Chess Femme News

Unless otherwise noted, information from The Week in Chess.

Judit Polgar sighting!  She surprised me by coming out of retirement to play in this event.  She cut her eye teeth playing rapid and blitz chess, as did 12th Women's World Chess Champion GM Alexandra Kosteniuk, who also played in this event.  It was evident Polgar was rusty.

Geneva Chess Masters 2013 (Geneva SUI) Mon 24th Jun 2013 - Sun 30th Jun 2013 -Official Site - Live

Geneva Masters GpA (4 players 3 Rds DRR Indiv TC:25m+10spm) - Games in PGN: GpA Games

Geneva Masters GpB (4 players 3 Rds DRR Indiv TC:25m+10spm) - Games in PGN: GpB Games

Geneva Masters KO (4 players 2 Rds KO Indiv TC:25m+10spm) - Games in PGN: KO Games

Geneva Open A 2013 (43 players 9 Rds Swiss Indiv ) - Games in PGN: Open A

Geneva Masters GpA Geneva SUI Mon 24th Jun 2013 - Sun 30th Jun 2013 Leading Final Round 3 Standings:
Rk	Name	Rtg	1	2	3	4	Pts	TB1
1	Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar	2753	*	1	1	1	3	8
2	Kramnik, Vladimir	2803	0	*	1	1	2	5
2	Pelletier, Yannick	2574	0	0	*	1	1	4
4	Polgar, Judit	2696	0	0	0	*	0	1
4 players Geneva Masters GpB Geneva SUI Mon 24th Jun 2013 - Sun 30th Jun 2013 Leading Final Round 3 Standings: Rk Name Rtg 1 2 3 4 Pts TB1 1 Nakamura, Hikaru 2784 * 1 1 1 3 8 2 Bacrot, Etienne 2725 0 * 1 1 2 6 3 Kosteniuk, Alexandra 2489 0 0 * 1 1 3 4 Edouard, Romain 2666 0 0 0 * 0 1 4 players  In the Open, two chess femmes finished in the top 10: Geneva Open A 2013 Geneva SUI Mon 24th Jun 2013 - Sun 30th Jun 2013 Leading Final Round 9 Standings: Rk Name Ti FED Rtg Pts TB1 TB2 TB3 1 Cornette Matthieu GM FRA 2578 8.0 42.0 55.5 2724 2 Bauer Christian GM FRA 2637 8.0 39.0 54.5 2730 3 Hambleton Aman IM CAN 2461 6.5 35.0 53.5 2455 4 Cherniaev Alexander GM RUS 2447 6.0 33.5 51.5 2427 5 Manea Alexandru IM ROU 2389 6.0 30.0 48.5 2423 6 Mamedjarova Turkan WGM AZE 2249 6.0 29.0 49.0 2339 7 Le Roux Jean-Pierre GM FRA 2576 5.5 33.0 55.5 2468 8 Bondar Yevgen SUI 2307 5.5 31.0 53.0 2417 9 Mamedjarova Zeinab WGM AZE 2264 5.5 30.0 51.5 2340

WGM Deysi Cori and her brother both played in the 21st Montacado Open (101 players):

21st Montcada Open Montcada i Reixac ESP Tue 25th Jun 2013 - Wed 3rd Jul 2013 Leading Final Round 9 Standings:
Rk	Name	Ti	FED	Rtg	Pts	TB1	TB2	TB3
1	Flores Rios Mauricio	GM	CHI	2492	7.5	40.5	0.0	40.0
2	Cabrera Alexis	GM	ESP	2525	7.0	36.5	0.0	37.0
3	Cori Jorge	GM	PER	2549	7.0	35.5	0.0	38.5
4	Gleizerov Evgeny	GM	RUS	2553	7.0	34.0	0.0	35.5
5	Burmakin Vladimir	GM	RUS	2575	6.5	36.0	0.0	42.0
6	Nisipeanu Liviu-Dieter	GM	ROU	2667	6.5	34.0	0.0	39.5
7	Cuartas Jaime Alexander	GM	COL	2484	6.5	33.5	0.0	37.0
8	Guerra Mendez Jose Angel	IM	CUB	2505	6.5	30.5	0.0	34.0
9	Saptarshi Roy	IM	IND	2447	6.5	29.0	0.0	34.5
10	Ortiz Suarez Isan Reynaldo	GM	CUB	2612	6.0	35.0	0.0	42.5
11	Ulibin Mikhail	GM	RUS	2523	6.0	30.5	0.0	35.0
12	Fluvia Poyatos Jordi	IM	ESP	2445	6.0	29.0	0.0	33.0
13	Anurag Mhamal	FM	IND	2401	6.0	27.5	0.0	30.5
14	Cruz Cristhian	GM	PER	2499	5.5	31.5	0.0	36.5
15	Cori T. Deysi	WGM	PER	2437	5.5	31.0	0.0	36.0

