The Ineffable Lability of Being

Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina – Elisabeth Pähtz
FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2024–25; 2nd stage; Shimkent, November 5, 2024
French Defence C07

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 c5 4. exd5 Qxd5 5. Ngf3 cxd4 6. Bc4 Qd7 7. 0-0 Nc6 8. Nb3 a6 9. Nbxd4 Nxd4 10. Qxd4 Qxd4 11. Nxd4 Nf6 12. Be2 Bd6 13. Rd1 Ke7 14. c4 Bd7 15. b4 Bxb4 16. Rb1 a5 17. a3 Bc5 18. Rxb7 Bxd4 19. Rxd4 Rhb8 20. Rxb8 Rxb8 21. f3 Rb1 22. Rd1 Ba4 23. Re1 Bc6 24. Bd2 Rxe1+ 25. Bxe1 a4 26. Kf2 e5 27. Ke3 Kd6 28. Kd3 Nd7 29. Kc3 Nc5 30. Kb4 Be8 31. Ka5 Kc6 32. Bd1 f6 33. Bxa4+ Nxa4 34. Kxa4 Bd7 35. Kb4 g6 36. Bh4 f5 37. Bf6 e4 38. fxe4 fxe4 39. Bg5 Bc8 40. Be3 Ba6 41. Kc3 Kd6 42. Kd4 Bb7 43. a4 Bc6 44. a5 Bb7 45. g4 h5 46. g5 Bc8 47. Bf4+ Kc6 48. Ke5

White has a Pawn more, but the presence of Bishops of opposite colours should enable Black to save herself without any divine aid.
48 ... e3? But not this way. Black had to play 49. ... Kb7! 50. Kd6 (50. Kxe4 Ka6=) 50. ... Ka6 51. Bd2 e3! with a draw in view.
49. Bxe3 Kc7. Now is too late for 49. ... Kb7 because of 50. c5 Ka6 51. Kf6 Bf5 52. c6 Kxa5 53. c7 Kb5 54. c8=Q Bxc8 55. Kxg6 winning easily.
50. Kf6 Bf5 51. a6 Be4 52. h4 Kc6 53. Ba7 Kc7 54. c5 Kc8 55. Bb6 Kb8

56. c6! 1–0.

Even a draw by Bishops of opposite colours is never to be taken for granted. Photo: Konstantin Chalabov/FIDE.

Perfidious Albion

Elisabeth Pähtz – Alice Lee
2nd FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss Tournament; Douglas, October 25, 2023
English Opening A20

1. c4 e5 2. g3 c6 3. d4 e4 4. Nc3 d5 5. Nh3 Bb4 6. Qb3 Ba5 7. Bg5 f6!? Nothing trascendental, but 7. ... Qb6 8. cxd5 h6 9. Bd2⩲ isn’t entirely satisfying either, J. J. Cox – Hillarp Persson, 7th London Classic Open, London 2015.
8. Bd2 dxc4 9. Qxc4

9. ... b5. 9. ... f5 10. Nf4 is also quite unpleasant for Black.
10. Qb3 Qxd4!? Very risky.
11. 0-0-0 Qe5

12. Nxe4? Too hasty. More methodical would have been 12. Bg2 Be6 13. Qc2 with advantage for White.
12. ... Qxe4?? The young Asian American hope, at her début on the world stage, pays the price of her inexperience, and will soon see the worst of it. Simply 12. ... Bxd2+ 13. Nxd2 a5! would have left Black with a perfectly playable game.
13. Bxa5+− Be6 (13. ... Nd7 14. Bg2! Qxg2 15. Qe3+ ~ 16. Nf4+−)

14. Bg2! Qe5. Not 14. ... Qxg2 because of 15. Qxe6+ followed by mate.
15. Rd8+ Kf7 16. Qa3! The King hunt proceeds inexorably.
16. ... b4 17. Bxb4 g5 18. Bc3 Qb5 19. Qf8+ Kg6 20. Qe8+ Bf7 21. Be4+ f5 22. Rd6+ Kh5 23. Bf3+ 1 : 0.

