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Home , CHESS magazine, Emil Sutovsky, Harry Golombek, Jan Hein Donner, Loek van Wely, Matthew Sadler

November 2011 Cover_Layout 1 03/11/2011 14:52 Page 1 Contents Nov 2011_Chess mag - 21_6_10 03/11/2011 11:59 Page 1

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Chess Magazine is published monthly. Founding Editor: B.H. Wood, OBE. M.Sc † Editorial Editor: Jimmy Adams on the latest developments in chess 4 Acting Editor: John Saunders ([email protected]) Executive Editor: Malcolm Pein Readers’ Letters ([email protected]) You have your say ... Basman on Bilbao, etc 7 Subscription Rates: United Kingdom Sao Paulo / Bilbao Grand Slam 1 year (12 issues) £49.95 The intercontinental super-tournament saw Ivanchuk dominate in 2 year (24 issues) £89.95 Brazil, but then took over in Spain. 8 3 year (36 issues) £125.00 Cartoon Time Europe Oldies but goldies from the CHESS archive 15 1 year (12 issues) £60.00 2 year (24 issues) £112.50 Sadler Wins in Oslo 3 year (36 issues) £165.00 is on a roll! First, Barcelona, and now Oslo. He annotates his best game while Yochanan Afek covers the action 16 USA & Canada 1 year (12 issues) $90 London Classic Preview 2 year (24 issues) $170 We ask the pundits what they expect to happen next month 20 3 year (36 issues) $250 Interview: Rest of World (Airmail) Carl Portman caught up with the English super-GM in Shropshire 22 1 year (12 issues) £72 2 year (24 issues) £130 Kasparov - Short Blitz Match 3 year (36 issues) £180 Garry and Nigel re-enacted their 1993 title match at a faster in Belgium. It came down to a nail-biting finish... 24 Distributed by: Post Scriptum (UK only) European Club Cup, Slovenia Unit G, OYO Business Park, Hindmans Way, Irish IM Sam Collins was on the spot in Slovenia where Europe’s Dagenham, RM9 6LN top club sides (and some more modest ones) slugged it out. 26 Tel: 020 8526 7779 Memorable Mishaps LMPI (North America) Steve Giddins recalls funny things on the way to the tournament 30 8155 Larrey Street, Montreal (Quebec), H1J 2L5, Canada Studies Tel: 514 355-5610 Brian Stephenson on the ‘2010 study of the year’ 33

Printed by: Problem Album The Magazine Printing Company (Enfield) Colin Russ looks at problems with a theme 33 Te: 020 8805 5000 Centre, Views expressed in this publication are not John Saunders finds an oasis of chess excellence in the Dutch city 34 necessarily those of the Editor. Contributions to the magazine will be published at the Editor’s discretion Marcel Duchamp: Gone But Not Forgotten and may be shortened if space is limited. John Saunders visits the maestro’s grave but finds a shrine. 36 A Devonian in Russia No parts of this publication may be reproduced Devon chessplayer Trefor Thynne sampled a Veterans’ tournament without the prior express permission of the in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and gave a good account of himself 38 publishers. Thinking about Thinking All rights reserved. © 2011 Amatzia Avni looks at the mental processes of a GM 40 Chess Magazine (ISSN 0964-6221) is published by: Topalov in Dublin Chess & Bridge Ltd, 44 Baker St, London, W1U 7RT The Bulgarian super-GM takes on the Irish Olympiad squad 42 Tel: 020 7388 2404 Fax: 020 7388 2407 [email protected] – www.chess.co.uk Find The Winning Moves Three pages of tactical teasers from recent tournament games 45 FRONT COVER: Cover Design: Matt Read Chess in the 1960s Photo: David Llada Lisa Lane was lovelorn in Hastings, while Bobby wowed them in Yugoslavia... with his pop singing. More from our back pages... 48

