Or maybe yes, if only she were able to forget what she felt like as she stood like a stockfish at the wedding altar alongside an unknown man who claimed to be Stan Lee

© Magealacon, Mariage de Edna Mode et Stan Lee, 2017

Looking at the wall I have a hunch that his wedding will be no honeymoon

The Importance of Not Being Arcovazzi

A child plays on the arm of a giant animated puppet of a girl just before the street theatre parade “The Saga of the Giants – The Knight of Lost Time” begins in Geneva, Switzerland. Photo: Martial Trezzini/EPA.

Thunderman

Fabiano Caruana – Magnus Carlsen
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 30, 2017
Spanish Game C78

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 8. a4 Rb8 9. d4 Bb6 10. a5 Ba7 11. h3 0-0 12. Be3 Ra8 13. Re1 h6 14. Nbd2 Re8. Just yesterday, Caruana had ridiculed Jones after 14. ... exd4 15. cxd4 Nb4 16. e5! Nfd5 17. Ne4 with an overwhelming initiative, Caruana – Jones, 4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament, Douglas 2017. Magnus’s reply, however, shows he is not afraid of anything. 15. g4!? Strangely, this seems to be a novelty. Carlsen’s clan appeared quite shaken, but not too clear why. It is not the same story, but Caruana’s 15. g4!? only reminds me of how easily Tigran Vartanovich Petrossiàn neutralised Garry Kimovich Kasparov’s 15. g4 at Banja Luka’s International Grandmaster Tournament in 1979.

15. ... Qe7 16. Nf1 Nd8! 17. Ng3 c5 18. Qd2 c4 19. Bc2 Nh7 20. b4 cxb3 21. Bxb3 Be6 22. Bc2? Caruana apparently didn’t achieve what he hoped for, and, almost panicked, calls his troops back to the Queenside. He would probably have done better to consistently play for the initiative on the other flank by 22. Nf5, and even if the attack is not what he aimed at, it would yet have been a hard fight. 22. ... Rc8 23. Bd3 Nb7 24. Rec1 Qd8 25. Qb2 Nxa5. “It’s fair to say Caruana didn’t get the most out of his opening: the attack is gone, his Kingside weakened and Magnus just took a Pawn on a5”, Grandmaster Jon Ludvig Nilssen Hammer tweeted. 26. Nd2 d5! Carlsen’s demolition of his opponent’s camp is impressive. 27. Re1 Bb8 28. exd5 Bxd5 29. Bf5 Rc6 30. Qa3 Nb7 31. Rad1 exd4 32. Bxd4 Ng5 33. c4 Rxe1+ 34. Rxe1 Be6 35. Qe3? Bf4! 0 : 1. “If you ever want to write an article about what ‘coordination’ means in chess, Magnus just gave the masterclass”, Grandmaster Jonathan Rowson said.

Witch-hunt

A giant animated puppet of a girl, part of a performance by French street theatre company Royal de Luxe, moves thru the streets of Geneva, Switzerland. Photo: Denis Balibouse/Reuters.

Nighty Night

Artwork © AlanES

A Study in Scarlet

Fabiano Caruana – Gawain Christopher B. Jones
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 29, 2017
Spanish Game C78

Finally, most things in Douglas have been “normalized”, even without the help of Harry Potter’s magic. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 8. a4 Rb8 9. d4 Bb6 10. a5 Ba7 11. h3 0-0 12. Be3 Ra8 13. Re1 h6 14. Nbd2 exd4 15. cxd4 Nb4 16. e5! Jones must have felt a powerful blow on his front teeth! Caruana’s novelty decisively improves on 16. d5 Bxe3 17. Rxe3 c5 18. dxc6 Nxc6 19. e5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 dxe5 21. Rxe5 Ra7 and Black laboriously managed to consolidate, Grandelius – Jones, 61st Spanish Team Chess Championship (División de Honor), Linares 2017. 16. ... Nfd5 17. Ne4 Nxe3 18. Rxe3 Bb7 19. e6! Nd5 20. exf7+ Kh8 21. Re1 Rxf7 22. Rc1 Rc8

23. Nfg5! Another deadly blow! 23. ... Rf5? Clearly not 23. ... hxg5?? because of 24. Qh5+ Kg8 25. Nxg5 and wins. 23. ... Re7 seems to be the most critical defence, but Jones obviously ran into a prepared variation, and I think Caruana was well ready to give mate! Whatever it is, it seems to me that after 23. ... Re7 24. Qg4! White’s attack is awesome enough. 24. Ne6! Qd7 25. Qg4 Qf7 26. Rxc7! Rxc7 27. Nxd6 Rxf2 28. Nxc7! Qf6 29. Nxd5 Qxd4 30. Qxd4 Bxd4 31. Re4! Ba7 32. Nb6! 1 : 0. What a massacre.

The Bind

Lisa Hilli, In a bind. Inkjet print on Platine fibre rag, 760mm x 515mm. Edition of 8. Photo courtesy of lisahilli.com.