Not So Simple

Elisabeth Pähtz – Anna Olehivna Muzychuk
2nd Women’s Chess World Cup; Quarterfinal match game 2; Baku, August 13, 2023
4B3/8/4kP1p/pp6/6K1/P2b4/7P/8 w - - 1 41

Position after 40. ... Kd6-e6

The diagram shows the position of the second game of the quarterfinal between Pähtz and Muzychuk after Black’s 40th move. With time control reached, one might think that a draw would be agreed soon — namely, after 41. f7 Ke7 42. Kh5 Kf8 43. Kxh6 b4 44. axb4 axb4 (45. Ba4 Kxf7). Instead, tiredness and nerves play a bad joke on both of them.
41. Kh5?? As Pähtz then admitted, she didn’t even suspect what a tragic mistake the text was.
41. ... Kxf6 42. Kxh6 a4! Strange to say, this move (which threatens ... b5-b4) must have been overlooked by Pähtz.
43. h4

Black to move and win.
43. ... Ke7?? But no. Incredibly enough, Muzychuk fails in courtesy to her opponent, missing the obvious win 43. ... b4! 44. Bxa4 bxa3−+ when White cannot avoid being “zugzwanged”; for example: 45. Bb3 Bg6 46. Ba2 Bf7 47. Bb1 Bb3 48. Kh5 Be6! 49. Kh6 Bf7! 50. Kh7 Bg6+!! finis.
44. Bc6! Kd6 45. Be8 Bc4 46. Bg6 Kc5 47. h5 b4 48. axb4+ Kxb4 49. Kg7 a3 50. Bb1 a2 51. Bxa2 Bxa2 52. h6 Bb1 53. h7 Bxh7 54 Kxh7 ½ : ½.

Two friends, who have to put their friendship to one side, with things in common, sharing a board. Photo: Maria Alekseevna Emelianova/chess.com.

A Day’s Ride

Elisabeth Pähtz – Valentina Evgenyevna Gunina

4th Online Women’s Speed Chess Championship Main Event; Round of 16 match game 8; time control: 5 minutes plus 1 second per move; chess.com, June 28, 2022

Queen’s Pawn Game D00

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 c5 3. e3 Nc6 4. c3 Bf5 5. Nd2 e6 6. Ngf3 Bd6 7. Bg3 Nf6 8. Qb3 Rb8 9. dxc5. More ambitious than 9. Qa3 Bxg3 10. hxg3 cxd4 ½ : ½ Wong Yinn Long – Villegas, 1st Online Chess Olympiad Division 3 Pool A, chess.com, August 9, 2020 (time control: 15 minutes plus 5 seconds per move). 9. ... Bxg3 10. hxg3 0-0 11. Nh4 Be4 12. f3 Bg6 13. Nxg6 hxg6 14. Qc2 a5 15. Nb3 Nd7 16. g4 Qe7 17. Qf2 g5? This move causes Black grave trouble. Of course, there was nothing terribly wrong with 17. ... Nxc5 (and then 18. 0-0-0 would imply a typical struggle with heterogeneous castling), but Black could even play, perhaps more interestingly, 17. ... b6!? 18. Bb5 bxc5 19. Bxc6 Ne5 regaining the piece with an unclear game. 18. Qg3! Heading for the h-file. 18. ... f6 19. Qh3 Nde5 20. Nd4 Qxc5

21. 0-0-0? White misses 21. Qh8+ Kf7 22. Qxg7+! winning a second Pawn and securing the victory. 21. ... Kf7! Now the game gets real controversial. 22. Qh5+ Ke7 23. Qh7 Rg8 24. f4 Nf7 25. Qd3 b5 26. Kb1 b4 27. Nb3 Qa7 28. c4 Rgd8 29. Be2 gxf4 30. exf4 a4 31. Nc1 a3

32. b3? A mistake after which White’s position falls apart. Pähtz might still have saved the day by playing 32. Nb3! axb2 33. cxd5 Ra8 34. Qa6 Qxa6 35. Bxa6 Rxa6 36. dxc6 Rxc6 37. Rxd8 Nxd8 38. Kxb2 Rc4 39. g3 e5 with roughly equal chances. 32. ... dxc4 33. Qxc4 Nd4! 34. Rhe1 Qb6. Frees the b8-Rook. 35. Bf3 (35. Qa6 Qc7 36. Qc4 Qxf4−+) 35. ... Rbc8 36. Qf1

Gunina concludes brilliantly: 36. ... Rc2! Threatens 37. ... Rb2+ 38. Ka1 Nc2#. 37. Nd3 Qc7! Threatens 38. ... Rb2+ 39. Nxb2 Qc2+ followed by mate. 38. Rc1 Qc3! 0 : 1.

