International Master

A chess problem, formally called a chess composition, is a puzzle set by somebody using chess pieces on a chess board, presenting the solver with a particular task to be achieved. For instance, a position might be given with the instruction that white is to move first, and checkmate black in two moves against any possible defense. A person who creates such problems is known as a "composer". There is a good deal of specialized jargon used in chess ...

Including:

• Chess problem - Types of problem
• Chess problem - Beauty in chess problems
• Chess problem - Example problem
• Chess problem - Abbreviations
• Chess problem - Tournaments
• Chess problem - Composition tournaments
• Chess problem - Solving tournaments
• Chess problem - Titles

Read more here: » Chess problem: Encyclopedia - Chess problem

This page explains commonly used terms in chess in alphabetical order. Some of these have their own pages, like fork and pin. For a list of unorthodox chess pieces, see fairy chess piece; for a list of terms specific to chess problems, see chess problem terminology. See also: Sample chess game Chess terminology - A. Active: Describes a piece that is able to move or control many squares. See also passive. Adjournment: Suspensi ...

Including:

• Chess terminology - A
• Chess terminology - B
• Chess terminology - C
• Chess terminology - D
• Chess terminology - E
• Chess terminology - F
• Chess terminology - G
• Chess terminology - H
• Chess terminology - I
• Chess terminology - J
• Chess terminology - K
• Chess terminology - L
• Chess terminology - M
• Chess terminology - N
• Chess terminology - O
• Chess terminology - P
• Chess terminology - Q
• Chess terminology - R
• Chess terminology - S
• Chess terminology - T
• Chess terminology - U
• Chess terminology - V
• Chess terminology - W
• Chess terminology - X
• Chess terminology - Z

Read more here: » Chess terminology: Encyclopedia - Chess terminology

A chess master is a chess player of such skill that he can nearly always beat players of the general strength found in chess clubs, who themselves typically can nearly always prevail against the level of play generally possessed by the average player in the general population. Among chess players, the term is often abbreviated to master, the meaning being clear from context. From the dawn of recorded chess, to the establishment of the first chess organizations, the term master was simply ...

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Robert James "Bobby" Fischer (born March 9, 1943) is a grandmaster and former world chess champion, who on September 1, 1972, became the first American chess player to win the FIDE World Chess Championship. In 1975, he officially lost the title when FIDE, the international chess federation, refused to accept his conditions for a title defense. Garry Kasparov wrote that of all world champions of chess, the skill gap between Fischer and his contemporaries was the largest in history ^Including:

• Bobby Fischer - Early years
• Bobby Fischer - Playing career before 1967
• Bobby Fischer - Religious beliefs about 1965
• Bobby Fischer - Contending for the World Championship 1969-1972
• Bobby Fischer - The Match of the Century
• Bobby Fischer - World Champion 1972-1975
• Bobby Fischer - Publicity of chess in the United States
• Bobby Fischer - Fischer - Karpov 1975
• Bobby Fischer - Disappearance and aftermath
• Bobby Fischer - Detention in 2004 and 2005
• Bobby Fischer - Icelandic citizenship
• Bobby Fischer - Chess innovations
• Bobby Fischer - Writings of Bobby Fischer

Read more here: » Bobby Fischer: Encyclopedia - Bobby Fischer

Master is a term that indicates a consummate level of skill, proficiency, superiority or power (mastery). The female equivalent (in limited use in modern times) is mistress. The term has a number of uses: Master (form of address). Master (Peerage of Scotland), the male heir-apparent or heir-presumptive to a title in the Peerage of Scotland. A term once used to describe the male head of a household or a male property owner in some contexts. Master's degree, a graduate degree in a sp ...

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Correspondence chess is chess played by various forms of long-distance correspondence, usually through a correspondence ches server, through e-mail or by the postal system; less common methods which have been employed include fax and homing pigeon. It is in contrast to over-the-board (OTB) chess, where the players sit at a chessboard at the same time (or perhaps play at the same time remotely). Correspondence chess allows people or clubs who geographically distant to play one another without meeting in person. The length ...

