This exercise book is the result of many years of work as a chess coach. The positions are drawn from original training materials developed for my private students, giving me valuable insight into the ideas players typically consider and the difficulties they most often encounter. This practical experience is reflected throughout the explanations and solutions.
The book is designed to help advanced players improve both their calculation skills and their strategic understanding. Beyond solving individual positions, readers are encouraged to extract broader lessons and improve their overall thinking process. While the exercises cover a wide range of themes, one principle appears again and again: in chess, active and energetic play is often rewarded above all else.
The book is essential reading for every ambitious chess player.
An effective approach to opening improvement should focus on understanding the logic behind each move, the relationship between moves, and the ability to adapt to different setups without becoming trapped in a theoretical straitjacket. There is little value in memorizing twenty moves of theory if, once your preparation ends, you are left without a clear plan.
Real improvement comes from recognizing strategic patterns, mastering typical pawn structures, and understanding the middlegame positions that arise from your chosen openings. This means studying model games, analyzing key transitions from opening to middlegame, and developing training habits that prioritize understanding over the mere accumulation of variations.
Only through such an approach can you build a reliable opening repertoire—one founded not on the fragile thread of memory, but on the enduring strength of genuine chess understanding.
Yet, when working on our openings, how often do we stop to consider the sustainability of our progress? How frequently do we think about the transfer of knowledge between different phases of study, the practical integration of computer-assisted analysis, or the simple reality that chess learning remains a fundamentally human process, regardless of how many databases, engines, and training modules continue to emerge?
This book seeks to answer those questions. Its goal is not merely to help you learn openings, but to help you understand them, retain them, and apply them successfully in practical play.
6 SE!ZE the Moment
8 NIC’s Café
A treasure from the BBC Archive, Bodhana Sivanandan’s WGM title, the return of John Healy and more.
14 A new FIDE President
Timur Turlov was elected in the second voting round, as the 38-year-old multibillionaire from Kazakhstan defeated Wadim Rosenstein, a multimillionaire from Germany, 110-85.
18 Interview: Timur Turlov
The new FIDE President wants to take chess into the digital future with the help of global partnerships with big brands.
24 Uzbekistan superb in Samarkand
Seemingly unfazed by the pressure from the home crowd, Team Uzbekistan relied on friendship and an unshakable belief in their potential as they triumphed in the 46th Olympiad in Samarkand. On Board 1, a formidable Nodirbek Abdusattorov led the way, winning a gold medal with a 2869 performance.
33 Celeb 64
Nigerian-born British poet, .playwright, and novelist Sir Ben Okri.
78 China wins Women’s Olympiad
They didn’t bring World Champion Ju Wenjun or any former World Champions and they were only seeded fourth. And yet they won.
92 Uzbekistan’s next generation
As the Olympiad’s host, Uzbekistan was entitled to field more than one team. After 9 rounds, Uzbekistan 2 had the local fans in raptures as they sensationally occupied third place.
100 Is a racoon a he or a she?
Megan Moreland played 200 games on Chess.com, and found she was five times likelier to receive interaction from her opponents when she played as a woman than when she played as a man.
104 A hot summer
Boris Gelfand’s choice pick of fascinating recent games from around the world.
120 GCT is decided in St. Louis
The 2026 Grand Chess Tour came to a close with a month(!) of top-level chess in St. Louis.
136 Pawn sacrifices
Renier Castellanos looks at the strengths and risks of different kinds of pawn sacrifices.
143 The Killer Blow
145 Fair & Square
146 The Scoresheet
Salov-Ljubojevic, Buenos Aires 1994.
148 Unbelievable but true
Is it possible to find new approaches in an opening as old and venerable as the Spanish? Or a relevant new idea as early as move 4 in the Caro-Kann? You bet it is.
152 The Model Game
It’s always time for the Modern Defence.
156 Sadler on Books
Matthew Sadler happily gave himself over to another endgame binge.
162 Just Checking
Which three people would Denis Lazavik like to invite to dinner?
A Chess Olympiad to Remember!
