games of somebody that loooooooves the game and also somebody who plays it for the fun and enjoyment of the game! If you’re not into chess, please go through all the other posts, there’s a lot more than just chess on here! or, move on to the next blog, but I want to tell you one thing! You don’t know what you’re missing if you don’t play chess! It’s not that boring game you think it is! You want me to tell you more…shout!! and I can keep you busy for hours without end. Dig into this site for tons of chess stuff if you’re a chess lover too! and enjoy! Click on the links and the games will open up in a new window. Click on this link to play through a few games where I was a complete loser in most of them… https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/02/08/chess-game-20/

Nikita1 vs. Gio82

I played white in this game. I haven’t got much to say, only that I didn’t capture his Knight in move 22, as I wanted to save my Rook, for in case …Bg5-f6…. and I was blocked by his Rook on move 26 and my Queen was driven back again.  In move 36 I forked his King/Queen/Bishop and I think I couldn’t  ask for a better end position. 

Image: ullart.com

 Nikita1 vs. deroy

White again…In this game I’ve thought at one stage the game was my opponent’s game and for some reason I missed the opportunity twice to capture his Knight!  I think I wasn’t really focused in this game as I sometimes play my games just for the fun of chess! I finally turned this game into a win with my King and Rook. These games are all games where I won, but I’ve blogged a few games before where I was really the bad loser! So, please don’t think it’s all win, moonshine and roses for me!

oakey vs. Nikita1

Not much about this game where I played black… I enjoyed it and like some other games…my mind was set on something else and then, out of the blue, I realised (duh! hello!!) that I only have that one move! I don’t think my opponent realised that too…play through it and see what a sudden checkmate that was!

Nikita1 vs. hotmailchessman

Nothing exciting about this game where I played white, except that I looooooove this game from move 30 onwards. Play through it and see how I used my Bishop/Queen whilst my own Rook was in danger too and with my Knights in place, I’ve thought it was really a good end. I invaded him from all sides here…lol

Nikita1 vs. torridon1

In this game I played white  –  a game against one of my favourite chess friends on Chess World. I often play him more for the fun and chat and thought to blog one of our games where he got into too much chat! That’s the problem on the chess site, I often chat too much and lose out on my games! hehehe… who cares! I would like “torridon” to know that I blog this game to “celebrate” our chess friendship on the site. He’s really a pleasure to play and makes me laugh about things in life.

Finally, two games I finished recently against the Earl… his rating is about double mine! and he refuses to play rated games, we always play friendlies only, as he knows one thing, and that’s with all the chatting, he comes only second! These two games are two brilliant examples of how he came second…oh, I’m only joking about the rated games! I’ve now discovered how to win a game against him and he knows for sure to be aware of my evil moves! He doesn’t know it yet, but I’m about to challenge him for a rated game! hehehe…I just wonder if he would accept it! Earl….? are you ready!?

Earl of Norfolk vs. Nikita1

Nikita1 vs. Earl of Norfolk

Nikita1 vs. k.o.bold

I recently finished this game in a tourney and it’s the first tourney in ages which I won…I quite like the way I used my Knights. I will sacrifice a Bishop in order to keep my Knights! In this game I also saw the gap for my Rook to capture either a pawn or his Bishop…and if it’s the pawn first…his Bishop was going to be next as with the pawn-capture his King would be in check! I think that made him resigning the game.

One of those times in chess that you think..duh! hello! you can checkmate your opponent! and you feel like a real beginner, knowing very little! Can that be identified/classified as a type of syndrome…hehehe…

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South African Junior players: Turkey

Daleen, Pratish and Corno practicing chess on the rooftop of the hotel.

I do hope you enjoy this report from Corno and the few pictures…all from the Official site : Chessa. I do hope to update this post soon with more info on the South Africans taking part in the World Junior Chess Championships in Turkey, as well as the World Junior Girls Chess Championships the same time. See my post about the World Junior Chess Championships for more results on the two Saffas with other results too.

Results : Round 8

 29  ANTON Sarah 1681 AUS 2½ 0 – 1 2 WFM WIID Daleen 1931 RSA
45  RAMSURRUP Pratish 1809 RSA 2½ 0 – 1 2½  OLIVER Gareth 2196 AUS

Pairings and results: Round 9 : 11th Aug 15:00

49 FM GROVER Sahaj 2306 IND 2½  2½  RAMSURRUP Pratish 1809 RSA-1-0

27 WFM WIID Daleen 1931 RSA 3  3  BOYARCHENKO Marie 1895 LUX –1-0

Pratish in round 9 Image: Official site

Pairings and results: round 10 August 12:15:00

26 WFM WIID Daleen 1931 RSA 4  vs 3½ WFM BERKE Ana 2100 CRO-1-0
52  RAMSURRUP Pratish 1809 RSA 2½ vs  2½  OZDOVER Mustafa Berkay 1768 TUR-0-1

Pairings and results: round 11 – 13th Aug 15:00

17 WIM DAULYTE Deimante 2288LTU 5 vs 5 WFM WIID Daleen 1931RSA-0-1
48  AYDOGDU Ataman 2050TUR 3½ vs 3½  RAMSURRUP Pratish 1809RSA-1-0
25  HEGARTY Sarah 1966ENG 4½ vs 4  IKONOMOPOULOU Maria 2074GRE-1-0