Cactus Heart

“Four Multicoloured Marilyns” by Andy Warhol and the iconic Gufram’s Cactus designed by Guido Drocco and Franco Mello are on show at the Ordovas Gallery in London, England. Photo: James Gourley/Rex/Shutterstock.

梦龙

Simple But Not Easy

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Magesh Chandran Panchanathan
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 28, 2017
Spanish Game C87

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Be7 6. Re1 d6 7. c3 0-0 8. h3 Bd7 9. d4 Re8 10. Nbd2 Bf8 11. Bc2 g6 12. Nf1 Bg7 13. Ng3 a5 14. Bg5 a4? An unfortunate novelty, giving up a Pawn for no compensation. A game useful for reference and study is 14. ... h6 15. Be3 Qe7 16. Qd2 Qf8 17. Rad1 Rad8 18. Qc1 Bc8 19. a3 Nd7 20. Nh2 Nb6 21. d5 Ne7 22. Bxb6 cxb6 23. Qe3 f5 24. Qxb6 f4 25. Ngf1 Qf6 26. Qxa5 h5 27. Rd3 Kh8 28. Bd1 Rg8 29. c4 Nf5 30. exf5 gxf5 31. f3 e4 32. fxe4 fxe4 33. Rxe4 Qg6 34. Bf3 Bf5 35. Qe1 Rde8 36. Nd2 Rxe4 37. Nxe4 Re8 38. Qf2 Bxe4 39. Bxe4 Rxe4 40. b3 Qe8 41. Rd1 Bf6 42. Nf3 Re3 43. Qc2 Re2 44. Qd3 Ra2 45. Re1 Qg8 46. Re2 Ra1+ 47. Re1 Ra2 48. Re2 Ra1+ 49. Ne1 Qg5 50. Kf1 Rc1 51. Rc2 Ra1 52. Re2 Rc1 53. b4 f3 54. Qxf3 Rxc4 55. Rf2 Kg7 56. Qf5 Rc1 57. Qd7+ Kh8 58. Qe8+ Kg7 59. Qd7+ Kg6 60. Qe8+ Kg7 61. Qe6 Qg6 62. Rf3 b5 63. Qe3 Bg5 64. Qd4+ Kg8 65. Rg3 Kh7 66. Qd3 h4 67. Rf3 Qxd3+ 68. Rxd3 Bf4 69. Ke2 Bg3 70. Nf3 Kg6 71. Nd4 Rg1 72. Kf3 Rf1+ 73. Ke3 Rg1 74. Rd2 Kf6 75. Re2 Ra1 76. Nxb5 Ke5 77. Kd3+ Kxd5 78. Nc3+ Kc6 79. Ra2 Re1 80. a4 d5 81. a5 Re8 82. a6 Bc7 83. a7 Ra8 84. b5+ Kc5 85. Ra6 Bb6 86. Na4+ Kxb5 87. Nxb6 1 : 0 Dervishi – Aronian, Zonal Tournament 1.5, Yerevan 2000. 15. Bxa4 exd4 16. Bxc6 bxc6 17. cxd4 Qb8 18. Qd2 Be6 19. b3 Ra6 20. Rad1 d5 21. e5. Black is already drowning in a valley of tears, while White dominates on both wings. 21. ... Nd7 22. Bh6 Qd8 23. Bxg7 Kxg7 24. Rc1 Qe7 25. Re3 Rea8 26. Rc2 Nf8 27. Ne1 h5 28. f4! h4

29. f5! gxf5 30. Nh5+ Kg6 31. Nf6 Nh7 32. Qf2 Nxf6 33. Qxh4 f4

34. Nd3! fxe3 35. Nf4+ Kf5 36. Nh5 Rh8 37. exf6 Rxh5 38. Qxh5+ 1 : 0.

Vincit qui patitur. Photo: John Saunders.

Micol prêt-à-porter

“Micol prêt-à-porter” ™ © Mado Flynn

The In-betweenness of Things

So even if Arcovazzi says that we and them (the Arcovazzis), after all, are the same species, well, I feel the urgency of clarify that we have absolutely nothing to do with any of their organizations! So, while waiting for Fischerandom chess meetings to start over again (from Saturday, October 7, 2017), in the meantime, you’re alive and you can still choose what and who you want to be. It’s always time (everyday in the afternoon from Monday to Friday) for a ballet class on the carpet-dance of Associazione Culturale “Il Delta della Luna”!