The 02 2026 issue of CHESS INSIGHT takes readers to Samarkand, where the 46th Chess Olympiad produced dramatic encounters, historic achievements and unforgettable moments. With exclusive interviews, first-hand accounts and in-depth game analysis, we reveal the stories behind one of the year's most exciting chess events.
UZBEKISTAN STRIKES GOLD!
Playing on home soil, Uzbekistan claimed Olympic gold in spectacular fashion. Head coach Rustam Kasimdzhanov provides an extraordinary behind-the-scenes account of the team's triumph, taking readers through all eleven rounds. He reveals the critical moments, difficult decisions and psychological challenges that shaped their road to gold — including their only defeat, against Germany.
GERMANY'S BRONZE BREAKTHROUGH
For the first time in 26 years, Germany returned from a Chess Olympiad with a medal. Led by Vincent Keymer and featuring an outstanding performance by Frederik Svane, the German team defeated both Uzbekistan and the top-seeded United States on their way to bronze. Second Dmitrij Kollars and gold medalist in Board 3 Frederik Svane share their insights into this historic achievement, while Rasmus Svane's individual success and Germany's remarkable team spirit receive special attention.
THE RACE FOR GOLD – INDIA AND THE USA
What separated the medal winners from their closest rivals? In exclusive contributions, India's team captain Srinath Narayanan reflects on his team's silver-medal performance, while John Donaldson examines why the heavily favoured United States had to settle for fourth place. Their perspectives offer a fascinating look at preparation, expectations and the fine margins that decide chess at the highest level.
CHINA'S GOLDEN GIRLS
China emerged victorious in the Women's Olympiad, and team member Song Yuxin tells the story from the inside. She shares her experiences, the team's preparation and the decisive moments of their gold-medal campaign, accompanied by her own annotated games.
MORE THAN JUST MEDALS
The Olympiad also provided plenty of surprises and controversy. Thailand's Prin Laohawirapap, who defeated world-class star Arjun Erigaisi, answers our questionaire about his remarkable achievement. Georg Mohr offers a different perspective on the Olympiad through his experiences with the Guyana team, while we also examine Germany's disappointing performance in the women's competition.
Beyond the chessboard, Stefan Löffler investigates the dramatic FIDE presidential election in Samarkand, revealing the political struggles and competing interests behind the scenes.
As always, CHESS INSIGHT offers much more than tournament reporting: challenging tactical exercises, chess history, book reviews, and a selection of fascinating problems and endgame studies complete the issue.
A modern reappraisal of Bobby Fischer’s greatest games by US grandmaster Joel Benjamin. With engine-aided insight and personal perspective, this book highlights the clarity, technique, and huge impact of Fischer’s chess.
The games of the eleventh World Champion continue to fascinate chess fans. In Bobby Fischer’s Best Games, American grandmaster Joel Benjamin revisits his fellow countryman’s legacy with fresh eyes, modern engines, and a deeply personal perspective, as a chess Grandmaster launched by the Fischer chess boom in the 1970s.
Within the context of Fischer’s dramatic life, Benjamin focuses firmly on the chess. In this careful selection of 64 games, his analyses illuminate Fischer’s strategic clarity, technical mastery, and unique approach to decision-making. With today’s analytical tools, Benjamin reassesses famous fragments and sheds new light on Fischer’s play without losing sight of the Champion’s great artistry.
Organized chronologically, the book traces Bobby Fischer’s development from prodigy to World Champion. Benjamin gives special attention to Fischer’s openings, endgame play, and recurring strategic themes.
This book is a modern, thoughtful exploration of Fischer’s chess – respectful, honest, and deeply instructive.
At thirteen years of age Joel Benjamin broke Bobby Fischer's record as the youngest ever US master, and this was followed by countless tournament successes. He won the US Championship three times and was the chess consultant for IBM's Deep Blue computer, which made history by beating World Champion Garry Kasparov in an epic encounter.
“Compared with the other books in this series, substantially more space is given to the analysis of the opening problems that confront a player in a particular game. The first half of the book is altogether devoted to opening preparation (although, as you will see, not only to this), and also in the second half nearly every game is accompanied by detailed opening information.
