Sam Shankland retained his American Continental Championship title in Oaxtepec, finishing clear first on 9½/11 after conceding only three draws. The US grandmaster secured one of four qualification spots for the 2027 FIDE World Cup, together with Juan Carlos Obregón (Mexico), Sandro Mareco (Argentina) and Alexandr Fier (Brazil). | Photo: Confederation of Chess for Americas
Monthly Archives: June 2026
This event takes place from Friday 12 to Sunday 14 June 2026. Coming to Lyon – and in particular to the Lyon Olympique Échecs club – are a World Vice-Champion and European Champion, one French champion and one World Chess Champion! The hosts are delighted to announce the visit of Anna Ushenina, 2012 Women’s World […]
Shamsiddin Vokhidov took the sole lead at the UzChess Cup after scoring his third consecutive win in Tashkent, defeating Ian Nepomniachtchi with the white pieces. The 24-year-old Uzbek grandmaster now stands on 3½/5, half a point ahead of Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Arjun Erigaisi and Mukhiddin Madaminov. Madaminov also won in round five, beating Shakhriyar Mamedyarov with […]
Jon Speelman returns to the importance of seeing the whole board when calculating, using a series of positions in which small changes far from the main action transform the evaluation. Examples include back-rank motifs, a double bishop sacrifice inspired by Emanuel Lasker v. Johann Bauer and an adjourned game involving Alexander Kotov and Glenn Lambert. […]
Vaishali Rameshbabu remains on the fast track: after gaining the right to challenge Ju Wenjun in a match for the World Championship title, the young Indian grandmaster won the rapid chess event of the WR Women’s Chess Tour in Tokyo. The blitz tournament was won by the experienced Kateryna Lagno. Both earned 15 points towards […]
Two decisive games in round four of the UzChess Cup left Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Arjun Erigaisi and Shamsiddin Vokhidov tied for first place on 2½/4. Vokhidov joined the leaders after scoring his second win in a row, defeating Nikolas Theodorou. Nodirbek Yakubboev also won, beating early leader Mukhiddin Madaminov with the black pieces to return to […]
In the comments on Part 5 of the series, readers pointed out that this was not a “master game” (as stated on the Guinness page), since Arsović had an initial rating of 2200 (which by today’s standards may correspond to a rating of 1400), while Nikolić’s rating was only 15 points higher. Now in Part […]
In this volume of Adrian Mikhalchishin’s Master Your Technique series, the focus is on developing tactical awareness and practical attacking instincts, especially through concepts like checks, double attacks, exposed pieces, and sensing hidden attacking opportunities before they fully appear on the board. Mikhalchishin explains how modern chess is driven by constant pressure and activity, showing […]
At just 15 year of age, Anastasia Hnatyshyn became the surprise winner of the Women’s European Championship. However, looking at the Ukrainian’s career so far, her success is not quite so surprising. She began playing competitive chess at the age of seven and has already played in over 200 tournaments. A portrait. | Pictured: Sabrina […]
Round three of the UzChess Cup was quieter than the first two days, with four of the five games ending in draws. The only decisive result came in the all-Uzbek encounter between Shamsiddin Vokhidov and Mukhiddin Madaminov, as Vokhidov converted a favourable queen endgame. Madaminov’s defeat left him tied for first place with Nodirbek Abdusattorov […]