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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Tromso Chess Round 4

Henry’s game vs Kamsky. Tromso round 4

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. Nc3 d6 4. Bc4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. a3 O-O 7. Ba2 Nc6 8. d3 Rb8 9. Re1 b5 10. Ne2 a5 11. Ng3 b4 12. c3 Ba6 13. d4 bxc3 14. bxc3 Nd7 15. Bf4 e5 16. Be3 cxd4 17. cxd4 exd4 18. Nxd4 Nxd4 19. Bxd4 Ne5 20. Rb1 g6 21. Rxb8 Qxb8 22. f4 Nd3 23. Nf5 Re8 24. Nh6+ Kf8 25. Qa1 Rc8 26. Bxf7 Bh4 27. Rf1 Rc2 28. f5 Ne5 29. fxg6 Bxf1 30. Qxf1 hxg6 31. Bxg6+ Bf2+ 32. Bxf2 Kg7 33. Bh5 Kxh6 34. Be3+ Kg7 35. h4 Qc8 36. Qd1 Qc6 37. Qe1 Kh7 38. Bg5 Qc5+ 39. Kh2 Qf2 40. Qxf2 Rxf2 41. Be7 Rd2 42. Be8 Rd3 43. g3 Ng6 44. Bd8 Rxa3 45. h5 Ne5 46. Bc7 Re3 47. Bxa5 Rxe4 48. Kh3 Re2 49. Bc7 Rd2 50. g4 Kh6 51. Bb5 Kg5 52. Kg3 Nxg4 53. Bd8+ Nf6 54. h6 Kg6 55. Kf3 Rh2 56. Bc7 Rh3+ 57. Kg2 Rb3 58. Be2 Ne4 59. Bf3 Rb2+ 60. Kg1 Ng5 61. Bg2 Rd2 62. Bb6 Kxh6 63. Be3 Ra2 64. Bf4 Ra6 65. Bf1 Rb6 66. Kf2 Kg6 67. Bd3+ Kf6 68. Ke3 Nf7 69. Bc4 Ne5 70. Bg8 Ra6 71. Ke4 Ra4+ 72. Ke3 Ra8 73. Bh7 Ke6 74. Bc2 Ra3+ 75. Ke2 d5 76. Bh7 d4 77. Be4 Ra2+ 78. Kf1 Nc4 79. Ke1 Ne3 80. Bg3 Rb2 81. Bc7 Nd5 82. Bg3 Nf6 83. Bd3 Kd5 84. Bf4 Nd7 85. Bh7 Ne5 86. Bg3 Nf3+ 87. Kd1 d3 88. Bf4 0-1

Round 4: Kamsky Photo-  @Tromso2014 

I was super excited when Gert – also a chess enthusiast, who mainly blogs about great South African Afrikaans writers and poets and writes about movies, musicians, componists, etc.  in general- informed me about the win of Henry Steel vs Gata Kamsky. I have been following this particular group of South African champs for the past few years in the ‘big‘ tournaments like these and they are a strong team of chess players and South Africa can be proud of them. Congratulations to Henry, we hope that your game against Kamsky will inspire the team to do even better. The following images are from Tromso, tweeted out to the twitter community by Susan Polgar.

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Commonwealth Chess 2011

http://commonwealthchess.com

If you’re a chess player still wanting to take part in the Commonwealth Chess Tournament, in South Africa, then you are lucky as you still have time to enroll till April, 8. The tournament takes place from 25th June 2011 – 3rd July 2011. If you click HERE you will find an online entry form to complete. A PDF document with all the details is linked here too. Links will open in new windows. I do hope to have time to follow this tournament and have a few entries about it- so, keep watching this space! There are about 7 Grandmasters and IM’s also taking part and these articles can also be read on the official South African site: chessa.co.za  On the following link you can see more photos and details from other GM’s and IM’s from other countries who have entered for the CC2011.

http://www.chessa.co.za/tournament_websites/CWCC2011/player_profile.html

We are delighted to announce that top English Grandmaster Nigel Short (MBE) has confirmed his participation in the 2011 Commonwealth & South African Open Championships!

