3rd Intercontinental Online Chess Championship for Prisoners announced
The International Chess Federation is excited to announce the third Intercontinental Online Chess Championship for Prisoners, to be held from October 11-13, 2023. As a part of the Chess for Freedom program and the continuation of the International Championship among prisoners first held back in 2019, the event aims at introducing chess as a tool for education and social inclusion in prisons worldwide. The championship, organized by FIDE and the Cook County (Chicago, IL, USA) Sheriff’s Office and hosted by Chess.com, is open for teams made of 4 players in three categories – men’s, women’s and juvenile correctional facilities. “We started the Chess for Freedom program in May 2021 with an exhibition online tournament with four participating countries. Since then, the event has rapidly grown, as in October 2022, the Intercontinental Online Chess Championship for Prisoners boasted 85+ teams from 46 countries, becoming the largest event of its kind. And we will keep growing this year, providing an opportunity for a bigger number of inmates to play chess with their peers across the globe,” said FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich. “I am pleased to continue the special partnership between my office and FIDE by hosting the third Intercontinental Online Chess Championship for Prisoners at the Cook County Jail,” said the Cook County Sheriff Thomas J. Dart. “I look forward to welcoming returning participants from chess communities worldwide, as well as teams who will be joining us for the first time.” Deputy Chair of the FIDE Management Board Dana Reizniece-Ozola added that FIDE’s role is not limited to hosting chess events: “It’s not only about organizing tournaments. Our plans include the development of the training methodology, awareness-raising activities and post-incarceration educational programmes. We are inviting new countries to join us, even if they are not running chess programs in their prisons yet. We are ready to assist with any advice, sharing best practices, and proving that chess is an excellent educational tool for everyone.” The tournament will be played online and streamed on FIDE’s Youtube channel. The broadcast will not only cover the games but also include interviews with special guests of the event – FIDE officials, government officers, members of the penitentiary administration and policymakers sharing the best practices of introducing chess to inmates, as well as former convicts proving from their own experience the positive impact of the game on prisoners. Each country can have up to three teams in the event: – main team – team representing a female correctional facility with all four female team players – team representing juvenoid correctional facility (under the age of 20). The participating countries can also submit more teams to the waiting list as the tournament organizers might need additional teams to complete the 8-team field for each group. Each correctional facility shall submit an application via an online registration form: forms.office.com/g/xPqGaWbR4Q The registration deadline is September 22, 2023. There is no entry fee. Tournament regulations (pdf) Contact person: Mikhail Korenman, Chess Program Coordinator at Cook County Department of Corrections,FIDE International Chess Organizer and Member of FIDE Social Commission E-mail: Mikhail.Korenman@ccsheriff.org Tel.: 1-785-906-0402 About the Chess for Freedom program The rights and opportunities of self-realization and development for people in imprisonment are essential prerequisites in order to consciously build their future after liberation. Access to training and learning, as well as to quality ways of socializing, could give a strong motivation to change for the better. To support and promote this line of work, FIDE and the Cook County Sheriff’s Office (Chicago, USA) have launched the “Chess for Freedom” program. This project kicked off in May 2021 with an online conference and an exhibition tournament with four participating countries. Later on, in October 2021, the first Intercontinental Online Chess Championship for Prisoners – a much larger competition with the participation of tens of prisons – was held. The 2nd edition of the event, organized in October 2022, attracted more than 85 teams from 46 countries. As a next step, in May 2023, the Chess for Freedom Conference was organized in Chicago, USA. It attracted 40 participants, including FIDE officials, representatives of national chess federations and experts involved in chess programs for inmates, who discussed concepts and approaches to using chess as a rehabilitation tool for incarcerated people. In recent years, we have witnessed the successful introduction of chess in prisons through different educative programs in many countries. They demonstrated that chess improves behaviour, helping to reduce inmate violence and developing communication skills while promoting the positive use of leisure time. Chess also drastically improves decision-making and fights depression, stress and anxiety. To learn more and join the project, visit the official website: chessforfreedom.fide.com
