Olympic exhibition chess matches hit snag. A vote of confidence for the FIDE Board in the face of recent criticism. Vladimirov profile.
- Stephen Leary
Exhibition Chess Matches at Olympics Hit Snag
A storm is brewing in the planned exhibition chess matches which FIDE is planning for the Sydney Olympic Games in Australia. GM Ian Rogers says he is unavailable. Who will Anand play?
Vladimirov Profile
A profile of GM Evegeny Vladimirov, who used to be Kasparov's second. "The bespectacled Grandmaster, who qualified for the FIDE world championship in Delhi later this year, is more of a coach than a player now touring various countries to conduct orientation courses. He runs an Academy for a dedicated band of 30 trainees spotted by a team of experts in Kazhakstan and is actively involved in the preparations of the national team."
FIDE
Newsletter No. 4: A vote of confidence for Ilyumzhinov & the FIDE Board in the face of recent media criticism. Karpov hearing scheduled for August 18. List of participants for the Men's and Women's World Cup to be held in September.
El Pais
Leontxo Garcia's reports this week:
At the Biel Festival, the Swiss media paid more attention to 16-year-old Ruslan Ponomariov than to the winner, Peter Svidler. Ponomariov will sign a sponsorship deal with a Ukrainian company, where chess is very popular. He likes to read adventure books and listen to classical music.
17-year-old Paco Vallejo confirmed his great promise by defeating Topalov at the Spanish Team Championship. Alexei Shirov hasn't been playing well lately, but he is first board of the Palm Oasis team, which includes Topalov, Magem, and Comas.
[In Spanish.]
TWIC
Live action from the British Championship. Results from Montecatini Terme, Biel, Mecking-Vescovi match, Buenos Aires zonal, etc.
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Florencio Campomanes
In his Manila Times column, Campomanes profiles the new Philippine grandmaster Bong Villamayor. "A fresh Grandmaster is a favorite target of all those around him. He has to prove again and again that he deserves the title, and merits the respect, if not, the adulation of the lesser pawn-pushers."
Lubomir Kavalek
In his weekly Washington Post column, Kavalek opines that chess doesn't make sense because "One day we are asked to protect pieces under attack or withdraw them to safety. The next day we see one grandmaster leaving a knight unprotected and another thrusting his pawn to a sure death. They both do well and we think that this paradox is beautiful." He annotates Lputian-Ivanchuk from Montecatini Terme, Italy, and Gallagher-Milov from Biel where Gallagher played an exciting new idea in the Paulsen Sicilian.
Robert Byrne
In his weekly New York Times column, Byrne says the most exciting battle at the recent World Open in Philadelphia was Joel Benjamin-Emory Tate. "After he had fallen behind positionally, Tate fought back with superb tactical skill, and Benjamin had to match him blow for blow to win a tense struggle." Byrne annotates the game, a d3 French.
Shelby Lyman
In his weekly column, Shelby quotes Vladimir Kramnik on why he lost to Leko and Adams this year: "For the first time, I'm in a situation where it's hard for me to be motivated," Kramnik said. "This fact makes my play worse because in sports the most important thing is motivation." But he expects to win his match with Kasparov.
KasparovChess.com
KasparovChess University opens its doors. A rundown of top tournaments upcoming in August. Review of Montecatini Terme. British Championship updates, and other results.
British Chess Magazine
British Championship coverage. Results from Australian Masters, 5th South Wales Masters.
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