Nigel is a three times past champion and will be bidding to become the first player to win the title on 4 separate occasions. He has previously won the tournament in 2004, 2006 and 2008!

Having first attracted media attention by defeating GM Viktor Korchnoi as a 10-year-old, Nigel went on to become (at the time) the you8ngest International Master in chess history. In the process he broke the record previously held by no less than Bobby Fischer! He earned the Grandmaster title in 1984 (age nineteen), to become the youngest grandmaster in the world at the time.

Nigel is a former world number 3 and is possibly best known for his World Chess Championship match against Garry Kasparov in London 1993. He has been a chess professional for more than 25 years and yet continues to enjoy international success as a player. Still ranked in the top 100 players in the world, he is a highly regarded chess columnist and commentator.

He has also coached a number of the world’s best known players including GM Pentala Harikrishna, GM Sergey Karjakin, GM David Howell and GM Parimarjan Negi.

Nigel, we look forward to hosting you at the tournament.

English Grandmaster Gawain Jones has become the second British based Grandmaster to confirm his entry to the tournament. Gawain began playing chess at the age of four, and hit the headlines in 1997 when he became the youngest player in the world ever to beat an International Master in an official tournament game. He has represented England at the World Junior and World Youth Championships on many occasions and also represented England at the Chess Olympiads of 2008 (Dresden) and 2010 (Khanty-Mansiysk).

Gawain has lived in Italy, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, but now lives in London, where he is focusing on his chess career and related projects. An active player on the tournament circuit, he secured his grandmaster title in 2006. He helped make history in 2009 when he competed in the South African Open from Australia, using the online chess servers of ChessCube.com. He eventually placed second in this event, behind IM (now GM) Amon Simutowe.

Gawain has published a book on The Grand Prix Attack and is recognised as one of the world’s leading experts on the The Benoni and The Benko Gambit. He publishes blogs of his travels on his website http://gawainjones.co.uk/wp/?page_id=2

Results – Female section – Anzel Solomons in 2nd position

Results: Open Section- Deon Solomons in 4th Position

On the next image: RESULTS of the Open Section of the Commonwealth Chess Games 2011 – Top 20

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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

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Dresden-Chess Olympiad 2008

Chess Games of Round 8: South African chess players as well as: Magnus Carlsen, Boris Gelfand, Ivan Cheparinov, Topalov, Radjabov, Yelena Dembo and a few more GrandMaster-games to play through on my blogger-blog, please click on the link here and it will open in a new window.

http://chessaleeinlondon.blogspot.com/2008/11/dresden-olympiad-2008.html

Click on the logo and you will be taken to the Official site and the “live” link will take you straight away to the live-games! Both links will open in a new page.

Please click HERE to see more results of games played in round 1 and round 2. The link will open in a new window. Please click HERE to see lots of South African Chess player-pics and to see the results of rounds 3-6. 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…see their games of round 6 and you can play through their games interactively. Also, the games of Kramnik and Ivanchuk (my favourite) of round 6 can be found on this link. The page will open in a new link.

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

Schedule: Dresden

From L-R: Anzel Solomons, Melissa Greeff, Jenine Ellappin, Carmen de Jager, Monique Sischy