US & Canadian Readers – You can contact us How Good is Your Chess? via our American branch – Chess4Less based GM Daniel presents a superb game by 50 in West Palm Beach, FL. Call us toll-free on 1-877 89CHESS (24377). You can even order Overseas News / Home News Subscriber Special Offers online via A round-up of what’s been happening near and far 53/55 www.chess4less.com New Books In Brief All the latest books, DVDs and software 57 Solutions All the answers to Find The Winning Move and Problem Album 58

www.chess.co.uk 3 The news of Mr and Mrs Ivanchuk’s he picked up Donner’s coffee cup and 8. HELL HATH NO FURY… unfortunate encounter with gun-wielding threw the contents over the fire. With the robbers in Sao Paulo set me thinking. table now covered in a congealed, sugary The 1994 Olympiad in Moscow served up Our game is not the most dangerous in syrup, the players looked at one another, enough mishaps to fill an entire article. the world, but over the years, there have whispered “?”, shook hands and Held at the grisly Cosmos Hotel, near to been a good many notable mishaps evacuated the scene! the former VDNH park, the players quickly affecting chessplayers during realised that any venture outside the hotel tournaments. Some research by yours doors was liable to see them mugged, truly enables me to present to CHESS robbed or worse. The captain of the Irish readers, for your awe, sympathy, team was mugged in the street by a gang schadenfreude, or whatever else, my Top of gypsy children (a common problem in Ten Greatest Moscow at that time – I know, I was living Mishaps . In ascending order... there!) and was only saved by an old lady, who waded into them with a brolly, to such 10. FIRE ON BOARD effect that one later required hospital treatment! Another team captain unwisely Our first mishap concerns that larger than visited the local bank to change several life character, Jan Hein Donner, without thousands of dollars in foreign currency, whom no collection of chess anecdotes only for the bank, “coincidentally”, to be would be complete. The incident robbed at that very moment – he had, of occurred at the Anglo-Dutch match of course, been set up by the hotel reception 1973, which was held at Manchester staff, who had directed him to the bank in Town Hall, and my source is Ray Keene, the first place. who was playing Euwe on board one, whilst Donner played Penrose on board But perhaps the worst incident involved two. Those were the days when smoking Donner’s promising position against GM Alex Yermolinsky. His presence in was allowed at the board, of course, and Penrose went up in smoke, literally... the city as part of the US team did not go Donner made full use of the privilege, unnoticed by his ex-wife, who lived in chain-smoking throughout the game. The 9. THAT TAKES SOME BOTTLE Moscow at the time. She telephoned him only time his cigarette left his lips was in and asked to see him, so an order to take the occasional sip from a As Denis Norden once said, during one unsuspecting Yermolinsky set off across cup of sugar, to which a small quantity of of his TV outtake shows, “when we town one evening, to the apartment she coffee had been added! asked performers to name the group of had specified. When he got there, he people who cause them the most trouble, was greeted by several thugs, hired for The tables being used had enormous they unanimously named one particular the purpose, who beat him up and then Bakelite ashtrays, the size of dinner group – the public!”. Few great players sent him on his way, with a demand for plates, and as the afternoon wore on, have ever been more popular with the $10,000 in cash before the end of the Donner’s ashtray mounted ever higher public than , but even he had tournament. A battered and bruised with discarded cigarettes and ash, much his problems. During the 1966 Olympiad Yermolinsky spent the rest of the of which was still emitting smoke. in Havana, he went out one evening to a Olympiad holed up in his hotel room, too Eventually, after several hours’ play, this local bar in the city. Nobody seems terrified to set foot outside the Cosmos. mountain of ash suddenly burst into entirely sure what happened, but it would flames, causing the Bakelite ashtray to appear that he was flirting with a local 7. SET UPON AT THE SEASIDE crack completely in half. The players both woman, whose husband or boyfriend looked transfixed as the table all around took exception. Tal ended up being struck Despite its decline in status over the them was burning, with neither player over the head with a bottle. As a result, years, Hastings is still a Mecca for many seemingly about to actually do anything! he missed the first four rounds of the foreign players, who are pleased to visit At this point, Ray Keene, who had finished event, and when he did appear in the such a legendary chess venue. However, his game and was standing by Donner’s tournament hall, it was with his head the young Azeri GM, Farhad Tahirov, may board spectating, decided that action had heavily bandaged, and, no doubt, have ended up rather regretting his to be taken to contain the conflagration, so another black mark on his KGB file. appearance at the Sussex seaside town in