Pratish in round 11

Pairings and results – round 12: 14th Aug 15:00

18 WIM IVAKHINOVA Inna 2248 RUS 5½vs5½  HEGARTY Sarah 1966 ENG-1-0
22 WFM WIID Daleen 1931 RSA 5vs5 WFM LEKS Hanna 2198 POL-1-0
50  RAMSURRUP Pratish 1809 RSA 3½vs4  ULUDOGAN Lutfullah 0 TUR-1-0

Pairings and results: Round 13: 15th Aug 10:00..the final round

17 WIM DAULETOVA Gulmira 2267 KAZ 6vs6 WFM WIID Daleen 1931 RSA 1 – 0
23  HEGARTY Sarah 1966 ENG 5½vs5½ WFM DAVLETBAYEVA Madina 2155 KAZ 1 – 0
46  PLENCA Julijan 2295 CRO 4½vs4½  RAMSURRUP Pratish 1809 RSA 1 – 0

We left South Africa proudly on the 31st July 2008 filled with enthusiasm. The flight was lovely and our night at Istanbul was just as good. We did a lot of sight-seeing in Istanbul as we knew we were in for a hard time in Gaziantep as this tournament is regarded as the hardest junior chess championship in the world. We arrived in Gaziantep, which has a population of 1, 25 million and average temperature of 40 ° in summer. From the airport we left for our hotel, the Ugur Plaza Hotel, which is a very nice 5 star hotel. The tournament is very strong as there are more than 10 Grandmasters and over 20 International masters playing. Turkey is growing rapidly in chess and they have over 2 million youngsters taking chess courses in schools. Here are some pictures of Turkey.

Pratish enjoying an ice-cream on Istanbul square.

The South African team with Hou Yifan.

Round 1:

South Africa had a difficult start with Daleen playing Padmini Rout from India with a rating of 2257 and Pratish playing Ashwin Jayaram from India with a rating of 2436. Daleen was on the backfoot with the black pieces. Pratish played a very nice game with some interesting ideas and held his opponent for a long time but got outplayed in the endgame. Here follows his game:

(1) Ramsurrup,Pratish (1809) – Ashwin,Jayaram (2436) [B90]
World Juniors (1.1), 03.08.2008
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Qf3 g6 7.h3 Bg7 8.Be3 Bd7 9.g4 Nc6 10.0-0-0 0-0 11.Kb1 Rc8 12.Qg3 Nxd4 13.Bxd4 e5 14.Ba7 Qc7 15.Qe3 b5 16.Qb6 b4 17.g5 Ne8 18.Qxc7 Rxc7 19.Bb6 bxc3 20.Bxc7 Nxc7 21.Rxd6 Be6 22.Rc6 Nb5 23.Bxb5 axb5 24.Rxc3 Rd8 25.Rd3 Rxd3 26.cxd3 Bf8 27.h4 Bc5 28.Rh2 h5 29.Kc2 Kf8 30.b3 b4 31.Kd2 Bg4 32.Rg2 f6 33.gxf6 Kf7 34.Ke1 Kxf6 35.f3 Bxf3 36.Rc2 Bd4 37.Rc6+ Kg7 38.Ra6 Bg2 39.Rc6 Kf7 40.Rc7+ Kf6 41.Rc6+ Kg7 42.Rc7+ Kh6 43.Rc6 Bh3 44.Ke2 Bd7 45.Rc7 Bg4+ 46.Kf1 Bh3+ 47.Ke2 g5 48.Rc6+ Kg7 49.hxg5 h4 50.Rh6 Bg4+ 51.Kf1 h3 52.Rh4 Bc8 53.Rh6 Bd7 54.Ra6 h2 55.Kg2 Bg1 56.d4 Bh3+ 0-1

Round 2:

South Africa got their first point through Daleen Wiid. She convincingly won her game against Milian Salatic.
Pratish Ramsurrup got outplayed in the opening and lost against Vitaly Neimer of Israel with a rating of 2316.
The top seed Rauf Mamadov also lost in round 2 and was a big upset for the tournament. He is a Grandmaster from Azerbaijan with a rating of 2627. Although with a 13 round tournament there is still lots to play for.

Round 3:

Unfortunately both the South Africans lost and had problems with their openings. On this top level you cannot make one mistake and a lot of opening knowledge is required.
One of the tournament favorites’ Hou Yifan the current women’s World Champion is playing in the open section. She is seed number 16 with a rating of 2554 a Women Grandmaster from China. It was an honor to meet her.

 

Round 4:
Pratish got his first win to open his account we hope he will get much more wins and gain much more experience from this tournament. Daleen unfortunately lost to an experiences player from Norway. She played an interesting game and learnt a lot from it especially how to play this specific opening with the different ideas and structures. In this round the top seed Rauf Mamedov again lost. He is only on 2 out of 4 so as we can see this is a very strong tournament. So the South Africans must just be strong and gain a lot of experience from this tournament. Hou Yifan played a very nice game and she has a score of 3,5 out of 4 in the open section. I will publish her game tomorrow.

Coaches Report
Turkey 2008
Corno Klaver

Other Chess news: Congratulations to our 2 top players and coaches Daniel Cawdery and Monique Sischy who will represent South Africa at the Olympiad in Dresden, Germany in November. We are proud of you.

Update from Corno on the South African players in Turkey!

