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A recent chess cheating controversy made headlines on many of the major news outlets. It was a great (or at least public) moment for a game that often doesnt get mainstream attention. But when chess does make headlines, many cant help but notice its often about male players. So where are all the female players that were all the buzz following The Queens Gambit? Was that just a minor blip of interest or has the game actually been reaching females?

Good news, said Jennifer Shahade a two-time U.S. Womens Chess Champion, woman grandmaster, director of the womens program at the United States Chess Federation and author of several books on chess. There are more women playing and yes, that is partly due to The Queens Gambit, she added. Before the drama aired, just 22 percent of incoming members on chess.com, a website used by more than 20 million people to play chess, were women, compared to 27 percent after the show aired.

But the portion of female players playing the game has been growing steadily for a while, she said, even before the show.

Still, she said, disparities do exist: At this point, just 10.7 percent of 40,000 ranked players with a standard rating, one of several ratings based on the games length, are female, according to Grid analysis of the Federations data. And of the 1,700 chess grandmasters the highest title awarded by the International Chess Federation only 39 are women.

Grid spoke with Shahade about how the chess community is trying to diversity and the stigma female players still have to battle. The text has been edited for length and clarity.

G: Where does interest in chess start and how are girls being encouraged to play?

Jennifer Shahade: Theres a lot of investment in scholastic chess for school-age children, who, while they might go on to do other things, keep their understanding of and passion for the game. There are nonprofits all over the country that have the philosophy that if you give chess to kids, it will kind of equalize education and give opportunities to kids who might not be as good at some traditional subject. The surge is fueled by a lot of those people who learn chess as a kid and now have like a lifeline to continue exploring it online.

The two biggest factors for the emergence of stronger female chess players are classic chess programs, and in particular, the United States Chess Federation, which I work for, and the Saint Louis Chess Club. It has a big budget to do innovative chess work, which has been really helpful to the rise of chess.

G: During the pandemic, many chess players turned to online streaming as a source of income. Has streaming chess games brought more women into the fold?

JS: There are a lot of really popular women streamers, including the Alexandra and Andrea Botez [the Botez sisters], Anna Cramling, Anna Rudolph and Nemo Qiyu Zhou. These are really big names who are not only making money from their channels, but also from endorsements. You generally have to be very good at chess and have a strong personality, though there are some streams where part of their shtick is that they learn chess with the viewer, which is cool.

Thats been really inspirational to new generations because they see that you can succeed in multiple ways as a chess player. You could become really successful as a grandmaster, or you could become a chess coach or a chess streamer there are all these different and interesting career paths that didnt exist before.

G: Are underrepresented chess players stigmatized at all for being in a mainly male field?

JS: While harassment and abuse of female chess players online is still regrettably pervasive, there are more tactics used against it than there used to be.

For instance, most streamers have moderators who are really good at shutting down abusive comments right away. There are a lot of tools for temporary bans or banning specific words that have allowed women to take up that space without constantly being harassed.

Its really wonderful to see because when I was doing a lot of streaming in the past, some of the comments were just so horrible and they can be very discouraging to women to continue doing chess or to doing chess entertainment.

There is also more interest in keeping people, including children, safe. A few years ago, the U.S. Chess Federation implemented the safe play policies, modeled after the SafeSport policies, which most Olympic sports use. Having an official way to report any kind of abuse you might encounter is important.

Finally, in 2018, the U.S. Chess Federation instated a gender affirming transgender policy. This summer, the French Chess Federation has changed its policies, which are close to the U.S. version and recognized transgender players.

G: Has the chess community tried to be more inclusive of underrepresented groups, such as girls?

JS: In chess, theres often this debate about whether or not there should be the womens grandmaster title, which doesnt require as high a rating as the grandmaster title.

It can help people understand why it exists if you look at the history: There are countries where theres never been a woman grandmaster, and when one is crowned it spurs a lot of initiatives to help girls.

In chess, a lot of girls drop out in junior high school a lot of kids, period, drop out in junior high school. But for girls you see a more precipitous dip. Thats because they sometimes become the only girl of their age group who plays chess.

Sometimes that can be lonely or even logistically problematic, in terms of sharing a hotel or traveling together. Its a self-perpetuating situation because there are fewer girls in chess, so its harder for them to multiply.

Im the director of the womens program at U.S. Chess Federation, where we have a girls club to encourage more girls to get into the game and to retain the ones who are already there.

G: Part of your program is about creating an actual physical space just for girls at competitions. Can you talk about why?

