Yeah, Edna, we all live in a yellow submarine

Photo © Наташа (@fly173_2018)

Last Tango in Whitby

Alumni Q&A: 侯逸凡 (Yìfán Hóu) (China & St Hilda’s 2018)

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), The Rhodes Trust, Saturday, November 13, 2021

I used to be a professional chess player, participating in tournaments and winning medals, but I have never thought that THIS was going to be my life-long career solely, though indeed chess is part of my life, and I hope that whatever I devote myself to in the future is something that has a deep connection with chess, direct or indirect.

— Can you tell us what you are working on at the moment?
— I am currently working as a Professor at the PE Department of 深圳大学 (Shēnzhèn University), China. There are a few parts to the role:
1. Giving lectures to the students from the Sports Training Major who have decent chess backgrounds, so the content in the class is not only about professional chess knowledge, but also combining mindset, practical skills, physical training methods etc. In general the concept of my class is not only about the skills itself, but the learning methods.
2. Organizing events and activities. We held an online World University Chess Invitational, the inviting teams included Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard etc. These kind of events aim to enhance the communication among global universities via chess and sports, and promote cross-cultural communications.
3. Projects. There are a few school-level projects I am running that focus on innovative teaching methods. I’m also preparing some cross-field researches related to chess.
Apart from the job in the University, I have also participated in some chess tournaments myself in the past few months. For example, I have won our National Chess Games in July, representing China playing the Online Chess Olympiad etc. I’m still a chess player from time to time! Also, I have been the Adviser of the translation of the book The Queen’s Gambit, which has just finished and the book will be published soon. There are also some other cross-fields collaborations I am involved in.

— Has your career trajectory panned out as you planned?
— It is hard to give a clear answer to this question as I am still exploring and developing my career... I used to be a professional chess player, participating in tournaments and winning medals, but I have never thought that THIS was going to be my life-long career solely, though indeed chess is part of my life, and I hope that whatever I devote myself to in the future is something that has a deep connection with chess, direct or indirect. That is the reason I applied for Rhodes Scholarship and studied Public Policy at Oxford, as I was eager to learn in different fields, and try to understand the basic logic of how society works and try to build the foundation of my thoughts and view towards the world.
The time at Rhodes and Oxford was fantastic, I have learned a lot, which has helped me think carefully about future paths. More importantly, it made me deeply realise the value of education, which shapes my own efforts of being an educator myself, in a more clear way. Now, after 1+ years college teaching experience, I think I will primarily follow this trajectory, as well as being open to career uncertainty and new opportunities.

---

侯逸凡 (Yìfán Hóu) is a Chinese chess grandmaster, four time Women’s World Chess Champion and the second highest rated female player of all time. A chess prodigy, she is the youngest female player ever to qualify for the title of grandmaster and the youngest ever to win the Women’s World Chess Championship. Read “侯逸凡 (Yìfán Hóu) and the Wait for Chess’s First Woman World Champion” in The New Yorker. 逸凡 (Yìfán) became a professor at 深圳大学 (Shēnzhèn University) in 2020, at the age of 26.

A Classroom of Her Own

Even today four-time Women’s World Chess Champion and Full University Professor 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) graced the audience with her presence so as to arouse the power of imagination and love for life in her students. Screenshot collage from the live stream.

Half a Candle

Magnus Carlsen – Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi

World Chess Championship match game 4; Dubai, November 30, 2021
Russian Defence C42