Round 5:
Here is Hou Yifan’s game from yesterday. A very attacking, aggressive game to claim the win.
(4) Hou,Yifan (2557) – Arun,Prasad (2492) [B53]
World Juniors Gaziantep Turkey
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nc6 5.Bb5 Bd7 6.Bxc6 Bxc6 7.Nc3 h6 8.Be3 e5 9.Qc4 Nf6 10.0-0-0 Qc8 11.Qd3 a6 12.Nh4 b5 13.f4 b4 14.fxe5 dxe5 15.Nd5 Bb5 16.Qd2 Qc6 17.Nf3 Nd7 18.Nxb4 Qc4 19.Nd5 Qxa2 20.Nc7+ Kd8 21.Qc3 Qa1+ 22.Kd2 Qa4 23.Nd5 Rc8 24.Bb6+ Nxb6 25.Nxb6 1-0
Daleen wasn’t feeling well today and lost due to lack of concentration. Many of the players are getting ill and this tournament isn’t just a test of playing strength but also of endurance and stamina.
Pratish played a good game against a 2218 but lost by choosing the wrong attacking plan. I thought he missed a few opportunities to win the game.
(5) Vavric,Pavel–2218 –..Rampsurrup,Pratish –1809– [B50]
World Juniors Gaziantep Turkey
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.c3 Nf6 4.Be2 Nc6 5.d3 Bg4 6.h3 Bh5 7.0-0 e6 8.Nbd2 Be7 9.Nc4 d5 10.exd5 Nxd5 11.g4 Bg6 12.Nfe5 Nxe5 13.Nxe5 0-0 14.c4 Nb4 15.Qb3 Bd6 16.Nxg6 fxg6 17.Be3 Rf7 18.d4 cxd4 19.Bxd4 Nc6 20.Be3 Qh4 21.c5 Bc7 22.Kg2 Raf8 23.Rad1 Kh8 24.Rd2 Ne5 25.f4 Nc6 26.Qxb7 Na5 27.Qe4 g5 28.Rf3 gxf4 29.Bf2 Qf6 30.b4 Nc6 31.Qxc6 e5 32.Qxf6 gxf6 33.Bd3 Rd7 34.Re2 Rfd8 35.Bf5 Rg7 36.Rd3 Rb8 37.a3 a5 38.Be1 h5 39.Kf3 hxg4+ 40.hxg4 axb4 41.axb4 Kg8 42.Red2 1-0

Round 6:
Pratish scored his second win of the tournament by outplaying his Turkish opponent. Daleen’s condition worsened and she withdrew from this game to rest and hopefully get better. Here is a rating of the tournament so far:
Rated things: Rating out of 5 with 5 the best:
Flight 4
Hotel 5
Food 3,5
Playing venue 2
Player interaction 4
Round 7:
Daleen came back with a vengeance and played a nice combination to go two pawns up in the endgame. Well done Daleen.
(6) Wiid,Daleen – Dai,Irmak [C24]
World Juniors Gaziantep Turkey
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d3 d5 4.exd5 Nxd5 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.0-0 Bc5 7.Re1 f6 8.h3 Nde7 9.Nc3 Bf5 10.a3 Qd7 11.Ne4 Bb6 12.Ng3 0-0-0 13.b4 a6 14.Rb1 Na7 15.a4 c6 16.Qe2 Be6 17.Be3 Bxe3 18.Qxe3 Kb8 19.Nxe5 Qc7 20.Bxe6 Qxe5 21.Qxe5+ fxe5 22.Rxe5 1-0
Pratish also played a very good game. The game preparation went perfect and he gained a useful advantage. He was a pawn up and missed lots of winning chances, but he couldn’t convert it to a win in the endgame and drew the game.
(7) Sousa,Ricardo (2133) – Rampsurrup,Pratish (1809) [A08]
World Juniors Gaziantep Turkey
1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 c5 3.Bg2 Nc6 4.0-0 e5 5.d3 f6 6.Nbd2 Be6 7.e4 Nge7 8.c3 Qd7 9.a3 d4 10.c4 g5 11.Rb1 Ng6 12.Qa4 a5 13.Rd1 h5 14.Nf1 h4 15.Rd2 hxg3 16.fxg3 Bh3 17.b4 cxb4 18.Rdb2 Bxg2 19.Kxg2 Ra6 20.Bd2 Bd6 21.axb4 Nxb4 22.Qxd7+ Kxd7 23.Ne1 b6 24.Kf3 Ne7 25.Kg4 Raa8 26.Bxb4 Bxb4 27.Nc2 Bc5 28.h3 Nc6 29.Nd2 Nb4 30.Nxb4 axb4 31.Nb3 Ke6 32.Rf1 Ra7 33.Rff2 Rha8 34.Rh2 Bd6 35.Rhf2 Ra3 36.Rfc2 Rc8 37.Rb1 Rc7 38.Rbb2 Ra8 39.Rb1 Bc5 40.Rbb2 Bd6 41.Rb1 Be7 42.Rf1 Rca7 43.Rff2 Ra3 44.Rb2 Rc8 45.Rfc2 Rc7 46.Rb1 1/2-1/2
Tomorrow is a rest day and we going to do some sight seeing. We are going to visit an old castle and some museums.
Round 8 to follow and it’s a tri-nations match up today. Both the South Africans are playing Aussies. Make us proud bokke!!!

Coaches Report
Turkey 2008
Corno Klaver

Round 8:
Daleen Wiid won comfortably after the opening with a kingside attack. Pratish Rampsurrup had a drawn endgame but missed the draw in time trouble in the end.     South Africa 1 – Australia 1. Here is a picture of the mosaïek we saw in the museum on the rest day.