Artwork © lostknightkg

巧克力

Passionately Ever After

Fabiano Caruana – 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng)
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 25, 2017
Semi-Tarrasch Defence D41

In the meantime, strange things keep happening on the Isle of Man, but don’t think too seriously about it. Who wins and who loses, who gives and who takes, who is teased and who the joker, in the end they are all friends of those who pay them. 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. d4 c5 5. cxd5 Nxd5. It takes much courage to play this against Caruana! 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 0-0 11. Bc4 b6 12. d5!? Caruana adopts an old idea of Viktor Lvovich Kortschnoi. 12. ... Ba6 13. Bxa6 Nxa6 14. d6!? Nc5 15. e5 Qd7!? Forty-five years ago Brazilian superstar Henrique da Costa Mecking – a legendary defender – preferred 15. ... f6 after which followed 16. 0-0 Rf7 17. Rad1 Rc8 18. Qe3 Rd7 19. exf6 gxf6 20. Nd4! Qe8 (20. ... Rxd6? 21. Nxe6!) 21. Rfe1 Qf7 22. h4 with a slight initiative for White, Kortschnoi – Mecking, 47th Hastings International Chess Congress, Hastings 1971/1972. 16. 0-0 Rad8 17. Rad1 Qa4 18. Rfe1 f6 19. Qe2 fxe5!? It seems a very risky affair, but maybe it is not so bad. 20. Nxe5 Rf4? This, instead, is a big mistake which loses the game almost immediately. Best was 20. ... Nd7! although after 21. Nf3! White stands much better.

21. d7! The End. 21. ... h6. 21. ... Re4 is useless because of 22. Qf3 (or also 22. Qh5) and the Black Rook must immediately return to f4. 22. g3! Rf5 23. Rd6! Rxe5. Black has nothing better than giving up the Exchange, just for the satisfaction of playing some more moves. 24. Qxe5 Rxd7 25. Rxd7 Qxd7 26. Qe2 Qd4 27. Rd1 Qf6 28. h4 Kh8 29. h5 Qg5 30. Qf3 Kh7 31. Rd4 Qe5 32. Rd8 (Δ Qf3-f7) 1 : 0.

In a Nutshell

Levon Grigori Aronian – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
7th Chess World Cup; tie-break game 1 (25+10); Tbilisi, September 27, 2017
Queen’s Gambit Declined D30

Levon Grigori Aronian proved to be too strong for 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) and deservedly won the World Cup. As usual 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) showed his defensive stubbornness, but he wasn’t able to amend in extremis his stereotyped openings, and moreover, he also arrived here quite tired after his long march. This time Aronian showed as much creativity as temper, and maybe the fact that he is actually a happy man made the difference. 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. d4 c6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. Qb3. In the footsteps of Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine. 7. ... Nd7 8. e4 dxe4 9. Nxe4 Qf4 10. Bd3 e5. The immaculate matrix was 10. ... Be7 11. 0-0 0-0 12. Rfe1 Rd8 13. Rad1 Qc7 14. Ng3 Nf8 15. Qc3 a5 16. a3 a4 17. Ne5 Qa5 18. Qc1 Bd7 19. c5! b5 20. Be4 Qc7 21. Qc3 Be8 22. Ne2! Ra6 23. Nc1 Nd7?! 24. Nxd7 Rxd7 25. Nd3 Rd8 26. Ne5 Bf8 27. h4! Raa8 28. Bb1 h5 29. Qf3 g6 30. g4! hxg4 31. Qxg4 Bg7 32. Ba2! b4 33. Bc4! bxa3 34. bxa3 Qa5 35. Qe4 Qc7 36. Qf4 Rab8 37. h5 gxh5 38. Kh1 Rb7 39. Rg1 Qe7 40. Rxg7+! Kxg7 41. Rg1+ Kh7 42. Nxf7! 1 : 0 Alekhine – Asztalos, Kecskemét 1927. 11. 0-0 Be7 12. Rae1!? A romantic spot for a wedding. 12. Rfe1 is almost invariably played. 12. ... exd4 13. Bb1 0-0 14. Ng3 Bd8!? It is a novelty which costed 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) much of his time: perhaps a sign that he got entangled in Aronian’s computer chess theory. 14. ... Nc5 15. Qa3 Qc7 16. Nxd4 Rd8 17. Ndf5 Bxf5 18. Nxf5 Bf8 19. Qh3 Re8 20. Nxh6+ gxh6 21. Qf5 Bg7 22. g3 Rad8 23. Rxe8+ Rxe8 24. Rd1 Rd8 25. Rxd8+ Qxd8 26. Kg2 a6 27. Be4 Qc7 28. f4 Qd8 29. Kh3 Qc7 ½ : ½ Ivanišević – Schenk, French Team Championship Top 16, Gonfreville 2006. 15. Qd3 g6 16. h4! Nf6 17. h5 g5 18. Ne5! Aronian took the upper hand and pushes hard on Black’s nutshell. 18. ... Ba5 19. Ng6!

19. ... Qd2! 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) has yet the strength to defend his own with desperate stubbornness despite the very few time left. 20. Ne7+ Kg7. 20. ...Kh8 21. Qf3! Qf4 22. Qa3! Bxe1 23. Nd5! doesn’t look any better. 21. Qb3! Qf4 22. Rd1!? Almost all chess engines give 22. Ngf5+ Bxf5 23. Nxf5+ Kh8 24. Re7 with a decisive White’s preponderance, but, of course, Aronian’s way is not bad... 22. ... Bb6 23. Ngf5+ Bxf5 24. Nxf5+ Kh8 25. g3 Qg4 26. Nxh6 Qxh5? Black finally disappears under the avalanche. 27. Kg2! d3 28. Qc3 Kg7 29. Nf5+ Kg6 30. Rh1 1 : 0.

