枣 (Jujube)

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk

Women’s World Chess Championship Knockout Tournament; Final match game 3; Nalchik, September 16, 2008

Spanish Game C88

Notes in quotation marks by Grandmaster Pál Charles Benkő, Chess Life, January 2009. p. 45.

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 0-0 8. h3 Bb7 9. d3 d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 Nd4 12. Nd2 Re8 13. c3!TN (13. Ndf3 Nxb3 14. axb3 f6 15. Ng4 Qd7 16. Bd2 c5 17. Qe2 h5 18. Ngh2 Bd6 19. Qf1 ½–½ Ivanchuk – Svidler, 3rd Aerosvit Chess Tournament, Foros 2008)
13. ... Nxb3 14. Nxb3 c5 15. Qh5 g6 16. Qf3 f6

17. Nxg6 (17. Ng4! h5 18. Nh6+ Kh7 19. Nf5!↑)
17. ... hxg6 18. c4 Qd7 19. cxd5 Bxd5 20. Qg3 g5 21. Be3 Rac8 22. Qg4 Qxg4 23. hxg4 Bd6 24. Rec1 Kf7 25. Nd2 Be5 26. Rc2 Be6 27. Ne4 c4! 27. ... Bxg4 28. Nxc5 Bf5 ensures Black at least a sound equality, but Kosteniuk aims at something more substantial.
28. dxc4 Rxc4 29. Rxc4 bxc4. “Black had sacrificed a Pawn but should retrieve it with two white pawns under fire”.
30. Rd1? “After 30. Bd4! White could have the upper hand (netting a Pawn) 30. ... Bxg4 31. Bxe5 (31. Nxg5+ fxg5 or even 31. ... Kg6 does not give much for White) 31. ... Rxe5 32. Re1 f5 33. Nd6+ Ke6 34. Rxe5+ Kxe5 35. Nxc4+ Kd4, winning a Pawn, though the Black King becomes quite active”.
30. ... Rb8! “After this it is White who must struggle to survive”.
31. b3 cxb3 32. axb3 Rxb3. Material equality is restored, and, futhermore, Black can boast of her Bishop pair and distant passed a-Pawn.
33. Bd4. White cannot but put up a strenuous and ultimately successful defence in a Rook ending a Pawn down.
33. ... Bxg4 34. f3 Bxd4+ 35. Rxd4 Be6 36. Rd6. “Though a Pawn down, White has succeeded in getting rid of the Bishop pair. The Rook naturally intends to get behind the passed Pawn”.
36. ... a5 37. Nc5 Rb1+ 38. Kf2 Bf5 39. Ra6 Rb5 40. Ne4 Bxe4 41. fxe4. “White has managed to escape into a theoretically drawn Rook endgame. The Black King is chained to the f6-Pawn and even trading it would not help”.
41. ... Rb2+ 42. Kf3 Ra2 43. Kg3 a4 44. Kf3 a3 45. Kg3 Ra1 46. Kh2 a2. “Liberating the Black King, but placing the Rook in the pillory”.
47. Kg3 Ke7 48. Kh2 Kd7 49. Kg3 Kc7 50. Kh2 Kb7 51. Ra3 Kb6 52. Ra8 Kb5 53. Rb8+ Kc4 54. Ra8 Kd4 55. Ra4+ Kd3 56. Kg3 Ke3 57. Kh2 Kf4

58. e5+!! Only this way! Any other move would lose; for instance: 58. g3+?? Kf3 and finis.
58. ... Kxe5. “Black’s achievements are but an illusion. This is drawn despite the two Pawns plus”.
59. g4! Kd5 60. Kg2 Kc5 61. Ra8 Kb4 62. Ra6. Claiming a draw two Pawns down is a success of which 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) can be proud.
62. ... Kc4 63. Ra3 Kd4 64. Ra6 Ke5 65. Ra4 Ke6. “Even if Black could trade the f6-Pawn for the g4 one, the position is a draw”.
66. Ra8 Ke5 67. Ra4 Re1 68. Rxa2 Kf4 69. Rf2+ Kxg4 70. Rxf6 Re2+ 71. Kg1 Kg3 72. Rf1 ½–½. “Kosteniuk ironically commented that Tarrasch was right in saying that every Rook ending is a draw. She also expressed her belief that 侯 (Hóu) will be a world champion one day”.