30 November 2011 2006-7. He played poorly, losing a hatful occurred at the closing ceremony of the his last-round clash against Kasparov the of rating points. Then, halfway through the 2004 Olympiad in Calvià, Majorca, and next day. Unfortunately, one of the locals event, he was seen to be suffering with a involved FIDE Vice-President and was also there, accompanied by his painful skin rash on his hands, and had to Georgian GM, . I Russian shepherd dog. The latter was visit a doctor, who diagnosed some kind of think I can say, without fear of the libel clearly a Kasparov fan, because it eczema-type condition. lawyers, that “Azmai” is a somewhat proceeded to attack Nigel and bit both of controversial character, but his Calvià his arms as he desperately tried to fend it But worst of all was what happened after debacle resulted from his attempts to off. Eventually, the dozy owner realised the last round. Having a couple of hours defend a lady’s honour. Well, sort of… that his pet was taking international to kill before the prize-giving, he decided relations a bit too far, and managed to call to take a walk along the seafront. During the closing ceremony, he realised the beast off, but Nigel had by then been Unfortunately, he passed by a particularly that the FIDE officials had forgotten to quite badly bitten. He spent much of the dodgy pub, frequented by various present a trophy, named after the former night in a Russian hospital, an experience skinheads and other charmers, several of women’s world champion and Georgian he later described as far more shocking whom attacked and robbed him. He lost national heroine, . In than the attack itself, so filthy was the almost £1,000 in cash, plus a mobile his attempts to alert them to this place. In addition, rabies was quite phone and camera, as well as ending up oversight, Azmai tried to climb onto the widespread amongst dogs in Russia at in hospital for treatment to his injuries. stage, which was being patrolled by that time, so it must have been a worrying uniformed security guards. At some point time for the English GM. Strangely, he has not played at Hastings hereabouts, there was what Formula One since… TV commentator Murray Walker used to Despite his trauma, Nigel drew a hard- call “a coming together”, between Azmai’s fought battle against the world champion 6. DRIVEN TO DISTRACTION head and that of one of the security the following day, and eventually guards. What one would naturally recovered from his injuries, miraculously Of course, before one can be mugged at describe as a head-butt, in fact, but Azmai with no long-term infection. a tournament, one has to get there. That later insisted it was an accident, and that too, can have its hazards, with the he had not seen the guard’s head dangers of the road never far away. In millimetres in front of his own. Perhaps he 1977, shortly after arriving in Belgrade for was playing that well-known children’s his Candidates final against Boris party game, “Blind Man’s Butt”? If so, this Spassky, ’s car ran into proved to be a serious , as his the back of an army truck and move was countered by that other overturned. Once again, poor Ray Keene popular party game, “Security Guard’s was involved, and ended up crawling out Knock”, in which three other security of the upturned vehicle. Fortunately, all guards jump on the player and beat the the inhabitants escaped with no more living daylights out of him. than a few cuts and bruises. This unfortunate outburst of party games But the closest call I have heard involved was capped by a two-day session of Dutch GM . In the early “Escape from Alcatraz”, before charges months of 2002, he was driving to a were dropped, and the FIDE Vice- German Bundesliga fixture in his brand President was freed from the local gaol new Jaguar X. Somewhere on the and allowed to return home. autobahn between Koblentz and Frankfurt, he lost control of the vehicle 4. CHILDREN AND ANIMALS and turned the car over whilst driving at something in the region of 100 miles per Any performer knows that one should hour. The car was a write-off, as a photo never work with children or animals. in 2002/3 showed, but Children are sometimes unavoidable in Nigel Short’s next opponent was known for “Lucky Loek” walked away with only a chess, but animals are definitely to be his dangerous paw to king four opening mild concussion. avoided. The late witnessed a narrow escape at the 1967 Far be it for me to suggest that GM van Sousse in Tunisia when one of 3. GLAD TO SEE THE BACK OF HIM Wely’s driving is in any way questionable, the camels on which tourists could take but this was the third car he had written rides along the beach “made a One of the most famous and controversial off in five years. I am told by friends in determined attempt to bite a Russian physical injury incidents ever was Tony Amsterdam that anybody in Dutch chess ”. However, in the beast’s Miles’ back problem at Tilburg 1985. A who wishes to eliminate a rival no longer defence, Golombek suggested that couple of rounds into the super-tournament, bothers hiring a hitman – they just get “perhaps the creature was more Miles felt his back give way as he sat at the Loeky to give the guy a lift home… intelligent than most and had seen how board. This was a recurrence of an old badly the said grandmaster had been spinal problem from which he had suffered 5. BLIND MAN’S BUTT playing in the tournament”. intermittently since his youth. This attack proved far worse than normal, however, As Chucky’s Sao Paulo incident shows, Whilst the unnamed Russian GM had a and he found that the only position he even getting to and through the narrow escape, Britain’s Nigel Short was could assume which did not result in acute tournament in one piece does not less lucky. At the super-tournament in the spasms of pain was lying flat. guarantee safety. There is also what can ancient Russian city of Novgorod in 1997, happen after the event. One of the most he decided to take a midnight stroll down Just when it seemed he would have to notorious chess incidents in recent years by the river to contemplate what to play in withdraw from the tournament, a solution www.chess.co.uk 31 taking a more horizontal approach to his chess. His unorthodox “flat-out” playing style brought him great results and a few complaints!