Swan in the Swim

A swan at sunset over Poole Harbour, Dorset, southern England. Photo: Donna Challinor/SWNS.com.

Whatever happens, don’t be discouraged when you discover that she did not invite you to her party

Ghost Attack

Man Hunt

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Yuliya Shvayger
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 26, 2017
English Opening A13

1. Nf3 d5 2. e3 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. b3 c5 5. Bb2 Nc6 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Bb5 Bd7 8. 0-0 Bd6 9. d4 cxd4 10. Nxd4 0-0 11. Nd2 Qe7 12. Bd3 Ba3 13. Qc1 Bxb2 14. Qxb2 Rfc8 15. N2f3 Nxd4 16. Nxd4 Qe5 17. h3 Rc7 18. Rad1 Rac8 19. Qa3 a6 20. Qb4 Ne4 21. Ne2 Nc3 22. Rd2 h6 23. Nf4 Be6 24. Re1 Bd7 25. f3 Re8 26. Bf1 Rec8 27. a4 Be6 28. Kf2 Qf6 29. Qd4 Qe7 30. Bd3

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) kept her opponent, Yuliya Shvayger, under a constant pressure, but it is questionable whether it is enough. If now 30. ... Qc5 then, probably, 31. Qe5⩲↑ retaining the upper hand. And yet maybe that was the best option for Black too.
30. ... a5?! 31. Nh5 Qg5 (31. ... f6 32. h4±)
32. g4 Qh4+? This definitely loses whereas 32. ... f5! at once seems to give some chances of resistance.
33. Kg2 f6 34. Rh1 f5 35. Nf4 fxg4 36. hxg4 Qe7 37. Nxe6 Qxe6 38. Bf5 1 : 0.

And thus 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) is still on the “hunt” for a man. Photo: John Saunders.

I’m sure that in the end, Edna, he will behave like Jack, even though now it seems to you impossible

Generational Intelligence

Magnus Carlsen – 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng)
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 25, 2017
Torre Attack D02

The World Chess Champion against the World Junior Chess Champion. After all, only in an open can happen! 1. Nf3 c5 2. c3 Nf6 3. d4 e6 4. Bg5 d5 5. e3 h6 6. Bh4 Nc6 7. Nbd2 a6!? The alternative was 7. ... Bd6 8. Bd3 0-0 9. 0-0 e5 10. dxc5 Bxc5 11. e4 Be7 12. Qe2 dxe4 13. Nxe4 Nh5 with a comfortable game for Black, Freiman – Breyer, Kölner Schachkongreß, Cologne 1911. 8. Bd3 Be7 9. 0-0 Nd7 10. Bxe7 Nxe7 11. Ne5 cxd4 12. exd4 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Bd7 14. Re1 Rc8 15. Nf3 b5 16. h4 a5 17. a3 Qb6 18. Qd2. In spite of his unpretentious opening, Carlsen obtained a certain advantage in position. Then, his young opponent decides – quite questionably – to sacrifice a Pawn, in a nervous attempt of not being hard-boiled into the shark’s jaws. 18. ... b4 19. cxb4 axb4 20. a4. It’s not clear why White didn’t take the Pawn. 20. ... Ra8 21. b3 0-0 22. Rac1 Rfc8 23. h5. 23. Bb5 Bxb5 24. Qxb4 Rab8 25. axb5 (25. Qxe7 Bd3 looks good for Black) 25. ... Nc6 doesn’t seem to lead anywhere. 23. ... Kf8. This seems unnecessary and wrong. Black should have infiltrated the Rook to c3 at once: 23. ... Rc3! 24. Rxc3 bxc3 25. Qxc3 Rc8 winning back the Pawn with good play. 24. g4. Now 24. Bb5! seems much stronger than before, as after 24. ... Bxb5 25. Qxb4 the Black Knight is pinned. 24. ... Rc3 25. g5. Carlsen has 35 minutes and Xióng only 9. 25. ... hxg5 26. Rxc3 bxc3 27. Qxg5 Nf5! What a coolness! With a few minutes left, Black realizes that the tempting 27. ... Ng8? would be annihilated by 28. Kh1! with the deadly threat of Re1-g1. 28. Bxf5 exf5 29. e6! Carlsen slyly adds fuel on fire, speculating on his opponent’s time panic. 29. ... Bxe6 30. h6! gxh6 31. Qf6

31. ... Kg8? Xióng, much anguished by time pressure, literally falls apart. Instead, Black had a hidden defence: 31. ... Qd8! (Stockfish) 32. Rxe6 Qxf6 33. Rxf6 Rc8 winning back the Knight and liquidating into a drawish-looking endgame. So, maybe Carlsen would have preferred 32. Qxc3, not because it is better than 32. Rxe6, but just to put his opponent more dilemmas. 32. Qxh6 Qb4 33. Kh1! 1 : 0. Other opportunities will come Jeffery’s way.