JS: There are usually live events, where both boys and girls play in the same sections. The girls are going to be outnumbered when they play in a tournament, and the girls club is a place for them to go after the round to socialize and meet other girls.

Theyre still competing in this mixed field while creating bonds with the other girls in the tournament. Its kind of like a kids version of a lounge. There are also organizers around the country who create girls events. When people first hear about them, sometimes they ask why should girls play in separate tournaments in chess? But in reality, girls love it because it allows them to compete against their friends or make friends that they can travel with to other tournaments.

G: On a very basic level: Why should people learn to play chess?

JS: The number one reason is to lose yourself in a state of total flow. Chess is almost like an aquarium it pulls you in and you sink into it. Its a gateway to flow experiences for young people. Even if they dont continue playing chess forever, they understand what its like to not be thinking about hundreds of notifications because something about the mental challenge and the size of the board draws people in.

A lot of research shows that people are really happy when theyre able to focus on one thing. It can really be the happiest part of someones day to be meditating or exercising or playing chess, where theyre not thinking about all of the worries of the world.

Number two is international networking possibilities with people that are different from them whether they are from different countries, from different socioeconomic backgrounds or are different genders all sorts of different people that you meet from chess that you might not ordinarily find in your circles.

And there is decision making that youre able to make your own decisions and live with the results, and also that youre going to make mistakes and you have to forgive yourself. If you want to play a mistake-free game, then you basically cant make any moves. That is a really good lesson for life.

Thanks to Alicia Benjamin for copy editing this article.

Read this article:
Jennifer Shahade on the rise of chess and its gender disparities - Grid

Rochester, NY, Oct. 03, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CHESS Health, the leading provider of evidence-based digital health solutions addressing the individual and societal crisis of substance use disorder (SUD), today announced the launch of Conexionesthe Spanish-language edition of its Connections smartphone app. With Conexiones, individuals in Hispanic, Latin(a/o), Latinx communities can directly access personalized recovery support resources to complement SUD treatment any time of the day or night.

CHESS Health aims to increase support for every individual with SUD, wherever they are, and improve overall outcomes, said Hans Morefield, Chief Executive Officer, CHESS Health. A key aspect of the Conexiones app is based on peer-reviewed research that demonstrates the lasting effect of connectedness on long-term recovery from SUD by reducing feelings of isolation that can contribute to relapse. We are incredibly proud to offer Spanish-speaking individuals a safe, supportive peer community, where viable options did not exist before.

Conexiones is based on CHESS Healths original Connections app, which uniquely blends digital recovery tools with compassionate peer support. The app has been proven to help individuals maintain long periods of abstinence, improve patient retention, reduce the risk of relapse, and result in cost of care savings. The new Conexiones app provides the same evidence-based features available in the original app, while addressing particular challenges often faced by members of Latinx communities.

Collective experiences are essential to healing from SUDs, said Dr. Anna Lee, DSW, MSW, LCSW, Director of Innovation at Social Model Recovery Systems, an early adopter of the Conexiones app. By providing Conexiones, were equipping our Spanish-speaking participants with culturally mindful resources and support. These are critical components that will enhance their recovery experience while reducing disparities in treatment that exist today.

The 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health finds that 7.1 percent of Hispanic Americans have a substance use disorder, and 3 percent of Hispanic Americans have an illicit drug use disorder. While these rates do not differ greatly from the overall U.S. population, there is a gap when it comes to treatment. Studies show Hispanic Americans have less access to SUD treatment and must wait longer to access such services when compared to non-Hispanics. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 91 percent of Hispanic Americans are unable to receive SUD treatment at a specialty facility.

CHESS Health partners with healthcare providers, community organizations, state and local government, and health plans to deliver the Conexiones and Connections apps to help increase access to patient-centered care. At the heart of these apps is a team of certified peer recovery support specialistsall with lived experiencewho moderate online discussion groups and provide one-on-one support for individuals who may be feeling at risk for relapse. In addition to live support, the app features daily motivations, digital cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) programs, sobriety and recovery tracking, journaling, educational content, and appointment reminders.

The new Conexiones app offers culturally appropriate content and peer support from native Spanish speakers; strategies to support special or high-risk populations, such as those with co-occurring mental health disorders, pregnant women, parents, and caregivers; and individuals in need of occupational and social support, including immigration. The app has been designed to help patients strengthen their recovery between visits, provide confidential support that extends beyond traditional therapy, help reduce isolation while building confidence and motivation, and provide a clear path to follow throughout recovery, with affirmative checkpoints.