LtoR: Watu Kobese, Kenny Solomon, Henry Steel, Daniel Cawdery, Johannes Mabusela

Dresden Olympiad 2008 Round 7

Ladies team against Guatemala and the mens team against the Faroe Islands

Results: See the chess graphics

Dresden round 7: Anzel Solomons move 14…0-1

Dresden round 7:  Melissa Greeff move 12…1-0

Dresden round 7 Carmen de Jager  move 18..1-0

Dresden round 7 Monique Sischy move 7…0-1

Dresden round 7 Watu Kobese move 11…1-0

Dresden round 7 Kenny Solomon move 18…1-0

Dresden round 7 Daniel Cawdery move 14…1/2

Dresden round 7 Johannes Mabusela move 17…0-1

Round 8: South Africa vs Cyprus: Mens team

Round 8: South Africa vs Bosnia Herzegovina: Ladies team

Dresden round 8 Watu Kobese…1-0

Dresden round 8 Kenny Solomon…0-1

Dresden round 8 Henry Steel…1-0

Dresden round 8 Johannes Mabusela…1/2

Dresden round 8 Anzel Solomons …0-1

Dresden round 8 Melissa Greeff move 19

Dresden round 8 Melissa Greeff…0-1

Dresden round 8 Jenine Ellappen …0-1

Dresden round 8 Monique Sischy…1-0

Results: rounds 5-9 South African ladies’ team…Round 9 was played today, Saturday 22nd November. Click on the image for a clear view.

 

Results: rounds 5-9 South African men’s team. Round 9 was played today, 22nd November. Click on the image for a clear view.

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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 Olympiad Dresden 2008

 

 

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.
Click HERE for round 1 live games. The link will open in a new window. Then click on the country and it will take you to a window where you can click on “live”. There is a separate link to the Women’s section.

Please click on THIS LINK to see more images of the South African team at Dresden and for more results. The link will open in a new window.

„There is an incredible treasure of all kinds in this beautiful place” wrote Goethe about Dresden. Today Saxony’s state capital has rebuilt its glamorous position step by step. Dresden as cultural metropole is a worldwide center of attraction – and a strong location for economy and science. Dresden’s microelectronics cluster (ZMD, AMD, Infineon), Fraunhofer Institutes, the Max-Planck Institutes, the Technical University and the College of Arts represent an environment offering a mentality which is also determining for chess. Thus, Dresden is, for example, City of Science 2006.

Intelligence has here been at home already very early. 1083 the Bohemian daughter of a king, Judith, brought along a precious chess game as dowry to Saxony. Therewith, Dresden’s match as a chess city was begun. Alone since 1991 210 international and national relevant chess events could be experienced. Stars like Anatoly Karpov or Garry Kasparov are in Dresden oftentimes. Even the castling is close by to relax.

Elena Winkelmann is one of Germany’s greatest chess talents. Here she is playing in front of the emblem of the EURO 2007 and the Chess Olympiad, the Crown Gate of the Zwinger.

A dignified framework: the venue of the Olympiad 2008 in the ICD Dresden is located directly on the river banks on the old side of the city. Church of our Lady, Semper Opera, Castle, Bruhl’s Terrace – the famous baroque ensemble is only a few steps away. And every visitor right away feels the special flair of hospitality and love for cultural engagement in the whole city. Read on the Official Site more about Dresden.

Image: Dresden2008

Please click HERE to access the official site where you can locate your country to view the players/teams that will take part. The links in this post will all open in a new window.Please click HERE to read about Jennifer Shahade’s visit to South Africa and you can see images from her and her visit.

Simen Agdestein, Norwegian Grandmaster toured South Africa during March and said SA has great chess talent, the problem South Africans face…is the fact that they are far from Europe to play tournaments! You can see his image in this post where he played chess in a restaurant in South Africa.

Kenny Solomon

Carmen de Jager, Anzel Solomons and Monique Sischy

Melissa Greeff

Image chessbase :Henry Steel

Image: chessbase:Jenine Elappen, Anzel Solomons, Melissa Greeff

South African players

Image: Chessbase..Dresden Chess 2008…map with details

1. Congress Center Dresden (Playing Hall)
2. Hotel Maritim Hotel
3. Westin Bellevue
4. Museum Japanese Palais
5. Art‘otel
6. Freiberger Arena (Opening Ceremony)

Dresden: Schedule…Info: Chessbase

Image: spotlightgermany.com

Watu Kobese….Image: farm1.static.flickr.com/5/4967409_aa51644369

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.

