Bugged
Polish grandmaster Akiba Rubinstein was one of the strongest players never to win the world title. Up to 1914 he…
no. 454
Black to play. This position is from Belsitzman-Rubinstein, Warsaw 1917. How did Rubinstein finish off? Answers to me at The…
BCM
The British Chess Magazine is the oldest continuously published chess magazine in the world. Recently it has been boosted by…
no. 453
White to play. This position is from Costachi-Toma, Calimanesti 2017. Can you spot White’s winning coup? Answers to me at…
Presidential panic
This month, watch out for unidentified fleeing presidents. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, president of Fidé, the World Chess Federation, and a self-confessed…
no. 452
White to play. This position is from Euwe-Fischer, New York 1957. White has two winning moves in this position. Can…
Stakhanovite
Before leaving the topic of the 50th anniversary of the 1967 tournament to mark the half-century of the Russian revolution,…
no. 451
White to play. This position is a variation from Portisch-Petrosian, Moscow 1967. Can you spot White’s winning coup? Answers to…
Fifty glorious years
Whatever else you may say about it, the USSR certainly created the greatest national chess-playing machine the world has ever…
no. 450
Black to play. This position is from Gligoric-Stein, Moscow 1967. Can you spot Black’s winning coup? Answers to me at…
Pauline conversion
Paul Keres is the only chess player to have appeared on the euro currency, his face adorning the two-euro piece…
no. 449
White to play. This position is from Mareco-Nakamura, Pro-League, chess.com 2017. Can you spot White’s winning coup?Answers to me at…
Oxford v Cambridge
The 135th Varsity Match hosted by London’s Royal Automobile Club last Saturday resulted in a narrow win for Oxford, who…
no. 448
White to play. This is from Horton–Murphy, Varsity Match 2017. Can you spot White’s winning coup? Answers to me at…
Mutkin’s masterpiece
This Saturday, 11 March, the annual Oxford v Cambridge Varsity match is being hosted by The Royal Automobile Club Pall…
no. 447
Black to play. This position is from Kozera-Wang, Varsity Match 2016. White has powerful threats and Black has only one…
Mutkin’s masterpiece
This Saturday, 11 March, the annual Oxford v Cambridge Varsity match is being hosted by The Royal Automobile Club Pall…
no. 447
Black to play. This position is from Kozera-Wang, Varsity Match 2016. White has powerful threats and Black has only one…
Mr Hundred Per Cent
Nigel Short has distinguished himself by scoring 100 per cent, winning all six games, in the Bunratty tournament which finished…
no. 446
White to play. This position is from Tabatabaei-Vakhidov, Aeroflot Open, Moscow 2017. White has sacrificed a piece for a powerful…
Mr Hundred Per Cent
Nigel Short has distinguished himself by scoring 100 per cent, winning all six games, in the Bunratty tournament which finished…
no. 446
White to play. This position is from Tabatabaei-Vakhidov, Aeroflot Open, Moscow 2017. White has sacrificed a piece for a powerful…
Blazing Sadler
Matthew Sadler’s retirement from full-time international chess is one of the great losses to the British game. Occasionally, the one-time…
no. 445
Black to play. This position is from Morozevich-Sadler, Reykjavik 1999, a game from Sadler’s heydey, when he was regularly beating…
Blazing Sadler
Matthew Sadler’s retirement from full-time international chess is one of the great losses to the British game. Occasionally, the one-time…
