Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2025 i British Chess Magazine

Few were under any illusions about what Taliban rule would mean when they retook Afghanistan from the U.S. in late August 2021. But some hoped for moderation — that at least common-sense freedoms, like playing chess, might be preserved. However, like in 1996 when the took power for the first time, chess is again facing a ban in Afghanistan. The BBC was the first to break the story on 11 May, that the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan have decided to “suspend chess” due to the fear the game can be a source of gambling. The decision was made in an edict from the all-powerful Amr bil Ma’ruf wa Nahi ‘an al-Munkar (the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice under the Taliban). As Atal Mashwani, a…

There were two nine round swiss tournaments held in Jersey in April, the Open and Holiday tournaments. The prizes in the Open attracted a good entry with the tournament being won by the highest rated player, Eduardas Rozentalis. Here we will take a look at two of the most interesting games from the tournament. Rozentalis beat his closest rival Mohr in the following game, showing fine positional play and thus won the first prize of £1500. Mohr won the second prize of £750. Eduardas Rozentalis – Georg Mohr Jersey International 2025 St Clement Bay JCI (4.1) 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.♘d2 c5 4.exd5 ♕xd5 5.♘gf3X This variation of the Tarrasch leads to a small edge for White but Black has a solid position. 5...cxd4 6.♙c4 ♕d7 A good alternative is…

Ethan loved the feel of the polished pieces in his hand. The solid weight of the ebony knight. The more delicate feel of the boxwood bishop, nestled in the curve of his fingers, as if happily protected from the world. The black and the white. Solid, self-confident, sure of their role in the world. And always silent, simply waiting to be put in play. Two creatures from a world of perfection. He looked at the pieces aligned on the two sides of the board and sighed with a sense of deep satisfaction. All was in order in the best of all possible worlds. And even more beautiful perhaps than the perfect balance of the aligned forces were the possibilities awaiting all of them. For in fact, until a game began,…

On June 11, 1925, Vera Menchik, representing Russia, defeated British chess champion Edith Charlotte Price in an informal match in Hastings, securing a 3-2 victory. This triumph mirrored her earlier success against Edith Charlotte Price at Easter, solidifying Menchik’s standing as a formidable player in women’s chess. The Times published a detailed report from the match that highlighted Menchik’s "sounder game". Despite her victory, some observers still considered Edith Charlotte Price "quite as fine a natural player", though noting her weaker understanding "in her knowledge of the openings". This series of victories against Edith Charlotte Price was a crucial precursor to Menchik’s ascent in the global chess arena. Her established dominance in Britain laid the groundwork for her eventual win at the inaugural Women’s World Chess Championship in 1927. The…

The starter problem for this championship, again sponsored by Winton, is shown below. White, playing up the board, is to play and force mate in two moves against any black defence. WBCSC STARTER 2025-2026 Black (8 Men) White (9 Men) There is no entry fee, and the competition is open to British residents only. Competitors need send only White’s first move, known as the key-move. Postal entries should be sent to: Nigel Dennis, Boundary House, 230 Greys Road, Henley-on-Thames, Oxon, RG9 1QY Or email: <winton@theproblemist.org> All entries should be postmarked or dated no later than 31st July 2025 and must give the entrant’s name and home address. Juniors under the age of 18 on 31st August 2024 must give their date of birth. Please mention that you saw the starter problem…

England fielded very strong teams in these championships and won three titles including the 50+ Women, the event was soon after the World Senior Teams and this led to a reduction in entries. The England teams were: England 1: Michael Adams, John Emms, Glenn Flear, Nigel Davies, Stephen Dishman England 2: Gareme Buckley, Neil Dickenson, Chris Duncan, Philip Crocker, Robert Noyce England 50+ Women: Susan Lalic, Ingrid Lauterbach, Natasha Regan, Shelia Jackson, Petra Fink-Nunn England 65+: John Nunn, Tony Kosten, Jonathan Mestel, Peter Large, Chris Baker Here we’ll have a look at some of the most memorable games from the tournament We start with a smooth positional win from Michael Adams Michael Adams – Jaroslaw Rogowski TCh-EUR Senior +50 2025 Swidnica POL (5.13) 1.e4 e5 2.♘f3 ♘c6 3.♙b5 a6 4.♙a4…