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6. The most homeopathic antidote to 1. e4. 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. d4 d5 6. Bd3 Bd6 7. 0-0 0-0 8. c4 c6 9. Re1 Bf5 10. Qb3. Another continuation is 10. Nc3 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Bxd3 12. Qxd3 dxc4 13. Qxc4 b5 14. Qd3 Nd7 15. Bg5 Qc7 16. Be7 Bxe7 17. Rxe7 Qd6 18. Rae1 Nf6 19. c4 bxc4 (⌓ 19. ... Qb4) 20. Qxc4 Nd5 21. Rb7 Rfb8 22. Qb3 Rxb7 (⌓ 22. ... Qc7!!) 23. Qxb7 Nb6 24. Qxa8+! Nxa8 25. Re8+ Qf8 26. Rxf8+ Kxf8 27. Ne5 with a favourable, if not winning, ending for White, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Čmilytė, 12th European Women’s Chess Club Cup, Kemer 2007. 10. ... Qd7 11. Nc3 Nxc3 12. Bxf5 Qxf5 13. bxc3. “This 13. bxc3 instead of 13. Qxb7 is a little bit rare”, Carlsen then said. “This whole plan, it’s pretty dangerous for him. The computer shows theories in many lines, but practically it’s not so easy. I thought what he went for looked a bit dangerous, but I couldn’t see it so I assume it was just a draw”. If, instead, 13. Qxb7 then 13. ... Qd7 14. Qxd7 (14. Qxa8?? Na4−+) 14. ... Nxd7 15. c5 Bxh2+! 16. Nxh2 Ne4 17. Bf4 Rfc8 18. f3 Nef6 19. Re3 Nf8 20. Rd1 Ne6 21. Be5 Nd7 22. Bd6 Nf6 23. Nf1 g6 24. Ng3 Ne8 25. Be5 a5 26. Ne2 a4 27. Ra3 f6 28. Bg3 N8c7 29. Bxc7 Nxc7 30. Nc3 Rcb8 31. Rxa4 Rxb2 32. Rxa8+ Nxa8 33. Rb1 Rxb1+ 34. Nxb1 Nc7 ½ : ½ Anand – Fedoseev, 81st Tata Steel Chess Tournament, Wijk aan Zee 2019.

13. ... b6 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Qb5 Qd7 16. a4 Qxb5 17. axb5 a5 18. Nh4!? “18. Nh4 is fascinating. I didn’t know this move and this is probably an excellent idea from Magnus Carlsen”, Grandmaster Fabiano Caruana said.

“There are insanely complicated lines”, Carlsen said afterwards about his 18th move — in fact a novelty. “The approach that [Nepomniachtchi] chose is not the only one that Black can choose. In other variations it’s insanely complicated and really, really risky for black. To be honest, the one he chooses, it looks really, really risky to leave the Knight on f8 and bank everything on the a-Pawn. If you’ve miscalculated something, you just lose without any chances. But it’s a lot easier of course when you’ve studied it and you know that it’s a draw and you can kind of work it out from there. But believe me, there are many, many other options for Black that lead to much more complications than what happened in the game”. 18. ... g6 19. g4 Nd7 20. Ng2 Rfc8 21. Bf4 Bxf4 22. Nxf4 Rxc3 23. Nxd5 Rd3 24. Re7 Nf8 25. Nf6+ Kg7 26. Ne8+ Kg8

27. d5. “I think there is either draw with 27. Nf6+ or 27. d5”, says Caruana. 27. ... a4 28. Nf6+ Kg7 29. g5 a3 30. Ne8+ Kg8 31. Nf6+ Kg7 32. Ne8+ Kg8 33. Nf6+ ½ : ½. “I believe [18. Nh4!?] is a very interesting try. Perhaps I even want to play this as White one day. But in general the task was more about not to mix up things and not to do something stupid, because as far as I know this line is more or less safe for Black. Of course I was checking twice everything and also calculating a lot, but in general I think this is quite safe”, Nepomniachtchi eventually said.

“I wouldn’t say I was frustrated”, Carlsen finally said. “I was just trying and I didn’t find it. It seemed pretty normal”. Photo © Niki Riga.

Yeah, Edna, the worst thing one can do when taking a day off is to sit in front of the computer for 6–12 hours

Artwork © 🌼Jin-Alice🌼 (@moonbunnycrochet)

The War of the Roses

Order, counter-order, disorder — COVID-19 is back! Rai 3’s investigative TV series, Report, continues its inquiry — by simply following the money — into the black holes of the mainstream narrative.

Back to Earth

Thus, on a cold and dark night, Letizia too was finally back onto a dance floor!