Including:

• Correspondence chess - Structure of correspondence chess
• Correspondence chess - Current branches of correspondence chess
• Correspondence chess - Official correspondence chess
• Correspondence chess - Casual correspondence chess
• Correspondence chess - Over the board players who also play correspondence chess
• Correspondence chess - ICCF World Champions
• Correspondence chess - Men
• Correspondence chess - Women

Read more here: » Correspondence chess: Encyclopedia - Correspondence chess

Viswanathan Anand (pronounced Vis'wah'nəh'thən Ah'nənd) (born December 11, 1969) is an Indian chess grandmaster. In the January 2006 FIDE Elo rating list, Anand has a rating of 2792, making him the number three in the world (after the retired Garry Kasparov and Veselin Topalov). Anand has been one of the strongest non-Soviet players since Bobby Fischer, along with the Hungarian Péter Lékó and the Bulgarian Topalov. Viswanathan Anand - Chess career. Anand's rise in the Indian chess world was meteoric. ...

Including:

• Viswanathan Anand - Chess career
• Viswanathan Anand - World Chess Champion
• Viswanathan Anand - World Rapid Chess Champion
• Viswanathan Anand - Chess titles
• Viswanathan Anand - Awards
• Viswanathan Anand - Sample game

Read more here: » Viswanathan Anand: Encyclopedia - Viswanathan Anand

The Rubinstein System (named after Akiba Rubinstein) is White's most common method of combating the Nimzo-Indian. White continues his development before committing to a definite plan of action. In reply, Black has three main moves to choose from: 4...0-0, 4...c5, and 4...b6. In addition, Black sometimes plays 4...d5 or 4...Nc6. 4...d5 can transpose to lines arising from 4...0-0, but White has the extra option of 5.a3 (known as the Botvinnik Variation). This forces Black to retreat the bishop to e7 or take on c3, which transpose ...

See also:

Nimzo-Indian Defence, Nimzo-Indian Defence - General Considerations, Nimzo-Indian Defence - Rubinstein System 4.e3, Nimzo-Indian Defence - 4...0-0, Nimzo-Indian Defence - 4...c5, Nimzo-Indian Defence - 4...b6, Nimzo-Indian Defence - Classical Variation or Capablanca Variation 4.Qc2, Nimzo-Indian Defence - Other variations, Nimzo-Indian Defence - ECO codes, Nimzo-Indian Defence - References/For Further Reading

Read more here: » Nimzo-Indian Defence: Encyclopedia II - Nimzo-Indian Defence - Rubinstein System 4.e3

Svetozar Gligorić was born in Belgrade to a poor family. According to his recollections, his first exposure to chess was as a small child watching patrons of a neighborhood bar play. He did not himself begin to play until the age of eleven, when he was taught by a boarder taken in by his mother (his father had died by this time). Lacking a chess set he made one for himself by carving pieces from corks from wine bottles — a story paralleling the formative years of his great contemp ...

See also:

Svetozar Gligorić, Svetozar Gligorić - Life, Svetozar Gligorić - Chess career, Svetozar Gligorić - Lifetime scores against world champions, Svetozar Gligorić - Gligorić's chess legacy, Svetozar Gligorić - Sample Game

Read more here: » Svetozar Gligorić: Encyclopedia II - Svetozar Gligorić - Life

In its early years, FIDE had little power. This was largely because the Soviet Union refused to join, as it saw chess and politics as being inextricably bound up, and FIDE was a non-political organisation. This changed, however, when incumbent world champion Alexander Alekhine died in 1946. FIDE stepped up to organise a tournament to find a replacement, and the Soviet Union, aware that this was a process it had to be involved with, joined. From that initial 1948 tournament (won by Mikhail Botvinnik) to 1993, FIDE was the only body org ...

See also:

Fédération Internationale des Échecs, Fédération Internationale des Échecs - History, Fédération Internationale des Échecs - FIDE Presidents, Fédération Internationale des Échecs - External link

Read more here: » Fédération Internationale des Échecs: Encyclopedia II - Fédération Internationale des Échecs - History

Carlsen lives in Lommedalen, Bærum, near Norway's capital, Oslo. He played his first tournament at the age of eight and was coached at the Norwegian Sports Gymnasium led by the country's top player, Grandmaster (GM) Simen Agdestein. Agdestein put his civil worker and master player Torbjørn Ringdahl-Hansen, currently a FIDE master with IM and GM norms, as his coach and they had one training session every week, together with one of Magnus' close friends. The young International Master was given a year off from elementary school to participat ...

