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The Internet Chess Club (ICC) is the longest running, most popular, and best place to play chess on the Internet. Nowhere else can you find as many chess enthusiasts ready for a quick round of blitz, a short chat, an impromptu tournament, or simply enjoying the wealth of Chess.FM shows and live event coverage. It is not uncommon to find more than 3,000 chess players hanging out on ICC where more than 100,000 games are played each day.

Auf Weidershen, Dortmund

Photo © Georgios Souleidis (official site)

Ruslan Ponomariov of Ukraine, arguably had his best performance in over a decade with some sensational play throughout to take outright first place. He dominated from start to finish with a +3 winning score of 6.5/10 to take the title - all of which equated to over 15 rating points to move him back once again into the top ten in the world rankings.

Another notable breakthrough performance came from 19-year-old surprise package Le Quang Liem of Vietnam who, playing in his first elite tournament, came in second on his own. He qualified for Dortmund by winning the ũberstrong Aeroflot Open in Moscow earlier in the year, just a week after winning the strong Moscow Open - so he has had a formidable outing in those three tournaments!

Former World Champion Vladmir Kramnik of Russia is, at 35, the oldest in the field followed by Peter Leko of Hungary who, at 30, are the veterans that simply had a horrid time of it against a newer generation who - perhaps influenced by Magnus Carlsen - do not fear the old guard so much these days.

Kramnik, thanks to a last round win over Shak Mamedyariov of Azerbaijan, did though manage to salvage a 50% score - but it is all a far cry from a player of his calibre, who was the big pre-tournament favorite to add to his 9 Dortmund titles. Leko's time at the top though may be ending. The former world title challenger suffered his third wooden spoon in top level tournaments in the past 12 months, and we now see him plummet outside the top 25 in the live rating list.

Game of the Day video

Rd	Commentator	Game	Watch	Free preview
1	GM Joel Benjamin	GM Arkadij Naiditsch vs. GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov
2	GM Joel Benjamin	GM Ruslan Ponomariov vs. GM Vladimir Kramnik
3	GM Joel Benjamin	GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov vs. GM Le Quang Liem
4	GM Joel Benjamin	GM Le Quang Liem vs. GM Ruslan Ponomariov
5	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Vladimir Kramnik vs. GM Arkadij Naiditsch
6	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov vs. GM Arkadij Naiditsch
7	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov vs. GM Peter Leko
8	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Ruslan Ponomariov vs. GM Arkadij Naiditsch
9	IM Mark Ginsburg	GM Arkadij Naiditsch vs. GM Vladimir Kramnik
10	IM Mark Ginsburg	GM Peter Leko vs. GM Arkadij Naiditsch

Final standings after R10

N	Nombre	FED	FIDE	1		2		3		4		5		6		PTS	PFM
1	Ponomariov, Ruslan	UKR	2734	.		0	½	1	½	1	½	½	1	1	½	6½	2840
2	Le Quang Liem	VIE	2681	1	½	.		½	½	0	½	½	½	1	½	5½	2776
3	Kramnik, Vladimir	RUS	2790	0	½	½	½	.		½	1	1	0	½	½	5	2718
4	Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar	AZE	2761	0	½	1	½	½	0	.		1	0	½	1	5	2724
5	Naiditsch, Arkadij	GER	2684	½	0	½	½	0	1	0	1	.		½	0	4	2668
6	Leko, Peter	HUN	2734	0	½	0	½	½	½	½	0	½	1	.		4	2658

Featuring Chess.FM

One of the great benefits of ICC (apart from all the top-notch online play and tournaments) in recent years has been the upgrade in our Chess.FM service - many members agree that the live Chess.FM commentary and GOTDs from our elite tournament coverage alone is worthy of their membership fee. Also we have six regular weekly shows, one of which below being GM Boris Alterman's Gambit Guide.

And for non-ICC members to tune-in to one of the most popular Chess.FM regular weekly shows, we have made Boris Alterman's latest show free for you to view to find out exactly what you are missing by not being a member of ICC!