After Thoughts

Wow, Edna, perhaps you could try to explain to them how to solve Fibonacci’s rabbit puzzle

Artwork © Gius (@angegius)

Variable Geometry

卡珊德拉 (Cassandra)

While Fabiano Caruana rattled off lines and concepts, four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) gave proof of her divinatory skills by guessing the result of today’s game on the basis of precognition after White’s 21st move, thus giving the commentary a mystical perspective. Apparently she even claims to guess how Magnus Carlsen and Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi are going to spend their day off tomorrow, sharing her prophecies “pay-per-view” on chess.com Twitch Channel. Screenshot collage from the live stream.

On a Sunday Afternoon

Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi – Magnus Carlsen
World Chess Championship match game 3; Dubai, November 28, 2021
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. a4 Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2. Theoretically speaking, 10. c3 Nd7 11. Bc2 Bf6 12. Na3 is a continuation that cannot be merely dismissed as alternative, since after 12. ... Ne7 13. Be3 c6 14. d4 Qc7 15. h3 Rad8 16. Qe2 Rfe8 (16. ... d5!?) 17. axb5 axb5 18. d5 White stands better, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Azarov, 6th Aeroflot Open, Moscow 2007. 10. ... Re8. “10. ... Re8 is a really, really dumb move because usually you would try to go ... Rf8-e8 without ... d7-d6”, Carlsen said afterwards. “But it turns out even here he was well prepared and he didn’t give me even slight chances to play”. 11. Nf1 h6 12. Bd2 Bf8 13. Ne3 Ne7 14. c4 bxc4 15. Nxc4

15. ... Nc6!? A novelty by Carlsen, which seems to improve on 15. ... Rb8 16. Ncxe5! dxe5 17. Nxe5 Kh7? (⌓ 17. ... Ned5!) 18. Bxf7 Qd6 19. Bc3 Red8 20. Bc4 Nc6 21. Nf7 Qe7 22. d4 g6 23. Nxd8 Rxd8 24. Qb3 Ba8 25. Rad1 Bg7 26. Qc2 Nh5 27. d5 Ne5 28. Bxa6 Qd6 29. Bf1 Rf8 30. h3 Bb7 31. Bd4 Rf7 32. Re3 Bc8 33. Rc3 Nf4 34. Bc5 Qf6 35. d6 Qg5 36. Rg3 Qh5 37. Be3 Ne6 38. Rd5 Bb7 39. Rb5 cxd6 40. f4 Nc6 41. Rxh5 1 : 0 Arakhamia-Grant – Yıldız, 11th European Women’s Individual Chess Championship, Rijeka 2010. “I think that as an overall opening player, Magnus is probably the best prepared in the world and has been for many years”, Grandmaster Fabiano Caruana noted. 16. Rc1. If White had played 16. Bc3 at once, play might have transposed back to 16. ... Rb8 17. Rc1 Qd7 18. Na5 Nxa5 19. Bxa5 c5 20. Bc4 g6 21. Bc3 Bg7 22. Rb1 Kh7 ½ : ½ Kholmov – E. P. Geller, Moscow Veterans, Moscow 1991. 16. ... a5 17. Bc3. “I’m a bit worried for Magnus now”, Caruana said, but Carlsen has clear ideas on how to escape the bind. 17. ... Bc8! Rerouting his Bishop to e6 Black holds the balance. 18. d4 exd4 19. Nxd4 Nxd4 20. Qxd4 Be6

Now indeed it is only a question whether White will be able to stop Black’s ... d6-d5 Pawn advance or not. Apparently he cannot do it, since even the direct 21. Rcd1 may and should be answered by 21. ... d5 with Black promptly equalising. 21. h3!? After half an hour of thinking, Nepomniachtchi plays an useful waiting move, thus meaning that he did not manage to find an effective way of preventing ... d6-d5. On the other hand 21. Nxa5? c5! was obviously no good for White who must return the Pawn with manifest advantage to Black. “This is the current status of the chess theory”, Nepomniachtchi said afterwards. “It’s hard to find some advantage”. 21. ... c6. 21. ... d5 at once is also possible, whereupon there may follow 22. exd5 Qxd5 23. Qf4 Qg5 with near equality (and now not 24. Qxc7?? because of 24. ... Rec8−+). 22. Bc2. It’s just a way to keep the audience’s interest up until the 40th move, where they will be finally allowed to propose a draw. The most straightforward 22. Rcd1 d5 makes little or no difference. 22. ... d5. But by now Black’s fateful Pawn advance was no longer procrastinable.