Treasure hunting

Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina – Elisabeth Pähtz
14th European Women’s Team Chess Championship; Terme Čatež, November 14, 2021
Bogo-Indian Defence E11

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 a5 5. g3 d5 6. Bg2 dxc4 7. a3 Be7 8. Qa4+ Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Nc3 0-0 11. Qd3. Not surprisingly at all, Goryachkina is at her ease in Karpov’s shoes: 11. 0-0 Nbd7 12. Qd3 b6 13. Rac1 Bb7 14. Bf4 c5 15. Rfd1 cxd4 16. Nxd4 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Rc8 18. Ncb5 e5 19. Rxc8 Qxc8 20. Nf5 Bc5 21. Bg5 Qc6+ 22. f3 Qe6 23. Nc7 Qc6 24. Nd5 Qe6 25. e4 g6 26. Nfe3 Kg7 27. b4 axb4 28. axb4 Bd4 29. Nc2 Nxd5 30. exd5 Qxd5 31. Nxd4 exd4 32. Qxd4+ Qxd4 33. Rxd4 Ne5 34. Rd6 Nc4 35. Bf6+ Kg8 36. Rc6 b5 37. Rc5 Rb8 38. g4 h6 39. h4 Nd6 40. Rc6 Ne8 41. Be5 Rd8 42. Rc5 Rd2+ 43. Kg3 f6 44. Bf4 g5 45. Bxd2 1 : 0 Karpov – Édouard, 3rd Karpov Trophy Blitz, Cap d’Agde 2014 (time control: 3 minutes plus 2 seconds per move). 11. ... b6 12. 0-0 Bb7 13. Ne5 Bxg2. Perhaps 13. ... Qc8 might have been considered here, hoping for something better than what she’s going to get. 14. Kxg2 Nfd7 15. Qf3. Black now suffers some difficulty in finding a good place for her Queen’s Rook, to the detriment of her whole development.

15. ... Ra6 16. Rfd1 Qe8 17. Bf4 Bd6 18. Nxd7 Qxd7 19. Rac1 a4 20. e4 Bxf4 21. Qxf4 Ra5

22. d5! Na6 23. dxe6 Qxe6 24. Rd5 Rc5 25. Rxc5. Goryachkina goes in for the gain of a Pawn, which perhaps could be delayed in favour of a more consolidating policy: 25. Rcd1 with powerful advantage. 25. ... Nxc5 26. Qxc7 Rc8? This naïve mistake causes Black insurmountable problems. 26. ... f5! was better in order to seek compensation by opening the f-file.

27. Rd1! The threat of back rank mate makes the White Queen immune to capture as White takes command of the d-file with decisive effect. 27. ... f6 28. Rd8+ Rxd8 29. Qxd8+ Kf7 30. Qd5 Ke7. After 30. ... Qxd5 31. exd5 the Pawn down Knight ending is completely hopeless for Black. 31. Qd4 h5? This loses another Pawn, in an already lost position. 32. Nxa4 Nxe4 33. Nxb6 h4 34. Nd5+ Kf8 35. Nf4 h3+ 36. Nxh3 Qc6 37. f3 1 : 0.

And, who knows, maybe inspired by the high teaching of the Living Goddess, three-time Russian Women’s Chess Champion Goryachkina continues, slowly but inexorably, to pursue the mountain’s stony edge. Photo: ECU Press.