It should be noted, if only for curiosity’s sake, that 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) usually fills her inseparable pot with jujube red dates. Photo: chesspics.com.

午夜快車 (Midnight Express)

Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)

Women’s World Chess Championship Knockout Tournament; Final match game 2; Nalchik, September 15, 2008

French Defence C07

Notes in quotation marks by Grandmaster Pál Charles Benkő, Chess Life, January 2009. p. 45.

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 c5 4. Ngf3 cxd4 5. exd5 Qxd5 6. Bc4 Qd6 7. Qe2 Nf6 8. Nb3 Nc6 9. Bg5 Qb4+ 10. Bd2 Qb6 11. 0-0-0 Bd7 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bh4 Bc5 14. Kb1!?TN 0-0-0 15. Bg3 Nh5 16. Be5 f6 17. Nxc5 Qxc5 18. Bxd4 Nxd4 19. Rxd4 e5 20. Rd5 Qc7 21. g3 g5 22. Rhd1 Ng7 23. Nd2 Bc6 24. Rd3 Rxd3 25. Bxd3 f5 26. f3 Re8 27. Re1

27. ... h5? This is clearly an oversight. Correct was 27. ... Kb8! in order to answer 28. Qe3 by 28. ... f4 with approximately balanced play. 28. Qe3 g4 29. fxg4 e4 30. Be2 hxg4 31. Qxa7 b6 32. Qa3 Rd8 33. Qb4 Ne6 34. Nc4 b5 35. Ne3 Nd4 36. c4. Black is in serious trouble, being a Pawn down and hard pressed; hence she offers to exchange Queens, hoping for a little relief. 36. ... Qd6 37. Qxd6 Rxd6. “The Queens have just been exchanged and White snags a second extra Pawn — and so should win — but...”. 38. cxb5 Nxe2 (38. ... Bd7 39. Rd1+−) 39. bxc6. “Not bad but even stronger was the intermediate move 39. Nxf5!”. 39. ... Nd4 40. Rf1. 8th Women’s World Chess Champion Zsuzsa Polgár regards 40. Rd1 as a technically stronger move. 40. ... Kc7 41. Nxf5 Nxf5 42. Rxf5 Kxc6 43. Re5. “The Rook ending can be won in any of several ways but White plays inaccurately. The best here is 43. Kc1 (if 43. Kc2 Rh6 or 43. Rf4 Kd5; 43. Rg5 Rd2)”. 43. ... Rd4 44. Kc1. “The right path here was either 44. Rg5 or 44. Kc2 Kd6 45. Re8 Kd7 46. Rf8 since after 46. ... e3 47. Rf4! could have come”. 44. ... Kd6 45. Re8 Kd7 46. Rf8 Ke6

47. Rf4? This rush to the third Pawn proves dramatically wrong, as Black’s e-Pawn gets all the stage for itself, eventually allowing 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) to escape with a miracolous draw. 47. ... Ke5 48. Rxg4? “Once again it is proven true that it is not the quantity of Pawns, but their quality that is most important. After this greedy capture, Black’s last Pawn becomes a super power. The position was still possible to improve by playing 48. Rf8 Rd6 49. Re8+ Kf5 50. Rb8 Rh6 51. Kd2 Rxh2+ 52. Ke3 Rg2 53. Rb5+ Ke6 54. Kxe4, with winning chances”. 48. ... Rd8! 49. Rg5+ (49. a4?? e3 50. Rg7 Kf6 51. Rg4 e2 52. Re4 Rd1+−+) 49. ... Kf6 50. Rc5 e3 51. Rc2 Kf5 52. a4 Ke4 53. Rc4+ (53. a5?? Kf3 52. a6 e2−+) 53. ... Kd3 54. Rc3+ Ke4. “There was nothing better left for either party than to repeat moves, holding on for a draw. Thus 54. ... Ke2?! 55. Rc7 Kf2 56. Rf7+ Ke1 57. b4 e2 58. Kc2 could have been dangerous for Black”. 55. Rc4+ Kd3 56. Rc3+ Ke4 57. Rc4+ Kd3 ½ : ½.

As she was on verge of losing her second game in a row, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) managed an incredible escape thanks to her superb endgame technique. Photo: chesspics.com.

