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Five rounds have been already played at the European Youth Chess Championship 2023 in Mamaia, Romania, and only four rounds left to be played before the announcement of the Winners. Most of the categories still have the shared lead with the open battles for the throne, but a few players emerged as the sole leaders of the event.

Scoring perfect 5/5 points, Artem Kucher (UKR) and Andria Jakhaia (GEO) tie for the top of the Open U8 section. They are followed by eight players who tie for the third place with 4 points, each. In the same age category in the girls competition, Mehriban Ahmadli (AZE) and Daria Kravchuk (UKR) tie for the first place scoring 4.5 points each. A group of six players follow them scoring 4 points each.

The top-seeded player of the Open U10 category, Marc Llari (FRA, 2029) emerged as the sole leader of the Championship with the score of 4.5 points. As many as 12 players tie for the second place scoring 4 points each. Veselow Zoe (ENG), Maria Anistoroaei (ROU) and Asnad Bakhshizada (AZE) score 4.5 points each to tie for the top of the Girls U10 section.

Scoring 4.5 points, three players share the lead in the Open U12 section: Pau Marin Ferragut (ESP, 2193), Tyhran Ambartsumian (ARM, 1877) and Gabriel Gabadadze (GEO, 1732). WCM Saadat Bashirli (AZE) is the sole leader of the Girls U12 section with the maximum 5/5 points, while Sara Maria Sunea (ROU) holds clear second with 4.5 points.

FM Benik Agasarov (ARM, 2321) won all five games to be the sole leader of the Open U14 competition, and Rustam Rustamov (AZE, 1995) trails by half a point with a score of 4.5 points. Mariam Tsetskhladze (GEO, 1842), Alexia-Andrea Iordache (ROU, 1827) and Lala Huseynova (AZE, 1847) tie for the top of the Girls U14 category with 4.5 points each.

Three players co-lead the Open U16 section: FM Diego Macias Pino (ESP, 2438), Jan Malek (POL, 2422) and FM Jakub Seemann (POL, 2422) scoring 4.5 points each. In the same age category, girls competition, WFM Agnesa Stepania Ter Avetisjana (LAT, 2080) scores perfect 5/5 points and has the sole lead in the event. Klara Szczotka (POL, 1961) follows her with 4.5 points, while three players tie for third with 4 points each.

IM Elham Abdrlauf (NOR, 2541) and IM Timothe Razafindratsima (FRA, 2450) tie for the top of the Open U18 category with the score of 4.5 points each while eight players follow them scoring 4 points. WFM Zeynep Ciftci (TUR, 2111) scores 4.5 points to be in the sole lead of the Girls U18 tournament, and WFM Ayan Allahverdiyeva (AZE, 2169), WFM Martyna Wikar (POL, 2136), WFM Sofia Blokhin (EST, 1917) and Astghik Hakobyan (ARM, 1841) follow with 4 points.

All results, rankings and pairings can be found here.

Today is the free day and the games will continue tomorrow starting at 15:00 (local time). The top boards of each age section are broadcasted live and the coverage can be followed through Chess24,ChessBase,Chess.com,Followchessetc. Live video coverage from the event including the video from the playing venue can be followed through theRomanian Chess Federation Facebook pageor through theRomanian Chess Federation twitch channel

A rich photo gallery is available on the RCF Facebook page.

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European Youth Chess Championship 2023 is halfway through - European Chess Union

Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout — who was released last year from U.S. custody in a prisoner swap — this week criticized politicians who “play chess” with detainees.

“I feel really sorry when this wheel of destiny go[es] through somebody else[‘s] li[fe] ruining it,” Bout, who was exchanged for WNBA star Brittney Griner, said in an interview with ESPN.

He added that people like Griner, or himself, sometimes “pay a price” because politicians try to “play chess, on this big chessboard which they call geopolitics.”

Bout, more commonly known as the “Merchant of Death,” also revealed that he told Griner “good luck” during their prisoner exchange last year. Griner spent 10 months detained in Russia for bringing vape cartridges with hashish oil with her.

“I said … ‘I wish you good luck, and, you know, and we both went to our, you know, planes,” he said.

The Biden administration has faced criticism from Republicans for the swap deal. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) called the exchange “a gift” to Russian President Vladimir Putin at the time.

“Negotiations for release of wrongful detainees are often very difficult, that’s just a reality,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in response to Republican criticism.

Bout had been sentenced to 25 years in 2012 for charges related to trafficking weapons and conspiring to kill Americans. Because of Bout’s dealing background, Fox News’ Peter Doocy said Russia got a better deal in the wake of the swap because Griner is a professional athlete.

