Polgar - Short, Rapid Challenge 1994

A fascinating video from 1994.

Carlsen Wins London Chess Classic 2009

The London Chess Classic ended today with very well-contested draws by Magnus Carlsen (against Nigel Short, in a game played "to the kings") and Vladimir Kramnik (against Hikaru Nakamura) that kept Carlsen's one-point margin in place.  Luke McShane was awarded the brilliancy prize for his innovative Round 5 victory over Nakamura using the King's Indian Defense with Na6. Carlsen's countryman, Norwegian GM Jon Ludvig Hammer, won the concurrent London FIDE Open a full point ahead of the field.  And WIM Arianne Caoili won the London FIDE Women's Invitational by a point and a half over the rest of the field.  You can find games from all of the events in the Downloads / PGN Games section of the official website, and you can easily find and play over main event games at Chessgames.com.  I have found some of the games in the lower tournaments to be of great interest and may return to them in future posts.


I have put together a round-by-round webliography of articles analyzing the games from the main event.  Long ago I got in the habit of looking at GM games using multiple sets of notes, finding that every commentator focuses on different questions in the game that are worth considering, and that opinions often diverge even where the same issues are considered.  Edward Winter once very nicely explored the case of "Analytical Disaccord" surrounding the game Capablanca - Bogoljubow, Moscow 1925 which was only an extreme example of just how differently various annotators can see things.  I hope readers find this collection of notes useful.  I will add more as they become available and welcome links from readers.



With his performance in this tournament, Carlsen guarantees that he will keep his world  number one ranking on the official FIDE ratings list, making him the youngest official number one player in history.  Next up for the champ will be the Corus tournament in Wijk aan Zee (January 15 - 31).


Round 7

• ChessBase Express Report
  
• Video Interview with Magnus Carlsen by Peter Doggers at ChessVibes
• Round 7 Games Annotated,  Mark Crowther at TWIC
• Carlsen Wins; Nakamura Mid-Field by Ian Rogers at USCF
  
• Short - Carlsen, Jason Juett at Chessdom
• Round 7 Games Annotated, Rybka at ChessOK
  

Round 6

• Kramnik and Ni Hua Win, Carlsen Escapes by John Saunders at ChessBase
  
• Kramnik and Ni Hua Win in Round 6 by Peter Doggers at ChessVibes
  Includes video of Short and Ni Hua analyzing their game.
• Carlsen - Adams, Raymond Keene at Times Online
  
• Carlsen - Adams, Pete Karagianis at Chessdom
  
• London Classic Final Round by Mig Greengard
  In a post looking toward the final round of play, Greengard nicely sums up the penultimate round action.
• Round 6 Games Annotated, Rybka at ChessOK
  

Round 5

• Carlsen and McShane Win by John Saunders at ChessBase
• Ni Hua - Carlsen, John Saunders
• Nakamura - McShane, John Saunders
• Round 5 Games Annotated, Dennis Monokroussos
• Round 5 Games Annotated, Rybka at ChessOK
  
• Ni Hua - Carlsen, Jason Juett at Chessdom
  
• London Classic: Kramnik Comeback; Carlsen Human (Maybe) by Mig Greengard
  A good summary of the action through round 5.
  

Round 4

• All Games Drawn but Fighting Chess by John Saunders at ChessBase
• Round 4 Games Annotated, Dennis Monokroussos
• Round 4 Games Annotated, Mark Crowther at TWIC
• Round 4 Games Annotated, Rybka at ChessOK
  
• Carlsen - Nakamura, John Saunders
• Short - Ni Hua, John Saunders
• Carlsen - Nakamura, Ian Rogers at USCF
• Carlsen - Nakamura, Jason Juett at Chessdom
  
• Carlsen - Nakamura, Malcolm Pein in the London Telegraph
  

Round 3

• Kramnik Wins Again, Carlsen Leads by John Saunders at ChessBase
• McShane - Kramnik, John Saunders
• Howell - Carlsen, John Saunders
• Howell - Carlsen, Malcolm Pein (also at TWIC)
  
• McShane - Kramnik, Malcolm Pein (also at TWIC)
• Howell - Carlsen, Jason Juett and Peter Karagianis at Chessdom
• Round 3 Games Annotated, Rybka at ChessOK
  

Round 2

• Kramnik and Carlsen Analyzed by John Saunders at ChessBase
• Kramnik - Ni Hua, John Saunders
• Carlsen - McShane, John Saunders
• Round 2 Games Annotated, Vallejo Pons at the official site
  
