"the Internet Chess Club was integral in my leap to tournament-level strength and has been invaluable in my continued development as a chessplayer." — Matthew Herman (former top-rated U.S. junior in blitz)
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.
This week (Tue., 9 March) joining IM John Watson on Chess Talk will be GM Alex Yermolinsky (Sweere on ICC).
Alex was born in St. Petersburg, in the former Soviet Union, before settling in the US (via a short sojourn in Italy) in the early 1990s. In 1992, he became a grandmaster and went on to clinch the first of his two US Championship titles in 1993 (shared with Alexander Shabalov) and in 1996. He has also played in the US Olympiad team. Alex' wife, WGM Camilla Baginskaite, whom he met at the 1996 Yerevan Olympiad, is also a former US Women's Champion and member of the US Olympiad team.
"Yermo" (as he's affectionately known) is an outspoken GM with two highly acclaimed books to his name: The Road to Chess Improvement and Chess Explained: The Classical Sicilian. He recently became a new commentator on ICC for Chess.FM, where he "rocked" the mic on his debut during our Linares coverage last month.
Ronen's Opening Survey: "Philidor's defense"
Mar 08, 2010
"Pawns are the soul of chess," once declared the mild-mannered 18th century French musical composer Francois-Andre Philidor, who was also the most famous chess-player of his day. He championed a simple pawn move defense with 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 as an alternative to the more common 2 …Nc6 that was named after him.
The Philidor is a dynamic and underrated answer for club and tournament players as it offers an exciting fighting alternative to the lengthy theoretical paths of the Ruy Lopez and Sicilian. And in recent years, it has seen a revival thanks to books such as The Black Lion and the Philidor Files.
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.
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!
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.
The Vienna Gambit with 1 e4 e5 2 Nc3 Nf6 (or 2 …Nc6) 3 f4 is a wilder scion of the Vienna Game, and it firmly belongs to the 19th Century when Rudolph Spielmann was flying the lone flag of romanticism in the face of scientific chess.
But the Vienna Gambit is still as deadly now as it was back ithen; where Black can very quickly become the victim of a bludgeoning whirlwind attack if he isn't careful. And in his latest Gambit Guide series, GM Boris Alterman believes now could well by the time again to shock and awe your opponents with the Vienna Gambit.
The star-studded field is headed by the young 19-year-old Norwegian world No.2, Magnus Carlsen, and includes the former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik of Russia, U.S. Champion Hikaru Nakamura, and Ni Hua of China completing the four world class players doing battle with the four highest-rated British Grandmasters, former World Championship challenger Nigel Short, Mickey Adams, Luke McShane and David Howell.. MORE INFO.
Mikhail Tal has a special place in the hearts of most chess players. Tal deeply loved the game of chess and believed "Chess, first of all, is Art."
Fittingly, the 2009 Tal Memorial in honor of the "Magician from Riga" is the strongest tournament of the year, and one of the strongest fields of all time. MORE INFO.
The 2nd Nanjing Pearl Spring Chess Tournament takes place 27th Sept - 9th October 2009 in Nanjing, China. The total prize fund is $365,000 (250,000 Euros) and event is part of the Grand Slam series, with the winner getting an automatic seat into next year’s Grand Slam Masters Final. MORE INFO.
Bilbao starts on Sept. 6 and runs through the 12th. ICC will have live coverage each day, along with the "Game of the Day" video.
For more information, please see the official event page.
IM Alex Lenderman provides a two-part, introductory lecture
about chess endings. Follow along as he annotates moves upon the board
for play-by-play action.
The Scandinavian Defense (or Centre Counter) has risen in a relatively short time from being a theoretical backwater to a fully-blown main line opening. Its change in name to the Scandinavian came in the mid-1980s with its rehabilitation at top level by Denmark's Bent Larsen. And its rise since then has been nothing short of meteoric, even being used with great effect by Vishy Anand in his unsuccessful 1995 world title match against Garry Kasparov.
Against 1 e4, the Scandinavian is hugely popular at club level
because Black gains a minor psychological victory by setting the agenda from
the off with 1..d5! And in his new ICC Chess.FM series on the Scandinavian,
Pete Tamburro explores the 2...Qxd5 lines in five videos (and with a two volume
set to come later on 2 ..Nf6) that will take you through all the key themes
and strategies required for Black to play this popular, and easy-to-play opening
with confidence - and sizzling success!
This service is FREE to members and non-members of the ICC as a sampler
of our full 4 hour daily shows hosted by Mig Greengard, featuring the famed
New In Chess Trivia Quiz, where each day listeners
to the show can win a 1-year subscription to New
In Chess magazine.
Full Dortmund 2009 coverage and results can be found here.
Video Selection for Members
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