At First Bite

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk

Women’s World Chess Championship Knockout Tournament; Final match game 1; Nalchik, September 14, 2008

Spanish Game C90

Notes by Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk, Chess Life Online, December 8, 2008.

The first game of any match is very important. If the match is short it’s even more important since a good start means a lot. I was very happy to begin the match (for the first time in the championship) with the black pieces.

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 0-0 8. a3

An unexpected move. I was not ready for this variation. I thought she would opt for a different kind of Anti-Marshall starting with 8. a4. 8. ... d6. Since I didn’t know much about this kind of variation, I tried to use my logic in order to solve the opening problems. Magnus Carlsen used this variation twice with White this year and had pretty good results with it, although I doubt it was purely a question of the opening. Those two games went:
a) 8. ... Bc5 9. c3 d6 10. d4 Bb6 11. h3 Re8 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bh4 exd4 14. cxd4 g5 15. Bg3 g4 16. hxg4 Bxg4 17. Bh4 Nxd4 18. Nc3 Bxf3 19. gxf3 Kh8 20. Nd5 Rg8+ 21. Kf1 Ng4 22. Qxd4+ Bxd4 23. Bxd8 Nh2+ 24. Ke2 Raxd8 25. Rad1 Bxb2 26. Rh1 c6 27. Nf4 Be5 28. Nd3 Nxf3 29. Kxf3 Bg7 30. Rh5 d5 31. exd5 Rd6 32. Rf5 cxd5 33. Rc1 Rf6 34. Rxf6 Bxf6 35. Rc6 Kg7 36. Nf4 Bg5 37. Nh5+ Kh8 38. Rxa6 d4 39. Ke4 Rg6 40. Ra7 1 : 0 Carlsen – Aronian, 25th Torneo Internacional de Ajedrez Ciudad de Linares – Morelia, Morelia 2008;
b) 8. ... Bc5 9. c3 d6 10. h3 Bb6 11. d3 h6 12. Nbd2 Ne7 13. Nf1 Ng6 14. Ng3 Bb7 15. Nf5 Bc8 16. d4 Be6 17. dxe5 Bxb3 18. Qxb3 dxe5 19. Qc2 Re8 20. c4 bxc4 21. Qxc4 Qd7 22. Be3 Qe6 23. Qxe6 Rxe6 24. g3 Rb8 25. Bd2 Nf8 26. Bc3 N8d7 27. Re2 Rbe8 28. Nd2 Nc5 29. Kg2 Na4 30. Rc1 Rc6 31. Ne3 Nxc3 32. Rxc3 Rxc3 33. bxc3 Ba5 34. Nd1 Rd8 35. Nc4 Rxd1 36. Nxa5 Rd3 37. Nc4 Rxc3 38. Nxe5 Rxa3 39. f3 Ra5 40. Nc6 Rc5 41. Nd4 a5 42. Ra2 Rc4 43. Nf5 a4 44. Ne3 Rc3 45. Kf2 a3 46. Nc2 Nd7 47. Nxa3 Ne5 48. f4 Nd3+ 49. Kg2 Nb4 50. Rb2 c5 51. Nb5 Rd3 52. e5 g5 53. fxg5 hxg5 54. Nd6 Re3 ½ : ½ Carlsen – Lékó, 17th Amber Blindfold Chess Tournament, Nice 2008.
9. c3 Bg4. During the game I was interested in transposing to a Marshall by playing ... d6-d5. Would the s2-a3 move be helpful for White? Since I couldn’t understand the difference between a normal Marshall and a Marshall with a2-a3 I finally decided not to play ... d6-d5. After the game I found a game between Suetin and Lilienthal where Andor played 9. ... d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 Nxe5 12. Rxe5 c6 13. d4 Bd6 14. Re1 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Be3 Bg4 17. Qd3 Rae8 18. Nd2 Re6 and even though here Suetin played using the fact that the Pawn is on a3, 19. c4 (19. a4 would lead to a very well-known theoretical position of the main Marshall variation) Black could have played 19. ... Bf4! (19. ... bxc4 20. Nxc4 Rb8 21. Bc2 Nxe3 22. Nxe3 Bf3 23. Qf5 Qxf5 24. Bxf5 Rf6 25. b4 Bf8 26. Bd3 Rd8 27. Nc2 Ra8 28. Re5 Bd5 29. Rae1 Rd6 30. Be4 Be6 31. Rd1 Be7 32. Rc5 1 : 0 Suetin – Lilienthal, Kislovodsk 1967. 10. d3 Na5 11. Bc2. I was a little bit surprised to see this move. I thought that the Bishop would go to a2. 11. ... c5 12. h3 Bd7! 13. d4 Qc7 14. d5. After this move we have a Classical Chigorin with the strange move a2-a3 and an extra tempo for Black. Since I play this kind of structure for White I knew the basic ideas and plans for both sides and that gave me a practical advantage. 14. ... c4 15. Nbd2 Nb7 16. Nf1 Nc5 17. g4?!