In his weekly Gambit Guide series on ICC, Boris investigates gambits old and new and show that, while some may not be actively played on the grandmaster circuit these days, they are all exciting to play and at the same time instructive as they teach us all about natural development of the pieces and tactics in chess. GM Boris Alterman has an official blog where, among other things, he'll be discussing some of his choices for his Gambit Guide.

One of the first chess books to be published in Italy, at the height of the Renaissance, was written by the Portuguese master Pedro Damiano back in 1512. In it, he noted that after 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 the reply 2…Nc6 is good, 2…d6 is not so good, and 2…f6 (the opening named after him) is worst.

Many believed for years thereafter that the outright refutation of the Damiano to be 3 Nxe5. However, even today, the Damiano with 2…f6?! retains something of a cult underground following. Even Bobby Fischer played the recommended refutation of it during his legendary simultaneous tour of the US in 1964 and could only draw.

The shock value alone of playing the Damiano with 2…f6?! in online play has seen a lot of positive results for Black. And following many requests from ICC members on what to do against it, our resident gambit guru, GM Boris Alterman, overviews it in his latest Gambit Guide series for Chess.FM.

Damiano Gambit - Part 1:

FREE SHOW

ICC RSS Feed

There's many new developments coming your way soon from ICC - and the most eagerly awaited of which being the imminent arrival any day now of the iPhone App in the iTunes Store! And the minute it is released, there will be a special newsletter to announce its arrival. ICC has also made its Newsletter service available now on an RSS feed for you to get all the latest news on ICC online activities - get it now to keep in touch with ICC!

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Photo © Anton Corbijn / G-Star

Carlsen on the Catwalk

In 1992, dance-pop trio Right Said Fred went to number one by singing about being too sexy for their shirt. The same could be said for world number one, Magnus Carlsen, as the teenager is too sexy for his chessboard by now doing a little turn on the catwalk.

Carlsen, 19, was the surprise choice to front a new Fall/Winter 2010 advertising campaign for G-Star RAW, a Dutch clothing company which produces stylish urban apparel, this week in Berlin at the Bread & Butter fashion trade show alongside the Hollywood actress Liv Tyler.

Norway's news agency NRK posted photos and video of Carlsen on its website, while shooting the campaign with the actress (check it out here at: http://nrksport.no/sjakk/1.7200825). Chess-players are not exactly known for their sartorial elegance, save for elbow patches on their favorite jacket - a fact Carlsen more or less conceded to NRK, when he said he wasn't big into fashion himself; at least not before he shot the campaign. "I think I look tough," Carlsen said to a journalist of NRK. "I think people will be surprised to see me like this. Surely just as surprised as I was when I was picked for this."

On September 10th, 2010, G-Star travels to the Cooper Star Hotel in New York City to host a global online chess competition: The Raw World Chess Challenge. Everyone in the world is invited to play Magnus Carlsen live on the internet. Three top Grandmasters, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Hikaru Nakamura and Judit Polgar, will suggest a move each to the online registered public. The public can then vote online for their favorite move to be played against Magnus.

Carlsen on a High

Magnus Carlsen also hit a new high with the official publication of the July 2010 FIDE rating list last week, as his world number one status skyrocketed another 11-points to 2826 after he devastated the field recently to win the Kings Tournament in Romania.

The 19-year-old has now become the 2nd highest-rated player in chess history, only behind Garry Kasparov's peak-published 1999 rating of 2851. In the process, he has moved 23 & 26-points, respectively, ahead of Veselin Topalov and Viswanathan Anand at the top of the world rankings with a chance to stretch his lead at the top ahead of the recent world title contenders later in the year at elite tournaments in Shanghai - the Grand Slam Final - and the London Chess Classic.

Later this month, Vladimir Kramnik also has the chance to gain rating points in order to re-enter the "2800 club" as he's top seed in the upcoming Dortmund tournament.