23. e5 dxc4. 23. ... Nd7? 24. Nd6! was what White was dreaming about (Caruana’s analysis). 24. Qxd8. Likewise 24. exf6 Qxd4 25. Bxd4 Rab8 (Caruana) leads to a very drawish endgame. 24. ... Rexd8 25. exf6 Bb4 26. fxg7 Bxc3 27. bxc3 Kxg7 28. Kf1 Rab8 29. Rb1 Kf6 30. Rxb8 Rxb8 31. Rb1 Rxb1+ 32. Bxb1 Ke5. “I wasn’t thrilled to have this ending but I felt that it was generally well within the drawing range”, Carlsen then said. “I was happy to liquidate this pure Bishops ending because I get to centralize the King and push the Pawn and create a barrier”. 33. Ke2 f5 34. Bc2 f4 35. Bb1 c5 36. Bc2 Bd7 37. f3 Kf6 38. h4 Ke5 39. Kf2 Kf6 40. Ke2 Ke5 41. Kf2 ½ : ½.

“As the match goes along with each draw you get a bit more tense”, Carlsen finally said. “But I would say so far, it’s three games. And personally, as I’ve been Black in two of them, I’m fairly satisfied. There’s a lot of time to create something, although obviously it’s not ever going to be easy against a very strong opponent”. Photo: Eteri Kublashvili/Russian Chess Federation.

No, Edna, rulers cannot stop the growth and uncontrolled multiplication of humanitarian appeals, but they can replicate themselves more quickly than any existing virus

Artwork © bugcriativo (@bugcriativo)

Eega Beeva

Governments of the world unite and joined against mankind! The World Health Organisation, now your most helpful agency, has providentially detected a new COVID variant, the B.1.1.529 lineage, which was renamed for the occasion as Omicron variant and already labeled as a “variant of concern” due to “its large number of mutations and possible faster rate of infection”. What is the moral? Many other vaccines are coming for the sake of all beings, included guinea pigs. There’s only one consolation: the Greek alphabet has only 24 letters.

Mascot of Omicron Sigma Sigma (OΣΣ) sorority. Artwork © BB-Kiwi.

Far and Near

When asked in the post-game press conference whose broadcast commentary would he be watching if he wasn’t playing, Magnus Carlsen took a pause and replied: “I’m really sorry, I just don’t remotely care!”. As the owner of the media outlet for which his interviewer was working, 16th World Chess Champion could not say of course that if only he could he’d be watching another story — where his old rival Fabiano Caruana is invited every day to share his keen insight on chess issues from the pulpit and blessing of the superstar guest, namely 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), a four-time Women’s World Chess Champion, a Rhodes Scholar and a Full University Professor. Screenshot collage from the live stream.

Certainties and Doubts

Magnus Carlsen – Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi
World Chess Championship match game 2; Dubai, November 27, 2021
Catalan Opening E06

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 0-0 6. 0-0 dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 8. Ne5. 8. a4 b4 9. Nfd2 Nd5 10. Nxc4 c5 11. dxc5 Ba6 12. Ne3 Nd7 13. Nxd5 exd5 14. c6 Rc8 15. Bf4 Nc5 16. c7 Qd7 17. Nd2 g5! produced many complications, finally enabling Black to achieve what he called a “special win”, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Carlsen, 5th Grand Chess Tour, 2nd stage, Zagreb 2019. 8. ... c6 9. a4 Nd5. Not 9. ... Qxd4? on account of 10. Nxc6 Nxc6 11. Bxc6 Rb8 12. axb5 with too great advantage to White. A very instructional game between two superpowers continued instead 9. ... b4 10. Nxc4 Qxd4 11. Rd1 Qc5 12. Be3 Qh5 13. Nbd2 Nd5? (⌓ 13. ... Ng4) 14. Nb3 Nxe3 15. Nxe3 a6 16. Nc4 Ra7 17. Rac1 c5 18. Nba5± Leela Chess Zero – Bluefish, Top Chess Engine Championship Season 15 — Fun Bonus, tcec-chess.com, April 28, 2019, match game 2. 10. Nc3 f6 11. Nf3 Qd7!? An interesting novelty which puts new wine, so to say, in the old wineskins: 11. ... b4 12. Ne4 Ba6∞ Gelfand – Shirov, 3rd “Trophée Immopar” Rapid International Tournament, Paris 1992. 12. e4 Nb4 13. Qe2 Nd3

