Mediaboss Marketing

Levon Aronian: You dont play chess to have fun. You play chess to crush your opponent.

A high-spirited Aronian attended the South African Junior Chess Championship (SAJCC) Jan. 3-8 in the city of Ekurhuleni. More than 2,700 youths competed in a record-breaking team event and had the opportunity to meet Aronian, who was a guest star in many side events hosted during the competition.

Freestyle blitz in Joubert Park:

Following in the footsteps of Hikaru Nakamura and Wesley So, who attended the SAJCC in 2018 and 2019respectively, Aronian spent a morning in Johannesburg in the iconic Joubert Park, the lair of Africas best chess hustlers. After warming up against the juniors of the Hyenas Chess Club, Levon took on some local masters, including the South African champion Johannes Mabusela.

In an attempt to stop Levons perfect streak, the grandmasters wife Arianne Caoili joined the crowd amid cheers and local music. Only the youthful Simphiwe Buthelezi managed to score against the Armenian superstar, and won a dramatic game thanks to a blunder by the overworked opponent.

Chess is my 9-to-5:

Another surprise for Aronian came from an inspired local veteran, who managed to beat the GM in a draining eight-hour-long simul on 107 boards the following day. The national master pulled off a mate-in-four in a complicated position, after a strenuous fight from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

I have never faced so many opponents in a simul, admitted Aronian before making the first move. Whats more, the exhibition had no rating cap and a few players rated between 1800 and 2200 showed up.

In an interview with Chess.com, Aronian commented: Every time Im playing a simul, people say 'this guy is good, this guy is bad, pay attention to this one'but I actually dont like that. I like the randomness and I like the fact that I have to put up an effort.

Aronian also met some of the best players in southern Africa in a master class and Q&A. He described his path to success to players and coaches and shared with them some suggestions on how to train a future champion.

A bughouse walkover:

Aronian joined forces with his wife to wipe out the competition in a carnival-themed bughouse tournament. Slick chess hustlers and go-getting youth in costume were no challenge for the world authority in bughouse, who also sported a sensational Joker costume.

We love playing every kind of game partnering with my wife," said Aronian, "because we love being a team generally, in every sport. If only the level was a little bit higher, we could have had some competition.

A day with a super-GM:

Along with being an unmatchable bughouse specialist, Levon turned out to be an outstanding athlete, or at least thats the rumor in the South African U10 circuit!

Uncle Lev is better at soccer than at chess, claimed Caleb and Judah Levitan, two of the most promising South African youth and the best "springboks" in last years World Youth. We managed to snatch a draw with him in the simul, but he gave us no chance on the soccer field.

The two boys showed the Armenian guest the beauty of South Africa and forced him to add a Mandela shirt to his wardrobe.

It was a great emotion to meet Aronian, said Lindiwe Kololo, an intellectually-disabled player who made the ceremonial first move against the GM. Chess taught me that if you really want to achieve something, you will. Now that I've met one of the best players in the world, I want to play international tournaments with opponents from all over the world.

On another note:

Levon Aronian's visit to South Africa was a unique experience for many aspiring GMs, and an opportunity for the country to promote chess in local news and national broadcasts. The tournament has few equals worldwide in terms of participation, despite the gap that still exists between the quality of chess in the continent and global standards.

However, South African chess has experienced a political crisis for the past few months, resulting in the coexistence of two national federations. The Chessa crisis has precedents in Gabon and Kenya and has hindered the organization of international tournaments in the country, as well as the participation of some players in the 2019 African Youth Chess Championship.

A severe restructuring of the federation will possibly have a more effective impact on local chess players than the visit of an incredible role model like Aronian. In the margins of the SAJCC, Chessa is expected to find a quick solution to months of uncertainty and court cases. This will certainly help South African chess to move forward, and players to be competitive internationally.

See the rest here:
Aronian In South Africa: 'Chess Is The Purpose Of My Life' - Chess.com

Britains 4NCL (Four Nations Chess League) has been monopolised by a single team for almost a decade now.

Guildford last lost a match in 2012, since when the Surrey players have won 79 encounters and drawn just two. They often score at least 7-1 over eight boards, and even single game defeats are rare.

They had just one game loss in the entire 2018-19 season, and in last weekends matches, which launched the 2019-20 fixtures, Guildford crushed Cambridge University by 8-0, then Barbican, the City of London team, by 7-1.

