  From
Morelia to Linares!
The Mexican leg of Morelia/Linares is
coming to its end on Saturday, as we've witnessed a super-tournament
full of hard-fought and entertaining games throughout! With
six of the seven rounds down in Mexico, last year's winner,
Vishy Anand - thanks to three wins with the Black
pieces! - holds what could well be a crucial half point
lead over his nearest rival, Levon Aronian.
After Saturday's round in Mexico, the
tournament will move to its spiritual home in Linares, Spain
with the second leg starting there on Thursday, 28 February.
The ICC
Chess.FM team team of Mig Greengard and our GM commentators
Joel Benjamin, Larry Christiansen, Ronen Har-Zvi, John Fedorowicz,
Nick De Firmian, Jon Speelman, and Gregory Kaidanov will
be back to bring you all the move-by-move live action as
we get set to go from Morelia to Linares.
 We'll
also have the New In Chess trivia contest (where each day
you can win a 1-year subscription to New In Chess), each
round a Game
of the Day video, our roving reporter Macauley
Peterson's on-site videos from both Morelia and Linares,
and a special
Linares preview video - free for all - from our opening
day commentator, GM Ronen Har-Zvi.
On ICC, finger
Linares08 Official site: www.ajedrezmorelialinares.com.mx
Macauley Video Coverage
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1
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In Transit - Macauley's having
a hard time getting to Morelia
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2
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First kNight - Aronian, Carlsen,
Topalov
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3
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Aronian Strikes Back - Aronian
stuns Anand on the black side of a sharp Marshall
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4
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Winning with White, Holding with
Black: Topalov takes the lead
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5
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Tennis with MAGNUS - Aronian &
Sargissian join Carlsen and his father Henrik
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6
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When Blunder Strikes - Ivanchuk's
second, Hoyos, and Vassily's time pressure melt down
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7
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Magnus Carlsen LIVE on Chess.FM
- Magnus chats with Mig & Macauley after his Round
5 win
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Free Game of the Day
| ROUND |
DATE |
GAME OF DAY VIDEO |
HOST |
|
1
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2/15/08
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GM Ronen Har-Zvi
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2
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2/16/08
|
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GM John Fedorowicz
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3
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2/17/08
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GM Nick De Firmian
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4
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2/19/08
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GM Larry Christiansen
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5
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2/20/08
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GM Joel Benjamin
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6
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2/22/08
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GM Larry Christiansen
|
Round 7 Pairings | Saturday, Feb. 23 4:30pm ICC (Eastern)
| N |
FLAG |
FIDE |
WHITE |
RES |
BLACK |
FIDE |
FLAG |
| 1 |
 |
2799 |
Anand |
- |
Ivanchuk |
2751 |
 |
| 2 |
 |
2755 |
Shirov |
- |
Radjabov |
2735 |
 |
| 3 |
 |
2733 |
Carlsen |
- |
Aronian |
2739 |
 |
| 4 |
 |
2753 |
Leko |
- |
Topalov |
2780 |
 |
|
Round 6 Results
| N |
FLAG |
FIDE |
WHITE |
RES |
BLACK |
FIDE |
FLAG |
| 1 |
|
2780 |
Topalov |
½-½ |
Anand |
2799 |
|
| 2 |
|
2739 |
Aronian |
½-½ |
Leko |
2753 |
|
| 3 |
|
2735 |
Radjabov |
1-0 |
Carlsen |
2733 |
|
| 4 |
|
2751 |
Ivanchuk |
½-½ |
Shirov |
2755 |
|
|
Scores After 6 Rounds | Morelia-Linares - Cat. XXI
| N |
FLAG |
NAME |
FED |
FIDE |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
PTS |
| 1 |
|
Shirov |
ESP |
2755 |
|
½ |
½ |
1 |
½ |
. |
½ |
0 |
3 |
| 2 |
|
Carlsen |
NOR |
2733 |
½ |
|
½ |
1 |
. |
0 |
½ |
0 |
2½ |
| 3 |
|
Leko |
HUN |
2753 |
½ |
½ |
|
. |
½ |
1 |
0 |
0 |
2½ |
| 4 |
|
Topalov |
BUL |
2780 |
0 |
0 |
. |
|
1 |
½ |
1 |
½ |
3 |
| 5 |
|
Aronian |
ARM |
2739 |
½ |
. |
½ |
0 |
|
½ |
1 |
1 |
3½ |
| 6 |
|
Radjabov |
AZE |
2735 |
. |
1 |
0 |
½ |
½ |
|
½ |
½ |
3 |
| 7 |
|
Ivanchuk |
UKR |
2751 |
½ |
½ |
1 |
0 |
0 |
½ |
|
. |
2½ |
| 8 |
|
Anand |
IND |
2799 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
½ |
0 |
½ |
. |
|
4 |
|
|
GM Ronen Har-Zvi: "New Ideas
in the Slav and Semi-Slav Defences"
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In a series of new opening videos for ICC Chess.FM, GM Ronen Har-Zvi investigates the latest developments and trends that will keep you up-to-date in the rock-solid Slav and Semi-Slav Defences.