was found which involved his playing his to Moscow after taking second equal Grünfeld had lost a leg when in his early games whilst lying flat on his stomach on prize at the SKA tournament in Munich. childhood and had an artificial leg. a massage table, placed next to the Hence he was carrying quite a lot of Despite his age, and this handicap, he board. It created a rather irregular money on the homeward trip. Shortly spurned the organisers’ offer of a car, and appearance in the tournament room, but after he had arrived home, armed insisted on walking the mile or so to the from Miles’ viewpoint, it enabled him to thieves came to his apartment and venue each afternoon. On one particular play pain-free. There would probably proceeded to relieve him of money and day, he set off, but disaster struck. Some have been no more than a few jokes other valuables. However, what was way along the road, he fell over, and his made about it had it not been for the fact much worse was that, although Yusupov wooden leg came off and fell into a ditch! that he suddenly started winning games, put up no resistance, one of the thieves A distressed Grünfeld managed to get to one after the other! There had to be an panicked and discharged a shotgun into a phone box and ring the organisers. In explanation for this, of course, and so his stomach. those days in Holland, all chess-related several players filed a written complaint, problems ended up on the desk of Max saying that Miles’ appearance was For some time Yusupov was critically ill, Euwe, and thus it was that the good distracting his opponents. When some but thankfully he eventually made a full Doctor came on the line. Hearing of other players said that they had not recovery. However, those close to him, Grünfeld’s plight, he jumped into a car, noticed, they were assured by Ljubojevic, such as his trainer , feel and a few minutes later, he managed to one of the protesters, that they were that his energy levels were never quite rescue the poor man and his wooden leg being distracted, they just hadn’t noticed! the same after this traumatic experience, and take him back to his digs. and he gradually fell back from his Most of the players reacted well, but position as one of the top half-dozen Imagine the scene at my interlocutor’s Djindzihashvili played his games against players in the world. home, when the doorbell suddenly rings, Miles without sitting at the board, like a and when his mother opens it, there simultaneous display, whilst Hübner insisted 1. NOT A LEG TO STAND ON standing on the doorstep, with their on a pre-arranged draw, with absurd moves house guest, is the great and saintly Dr (the score was 1 d4 e5 2 dxe5 £h4 3 ¤f3 Pride of place in this gallery of Caïssic Euwe! Hard though it is to credit in this £a4 4 ¤c3 £a5 5 e4 draw agreed). mishaps goes to a story I was told at Wijk country, Euwe’s face was known to Eventually, two weeks of fun, protests, aan Zee a few years ago. I was sitting in everybody in Holland and by all accounts meetings and some chess, saw Miles put up the bar of the de Moriaan, where the play the lady of the house could not have one of the great fighting performances of his takes place, and got talking to a local been more flustered if the king and career and win the tournament, equal first resident, who had lived in nearby had descended on her home. with Hübner and Korchnoi. Beverwijk all his life. In the early years of the event, and indeed, right up until the 2. NOTHING TO LAUGH ABOUT 1970s, most of the players were After a refreshing cup of coffee and a few accommodated, not in hotels, but with minutes’ rest, Grünfeld was re-united with Most of our stories so far have had a local families. In 1961, when my his artificial appendage and driven to the greater or lesser amount of humour in interlocutor was 14 or 15, his family played tournament hall. Unfortunately, he faced them, but there is nothing remotely funny host to the legendary Ernst Grünfeld. By the powerful young East German GM about this one. In May 1990, top this time he was 67 years old and was one Wolfgang Uhlmann that day, and despite Russian GM Artur Yusupov, one of the of various European veterans who played having White, the trauma took its toll on true nice guys of world chess, returned at Beverwijk around this period. him. He was annihilated in just 21 moves!