Isoperimetric inequality

Irina Bulmagă – Elisabeth Pähtz
FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2019–20; 4th stage; Catalan Bay, May 22, 2021
Sicilian Defence B96

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 a6 6. Bg5 e6 7. f4 Qc7 8. Qe2!? Much less common with respect to 8. Qf3, but quite fashionable in times of over theory. 8. ... b5 9. a3 Bb7 10. 0-0-0 Nbd7 11. g4 Rc8 12. f5!? A novelty in theme. The model game continued with 12. Bxf6! gxf6 13. h4 Qb6 14. Rh3 h5 15. f5 e5 16. Nb3 hxg4 17. Qxg4 b4 18. axb4 Qxb4 19. Kb1 Nb6 20. Qe2 Bh6 21. Qf2 Rc6 22. Na2 Qa4 23. Rc3 Ke7 24. Rxc6 Qxc6 25. Na5 Qc7 26. Nxb7 Qxb7 27. Nb4 Rb8 28. Qxb6 Qxb6 29. Nd5+ Kf8 30. Nxb6 Rxb6 31. c3 Be3 32. Kc2 Kg7 33. b4 Kh6 34. Bc4 Bf2 35. Rh1 Rc6 36. Kb3 Rb6 37. Kc2 Rc6 38. Kd3 Rc7 39. Bxa6 Kh5 40. Bc4 Ra7 41. Bd5 Kh6 42. h5 Bb6 43. Kc4 Be3 44. Kb3 Bb6 45. Rh2 Be3 46. Re2 Bb6 47. Ra2 Rxa2 48. Kxa2 Kxh5 49. Kb3 Bf2 50. Ka4 Kh6 51. Kb5 Kg7 52. Kc6 Kf8 53. b5 Ke7 54. Kc7 1 : 0 Kramnik – Gelfand, 10th Tal Memorial, Moscow 2016. 12. ... e5 13. Nb3 Nb6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. h4 h6 16. Kb1 Rg8 17. Rg1 Nc4 18. Nd5 Bxd5 19. Rxd5 Be7 20. Rg3 Qb7 21. Qe1 Nb6 22. Rd1 Na4 23. Bd3 Kf8 24. Qd2 Rh8 25. Rdg1 d5 26. g5 hxg5 27. hxg5 dxe4? Without going into too many details, Black had thus far managed to stay afloat, but the text spoils everything. Instead, the cool 27. ... fxg5 28. Rxg5! Bf6! seems fine for Black.

28. Qg2? But White wastes her golden opportunity: 28. Bxe4! Qxe4 29. gxf6 Bxf6 30. Qd6+ Be7 31. Qh6+! winning brilliantly. 28. ... fxg5 29. Bxe4 Qb6 30. Rh1 Rxh1+ 31. Qxh1 Bf6 32. Rh3. Perhaps 32. Rxg5!? might be more promising. 32. ... Ke7?! (⌓ 32. ... Rd8) 33. Rh7 Qf2? Giving back the Pawn by 33. ... Qd6 34. Bd5 Rh8 was arguably a much better defence. 34. Qh5 Rf8 35. Bd5 Qxf5 36. Bxf7 Qf1+ 37. Ka2 Kd6? This should be only one more step towards catastrophe, but Black has no reason to regret it, as 37. ... Bg7 38. Rxg7 Rxf7 39. Rxg5 was hopeless as well.

38. Nd2?? White’s afternoon ends in a dramatic harakiri which allows her opponent the opportunity to whip up a mating attack. 38. Qg4! instead would have forced a straightforward win for White, since Black could avoid the check on e6 only at cost of heavy material loss. 38. ... Qc1−+ 39. Ne4+ Kc6 40. Bd5+ Kxd5 41. Rd7+ Kxe4 42. Qh7+ Kf4 43. Qh2+ Kf5 44. Qh7+ Kg4 45. Qe4+ Qf4 46. Qg2+ Kf5 47. Qh3+ g4 48. Qh7+ Kg5 49. Rd1 Rh8 50. Qa7 Rh2 51. Qa8 Qc4+ 52. Ka1 Rxc2 0 : 1.

The return to reality can be as alienating as the need of a metaphysical reality. Photo © John Saunders.

The Story So Far

Elisabeth Pähtz from Germany and Anna Olehivna Muzychuk from Ukraine won the ACP European Women’s Rapid & Blitz Chess Championships which took place in Tbilisi, Georgia, from March 29 to April 1, 2018. The Rapid Championship was won by Pähtz, Anastasia Mikhailovna Bodnaruk and Muzychuk securing respectively second and third places. The Blitz Championship, instead, was won by Muzychuk, with Pähtz second and Monika Bobrowska-Soćko third.

The 2018 ACP European Women’s Rapid Chess Champion Elisabeth Pähtz. Photo: Graf/Thüringer Allgemeine.