A very risky move. Keres was the first to use this move in the position with the Pawn on a2 and the Knight on b7. I knew this idea since not so long ago, in a blitz game I unsuccesfuly tried to use this plan for White. I would suggest a normal move such as 17. Ng3 or 17. N3h2 for White. 17. ... h5! Of course Black didn’t want to allow White to put her Knight on g3. 18. N3h2? Here White shouldn’t allow Black to close the g-file. 侯 (Hóu) should have played 18. gxh5 Bxh3 and only here 19. N3h2 hoping to use an open g-file for the attack. 18. ... hxg4 19. hxg4 Qc8. Forcing White to weaken the black squares. 20. f3 Nh7 21. Ng3 Bg5 22. Nf5!? An interesting idea, but only if 侯 (Hóu) finds the most brave continuation. 22. ... Qd8 23. Kg2 g6 24. Ng3. After this move, Black’s advantage is unquestionable. White should have tried to complicate the game with 24. Nxd6!? Bxc1 25. Qxc1 Qf6 26. Nf5 gxf5 27. gxf5 Qg5+ 28. Ng4 and despite the extra piece, Black has to be very careful. For example after 28. ... Qxc1 29. Raxc1 f6 30. Rh1 Kg7 31. Rcg1 White has very strong compensation for the Knight. 24. ... Kg7 25. Rh1 Rh8 26. Nhf1 Qf6 27. Be3 Bxe3 28. Nxe3 Ng5 29. Qe2 Rag8?! I didn’t see how to continue and decided simply to wait. I think I should have played 29. ... Nd3!? 30. Bxd3 cxd3 31. Qf2 Qf4 32. Rad1 and it seems that the d3-Pawn will be lost in a few more moves. But it’s not that easy: 32. ... a5 33. Rxd3 [33. Rxh8 Rxh8 34. Rxd3 (34. Nef1 Qf6! preparing the f4 square for the Knight 35. Rxd3 Nh3 36. Qe3 Nf4+ 37. Kg1 Nxd3 38. Qxd3 Qf4 and Black should be winning soon) 34. ... Nxe4! 35. fxe4 Rh2+) 33. ... Rxh1 34. Nxh1 (34. Kxh1? Nh3!) 34. ... Nxe4 35. Qe2 Rh8 with attack. 30. Raf1 Qf4 31. Rxh8? 侯 (Hóu) couldn’t handle the pressure and decided to exchange the Rooks forgetting about a very strong resource that Black will have after this exchange. She should have continued the game by playing 31. Qf2 and I’m not sure what I would have played. During the game I was thinking about playing on the Queenside. Although Black’s position is better, it is unclear how to get something concrete from this small advantage. 31. ... Rxh8 32. Rh1 Rxh1 33. Nxh1 Nd3!

After this move the White’s position collapses like a house of cards. 34. Bxd3. After 34. Ng3 Black would continue 34. ... Nxf3 35. Bxd3 Nh4+ 36. Kh3 cxd3 37. Qxd3 Nf3 dominating the game. 34. ... cxd3 35. Qf2 d2 36. Ng3 Nxf3! Of course not 36. ... Qxe3 37. Qxe3 d1=Q 38. Qxg5 giving White some initiative. 37. Qxf3 Bxg4! After this move the game is practically over and I was precise till the very end. 38. Qf2 d1=Q 39. Nxd1 Bxd1 40. Qe1 Bf3+ 41. Kg1 f5 42. exf5 gxf5 43. Qf2 Kg6 44. b3 e4 45. c4 bxc4 46. bxc4 Qg5 47. c5 f4 48. cxd6

48. ... fxg3. The last precise moment. It was still possible to lose the game: 48. ... Qxg3+?? 49. Qxg3+ fxg3 50. d7. 0 : 1.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) on her début in the World Championship Final match took a bitter bite. Photo: chesspics.com.