Chess Art…a display at Dresden 2008 – Image: http://susanpolgar.blogspot.com

Image: dresden2008

Grootmeester Simen Agdestein van Noorweë speel ‘n potjie informele skaak in ‘n restaurant in Pretoria. Sy hoed is ‘n aandenking van Suid-Afrika. Foto: Waldo Swiegers

SA hét talent, sê skaak-grootmeester Mar 03 2008 01:21:33:830AM  – (SA)  
Neels Jackson

Suid-Afrika se skaakspelers is erg ondergegradeer.

Dís die mening van mnr. Simen Agdestein, Noorweegse grootmeester, wat die naweek saam met ’n groep van sy skaakleerlinge in Suid-Afrika aangekom het om deur die land te toer. Hulle speel die naweek ook in ’n internasionaal gegradeerde toernooi by die Hoërskool Waterkloof in Pretoria.

Agdestein sê as Suid-Afrika nie so ver van Europa was nie en meer van sy spelers kon gereeld aan internasionale toernooie deelneem, sou die land al verskeie grootmeesters opgelewer het.

Hy was op sy dag die wêreld se no. 16-speler, maar hy lê hom nou toe op skaakafrigting by ’n Noorweegse sportskool. Hy is een van nege Noorweegse grootmeesters.

Dat hy ook ander talente het, blyk daaruit dat hy sy land agt keer as doelskieter van die nasionale sokkerspan verteenwoordig het.

Hy het ook aan die Noorweegse weergawe van Strictly come dancing deelgeneem, maar sê hy het vroeg uitgeval weens ’n swak ronde met die tango.

Die sportskool waar hy skaakafrigting doen, het ’n samewerkingsooreenkoms met die Hoërskool Waterkloof se skaaksentrum gesluit. Die Noorweërs se besoek is deel van dié ooreenkoms.

Skaak help kinders volgens hom nie net met hul verstandelike ontwikkeling nie. Dit verryk ook hul lewe deurdat hulle mense op ’n ander manier leer ken.

Hy bestempel dit as ’n geson-de aktiwiteit – baie beter as rekenaarspeletjies, wat hy as “ silly ” bestempel.

http://www.news24.com/Beeld/Suid-Afrika/0,,3-975_2280944,00.html.

Image: Wikipedia..The symbol of the 6th Olympiad held in 1935 in Warshaw by J Steifer.

Birth of the Olympiad
The first Olympiad was unofficial. For the 1924 Olympics an attempt was made to include chess in the Olympics Games but this failed because of problems with distinguishing between amateur and professional players.While the 1924 Summer Olympics was taking place in Paris, the 1st unofficial Chess Olympiad also took place in Paris. FIDE was formed on Sunday, July 20, 1924, the closing day of the 1st unofficial Chess Olympiad. FIDE organised the first Official Olympiad in 1927 which took place in London.The Olympiads were occasionally held annually and at irregular intervals until World War II; since 1950 they have been held regularly every two years.

Read more about the history of the Chess Olympiad on this link which will open in a new window.

Image: Wikipedia
Bobby Fischer’s score card from his round 3 game during the Chess Olympiad in 1970…he played against Miguel Najdorf in Warshaw.

Children in Nepal playing chess!   Image: susanpolgar.blogspot.com/2008/11/picture-of-the-day-global-chess.html

Dresden Opening Ceremony images

Dresden Opening Ceremony

Results: Round 1

Dresden round 1: South Africa’s Woman’s team against Tunisia

 

Results round 1: Hong Kong vs South Africa

Dresden round 1: England vs Turkey

Round 2 results – games played on Friday 14th November 2008

Melissa Greeff Round 2 move 19

Melissa Greeff Round 2 draw

Melissa Greef Round 2 move list – 1/2

Monique Sischy  Round 2 move 14 – 1/2

 