14. e5! White’s fianchettoed Bishop declares itself vehemently to Black’s Rook. 14. ... Bb7 15. exf6 Bxf6 16. Ne4 Na6 17. Ne5!?

Carlsen set fire to the powders in view of lines such as 17. ... Qxd4? 18. Nxf6+ Rxf6 19. axb5 or 17. ... Nxe5? 18. dxe5 Bxe5 19. Ng5! only to be caught by surprise by his opponent’s reply. Afterwards he had to admit he did not duly appreciate the strength of Black’s 18th move. However, four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) gives it full credit as being surely well calculated by 16th World Champion. 17. ... Bxe5! 18. dxe5 Nac5! 19. Nd6 Nb3 20. Rb1. Most commentators prefer 20. Be3 — in fact a dual mode Exchange sacrifice — and they alone know why. “Somehow the move 18. ... Nac5 just completely escaped my attention, so that was a pretty unpleasant surprise!”, Carlsen then said. “I did take some solace in the fact you usually need to work pretty hard to win such positions as Black and I thought I had at least some reasonable winning chances”. 20. ... Nbxc1 21. Rbxc1 Nxc1 22. Rxc1 Rab8! 23. Rd1 Ba8! “In general I thought it was a very puzzling and I would say that during the game I thought we both are playing not so well”, Nepomniachtchi said afterward. “But now I start thinking it was just very interesting and very chaotic”.

24. Be4! c3!? The most mysterious move in the game, even if apparently Black stood well enough to be able to afford it. On the other hand after 24. ... bxa4!? 25. Bxh7+ Kxh7 26. Qh5+ Kg8 27. Rd4 Qe7!∞. (in order to give up the Queen for the Rook should White play Rd4-h4) the situation is still highly unclear. 25. Qc2 g6 26. bxc3 bxa4 (26. ... Qg7!? 27. f4 g5) 27. Qxa4 Rfd8 28. Ra1 c5 29. Qc4 Bxe4 30. Nxe4 Kh8 31. Nd6 Rb6 32. Qxc5 Rdb8 33. Kg2 a6 34. Kh3 Rc6 35. Qd4 Kg8 36. c4 Qc7

37. Qg4. “I didn’t feel like I had any great [winning] chances, per se”, Carlsen said. “I did feel that my position was improving quite a bit. But when I went for this [37. Qg4], my time was ticking down a bit. I couldn’t really see a way to comfortably improve my position and that’s why I decided to basically force a draw there. It was probably the best position I had in the game, [but] I didn’t really see the way. Obviously after what had transpired earlier in the game, having a completely safe position was nice. In a must-win game, I might have treated it a bit differently”. 37. ... Rxd6 38. exd6 Qxd6 39. c5 Qxc5 40. Qxe6+ Kg7 41. Rxa6 Rf8 42. f4 Qf5+ 43. Qxf5 Rxf5 44. Ra7+ Kg8 45. Kg4 Rb5 46. Re7 Ra5 47. Re5 Ra7 48. h4 Kg7 49. h5 Kh6 50. Kh4 Ra1 51. g4 Rh1+ 52. Kg3 gxh5 53. Re6+ Kg7 54. g5 Rg1+ 55. Kf2 Ra1 56. Rh6 Ra4 57. Kf3 Ra3+ 58. Kf2 Ra4 ½ : ½.

“The games have been a bit atypical for both of us”, Carlsen eventually said. “They are not following any specific pattern. It’s just a fight”. Photo: Haider Ali/EPA.

