Whenever the world champion has to defend his crown against a challenger, it's not only chess fans who are watching, but the whole world. This exciting scenario was originally planned for December 2020, when the Russian Ian Nepomniachtchi was supposed to meet the Norwegian title holder Magnus Carlsen in Dubai. The Covid-19 pandemic, however, caused a stalemate situation and the whole event had to be postponed for one year. On November 24, 2021, the match, which was scheduled for 14 classical games, finally took off. For the defending champion – still 31 years old on the opening day - this was already the 5th title fight, while his opponent of the same age was going to play at the highest level for the first time. As number 1 in the world rankings with an Elo rating of 2856, Carlsen went into the match as a favorite. Nepomniachtchi was listed as number 5 with the slightly lower Elo 2782. Even so, some experts believed he was capable of winning the chess crown. Their opinion was based on the fact that Nepo was after all the only player in the world with a positive score against Carlsen in classical chess. Should the scheduled 14 classical games not lead to a decision, the winner would have to be determined in a tie-break. First four rapid games, possibly followed by blitz games and, as a last resort, by an Armageddon. In some publications it was said that Nepo could also have a chance in these disciplines. As it quickly turned out, however, a tiebreak was not necessary. The authors have analyzed all match games in detail and written entertaining and understandable comments. In addition, the first chapters portray the protagonists using biographical sketches, previous personal encounters and some highlights from their way to the final. Some Interviews, predictions before the fight and exercises complete the book.   162 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag

In 2013 Magnus Carlsen became world champion after his victory over Viswanathan Anand. He has been dominating the top of the international chess scene ever since – and almost at his liking. Now, defending his title against the not much older Russian Sergey Karjakin was on the agenda. All their prior match-ups were ‘teeth and claws’ affairs with the Norwegian only scoring a slight plus.  However, Sergey Karjakin surely did his best to push his opponent off the throne. From November 11th to 30th the Fulton Market Building in New York became the arena of the fight for the crown of the world chess champion. Exciting games, played at the highest level and thoroughly annotated, will guarantee the reader’s delight. 141 pages, Paperback, Joachim Beyer Verlag

The duel for the crown of the world's best player has been the absolute highlight of international chess since the beginning of tournament chess. In November the world champion was determined in London in a match over 12 games and a tie-break – between the title defender Magnus Carlsen from Norway and his challenger Fabiano Caruana from the USA. In the run-up there was no doubt that an interesting showdown was to be expected, as the two protagonists were holding the first two places in the world rankings. Accordingly, the chess world was feverishly awaiting this event. After winning the Candidates Tournament in Berlin earlier this year, the American Grandmaster had also shown great form at numerous other top events, and his accomplishments left no doubt that he was an absolutely worthy opponent for the defending champion. In this book all the games are analyzed in detail and commented in an entertaining and understandable way. In addition, it also offers a close look at the framework conditions and the events that led to the finale. So you will find, for example, chapters like 'The Opponents in Short Portrait' and 'The Previous Fights of the Protagonists'. Then there are interviews with various top players and experts under the title 'Predictions Before the Fight' – rounded off by a playful opportunity to compete with the champions: 'Try to Find Combinations Like Carlsen and Caruana!' 190 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag

There is probably no other player who has changed the chess world in so many areas and so radically – like Robert James Fischer, for whom the name Bobby Fischer has become common among chess players worldwide. Of his spectacular successes, his downright declassifying victories against three Soviet grandmasters in the early 1970s are particularly noteworthy – a kind of changing of the guard in the fight for the world title, to which the Soviets had subscribed, so to speak, for more than two decades. This triggered a worldwide chess boom, or more precisely: it triggered a chess boom especially in the western world, because in the Soviet Union with millions of club players such a boom was apparently hardly necessary. Many players of all levels were drawn to the royal game specifically because of the events of that time. Fischer's games are legendary, and since they have of course already been extensively analyzed and commented on in a number of works, the question arises: What is another book supposed to achieve anyway? German grandmaster Karsten Müller has selected what he considers to be Fischer's 60 most instructive games and checked them with various newer engines. Although he noticed numerous errors in the old analyses, Bobby's games still shine in their former glory or even brighter. Since even top programs rarely find errors, every reader can learn more than ever from these games in order to improve their own playing strength in a success-oriented manner. In addition to the numerous photos, it's above all the quotations contained in many games that take the reader back to the 'old days of chess'. Therefore, even younger players can get a good impression of what the chess world was like when, for example, there were still 'adjourned games' and 'sealed moves' – and when no player could dodge the hard analysis work by simply delegating this tedious task to his computer.   222 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag  