Englands national team, which won medals at the 2019 world and European championships, form Guildfords core players along with highly rated GMs from France. Continuity also counts. Roger Emerson and Nigel Povah, the managers and sponsors, are experts with successes of their own.

Guildfords hegemony faces a double challenge this season. Manx Liberty, based in the Isle of Man, has a nucleus of GMs who played for Trier in the Bundesliga, and is now sponsored by the website Chess.com. Manx lost to Guildford in the 2019 final round after a close match, and is set for a fresh attempt with a reinforced squad.

Yorkshire-based White Rose, the strongest team in the North, has new backing from Magnus Carlsens Chessable learning site and hopes to field elite GMs from India and the US who teach there in the later 4NCL rounds.

It promises to be a competitive season.

2350

Can you work out Whites bizarre three-move winning tactic in this (see graphic ) apparently drawn rook ending?

Click here for solution

See the rest here:
Chess: find Whites weird three-move winning tactic - Financial Times

Doncic dished out a career-best 17 assists against the Kings on Thursday. One of those assists serves as a perfect example of his other-worldly vision.

Welcome to "One Possession!" Throughout the 2019-20 NBA season, our NBA.com Staff will break down certain possessions from certain games and peel back the curtains to reveal its bigger meaning.

Today, Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic takes the spotlight.

Context: In a win over the Sacramento Kings on Thursday, Doncic recorded his league-leading 11th triple-double of the season with 25 points, 17 assists and 15 rebounds in 34 minutes of action. He set a new career-high with those 17 assists, surpassing his previous career-high of 15 assists set earlier this season.

The possession: Of all of Doncic's assists against the Kings, this was by far and away the most impressive:

Breakdown: Doncic brings the ball up the court following a made shot by Kings forward Nemanja Bjelica.

The possession begins with what appears to be a pindown for Tim Hardaway Jr. in the right corner, with Maxi Kleber being the one to set the screen on him. However, rather than running off of the screen, Hardaway returns the favour by setting a screen on Kleber's defender, Bjelica.

Kleber curls to the 3-point line to receive a pass from Doncic. He then passes the ball back to Doncic and sets a screen on his defender, De'Aaron Fox.

Dwight Powell, who has been hanging around the elbow, turns to face Doncic and sets a second screen on Fox, turning the possession into a pick-and-roll while Kleber, who is shooting 40.6 percent from the 3-point line this season, pops to the top of the perimeter to draw Marvin Bagley out of the paint.

Doncic and Powell are two of the best pick-and-roll scorers in the league. According to NBA.com, only three players are scoring more points per game as the ball handler in pick-and-rolls this season than Doncic, and he ranks in the 90th percentile with 1.06 points per possession. Powell, meanwhile, ranks in the 85th percentile with 1.33 points per possession as the roll man.

That's important because Doncic's ability to score at all three levels as the ball handler in pick-and-rolls forces Bjelica to hedge when he comes off of Powell's screen.

And because Powell is one of the best finishers in the league, Buddy Hield has to slide over on the weakside to prevent him from getting all the way to the basket for an uncontested dunk.

That sets Doncic up to make a cross-court pass to Dorian Finney-Smith, who knocks down the open 3-pointer to extend the Mavericks' lead to 13 points.

Why it matters: I mean, goodness gracious.

I've broken down a similar pass from Doncic before, but this one takes it to another level. The timing is impeccable - he always seems to be a step ahead of the defence, knowing where the next rotation is coming from and which passes are available - and the accuracy with which he throws a one-handed pass from one side of the court to the other is, quite frankly, absurd. Finney-Smith has to shuffle over a little bit to receive the pass, but it arrives in his shooting pocket in time for him to get off a clean look before Hield recovers.

The alternative would've been to slip a pass to Powell on the roll for him to make the read - either continue towards the basket for a dunk if Hield rotates back to Finney-Smith or kick the ball out to Finney-Smith if Hield parks himself in the paint to draw a charge. By making the pass to Finney-Smith himself, Doncic cuts out the middle man and makes it harder for Bagley to rotate over to Finney-Smith.

Just look at Bagley here. It's safe to assume he wasn't expecting Doncic to do what he did.

The list of players who can make that sort of pass is ... not long. Without putting too much thought into it, it's basically Doncic, LeBron James, James Harden, Nikola Jokic and maybe Ben Simmons. Chris Paul and Trae Young can be included in that list, but the extra six or so inches Doncic has on them helps him see over defenders in ways they simply can't.

It's passes like this that have Doncic creating 22.8 points per game for his teammates this season, putting him behind only James (26.8) and Ricky Rubio (23.3) for most in the league.