“The professional athlete is also an American citizen, let’s not forget that,” Jean-Pierre pushed back. “The president felt that this was an opportunity to bring Brittney home.”

Bout in the recent interview was asked about the criticism, and he said it was similar to how the Russians felt when he was detained.

“Well, think of this, that the same outrage was in Russia when I was sentenced to 25 years. Many people would say, ‘For what? Just for talking? Are you serious?’ he told ESPN.

“There is not even a proper translation to Russian of the crime of conspiracy,” Bout continued. “We don’t have such even the legal term, So, this is this same kind of outrage in Russia about my case and about many other cases.”

Continue reading here:
Viktor Bout decries politicians that play chess with detainees like himself, Griner - The Hill

Come and show your support for the chess enthusiasts participating in Chess in the Park.

This is an annual, free chess tournament that welcomes players of all ages and skill levels. The games take place at Bethesda Fountain in Central Park. If you'd like to participate, make sure to register by September 12th, and if there's room, on-site registration may be available.

Exciting prizes such as chess sets, trophies, medals, and more will be presented after the final round. Besides the main tournament, you can enjoy a diverse range of chess-inspired entertainment and brain-teasing activities, including a thrilling Grandmaster Speed Chess Match and challenging chess puzzles to put your skills to the test.

Check-in:8:30 AM10:00 AM

Opening Remarks:10:45 AM

Rounds:11:00 AM, 12:00 PM, 1:00 PM, 2:00 PM, 3:00 PM, and 4:00 PM

Awards Ceremony:4:30 PM

(SUBJECT TO CHANGE)

Youth Unrated:Open to unrated players under age 12

Adult/Teen Unrated:Open to unrated players ages 13 and up

Novice:Open to players rated under 900

Reserve:Open to players rated 900-1299

Intermediate:Open to players rated 1300 to 1699

Open Championship:Open to players rated 1700 and above

For more information visit Chess in the Schools

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Chess in the Park Rapid Open 2023 | NYC - Centralpark.com

The 2023 FIDE World Women's Team Championship begins today, September 6, in Bydzosgcz, Poland, with teams representing 12 federations competing over the six-day rapid event.

The format of the team championship which is similar to previous World Team Championships begins with the teams divided into two groups of six. Each team plays the other five teams in its group, with the top four teams from each group advancing to single elimination matches in the quarterfinals. The group stages will take place over three days, with the knockout matches taking place September 9-11. September 11 will also feature a third-place match.

Image Caption

Members of Team USA at the opening ceremony (courtesy Michael Walusza/FIDE)

Team USA enters the tournament as the highest rated team in Group B, led by FM Alice Lee and IM Anna Zatonskih. WGM Tatev Abrahamyan, IM Annie Wang, and WGM Atousa Pourkashiyan round out the roster. This will be Pourkashiyan's first championship representing the U.S.

Image Caption

Coach GM Melikset Khachiyan at the drawing of lots during the opening ceremony (courtesy Michael Walusza/FIDE)

Group B also features a promising young team from China, a German team led by GM Elisabeth Paehtz, and a Bulgarian team led by former Women's World Champion GM Antoaneta Stefanova. With four players playing each round, it will be interesting to see what decisions coach GM Melikset Khachiyan makes in upcoming rounds.

All matches will be played at the time control of 45-minutes per player with ten-second increment beginning from move one. Tiebreaks (in knockout matches) will be played at the blitz time control of three-minutes per-player with two-second increments.

A new look for WGM Tatev Abrahamyan (courtesy Michael Walusza/FIDE)

The anticipated encounter between German GM Elisabeth Paehtz and FM Alice Lee ended peacefully (courtesy Michael Walusza/FIDE)

WGM Atousa Pourkashiyan is representing the U.S. in an international match for the first time (courtesy Michael Walusza/FIDE)

At the time of writing, USA already defeated Germany in the first match of their group stage thanks to Zatonskih's win over up-and-coming WGM Dinara Wagner.

Live commentary can be followed here, with games broadcast onChess.com. Round two of the group stages begins at 11 a.m. CDT, with play resuming Thursday, September 7, at 8 a.m. CDT.

See the article here:
2023 FIDE World Women's Team Championship Kicks Off | US ... - uschess.org

Highlights

At first glance, the timeless game of chess can seem simpleespecially when compared to the wave of challenging board games that have emerged in recent decades. It comes with no encounter deck or status effects, just eight pieces and pawns for each player and an understandable set of rules.

RELATED: Board Games That Would Make Amazing Video Games

Yet for all its apparent simplicity, chess is a game with hidden depths. From a balanced starting position, a game of chess can go just about anywhere. Indeed, there are actually more possible chessboard positions than atoms in the universe, and some of these require specialist terms to understand the state of play.