Since every world champion was the most outstanding player of his time, it makes sense to study the various aspects of the royal game using the world champions' games – and of course to enjoy them. In this first of two volumes on the world champions' art of combination, the authors (both recognized experts in the field of chess literature) offer the reader the opportunity of trying to find plenty of these best combinations themselves – and thus to assess and improve their own tactical skills. But that's not all. In addition to often breathtakingly spectacular sample games, which are thoroughly analyzed and commented on in a comprehensible way, individual pet topics are highlighted in which the world champions have created particularly outstanding works. So you are invited to take a closer look at how Steinitz handled the 'Steinitz King' – at Lasker's phenomenal art of defense and Capablanca's mastery of 'small combinations' (for which the French term 'petite combinaison' has become common in chess language). Furthermore, at Alekhine's dashing attacks, at Euwe's seventh sense for dynamic transformations, Botvinnik's tactical solutions to strategic problems, Smyslov's virtuosity even in tactical endgames and – last but not least – at Tal's downright magical tactical works of art with which he not only bewitched his opponents, but the entire chess world. Thanks to the QR-codes above the diagrams, you can download the position directly to your smartphone and watch or analyze the game, so that the laborious and error-prone input by hand is no longer necessary. Volume 1 contains 260 combinations and many fully annotated sample games. 192 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag

Since every world champion was the most outstanding player of his time, it makes sense to study the various aspects of the royal game using the world champions' games – and of course to enjoy them. In this first of two volumes on the world champions' art of combination, the authors (both recognized experts in the field of chess literature) offer the reader the opportunity of trying to find plenty of these best combinations themselves – and thus to assess and improve their own tactical skills. But that's not all. In addition to often breathtakingly spectacular sample games, which are thoroughly analyzed and commented on in a comprehensible way, individual pet topics are highlighted in which the world champions have created particularly outstanding works. So you are invited to take a closer look at Petrosian's deeply thought out exchange sacrifices, at Spassky's always tactically alert attacking skills and Fischer's often combinatorial exploitation of advantages in the endgame. Furthermore, at the tactical aspects of Karpov's dominance and restriction methods, Kasparov's dynamic pressure play, Kramnik's positional power play, Anand's fine sense for dynamics and – last but not least – Magnus Carlsen's combinatorial conversion of his excellent endgame strategy. Volume 2 contains 288 combinations and many fully annotated sample games.   240 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag

The One Hundret And Eighty-Seven Games of the Bitish Championship Tournament, The Four Games of the Championship Play-Off, and Twelfe Games from other Events   63 Seiten

Find your role model This book contains games from every single female World Champion, as well as young up and comers, top seasoned professionals, streamers, and even a section at Beth Harmon from the recent famed Queen’s Gambit hit show. This book is not just for girls and women, however. Any chess player can learn from these games and discover female chess history, both from the famous players in the past right up to the present day. How have these games been selected? It is at this point I can mention the real reason - my UK Girls chess project called ‘She Plays To Win’ (SPTW). This group has officially been going since April 11 th 2020. I had the idea even a few years before, but I was not sure how it could be set up. The unfortunate events of worldwide lockdown provided the answer, as the switch to being online allowed me to offer zoom lessons for UK girls as well as weekly girls tournaments on the Lichess server. I do this for free and parents have never paid anything to get involved. Each week I cover a top female player and we analyse the game. Over the past year I have built up a large collection of games and tactics, which I felt could be published. It is the most up to date collection about women’s chess covering a variety of ages and levels. After nearly two years, I have nearly 500 girls across the UK signed up, and a further 200 girls in our new beginners programme. I hope this is just the beginning. After all, on our official website www.sheplaystowin.co.uk the tagline reads ‘Every Girl in the UK should play and learn chess - the educational benefits are huge’. I can announce that I personally will not take a penny from this book, as 10% of the proceeds from sales will go directly to the She Plays To Win charity in order to further the SPTW UK girls chess projects. So not only can you benefit a lot from this book personally, your purchase will benefit UK girls chess immensely. Lorin D’Costa   1 Auflage 2022 484 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Thinkers Publishing  

The World Championship match between Fischer and Spassky in Reykjavik 1972 was played at the height of the Cold War. The image of a lone American genius defeating the Soviet machine captivated a worldwide audience unlike anything else in chess history. Exactly fifty years later, Fischer – Spassky 1972 takes a fresh look at both the chess and the human aspects of this monumental match. Bobby Fischer is one of the greatest chess players of all time. His astonishing journey up to the 1972 match was documented in The Road to Reykjavik. In this volume, award-winning author Tibor Karolyi completes his study of Fischer’s career with in-depth analysis of the legendary Reykjavik match and the controversial Fischer – Spassky 1992 rematch. International Master Tibor Karolyi is a renowned author and trainer from Hungary. His biographical works for Quality Chess have received glowing praise from readers and reviewers.   520 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Quality Chess  