The Queen of the Isle

Nino Batsiashvili – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 25, 2017
Nimzo-Indian Defence E43

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 b6 5. e3 Ne4 6. Qc2 Bb7 7. Bd3 f5 8. 0-0 Bxc3 9. bxc3 0-0 10. c5 bxc5 11. Rb1 Qc8 12. Ba3 d6 13. Rfc1 Nd7 14. Nd2!?TN (14. Qb3)
15. ... Nxd2 15. Qxd2 Be4 (15. ... Bc6!?)
16. dxc5 Ne5 (16. ... Bxd3 17. Qxd3 Ne5! 18. Qd4 Qa6 19. cxd6 Nc4 20. dxc7! Nxa3 21. Rb4 Rac8 22. Qc5∞)
17. Bxe4 fxe4 18. cxd6 Qa6 (18. ... c5!? 19. c4 Nd3∞)
19. Rb3 c5? 19. ... Nc4 20. Qe2 cxd6 21. Bxd6 Qxd6 22. Qxc4 Rxf2! 23. Qxe4 Raf8 24. Rbb1 Qd5 25. Qxd5 exd5=;
19. ... Nd3 20. dxc7 Nxc1 21. Bxf8 Nxb3 22. Qd8 Nd2 23. Bd6+ Kf7 24. h4!? Qf1+! (24. ... Qc8 25. Qe7+ Kg8 26. Be5 Qf8 27. Qxe6+ Kh8 28. h5+−) 25. Kh2 Qxf2 26. Qe7+ Kg6 27. Qxe6+ Qf6 28. h5+ Kxh5 29. Qd5+ g5 30. Qxd2⯹.
20. c4! Rab8

21. Bxc5! Offering a very interesting Exchange sacrifice for two Pawns and positional compensation. 21. ... Rxb3 22. axb3 Nd3 23. b4! Nxc1 24. Qxc1 Qa2 25. Qf1 Rd8. 25. ... a5! 26. b5 (26. h3 axb4 27. Bxb4 Rb8 28. d7 Rd8 29. Qd1 Qa7 30. Bd6 Rxd7 31. Qh⯹) 26. ... a4 27. h3 Qc2 28. b6 (28. Ba3 Qa2=) 28. ... h6 29. Bd4 a3 30. c5 e5 (30. ... a2 31. d7 e5 32. Bxe5 Qxc5 33. Qa1 Kh7! 34. Qb2 Rd8 35. b7 Qa7 36. Bxg7 Rxd7 37. b8=Q a1=Q+ 38. Qxa1 Qxb8=) 31. Bxe5 Qxc5 32. Qa1 Qxb6 33. Qxa3 Qb1+ 34. Kh2 Qb7=.
26. h3 Rd7? 26. ... a6! 27. Kh2 (27. Qc1 Qb3 28. Kh2 Kf7⯹) 27. ... h6 [27. ... Qc2 28. Bd4 Qd3! (28. ... Rxd6? 29. c5 Rc6 30. b5+−) 29. Qa1 Qxc4 (29... Rxd6? 30. c5+−) 30. Bxg7 Qxb4 31. Be5 Rxd6 32. Bxd6 Qxd6+ 33. Kg1⩲] 28. Kg3 Qc2=.
27. b5 Qa4 28. Qc1 Qb3 29. Ba3 Rf7 30. c5 Qa2 31. Qb2 Qd5 32. c6 Rf8 33. d7 Qd1+ 34. Kh2 1 : 0.

In the end, even a Queen had to surrender to an avalanche of Pawns. Photo: John Saunders.

A Letter Without Words

Dutch Grandmaster Gennadi Borisovich Sosonko, currently in Tbilisi, Georgia for reporting from the 7th Chess World Cup, made public — through the Chess-News.ru web site — a letter that 11th World Chess Champion Robert James “Bobby” Fischer sent to Viktor Lvovich Kortschnoi nine days after their “secret” meeting in Pasadena, California, United States on September 16, 1977.
The fact that Fischer’s letter may be freely translated from Russian can sound quite paradoxical, but one can be sure that, at request of the interested parties, Sosonko won’t have difficulty in providing the original English text.