Watu Kobese round 2 move 20

Watu Kobese Round 2 Dresden end position and move list – 1/2

Jenine Ellappen round 2

Jenine Ellappen Round 2 move list – 1-0

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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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Alexandra Kosteniuk winner of Nalchik

Alexandra Kosteniuk…Queen of chess!  Images : Kosteniuk.com..please click for a larger view

Alexandra and her baby-girl

Images: chesspics.com

News Article…11th January 2009..the link will open in a new window.

http://www.miamiherald.com/277/story/847451.html

It’s not Christmas yet! But maybe an early Christmas present for Alexandra with the World Women’s Chess Championship’s final starting this coming Sunday between Alexandra and 14 year-old Hou Yifan of China! Saturday 13 Sept is a free day. The finals start on Sunday…see schedule:

Please click HERE to play through the games of Alexandra Kosteniuk and Hou Yifan’s games in round 5. The link will open in a new window.
Please click here for the Official site that will open in a new separate window.

Schedule — all games start at 15.00 (GMT +3)
Sunday  14  September  Round 6, game 1, Yifan vs Kosteniuk–0-1
Monday  15  September  Round 6, game 2, Kosteniuk vs Yifan–1/2
Tuesday  16  September  Round 6, game 3, Yifan vs Kosteniuk–1/2
Wednesday  17  September  Round 6, game 4, Kosteniuk vs Yifan–1/2
Thursday  18  September  Tiebreaks/Closing Ceremony 

So the Women’s World Chess Championship Final will be between 24 year-old Alexandra Kosteniuk of Russia and 14 year-old Hou Yifan of China (pictured).

Image: chess.com

Hou Yifan earned her place in the final the hard way by beating favourite Humpy Koneru of India in a blitz tie-break playoff.

Yifan won the first rapid game only to be pagged back by Koneru in the second. Yifan again took the lead by winning the first blitz game and this time Koneru failed to stage another comeback and was finally eliminated.

So it’s Russia versus China in a 4-game final for the World Chess Championship. In the red corner it’s GM Alexandra Kosteniuk – a former Women’s World Championship finalist from 7 years ago, she’s now practically a veteran compared to her opponent. In the errr…other red corner , a full 10 years younger, is Hou Yifan who has also qualified as a GM and is a remarkable chess phenomenon.

Saturday is a rest day, so the final starts on 14 Sept (Sunday) and finishes on 17 Sept (Wednesday). If the scores are level there will be tiebreaks on the 18 Sept to determine the winner.

So what story will be written? Is it to be the tale of Kosteniuk returning after many years to go one better and finally win the title she covets? Or is to be Hou Yifan, a world champion at just 14 years of age?