Round 9:
Pratish had a tough opponent in round 9. He played Fide Master Sahaj Grover from India with a rating 2306. It was a very complicated Najdorf position where Pratish had a queen for 3 pieces. I think he misplayed the position and had a chance to have a better position as black. Here is the position:

Pratish played, 18. …Rac8 which I think is to slow. He should either play 18. … f6 immediately or even better 18. … b4 follow by 19. Ne4 f6! This will give him an advantage. It is still complicated to play but the dangerous e7 pawn will fall and Pratish can start to organize his pieces.
Daleen swapped of queens early and outplayed her opponent in the endgame.

Round 10:
Daleen played a spectacular game to win her 4th game in a row. She is on fire. Here was the position she reached and made a nice sacrifice and finished her opponent off.

Daleen played 20. Nxh7! exd4 21.Bg5 Be7 22.Rfe1!

Round 11:
Daleen now faces her toughest challenge of the tournament playing WIM Deimante Daulyte from Lithuania with a rating of 2288. Good luck Daleen, mate it 5 in a row!

Coaches Report
Turkey 2008
Corno Klaver

 

Free day …chess junior players on their trip in Turkey…I can see Corno and Pratish…but wonder where is Daleen…Corno?

Follow this link for more about the World Junior CC in Turkey

https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/08/01/world-junior-chess-championships-2008/

Some of the participants of the SA Juniors Closed in March 2008

Some of the SA junior players…

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South Africa Women’s Open Chess Championship 2008

GM Dimitri Reinderman in SA…image: www.chessa.co.za the Official site.

Well done to Marlene Roets who was the only player to draw against special guest Grand Master, Dimitri Reinderman, in the simultaneous event, where he participated against 25 women.

EZET ROOS: SA Women’s Open Chess Champion 2008

Source: www.gjca.co.za

 Other Chess news: Congratulations to our 2 top players and coaches Daniel Cawdery and Monique Sischy who will represent South Africa at the Olympiad in Dresden, Germany in November. We are proud of you.

Image: gjca.co.za

SA Women’s Open 2008

SA Women’s Open : Pairings round 4…source: Gauteng Junior Chess Association

This is only the pairings for the first 10 boards, see  http://www.gjca.co.za for more pairings

SA Women’s Open 2008: Final results after round 5

Small message to Chessa: Please, this is an Official Tournament! It could make my task a lot easier if this was published on your Official site, which is Chessa! Gauteng Juniors is not SA’s official site!

As soon as I have more news… I will update this post! hmmm…I could update it at last! with hours of searching and sniffing….and at last found info on a non-official site…Gauteng Juniors…thank you! Gauteng Juniors for publishing the results and the pairings…I do hope Chessa take notice of my message to them! Meanwhile, if you have zillions to spend, then Cresta is for you…a shopping centre in Randburg..near Jo’burg..hop off your flight and hop into this shopping centre…

Cresta 

Results of the SA Open Chess Championships- Section A : July 2008

See more results here: http://www.chessa.co.za/SAOpen2008.html

South Africa’s top 10 female chess players…19/8/2008

The number after the date of birth, is the number of games played…

1 SOLOMONS, A (ANZEL) 1978/01/06 2025  38
2 GREEFF, M (MELISSA) 1994/04/15 1947   27
3 SISCHY, MS (MONIQUE) 1987/12/04 1872 0
4 WIID, D (DALEEN) 1991/11/06  1861  50
5 PISTORIUS, R (RIANI) 1985/03/07  1845  12
6 DE JAGER, C (CARMEN) 1989/01/17  1843  28
7 ELLAPPEN, J (JENINE) 1986/03/25  1821  0
8 FRICK, D (DENISE) 1980/11/26  1812  19
9 ROOS, E (EZET) 1991/03/22  1783  29
10 DE WAAL, I (INGRID) 1990/07/17  1749  34

See the rest of the top 100 female players on this link:

http://www.chessa.co.za/TopWoman.html

Other chess news: from Chessa-site: Congratulations to D Solomons, A Goosen, D Van den Heever, J Ophoff, H.R Steel and D Cawdery who have been awarded their CM Titles

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The Chess Mind – expert?

This article comes from the Scientic American magazine- front cover scanned here too as you can see. It’s a very interesting article and you can easily copy the images to read it later. I want to quote from the first paragraph….”The year is 1909, the man is Jose Raul Capablanca of Cuba, and the result is a whitewash 28 wins….” and in the second paragraph..”I see only one move ahead,” Capablanca is said to have answered, “but it is always the correct move.” phew… I sometimes have only one move to make! and the move I know it’s the right move…but in most games you have to observe the board closely to see what your “enemy” is about to do and what evil plans he’s got up his sleeve! and that means you have to see about 2 or more moves ahead…as chess player myself, I can quote a lot from this article and comment on it…but I’m no master/grandmaster! I think every person has a different view/opinion….do spend some time to read it, it’s definitely worth spending the time on it! (I do apologise for the paint on the front cover! – zoom into the images once you’ve clicked on it to have a larger view)

On my blog I’ve done several posts about chess and research.
Please click on this link – links will open in a new window – to read about the Male/Female brain when it comes to chess and HERE about Chess and Altzheimers. On this link you can read how important chess is for your kids to work with money! and….on THIS SITE all the benefits why your child should play chess. Here’s a link on my blog about Maths and Chess .. Enjoy this movie about chess! and research.
People have different opinions about chess…is it a sport or not? I say it is…and if you disagree…well, that’s your opinion… and I’ve come across this very clever South African and he apparently organised the first multi-cultural chess game in SA…but sadly he’s been recruited to the USA…lucky Americans having him now! http://www.jurispro.com/VernonNeppeMDPhDFRSSAfFAPAFRCPC

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Baku Chess rounds 12 and 13

Today…round 13 – the final round! – was played in Baku, Azerbainjan. The first images in this post is about round 13, please slide down for round 12-results. More images of round 13 can bee seen on the official Baku2008.fide.com-site.