Well, Edna, you know, we just cannot say it openly bacause their superiority complex would get hurt, but you and you alone are one worth living and dying for

Artwork © wheeboksliy (@wheeboksliy)

Conspiracy theory

Blowin’ in the Wind Bob Dylan How many roads must a man walk down Before you call him a man? How many seas must a white dove sail Before she sleeps in the sand? Yes, and how many times must the cannonballs fly Before they’re forever banned? The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind The answer is blowin’ in the wind Yes, and how many years must a mountain exist Before it is washed to the sea? And how many years can some people exist Before they’re allowed to be free? Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head And pretend that he just doesn’t see? The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind The answer is blowin’ in the wind Yes, and how many times must a man look up Before he can see the sky? And how many ears must one man have Before he can hear people cry? Yes, and how many deaths will it take ’til he knows That too many people have died? The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind The answer is blowin’ in the wind

Luck Favours the Prepared

Maybe others think they are best, but in the end Grandmaster Fabiano Caruana is the luckiest of any commentator on the Internet, inasmuch as he is the only one who shares a broadcast studio with a four-time Women’s World Chess Champion and a Full University Professor named 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán). Screenshot collage from the live stream.

Back In Time For Dinner

Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi – Magnus Carlsen
World Chess Championship match game 1; Dubai, November 26, 2021
Spanish Game C88

Actually, there’s very little to say. Nepomniachtchi paid the price of his faith in the science fiction of petaflops, allowing the World Champion to draw the game without difficulty. The position reached after 16 moves can be interesting only for a supercomputer, because from a mortal viewpoint it is much easier to play for Black who has more than enough compensation for the Pawn.

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 Na5. Through other ways Black aims at sacrificing a Pawn for dynamic play, similarly to the Marshall Counterattack. The alternative is 8. ... Bb7 9. d3 d5 (9. ... d6 10. a3 Qd7 11. Nbd2 Rfe8 12. c3 Bf8 13. Nf1 h6 14. N3h2 d5! 15. Qf3 Na5 16. Ba2 dxe4 17. dxe4 Nc4 18. Bxh6!? Qc6! proved good for Black in Karjakin – Carlsen, New York 2016, World Chess Championship match game 4) 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 Qd7? [17. ... Qf6 18. Bxd5 Bxd5 19. Nxb5 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Qc6+ 21. Kh2 Qxb5 22. Qf4 Qxb2 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 20. Nxb5 Qxb5 21. Bxd5 Qxb2 22. Bxa8 Rxa8 23. Qxc5 Ra1 24. Rxa1 Qxa1+ 25. Kh2 g6 26. Kg3 h5 27. Kh4 Qa8 28. f3 Qd8+ 29. Kg3 Qb8+ 30. f4 Qb2 31. Kh4 Qb7 32. Kg5 Kh7 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 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – E. Pähtz, 4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament, Douglas 2017. 9. Nxe5 Nxb3 10. axb3 Bb7 11. d3 d5 12. exd5 Qxd5 13. Qf3 Bd6

14. Kf1!? A move that sooner or later White will end up playing anyway. Likewise it can be considered 14. Qxd5 Nxd5 15. Bd2 f6?! (⌓ 15. ... c5 is quite similar to the actual game) 16. Nf3 Ne7 17. Nd4 c5 18. Ne2 Ng6 19. Nbc3 f5 20. Kf1 b4 21. Na4 f4 22. Nb6 Rad8 23. Nc4 Bc7 24. f3 Nh4 25. d4 Rd5 26. dxc5 Rg5 27. c6 Bxc6 28. Nd4 Bd7 29. g4 Rd5 30. Ne6 Nxf3 31. Nxf8 Nxe1 32. Bxe1 Kxf8 33. Rxa6 h5 34. Ra7 Bd8 35. Bxb4+ Kg8 36. Ra8 Bc6 37. Rc8 hxg4 38. hxg4 Bb7 39. Rb8 f3 40. Be7 Rd1+ 41. Kf2 Kh7 42. Rxb7 1 : 0 Korneev – Nataf, 48th Portuguese Team Chess Championship, Évora 2006. 14. ... Rfb8. The tactical point is 14. ... Qxe5 15. Qxb7 Qh2 16. Nc3!⩲ with White consolidating his tiny hold. 15. Qxd5 (15. Nc3?? Qxe5 16. Qxb7 Qxe1+−+) 15. ... Nxd5 16. Bd2 c5

