 Here
Comes Chucky
 From
the Grand Prix we now turn our attentions to the Grand Slam,
with the fourth M-Tel Masters, opened by Bulgarian President
Georgi Parvanov, now underway at the Military Club
in the capital city of Sofia.
The Grand Slam is a series of major
super-tournaments that includes Sofia, Linares, Wijk aan
Zee and Mexico City -- with the winners going forward later
in the year to meet in the final tournament of the circuit
in Bilbao, Spain.
 Top
seed Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria) heads the list in
this intriguing six-player event in Sofia, and he's joined
by Levon Aronian (Armenia), Teimour Radjabov
(Azerbaijan), Vassily Ivanchuk (Ukraine), Bu Xiangzhi
(China) and Ivan Cheparinov (Bulgaria).
What makes the M-Tel Masters unique
though is that the rules prohibit conventional draw offers
in the pursuit of fighting chess! Of course, this is a formula
that best suits local hero Topalov -- famed for his fighting
chess -- who, going for his fourth successive title, got
off to the best of possible starts with a typically ferocious
attack to defeat main rival Aronian in their big opening
round match-up.
But Topalov's quest for a fourth title
was soon put on hold as early as the second round, when
he was comprehensively outplayed by fan-favorite Ivanchuk,
as the popular and eccentric Ukrainian moved into the sole
lead as the only player on a perfect score of 2/2. Could
it be another big result looming for Chucky?
You can find out with ICC Chess.FM
bringing you an unrivaled ringside seat throughout with
live commentary from Mig Greengard and his top GM analysis
team of Joel Benjamin, Larry Christiansen,
Ronen Har-Zvi and Nick de Firmian. We'll also
have the NIC Trivia Contest (where each day ICC members
can win a 12 month subscription to New
In Chess magazine), GOTD and Macauley Peterson
videos direct from the M-Tel Masters in Sofia, and a new
daily picture
gallery from John Henderson.
Check out the GOTD
calendar and ICC finger notes finger
Mtel08 for the full schedule, photos and videos. The
official tournament site is http://www.mtelmasters.com
| ROUND |
DATE |
GAME OF DAY VIDEO |
HOST |
|
1
|
5/8/08
|
|
GM Joel Benjamin
|
|
2
|
5/9/08
|
|
GM Larry Christiansen
|
| |
MORE CHESS.FM MEDIA |
|
Video
|
|
|
Photos
|
|
| |
NAME |
ELO |
FED |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
PTS |
| 1 |
Cheparinov, Ivan |
2695 |
BUL |
. |
|
|
.5 |
|
1 |
1.5 |
| 2 |
Ivanchuk, Vassily |
2740 |
UKR |
|
. |
1 |
|
1 |
|
2 |
| 3 |
Topalov, Veselin |
2767 |
BUL |
|
0 |
. |
1 |
|
|
1 |
| 4 |
Aronian, Levon |
2763 |
ARM |
.5 |
|
0 |
. |
|
|
.5 |
| 5 |
Radjabov, Teimour |
2751 |
AZE |
|
0 |
|
|
. |
.5 |
.5 |
| 6 |
Bu, Xiangzhi |
2708 |
CHN |
0 |
|
|
|
.5 |
. |
.5 |
|
EICC
Winner
 Macauley
wraps up the 2008 European Individual Chess Championship,
held in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, April 21 to May 3.
Sergey Tiviakov of The Netherlands
was the surprise winner in the Men's Championship after
winning his last round game against Emil Sutovsky.
Tiviakov avoided the large tiebreak that determined second
and third place, and the twenty-two qualifiers to the FIDE
World Cup tournament. Sergei Movsesian took the silver
after beating Sergey Volkov in the playoffs.
In the Women's Championship, Ukraine's
Kateryna Lahno won with 8.5/11, a half point ahead
of the field. Viktorija Cmylite beat Anna Ushenina
in the playoffs to take the silver.
Macauley's Video Report
Men's Games (PGN) Women's
Games (PGN)
Official
Site
Are
You A Member of the USCF?
In a new sponsorship deal with the
United States Chess Federation, ALL current members of the
USCF will qualify for a free 6-month membership! For new
WCL members, simply check the USCF Member box and enter
your USCF membership number and PIN on the WCL
registration page. If you're already registered with
WCL, go to your
account page and use the USCF link at the bottom.
WCL is the new sponsor of the USCF's
2008 Grand Prix and 2008 Junior Grand Prix. We're providing
prize funds of $20,000 and $7,500, respectively, and will
also be running Online Grand Prix events all year, beginning
in April, open only to USCF members. So what are you waiting
for? Sign up now for your FREE 6 month membership to World
Chess Live and start winning those Grand Prix points!
So what are you waiting for? Come join
the growing USCF community at WCL and take part in all the
activities.
|
GM Ronen Har-Zvi "New Ideas
in the Marshall Attack"
 |
One of the world’s first Grandmasters
of chess, America’s Frank J. Marshall (1877-1944),
left behind a lasting legacy to the chess world with
his revered gambit against the Ruy Lopez – the
Marshall Attack with 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 a6 4
Ba4 Nf6 5 0-0 Be7 6 Re1 b5 7 Bb3 0-0 8 c3 d5!
The Marshall Attack is one of the
most important openings in the history of chess and
is still deployed with regularity at super Grandmaster
level. In current theory the ideas and strategies
of both approaches are studied in-depth, and nowadays
experts have come to the conclusion that White has
no clear superiority in the main theoretical lines.