Tadaa! and here are the results of round 13…
Karjakin, Sergey 1/2 Kamsky, Gata 1/2
Svidler, Peter 1 Inarkiev,Ernesto 0
Navara, David 1 Cheparinov, Ivan 0
Adams, Michael 1/2 Gashimov, Vugar 1/2
Grischuk, Alexander 1/2 Radjabov, Teimour 1/2
Carlsen, Magnus 1 Bacrot,Etienne 0
Wang, Yue 1/2 Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar 1/2
Kamsky, Gata 1/2 Kerjakin, Sergey 1/2

Final ranking…
1 Gashimov Vugar 2679 AZE 8
2 Wang Yue 2689 CHN 8
3 Carlsen Magnus 2765 NOR 8
4 Mamedyarov Shakhriyar 2752 AZE 71/2
5 Grischuk Alexander 2716 RUS 7½
6 Adams Michael 2729 ENG 6½
7 Svidler Peter 2746 RUS 6½
8 Radjabov Teimour 2751 AZE 6
9 Kamsky Gata 2726 USA 6
10 Karjakin Sergey 2732 UKR 6
11 Cheparinov Ivan 2695 BUL 5½
12 Navara David 2672 CZE 5½
13 Bacrot Etienne 2705 FRA 5
14 Inarkiev Ernesto 2684 RUS 5

Game between Wang and Mamedyrov…move 29….round 13

This image is from the game between Bacrot and Carlsen…after move 34

Wang against Mamedyarov move…47

End position…Navara and Cheparinov

End position: Grischuk and Radjabov

Results …round 12 played yesterday:

Radjabov 0 Navara 1   
Gashimov 1 Grischuk 0
Kamsky 0 Svidler 1
Carlsen 1 Adams 0
Cheparinov 1/2 Karjakin 1/2
Inarkiev 1/2 Wang 1/2
Mamedyarov 1 Bacrot 0

 

On this image you can see what the game board looked like between Carlsen and Adams in round 12. Click on images for a larger view.

Inarkiev playing white against Wang.

Kamsky playing against Svidler

Final position of the game between Kamsky and Svidler

 
Gashimov against Grischuk…move 17

Gashimov against Grischuk…final position on the board

Radjabov against Navara…move 19

Final position of the board between Radjabov and Navara

Mamedyarov against Bacrot move 49

All images from players: Baku2008-Fide  Official site

…wow…I can’t make up my mind with all of these men…why do  they all look so the same today!

….I was sure there was a fairy…just there!

Gata… I told you he didn’t touch that pawn…it was the pawn on H2…

…but sir…he touched it again! where are you now!….

…if you’re in the top position, this is how you pick up a piece…just watch..and you’ll win!

…..wow…they are sooooooo beautiful!

 

…eeny meeny miny moe!…..

Standings…after round 12
 
Wang Yue 2689 CHN 7½
Gashimov Vugar 2679 AZE 7½
Grischuk Alexander 2716 RUS 7
Mamedyarov Shakhriyar 2752 AZE 7
Carlsen Magnus 2765 NOR 7
Adams Michael 2729 ENG 6
Radjabov Teimour 2751 AZE 5½
Karjakin Sergey 2732 UKR 5½
Svidler Peter 2746 RUS 5½
Kamsky Gata 2726 USA 5½
Bacrot Etienne 2705 FRA 5
Cheparinov Ivan 2695 BUL 5
Inarkiev Ernesto 2684 RUS 5
Navara David 2672 CZE 4½

 

Pairings for round 13, the final round.
 

Round 13 on 05/05/08 at 14:00
Karjakin Sergey – Kamsky Gata
Navara David – Cheparinov Ivan
Grischuk Alexander – Radjabov Teimour
Adams Michael – Gashimov Vugar
Bacrot Etienne – Carlsen Magnus
Yue Wang – Mamedyarov Shakhriyar
Svidler Peter – Inarkiev Ernesto

Enjoy the video about round 13, the final round.

ENJOY! this movie about round 12…also to be seen on the Baku2008-Fide site.

On this image you can see the three winners in this tournament.

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Chess History

I’ve come across this site with some really interesting bits of information about the game…. questions children always tend to ask you or facts which you want to share with them about the game.

Another link about Chess History …

1. What is the origin of the game of chess?	Chess is a game of war that was created in India in the 700’s. It may have been used to train warriors or as a civilized way for kingdoms to settle their differences since chess is a battle between two armies. Chess was brought to Europe by crusaders and the Moorish and Persian traders who dealt in silk, spices, from the east.
2. Why does the white player move first?	In medieval times black was thought to be a lucky colour. The white player was allowed to go first since the black player already had the advantage of the lucky colour.
3. Who are some famous chess masters?	Boris Spassky, Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov, Paul Morphy
4. What changes were made to moves by the queen and bishop?	In medieval chess the queen moved only one square diagonally. The medieval chess bishop could leap over pieces like a knight, and like the knight moved exactly two steps; but unlike the knight, it moved its two steps diagonally. In the late 15th century, the queen and bishop were given the powers they now have. This probably happened in Italy, France, or Spain, around 1475-1485. Modern chess was created in the same historical period that produced the printing press and the discovery of America.
5. How does a chess game represent life in medieval times?	The chess pieces represent people and places  of medieval times. Ceremonies and wars are represented by the chess game. Medieval Europeans modernized the chess game of the Persians to reflect their lives. They used the pieces to describe the lives of the ordinary and wealthy people.