Warning: this book is not just entertainment. The author wants to teach you a lot about chess and improve the quality of your play!   He has selected 53 miniatures from throughout chess history – the earliest are from the 1850s, while the most recent are from grandmaster events just a few months ago! A miniature is a decisive game, won in 25 moves or fewer. Most of these 53 games feature brilliant tactics, attacks on the king, and even a few outrageous king-hunts. In many, the winner had to overcome cunning defensive ploys and inventive counterattacks.   But our aim in this book is not just to admire the players’ skill, but to learn how we can play like this in our own games. Chess coach Ataman is keenly focused on the instructive points, explaining which features of the position justified the attacks, and what prompted the critical decisions. Where analysis is given, it is restricted to what it would be realistic for a human to work out at the board.   But why are miniatures so instructive, especially for younger players? It’s because we get to see an idea or plan implemented successfully, in full. Once we understand what players are trying to achieve, we can then appreciate how to oppose these ideas, and the cut-and-thrust typical in modern grandmaster play will make a lot more sense.   Alper Efe Ataman is a FIDE Master from Turkey. He is a chess publisher, author and an experienced trainer, especially at the scholastic level.   “The author has dragged his net wide and re-discovered undiscovered gems like Freeman-Mednis, New York 1955, played when the future Grandmaster was still a teenager. Instructive Chess Miniatures is a book that will provide plenty of pleasure and instruction at a very reasonable price… recommended” – IM John Donaldson

This book is about co-author and international master Michael Basman, who has been an avant-garde strategist on the chessboard from his early days as a tournament player and who has collected his share of ridicule and scorn throughout the years. But he has been fairly successful, so we can ask ourselves who has been right, the master or his critics. Former world champion Mikhail Botvinnik saw through the facade of experimental play and named Basman a creative and talented player. But even on the British player´s home turf, there was often sharp rejection of his way of playing chess. Interesting wins were more than once described as lucky, and losses as the natural consequence of sins against chess. Even in the late 1970s, when Mike Basman was a household name in British chess, British Chess Magazine was still writing he was "handicapping" himself by his unfortunate opening choices. An interesting exception to this trend was grandmaster Raymond Keene, who back in 1982 wrote an extensive article on Basman's games from the Benedictine Masters in Manchester. He praised the strategical ideas but criticized the implementation. And he finished his article with an example of how these ideas could have found a place in one´s own strategic Arsenal. 304 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Thinkers Publishing

The 1995 World Chess Championship Match - The 1995 World Chess Championship Match Anand - Kasparov 129 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Hypermodern Press

Grandmaster Invitational Chess Tournament 147 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Hypermodern Press

Preface I am happy to present the third volume of my collection Chess Calculation Training! After looking into middlegames in volume one and endgames in volume two, we encounter a new subject – legendary games. This book is a mixture of all kinds of exercises, but with one thing in common – all the games were played before the year 2000, except for a few by two big names, Kasparov and Karpov. There are several objectives to this book, besides the obvious calculation training. The age of the games brings in a cultural element and some positions of a whole different kind, since chess was very different a few decades ago in the pre-computer era. Going through thousands of games I found many exceptional positions that have been ignored by previous books and articles, as engines were too weak at the time, and analysis too superficial, to appreciate the depth of some combinations or some moves that had been missed. In this book you will come across many of these examples as well as a few famous positions that you may already have seen – just for the record! In the fifteen chapters and 480 exercises in this book, we will encounter many subjects, for example attack, defence, surprises and hidden moves, while some chapters will be especially dedicated to four great players – Kasparov, Karpov, Fischer and Kramnik – in order to learn about their styles. The last two chapters are also of a very special kind, ‘Extraordinary Wins’, where you will see moves of the kind you won’t meet very often in life, and ‘Special Section’, with exercises requiring special instructions. Many surprises await you throughout this book. Enjoy!   270 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Thinkers Publishing

Detailed analysis of games with experts’ observations Selection of best games by Carlsen and Nepomniachtchi with instructive annotations Short history of World Chess Championship Pre-match predictions and post-match reflections   248 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Chess Informant