Source: and games —http://www.chess.com/news/yifan-defeats-koneru-in-semi-finals

Image: Official Site

Image: Official Site

Yifan vs Kosteniuk round 6 game 1 move 40

Yifan vs Kosteniuk round 6 game 1 final position…0-1

Round 6 Game 2

Round 6 Game 2…images from the Official site

Kosteniuk vs Yifan round 6 game 2 move 40

Kosteniuk vs Yifan round 6 game 2 final position –1/2

Yifan vs Kosteniuk round 6 game 3 move 40

Yifan vs Kosteniuk round 6 game 3 final position…1/2

Kosteniuk Round 6 game 3

Yifan round 6 game 3

Kosteniuk vs Yifan round 6 game 4 move 40

Kosteniuk vs Yifan round 6 game 4 final position…1/2

Round 6 game 4

Nalchik

http://www.kosteniuk.com/podcast/

I am Alexandra Kosteniuk, an International Woman Grandmaster (WGM) –1998– and an International Master among men (IM) –2000–. During the FIDE Congress in Calvia –2004–I was awarded the title of Grandmaster (Men), thus I became 10th woman in the whole history of chess who got this title. I am the Women’s Vice Champion of the World, a title I got at the World Championships in Moscow in December 2001. I am the European Champion 2004 and Russian Champion 2005.
I was born in the Russian city of Perm on April 23, 1984. I have been living in Moscow since I was one year old. I graduated from the Russian State Academy of Physical Education in July 2003 and am now a certified professional chess trainer. It’s my dad, Konstantin Vladimirovich – who taught me to play chess when I was 5 years old and I am very grateful to him for that.
I improved in chess rapidly. My first great achievements came in Junior tournaments. In 1994 I became the European Champion among girls under the age of 10, and a month later shared first and second places at the World Championship under the age of 10. Later, I had the same major achievements in other age categories, for example I became World Champion of girls under 12, in 1996.
In 1997, I became a Woman International Master (WIM) at the age of 13, they say that I reached this mark slightly quicker than Maya Chiburdanidze, but I don’t give much significance to that. I scored all necessary WGM norms in February of 1998 that is at the age of 13 years and 10 months but the GrandMaster title was officially given to me in November 1998 at the 33rd World Olympiad in Kalmykia.
My current ELO rating as of July 1, 2005 is 2516, which makes me now the fifth strongest woman in the world. My official rating in the USCF Rating list of August 2005 is 2565 and so I am the highest rated woman on the USCF Rating List at this moment.
I also have many other interests but chess, I write poems (some of them are published in my book), and I like sport in all its forms. I also love to do fashion modelling, and I even played a part in a movie, which by far was the most fun thing I have ever done in my life.
My first book How I became Grandmaster at age 14 has been published already in three languages (Russian, English and Spanish). My dad and I have worked on it for almost two years, and I feel that its genre is very original. It is a manual in which I teach to play chess and at the same time I tell how I learned to play chess starting from the age of 5. The book contains many annotated games and pictures, including color ones. I hope that it won’t disappoint you. I think that many parents could purchase it as a present for their children. Perhaps not everyone who reads it will become a Grandmaster at the age of 14, but many readers will learn to play this most intelligent and most beautiful game in the world.

Source: http://www.kosteniuk.com/about/eng/about.php

On this link on my blog you can see a video of her where she commented on her blitz game.https://chessaleeinlondon.wordpress.com/2008/05/16/chess-queen/

Anzel Solomons…right…from South Africa, round 1 board 1

Anzel Solomons – from SA

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International Master in Skaak

Hi Jasper… Hierdie “post” het jy my nou mee geinspireer! Suid-Afrika het nog nie ‘n Grand Master nie! Maar, ons spog darem al met “International Masters!”…. jy sal dalk HIERDIE artikel interessant vind! Ek het….! want ek stem saam, was dit nie vir hom nie, het Watu “Grand Master” status gekry! Op die foto kan jy ook vir Kenny Solomon sien, ‘n SA-IM. Ander name…WIM (Women IM)Solomons Anzel en Melissa Greeff… en ons het Daleen Wiid – WIF , Carmen de Jager -WCM. My kop draai  van al die afkortings! Ek glo ek sal nog spelers met titels kry en die lys aanvul sodra ek meer tyd het! Hierdie lysie is maar baie vinnig opgestel. Van die spelers het ek self nog nie van gehoor nie, bv. Kenny….met die dat ek nie  “tuis” is nie….. Geniet die lees hier!

Click HERE TO play through a game of Jennifer Shahade – GM – and Watu Kobese – IM – (South Africa) in 1998, Philadelphia. This was Watu’s game.

Simen Agdestein, Norwegian Grandmaster toured South Africa during March and said SA has got chess talent, the problem South Africans face…is the fact that they are far from Europe to play tournaments! If it wasn’t for that….then we would have had many masters in chess…. unfortunaletly, the article is only in Afrikaans and you have to translate it to be able to understand it! Second link here…..

Wat hier gebeur het, is natuurlik uiters skandalig!!
Suid-Afrika het talent…lees HIER wat grootmeesters se wat in die land getoer het!