 

 

image: gamesmuseum

1. When is the earliest mention of chess being played?	0531 – Chess was introduced into Persia.
2. Where did Chess originate?	India.
3. What was the earliest precursor of chess?	Chaturanga was the earliest chess precursor. It was created in the Punjab. Decimal chess used a 10 x 10 board.
4. When were the earliest chess pieces identified?	0610
5. What were some other versions of chess pieces used?	Chess was played with dice in China.
6. When was the first mention of women playing chess?	0770
7. When was chess first played in  Egypt? Spain? China? Italy? France? Russia? Greece? England? Poland	Egypt – 0620, Spain – 0780, China – 0795, Italy – 0800, France – 0801, Russia – 0820, Greece – 0895, England – 1013,  Poland – 1100

Please click on THIS LINK to read more…and it is a good link for children-in-learning-more-about-the-game…

Click on the image for a larger view

Source: http://www.edochess.ca/batgirl/countrytournament.html

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Baku Chess round 10

In Baku, Azerbaijan, it was a rainy day today….In this image you can see Radjabov sharing his umbrella. In Round 10, Carlsen and Navara drew their game and Grischuck and Mamedyarov.  Ivan Cheparinov-(Bulgaria)  won his game against Teimour Radjabov (Azerbaijan).
Follow THIS LINK to watch some press conferences about different players.
Other results:
Gata Kamsky 1/2 Wang Yue 1/2
Gashimov Vugar 1/2 Karjakin Sergey 1/2
Inarkiev Ernesto 1/2 Michael Adams 1/2
Svidler Peter 1/2 Bacrot Etienne 1/2

Follow the “live” link on the side bar of my blog to follow the games live.
Please follow THIS LINK to see more photos taken today in round 10.

…..is that an expression of a blunder?

 

Round 11 on 03/05/08 at 15:00
Cheparinov Ivan – Kamsky Gata
Karjakin Sergey – Radjabov Teimour
Navara David – Gashimov Vugar
Grischuk Alexander – Carlsen Magnus
Adams Michael – Mamedyarov Shakhriyar
Bacrot Etienne – Inarkiev Ernesto
Yue Wang – Svidler Peter

This video is from the Official website of Fide-Baku-2008

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Chess in Art

Chess in the Art of Samuel Bak

Please click on THIS LINK to view and read more about Samuel Bak’s Chess Art!

 

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Chess Grandmasters play football!

Chess players in Baku had a free day  yesterday! See how they spent their day…playing football…watch  the second movie to see the players in action!

 

Images: Fide.com

Sergey Karjakin, from Ukraine, (Ukrainian: Сергій Карякін; born January 12, 1990 in Simferopol) is a top chess player. At the age of twelve years and seven months he became the youngest grandmaster in history. On the FIDE ranking list of April 2008, he has a rating of 2732, making him number 14 in the world, number 2 in the category of boys up to 20 years old and number 2 in the  Ukraine. On this first movie you can see the interview held with him. Both movies can be watched on the Fide.com site too.

 

 

Round 6 will be played today. You can see the pairings on this image.

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Chess games 29

In this game I’ve thought that I had really a cool game! Very early in this game I was in really big trouble…if you look at black’s position after move 13. I made a desperate attack on his King, to prevent a checkmate! and by my Bishop-move…in move 14, I could relief my King from that pressure, but now my King was exposed! but at least not in checkmate…Knowing wat was coming..I moved my King with move 21 to F1. In move 38…my lovely Knight-to-the rescue…and I count myself lucky with move 42…to capture his Knight. From move 51 and on… I could have done better, but at least I had some Pawns left and pushed through with one Pawn. With black’s move in move 58, I sacrificed one Rook in order to prevent his Pawn from promotion as I knew that I was still safe with my Pawns left…with black’s move in 62….was just what I wanted! and I could finish the game in a very slow Rook/King @ lonely King… this opponent is rated much higher than I am and that’s why I’ve thought that was really cool play on my side….to recover from a early heart attack, my poor King… he’s now back from intensive care and all is well with him! hehehe…click on this link to play through the game…it will open in a new window.
Earl from the chess site sent me this quote when I commented on this game: Nimzovitch once said, regarding one of his games, “[My opponent] now succumbs to a very pretty attack (I would say this even if the game were played by my worst enemy, so why not when it’s me?).”
This is also a game played on Chess World…and I think you’ve noticed that I played white again in this game…

Nikita1 vs. sirlancelot08

The Rooks/Queens game!

This next game was really a very tough game..and one of my longest games on the site…my longest game was 107 moves and you can view the game HERE on my blogger site…not only was it a long game, but also a game we started in July 2007! My opponent was a slow mover, but was also on holiday a few times. If you look at the image, you will see why I call it the Rooks/Queens’ game… I don’t want to elaborate on the game as you will see how tense this game was near to the end before my opponent resigned when you play through the game. Please click on the link and it will open in a new window. In this game my opponent’s rating was also about 300+ higher than mine. I played white in this game.