September 25, 1977 Dear Viktor, How are you? I hope you have arrived safely. Only today I received a tape recording of your performance on Friday evening of September 16 (the day of our meeting) and I feel very upset. Didn’t I tell you, and didn’t we agree literally a few minutes before we start talking, that both our meeting and the content of our conversation would have remained strictly confidential, except for the very fact that we met each other????? That’s beyond my understanding. Either you have a very short memory, or... I told you that I am surrounded on all sides by conspirators and I believed that you perfectly understood this. I appreciate your openness, sense of humour, friendliness, goodwill, etc., but I cannot communicate with someone who betrays my trust. So, it’s up to you. It may very well be that something of what you said has been altered or distorted (not a film — but your words!). Perhaps this was due to the fact that our meeting was quite brief, or was a consequence of your lack of knowledge of English. I know that you still keep connections with the United States Chess Federation and FIDE. I do not approve it, but it’s your business. I broke off any kind of relationship with them and I regard them as filthy gangsters. Specifically, I don’t want to give any “interview” to Chess Life & Review. As for their dirty plans, they couldn’t imagine a greater success than receiving — directly or indirectly — such an “interview” from you. Again, I explained all this to you. You were not obliged to share my viewpoint, but you had to keep your word. To my regret this did not happen. I do not know how much harm has been already caused by this. I guess you will have more to say and more interviews to give before coming back to Europe. I can only wait whether and when there will be anything else in the press. I would be grateful if you will strictly adhere to our agreement from now on. All the best, Bobby P.S. My name is not required on my mailbox.

• Gennadi Borisovich Sosonko, Письмо Фишера | Fischer’s letter, Chess-News.ru, September 20, 2017

Bobby Fischer, summer 1972. Photo © Harry Benson.

Biking

A mantis climbing up two stems looks like it’s riding on a bicycle. Photo: Alberto Ghizzi Panizza/Solent News & Photo Agency.

The Sea and the Stars

Aliens in the Gift Shop

Andrew J. Ledger – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 24, 2017
4r3/2p4k/pp4q1/2bB3p/8/PP2P1P1/1B2Q2P/6K1 w - - 1 29

Position after 28. ... Ra8-e8

Strange things are happening in Douglas, but, you know, they like to joke around. Among the many fascinating surreality shows of today, I couldn’t resist taking a look at what’s happened in the game Ledger – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), starting from the position illustrated in the diagram. White has sacrificed the Exchange for a Pawn and a lot of trouble, as his Bishop pair is still ineffective while Black is awesomely threatening both ... Re8xe3 and ... h5-h4. Consistently to the “Brandom guidelines”, Ledger decides to parry the less dangerous of the two: 29. Kg2? Rxe3 30. Qc4 Re1. So White is on the verge of mate. 31. Bd4 Bxd4 32. Qxd4. And here and now there was more than a feeling of King Hunt’s crescendo in the air: 32. ... Qc2+ 33. Kh3 (33. Kf3 Qe2+ 34. Kf4 Qg4 mate) 33. ... Re2 34. g4 Rxh2+ 35. Kg3 h4+ with a prompt destitution of White’s monarchy. But, quite incredibly, 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), perhaps still regretting the insensitive party with which she celebrated her last birthday, manages to find the only way to escape from the win without having to give back – as an act of extreme constriction – all her birthday gifts. 32. ... Qg4?? 33. Qd3+! Qg6 34. Bg8+ Kg7 35. Qc3+ Kxg8 36. Qxe1. The Queen ending is drawn. 36. ... Qc2+ 37. Kg1 Qxb3 38. Qe8+ Kg7 39. Qe5+ Kg6 40. Qxc7 Qe3+ 41. Kg2 Qe2+ 42. Kg1 Qd1+ 43. Kf2 Qd2+ 44. Kf3 Qd5+ 45. Kf4 Qf5+ 46. Ke3 Qe6+ 47. Kd4 b5 48. Qc2+ Kf6 49. Qc7 Kg6 50. Qc2+ Kf6 51. Qc7 Qg4+ 52. Ke3 Qg5+ 53. Qf4+ Qxf4+ 54. Kxf4 a5 55. Ke4 b4 56. axb4 axb4 57. h3 b3 58. Kd3 Ke5 59. Kc3 Ke4 60. g4 hxg4 61. hxg4 Ke5 ½ : ½.

Cats & Dogs

Würselen, Germany: A dog waits as its master casts his ballot at a polling station near Aachen during general elections. The Chancellor, Angela Merkel, won fourth term. Photo: Sascha Schürmann/AFP/Getty Images.

Alone on an Island

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Elisabeth Pähtz
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 24, 2017
Spanish Game C88

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. a4 (11. Nxe5 Nd4 12. Nc3 Nb4 13. Bf4 Nxb3 14. axb3 c5 15. Ne4 f6 16. Nf3 f5 17. Neg5 Bxg5 18. Nxg5 h6 19. Ne6 Qd5 20. f3 Rfe8 21. Re5 Qd6 22. c3 Rxe6 23. Rxe6 Qxe6 24. cxb4 cxb4 25. Rc1 Rc8 26. Rxc8+ Qxc8 27. Qe1 Qd7 28. Kh2 a5 29. Qe3 Bd5 30. Qb6 Bxb3 31. Qxa5 Qxd3 32. Qxb4 Be6 ½ : ½ Karjakin – Carlsen, New York 2016, World Chess Championship match game 6)
11. ... Nd4 12. Nxd4 exd4 13. axb5 axb5 14. Rxa8 Bxa8 15. Na3 Bb4 16. Bd2 Bxd2 17. Qxd2