Sui caedere

Se nella modalità classica gli “Scacchi Matti” à la Paolo Bagnoli sono ormai un cult alla quinta recidiva, negli scacchi960 la casistica suicida-cappellologica è ancora alla preistoria, anche se... per mole e prole gli scacchi cangianti sono il Paese dei Balocchi!

E. Najer – N. Zhukova
Magonza, 2008
[FEN "bnqrkbrn/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/BNQRKBRN"]
Posizione 306

Il virgolettato è del Grande Maestro Ian Rogers, Torre & Cavallo Scacco!, n. 9, settembre 2008, p. 9. 1. c4 c5 2. e3 Dc7 3. Cc3? Dxh2 “Completamente sfuggita a Najer, ed è già una fortuna che possa evitare la cattura della Tg1”. 4. Ce2 Più unica che rara! 4. ... Dc7 Indietro tutta, altrimenti il Bianco si ravvede operosamente con 5. Chg3 e 6. Th1. 5. Chg3 g6 6. b3 Cc6 7. d4 Ag7?! “7. ... d6 sarebbe stata abbastanza solida”. 8. d5 Ce5 9. d6! exd6 10. Cc3 “Qui Natalia Zhukova, spaventata dalla minaccia 11. Cb5, ha giocato sbadatamente...” 10. ... 0-0?? “e dopo” 11. Cd5! “ha dovuto abbandonare, non potendo parare la doppia minaccia 12. Ce7 matto e 12. Cxc7”. 1 : 0. Se infatti 11. ... Da5+ allora 12. b4! +-.

Lékó ricorda Fischer

Intervistato da Janis Nisii all’indomani del successo allo Sparkassen Chess Meeting di Dortmund (Torre & Cavallo Scacco!, n. 9, settembre 2008, pp. 3-6 e p. 30), il Grande Maestro ungherese Péter Lékó, già enfant terrible degli scacchi negli anni ’90, ha ricordato le sue ormai remote frequentazioni con Bobby Fischer:

– Mi puoi parlare delle tue lezioni con Fischer?
– Non ho mai fatto lezioni con Fischer, questa cosa che si dice è frutto di un fraintendimento. No, ho avuto una relazione molto stretta con lui negli ultimi anni in cui ha vissuto in Ungheria. Ci siamo avvicinati molto e siamo diventati amici, ma non credo sia bello parlare di questa amicizia proprio perché era così forte.
– C’era una grossa differenza di età...
– Sì, ma è stato splendido. Abbiamo passato dei momenti magnifici insieme tra il 1998 e il 1999.
– Quindi non prendevi lezioni da lui. Però parlavate di scacchi, immagino, puoi dirci qualcosa?
– No, non prendevo lezioni da lui innanzitutto perché lui non ne dava proprio di lezioni! Ma per me è stato veramente incredibile conoscere la sua visione degli scacchi. Anche se non era tra i top da più di 20 anni, era sorprendente il modo in cui parlava del gioco. Il modo in cui pensa e vede gli scacchi è assolutamente fenomenale [qui, e in altre frasi successive, Peter usa i verbi al presente, come se Fischer fosse ancora vivo... N.d.R.]. Era facile comprendere perché fosse il numero uno in assoluto e perché è diventato una simile leggenda, cosa che prima di incontrarlo non capivo. Credo che la generazione più giovane sia fuorviata dai computer e così tende a pensare che Fischer non giocasse con avversari così bravi, che all’epoca non fossero poi così preparati e cose simili. Poi, quando lo vedi, quando lo incontri, ed è chiaro che non è nel momento del suo fulgore, e ti accorgi di quanto sia ancora così brillante, beh allora inizi a nutrire un tale rispetto... Sono felice di aver avuto quel periodo con lui, perché sono arrivato a conoscerlo bene e ho capito che dentro è un’ottima persona.
– Ti ha ispirato?
– Sì, senza dubbio.
– Ti spingeva ad andare avanti?
– No, lui non spingeva nessuno. Stava spesso da solo, voglio dire, per lo più. Ma per me è stato un periodo molto bello e mi ha ispirato tantissimo.
– Già, non stento a crederlo.