Nikita1 vs. jammywel

 

 

READ ALL ABOUT IT!! ….on my blog…

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Chess game 28

This is again one of my own games played on Chess World… I blog this game due to a couple of reasons. Firstly…to show you how easy you can get a piece trapped…-I played white in this game-…..my Rook with black’s move after move 16 …trapped!  If… he had moved his Bishop to G7… I was Rook-less! Secondly… to show you how one can recover from a few thoughtless moves….really bad moves on my side…and how I gained control again. I captured his Knight… move 17 …..so by the way…if it’s your first time here…then you don’t know it… but I always capture a Knight if I can and I do prefer to keep mine in safety where possible… hey… horses are great animals and they do work for you…even if it’s on a chess board! lol! you should allow them to work for you…I really started panicking and was desperate with move 20 and with black’s Knight-move…ahw…what can I say! For some reason, black missed E5 with move 21 and from there…he missed my Rook too! and preferred to check instead…Move 23…brilliant move by black as I lost a pawn and my poor Knightie! Another desperate move on my side with move 26 and I sacrificed my Rook in order to capture black’s Rook, because I had other plans in my head…. With move 29-30… I saw the checkmate earlier….and was hoping for the right moment…the game was really getting tense and I couldn’t wait to make that devastating move…and with black’s move (32)Qf6… I knew he missed the checkmate and could I perform that last move to close the game. I used to have my Knights most of the time in my end games or in a checkmate…but in this game…very rare for me…I have one of my Bishops to-the-rescue. If you click on the link, the game will open in a new window.

Nikita1 vs. Perry Mason

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Chess in Centurion

Centurion Open Chess Tournament
30 April, 1 – 4 May 2008

Fide rated

If you’re in the Centurion area and you’re a chess player…or in any other area in South Africa…or even in any other country!! ….you should go to this tournament! Centurion is a stone’s throw from Pretoria and Johannesburg..easy reachable from the Johannesburg International Airport..oops!! it’s now the Oliver Tambo International Airport…names, names, names…!! changes of place names in South Africa!! What a waste of money…anyway…let’s not talk about that issue when we talk chess…you can almost walk from the airport…lol! not really…but almost…Please click HERE for more details of this tournament. There are three sections…see the link for all the details! There is also info on traveling/lodging/people to contact etc. So, you have no problem to not to go and play chess in Centurion! If you really…like in really have problems with contacting any of the about 200 people on the details-list…which I know would not be the case! but if you’re desperate…you can drop me a line here on my blog! Centurion is a beautiful place, I know as I lived there for a couple of years and going there for chess….makes it even better! This tournament will be held at KLEINKAAP and hey…you have to look at this site…the best you can get! “Kleinkaap”…on the images….See more on the link…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PS: The Lubowski Open tournament takes place in Pretoria 9-11th May 2008.  The Pretoria Open chess tournament takes place on the 10th May in Centurion. The Gauteng Open chess tournament: 23/24 May. Click on THIS LINK for a complete calendar on Chessa’s website.

 

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Male and Female Chess players

On  ChessWorld, in the chess forum, we had a discussion about male/female players.  The question was… are men
better at chess….? and some wondered why men are/were better…  Some people think chess is a male game. I didn’t play chess when I was at school, although I could play, as there were always only boys playing…as I said before on my blog… I felt intimidated by those boys giving me the look of…”hey… you’re a girl…and you play chess!”… as if it’s actually a boy’s game…I think nowadays boys/men have accepted  that chess is also a girls/female game and that we can actually also play the game, and sometimes even a bit better…also, I think it’s just a matter of statistics. For some men on the site, it’s even hard to lose a game to a woman! I experience it every now and then and quite recently had again such an experience of a male player that couldn’t handle the fact that a female was beating him.

We have also two tournaments going…where there are equally male/female players in both… I’m in the one tournament…and in this tournament the outcome looks positive for both sexes…in the other tourney it seems to be the females that will walk away as the winners…How do you feel? Are men better…is it a male game…what’s your opinion? 

On THIS LINK you can follow the discussion about male/female chess on CW. This forum link will open in a new window.

 In the following chess game, I played white. My opponent – this game was played more than six months ago, before this entry – was about 400+ ahead of me although he’s actually a 2000+ player, which means he would then be 800 ahead of me.  He resigned at the end. You can click on the link and it will open in a new window to play through the game. I think it was also a bit of luck on my side. He wasn’t really impressed with the fact that I was beating him. Then, best of all, the game got more attention in the chess forum as an annotated game with a title: “Underdog wins”…Here is the game link ….Nikita1 vs. No6

This chess art is a brilliant piece of art by Roger Morin

I came across a site with very useful information… a very extensive site where you can read more about the research/study that was done about the female/male chess player! Read here an extract and you can follow the link to read the entire article! There is more to read than just this extract… you will not regret reading more!

After examining the data the researchers made four statements summarized below:

They found that men and women differed in chess ability in all age groups even after differences like frequency of play (read: level of training) or age were taken into account. The disparity between men and women in ability exists at the beginning and persists across all age groups. At least ostensibly this would lend credence to the ability distribution hypothesis in the sense that it suggests the mean ability between men and women are innately different. The last piece of data looks at whether that is true.

They found no greater variance in men than women. It had been suggested that since science selects for individuals at the upper tail of the distribution, a higher variance in men than women might explain their greater representation. However, the researchers found that — with respect to chess — if anything in most age groups women had a higher variance then men. Upper tail effects do not explain the differences in the numbers of grandmasters.