The 2018 ACP European Women’s Blitz Chess Champion Anna Olehivna Muzychuk. Photo: European Chess Union.

Forkesch Tower

Vassily Mykhaylovych Ivanchuk – Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin
11th ROMGAZ Kings Rapid Tournament; Mediaș, November 27, 2017
Queen’s Gambit Declined D37

The Ukrainian duo constituted by Vassily Mykhaylovych Ivanchuk and Anna Muzychuk won respectively the men’s and women’s 11th ROMGAZ Kings Tournament in memoriam of Elisabeta Polihroniade held in Mediaș, Romania. 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 0-0 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. a3 Nc6 9. Qc2 Qa5 10. 0-0-0 Ne4 11. Nb5 a6 12. Nc7 e5 13. Nxd5. The alternative 13. Rxd5!? (Kasparov – Vaganian, 10th European Team Chess Championship, Debrecen 1992) after 13. ... exf4! 14. Qxe4 Qxc7 15. Rxc5 fxe3 would lead to nothing special; for instance: 16. Bd3 g6 17. Qxe3 b6 18. Rh5!? Bg4 19. Rh4 Bxf3 20. gxf3! Ne5∞ with very unclear (but dynamically balanced) play.

13. ... exf4? Ivanchuk has caught his opponent unprepared. It would have been interesting to find out what he had in mind about 13. ... Nxf2! 14. Ng5 Bf5! 15. Qxf2 exf4 16. Qxf4 Ne7! 17. Nxe7+ Bxe7 18. Rd5 Qe1+ 19. Rd1 Qa5 20. Rd5 Qe1+ 21. Rd1 ½ : ½ Gelfand – Jussupow, 10th Torneo Internacional de Ajedrez Ciudad de Linares, Linares 1992. 14. Qxe4 fxe3 15. fxe3 h6. 15. ... b5!? may look a bit more tricky, but 16. Nd4! is much better for White anyway. 16. Nd4 Qd8 17. Bd3 f5 18. Qf4 Bd6 19. Qf2. White is a Pawn up and has a far superior position. That’s more than enough for Ivanchuk. 19. ... Be5 20. Bc2 Rf7 21. Rhe1 Qf8 22. Nf3 Be6 23. Nxe5 Nxe5 24. Qf4 Ng6 25. Qg3 Bxd5 26. Rxd5 Ne7 27. Rd6 Rc8 28. Kb1 Kh8 29. Red1 Nc6 30. Qf4 Re8 31. R1d5 Ne7 32. Re5 Nc6 33. Rxe8 Qxe8 34. Bxf5 Qf8 35. g4 Rf6 36. Rxf6 Qxf6 37. Qc7 g6 38. Qc8+ Kg7 39. Qxb7+ Kf8 40. Qc8+ Kf7 41. Qd7+ Ne7 42. Bd3 Qe5 43. Qd4 Qxh2 44. c5 h5 45. gxh5 gxh5 46. Bc4+ Ke8 47. Be6 1 : 0.

Golden Mediasch

Anna Muzychuk – Elisabeth Pähtz
11th ROMGAZ Kings Rapid Tournament; Mediaș, November 27, 2017
Sicilian Defence B29

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. e5 Nd5 4. Nc3 e6 5. Nxd5 exd5 6. d4 Nc6 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. Qxd5 Qb6 9. Bc4 Bxf2+ 10. Ke2 0-0 11. Rf1 Bc5 12. Ng5 Nd4+ 13. Kd1 Ne6 14. Ne4 d6 15. exd6 Rd8 16. Bf4!? Possibly better is 16. Qh5! Bxd6 17. Bd3! f5 18. Rxf5!? with the initiative, Planinc – Dobrev, International Tournament, Varna 1970. Just keep in mind Albin Planinc was a genius! 16. ... Be3? Quite unluckily for Pähtz, her first move of her own is already a crucial mistake! Theory gives 16. ... Nxf4= 17. Qxf7+ Kh8 18. Rxf4? (correct is 18. Qxf4 Bxd6 with rough equality) 18. ... Bxd6 19. Nxd6 Be6!−+ Nozdrachev – Klyuev, 12th Memorial Tsiolkovsky, Kaluga 2013. 17. Bxe3 Qxe3 18. c3 Bd7 19. Qe5 (Δ Ne4-f6+) 19. ... Qh6 20. Kc2 Rac8 21. Bd3? Maybe Muzychuk did not yet have a clear idea of how to proceed, otherwise she would have preferred 21. Bd5(!) followed by Ra1-e1, similarly to the game. 21. ... Ba4+? Black apparently misses her fleeting chance: 21. ... f5! 22. Rxf5 Nd4+ 23. Qxd4 Bxf5 (Stockfish) seems quite unclear. 22. b3 Bc6 23. Rae1 Bxe4. Otherwise Ne4-g3-f5 would follow. 24. Bxe4 Rc5 25. Bd5! Qg6+ 26. Kb2 Qd3 27. Rd1 Qa6. Thus Pähtz subjects herself to a flashy ending, but 27. ... Qg6 doesn’t seem to me much better as after 28. c4(!) Black cannot escape the storm anyway.