Click "Play
Video" for a free 5 minute preview of Ronen's
latest video. To listen to the full videos, sign
up for membership!
|
"Chess Talk" with IM John Watson
 Tune-in
for Chess Talk with IM John Watson on ICC Chess.FM. John's weekly 60+ minute show (members only) will feature an interview with leading chess personalities.
This week (Tue., Feb. 19), John's guest
is English grandmaster John Emms. As a player, John
has been an active force on the English chess scene. He
was captain of the 2002 English team at the Bled Olympiad
and coach to the English ladies at the 2004 Calvia Olympiad.
However, John Emms is best known to
us all as a prolific chess author with over 30 titles to
his name. He has the gift of writing clear, instructional
books that have become highly-regarded by the average club
and tournament player. He is now also Commissioning Chess
Editor for one of the world's largest and popular publishers,
Everyman
Chess.
Find below a selection of free 5-minute
previews of the latest shows. To listen to the full shows,
sign
up for membership!
Attack with LarryC!
 New
at ICC Chess.FM - Attack With LarryC! A
weekly 30 min+ show on Wednesdays at 15:00 EST
(and available on-demand thereafter for members), featuring
three-time U.S. Champion Larry Christiansen, one of the
most dangerous and respected attacking players of his generation.
Larry is a feared competitor and attacker who authored two popular books that showcase his aggressive style: Storming the Barricades and Rocking the Ramparts. And each week on his show, Larry will feature various
attacking motifs and themes and showing you how best to play for mate.
Click "Play
Video" for a free 5 minute preview of Larry's latest
video. This video is just one of the many benefits of being
a full member of ICC - so, sign
up for membership!
Ask the Renaissance Man
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Tune-in for "Ask the Renaissance Man" with National Master Dan Heisman every Thursday at 21:00 EST. You send in the questions and Dan provides the answers every week on his Q&A
show. Questions on tournament rules, opening play, chess books, chess politics, current events, and more!
Click
"Play Video" for a free 5 minute preview of Dan's
latest show. To listen to the full show, sign
up for membership!
|
Boris Alterman's Gambit Guide
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New at ICC Chess.FM - In his new
weekly video lecture series for ICC, Boris
Alterman's Gambit Guide, Boris will investigate
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.
Show Previews:
Danish Gambit Part 1 Part
2
Evans
Gambit Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
To listen to the full show, sign
up for membership!
|
Israeli GM Boris Alterman is best known as a leading chess advisor for the multi-title winning chess software program (Deep) Junior, where he specialized in developing its opening book.
GM Joel Benjamin "Game of the Week"
 Three-time
U.S. Champion GM Joel Benjamin starts his
weekly show every Friday at 15:00 Server Time. Click "Play
Video" for a free 5 minute preview of Joel's latest
show. To listen to the full show, sign
up for membership!
Joel is regarded by many as one of the best commentators and analysts' we have in the game today, and each Friday he will be giving us his insight and spin with his selection of Game of the Week.
This is a not-to-be-missed 30-minute video is exclusively for ICC members only -- so if you want to get ahead of the game, get ready to tune-in! By popular demand and requests from members, ALL
of Joel Benjamin's GOTW videos are available. Enjoy! |
|
1
0 Bullet Championship recap!
 This
year's bullet championships were just as close as
they could possibly be. The quad elimination event
was decided between olegsfo and AntiKiller
by draw odds! The final game was drawn and because
he was playing as black, olegsfo was able to
capture the 2008 bullet championship! 3rd place went
to plotkin. It was a terrific event and we
look forward to seeing who will challenge olegsfo
in 2009. Congratulations to all our prize winners
and especially olegsfo!
Saturday
Ratings-Limited Blitz!
Every Saturday at 19:00 server
time, ICC will host 2 ratings limited tourneys. Tomato
hosts 7 rounds of 2 6 blitz for those rated between
1200-1800. Meanwhile, Littleper hosts 5 rounds of
2 6 blitz for anyone rated under 1300 in Blitz. Come
on out and join a scheduled tourney that you have
a great chance at winning! It's tons of fun, so check
it out!