July FIDE top ten: 1. M. Carlsen (+11) 2826; 2. V Topalov (-9), 2803; 3. V. Anand (+11), 2800; 4. V. Kramnik (=), 2790; 5. L. Aronian (=), 2783; 6. S. Mamedyarov (-2), 2761; 7. A. Grischuk (=), 2760; 8. P. Eljanov (+4), 2755; 9. A. Shirov (+7), 2749; 10. T Radjabov (+8), 2748.

Official FIDE list, click here.

Featuring Chess.FM

Watson

Seirawan

	GM Yasser Seirawan (1)	Full show (FREE)
	GM Yasser Seirawan (2)	Full show (FREE)

Recently on Chess Talk, there was a two-part special featuring Yasser Seirawan and an exclusive ICC member-only competition to win 4 personally autographed copies of his new book, Chess Duels: My Games Against the World Champions. Congratulations to ICC members cantav, BadbI5hOp, Delft & jmscamelot who won the competition - and already the books are making their way to the winners.

This is just one of many great competitions for ICC members to win major prizes. You too can join in all the fun of our exclusive member-only competitions by joining ICC now by clicking here.

And apart from the prize competitions, the live grandmaster commentary and the best of online play here on ICC, by being a member you get to view each week our six regular Chess.FM shows. And as a special treat to see what non-members are missing, we have made Yasser Seirawan's two-part special on Chess Talk free for you to listen to and enjoy. So why not become a member of ICC today?

Photo © chessvibes

Carlsen Carnage Continues

While a near three-month lay-off for some elite players is almost compulsory to recharge their batteries between tournaments, for the teenage world number one, Norway's Magnus Carlsen, this must have seemed like an eternity for someone so youthful and bursting with energy.

It was therefore something of low-key, careful start for Carlsen at the 4th King's Tournament in Romania with three comfortable draws - but he soon found his rhythm with an explosive burst that we've now come to expect from him, as he dominated the tournament to win with relative ease ahead of Azeri Teimour Radjabov and Boris Gelfand of Israel

In the final round on Friday, all three Black games dominated with the highlight being Carlsen beating Wang Yue for a remarkable, +5 unbeaten final score of 7.5/10 to finish two full points clear of the field, with an incredible 2918 performance. The Carlsen carnage has now pushed his rating to 2826.4, according to dedicated Norwegian number-cruncher Hans Arild Rund at chess.liverating.org - that's a rise of 13.4 rating points from one tournament alone. That rating is the second highest in history, which was only surpassed by Garry Kasparov's peak of 2851 set in 1999. Carlsen is only 19 and still to reach his peak; it's not that far-fetched a scenario of him reaching 2900 if he can continue this level of performance over the next few years.

It was no small wonder then that resident Chess.FM pros GM Larry Christiansen and IM Mark Ginsburg selected five Carlsen games to feature in their Game of the Day selection from Romania. GOTD is a member-benefit here on ICC - but for non-members, we have below included a 5 minute free preview as a sampler of these wonderful grandmaster recaps of the day's action from top tournaments.

If you want to view the GOTD in full to witness five of the best from Carlsen, become an ICC member now by clicking here. Also not to be missed is the superb video coverage direct from the playing hall and press room from Peter Doggers of Chessvibes.com.

Official site: http://www.turneulregilor.com

Rd	Commentator	Game	Watch	Free preview
10	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Wang Yue vs. GM Magnus Carlsen
9	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Magnus Carlsen vs.GM Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu
8	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Wang Yue vs. GM Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu
7	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Magnus Carlsen vs. GM Teimour Radjabov
6	IM Mark Ginsburg	GM Ruslan Ponomariov vs.GM Magnus Carlsen
5	IM Mark Ginsburg	GM Boris Gelfand vs. GM Ruslan Ponomariov
4	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Teimour Radjabov vs. GM Boris Gelfand
3	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Ruslan Ponomariov vs. GM Teimour Radjabov
2	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Teimour Radjabov vs. GM Magnus Carlsen
1	GM Larry Christiansen	GM Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu vs. GM Teimour Radjabov

ICC Exclusive Chess Duels Offer

As you can see from below, ICC members are enjoying a two-part Chess Talk special with IM John Watson interviewing GM Yasser Seirawan on his new book Chess Duels. But we have another ICC exclusive - you can order the book, autographed by Yasser Seirawan, and with free shipping! Remember to enter the code: 'ICCYAS' at checkout for FREE SHIPPING.