And in the latest of his "New Ideas in..."
series, GM Ronen Har-Zvi, takes a closer look under
the microscope at Marshall's revolutionary idea.
|
Click here for a free
5 minute preview of Ronen's latest video. To listen to the
full videoss, 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. All shows
run on demand for members after airing.
This week (Tue., 6 May), joining IM
John Watson on Chess Talk is Macauley Peterson, who
will shortly be bringing you all his latest videos from
the MTel Masters in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Macauley - who recently finished his
Masters in Film Studies at Amsterdam University - is a media
developer & foreign correspondant for ICC
Chess.FM, and writes for Chess Life, Chess
Life Online, and elsewhere. In 2006, he completed
work as an editor on Adam Nemett's independent feature film,
The Instrument,
which appeared at the 2005 Dances With Films festival, in
L.A., and was part of New York's Anthology Film Archives'
New Filmmakers series, and he has produced the DVD releases
of A Turnpike Runs Through It (2008), and Excess
Hollywood (2006) for the Princeton
Triangle Show.
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 EDT
(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. By popular demand from members, we are now archiving
previous Attack
with LarryC shows. 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
 |
|
Tune-in for "Ask the Renaissance
Man" with National Master Dan Heisman
every Thursday at 21:00 EDT. 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
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 not-to-be-missed weekly video
series is exclusive 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!
|
|
May
Marathon!
Coming at you May 10-11! The
marathon is 24 hours of consecutive tourneys beginning
at 12:00 on May 10 and lasting until 12:00 on May
11. Prizes are awarded for the top 3 overall best
scores and most games played in each of the following
categories: U1800 Bullet in Olive, 1800+ Bullet in
Flash, U1600 Blitz in Tomato, 1600+ Blitz in Cooly,
and Standard in Slomato. "help
Marathon" for full details!
Daily
Standard!
Every Monday through Friday at
14:15 server time, there will be a Standard tourney
in Slomato. There will be a different time control
each day as follows: Monday - 20 5. Tuesday - 20 20.
Wednesday - 20 0. Thursday - 17 5. Friday - 30 0.
Each of these tourneys is 4 rounds swiss. If you love
Standard chess, then the Daily Standard is for you!
Play every day and win a monthly prize!
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 Tourney
Tip: What's the deal with Wild Chess
There are currently 29 wild
chess variants on ICC. Many of them are played by
normal chess rules, but have different starting positions
or different starting material or both. These are
referred to as "chessics" because they are
played with regular chess rules. However, there are
also several wilds that have their own rules. For
example, in losers chess you try to lose all your
pieces in order to win. In Atomic chess, you try to
"blow up" your opponents king by taking
a piece on an adjacent square. In Three Checks chess,
you can win by checkmating your opponent, but you
can also win by giving three checks. These are just
a few of the wild variants. For details on all of
them, see "help
wild".
|
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From London to Elista - Bareev & Levitov
 The
Inside Story of the World Chess Championship Matches
that Vladimir Kramnik Won Against Garry Kasparov,
Peter Leko and Veselin Topalov.
Part 1: Overthrow of a Colossus,
London 2000
Part 2: Photo Finish in Brissago 2004
Part 3: Big Brother in Chess City, Elista 2006
A remarkable story of Kramnik's
battles by his second, Evgeny Bareev. From London
to Elista, it gives a fascinating look behind the
scenes of top-level chess. It provides superb analysis
of all the games by Bareev, and it does much more.
400 pages
Price $34.95
- 
Buy
now!
Starting Out: The Accelerated Dragon - Andrew Greet
 The
Accelerated Dragon is a dynamic choice for Black and
arguably the most natural way to play the Sicilian
Defence: Black develops rapidly and chooses the most
active squares to place his or her pieces.
This book is a further addition
to Everyman's best-selling Starting Out series, which
has been acclaimed for its original approach to tackling
chess openings. International Master Andrew Greet,
an Accelerated Dragon expert, revisits the basics
of the opening, elaborating on the crucial early moves
and ideas for both sides in a way that is often neglected
in other texts. The reader is helped throughout with
a plethora of notes, tips and warnings highlighting
the vital characteristics of the Accelerated Dragon
and of opening play in general. Starting Out: The
Accelerated Dragon is a perfect guide for improving
players and those new to this opening.
320 pages
Price $25.95
-
Buy
now!
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Modern Chess Openings, 15th Edition - Nick De Firmian
 Modern
Chess Openings is the best and most trusted tool for
serious chess players on the market. First published
over a half-century ago, this is a completely revised
and updated edition of the book that has been the
standard English language reference on chess openings.
An invaluable resource for club and tournament players,
it now includes information on recent matches and
the most up-to-date theory on chess openings.
Modern Chess Openings is ideal
for intermediate players ready to elevate their game
to the next level or International Grandmasters who
want to stay on top of recent chess innovations.
768 Pages, soft cover
Price $29.95
-
Buy
now!
Attacking Manual 1 - GM Jacob Aagaard
 Jacob
explains the rules of attack (the exploitation of
a dynamic advantage) in an accessible and entertaining
style. This groundbreaking work is well balanced between
easily understandable examples, exercises and deep
analysis. Five years in the making, this book will
surely not disappoint. Volume 1 deals with bringing
all the pieces into the action, momentum, colour schemes,
strongest/weakest points and evolution/revolution.
Book 2 is due for release in August 2008.
Large-format, 264 pages, soft
cover
Price $34.95
-
Buy
now!
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