See also:

Magnus Carlsen, Magnus Carlsen - Biography, Magnus Carlsen - Sample game

Read more here: » Magnus Carlsen: Encyclopedia II - Magnus Carlsen - Biography

ELO rating system - Game activity vs. protecting one's rating. In general the ELO system has increased the competitive climate for chess and aspired players for further study and improvement of their game. It has enabled fascinating insights into comparing the relative strength of players from completely different generations, such as the ability to compare Capablanca with Kasparov for example. However, in some cases ratings can discourage game activity for players who wish to "protect their rating". Examples: (1) They may choose th ...

See also:

ELO rating system, ELO rating system - A statistical system not a reward system, ELO rating system - Élő's rating system model, ELO rating system - Implementing Élő's scheme, ELO rating system - Comparative ratings, ELO rating system - Mathematical details, ELO rating system - Practical issues, ELO rating system - Game activity vs. protecting one's rating, ELO rating system - Chess engines, ELO rating system - Selective pairing, ELO rating system - Mathematical issues, ELO rating system - World Football ELO ratings

Read more here: » ELO rating system: Encyclopedia II - ELO rating system - Practical issues

Anand's rise in the Indian chess world was meteoric. National level success came early for him when he won the National Sub-Junior Chess Championship with a score of 9/9 in 1983 at the age of fourteen. He became the youngest Indian to win the International Master's Title at the age of fifteen, in 1984. At the age of sixteen he became the National Champion and won that title two more times. He played games at blitz speed, earning him the nickname "Lightning Kid" ("Blitz chess" is known in India as "Lightning chess"). In 1987, he became the first Indian to win the World Junior Chess Championship. In 1988, at the age ...

See also:

Viswanathan Anand, Viswanathan Anand - Chess career, Viswanathan Anand - World Chess Champion, Viswanathan Anand - World Rapid Chess Champion, Viswanathan Anand - Chess titles, Viswanathan Anand - Awards, Viswanathan Anand - Sample game

Read more here: » Viswanathan Anand: Encyclopedia II - Viswanathan Anand - Chess career

Lasker was deeply impressed by go. He first read about it in a magazine article by Korschelt which suggested go as a rival to chess, a claim which he found amusing. Later on his interest was piqued again when he noticed the record of a go game on the back of a Japanese newspaper being read by a customer of a cafe where they played chess. He and Max Lange took the paper after he had left, and deciphered the diagram, but the game was not complete. The position led them to assume that the notation under the game would indicate a black victory, ...

See also:

Edward Lasker, Edward Lasker - Background, Edward Lasker - Science career, Edward Lasker - Chess, Edward Lasker - Go, Edward Lasker - Books, Edward Lasker - Quotes

Read more here: » Edward Lasker: Encyclopedia II - Edward Lasker - Go

ELO rating system - Game activity vs. protecting one's rating. In general the ELO system has increased the competitive climate for chess and aspired players for further study and improvement of their game. It has enabled fascinating insights into comparing the relative strength of players from completely different generations, such as the ability to compare Capablanca with Kasparov for example. However, in some cases ratings can discourage game activity for players who wish to "protect their rating". Examples: (1) They may choose th ...

See also:

ELO rating system, ELO rating system - A statistical system not a reward system, ELO rating system - Élő's rating system model, ELO rating system - Implementing Élő's scheme, ELO rating system - Comparative ratings, ELO rating system - Mathematical details, ELO rating system - Practical issues, ELO rating system - Game activity vs. protecting one's rating, ELO rating system - Chess engines, ELO rating system - Selective pairing, ELO rating system - Mathematical issues, ELO rating system - See World Football ELO ratings

Read more here: » ELO rating system: Encyclopedia II - ELO rating system - Practical issues

The title "Grandmaster" was first formally conferred by Russian Tsar Nicholas II, who in 1914 awarded it to five players (Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, Tarrasch and Marshall), who were finalists of a tournament in Saint Petersburg which he had partially funded. The tournament was won by Lasker ahead of Capablanca. FIDE first awarded the International Grandmaster title in 1950 to 27 players. These players were Bernstein, Boleslavsky, Bondarevsky, Botvinnik, Bronstein, Duras, Euwe, Fine, Flohr, Grünfeld, Keres, Kostić, Kotov, Levenfish, Lilienthal, Maroczy, Mieses, Najdorf, Ragozin, Reshevsky ...

