The 2025/26 Chess Bundesliga season concludes with three rounds in Berlin from 24 to 26 April. SC Viernheim lead the standings by three match points over OSG Baden-Baden, with Schachfreunde Wolfhagen still within reach in third place (a win grants two MPs). The final weekend features direct encounters between all three teams, while teams at […]
Ding Liren is back. After losing the World Championship title in December 2024, Ding Liren took a long break from classical chess tournaments and only participated in online or rapid events. At the Chinese Team Championships, he has now returned to classical chess – successfully. | Photos: Sports Bureau of Heilongjiang Province
Fabiano Caruana reflects on his showing at the Candidates Tournament while explaining why he believes Javokhir Sindarov produced one of the strongest performances in the event’s history. Caruana discusses Sindarov’s opening preparation, his own missed chances, Hikaru Nakamura’s costly opening preparation mistake and the likely balance of the forthcoming world title match against Gukesh Dommaraju. […]
Chess has become an increasingly common pastime among NBA players, and an ESPN article published on 18 April explores why. From Victor Wembanyama’s games in New York to Derrick Rose’s chess event in Las Vegas, the report looks at how players are embracing the game as a way to sharpen focus, improve decision-making and stay […]
Twenty-three years ago an unknown player took part in the World Open in Philadelphia. He called himself John von Neumann, beat a FIDE master, and drew grandmaster Helgi Ólafsson from Iceland. His opponents became suspicious when they heard something in his pocket buzzing. The player fled the tournament after the tournament director asked to test […]
The Latin expression memento mori, meaning “remember [that you have] to die”, has long been associated with humility and reflection on the brevity of life. Chess offers a fitting metaphor for this idea: every game begins with possibilities, unfolds through choices and conflict, and ends inevitably. The clock, the sacrifices and the final checkmate all […]
In an extensive interview after winning the Candidates, Javokhir Sindarov reflected on the key moments behind his victory, his preparation methods and his ambitions for the future. The Uzbek grandmaster discussed the importance of his draw against Fabiano Caruana in Cyprus, his work with coach Roman Vidonyak and his long-term goal of becoming world number […]
In the world of Indian chess, few stories are as cinematic as the rise of Vaishali Rameshbabu. While the world watches her exploits, the man who has spent a decade moulding her talent, GM R.B. Ramesh, provides an intimate look at the sacrifice, ethics and the psychological sides of India’s newest Women’s World Championship challenger. […]
As we reported, 14-year-old Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş has just become the the youngest player in history to surpass the 2700 rating mark. By beating former world champion Veselin Topalov 5-1 he reached a live Elo rating of 2709.4 and is clearly on his way to join the group of the top-ten players in the world. […]
Were you able to handle the four rook endgame studies we showed you recently? They were a little bit harder to solve than they looked. We now bring you all the intricacies and subtleties in short videos by IM Gauri Shankar, who works as a chess trainer in Chicago. And of course we give you […]