28. Rxf7! Rxd6. If 28. ... Kxf7 then 29. Qxe6+ and mate next move. 29. Rxg7+! 1 : 0. Mate in two follows.

Transylvania

Anna Muzychuk – Corina-Isabela Peptan
11th ROMGAZ Kings Rapid Tournament; Mediaș, November 26, 2017
Sicilian Defence B41

The 11th ROMGAZ Kings Tournament in memoriam of Elisabeta Polihroniade has started, with Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin, Vassily Mykhaylovych Ivanchuk, 韦奕 (Wéi Yì), Bogdan-Daniel Deac starring as Kings, and Anna Muzychuk, Pia Cramling, Elisabeth Pähtz, Corina-Isabela Peptan starring as Queens. 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 a6 5. c4 Nf6 6. Nc3 Bb4 7. Qd3 Qc7. 7. ... d5!? is an interesting other way. 8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 Nxe4. Very risky. 9. ... 0-0 10. Bd3 d6 11. 0-0 e5 seems quite playable, Codenotti – Caruana, 71st Italian Chess Championship, Perugia 2011. 10. Nb5! That’s the reason why. 10. ... axb5 11. Qxg7 Rf8 12. Bh6 Qc5 13. f3! bxc4. 13. ... b4 doesn’t seem any better: 14. fxe4 Nc6 15. Qxf8+ Qxf8 16. Bxf8 Kxf8 17. Bd3 bxa3 18. Rxa3 Rxa3 19. bxa3 d6 20. Kd2 Ne5 21. Be2 Bd7 22. Ke3 Bc6 23. Rc1 Nd7 24. h4 h6 25. Bf3 e5 26. Bg4 Nc5 27. Bf5 Kg7 28. Rb1 Kf6 29. g4 Kg7 30. Rg1 f6 31. Rd1 1 : 0 Nepomniachtchi – Svidler, World Blitz Chess Championship, Dubai 2014. 14. Bxc4 Nf6. 14. ... d5? 15. Bb5+ Bd7? 16. Rc1 is just a disaster, A. Kovačević – Kontić, 2nd Memorial Danilo Dajo Batrićević, Cetinje 2009. 15. Qxf6 Rg8 16. Bd3 Qe7 17. Bg7 Qxf6 18. Bxf6 Rxg2 19. 0-0-0! This is a new, and much better move than 19. Rd1 Nc6 20. Kf1 Rg6 21. Bxg6 fxg6 22. Kf2 which gives White much less chances for success, Shi Diwen – Deac, World Youth U16 Chess Olympiad, Győr 2014. 19. ... Nc6 20. Rdg1 Rxg1+? Now, after 20. ... Rg6(!) 21. Rxg6 fxg6 White, thanks to her long castling, could have played for a more tangible advantage with 22. Rg4 followed by Rg4-h4 and Rh1-g1. 21. Rxg1 Ne7 22. Bxh7 Ra4 23. Bc2 Ra5

24. h4! b6 25. f4? Muzychuk apparently misses the much stronger 25. Bg5! followed by the advance of the h-Pawn. 25. ... Rh5! 26. Bd1 Rc5+ 27. Kd2 Bb7? 27. ... Rf5! seems much tougher to deal with. 28. Rg5 Rxg5? Black shouldn’t have done this for nothing in the world! 29. fxg5 Be4 30. h5 Nd5 31. h6 Bf5. 31. ... Kf8 would be met by the same move (32. Bc2!). 32. Bc2 Bxc2 33. Kxc2 1 : 0.