They found that women and men do not drop out more or less frequently when ability and age are factored out. For example, if you are not very good at chess you are more likely to stop playing tournaments, but girls and boys that are equally good are equally likely to stop playing. This strikes a blow at the differential dropout hypothesis.

Finally, here is the interesting part. If you look at the participation rate of women and relate that to performance, you find that in cases where the participation rate of women and men is equal the disparity in ability vanishes. Basically, this means that in zip codes where there are equal numbers of men and women players there is no great disparity between male and female ability — and certainly not a disparity in ability large enough to explain the difference in the numbers of grandmasters…read moreHEREabout the research/study.

Update: 26Dec 2008: You can read on THIS LINK new info on a new “gentle“ research that was done by a chess player from the Oxford University to prove that it’s only statistics when it comes to male/female GM’s…the link will open in a new window.

On this pdf-link you can read more about male/female chess players and the personality of chess players.

http://people.brunel.ac.uk/~hsstffg/preprints/Bilalic%20et%20al%20-%20Personality.pdf

Click on here to find out if you have a male/female brain. The link will open in a new window.

I had this chess game in this post annotated, here is the annotation if you’re interested.

1.e4 e5 2.d4 d5!? Playable, but not the best. Black can’t afford to mimic White’s moves, especially when it comes to centre Pawns. The obvious (2…exd4) is best.

3.f3 Weakening the King’s position. Best is simply (3.dxe5 dxe4 4.Qxd8+) and Black loses the castling priviledge, although with the Queens off the board this isn’t too critical.

3. … Bb4+ Wastes time, as White will simply interpose the c-pawn and the Bishop will have to retreat. Best is (3…exd4).

4.c3 Bd6 5.exd5 exd4 6.Qxd4 Nf6 7.Bg5 O-O Since the shaky first three moves, both sides have played quite well, but here (7…Nbd7) is better, as White will now be able to shatter Black’s King’s position.

8.Bxf6 gxf6 [8…Qxf6 may be safer, if not better, for if 9.Qxf6 gxf6], Black has the same Pawn formation as in the game, but White’s main attacking piece (the Queen) is gone.

9.Bd3 Qe7+ Since White can cover the check with a developing move, it may have been better to start chipping away at the White centre with (9…c6). Also worth considering is (9…Be5).

10.Ne2 b6 11.Be4 An unnecessary moving of the same piece twice in the opening. White should complete her development with (11.Nd2), followed by castling (Queenside being safer in this case, because of the semi-open g-file).

11. … Bb7 Logical, given his previous move, but (11…f5) would’ve forced White to retract her last move.

12.c4 Another unnecessary move, as the d-pawn was amply protected. White should once again have played (12.Nd2).

12. … Nd7 It’s hard to knock a move that develops a new piece, but (12…Be5) was stronger here.

13.Nd2 White finally makes this move, but as long as the c-pawn is no longer preempting c3, this Knight would be better placed there.

c5?? Once again, (13…Be5) would have been an uncomfortable move for White to face. The text is a blunder which should lose a piece.

14.dxc6 Be5? Wrong time for this move now, as it just compounds his previous error. Better is (14…f5 15.cxb7 Rab8 16.Bd3) etc.

15.Qd3?! Good enough to maintain the advantage, but (15.Qxd7 Qxd7 16.cxd7 Bxe4 17.Nxe4 Bxb2 18.Rb1 Be5 19.f4) is much stronger.

15. … Bxb2? Here Black had a chance to avoid the worst with (15…Nc5 16.Qc2 Bc8 17.Bxh7+ Kg7).

16.Rb1 Good, but better is (16.cxb7 Rae8 17.Rb1 Nc5 18.Qe3) etc.

16. … Ne5 (16…Bxc6) is probably better, although Black would still be losing.

17.Qc2 Ba3 Again, (17…Bxc6) is better, but perhaps Black was trying to confuse the issue.

18.cxb7 White now has an overwhelming advantage, and should win with reasonably careful play.

Rab8 19.O-O Prudent, but White should have played (19.Bxh7+) while the opportunity presented itself.

19. … Bc5+ 20.Kh1 Qd7 Here Black might have tried getting rid of the thorn in his side with (20…f5 21.Bxf5 Rxb7).

21.a4 There’s still no reason why White can’t play (21.Bxh7+).

21. … Nc6 Seals off White’s b-pawn, but (21…Ng6) would have saved Black’s h-pawn …

22.Bxc6 … except that White doesn’t seem to want Black’s h-pawn for some reason.

Qxc6 23.a5 Worth considering is (23.Qe4).

23. … Rxb7 Black finally eliminates White’s advanced Pawn, but is not yet out of the woods. For one thing, he’s still a piece down.

24.a6 More of an annoyance move than anything else. (24.Ne4), with the idea of exchanging off Black’s Bishop, is better.

24. … Re7 25.Nf4 (25.Ne4) is still probably the better move, but the text isn’t bad, either.

25. … Be3 Flashy, but inconsequential.

26.g3!? A bit dangerous. With (26.Nd5) White would be assured of eliminating Black’s Bishop.

26. … Bxd2?! Obliging White by exchanging the Bishop himself, thinking only of winning the c-pawn. Something like –26…Rd8– is probably better.

27.Qxd2 Qxc4 Black regains a Pawn, but the real threat was White moving her Knight to h5, followed by Qh6 threatening mate in two. Therefore, (27…Re5) is safer.

28.Ra1 Fortunately for Black, the above-m