Battle on the Board: Chess during World War II provides insight into how a game modeled upon battle can provide a sense of home and community as well as demonstrating the dramatic changes the war brought to the game. Nb3 Qb6 18.Though chess is often perceived as a game of war, it also serves as a means of passing long hours or as an aid in recuperation for members of the military. f4! triggered the blitz fireworks in a fantastically complex endgame. Rc1, further solidifying his position.īut Short gave up a nearly five minute clock advantage before deciding on 24. The move left Kasparov stalled, head shaking in frustration as his clock fell below six minutes, and finally deciding on the innocuous 22.a5. cxd5 to repair his structure and temporarily hold black’s compensation attack at bay. Through a middlegame with variations plentiful and wild, Short held the material advantage extremely well, using the recapture at 21. His lash out with 13.h4.h5 helped to tear open white’s kingside protection, while his exchange sacrifice at 16.Rxc3 collapsed the center and ravaged white’s pawn structure. Sunday’s opening Rapid game was a nostalgic chess fan’s delight, as Kasparov with the black pieces defended in his trademark Najdorf Sicilian. “By the last game, I didn’t see anything at all. “I think I had chances in that first game - and then things started to go from bad to worse,” Short said. Garry with his long time friend Michael Khodarkovsky Ironically Sunday’s first game - the day’s only to feature a longer Rapid time control - was the only game to reach a fantastic race in time pressure, while the remaining four Blitz games featured lopsided crushes, each of them worse than the last. Indeed, at 52 years old on Sunday, Kasparov looked like the player of yesteryear, showcasing five games worth of devastating attacks that left the bout looking less like a mismatch, and more like he was simply running up the score.
So I did it in every game, and it worked.” “I felt like it was time to play as I had played 20 or 30 years ago: Just have fun - and attack, attack. “I feel great, and I have to confess: I’m also surprised,” Kasparov said of his toppling victory. Is this the face of a rusty, retired, old man? The brutal end of the lopsided 8.5-1.5 match, which featured him flagging for a loss on day one to raise concerns about rust collecting on the 13th World Champion of Chess, instead reminded everyone: Gold does not rust. 60 player - with a stunning 5-0 sweep of the afternoon. Though retired for a decade, the greatest chess player in history completely dismantled Short - still active, as the world’s No. And certainly, no doubt.Ĭonvincing enough on Saturday, emerging from the first day with a two-point lead, Kasparov reminded the world who he is on Sunday at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis. Though his appearance was brief, returning to the board for only two days and 10 games in his Battle of the Legends match against Nigel Short, while he was here Kasparov made certain to leave nothing on the table. The amazing studio where I had the pleasure of providing live commentary with GM Maurice AshleyĪnd just like that, Garry Kasparov has left the building. Young Martin here tries to solve a puzzle. Young players come into the Chess Club all the time. Outside, IM Malcolm Pein plays against the locals. The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis was bustling!
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