Conexiones represents a significant component within the CHESS Health suite of solutions, which span the entire lifecycle of SUD managementfrom prevention and intervention to treatment and recovery, said Morefield. Together, we can break the stigma, tear down barriers, and support every individual with SUD in finding their path to long-term recovery.

# # #

About CHESS Health

CHESS Health is the leading provider of evidence-based digital health solutions addressing the individual and societal crisis of substance use disorder (SUD). Solutions are offered in partnership with healthcare providers, community organizations, state and local government, and health plans. The CHESS Health platform spans the entire lifecycle of SUD managementfrom prevention and intervention to treatment and recoveryand is proven to achieve higher abstinence rates, reduce the risk of relapse, and lower the overall cost of care. Through CHESS Healths current partnerships, statewide initiatives have been implemented across New Mexico, Oklahoma, and West Virginia. For more information, visit http://www.chess.health.

Media Contacts

Tracy Simon Barbara Link

267.679.2774 610.668.2855

tracy@albertcommunications.com barbara@albertcommunications.com

Jennifer Russo CHESS Health 2019564860 jrusso@chess.health

See original here:
CHESS Health Introduces Spanish Language Edition of its Successful Connections App Supporting ... - The Bakersfield Californian

Having grown up in the era when the USSR dominated world chess, I must admit that the subtle distinctions between Russian, Soviet and Ukrainian were largely lost on me. Whether they were Latvian (Mikhail Tal), Armenian (Tigran Petrosian) Estonian (Paul Keres) or Ukrainian (Leonid Stein) they all ended up representing the virtually unconquerable Soviet team. Having in an earlier column pronounced Stein to be the best of the Ukrainians, I have now been reminded that both David Bronstein and Isaac Boleslavsky also hailed from Ukraine.

David Ionovich Bronstein was born on February 19, 1924 in Bila Tserkva, Ukraine. When Bronstein was six, his grandfather taught him how to play chess. Later, his family moved to Kiev (now Kyiv); there he joined the city Chess and Draughts Club, soon winning the Kiev Schoolboys Championship. At the age of 16,he was invited to the 12th Ukrainian Championship, again in Kiev, where he took the silver medal behind the established GrandmasterIsaac Boleslavsky. This fine resultqualified the young Bronstein both for the Soviet national master title and a place in the USSR Championship semi-final in Rostov-on-Don. Thatwas never concluded, due to the German invasion of the USSR on June 22, 1941.

Nevertheless, after 1945 Bronsteins immediate career was meteoric. With FID, the world chess federation, now running the world championship along regular three year cycles, Bronstein won the 1948 Interzonal, a key qualifier on his path to the supreme title. He went on to share 1st in both theUSSR Championship (1948)and theUSSR Championship (1949), then tied with Boleslavsky for 1st in theBudapest Candidates (1950), winning the subsequent playoff match. Bronstein had now earned the right to face the Red Czar of Soviet Chess, Mikhail Botvinnik in a world championship bout.

This match turned out to be one of the most controversial in the entire history of world championship chess. Indeed, it may have fuelled Bobby Fischers later accusations of match fixing by Soviet players. The enigma here is why either player should engage in a fixed result, when the chief prize, the accolade of world champion, outweighed any possible alternative compensation which might have been on offer? First, heres some family background.

According to Chessgames.com, the NKVD(later the KGB) had arrested Bronsteins father in 1935 because he had tried to defend peasants who were put under pressure by corrupt officials. Bronsteins father was released after serving seven years in a gulag, and only rehabilitated in 1955. Bronstein never joined the Communist Party, nor any organisations associated with it, such as the Communist Youth Party, the USSR Writers Union, or the USSR Journalists Union.

With two games to go in the 1951 title match against Botvinnik, Bronstein was leading by one point, yet in the 23rd and penultimate game the young challenger mysteriously resigned in a position in which even modern computers have failed to prove a conclusive win for Botvinnik.

The latest modern computer analysis indicates that Bronstein (from the diagram position where he actually resigned and thus more or less abandoned all hope of winning the match) could probably have held on for draw with this cunning defence. Blacks pawn sacrifice on move 57 (instead of resigning) is necessary in order to be able to continue with 58b6, thus eliminating the vulnerable target on b7.