The main attraction of chess is its thematic content. I hope that this book, like the preceding ones, will provide a guide for you through the rich and diverse world of chess ideas, will help you to perceive the depth and beauty of schemes generated at the board, in tournament or match play, to disclose the causes of mistakes and to be aware of the hidden forces that determine the plans of chess encounters. As a result you will significantly improve your understanding of chess, and your practical playing strength will rise.”
— MARK DVORETSKY
This third volume in Mark Dvoretsky’s course is devoted to questions of strategy, and is aimed at improving the reader’s positional understanding. The author also examines a number of positions that lie on the boundary between the middlegame and endgame.
As in the other books of the series, he uses examples from his own games and those of his pupils, together with original analyses of episodes from other player’s games.
The initial part of this book deals with combinations and tactical techniques, and suggests methods for developing a player’s calculating ability.
In the second part the author analyses a number of fascinating examples, in which he examines a wide variety of attacking and defensive means. Once again, the reader is encouraged to developing his understanding by tackling numerous tests. Join in and become one of Mark Dvoretsky’s pupils!
Mark Dvoretsky is regarded as the leading chess coach in the world, and in this series of books he reveals the training methods that have transformed so many of his pupils into champions.
This first title is devoted to the endgame and examines a wide range of positions, taken mainly from games of the author’s pupils. The comments are packed with practical advice and special test positions and frequent questions ensure that the reader’s participation in the book is an active one.
In SCHACH 11/2026 finden Sie Berichte über folgende Veranstaltungen/Themen:
* Schach in Samarkand
* FIDE-Wahl
* SCHACH-Fragen: Prin Laohawirapap
* Kombinationsschule, Probleme und Studien, Rezension, Schach-Geschichte
* Mitarbeiter dieser Ausgabe: Michael Busse, Prin Laohawirapap, Stefan Löffler, Georg Mohr, Franz Pachl, Michael Prusikin, Song Yuxin
IM Donaldson examines Fischers life and career from his days as a child prodigy through the height of his World Championship triumph and into his tumultuous final years. Donaldsons meticulous research has uncovered previously lost games and a wealth of unknown material about Fischer -- ranging from his close friendships with players and supporters to his acrimonious relationships with organisers, journalists, lawyers, and publishers. Bobby Fischer and His World is brought to life through a potpourri of first-hand accounts, interviews, letters, and articles by and about the colourful characters that inhabited Fischers world. Unifying this wide-ranging tale are over 100 photos and illustrations and 99 newly annotated games. This is the story of Fischer the man and the player, shedding new light on the riddle of the most famous chessplayer in history. International Master John Donaldson is a player, a chess journalist and historian, and a thirteen-time United States World Chess Olympiad coach (his 2016 team won gold).
Dear chess friends,
For 180 years, the German chess magazine “SCHACH” has been part of the chess world. Today, we are delighted to open a new chapter in its history: for the first time, our magazine is available in English. Named “CHESS INSIGHT”. The magazine is available in digital format only.
For us, this is much more than a translation. It is an invitation.
Chess has always crossed borders. Players from different countries, cultures and generations meet over the same 64 squares and share a language that needs no translation. With this English edition, we would like CHESS INSIGHT to cross another border as well – and make the journalism, analysis and stories that have made our magazine unique accessible to chess enthusiasts around the world.
Our ambition remains the same. We want to take our readers closer to the people and events that shape chess. You will find deeply annotated games, background stories, tournament reports and personal perspectives from grandmasters, coaches, journalists and other personalities from the chess world.
We believe that a chess magazine should offer something that goes beyond results and moves. In an age when games can be followed live from almost anywhere in the world, a magazine has to answer different questions: What happened behind the scenes? What were the players thinking? Why did a particular moment matter? And what can we learn from it?
That is what SCHACH has always tried to do.
We hope to welcome many new readers – and we would very much like to hear from you. Tell us what you enjoy, what you would like to see more of, and what SCHACH can become for an international audience.
Thank you for joining us at the beginning of this new chapter.
Welcome to CHESS INSIGHT. We are very happy to have you with us.
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