32 November 2011 Problem by Album Studies Brian Stephenson In Jesi (Italy) in August, the endgame way for the white king to reach the black By Colin Russ study sub-committee of the World . The natural 10 a4? loses to As underlined in the last issue (p.58), Federation for Chess Composition 10...¢b6 11 a5+ ¢a6 12 ¢b8 h5 13 ¢c7 castling by one or both sides is accepted (WFCC), chose a study of the year for h4 14 ¢c6 h3 15 b5+ ¢xa5 16 b6 h2 17 in problems unless demonstrably illegal. 2010. They were almost unanimous in b7 h1£+ 18 ¢c7 £h7+ 19 ¢c8 £f5+ 20 With an initial capture the choosing a joint composition by two of ¢c7 £c5+ 21 ¢d7 £b6 22 ¢c8 £c6+ 23 reverse applies - the “preceding” pawn today’s most active study composers. ¢b8 ¢b6–+ 10...¢b5 11 a4+! Dragging double step must be provable. These They believe that their choice is the best the black king to the a-file. 11...¢xa4 modern compositions show that the one for promoting endgame studies to 11...¢xb4 12 ¢b6 ¢xa4 13 ¢c5= castling device has remained alive and the general public, which makes it perfect 12 ¢b6! ¢xb4 12...h5 13 b5 h4 14 ¢c5 (very) well. Solutions on page 58. for quoting here! h3 15 b6 h2 16 b7 h1£ 17 b8£= 13 ¢c6 The white king crosses the board (ahead A.Kuznetsov & S.I.Tkachenko S.Didukh & S.Hornecker of the black king) to save the day. 64 1995 1st HM., Olympia Dunyasi, 2010 13...¢c4 14 ¢d6 ¢d4 15 ¢e6 ¢e4 16 ¢f6 ¢f4 And now, with the black pawn on h6 rather than h7, we can play 17 ¢g6 ¢g4 18 ¢xh6 and capture the last pawn to ensure the draw. ½–½