Hier is ‘n verduideliking van al die afkortings in skaak titels! (al daardie “getalle” is hulle “ratings”…dis nogal hoog! hehe….en dis deur FIDE…die International Skaakfederasie-ratings… as jy op ‘n skaak website skaak speel, soos ek en Bib, kry jy net ‘n “site-rating”…so terloops…wanneer begin jy saam met ons speel…en was dit nie Roer wat ook gese het sy wil speel nie, seker koue voete gekry! Ons moet haar bietjie roer!! lol!

Lees HIER oor die SA Ope wat in Julie 2007 plaasgevind het. Daar kan jy ook ‘n foto van Kobese sien!

GM= grand master= 2500+ (+ 3 GM norms, performances of 2550+ against strong
enough opposition)
IM= international master = 2400+ (+3IM norms, performances of 2450+ against
strong enough opposition)
WGM=woman grand master= 2300+ (+3WGM norms, performances of 2400+ against
strong enough opposition)
FM= fide master = 2300+
WIM=woman international master= 2200+ (+3 WIM norms, performances of 2250+ )
CM= candidate master = 2200+
WFM= woman fide master= 2100+
WCM= woman candidate master= 2000+

News about Kenny Solomon – one of South Africa’s International Masters (Photo)

“Having recently returned from the broils of tournaments such as Capelle Le Grande, in France (Dunkirk), and the famous Gibraltar (The Rock) tournament, Kenny is looking rather relaxed. In France his 5.5 out 9 was in his view average, having achieved draws against GML Tolsky, IM Nasar Firmian (2481), and IM Mateo (2417), and conceding to IM M. Wojiech (2463), and IM E Gasanov (2477). In Gibraltar, a British territory bordering Spain, he lost to defending South African Open Champion, British GM Gewain Jones who was an IM last year in July when he took the SA crown in Port Elizabeth. Solomon later compensated with a solid draw against British GM Chris Ward in a game spanning 82 moves.” (2007)

A few pictures from Chess players with titles… and you can see more if you click on the link at the end of the post.

George Michelakis…International Master

David Gluckman…..International Master

Charles de Villiers …..Fide Master

Nicholas van der Nat…. Fide Master

Heinrich Stander…. International Master

Click HERE FOR MORE Chess players with titles from South Africa registered with FIDE.

SOURCE: Click HERE for Chesscube.

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African Junior Chess Championships Final Results

afjun07finalgirls.doc     afjun07finalboys.doc

 

 

Well done to all the South African players particularly Daleen Wiid for winning the Girls section, Carmen de Jager for 2nd place and Calvin Klaasen for his second place in the boys section.  The boys section has been won by Kareim Wageih (Egypt).

Ryan van Resnburg was 3rd in the boys section, Lthuekela Zitha 5th, Melissa Greeff 6th (boys) and Angelique Hattingh was 7th in the girls section. You can click on the two doc-links to download the final results or you can click HERE ….. for the official site of the SA Junior Chess Association. Links will open in a new window.

Egyptian, South African win Africa junior chess
BY Mphatso Malidadi
12:05:21 – 08 January 2008

Egyptian top seed Kareim Wagein and South African Wiid Darleen on Sunday won this year’s Africa junior chess champions in boys and girls respectively during the week-long event that was staged at the elite Kamuzu Academy.
Wagein, who accumulated 7.5 points, and Darleen were rewarded with international master title status
South African Calvin Klaasen finished as Wagein’s runner-up with 6.5 points while his compatriot Ryan Van Rensburg came third with 5.5 points.
In the girls category, Carmen De Jarger emerged second while Rocha Valquiria was third.
However, the three Malawian flag carriers failed to make it into the top three positions in the open category which saw South African girl Melisa Greef taking part in the boys group.
Despite failing to make it into top three, the country’s ambassadors showed they had made strides in the competition as they occupied better positions unlike in the previous competitions where they had ended at the bottom.
Chuma Mwale finished eighth with five points, national junior champion Chiletso Chipanga came 11th, national champion Joseph Mwale came 14th in the event that had 23 participants.
Read the entire article HERE ….

     

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