57b558. axb5 b659. Kd3 Ng860. Bxd5 Nf661. Bc6 Kf562. Kc4 Nd6+63. Kb4 Ke6 . And Black may be able to establish a fortress. At the very least this should have been given a try.Although more recent analysis establishes an arguably superior line for white57b5 58. axb5 b6 59. Kd3 Ng8 60. Ke3!Nf6 61. Kf4 Nd6 62. Be2 Nfe4 63. Bd3 Kg7 64. Be7 Nc8 65. Bd8 Nc3 66. Ke5 Kf7 67. Bf5 Na7 it remains inexplicable why Bronstein resigned at the point at which he did.

The 24th and final game fizzled out, the score was 12-12 and Botvinnik retained his title. Did Bronstein fear official repercussions if he won? Concern at that outcome seems very unlikely. Destiny had called out to Bronstein, but when the celestial phone rang, he hung up.

As a player Bronstein, with his brilliant combinational and sacrificial gifts, was a true heir of Alexander Alekhine. The Russian migr had died as undefeated champion in 1946, thus giving FID its chance to seize democratic control of the championship.

Bronstein also made considerable creative contributions to theory in openings such as the Ruy Lopez (for example, against Paul Keres), the Kings Indian, which he virtually invented in its modern form (two seminal examples: against Frantisek Zita and against Ludek Pachman) and the Caro-Kann (e.g. the Bronstein-Larsen variation 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.c3 dxe4 4.xe4 f6 5.xf6 gxf6). (Once again, two examples: against Istvan Bilek and also Nikolay Bakulin).

Bronstein once said that: The art of a chess player consists in his ability to ignite a magical fire from a dull and senseless position.I conclude with a final facet of Bronsteins genius, his ability to strike at the optimal psychological moment. In the following game against Smyslov, Bronstein isbeing gradually worn down, until he ingeniously muddies the waters with the wild sacrifice Nb4.

So rich is the fantasy portfolio of Bronstein, there are yet many more games that arouse both admiration and inspiration. Try the following for sheer dazzle.

Bronstein vs. Keres

Bronstein vs. Geller

Raymond Keenes latest book Fifty Shades of Ray: Chess in the year of the Coronavirus, containing some of his best pieces from TheArticle, is now available from Blackwells .

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Originally posted here:
David Bronstein: the chess dynamo of Kyiv - TheArticle

Femi Solaja

It will be another battle of wits on the chess board in the next seven days when the annual National Chess Champions tournament gets underway from today at the Orchid Hotels in Lekki, Lagos.

The tournament which will determine the national champion in both Men and Women categories is coming few days after the Nigeria Chess Federation (NCF) staged the African Individual Chess Championship at same venue, will see 10 players in each section do battle over board in a round-robin tournament.

In the Open section, Olanrewaju Ajibola leads the pack been the highest rated player in the section based on the last rating released in September.

Other players in the section include; FIDE Master Abdulrahaman Akintoye; FIDE Master Adebayo Adegboyega; International Master Bunmi Olape; FIDE Master Bomo Kigigha who replaced FIDE Master Chukwunonso Oragwu;International Master Oluwafemi Balogun; International Master Odion Aikhoje; FIDE Master Abimbola Osunfuyi; FIDE Master Abiola Akinseye and Candidate Master Atabor who was given a wild card entry.

In the Womens Jessica Pelomoh, Emmanuella Enomah, Toritsemuwa Ofoniwo, Woman FIDE Master Perpetual Ogbiyoyo, Ayisha Suleiman, Obiamakachukwu Agbazue, Woman Candidate Master Sandra Aramude, Woman FIDE Master Deborah Akintoye, Rosemary Amadasun and Samson Peace who secured invitation via wild entry.

Four-time participant at the World Chess Olympiad,Balogun and Ogbiyoyo are the winners of the Nigerian Championship 2021.

According to the Tournament Director, Rex Ogunaike, the online registration of participants was extended to this morning while the event proper will commence on Wednesday with a seven-round Swiss event pairing.

Other officials invited for the event are International Arbiter Eugene Akhiwu who will serve as the Chief Arbiter and IA Bode Durotoye will assist the expirenced top official.

The other officials are IA Omotayo Amisu, FA Ademola Oyebani, FA Racheal Dappa, NA Vivian Dzaayem, NA Tunde Oladejo, NA Oladapo Adeoti and NA Colins Ene.