Black has everything one could want at the price of only one Pawn: better Pawns, two Bishops, and a fine development. Dutch Grandmaster Erwin l’Ami very opportunely observes that “A ton of engines games have reached the current position. Most of them continued 17. Nc3 Nb4 18. Rac1 when White can try to make use of the extra Pawn”. However, it is just the case to note that usually Black manages to draw. 17. Nf3 Rd8 18. Nc3 Nb4 19. Rec1 Rac8 20. Ne2 Nc6 21. Be3 Ne7 22. Bf4 Bxf3 23. gxf3 Bxf4 24. Nxf4. “But [this Bishop exchange] idea was logical but it doesn’t work for some positional and tactical reasons, so basically after I let those exchanges happen (at 22. ... Bxf3 23. gxf3 Bxf4 24. Nxf4), it was never something I could really hope for more than a draw. Basically after 33. ... b4, probably I would have to bring my King to c2 and sacrificing the Pawn back and accept the draw”, Nepomniachtchi said afterwards. 24. ... Rc6 25. Re1 Nf5 26. c3 Nh4 27. Re3 Kf8 28. Ng2 Nf5 29. Re5 g6 30. Ne1 Ng7 31. Re4 f5 32. Re3 Ne6 33. Ng2 b4 34. Ke2 Rb8 35. Kd2 bxc3+ 36. bxc3 Rxb3

Black has finally won back his Pawn, retaining at the same time a somewhat easier play. So, what does it mean? That a draw is White’s best result! 37. Kc2 Rb7 (37. ... Rcb6?? 38. Rxe6!+−) 38. h4 Kf7. “38. ... a5 was a nasty idea, since 39. Rxa5? Nd4+! 40. Kd1 Rb1+ 41. Kd2 Rcb6 42. cxd4 cxd4 either wins a Rook or mates on b2”, l’Ami writes, but indeed after 39. Re2! Rcb6 40. Kc1 White should hold without difficulty. 39. Ree1 Kf6 40. Ne3 Rd7 41. Nc4 Re7 42. Ne5 Rd6 43. Nc4 Rc6 44. Ne5 Rd6 45. Nc4 ½ : ½.

“The result was solid. I do feel like I was a little bit shaky at times. Certainly things that I could have done better but overall I think the result was fair enough”, Carlsen eventually said. Photo: Haider Ali/EPA.

Yet, Edna, nothing is more dramatic than love

Artwork © Wandering, Not Lost (@ussrosalind)

The Night Before

The newly crowned European Women’s Team Chess Champions, namely in alphabetical order: Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina, Valentina Evgenyevna Gunina, Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk, Ekaterina Aleksandrovna Lagno, and Polina Sergeevna Shuvalova appeared as special guests on the most popular late night talk show Evening Urgant on November 25, 2021. Photo: Вечерний Ургант (@Urgant_Show).

Reasons to Reason

To tell more than the truth in an advertisement is to exaggerate. An audience does not need seven reasons for surrendering to the aura of a Queen — her Royal light is reason enough. So one could sum up like this: there is one reason to admire four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) and seven reasons to watch the World Chess Championship match on chess.com. For further details, click here.

FLOPS

• Sean Ingle, Will Nepo’s supercomputer give him world title edge over Carlsen?, The Guardian, November 25, 2021

After qualifying to face Carlsen by winning the FIDE candidates tournament in Yekaterinburg this year, Nepomniachtchi credited the Zhores supercomputer, based in the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology in Moscow, as helping him and his team evaluate tens of millions of positions per second. This week the Russian confirmed to The Guardian that he was using it again to prepare for Carlsen. [Read more].