Everybody makes mistakes. Indeed, victory in chess is as much about avoiding mistakes for longer than your opponent can as it is about strategy and long-term planning. Whether it's forgetting to move a vulnerable queen, overlooking a Scholar's Mate, or simply making a mouse slip, it's fair to say that screwing up is a universal experience.

Yet some mistakes are worse than others. Blunders are critical errors of play that jeopardize not only a piece, but risk the entire state of play. It's possible to recover from blunders, but the less made, the better.

Sometimes playing chess is about delivering a carefully choreographed checkmate that leaves an opponent blindsided. However, when gamers find themselves on the back foot, even the best players may choose to take desperate measures in order to achieve a temporary advantage or even to force an end to the game.

RELATED: Chess: Common Mistakes New Players Need To Avoid

A desperado move can see a heroic piece give itself up for the greater good, sacrificing itself because it is trapped (but willing to go down fighting, capturing material in the process). Such a suicide run may not be entirely tactically sound, but it can make the best of a bad situation, and may even lay the groundwork for a stalemate, preferable to an outright loss.

The vulnerable king is hardly known for his agility, being limited to moving one square in any direction. This makes it just about possible for the royal figure to dodge checkmate (at least until the endgame). Nonetheless, during castling, in which the king performs a kind of switcheroo with one of his rooks, he can jump more than one space.

Castling at a critical moment can change the course of the game. However, there are restrictions. Castling is not possible if the king or rook have already moved, or if the spaces that the king would move through are under attack by enemy pieces. As such, this defensive maneuver should be carefully timed for maximum effect.

Assigned a single point of value each by chess players, the unwieldy pawns can seem unassuming to new players. After all, their pattern of crawling forward and capturing diagonally can make them seem clunky compared to their more agile compatriots. It's unsurprising, then, that many players throughout history have chosen to sacrifice these diminutive soldiers.

Yet, pawns have a trick up their sleeve: en passant, the so-called French move. Under the right circumstances (e.g., after a white pawn has moved forward two squares and is on the same file as a black pawn), the latter pawn can outflank the former, delivering a sneaky capture sure to throw any unfamiliar opponent off their game.

"No pain, no gain" is a common saying and one that also applies to chess. Rather than losing pieces through mistakes or blunders, a gambit involves the calculated sacrifice of material in order to serve a long-term goal.

RELATED: Tabletop Games From The Middle Ages And Antiquity

Many popular openings are gambits, including the made-famous-by-Netflix Queen's Gambit. For instance, the BlackmarDiemer Gambit sees white sacrifice a pawn in order to partly open up the f-file and obtain a tempo (making their opponent waste a move). As such, it allows for players to quickly develop their pieces, putting white well on the road to victory.

A good chess player can make the most of the options available to them on a board, but there are times when those options are limited. They might be forced to move their king in order to dodge an opponent's checkor they might be unable to move a piece because it blocks an attack on their king.

This latter situation, known as an absolute pin, can effectively lock down an opponent's vital pieces. This can allow a player's material to advance unimpeded, moving into squares that would normally leave it open to capture during the mid-game. Pulling off an absolute pin is all about exerting control, and players who are unable to avoid falling victim to one are likely to struggle to best their opponent.

The power of chess pieces like the rook, bishop, and queen, which pose a threat across dozens of squares in many directions, was effectively dramatized in Harry Potter when Ron Weasley bore the brunt of a queen's attack. The destructive potential of these pieces can be further enhanced by using them to carry out a skewer.

RELATED: Hogwarts Legacy Not Including Wizard's Chess Is A Missed Opportunity

During a skewer, one player attacks a valuable piece belonging to their opponentspecifically, a valuable piece with a lesser piece on the same rank or file. Any chess player familiar with piece value (queens being worth 9 points, rooks 5, and so on) will naturally save the prestigious piece. As such, cannot avoid the loss of the less valuable material. Performed properly, a skewer can shred an opponent's position, resulting in a significant material advantage.

It may be the wrong kind of cutlery, but a well-executed fork can feel like a knife in the heart to even the most seasoned chess player. Essentially, a fork attacks two pieces at once, forcing an opponent to waste precious time deciding which piece they wish to lose. Some opponents will even resign in shame when confronted with an especially devastating fork.

The cream of the crop of forking attacks is the royal fork. This overwhelming blow uses a single piece (a knight or bishop is often employed) to perform a simultaneous check and attack on the queen. As the king must be moved to evade the check, this leaves the queen open to capture, changing the course of a game.

MORE: Best Chess Video Games

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8 Chess Terms Every Player Should Know - GameRant