A.Karin Zadachi i Etyudy, 2008 1

White mates in three White to play and draw

V.Dyachuk 1 g6! With ...axb2 looking dangerous, it Kievskie novosti 1998/99 - Third Prize seems natural to capture the a-pawn. However, that is a serious mistake, as the following shows. 1 bxa3? hxg5 2 a4 g4 3 a5 g3 4 a6 g2 5 a7 g1£ 6 a8£ £g8+ 7 ¢b7 £xa8+ 8 ¢xa8 ¢c6 9 ¢a7 ¢b5 10 White to play and draw a4+ ¢xa4 11 ¢b6 ¢xb4 12 ¢c6 ¢c4 13 ¢d6 ¢d4 14 ¢e6 ¢e4 15 ¢f6 ¢f4 16 To enter, send your name and address, 2 ¢g7 h5–+ But if g6 had been available to with the main variations to Chess & the white king ... 1...hxg6 1...axb2 is Bridge Ltd, 44 Baker Street, London, tempting, but both sides promote into a W1U 7RT, postmarked not later than 25 drawn £-ending - 2 gxh7 b1£ 3 h8£ December 2011. There is a £25 voucher £xb4+ 4 ¢a7= 2 bxa3 Compulsory now, for the first correct entry drawn. with no immediate threats by White. We now have a position where White mates in two Black can choose which pawn to push Download the latest index to and the composers pick the g-pawn. CHESS Magazine S.I.Tkachenko Pushing the h-pawn still draws. 2...g5 Uralsky Problemist 2000 - Special Prize 2...h5 3 a4 h4 4 a5 h3 5 a6 h2 6 a7 h1£ The index for volume 75 (April 2010 - 7 a8£ £xa8+ 8 ¢xa8 ¢c6 9 a4 ¢b6 10 March 2011) is now available a5+ ¢a6 11 ¢b8 g5 12 ¢c7 g4 13 ¢c6 for download, completely free g3 14 b5+ ¢xa5 15 b6 g2 16 b7 g1£ 17 of charge, from our website. b8£= but not with the interesting play the Find articles, photographs and book composers had in mind. Both sides now reviews without having to thumb through run pawns and promote. 3 a4 g4 4 a5 g3 a year of magazines. All games are 3 5 a6 g2 6 a7 g1£ 7 a8£ £g8+ 8 ¢b7! 8 indexed by opening and by player too! ¢a7? £xa2+ 9 ¢b8 £xa8+ 10 ¢xa8 ¢c6–+ 8...£xa8+ 9 ¢xa8 Now, after the Visit the Downloads section at: queen , we ’re back to a pure www.chess.co.uk/shop pawn ending. 9...¢c6 10 ¢a7! A fine point! It seems that keeping the black Special thanks to Chris Ravilious king out of b6 and then sacrificing the for compiling the index. White mates in four white pawns to delay the black king is the

www.chess.co.uk 33 Cartoon 1 pager_Chess mag - 21_6_10 03/11/2011 13:09 Page 15 Cartoon Chess More comic gems from our archives: BH Wood was evidently an avid collector of chess-themed cartoons. The ones we feature here are from the 1940s through to the 1960s.

“Well, madam - if your husband “And how did our easily won keeps imagining he’s a king - “George is just crazy about chess” adjourned game go, dear?” I think I’d better him”

“Oh, that’s our Miss Bannister, “Could I bother you for an action picture Sirs?” she’s a great admirer of Steinitz”

“Gentlemen I’m neither impressed nor amused by your “When I said we’d give the new model a personality ill-timed rendition of ‘GOD SAVE THE KING’” I only meant we’d call him Kenny or something...”

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Click here to order a printed copy of the November 2011 issue of CHESS Magazine CHESS Magazine - NOVEMBER 2011 issue - RRP £4.50 UK's most popular CHESS Magazine - established 1935! - Sao Paulo / Bilbao Grand Slam - The intercontinental super-tournament saw Ivanchuk dominate in Brazil, but then Mag nus Carlsen took over in Spain. - Sadler Wins in Oslo - Matthew Sadler is on a roll! First, Barcelona, and now Oslo. He annotates his best game while Yochanan Afek covers the action. - London Classic Preview - We ask the pundits for their predictions. - Interview: Nigel Short - Carl Portman caught up with the English super-GM in Shropshire - Kasparov - Short Blitz Match - Garry and Nigel re-enacted their 1993 title match at a faster time control in Belgium. Plus all the usual CHESS Magazine columns and features.

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