17. ... Qd7? A black hole which precipitates Black into a dark dead end. Theory gives 17. ... Qf6 18. Bxd5 (18. Nxb5?! Nf4 19. f3 Qh6! 20. Kh2 Bxf3!) 18. ... Bxd5 19. Nxb5 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Qc6+ 21. Kh2 Qxb5 22. Qf4 Qxb2 (22. ... c5 23. b3 Re8 24. Rxe8+ Qxe8 25. Qc7 Qf8 26. Kg3 g6=) 23. Qxc7 Qb4 24. Re4 g6? (⌓ 24. ... Qd2!) 25. Kg2 h5 26. c4!± Ivanchuk – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), 8th 海南 (Hǎinán) 儋州 (Dānzhōu) Super Grandmaster Chess Tournament, 儋州 (Dānzhōu) 2017.
18. Qg5! h6 19. Qe5 c5. Black gives up a Pawn, laying her hopes on a heavy pieces endgame. On the other hand 19. ... b4 20. Nc4 Nf6 21. Qe7 also culminates in a discouraging ending.
20. Nxb5 Qxb5 21. Bxd5 Qxb2

22. Bxa8. Very strong was 22. Bb3! and if 22. ... Qc3 (what else?) then 23. Re3!! with a winning game.
22. ... Rxa8 23. Qxc5 Ra1 24. Rxa1 Qxa1+ 25. Kh2 g6 26. Kg3 h5 27. Kh4 Qa8

28. f3? Much better and simpler was 28. Qxd4 Qxg2 29. c4+− with a winning endgame.
28. ... Qd8+ 29. Kg3 Qb8+ 30. f4 Qb2 31. Kh4 Qb7 32. Kg5

32. ... Kh7? Black now returns the courtesy, losing right off. Correct was 32. ... Qxg2+ 33. Kh6 (33. Kf6?? Qxh3−+) 33. ... Qa8 34. Qxd4 Qf8+ 35. Kg5 Kh7 with good chances to draw.
33. Kf6 Qd7 34. f5 Kg8 35. g4 hxg4 36. hxg4 gxf5 37. gxf5 Qd8+ 38. Qe7 Qb6+ 39. Kg5 Qa6 40. Qe4 Kh7 1 : 0. Because of 41. f6+ followed by mate in three moves.

And as a result 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) found herself feeling alone amidst women on a man-crowded island. Photo: John Saunders.

Exit Through the Gift Shop

Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 23, 2017
Sicilian Defence B81

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 6. g4. Vintage Keres. 6. ... h6 7. h3 Nc6 8. Be3 Bd7 9. f4 Be7 10. Nf3!? Just a bit strange. 10. Qf3 might be the best choice, as after — just for example — 10. ... Nxd4 11. Bxd4 Bc6 12. 0-0-0 Qa5 13. Kb1 Rc8 14. Rg1 White soon developed a powerful initiative, Aronian – Gürcan, Zonal Tournament, Yerevan 2000. 10. ... d5! This must be good. Black has in mind to give up her (next) isolani so as to get dynamic counterplay. 11. exd5 Nxd5 (11. ... exd5!?) 12. Nxd5 exd5 13. Bg2. 13. Qxd5 Nb4 14. Qb3 0-0 gives Black excellent play for the Pawn. 13. ... d4!? (13. ... 0-0 14. 0-0 Re8 15. Qd2 Qc7∞) 14. Nxd4 Bh4+ 15. Bf2 Qe7+ 16. Kf1 Bxf2 17. Kxf2 0-0-0. Also interesting is 17. ... Qh4+ 18. Kg1 0-0 19. Nxc6 Bxc6 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Qf3 Rad8 22. Rh2 Rfe8 with a dynamic balance. 18. Qf3 Qc5 19. Rhd1. Kosteniuk gives her answer to the Hamletic dilemma of which Rook is the right one.

19. ... h5! Without this move Black’s counterplay would be almost doomed to failure, as after 19. ... Be6? 20. Qc3 Black would find herself without compensation for the Pawn. 20. gxh5. If 20. g5? then 20. ... Bg4! and Black should regain the Pawn with quite an even game. 20. ... Be6. Intending ... Be6-d5.