Lékó onorò comunque in vita il “maestro”, allorché a Magonza nel 2001 si consacrò primo Campione del Mondo di scacchi Fischerandom della storia di specialità. Un idillio cominciato in verità nel 1996 a Kanjiza, cittadina serba al confine con l’Ungheria, già covo del “latitante” Fischer nei primi anni ’90, e dove l’allora giovanissimo Péter si impose con 9½ su 11 nel primo torneo di Fischerandom della storia eterodossa.

P. Lékó – L. Abel
Kanjiza, 1996
[FEN "nnrqbkrb/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/NNRQBKRB"]
P59

1. d4 g6 2. Cb3 d6 3. 0-0 Cd7 4. g3 c6 5. c4 0-0 6. Cc3 Cf6 Se 6. ... Cc7 allora 7. Ca5 è spiacevole. 7. Ag2 Ad7 8. h3 Cb6 9. c5 Cbd5 10. e4 Cc7 11. Ad2 Ae6 12. Ah6 Ag7 13. Axg7 Rxg7 14. d5 Iniziativa e vantaggio di spazio son tutti per il Bianco. 14. ... Ad7 15. cxd6 exd6 16. dxc6 Axc6 17. Dd4 Ce6 L’ignava 17. ... b6 è confutata da 18. e5!. 18. Dxa7 b6 19. Da6 Cc5 20. Cxc5 dxc5 21. Tfe1 Con un decisivo Pedone in più al centro. 21. ... Cd7 22. Tcd1 Df6 23. f4 Ta8 24. De2 De7 25. a3 Tfe8 26. Dd2 Cf8 27. e5 Tad8 28. Df2 Db7 29. Axc6 Dxc6 30. Dg2 Dc8 31. Cb5 Txd1 32. Txd1 Td8 33. Cd6 Db8 34. f5! Rintoccano le campane dell’attacco! 34. ... gxf5+ 35. Cxf5+ Rh8 Oppure 35. ... Rg8 36. Ch6+ Rg7 37. Td6. 36. Cd6 Td7 37. Df3 Da7 38. Tf1 Rg8 39. Df6 Da4 40. Cf5 Ce6 41. Ch6+ Rh8 42. Dh8+ 1 : 0. Appena prima di 42. ... Re7 43. Cf5 matto (duale: 43. Txf7 matto).

Regina globale

Dopo la trionfale riconferma al Campionato del Mondo femminile di scacchi960 (Fischerandom) a Magonza (28 luglio-3 agosto 2008), per Alexandra Kosteniuk si apriranno (forse) anche le porte del regno degli scacchi classici, in programma a Nalchik dal 28 agosto al 18 settembre). Al titolo eterodosso la Kosteniuk ha dedicato un circostanziato articolo (in inglese): “How I kept my FiNet Chess960 World Champion title”. Dalla “roulette russa” di Nalchik ecco una scintilla di Sashenka:

