FIDE Solving Championships: Free online lessons for anyone
WFCC Honorary President Harry Fougiaxis and Anirudh Daga during the closing ceremony of the Fujairah World Congress of Chess Composition 2022Photo: Fujairah Chess & Culture Club The inaugural FIDE World Solving Championships for Youth (Florianópolis, November 4) and Cadets (Montesilvano, November 21) will take place this autumn. For the first time, the FIDE solving events will be organized in cooperation with the World Federation for Chess Composition (WFCC) as a part of the FIDE & WFCC Special Projects 2024, celebrating FIDE Centenary. The WFCC-guided solving events can be followed on the Chess-Results server, in the Federation Selection list under the abbreviation WFC. The basic information includes Regulations for championships U14, U16 & U8 in Brazil, and for championships U8, U10 & U12 in Italy, both with instructions about writing solutions and illustrative examples. There are also Registration forms for Florianópolis and for Montesilvano. Another important and unique novelty in the FIDE & WFCC cooperation, the first installment in a series of free online solving lessons organized by a young Indian player, composer and solver Anirudh Daga (16), in cooperation with the WFCC president Marjan Kovačević will be launched in two weeks, on September 7. Although primarily aimed to prepare young participants for solving in Brazil and Italy, the online sessions will be open for everybody around the world. Fill out the Registration form to show your interest, by clicking on the given link or scanning the QR code below, using a phone! The initial goal is to explain the big structural differences between common chess puzzles that dominate the Internet and real chess compositions, with their own principles, theories, themes, schools, and styles that have developed throughout chess history. Naturally, priority will be given to practical aspects of solving. The first topic will be the general approach to the competition, including the way of writing solutions. The next sessions will touch on special aspects of composing genres featured in the FIDE Youth Championships 2024: Mate in 2, Mate in 3, Mate in 4 and Endgame Studies. The sessions will be in English and open to all questions each Saturday from 1 PM GMT from September 7 to October 5. How difficult can the problems for cadets and juniors be? A week ago, Prague hosted the European Youth Chess Solving Championships in the age categories U10, U14, and U18, and only two out of 206 solvers managed to score a maximum of 40 points. Let’s take a look at the endgame from U14 category competition: Viktor A. Nikolaev White to play and win At first glance, the position doesn’t promise any headache. It looks like white just has to stop the passed pawns, while g-pawn will secure them an easy victory. Many solvers started correctly and, after White’s smart fourth move, believed the mission was accomplished. In fact, the real fight just started at this point … We have got used to thinking for the white side, but looking for an inspired counterplay by an opponent is often a real challenge. Polish junior Wladyslaw Pycinski was perceptive enough to keep analyzing in-depth, and it brought him the golden medal ahead of the participants who rushed to hand in their solving sheets earlier in order to gain the advantage of the shorter time that is used as the main tiebreak. In the photo from Prague, you can see a young solver at the beginning of the long journey to solve this endgame study, looking for White’s correct second move. Photo: EYCC / Anezka Kruzikova Get registered and prepared for the upcoming solving adventures in Brazil and Italy; there will be no opponents except for hard-to-find moves! Solution: Viktor A. Nikolaev, 2. Prize USSR Sports Committee, 1955 1. Nf3 d3 2. Bh6 Kd4+ 3.Nxd4 e1=Q 4.Bd2+ Ka6 5. Bxe1 d2 6. Nc2 d1=Q 7.Nb4+ Ka5 8.Nd3+ Ka4 9. Nb2 Written by Marjan Kovačević, WFCC president Official website: WFCC – World Federation for Chess Composition
Farewell from Tbilisi: Closing ceremony of Women’s Grand Prix 2024/2025 fist leg
The inaugural leg of the 2024/2025 Women’s Grand Prix concluded in Tbilisi with a closing ceremony that honored the winner, celebrated the participants, and highlighted the significance of women’s chess in Georgia. The ceremony took place in the ballroom of the prestigious Biltmore Hotel, located in the heart of Tbilisi. Just hours earlier, this same venue witnessed the final moves that determined the fate of the world’s top female chess players. Akaki Iashvili, president of the Georgian Chess Association, praised the players for their extraordinary performances, stating, “These 11 days were emotionally intense, but I believe our esteemed guests have enjoyed Georgian hospitality. The GCF and FIDE have worked hard to provide the best conditions for players to showcase their talents in the tournament.” He also expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Sports and Culture of Georgia and the Tbilisi municipality for their unwavering support of chess, a sport deeply respected in Georgian culture. One of the most famous Georgian and world chess players, the legendary Nona Gaprindashvili, congratulated the players on their games and praised Tbilisi for hosting such a prestigious event. “It was a pleasure to have such a high-level tournament in Tbilisi, and I am happy that more chess projects are on the way, offering great experiences for both players and spectators. I visited almost every day to watch the games. Some players won, some lost—that’s sport. I wish the chess players who didn’t achieve great results better success in the future,” said Gaprindashvili. FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky echoed these sentiments, noting that “the past 11 days flew by quickly, as the games were enjoyable.” “FIDE has about 200 federations, and we host our events in 50 countries, but there are only a handful of federations where we can be confident the events will be of a very high standard, and the Georgian Chess Association is one of them. This event surpassed even our very high expectations,” said Sutovsky, who concluded his speech with a toast to Georgia and its people. The highlight of the ceremony was when the top three players—Alina Kashlinskaya, Bibisara Assaubayeva, and Stavroula Tsolakidou—were invited to the stage to receive their awards: a trophy and a medal. The winner, Alina Kashlinskaya, was greeted with the loudest applause. “This is my biggest achievement so far. I want to thank FIDE for the opportunity to play here. I want to thank my biggest strengths—my son and my mum,” said Kashlinskaya. The evening was filled with music, celebration, and a sense of accomplishment. Notable public figures, state officials, and chess players were among the attendees who enjoyed a performance by the famous Georgian group ‘Quartet Four’ and a vibrant dance group performing traditional Georgian dance. The ceremony, as well as the entire tournament, underscored Georgia’s unique role in the global chess community as an excellent host and organizer. The next major chess event the country will host is the 2025 Women’s World Cup, scheduled to take place in Batumi next July. Written by Milan Dinic Photos: Anna Shtourman Official FIDE WGP website: womengrandprix.fide.com/