Promoting Africa: CIE Awareness Campaign launched in Zimbabwe and Nigeria
FIDE EDU Commission, together with the Chess Federations of Zimbabwe and Nigeria, has kickstarted Promoting Africa: CIE Awareness Campaign project involving Preparation of Teacher (PoT) training and presentations for educators and decision-makers on how to implement chess as an educational tool in schools and universities. Spearheaded by Jerry Nash, Chairman of FIDE EDU, and Anzel Laubscher, EDU Commission member, this joint effort is funded by the national federations, FIDE EDU, and a generous grant from the International Olympic Committee (IOC). On arrival to Zimbabwe, Jerry and Anzel had a productive meeting with a group of local head teachers, who were receptive to the idea of chess as an educational tool in the classroom. They eagerly awaited the first PoT course, which runs from July 11-13, with around 60 participants. On Wednesday, July 12, Zimbabwe Chess Federation hosted a corporate simultaneous exhibition at Organikks, which was a black-tie event. GM Nigel Short conducted a simul against 30 participants from corporate sponsors. Many high-profile guests attended the event, including several dignitaries such as the Minister of Sport, Minister of Education, Sport and Recreation Commission Chairman, Sports and Recreation Commission Director General, and diplomats from US and UK embassies. On Friday, July 14, the team will fly out to Victoria Falls and then on Sunday, July 16, Jerry and Anzel will set out for Lagos, Nigeria, to run the second PoT course and promote Chess in Education via several social engagements. FIDE Chess in Education Commission focuses on expanding the global outreach for chess in education. Since children enjoy learning through play, chess is a powerful educational tool for developing and honing various intellectual skills. Chess can be taught as a stand-alone class or integrated into other subjects through exercises, investigations, and chess-related activities. Game-based education engages students and improves the quality of their learning experience. Jerry Nash has been involved in the field of chess in education for over 20 years providing training for educators around the world on how to teach the game and use it to introduce skills development. WIM Anzel Laubscher is a practising Advocate of the High Court in South Africa. She has run numerous FIDE teacher training courses all around Africa. She is the co-author of the new Preparation of Teachers course that awards the School Instructor title to successful participants.
WWC Match 2023: Last game in Shanghai ends in a draw
The defending Women’s World Champion fails to score a victory in her native city as Lei leads with 3.5:2.5. Game six saw a fast draw as both players seek respite ahead of the second part of the match which will take place in Chongqing With 12 games scheduled for the classical part of the match, game six in the match marked the halfway point. It was also Ju’s last chance to score victory in her native city, as the second part of the match will take place in the central-Chinese city of Chongqing, Lei Tingjie’s home town. Following a loss in game five and with two free days ahead, defending Women’s World Champion Ju Wenjun was looking for either a comeback or some respite, going into the second part of the match. While in the past five games Lei had typically been the one to set the opening tone, this time Ju (playing as White) made a surprise. In the Queen’s Gambit, she played the early 3.cxd5 but it all came down to a very popular line of Tarrasch Defence. The sides blitzed the moves and quickly exchanged the queens and a pair of minor pieces. The two reached a seemingly calm but complicated middlegame with a minimal edge for Ju: she had a pair of bishops and slightly more initiative. Also, she did not put herself at risk of losing and had a small advantage which she was happy to play on, as in the previous games. Facing threats luring under the calm waters, Lei swam confidently, quickly developing her pieces and forcing exchanges to simplify and hold an even position. Despite a pair of bishops and some minimal initiative, Ju could not develop anything concrete as Black countered very well. As the game progressed more pieces were traded and the two entered a drawn rook and knight endgame. On move 48, after three hours of play, the two agreed on a draw. Summarizing the first six games, Ju Wenjun said that the “overall quality was not bad, but I hope that in