To order Chess Duels exclusive ICC offer, click here. We only have 100 autographed books, so it will be first come first served! See below ICC members-only competition to win four copies of Chess Duels that will not only be autographed by Seirawan but will also be dedicated (to whomever) and dated.

Chess Duels ICC Competition

Congratulations to members cantav, BadbI5hOp, Delft & jmscamelot! They won the Chess Duels trivia contest and will soon be receiving a personally autographed copy from Yasser Seirawan. Thanks to all who took part - Chess.FM.

Thanks to publishers Everyman, ICC has 4 free copies of Yasser Seirawan's Chess Duels (that will be autographed and personally dedicated by Yasser) to be won in an exclusive, members-only competition. The trivia question is based on Yasser Seirawan's two-part interview on Chess Talk, and therefore only available to members of ICC. Non-members of ICC can sign-up for a free trial membership to take part in the competition - but if they win, they MUST become a full member to receive their prize. To join ICC to take part in the competition, click here now.

Chess Duels ICC Competition: What relaxation activity was Yasser Seirawan doing in 1992 when he first met Bobby Fischer? Send your answer by email to trivia@chessclub.com. Please include your ICC handle and your full name and address.

Entries will close on Tuesday, 6 July 2010. We will only allow one answer per entry, and the first four correct answers drawn from the hat will win. Winners will be notified by email and asked what they would like Yasser to write in the dedication to the book.

GM Boris Alterman's "Gambit Guide": Damiano Gambit

July 29, 2010

Damiano Gambit - Part 2:

FREE SHOW

. The Alterman Gambit Guide: White Gambits - Boris Alterman

440 pages, paperback

The Alterman Gambit Guide: White Gambits is an instructional manual for improving players. Sharpen your tactics and learn to play dynamic attacking chess while studying the most entertaining gambits Chess has to offer.

GM Larry Christiansen's "Attack with LarryC"

July 28, 2010

GM Larry Christiansen is a three-time U.S. Champion and one of the most dangerous and respected attacking players of his generation. He is a feared competitor and attacker who authored two popular books that showcase his aggressive style: Storming the Barricades and Rocking the Ramparts. Each week on the show, Larry will feature various attacking motifs and themes and showing you how best to play for mate.

Today's show is: "A tidy little power game"

FREE Preview

Full show (members only)

IM John Watson's "Chess Talk"

July 27, 2010

John Watson

Semkov

IM Semko Semkov

Preview

Full show (Members-Only)

This week (Tue., July 27), joining IM John Watson on Chess Talk will be Bulgarian IM and author Semko Semkov.

Semko Semkov has authored several bestselling opening books for top publishers Chess Stars and New In Chess, with critically acclaimed titles to his name such as Kill the KID I, The Safest Sicilian and The Queen's Gambit Accepted. A widely experienced player, he has two GM norms (but inactive for many years now) and has played for the Bulgarian national team on many occasions.

Ronen's Opening Survey: "Lasker defense"

July 26, 2010

The Lasker Defense (1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Be7 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 0-0 7.e3 Ne4) in the Queen's Gambit is one of those openings where the idea of "black to equalize" is seen in full force with the exchange of some minor pieces. It was the main weapon of Emanuel Lasker in his title defense against the American champion Frank Marshall in 1907, hence the name, and recently received a revival by being adopted by Vishy Anand in his title defense earlier this year against challenger Veselin Topalov.

