Lilit Mkrtchian analyzes a complex and instructive game she played against 17-year-old Georgian rising star Anastasia Gad at the European Women’s Championship, showing how deep opening preparation and understanding of pawn structures gave her an early, lasting advantage. She explains her use of ChessBase to study her opponent’s tendencies, deliberately steering the game into a […]
Monthly Archives: January 2026
Five national federations, including the German Chess Federation, have filed a lawsuit against FIDE with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Through the legal action, the federations are challenging the decisions adopted by the General Assembly of the Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) on 14 December 2025 concerning the participation of Russian and Belarusian […]
Anastasia Corotcova explains how to create, manage, and organize variations in ChessBase when analysing games. It shows how to promote side lines to the main line, correct incorrect continuations, and safely replace moves. Finally, it demonstrates how to insert missing moves so game notation stays clear, accurate, and well-structured.
With a one-point margin, third seed Xu Xiangyu of China won the Rilton Cup, which was played in Stockholm over the turn of the year. A total of 19 grandmasters competed for the title at the traditional tournament, but there was no way past Xu. He conceded just two draws: one against top seed Anton […]
It’s your chance to train and speak with Garry Kasparov and other world stars, LIVE! The KCF Academy announces the countdown to the official start of its new season on January 10, marking the beginning of another exciting chapter of learning, competition, and growth for our students and chess community. The Chess Star series of […]
Vincent Keymer has enjoyed a very successful 2025. He went from one success to the next and, from January 2025 to January 2026, gained 43 rating points, starting 2026 as the world number four. At the World Blitz Chess Championship in Doha, which concluded on 30 December 2025, he finished only 38th with 12 points […]
A rare family chess spectacle took place in Budapest on 28 December, as four members of the Karácsonyi family combined for a 150-board team simul. With all siblings rated above 2000, they moved in sequence across every board, relying on shared understanding of the position throughout the six-hour event. Facing a competitive field, the quartet […]
The two-part Réti course by Austrian GM Felix Blohberger is an opening FritzTrainer aimed primarily at conveying knowledge that can be applied in practical games. The player, coach and YouTuber offers in-depth insights into his own repertoire and the thinking that led him to the variations recommended there. One of his students, Peter Balint, managed […]
Did you solve the famous retractor by T.R. Dawson? You had to retract White’s last move and then deliver a mate in two. And the solution? Take back the move h2-h4 and then play exactly the same move: 1.h2-h4! g4×h3 e.p. 2.B×g6#. Outrageous! Today we bring you a second instalment of solutions from our Christmas […]
In the final sections of our Christmas Puzzle Week we brought you a variety of famous and less well-known puzzles. Among them a mate problem that solves itself – literally. And one that looks deceptively simple, but requires a very subtle strategy to find the win. In no less than 46 moves! Can computers solve […]