the second part of the match, I will improve my chess”. Lei was asked whether the fact that the match is moving to her home city of Chongqing will have any impact on her. “As a professional player you just focus on chess. I will be playing in my hometown, but playing in Shanghai was also good. Nothing will change for me”. The Chinese WGM Gu Xiaobing asked the players how much truth they tell in press conferences. World Champion Ju claimed to tell “99 percent,” while Lei was coy, saying she shares “about 50 percent.” Ju’s answer was a bit surprising, given that she is the world champion. But perhaps she is simply used to being in the spotlight and knows how to handle the media without raising much attention. With six more games set to take place, the players will now relocate to Chongqing, the native city of Challenger Lei Tingjie. The match will continue on Saturday, 15th of July. The starting time of the games remains the same as China has only one time zone – 3 PM Local Time in Chongqing (GMT +8). Here follows a closer look at game six of the match: The first move today was made by Zhang Yi, Director of the Youth Sports and Education Department in the Shanghai Administration of Sports and Ma Jiabin, Director of Jing’an District of the Shanghai Administration of Sports. As in the previous five encounters, game six brought another opening surprise. While it was usually Lei who was setting these up and gaining an advantage, this time, Ju took the unexpected path in the opening. Following 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6, she decided to take on d5, preventing Lei from deploying the openings from previous rounds. Lei went for the Tarrasch defence – as in game two, but with a different setting, due to Ju’s 3.cxd5 move – and both players were blitzing the well-known moves. Soon, a pair of light pieces and the queens were off the board. Here the Women’s World Champion castled long, making the first original move in the game. Ju’s opening choice and approach were branded as “very clever” by GM Xu Yi, who is part of FIDE’s commentary duo, together with GM Alik Gershon. “White has a pair of bishops and a more enjoyable position… From the previous games, we saw that Ju Wenjun can play these positions with tiny advantages, and the position doesn’t put her at too much risk”, Xu noted, as both he and Gershon agreed that losing today would be “a disaster” for Ju. Both sides have now finished development. White has a minimal edge but the position is roughly even. 20.Bg5 After this move, White lost even the tiny edge she had before. Somewhat better options were Bc1 or Nh4. Indeed after 20…f6 21.Rxd8+ Rxd8 22.Bd2 Bd3 Black had no problem whatsoever. Lei intended to exchange a pair of bishops and further simplify, heading for a draw. Ju refused at first, but a few moves down the road, she accepted the inevitable. It is difficult to see how White can improve her position here. 27.Bc5 is met with 27…Nf5, while in the line 27. Be2 Bd3 28. Bd1 Nd5 Black is also fine, thanks to his active pieces. 27.Bd6 Rd7 28.Rxe4. With this move, Ju admitted she could not make progress keeping her pair of bishops on the board. The only thing White has in her favour after trading the bishops is Black’s slightly extended queenside. On the other hand, Ju’s position on the kingside was not flawless. The Women’s World Champion was going for a very long technical squeeze, hoping to outplay her opponent, but realistically speaking, the position did not offer much, and Black faced no real problems. The position is even. The bishops are off the board, and the pressure of the queenside for Black has eased while White holds on the kingside. After exchanging the rooks, the two continued testing each other in a knight endgame, but
FIDE World Championships 2024 Call for Bids: Two days to deadline
FIDE Events Commission would like to remind to all National Federations that the procedure “Call for Bids FIDE World Championships 2024” will be ended for all bidders on July 14 2023. There are 11 competitions on the list: World Junior U20 Chess Championships 2024 World Senior Team Chess Championships 2024 World Senior Chess Championships 2024 World Youth U14, U16, U18 Championships 2024 World Amateur Chess Championships 2024 World School Chess Championships 2024 World Cadet & Youth Rapid & Blitz Championships 2024 World Cadet U8, U10, U12 Championships 2024 World U20 Junior Rapid & Blitz Championships 2024 World Schools Team Chess Championship 2024 World Cup U8, U10, U12 2024 (New) Dear bidders, please pay attention: FIDE Events Commission has changed its approach to accepting and processing bid applications. From now on it is stricter and more formalized. More details about the procedure including the Bidding Federations Responsibility, Bid Form and Bid Form Annex, Bid and Deposit Fees you can find HERE.