A. Kosteniuk (2510) – A. Pourkashiyan (2269)

Nalchik, 29 settembre 2008 Russa C43

Il virgolettato è del Grande Maestro Vladimir Belov, Bulletin, n. 1, p. 28. 1. e4 e5 2. Cf3 Cf6 3. d4 Cxe4 4. Ad3 d5 5. dxe5 Ae7 6. 0-0 Cc6 7. Cc3 Cxc3 8. bxc3 Ag4 9. Te1 Dd7 “In precedenza il Nero aveva optato per l’arrocco corto, che pare più saggio”. 10. h3 Ae6? “Non credo che l’Alfiere sia stato sviluppato in g4 per provocare h2-h3. Il Nero avrebbe dovuto giocare in modo più consono 10. ... Ah5”. 11. Tb1 Tb8 12. Cg5 Axg5 13. Axg5 0-0 14. Df3 “Coppia degli Alfieri, pezzi attivi e buone prospettive di matto – l’esito dell’apertura sembra favorire il Bianco. Nel prosieguo Alexandra sfrutta con successo questi vantaggi”. 14. ... Tfe8 15. Tbd1 Ce7 Esalta l’iniziativa avversaria. Più riottosa era 15. ... b5 onde rispondere a 16. c4 con 16. ... bxc4 17. Axc4 d4. 16. c4! Dc6 Se 16. ... h6 allora 17. Axe7 Txe7 18. cxd5 Axd5 19. Ae4 Axe4 20. Txd7 Axf3 21. Txe7 +-. 17. cxd5 Axd5 18. Dg3 Cg6 18. ... Rh8 è confutata da 19. Axe7 Txe4 20. Dh4. 19. h4 h5 20. f4! Dc5 Improponibile 20. ... Cf8 21. Af6 g6 22. f5 +-. 21. Rh2 Axa2 “Il frutto è maturo, coglilo!”. 22. Af6! gxf6 Se 22. ... Df8 allora 23. Axg6 fxg6 24. Td7 Af7 25. e6 +-. 23. Axg6 fxe5 Dopo 23. ... fxg6 24. Dxg6+ Rf8 25. Dh6+ Rg8 26. exf6 Df8 27. Dg6+ Rh8 27. Td7 il Nero è in ginocchio, ma “23. ... Df8 resisteva un po’ di più”. 24. Td7! Rh8 Oppure 24. ... Te7 25. Txe7 Dxe7 26. Txe5 Df6 27. Ah7+ Rxh7 28. Th5+ +-. 25. Dg5 Df8 26. Dxh5+ Rg7 27. Dh7+ Rf6 28. fxe5+ Txe5 29. Tf1+ Re6 30. Tfxf7 1 : 0.

Enfant prodige

Mandalay, Myanmar, August 6, 2008. A wunderkind from Yangon named Thuta Oo. Photo: Mado Flynn.

Timing

Foto: Isadora Duncan

Carpe diem

Foto: Isadora Duncan

Life begins at Fifty

Dr. Ting Maung Tun
Foto: Isadora Duncan

Meditation

Foto: Isadora Duncan

Apple Time

FIDE Woman Master Nan M K Khine Hlyan playing the 2nd Mandalar Chess Open in Mandalay, Myanmar, August 6, 2008. Photo: Mado Flynn.

Where the flyin’-fishes play

A twenty-eight-day tourist visa for Myanmar is not long enough to enjoy a chess vacation, too, and that’s a pity, as from August 4–13, 2008 the 2nd Mandalar Chess Open was being held in Mandalay, at the presence of one hundred and seventy participants, including two International Masters, four FIDE Masters, one FIDE Woman Master, as well as a nine-year-old enfant prodige, Thuta Oo from Yangon. The very young FIDE Woman Master Nan M K Khine Hlyan also wrote out for us (in fair copy on a scoresheet) a game of hers:

Aung Naing GMCC – Nan M K Khine Hlyan
2nd Mandalar Chess Open; Mandalay, August 6, 2008
Bird Opening D00

1. d4 Nf6 2. e3 e6 3. Bd3 c5 4. c3 d5 5. f4 Be7 6. Nd2 a6 7. Ngf3 Ng4 8. Qe2 f5 9. Ne5 Nxe5 10. fxe5 Nd7 11. Qf3 c4 12. Bc2 Nf8 13. a4 Bd7 14. g3?! Too shy for show and tell. 14. g4!↑ is more enterprising to aim for the initiative.
14. ... Bc6 15. Nb1? Literally twisting on itself.
15. ... Nd7 16. Ke2?? A mad King at its worst!

16. ... Nxe5!−+ 17. dxe5 d4 18. e4 d3+ 19. Bxd3 cxd3+ 20. Kd1 Bxe4 21. Qf1 Bxh1 22. Qxh1 Qb6 23. b4 Qf2 24. Bd2 0-0 25. Kc1 Rab8 26. Kb2 Bg5 27. Kc1 Bxd2+ 28. Nxd2 Rfc8 29. Ra3 Rc7 30. Qd1 Rbc8 31. Kb2 Qe3 32. Rb3 Qxe5 33. Qc1 Qe2 34. h3 e5 35. Ka3 e4 36. Nf1 e3 37. Qxe3 (37. Nxe3 d2−+)
37. ,.. Qxf1 38. Qe6+ Kh8 39. b5 Qa1+ 40. Kb4 Rc4+ 41. Ka5 Qxa4+ 42. Kb6 Qxb3 43. Ka7 axb5 44. Qxf5 Qa3+ 45. Kxb7 Qa8+ 46. Kb6 Qc6+ 0–1.