See also:

International Grandmaster, International Grandmaster - Origin and Current Statistics, International Grandmaster - Super-grandmaster, International Grandmaster - Title Inflation

Read more here: » International Grandmaster: Encyclopedia II - International Grandmaster - Origin and Current Statistics

There are various different types of chess problem: Directmates - white to move first and checkmate black within a specified number of moves against any defence. These are often referred to as "mate in n", where n is the number of moves within which mate must be delivered. In composing and solving competitions, directmates are further broken down into three classes: Two-movers - white to move and checkmate black in two moves against any defence Three-movers - white to move and checkmate black in no more ...

See also:

Chess problem, Chess problem - Types of problem, Chess problem - Beauty in chess problems, Chess problem - Example problem, Chess problem - Abbreviations, Chess problem - Tournaments, Chess problem - Composition tournaments, Chess problem - Solving tournaments, Chess problem - Titles

Read more here: » Chess problem: Encyclopedia II - Chess problem - Types of problem

There are two main branches of correspondence chess emerging in the chess world today, differentiated primarily by the involvement of an official regulatory body. The two distinct branches of correspondence chess are the following :- Correspondence chess - Official correspondence chess. Official correspondence chess is correspondence chess played under the auspices of an officlal regulatory body, such as the International Correspondence Chess Federation (ICCF), which is affiliated with FIDE, the inter ...

See also:

Correspondence chess, Correspondence chess - Structure of correspondence chess, Correspondence chess - Current branches of correspondence chess, Correspondence chess - Official correspondence chess, Correspondence chess - Casual correspondence chess, Correspondence chess - Over the board players who also play correspondence chess, Correspondence chess - ICCF World Champions, Correspondence chess - Men, Correspondence chess - Women

Read more here: » Correspondence chess: Encyclopedia II - Correspondence chess - Current branches of correspondence chess

The outcome of the Match of the Century cemented two milestones in Fischer's career--the ambition of being the World Chess Champion, and being the highest rated player ever according to the Elo rating system (a rating of 2780 after the Spassky match, although he had been as high as 2785 in 1971). The win over Spassky was also considered something of a Cold War propaganda victory for the United States, confirming as it did that the strongest player in the world, in a sport dominated by the Soviets since World War II, was now an iconoclastic American who defeated the ...

See also:

Bobby Fischer, Bobby Fischer - Early years, Bobby Fischer - Playing career before 1967, Bobby Fischer - Religious beliefs about 1965, Bobby Fischer - Contending for the World Championship 1969-1972, Bobby Fischer - The Match of the Century, Bobby Fischer - World Champion 1972-1975, Bobby Fischer - Publicity of chess in the United States, Bobby Fischer - Fischer - Karpov 1975, Bobby Fischer - Disappearance and aftermath, Bobby Fischer - Detention in 2004 and 2005, Bobby Fischer - Icelandic citizenship, Bobby Fischer - Chess innovations, Bobby Fischer - Writings of Bobby Fischer

Read more here: » Bobby Fischer: Encyclopedia II - Bobby Fischer - World Champion 1972-1975

The phrase "ELO rating" is often used to mean a player's chess rating as calculated by FIDE. However, this usage is confusing and often misleading, because Élő's general ideas have been adopted by many different organizations, including the USCF (before FIDE), the Internet Chess Club (ICC), Yahoo! Games, and the now defunct Professional Chess Association (PCA). Each organization has a unique implementation, and none of them precisely follows Élő's original suggestions. It would be more accurate to refer to all of the above ratings a ...

See also:

ELO rating system, ELO rating system - A statistical system not a reward system, ELO rating system - Élő's rating system model, ELO rating system - Implementing Élő's scheme, ELO rating system - Comparative ratings, ELO rating system - Mathematical details, ELO rating system - Practical issues, ELO rating system - Game activity vs. protecting one's rating, ELO rating system - Chess engines, ELO rating system - Selective pairing, ELO rating system - Mathematical issues, ELO rating system - World Football ELO ratings

Read more here: » ELO rating system: Encyclopedia II - ELO rating system - Comparative ratings