Rook to Queen’s square

The 11th ROMGAZ Kings Tournament in memoriam of Elisabeta Polihroniade will take place in Mediaș, Romania from 24 to 28 November 2017, and will feature two round-robin quadrangular tournaments. In the men’s tournament it is announced the participation of Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin, Vassily Mykhaylovych Ivanchuk, 韦奕 (Wéi Yì), plus one who will be named by the Romanian Chess Federation. Instead, Anna Muzychuk, Pia Cramling, Elisabeth Pähtz, plus one who will be named the by Romanian Chess Federation, will take part in the women’s tournament. 12th World Chess Champion Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov will attend the opening ceremony on November 24.

Photo © winkliii

The Lady of the Renaissance

David Llada (‏@davidllada)

Country Pie

Elisabeth Pähtz – Sabrina Neide Vega Gutiérrez
17th European Women’s Individual Chess Championship; Mamaia, June 7, 2016
Sicilian Defence B23

1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nd4 4. Bc4 a6 5. d3 e6 6. a4 Nf6 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 Qb6!? The old try was 8. ... g5 9. Bg3 d5 10. Ba2 Bg7 11. Nge2 dxe4 12. dxe4 0-0 13. Be5 Nc6 ½ : ½ Cooper – S. K. Williams, Four Nations Chess League, West Bromwich 2002. 9. Ra2? This looks very artificial. 9. ... d5! 10. a5 Qc6 11. Bxf6 dxc4 12. Be5 f6 13. Bg3 cxd3! 14. cxd3 e5 15. Qh5+ Kd8 16. Nf3 Be6 17. b3

Europe Échecs’ editor-in-chief Grandmaster Bachar Kouatly writes: “Black has a great advantage due to Black’s badly-placed pieces. In the position of diagram, Komodo recommends 17. ... c4! with the threat of 18. ... Bb4 19. Kd2 Bxc4! 20. dxc4 Qxc4 winning. But Sabrina Vega Gutiérrez is not a machine and thus preferred:” 17. ... Qd7. Threatening ... Be6-f7. 18. h3 Bxb3. 18. ... c4! was still very strong. 19. Rb2 Bf7 20. Qg4 Qc7 21. Nd2 Qxa5. Black now has two Pawns to the good, the Bishop pair and an excellent position. Black should easily win, but Sabrina – not a professional – got very excited and, after a crazy roller-coaster ride, ended up winning in extremis to become Vice European Women’s Chess Champion! 22. Nd5 h5 23. Qd1 Bxd5 24. exd5 Qc3 25. Qb1 b5 26. 0-0 Ne2+ 27. Kh1 Nxg3+ 28. fxg3 Qd4 29. Qa2 Rc8 30. Qa5+ Rc7 31. Nc4 Qxd5 32. Qxa6 Qc6 33. Qxb5 Qxb5 34. Rxb5 h4 35. g4 Rd7 36. g5 Rxd3 37. gxf6 gxf6 38. Rxf6 e4 39. Rf7 Ke8 40. Ra7 Rd1+ 41. Kh2 Rh6 42. Rb8+ Rd8 43. Rxd8+ Kxd8 44. Rf7 Ke8 45. Rf4 Re6 46. Rf2 Bh6 47. g3 Kd7 48. Kg2 Kc6 49. Rf5 hxg3 50. Kxg3 e3 51. Re5 Rxe5 52. Nxe5+ Kd5 53. Nd3 c4 54. Ne1 Ke4 55. h4 Bg7 56. h5 Bc3 57. Nf3 Kd3 58. h6 Bh8 59. Kg2 c3 60. Kf1 Bf6 61. h7 Bh8 62. Ng1 c2 63. Ne2 Kd2 0 : 1.