Giri: After Magnus   Who can dethrone the World Chess Champion?   Twenty more years?   Magnus Carlsen has said that he may stay at the top for another 20 years. And who can argue with the World Champion? Hes been dominating top-level chess with an iron fist and has rightly highlighted the lack of consistency from his potential rivals.   When Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov and Magnus Carlsen burst onto the chess scene, there was no doubt whatsoever about their future destiny: sooner or later they were going to become World Champion. How different is the situation today, when there seems to be no such player.   New In Chess contributing editor Anish Giri presents ten chess players that may challenge Carlsens hegemony in the years ahead. Or may not. Giri not only shares his insiders knowledge about his colleagues in his lucid and witty notes to their games, he also provides the reader with valuable lessons in all phases of the game.   Anish Giri (1994) became a Grandmaster at the age of 14.   85 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag New In Chess

Enter the world of chess miniatures where games are decided in 20 moves or less! Marvelous Modern Miniatures features the largest collection of miniatures chess games played in the last half-century. Over 500 pages of cut and thrust!   Although every player is rated at least 2100, the overwhelming majority are strong masters or grandmasters. You will follow them as they do battle with tactical fireworks raging around them. The surprising depth of the annotations (each one of the 2,020 games has meaningful comments) turns this book into a virtual course on tactics. Looking for traps and pitfalls in your favorite openings? You’ll probably find them here. Marvelous Modern Miniatures will improve your tactical skills and alertness and sharpen your opening play. As a bonus, the entire collection is immensely enjoyable! 520 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Russell

The Ukrainian chess community is helping Ukraine in the war against Russia. The chess genius Vasyl Ivanchuk is giving online simuls to raise funds. European champion and Olympic gold medal winner Natalia Zhukova is working as a politician in Odessa. And FIDE World Champion Ruslan Ponomariov coordinated this wonderful collection of chess games from Ukrainian players, published by New In Chess. All games were nominated and annotated by the players themselves. The proceeds of this book will support Ukrainian charities. The book also covers the three legendary Olympic victories by Ukraine, in 2004 and 2010 for the men’s team and 2006 for the women’s team. Oleg Romanishin remembers his training match against Mikhail Tal. And Jan Timman has a look at his favourite Ukrainian study composers. With contributions by Vasyl Ivanchuk, Ruslan Ponomariov, Anna and Mariya Muzychuk, Anton Korobov, Vladimir Tukmakov, Pavel Eljanov, Andrei Volokitin, and many, many others. 207 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag New In Chess

Karolyi & Aplin: Genius in the Background   Genius in the Background introduces brilliant chess that will be unfamiliar to even well-read chessplayers. Twelve chess stars are profiled with examples of their greatest achievements, but these stars are not famous – they are geniuses who stay in the background. For example, Pervakov and Afek are not household names but they compose chess studies and puzzles of such elegance and cleverness that they deserve to be famous. Top players such as Garry Kasparov and Veselin Topalov may be famous names to chess fans, but they did not become World Champions without great help – two of their coaches are profiled in this book and provide insights into the education of a chess champion. A broad range of chess is covered by the twelve profiles – from openings to endgames, puzzles to training. The common thread is beauty and brilliance that deserves to be better known.   Tibor Karolyi is an International Master of chess from Budapest, Hungary. He was Hungarian Chess Champion in 1984 and is also an award-winning author and renowned chess coach. One of his previous books won the Guardian’s chess Book of the Year prize in 2007. Karolyi coached Peter Leko, a former World Championship challenger, during Leko’s teenage years when in the space of four years Leko improved from promising junior to grandmaster.   Nick Aplin is a university professor and respected chess author from Singapore.   382 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Quality Chess

Robert James Fischer is one of the greatest and most celebrated players in chess history. Exactly fifty years since the American won the right to challenge Boris Spassky for the World Championship crown, Tibor Karolyi documents Fischer’s unique journey from precocious youngster to the chess icon who obliterated Taimanov and Larsen before convincingly beating Petrosian on The Road to Reykjavik. The second volume, Fischer – Spassky 1972, is devoted to the Reykjavik match which captivated the entire world. International Master Tibor Karolyi is a former Hungarian Champion who is renowned as both an author and a trainer. His previous biographical works for Quality Chess received glowing praise from chess readers and reviewers. 432 Seiten, gebunden, Verlag Quality Chess