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March
Marathon!
It's that time again! The March
Marathon is right around the corner. In case you've
never had the pleasure of playing, here are the details:
The Marathon begins at 12:00 on March 8th and continues
until 12:00 on March 9th. During that time, continuous
tournaments will be held in five categories. Flash
hosts over 1800 1 0 bullet, Olive has the under 1800
1 0 bullet, Tomato runs under 1600 5 0 blitz, Cooly
hosts the over 1600 5 0 blitz, and Slomato runs 15
0 standard chess. The top 3 finishers for most total
points and most total games played win prizes! "help
Marathon" for full details.
 Tourney
Tip of the Week:
Where can I look to find
out about special tourneys coming up? I see these
Bullet Championships and Blitz Championships and Wild
Championships. I see these Marathons every so often.
How do I know when they're coming? We always try to
keep you posted on such events here at Tomato Central
of course, but another really great place to look
for all of this information is at the Tomato website,
which can be found at www.littleper.com
Happy hunting!
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ICC Quiz #5262
White Mates in 2
To play this puzzle on
the ICC type:
tell trainingbot number 5262
Then type: play trainingbot
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ICC Quiz #5269
White mates in 2
To play this puzzle on
the ICC type:
tell trainingbot number 5269
Then type: play trainingbot
|
This Crazy World of Chess - Larry Evans
 Fascinating,
intriguing, and controversial, the dean of American
chess tells the never-before-told machinations and
stories of world championship chess and what really
goes on behind the scenes of the game at its highest
level. If you think that chess and marbles are the
only games free from politics, you can scratch that
idea. These 101 entertaining dispatches from the front
deal with the crazy world of chess ranging from politics,
Fischermania (and Fischer's paranoid antics), the
real deal behind the deep blue supercomputer that
beat Kasparov, to just plain gossip and fun.
Price $14.50
- 
Buy
now!
Hooked on Chess - Bill Hook
 The
story of Bill Hook’s life with his many passions:
chess, painting, traveling, photography and blackjack.
Bill Hook won a gold medal at the Chess Olympiad and
his friends include street hustlers and world champions.
He played with the likes of Stanley Kubrick, Harold
Schonberg, Marcel Duchamp and Miguel Najdorf. After
Bill Hook had beaten him four times in a row, a very
young Bobby Fischer started crying. Now Hook lives
and plays on the Virgin Islands. An admirable and
colorful life.
Also included are his photographs, capturing chess
life and chess players -- from street hustlers to
world champions.
280 pages, soft cover.
Price $22.95
-
Buy
now!
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Secrets of Pawn Endings - Muller & Lamprecht
 A
Gambit re-issue of the definitive modern work on pawn
endings, written by the same authors as the award-winning
Fundamental Chess Endings.
This book provides a thorough course in endings with
just kings and pawns, from the simple to the highly
complex. Armed with this knowledge, the reader will
also be able to tackle other types of endgame with
greater confidence and certainty.
Many interesting and beautiful
positions are included, and there are test positions
for the reader to solve. The authors follow the rigorously
logical conventions introduced by John Nunn in his
famous series of endgame manuals. This has necessitated
a phenomenal amount of new analysis of theoretical
positions to assess precisely the merits of each and
every move.
288 pages. Foreword by John
Nunn.
Price $29.95
-
Buy
now!
Ultimate Chess Strategy Book: Volume 1, The - Romero
& de la Nava
 The
opening is reaching its end, and we must make a pivotal
decision: what shall our middlegame strategy be? Do
we seek an active plan to profit from our strengths
and highlight the opponent's weaknesses? Or do we
adopt prophylaxis, attending to our own position's
shortcomings and hindering the opponent's plans? Alternatively,
are there any ready-made plans that we know from other
games that can be tailored to fit our position?
The authors present 90 'multi-choice'
tests where the reader faces this task. In detailed
solutions, they explain the best solution, and why
other possibilities are less convincing. We develop
a feel for how the decision is made, while painlessly
building our 'repertoire' of plans in typical positions.
208 pages, large-format. Foreword
by GM Veselin Topalov
Price $29.95
-
Buy
now!
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Solution to
ICC Quiz #5262
1.Rxf8+ Qxf8
2.Qxh7#
HarryP - vab, ICC 2000
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Solution to
ICC Quiz #5269
1.Qc7+ Nxc7
2.Rd8#
submitted by ENIVZEV
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