Sabrina Neide Vega Gutiérrez
Photo: bienvenidoalclub.es

Chesspain (‏@chesspain)

Marienkirche

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Elisabeth Pähtz
19th Women’s European Club Cup; Bilbao, September 16, 2014
French Defence C18

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Nc6 7. Qg4 g6 8. Qd1 Qa5 9. Bd2 Qa4 10. Nf3 c4 11. h4 h6 12. Qc1. The alternative 12. Nh2 f6 13. f4 h5 does not promise any meaningful advantage to White, Volokitin – Ward, Copenhagen 2002. 12. ... Bd7 13. g3 0-0-0 14. Bg2 Kb8 15. 0-0 Ka8 16. Nh2. Vaguely similar is 16. Rb1 Rc8 17. Nh2 Nce7 18. Qb2 Bc6 19. Qa2 Re8 20. Rb4 Qa5 21. a4 Nc8 22. Ng4 Nb6 23. Ra1 Rc8 24. Qa3 Rh7 25. Ra2 Rh8 26. Ra1 ½ : ½ Zontakh – Kruppa, Kiev 2006. 16. ... Nce7 17. Ng4 Nf5 18. Qb2 Bc6 19. Rfb1 Qa5 20. a4 Nge7 21. Qc1 h5 22. Nf6 Nc8 23. Rb4 Qc7 24. Qa3 Qe7. Intending ... a7-a5. 25. Qa2 Qc7 26. Rbb1 Qa5 27. Rb4 Qc7 28. Rab1 Qa5 29. Qa3 Nb6 30. Ra1 Nc8 31. Bg5 Qc7 32. Bf3 Nb6 33. Rab1 Nc8 34. Kh2 Nb6 35. Be2 Nc8 36. f3 Rdf8 37. Kg2 Ng7 38. g4 Ne8 39. R4b2 Nxf6 40. Bxf6 Rhg8 41. a5 Re8 42. Kf2 a6 43. Qc5. The threat is Rb2xb7. 43. ... Qd7 44. Rg1 Trying to open up another front.

44. ... Rh8. An ingenious Exchange sacrifice, in order to counter the opponent’s Bishop pair and the strong grip on the dark squares. The text is reminiscent of Fischer’s 37. ... Rh8 in the epic partie Spassky – R. J. Fischer, Reykjavík 1972, match game 13. 45. Bxh8 Rxh8 46. gxh5 Rxh5 47. Qf8 Kb8 48. Rg4 Qc7 49. Ra2 Rf5 50. Rg5 Rxg5 51. hxg5 Qe7 52. Qh6 b6 53. f4 Kb7 54. Ke3 bxa5 55. Rxa5 Na7 56. Kd2 Nb5 57. Ra2 Be8 58. Qh1 Bc6 59. Qa1 Nc7 60. Qb2+ Nb5 61. Ra1 Be8 62. Qa2 Nc7 63. Rh1 Kb6 64. Ra1 Kb7 65. Bf3 Bb5 66. Rb1 Kb6 67. Ra1 Kb7 68. Qa5 Qf8 69. Rh1 Kc6 70. Rh6 Kb7 71. Qa1 Be8 72. Qa5 Bb5 73. Qb4 Qxb4 74. cxb4 Kc8 75. f5 exf5 76. e6 Nxe6 77. Bxd5 Nxg5 78. Ke3 Kd7 79. Kf4 Ne6+ 80. Ke5 Ng5 81. Kf6 Kd6 82. Bb7 Ne6 83. c3 Nd8 84. Bg2 Ne6 85. Kxf7 Nf4 86. Bf3. Maybe the most promising way is to return the Exchange, trying to exploit the passive position of the Black’s King and the Queen’s Bishop: 86. Rxg6+! Nxg6 37. Kxg6. 86. ... Bc6 87. Bxc6 Kxc6 88. Kf6 Kd5 89. Kg5 Ne2 90. Rxg6 Nxc3 91. Rxa6 Kxd4 92. Kxf5 Nd5 93. Rd6 c3 94. Ke6 Kc4 95. Rc6+. Of course, on 95. Rxd5 Kxb4 draws at once. 95. ... Kd4 96. b5 Nb4 97. Rc8 Kd3 98. b6 c2 99. b7 Na6 100. Rc6 Nb8 101. Rc8 Na6 102. Kd6 Kd2 103. Rc4 c1=Q 104. Rxc1 Kxc1 105. Kc6 Nb8+ 106. Kc7 Na6+ 107. Kb6 Nb8 108. Kc7 Na6+ ½ : ½.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)
Photo: Bilbao Chess