Most of the times evaluating a position is not that difficult. The position can be familiar as it comes from an opening we know or have analysed, it can be a known theoretically winning endgame, it can be visually clear what is happening and so on. But what happens when something like this occurs on the board? How do you evaluate a position like this one? (Taken from the online rapid game Shirov-Grigoryan from 2020.) I can only assume what the others do, but I don’t think it’s very different from what I would do, especially as there’s little else one can do! After admitting to yourself that you have absolutely no clue what is happening here, the next step is simply to calculate. That’s incredibly difficult too, with many…

In this instalment of Quotes and Queries column, we’ve gathered a fresh selection of forgotten brilliancies, curious repetitions, and historical oddities from the margins of chess history. From a Sanskrit scholar’s bold gambit in Leipzig to the quiet dominance of Britain’s first women’s champion, these fragments remind us that the game’s past is far richer than just the exploits of world champions. Whether it’s a duplicated miniature, a dubious opening salvaged by flair, or a cleric outplaying Zukertort, each entry offers a glimpse into chess’s long and often overlooked hinterland. 6289 Arthur William Ryder (1877- 1938) has two claims to fame. He was Professor of Sanskrit at the University of California and author of English translations of The Bhagavad -Gita. He was also a chess player of some distinction. He…

1 P. Michelet Original composition 2025 WIN 2 P. Michelet Original composition 2025 WIN 3 P. Michelet Original composition 2025 WIN 4 P. Michelet Original composition 2025 DRAW Four new studies by Paul Michelet, one of our regular contributors and one of the leading modern composers. These studies show the breadth of his interests, and the delightful ideas he incorporates in his creations. We can call the theme of the first study ’Which Pawn?’ (for obvious reasons). Paul’s position derives from one composed by John Beasley; John’s had pawns already on the sixth rank, but Paul has found a setting where they start on their original squares. It’s not a hard solve, but when you’ve cracked it, consider how many fine features Paul has packed into a simple pawn ending.…

I commence this month with a game I won at the age of 13, having studied and been impressed by Aron Nimzowitsch’s strategic manual, My System. Of course, nowadays if you are not a Grandmaster by the age of 13, you may as well renounce any ambition of becoming a leading player, but back in the Cretaceous Period, reasonable competence by thirteen was considered quite precocious! Bhuyia vs. Raymond Keene Clapham Common CC, 1961, London 1.d4 ♘f6 2.c4 e6 3.♘c3 ♙b4 4.e3 c5 5.♙d3 ♘c6 6.♘f3 ♙xc3+ 7.bxc3 d6 8.0–0 b6 9.e4 e5 Here I introduce the so called Hübner variation of the Nimzo-Indian, seven years before the late German Grandmaster officially invented it. 10.d5 ♘e7 11.a4?! There is one reference to a game, Kirk-Collas, Naujac sur Mer, 2012, which…

The 69th Welsh Championship was held in Cardiff in April. The winner was Jose Camacho Collados, a professor at Cardiff University. The record holder for the Welsh Championship is A H Williams who won the championship eighteen times. The following game featured some sharp tactics and required accurate calculation by the winner. Camacho Collados,J – Jonathan Blackburn 69th ch-WLS 2025 Cardiff WLS (5.1) 1.♘f3 ♘f6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 ♙g7 4.♙g2 0–0 5.0–0 d6 6.♘c3 c6 White now chooses to play slowly in the centre rather than the natural 7.d4 7.d3 h6 8.b4 d5 Black counters the flank attack with a central pawn thrust which is sensible; not 8...♘e4 9.dxe4 ♙xc3 10.♙xh6 when White is much better. 9.♙b2 d4 This pawn advance is committal; the alternative was the exchange 9...dxc4 10.dxc4…

The chess world has lost four luminaries in the first half of 2025, among them Vlastimil Hort, who passed away on May 12, 2025, at the age of 81. Hort's death followed those of Robert Hübner, Boris Spassky, and Fridrik Ólafsson earlier in the year. Hort, born on January 12, 1944, was a towering figure in the game, a sentiment echoed by his long-time rival and friend, Grandmaster Ljubomir Ljubojević with whom I was sitting in a café in Belgrade, when the sad news reached us. Their competitive history spanned over half a century, with Ljubojević recalling "maybe even more" than 22 classical games played between them, a record showing five wins for Ljubojević, two for Hort, and 15 draws. Reflecting on Hort’s playing style, Ljubojević dispelled any notions of…