Weekly chess columnBy Harold Dondis and Chris Chase | JANUARY 20, 2014 Now that the world championship has changed hands, it is perhaps fruitful to take a look at the new champion, Norway’s Magnus Carlsen. He has reached the highest rating on record, 2872, compared to Garry Kasparov’s previous record of 2851. Carlsen is a […]
Yuri Averbakh writes about his long career
Yuri Averbakh writes about his long careerBy Harold Dondis and Patrick WolffGlobe Correspondents November 07, 2011 As noted in a previous column, Yuri Averbakh has published a crisp and interesting biography of his long career as a leader in Soviet chess. For Americans and for the historical obsession with the life of Bobby Fischer, Averbakh’s […]
Chess Frauds
Chess notesBy Harold Dondis and Patrick WolffMay 30, 2011 There have been a number of intriguing chess-playing machines that were fraudulent contraptions. The first one was “The Turk,’’ constructed in 1770 by Wolfgang von Kempelen for the benefit of the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria-Hungary. It won most of its games in which it was […]
Prejudicial decision
Chess notes By Harold Dondis and Patrick Wolff May 2, 2011 The 2011 US Championships have nearly come to a close. The tournament, which featured a record $230,000 in prizes, had an unusual format. Participants were invited to play in two groups of eight players each. The groups included most of the great American players, […]
A look at Karpov
Chess notesSeptember 14, 2009 It was a bit of a shock to find Anatoly Karpov at the bottom of the field in the San Sebastian tournament held this July in Spain. In fact, he managed only 1.5 points in this 10-round tournament. It is not clear whether age, illness, or just lack of preparation caused […]