Luke McShane is chess columnist for The Spectator.
Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela, ‘El Ajedrecista’, died in prison in the United States on 31 May. The Colombian drug lord, a leader of the Cali cartel in the 1990s, acquired his splendid nickname, which translates as ‘the Chess Player’, on account of his ability to stay a step ahead of his rivals and pursuers. Curiosity sent
White to play and mate in 3. Composed by Sigmund Franz Josef Lehner, 1864. There are several ways to give mate in 4 moves, but it takes a delicate finesse to get the job done in 3. What is White’s first move? Answers should be emailed to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 13 June. There is a
White to play. Giri-Praggnanandhaa, Chessable Masters 2022. A game from the preliminary stages. What did Giri play to induce resignation? Answers should be emailed to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 6 June. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer out of a hat. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks for
Ding Liren took first place at last month’s Chessable Masters, the fourth event in the 2022 Meltwater Champions Tour. But it was his defeated opponent in the final, 16-year-old Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa from India, who stole the show. The teenager’s reputation is already well established, and he made headlines in the (non-chess) media in February when
Black to play. Bacrot-Anand, Bastia Rapid 2001. A spectacular blow from Anand prompted Bacrot to resign. What did he play? Answers should be emailed to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 30 May. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer out of a hat. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks for
Viswanathan Anand left the spectators in awe at the Superbet Rapid earlier this month. The ‘Tiger of Madras’, as he is sometimes known, was awarded a wildcard spot to the second leg of the Grand Chess Tour in Warsaw, which began just a couple of days after the first leg ended in Bucharest. At 52,
White to play. Vachier-Lagrave-Caruana, Bucharest 2022. The Bh4 can retreat to g3, f2 or e1. Which one is best, and why? Answers should be emailed to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 23 May. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer out of a hat. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks
The Superbet Chess Classic in Bucharest concluded last weekend in a dramatic tiebreak between Wesley So, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Levon Aronian, who all took wildly different paths to finish the main event on 5.5/9. Wesley So was the tournament rock. He won two controlled games against Nepomniachtchi and Mamedyarov and otherwise never looked in danger.
White to play. Averbakh-Zita, Szczawno-Zdroj 1950. Black has just interposed Rb6-g6, so White needs an accurate finish before e3-e2 mate arrives. What did Averbakh play next? Answers should be emailed to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 16 May. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer out of a hat. Please include a postal
Yuri Averbakh had a wry explanation for why he was made chairman of the USSR Chess Federation in 1972. There was a feeling that Boris Spassky, the Soviet world champion, would lose his title to Bobby Fischer in Reykjavik that year. Nobody else wanted to deal with the fallout, so Averbakh got the job. Whatever
White to play. Reshevsky-Savon, Petropolis 1973. Reshevsky played the awful 1 Qxg6+, and resigned after 1…Bxg6. Many moves win, but which one forces mate in just three moves? Email answers to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 9 May. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer picked. Please include a postal address. Last week’s
There is a video in which a small group of students amble about passing a basketball back and forth. The instruction at the start is to count how many times the players pass the basketball. Then comes the punchline – did you see the gorilla? Halfway through, a figure in a gorilla suit walks through
White to play and draw. Composed by Jan Timman, 2011. 1 h8=Q Rxd5 wins for Black, so how does White escape? Answers should be emailed to chess@spectator.co.uk by Tuesday 3 May. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer out of a hat. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks
In the dying seconds of an online blitz game, I promoted a pawn and instantly regretted it. There was nothing wrong with the move, but the extra second spent on choosing and clicking the queen was more than I could spare. A few flailing moves later, my time ran out. Of course, I had forgotten
Black to play. Sukandar-Niemann, Reykjavik Open 2022. In this preposterous position, Black found a quick forced mate. What did he play? Answers should be emailed to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 25 April. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer out of a hat. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks
There are lessons in chess that cannot be learned from a book. One lands, from time to time, in a position which amounts to a trial by fire – a test of conviction as much as skill. The experience of such a game can stay with you for ever, radically altering your sense of what
White to play. A variation from Esipenko-Nakamura, Fide Grand Prix Berlin 2022. Which move would allow White to force a win? Email answers to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 18 April. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer out of a hat. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks for prize
Wesley So won the final Fide Grand Prix, which was held in Berlin earlier this month. But it was Hikaru Nakamura, his defeated opponent in the final, who had the most to celebrate. Since he won the opening leg in February, in reaching the semi-final Nakamura secured a coveted spot in the Fide Candidates tournament,
White to play. Duda-Anton Guijarro, Charity Cup, March 2022. Black’s last move, 21…Qe7-b4 was an unforced error. Which move did White play to exploit it? Email answers to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 11 April. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer out of a hat. Please include a postal address and allow
Sergey Karjakin won’t be playing much chess for a while. Last month, the Russian grandmaster’s Twittering jingoism in support of the invasion of Ukraine drew such universal scorn that his international invitations were bound to run dry. Karjakin challenged Magnus Carlsen for the World Championship in 2016, and had earned a spot in Fide’s forthcoming