The First Move

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Khaled Mona

Women’s World Chess Championship Knockout Tournament; match game 1; Nalchik, August 29, 2008

Spanish Game C60

“The young Chinese player, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) scored the first victory in the Women’s World Chess Championship in Nalchik. In an old-style Ruy López, her opponent Mona Khaled from Egypt made some mistakes quite early and resigned at move 25th. In the press conference, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) told that she started to feel the better position after the 15-16th moves and tried to play very precisely not to miss the winning chance”, Press Director Péter Rajcsányi wrote in his daily report. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nge7 4. Nc3 g6 5. d4 exd4 6. Nd5 Bg7 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bf6 Bxf6 9. Nxf6+ Kf8 10. 0-0. 10. Nxd4 can be answered by 10. ... Nf5(!) with fine play for Black. 10. ... Nf5?! Now, this is not as good as before. Probably best is 10. ... a6 11. Ba4 Kg7 12. Nd5 b5 13. Bb3 Nxd5 14. Bxd5 Rb8!? [14. ... Bb7 15. Nxd4 favours White, Sebag – 诸宸 (Zhū Chén), Women’s Grand Prix 2009–2011, 5th stage, Ulaanbaatar 2010] 15. Nxd4 Ne7! with approximate equality (Alexey Sergeevich Dreev’s analysis). 11. Nd5 Ng7 12. Bc4 Ne6 13. Qd2 b6 14. c3 Na5 15. Be2 c6 16. Nf4 dxc3? This is simply disastrous for Black. 16. ... Nxf4 17. Qxf4 Kg7 seems a bit less worse than the text, though with 18. cxd4 White firmly maintains her clear and distinct advantage. 17. Nxe6+ fxe6 18. Qxc3 Kg8 19. Rad1 Qe8 20. Ne5. White’s attack plays itself. 20. ... h5 21. b4 Nb7

22. Rd3 Kh7 23. Rh3. Threatening Ne5xg6 followed by Rh3xh5+. 23. ... Nd8 24. Nxg6 Kxg6 25. Rg3+ 1 : 0.

Partie sans façon

Aung Naing – L. Barsi

Mandalay, 6 agosto 2008
Gambetto di Re C39

1. e4 e5 2. f4 exf4 3. Cf3 g5 4. h4 g4 5. Ce5 Cf6 6. Ac4 d5 7. exd5 Ad6 8. d4 Ch5! Il copyright è di Howard Staunton. 9. Cxg4?? Un suicidio! Paul Morphy preferiva con ragione 9. Cc3!, onde poi proseguire in economia con Cc3-e2xf4.

9. ... Cg3! 10. Th2 Commentò illo tempore Luigi Centurini (L’Eco della Scienza, dell’industria e del commercio, n. 12, gennaio 1866, p. 62): “Né anche questo tratto di estrema prudenza, che ha per iscopo di mantenere la difesa della casa h4, può salvare lo stato disperato del Bianco”. Una referenza d’annata è 10. Tg1 Dxh4 11. Cf2 De7+ 12. Ae2 0-0 13. Cc3 Te8 14. Ch1?? Cxe2 0 : 1, von der Lasa – Staunton, 10ª del match, Bruxelles 1853. 10. ... De7+! 11. Rf2 h5 12. Ce5 Ancora Centurini: “Il Bianco crede di salvare il Cavallo ed invece s’inoltra a ricevere uno scaccomatto singolare”. Kristiansen contro Kolarov alla XVII Olimpiade degli scacchi (L’Avana, 1966) preferì invece con dignitoso realismo un mesto e penitente abbandono! 12. ... Axe5 13. dxe5 Dc5+ 13. Rf3 Oppure 13. Re1 Dg1+ 15. Af1 Dxf1+ 16. Rd2 Ce4 matto, N. N. – Dubois, Roma 1859. 13. ... Ag4+ 0 : 1.

Last Tango in Mandalay

Mandalay, Myanmar, August 6, 2008. Photo: Mado Flynn.