— If we ask other players “How do you envision the world champion?”... in this case, we’ll ask you what character traits would you like to change in yourself? — Actually I’m satisfied with who I am right now. Maybe in my future growth, I will find some traits I’d like to revise. 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) Jermuk, Russia, Sunday, 22 July 2012 |
Such an outcome may suggest that perhaps it is time for 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) to rethink her theory. Photo courtesy of Chess-News.ru. |
The 5th stage of FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2011–12 has kicked off on July 16 in Jermuk, a most attractive spa town in southern Armenia. No question, Asian Queen 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) must have crossed her fingers after grabbing number four at the drawing of lots! Photos: FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2011–12. |
洪星 (Hóng Xīng) has a sad face, I would like to tell him that he does not have to grieve for me, but I cannot, and then I am irritated with him, for the other day he told me that in Chinese there is the same word for “death” and for the number “four”. The same word: Sì. The white-haired girl glues to the wall the paper figurines which her lover cut out with scissors for her, for the New Years’s festival. 谢娥 (Xiè’é) sings: “the north wind blows, the snow falls”. She has a high-pitched voice, but there is a secret pain in the voice of every Chinese girl, in the joy of every Chinese girl. No girl, no young people forgot the long, terrible misery, the long hunger, the long struggle, no one, not even the boy who studied geometry under the lamppost in front of the hospital door, the son of the poor soy milk vendor, a glass of soy milk costs only two cents of 元 (yuán), only five lire, it is the poor people’s milk. Workers going to work in the morning stop in front of the stand of the soy milk vendor. Soy milk vendors are amongst the poorest people in the world, but today they can send their son to middle school, and then to university. There are no longer closed doors to the poors, in China, no way is barred, there are no closed roads.
A same word to say “death” and to say “four”. The word “sì”. Pronounced with sweetness, leaning the tip of the tongue against the teeth, as if the “ì” were mute. Curzio Malaparte, “Io, in Russia e in Cina” |
Just a replica of the Women’s World Chess Championship 2010. Photo: Alexandra Kosteniuk’s www.chessblog.com. |
Footage from the Women’s International Tournament at Semmering 1936 (July, 1–16), in which took part also Clarice Benini. Courtesy of Historical Archive of the Luce Institute.  Clarice (centre, wearing a white dress). |
Not all rook endings are drawn! Photo: Anastasia Valeryevna Karlovich. |
+-) 21. Cxe6+ fxe6 22. Txd7 Dxd7 23. Td1 Db7 24. Dh4 Txf6 25. Dxf6+ Rh6 (25. ... Rg8? 26. Dxe6+ Rh8 27. Td7+-) 26. g4 con attacco irresistibile. 19. ... Axa2? è vieppiù confutata da 20. Cf6+! con una pointe elegante: 20. ... Rh8 21. Dh6 Cxf6 22. Cf5!+-.20. exf6 Cxf6 21. Cd6+- Cg4 (disperazione, ma né 21. ... Tc7 22. The1 Cd5 23. Dg3 Tf6 24. Cxe6 Txe6 25. Txe6 Dxe6 26. Te1+- né 21. ... Cd5 22. De5+- sovvertivano l’esito) 22. Cxc8 Axc8 23. Cxc6 Dc5 24. Td8 Txd8 25. Cxd8 Af5 (25. ... Cf2 26. Df7+ Rh8 27. Df6+ Rg8 28. Cc6!+-) 26. Dd2 Ce5 (26. ... Ce3 27. Cb7+-) 27. Te1 Axc2 (27. ... Cd3+ 28. Dxd3! Axd3 29. Te8+ Rg7 30. Ce6++-) 28. Ce6 (28. Dxc2?? Cd3+) 28. ... Dc4 (28. ... Cd3+ 29. Dxd3! Axd3+ 30. Cxc5 bxc5 31. Te7+-) 29. Dd8+ Rf7 30. Df8+ il Nero abbandona.