Sand in the Wind

Cao Lê Diệu Phúc, Imagine, 2017. Courtesy of him himself.

Have faith, Edna, professing a peaceful resistance does not mean the oppressors will not pay a price for what evil they have done

Artwork © ꧁𝙰𝚜𝚑𝚕𝚎𝚢 𝙶𝚒𝚜𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚁𝚘𝚍𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚞𝚎𝚣꧂🧿 (@__ashleyrodriguez__)

Fall Leaves

Once upon a time, deep into an alley on 八字桥老街 (Bāzìqiáo Old Street) in 兴化 (Xīnghuà), 江苏省 (Jiāngsū province), China, there was the Chinese Chess Intercultural Centre named after four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) in honour of her being born here. And here’s what it looks like today — a desert of locked doors and autumn’s dead leaves. Photo: 心海慈航 (Heart Sea Cíháng).

A Shark Out of Water

• Sean Ingle, Inside the mind of Magnus Carlsen: “I am happy to win in any way possible”, The Guardian, November 24, 2021

“I’m less hungry. I think you’re always going to be if you’re playing for the world title for the fifth time, rather than the first”. It is quite the opening gambit from Magnus Carlsen, in his final newspaper interview before he puts his crown on the line again. [Read more].

The Sands of Time

The World Chess Championship 2021 is hosted at Dubai Exhibition Centre concurrently to the World Expo. It’s not an easy place to be — but so be it. After The Queen’s Gambit, the life of kings has become much harder as none of them wants to play Borgov’s role. At their opening press conference, however, Magnus Carlsen and Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi (both pictured above) kept faith to their engagement in the strictest sense of duty, and FIDE President Arkady Vladimirovich Dvorkovich proudly announced that at stake is not only the vile money, but also a new type of prize assignment — namely, a huge Russian-made trophy of more than 5 kg in sterling silver coated with gold and dolerite, and inlaid with 39 pearls and a diamond. The man with the Midas touch hopes for a remake of the Match of the Century, even without the help of Beth Harmon. Hopefully yes. However, only time will tell whether the mighty organisational machine will actually succeed at making two friends act like two frenemies. Just to quote Morphy, in the end the winner will be he whose “earnest desire is never to play for any stake but honour”. Photo: Haider Ali/EPA via Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

Of course, Edna, even what you do not say is far more important and infinitely more inspiring than any of their rhetoric about how to save the Group of Ten by minorities and marginalised people

Artwork © mrazya (@mrazya_)

Sand and Sandstone

张博原 (Zhāng Bóyuán), A Camel Crossing the Highway of Taklimakan, 2018. Photo © 张博原 (Zhāng Bóyuán). Courtesy of 高台当代艺术中心艺术家 (Gāotái Gallery), 新疆 (Xīnjiāng).

No, Edna, the moon will never melt thy wings

Artwork © Celebrating Jeremy (@celebratingjeremy)

The Crescent Moon

The Moon and Jiva brought light and relief for a diaspora of ballerinas who refused the imposition of a narrow-minded “New Normal” and were instead aimed at defending their roots and their future.

Tea in the Desert

If you had no reason to search for sand in the desert, now you have at least one to lay yourself in the dunes at Goddess’ feet as four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) will be commentating on the upcoming World Chess Championship match between Magnus Carlsen and Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi. For further details, click here.

Sure, Edna, it’s even too easy to take in more calories than one needs, especially if one has a sweet tooth for ice creams and cakes

Artwork © Holly (@cre8ive_intentions)

A Sunday Devotional

On Sunday, November 21, 2021, four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) appeared as guest star on stage and backstage at the 20th “荔园杯” (“Lìyuán Cup”), an annual scholastic chess tournament held at 通新岭校区 (Tōngxīnlǐng Campus) of 荔园小学 (Lìyuán Primary School) in 深圳 (Shēnzhèn), China. For the sake of the young pupils, the special appearance included, as icing on the cake, a 24-board simultaneous exhibition which the royal guest performed with her habitual care and kindness. Photos: 深圳特区报 (Shēnzhèn Special Zone Daily) and 荔园小学 (Lìyuán Primary School).