厄夜叢林 (The Blair Witch Project)

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)’s Genoese Day Marco Faggiani (Circolo Scacchistico Genovese Luigi Centurini) On Wednesday, February 5, 2014 at 6.20 P.M., Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) visited the Centurini Chess Club and AMT Cral in via Ruspoli, awaited by several dozens of chess enthusiasts and onlookers, who warmly applauded her as she entered the registered office. She was accompanied by her parents (and especially by her omnipresent mother), she smiled perhaps intimidated and possibly a little tired after the intense (and rainy) Genoese day, during which the guests [侯 (Hóu), her parents, the amiable translator 林丽丽 (Lín Lìlì) and Lorenzo Barsi] visited the city, accompanied by Professor Mauro Berni, in the unpublished guise of tour guide, in what was certainly “a memorable day” for him (but being a historian he will probably tell us something in only about thirty years...). The Centurini Chess Club sincerely thanks all the chess friends who have also left the most distant locations to be able to see closely the Chinese star, who signed autographs and posed for hundreds of pictures. Unfortunately it was not possible — and certainly not by the will of the Club or the tour organiser Lorenzo Barsi — to complete the day’s program, which also included a public conversation. In such events, a certain amount of uncertainty must always be taken into account, with all the unpredictability of moods and human things... “Human things are never simple, but complicated, and they get complicated every day for men and nations. They are like a stone that falls from the top of a mountain, which rolls and dresses itself with everything it finds along its path”. (Giovan Battista Niccolini). Coming from Venice [Translator’s note: it was actually Florence], the Chinese delegation then continued its journey to Tuscany, in Florence at last, where on February 8 and 9 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) played a two-game friendly match with [Prato’s] International Master Simone De Filomeno. By courtesy of Lorenzo Barsi, whom we thank for the opportunity given to the Centurini, we publish the first game of the match, which the Women’s World Champion won in her best style: 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Simone De Filomeno: 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be2 g6 7. 0-0 Bg7 8. a4 0-0 9. Be3 Nc6 10. Qd2 Bd7 11. Rfd1 Ne5 12. f3 Rc8 13. a5 Nc4 14. Bxc4 Rxc4 15. Nde2 Rc8 16. b3 Bc6 17. Bb6 Qe8 18. Bd4 Nd7 19. Nd5 Bxd4 20. Nxd4 Bxd5 21. exd5 Nf6 22. c4 Qd7 23. Re1 Rce8 24. Qg5 Nh5 25. Rad1 e5 26. dxe6 fxe6 27. Ne2 Qc7 28. Qd2 Qc5+ 29. Kf1 Rd8 30. Nd4 Nf4 31. Nxe6 Nxe6 32. Rxe6 d5 33. Re5 1 : 0. Among the city newspapers reporting the meeting at Centurini was the Corriere Mercantile/La Stampa.

(English translation by I, Robot)