Excerpt from:
Ajibola, Pelomoh Lead Others to National Chess Champions Title - THISDAY Newspapers

A little over a month ago, when Indias prodigy GM Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa defeated world chess champion Magnus Carlsen in a rapid match at the FTX Crypto Cup, You Tuber @abhiandniyu put out a message, chess is the new cricket. Prove me wrong. Carlsen responded with a four-point takedown: Cricket is played on a field with humans, chess is played on a board with wooden pieces. Cricket has a bat and a ball, chess usually doesnt. There are 22 players needed for a cricket match, while chess is only two. I cant play cricket.

His response was chortled and snickered over by the chess community but looking around us, its like cricket and chess are engaged in an intimate tussle over who owns and controls the realm of the ridiculous. Two professional sports in step with 21st century appear to have decided that the way forward can only be approached with shoe laces tied together. Honestly, you couldnt make this stuff up if you tried.

In chess, swords are drawn over Carlsens tempestuous response to teenage American Hans Niemann who broke his 53-game winning streak. World No 49 Niemann, a last-minute replacement at the Sinquefield Cup, beat world No 1 Carlsen in 31 moves. Carlsen withdrew from the $500,000 event with a mysterious tweet, featuring a Jose Mourinho video saying. If I speak I am in big trouble. Big, big trouble. Two weeks later, in an online match against Niemann, Carlsen resigned after one move and switched off his video.

Only madness has followedCarlsen has directly accused Niemann of cheating more recently than he has publicly admitted, there were suggestions of anal bead usage plus offers of naked chess. Marketing men could rub their hands at the creation of a hyper-mano-a-mano rivalry, that too featuring an American which leads everyone into a much bigger market.

But chess is plagued by online cheating and when its biggest star accuses a rival, it takes on credibility crisis levels. Chess.com, a 57-language internet chess server, news and social networking website instantly removed Niemanns account from their matches.

Except Carlsens pillars of reasoning to arrive at conclusions of cheating stood on shaky ground. They involved mind-reading and body-language. Carlsen found that Niemann wasnt tense or fully concentrating on the game. This is cheating uncovered through psychic intervention. He did say that he was limited from speaking openly without Niemanns explicit permission.

If that doesnt sound bizarre in itself, what transpired around the cricket world was virtually paranormal: cheating outrage erupted after an event which matched one of the rule-book descriptions of run out. We were told however that what was under attack was not crickets rules per se, but the games invisible Holy Book, titled the Spirit of Cricket (SOC), which sort of writes itself as it goes along.

Reveal alert: SOC is actually first cousin of the Hogwarts Book of Admittance which is written by the Quill of Acceptance. Remember that? The magic Quill that sensed the arrival of children born with magic and wrote down their names in the Book well before they actually turned up for admission.

The SOC has slightly different magic powers. It spontaneously manifests itself around incidents where an old establishment feels it is being hard done by. The SOC is then ceremonially paid obeisance to, heated discussion, debate or dissing breaks out over some piffle and threats of extinction are fiercely invoked. The SOC can be read in whichever language its reader understands, but its first edition in English is the one that is most widely distributed. Depending on how the general vibe at the time, the SOC is often accompanied by a short appendix called Drawing The Line, but apparently this was not required to apparate in the most recent outbreak.

The body that officiates cricket internationally, ICC, has used its Twitter handle to turn the Deepti Sharma-Charlie Dean run out episode (because that is what it was) into a series of social media straw polls. The aim being to generate the heat, dust and noise of many millions likes, dislikes, retweets and responses.

On the other side, on Friday, chess bosses FIDE established an investigatory panel to check Carlsens claims of cheating and Niemanns confessions to online chess cheating at age 12 and 16. Their cheating detection statistical programme, developed by University of Buffalos Dr Ken Regan, PhD in complexity theory, is expected to throw light.

At first, it may seem hard to pick a winner between chess mind-reading 101 and crickets SOC evocation. But cricketsin this case, its oldest clan aka Englandsdevotion to SOC incantations has remained steadfast in the face of logic or rule amendments. That plus the refusal to recognise the difference between rules being applied and rules being bent.

On the other hand, chess numero uno thought leader Garry Kasparov called his sports entire hullaballoo hearsay and cryptic bullshit. He said while he understood the pressure Carlsen was under, walking out of a tournament was unacceptable and that the integrity of the game was paramount. Its online cheating issues notwithstanding, at least chess has a better grasp of what integrityor for that matter cheatingmeans. Try saying those words around cricket and see what happens.

In response to the chess is the new cricket claim, there should have been a fifth point of differencechess can tell the difference between black and white.

Read more:
Chess, cricket and telling black and white apart - Hindustan Times