And in a new series of Ronen's Opening Survey, Chess.FM's resident openings expert, GM Ronen Har-Zvi, overviews the Lasker Defense in light of new interest shown in it following Anand's recent adoption of it.

Lasker's Defense - Part 4

Preview

Full show (members only)

NM Dan Heisman's "Improve Your Chess IV"

July 24, 2010

National Master Dan Heisman is a name that is synonymous with excellence in chess coaching and teaching. Dan authors the award-winning Novice Nook column (winner of three Chess Journalists of America "Best Instruction" awards), aimed at improving adults, for chesscafe.com that are clearly written and offer very practical advice and tips on how to improve your game. More info about Dan can be found here.

In the new Improve Your Chess IV series, Dan provides instruction by reviewing amateur games played on ICC and showing where the players went wrong and how to improve.


	Flexible Opening: Opposite Side Castling	\|	Free Preview	\|	Full show (members only)

GM Joel Benjamin's "Game of the Week"

July 23, 2010

Three-time U.S. Champion GM Joel Benjamin brings you a new show every Friday at 15:00 Server Time. Joel is regarded by many as one of the best commentators and analysts' we have in the game today -- so if you want to get ahead of the game, get ready to tune-in!

Free Preview

Full Show (members only)

Players:	IM Bryan Smith vs.GM Viktor Laznicka
Description:	World Open
ECO:	ECO: B94 Sicilian
Run Time:	00:28:18

Recently Concluded:

Event	Date
World Championship 2010	Apr 23 - May 12
Amber 2010	Mar 13 - 25
Bosna Internet Qualifier	Feb 26 - 28
Linares 2010	Feb 13 - 24
Corus 2010	Jan 16 - 31
London Chess Classic	Dec 8-15
United States Chess League 2009	Dec 7
Gibraltar Online Qualfier	Nov 27-29, Dec 5
Tal Memorial 2009	Nov 5-14
NoviSad 2009	Oct 22-30
US Women's Championship 2009	Oct 3-13
Nanjing 2009	Sep 28 - Oct 10
Kasparov vs. Karpov 2009	Sep 22-24
Bilbao 2009	Sep 6-12
NH Chess Tournament 2009	Aug 20-31
Dortmund 2009	July 2-12
Mainz 960 Qualifier 2009	Jun 23-28
US Championship 2009	May 8-17
World Chess Challenge 2009	Feb 17-28

Regular ICC Events

ICC Newsletter

Each week, ICC sends a newsletter to its members, featuring the most important international chess news, in addition to the main ICC online activities. The list can be found here.

All events are free to ICC members unless noted. All times are Eastern Standard Time. Add 5 hours for GMT. Add 6 hours for CET.

Thursday, July 29
	00:00	Tournament All the Scheduled Tournament of the Day
	00:45	Tournament Sleepless - 3 tourn. - 5 rd - 3 0
	07:00	Tournament EarlyMorning - Tomato - 7 rd - 3 1
	09:15	Live Coverage British Championship - Rd 4
	11:30	Tournament Weekday - Tomato - 5 rd - 5 0
	13:00	Tournament Weekday - Tomato - 5 rd - 5 0
	13:00	Simul voja- in SimulBot - 30 players - OPEN
	14:15	Tournament Daily Standard - Slomato - 4 rd - 17 5
	15:00	Tournament Bullet Challenge - Flash - 9 rd - 1 0
	15:00	Webcast [VIDEO] - Gambit Guide with GM Boris Alterman
	20:00	Tournament League of Losers - Wildone - 7 rd - 1 0 -- 5rd 3 1
	21:00	Tournament Thematic - Slomato- 4-5 rd - 15 0
	23:00	Tournament Nightly over 1400 - Cooly - 7 rd - 5 0
	23:00	Tournament Nightly under 1500 - Tomato - 5 rd - 2 6
	24:00	Simul 1. Midnight Simul by IM Turzo - 30 30 for 12 players in SimulBot

View this week's entire event list

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