Chess

The indefatigable Michael Basman continues to identify future chess superstars with his annual Delancey UK Schools Chess Challenge for schoolchildren. Eight-year-old Alex Golding won an astounding £1,000 prize in the most recent edition of the challenge, which attracts a world record entry of 60,000 every year. Brandon Clarke emerged as the overall winner of the event. In this game young Alex found himself on the losing side for once. Clarke-Golding: Delancey UK Schools Chess Challenge; Bird’s Opening 1 e3 d5 2 f4 Nf6 3 Nf3 c5 4 Be2 Nc6 5 0-0 e6 White is playing the Bird’s opening, but it is more a reverse Dutch.

Memory is vital in chess, not least because modern opening theory has expanded in such a daunting way. I was, therefore, interested to observe the results of the UK Memory Championship which took place last month at the London Science Museum and resulted in victory for Katie Kermode. In the course of the championship Katie bested second-placed Dominic O’Brien, the eight-times World Memory Champion. It was a sensational performance. Events included the memorisation of names and faces, recall of 620 numbers and, in the final showdown which clinched her victory, the accurate memorisation of a shuffled deck of cards in two minutes and 0.93 seconds. Katie is 34 years old, from Cheshire, married, and expecting her second child in December.

London’s newest and most flamboyant chess entrepreneur, Andy Paulson of Agon, which has acquired all World Championship rights from Fidé, is set to stage a spectacular Grand Prix tournament at Simpson’s-in-the-Strand starting on 20 September. The superb line-up includes Peter Svidler, Hikaru Nakamura, Alexander Grischuk, Wang Hao (the victor of the recent tournament in Biel, ahead of Magnus Carlsen), former world title challengers Vesselin Topalov, Boris Gelfand and Peter Leko and rising star Anish Giri. In addition to this tantalising feast of chess Andy is also bringing the World Championship qualifying tournament to London next March. This week a game and a puzzle by two of the illustrious competitors in the Grand Prix to be held at Simpson’s.

Marcel Duchamp was the strongest chessplaying artist the world has seen. He defeated a number of master players, including Koltanowski, the Knight’s Tour expert and exponent of blindfold play, and represented France in the Chess Olympiad. Chess permeates his work; there is even a chessboard pattern concealed beneath his work Étant donnés in the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Duchamp’s obsession with the game influenced other artists of the Dada and Surrealist schools such as Max Ernst, Alexander Calder, Francis Picabia and Man Ray, to incorporate chess themes in their work. René Clair’s 1924 film Entr’acte, which has been described as an absolute Dadaist movie, starts with a chess game on the rooftops of Paris.

Grandmaster Gawain Jones triumphed in the 99th British championship. However, his path to success was not exactly problem free. Far from storming to victory, Gawain tied for first prize with grandmaster Stephen Gordon, thus necessitating a play-off to break the tie, an echo of last year’s championship, when Michael Adams defeated Nigel Short after a neck and neck performance in the main event. Having reached the play-off, Gawain proceeded to lose his queen for patently insufficient compensation. Resisting what must have been an overwhelming temptation to resign on the spot, Gawain struggled blithely on, and pulled off a miraculous win, rather like a conjuror extracting a very large rabbit from a very small hat. Here is a more conventional victory by the new champion.

The 99th British Championship in North Shields is reaching its midway point. The favourites are grandmasters Gawain Jones (my personal tip for the top), David Howell, Keith Arkell, Stuart Conquest and Stephen Gordon. This week a game by three-times British champion Harry Golombek in his favourite English Opening. Golombek-Wood: British Championship 1947; English Opening 1 c4 e5 2 Nc3 Nf6 3 g3 d5 4 cxd5 Nxd5 5 Bg2 Nb6 6 d3 This game features the white development with Nh3 – a plan pioneered by Golombek. Another example of the move Nh3 is the following: 6 Nh3 Nc6 7 d3 Be7 8 0-0 0-0 9 f4 Bxh3?! 10 Bxh3 Bc5+ 11 Kh1 Nd5 12 Nxd5 Qxd5+ 13 Bg2 Qe6? 14 f5 Qd7 15 Qa4 which was good for White in H.Golombek-Scholtens, Leeuwarden 1947. 6 ...

This week I continue with extracts of play from the new book on the English Opening by Steve Giddins. The timing is solicitous in that the British Championship commences next week in North Shields with grandmasters Gawain Jones, David Howell, Stephen Gordon, Keith Arkell and Simon Williams. Timman-Ernst: Wijk aan Zee 2012; English Opening 1 c4 c6 2 Nf3 d5 Black angles for a Slav Defence. 3 g3 The text is the main attempt to dodge regular Slav lines and preserve a recognisably ‘English’ structure. 3 ... Nf6 4 Bg2 dxc4 5 0-0 Nbd7 This is probably Black’s best, and initiates a plan of defending the c4-pawn with pieces. 5 ... Be6 is another version of the same idea, of holding c4 with pieces. Play then continues 6 Ng5 Bd5 7 e4 h6 8 exd5 hxg5 9 dxc6 Nxc6.

White to play. This position is from Kasparov-Ivanchuk, Moscow 1988. White’s next caused Black’s instant resignation. What did he play? Answers to me at The Spectator by Tuesday 17 July or via email to victoria@spectator.co.uk or by fax on 020 7681 3773. The winner will be the first correct answer out of a hat, and each week I shall be offering a prize of £20. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks for prize delivery.

White to play. This position is from Jones-Simutowe, Cape Town 2009. White’s next caused Black’s instant resignation. What did he play? Answers to me at The Spectator by Tuesday 10 July or via email to victoria@spectator.co.uk or by fax on 020 7681 3773. The winner will be the first correct answer out of a hat, and each week I shall be offering a prize of £20. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks for prize delivery. Last week’s solution 1...

Black to play. This position is from Morozevich-McShane, Tal Memorial, Moscow 2012. Black’s next move did not elicit an immediate resignation but nevertheless essentially destroyed the white position. What was it? Answers to me at The Spectator by Tuesday 3 July or via email to victoria@spectator.co.uk or by fax on 020 7681 3773. The winner will be the first correct answer out of a hat, the prize is £20. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks for prize delivery. Last week’s solution 1...

The proliferation of short draws in the recently concluded World Championship match has led to some hysterical proposals to adjust the format which decides the supreme title in chess. For the record, Viswanathan Anand of India, the defending champion, retained his title against Boris Gelfand of Israel with ten draws and one win each in the main contest, which was followed by four rapid-play games to break the tie. In the rapid-play games, Anand emerged triumphant with one win and three draws. Many of the draws were of scant interest and minimal duration. That said, over 100 million internet viewers tuned in to watch the one-day play-off. In spite of this, various eminent commentators have suggested ideas to provoke more combative play in the main part of the match.

White to play. This is a variation from Spassky-Bronstein, Leningrad 1960, which was used as the basis of the chess position in From Russia with Love. Can you spot White’s fine finish? Answers to me at The Spectator by Tuesday 19 June or via email to victoria@spectator.co.uk or by fax on 020 7681 3773. The winner will be the first correct answer out of a hat, and each week I shall be offering a prize of £20. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks for prize delivery.