A Memoir of Players, Games and Engines Larry Kaufman can safely be called an exceptional chess grandmaster Larry Kaufman started out as a prodigy, however not in chess but as a whizz kid in science and math. He excels at shogi (Japanese chess) and Go, and is also a world-famous computer programmer and a highly successful option trader. Remarkably, as a chess player he only peaked at the weirdly late age of fifty. Yet his victories in the chess arena are considerable. Over a career span of nearly sixty years Kaufman won the state championships of Massachusetts, Maryland, Florida, Virginia, D.C. and Pennsylvania. He was an American Open Champion and won the U.S. Senior Championship as well as the World Senior Championship. ‘Never a great chess player’ himself (his words), he met or played chess greats such as Bobby Fischer, Bent Larsen, Walter Browne, Boris Spassky, Viktor Kortchnoi and many others. He worked as a second to legendary grandmaster Roman Dzindzichashvili, and coached three talented youngsters to become International Master, one of them his son Raymond. This engrossing memoir is rife with stories and anecdotes about dozens of famous and not-so-famous chess players. In one of the most remarkable chapters Larry Kaufman reveals that the American woman chess player that inspired Walter Tevis to create the Beth Harmon character of Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit fame, is his former girlfriend. You will learn about neural networks, material values and how being a chess master helps when trading options. And find lots of memorable but little-known annotated games. Larry Kaufman is an American Grandmaster. He has been involved in computer chess since 1967, when he worked on ‘MacHack’, the first computer that competed in tournaments with human players. More recently he has been working on the programs Rybka and Komodo. 224 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag New in Chess

Magnus Carlsen is the greatest chess player of the 21st century. His tactical wizardry, strategic inventiveness, technical expertise and legendary fighting spirit put him head and shoulders above all other players. They also make his games tremendously instructive. To extract the best lessons from this amazing source material, Gambit has commissioned Martyn Kravtsiv, a Ukrainian grandmaster from the same generation as Carlsen (in fact, they were born just a few days apart). He has annotated these 42 games from a thoroughly modern perspective and with an innate understanding of the impact Carlsen’s play has had on modern chess. In each game Kravtsiv picks out a key point – the Magnus Moment – where Carlsen demonstrates the special insight that sets him apart from other players. Perhaps he clarifies a messy situation, confident in his technical ability. Or sacrifices to gain practical chances in a game that has not gone to plan. Throughout, the emphasis is on how Carlsen makes life hard for his opponents in any way he can, whatever the objective assessment of the position on the board. Each game is a themed lesson on an important chess topic. The bulk of the book addresses the fight for advantage and initiative in the middlegame, but there are also chapters focusing on opening ideas, endgame play and human factors. Martyn Kravtsiv is a grandmaster from Lviv, Ukraine. His tournament results include tied first places at Cappelle in 2012 and the 2015 Ukrainian Championship. He represented his country at the 2017 World Team Championship and was a coach for the team that won silver medals at the 2016 Olympiad. 176 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Gambit

A winning streak in chess, says Cyrus Lakdawala, is a lot more than just the sum of its games. In this book he examines what it means when everything clicks, when champions become unstoppable and demolish opponents. What does it mean to be ‘in the zone’? What causes these sweeps, what sparks them and what keeps them going? And why did they come to an end? Lakdawala takes you on a trip through chess history looking at peak performances of some of the greatest players who ever lived: Morphy, Steinitz, Pillsbury, Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, Botvinnik, Fischer, Tal, Kasparov, Karpov, Caruana and Carlsen. They all had very different playing styles, yet at a certain point in their rich careers they all entered the zone and simply wiped out the best players in the world. In the Zone explains the games of the greatest players during their greatest triumphs. As you study and enjoy these immortal performances you will improve your ability to overpower your opponents. You will understand how great moves originate and you will be inspired to become more productive and creative. In the Zone may bring you closer to that special place yourself: the zone. Cyrus Lakdawala is an International Master and a former American Open Champion. He has been teaching chess for four decades and is a prolific and widely read author. His Chess for Hawks won the Best Instructional Book Award of the Chess Journalists of America (CJA). Other much acclaimed books of his are How Ulf Beats Black, Clinch It! and Winning Ugly in Chess. 400 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag New In Chess

CHESS INFORMANT proudly presents the book about the most famous team match in history of our royal game:     2 outstanding teams 20 best chess-players in the World 4 rounds of epic battle 40 thrilling, hard-fought games   The match between the USSR and the Rest of the World was an epoch-defining event that featured many of the greatest names in the history of chess. Five World Champions, and all of the world’s highest-rated players – without exception – took part. Not for nothing was it billed as the “Match of the Century”.   On the 50th anniversary of that great event in the Serbian capital, we invite the reader to take a step back to those years and to re-live the match as it was experienced at the time, in the words of its participants and some of the leading journalists of the day... This edition is revised, extended, and compiled by Douglas Griffin, chess historian and connoisseur and Igor Žveglić, Chess Informant commissioning editor. 260 Seiten, gebunden, Verlag Chess Informant