• Round 2 Games Annotated, Mark Crowther at TWIC
• Round 2 Games Annotated, Rybka at ChessOK
  
• Thirty Love, Carlsen Beats McShane photos by Frederic Friedel at ChessBase
• London Classic: Carlsen Starts Hot by Mig Greengard
• Kramnik - Ni Hua, Malcolm Pein at TWIC
• Carlsen - McShane, Christian Bauer and Peter Karagianis at Chessdom
  
• Adams - Nakamura, Christian Bauer and Peter Karagianis at Chessdom
  

Round 1

• C is for Carlsen by John Saunders at ChessBase
  Carlsen explains his win over Kramnik in the first round.
• Round 1 Games Annotated, Dennis Monokroussos 
• Round 1 Games Annotated, Mark Crowther
• Round 1 Games Annotated, Vallejo Pons at the official site
• Round 1 Games Annotated, Rybka at ChessOK
  
• Carlsen - Kramnik, John Saunders
  
• Carlsen - Kramnik, Lubomir Kavalek, Washington Post
• Carlsen - Kramnik, Malcolm Pein
• Carlsen - Kramnik,  Hector Leyva at InforChess
  
• Carlsen - Kramnik at Chessdom
• Nakamura - Ni Hua at Chessdom
  

Additional Coverage

• People and Personalities at the London Chess Classic, photos by Frederic Friedel
  
• London Chess Classic Photographs at The Streatham & Brixton Chess Blog
  

London Chess Classic Starts Tuesday

The London Chess Classic starts Tuesday, December 8th, and promises to be one of the most interesting tournaments of the year for chess fans in the Western hemisphere. Not only will the tournament website and related coverage be in English, but the event will feature such fan favorite players as world number one Magnus Carlsen, former world champion Vladimir Kramnik, U.S. champion Hikaru Nakamura, and resurgent British star Nigel Short (all of whom are playing in top form of late). The Daily Telegraph has been providing excellent coverage, including an interview today with 19-year-old Carlsen -- see "Magnus Carlsen: The Rise and Rise of Chess's Answer to Mozart" by Max Davidson. An earlier Davidson article, "London Chess Classic: The Chess Set Come to London," suggests that chess is regaining popularity in Britain, which once produced the strongest players in the West, including former championship challenger Short. Luke McShane and David Howell, who represent the next generation of rising British stars, will participate in the tournament as well, though they are likely to have a tough time against such strong opposition. I will be following the tournament closely and hope to post some articles about the event.

Short Squishes Cheparinov

Short-Cheparinov, Corus 2008
White to Play and Win after 69...Nf6+

British GM Nigel Short today very slowly squeezed and finally squished GM Ivan Cheparinov like an anaconda devouring a giant river rat, in what had to be the most psychologically satisfying game of his career. Yesterday, Cheparinov refused to shake hands with Short to begin their game in Round 8 of the Corus tournament, whereupon the former World Championship challenger claimed a forfeit based on his understanding of the recent FIDE rule penalizing unsportsmanlike conduct of exactly this type. An appeals committee (which included Vladimir Kramnik) allowed Cheparinov to make up the game if he apologized in writing for the offense, which he did, and the game was replayed today -- after the required handshake. I had sided with Short in the matter, so it was very nice to see him gain the vindication of victory (much like the knights of old).

In the diagram above, find the most fully satisfying win for Short after 69...Nf6+. Replay the complete game at Chessgames.com. Read more about the incident at the links below:

• Short - Cheparinov Live now! from Chessdom
  Includes video and annotations (posted live during the game)
• YouTube Video Re: Short+Cheparinov
  There are several videos posted regarding the event and commentary.
• Short v Cheparinov: 2.0 at ChessVibes
  Amusing video and game replay with extensive commentary.
• Cheparinov Has Apologized at ChessVibes
  Commentary on the apology, with video that the site posted to YouTube.
• Taking Shorthand by Mig Greengard
  Breaking news and updates, complete with very extensive kibitzing.
• Cheparinov forfeits on handshake, appeals by Steve Giddins at ChessBase
  Photos of Short re-enacting the incident, with commentary.
• "Handshakegate" Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 by Dennis Monokroussos
• TWIC News Item #704 by Mark Crowther at TWIC
• A Forfeit over Refusing to Shake Hands? by Dylan Loeb McClain
• You Need Hands at Streatham&Brixton Chess Blog
• Corus Chess 2008 News
  The official news site includes several updates regarding the incident.