If this is what 20-year-old Doncic is capable of, it's scary to think about what he's going to be doing in his prime.

The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its clubs.

Continued here:
One Possession: Luka Doncic is playing chess while the rest of the league is playing checkers - NBA IN

From the weirdos who brought you the Ped Egg foot filer, the Brass Bullet indestructible pocket hose, and the Egg Sitter support cushion comes another bonkers product: the 2020 Battle for the White House Collectors Edition Chess Set. Its a keepsake youll cherish for generations and proudly display in your home, the commercial promises. And for just $99 (plus $9.99 shipping and handling), you, too, can turn family political squabbles into riveting games of chess with the Presidential Edition of the game. Or, you can choose the Standard or Deluxe versions for $39.99 and $59.98, respectively.

Republicans and Democrats face off against each other in this chess set, with each sides party leaders represented and the parties animal mascots, the elephant and donkey, serving as pawns. The products website claims that each chess piece is handsomely designed with incredible detail. And lest you think theyre lying, right there in the commercial and on the website is a person painstakingly hand-painting a piece.

There are so many oddities to choose from with this product, but weve narrowed it down to our top five:

According to iSpot.tv, an analytics company that tracks commercial ad buys, Telebrands Corp., the company that makes the chess set, has spent an estimated $153,000 to run these ads between December 23 and today, generating approximately 17.6 million impressions. Since June 2019, the ad has run 292 times.

The commercial goes on to depict smiling families, happily playing chess. A grandparent playing the Republican side high-fives his grandson seated next to him as a college-age young man contemplates the Democrats next move. Interestingly, and perhaps reflecting the American electorate, in the commercial its always an older white man playing the Republican side against a younger Democratic opponent. We reached out to Telebrands Corp. to ask about sales numbers and will update this story if we hear back.

So if youre still recovering from family political fights over Christmas, you could always order this chess set to escalate the tension at your next family gathering. You can yell at your grandfather about Medicare for All as your Sotomayor bishop takes his Mike Pence queen!

Link:
Our 5 Favorite Parts of This Bonkers 2020 Election Chess Set - Rolling Stone

Renew Democracy Initiative chairman, chess grandmaster and political activist Garry Kasparov discusses losing a chess match to a computer and the implications AI has for the future.

The man widely considered to be one of the greatest chess players of all time said humans shouldnt fear artificial intelligence.

Garry Kasparov told FOX Business' Gerry Baker on "WSJ at Large," those who are warning AI will replace us are just wrong.

CHESS GRANDMASTER BECOMES NO. 1 FANTASY SOCCER PLAYER OUT OF MILLIONS

Im really concerned aboutthe doomsayers, all these doomsayers that are trying to terrorize our minds, he said. And maybe we should stop watching too many Hollywood movies because the future is for our making.

"Im arguing that we have to work with machines, and theres the endless opportunities that will actually bring more benefits than problems, as its happened many times before.

Kasparov should know about the power of AI.His defeat in 1997 by the IBM computer, Deep Blue, is considered the major turning point in the argument over whether machines could ever outthink humans.

My experience [is]fighting machines, he said.But now, Im arguing that we have to work with machines, and theres the endless opportunities that will actually bring more benefits than problems, as its happened many times before.

Kasparov is author of the book, Deep Thinking: Where Machine Intelligence Ends and Human Creativity Begins, based on what he learned from his battle with Deep Blue. And he believes that while AI will be disruptive to the workforce, that wont spell gloom and doom for employees.

Grandmaster chess player Garry Kasparov taps the clock after a move in a match against grandmaster Fabiano Caruana on Aug. 18, 2017. (BILL GREENBLATT/AFP via Getty Images)

The machines always helped us, he points out. Yes, they always create problems. Obviously many industries are just, you know, facing their end, but jobs do not disappear. They evolve.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS

But to what level of purely human achievement can computers actually reach? Kasparov isnt sure, but even so, hes betting on mankind to come out on top.

The Russian essayist and activist Garry Kasparov at the Excelsior Hotel in Rome. Rome, May 20, 2016 (Photo by Mondadori via Getty Images)

"Maybe we should stop watching too many Hollywood movies because the future is for our making.

Machines could do many, many, many things, he admits. We dont know their limits, but I think its what we should, you know, consider that our imagination, our dreams will not be limited.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

Here is the original post:
Chess grandmaster: AI wont cause the downfall of mankind - Fox Business