21. Qc3. Kosteniuk plays safely, even if doing so means resigning herself to a drawish endgame a Pawn up. If nothing else, 21. c3(!) Bd5 22. Qg4+ Kb8 23. Bxd5 Rxd5 24. Qxg7 Rdxh5 25. Rd3⩲ is also drawish, but a bit more laborious for Black. 21. ... Qxc3 22. bxc3 Rxh5 (22. ... Nxd4! 23. cxd4 Rxh5 24. Kg3 Rdh8 26. Rh1 R8h6=) 23. Nxe6 fxe6 24. Rxd8+ Kxd8 25. Rg1 Ne7 26. Bxb7 (26. Re1!?) 26. ... Rxh3. White’s doubled extra Pawn is meaningless and the game inexorably goes towards a draw. 27. Bf3 Rh2+ 28. Rg2 Rxg2+ 29. Bxg2 Kc7 30. Ke3 Kd6 31. Kd4 Nf5+ 32. Ke4 Ng3+ 33. Kf3 Nf5 34. Ke4 Ng3+ 35. Kd3 Nh5 36. Ke3 Nf6 37. c4 Nd7 38. Kd4 Nc5 39. Bf3 Nd7 40. Bh5 Nc5 41. Be8 Nb7 42. a4 Nc5 43. a5 Nb7 44. c5+ Nxc5 45. Kc4 Na6 46. Bh5 Nc7 47. Bf3 Na6 48. Bg2 Nc7 49. Bb7 Ne8 50. Kd4 Nf6 51. Bf3 Nd7 52. Bg2 e5+ 53. fxe5+ Nxe5 54. a6 Nd7 55. Bf1 Nc5 56. Bb5 Ne6+ 57. Ke4 Kc5 58. Ke5 Nc7 59. Bd3 Kb6 60. Kd6 g5. 60. ... Nxa6 61. Bxa6 Kxa6 62. c4 Kb7 63. Kd7 Kb6 draws at once. 61. Be2 Nb5+ 62. Ke5 Kxa6 63. Kf5 Kb6 64. Kxg5 Kc5 65. Kf4 Nc3 66. Ke3 a5 67. Kd2 Kb4 68. Bh5 a4 69. Kc1 a3 70. Bf7 Kc5 71. Bb3 Kd4 72. Bf7 Ke3 73. Bb3 Kd4 ½ : ½.

The photographer caught the essence of the uncovering game between shoulders and arms. Photo: John Saunders.

蝙蝠女孩

Garden Without Flowers

Levon Grigori Aronian – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
7th Chess World Cup; match game 1; Tbilisi, September 23, 2017
English Opening A18

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e6 3. e4 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. e5 Ne4 6. Nf3 Bf5 7. Be2 d4!? 8. Nxe4 Bxe4 9. Bc4!? Shimanov’s move, instead of 9. d3 Bd5 10. 0-0 Nc6 11. a3 a5 12. Bf4 a4 13. Nd2 Be7 14. Bg3 0-0 15. Rc1 which gave White a minimal edge, Topalov – Nakamura, Grand Chess Tour Blitz Paris 2017, Paris 2017. 9. ... Bd5!? 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)’s novelty – but not a substantial one. For 9. ... Be7 10. 0-0 Nc6 11. Re1 Bd5 12. Qb3 Bxc4 13. Qxc4 Qd7 14. d3 Qe6 take a look at Shimanov – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), 1st Fall Chess Classic, Saint Louis 2017. 10. Qb3 Bxc4 11. Qxc4 Nc6 12. 0-0 Qd7 13. d3 Qe6 14. Qxe6+ fxe6 15. Ng5 Kd7 16. f4 Be7 17. Ne4 Raf8 18. Bd2 g5 19. g3 Rhg8 20. Kh1 gxf4 21. gxf4 Rg6 22. Rac1 Rfg8 23. a3 a5 24. Rf3 b6 25. Rh3 R8g7 26. Ng3 Nd8 27. b4! axb4 28. axb4 b5!

29. Kg2. Aronian felt not ready to dare the most critical and consistent 29. f5! exf5 30. Nxf5 Rf7 31. Nxd4 as he apparently saw no convincing way to capitalize his material advantage after 31. ... Ne6! 32. Nxb5 (32. Nxe6? Kxe6 33. d4 Kd5 couldn’t worry Black anymore) 32. ... Rg4! with powerful dynamic compensation for the two Pawns. Whatever it was, it would have been a hard fight! 29. ... Nc6 30. Rb1 Rf7 31. Rh5 Rg8 32. Rh6 Bf8 33. Rh3 Be7 34. Rh6 Bf8 35. Rh3 Be7 ½ : ½.

Micol prêt-à-porter

“Micol prêt-à-porter” ™ © Mado Flynn

Statism

A laughing hyena in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Photo: Yaron Schmid/Caters News Agency.

比基尼泳衣 (Bikini)

Zwischenzug

The Associazione Culturale “Il Delta della Luna” will participate with its own stand through which it will promote both classical and Fischerandom chess in the Festa dello Sport of Quartiere 5 “Sport in libertà” to be held in the gardens surrounding the PalaMattioli, Via del Caboto, 50127 Florence tomorrow, Saturday, September 23, 2017 from 15,30 to 18,00. The entrance is free.

Artwork © fallmusic

록키 (Rocky)

One Wild Oat

London, England: Staff prepare a display of items from the sale of Audrey Hepburn’s personal collection at Christie’s. Photo: Leon Neal/Getty Images.

Red Hot Chilli Peppers

A man spreads red chilli peppers to dry at a village in 张掖 (Zhāngyè), 甘肃省 (Gānsù province), China. Photo: Reuters/Stringer.