If I were the organizers, I would consider coming up with a somewhat different name for this tournament (45 players).  Okay, it's probably just in American English that "Lazy" is lazy (meaning something similar to no-account slothfulness) - sorry, I couldn't resist!

9th Lazy Open 2013 Lazy POL Sat 29th Jun 2013 - Mon 8th Jul 2013 Leading Final Round 9 Standings:
Rk	Name	Ti	FED	Rtg	+	Pts	TB1	TB2
1	SHISHKIN, Vadim	GM	UKR	2502	4	6.5	39.50	50.00
2	WARAKOMSKI, Tomasz	IM	POL	2488	5	6.5	38.50	46.50
3	MAJDAN-GAJEWSKA, Joanna	WGM	POL	2375	5	6.5	36.00	46.00
4	SIECIECHOWICZ, Marcin	IM	POL	2462	3	6.0	40.00	50.00
5	WEICHHOLD, Pawel	k+	POL	2382	5	6.0	39.00	49.50
6	URBAN, Klaudiusz	IM	POL	2462	4	6.0	39.00	48.50
7	ALIAVDIN, Nikolai	IM	BLR	2349	4	6.0	35.50	45.00
8	KANAREK, Marcel	IM	POL	2478	4	6.0	35.00	43.00
9	BUGALSKI, Michal	k	POL	2161	5	5.5	36.50	45.50
10	EGGINK, Ryszard	I++	POL	2121	5	5.5	35.50	46.00

WGM Joanna Majdan-Gajewska -- I'm not familiar with her but she finished plus 5 and in 3rd place overall.  Now if I could ever achieve a result like this I'd next run for President of the United States.  Holy Hathor! 


The top finishing female in the 41st World Open  took place 29th June to 7th July 2013) was IM Irina Krush. There was a 10 way tie on 6/9. Varuzhan Akobian drew with black in an Armageddon game vs Yuniesky Quesada to win the event. (113 players)

41st Annual World Op Arlington USA Sat 29th Jun 2013 - Sun 7th Jul 2013 Leading Final Round 9 Standings:
Rk	Name	Ti	Rtg	Pts
1	Akobian, Varuzhan	GM	2612	6
2	Yuniesky, Quesada	GM	2639	6
3	Bruzon Batista, Lazaro	GM	2689	6
3	Laznicka, Viktor	GM	2684	6
3	Negi, Parimarjan	GM	2634	6
3	Erenburg, Sergey	GM	2615	6
3	Gelashvili, Tamaz	GM	2572	6
3	Holt, Conrad	GM	2531	6
9	Milov, Vadim	GM	2643	5.5
10	Shankland, Sam	GM	2601	5.5
11	Panchanathan, Magesh	GM	2583	5.5
12	Ramirez, Alejandro	GM	2583	5.5
13	Mikhalevski, Victo	GM	2552	5.5
14	Shulman, Yury	GM	2542	5.5
15	Arnold, Marc Tyler	GM	2525	5.5
16	Fishbein, Alexander	GM	2504	5.5
17	Robson, Ray	GM	2628	5
18	Kacheishvili, Giorgi	GM	2588	5
19	Izoria, Zviad	GM	2574	5
20	Shabalov, Alex	GM	2553	5
21	Lenderman, Aleksandr	GM	2548	5
22	Molner, Mackenzie S	IM	2501	5
23	Yang, Darwin	IM	2485	5
24	Krush, Irina	IM	2480	5
25	Vioreanu, Bogdan	IM	2404	5
26	Neimer, Vitaly	IM	2393	5
27	Harmon-Vellotti, Luke C	FM	2368	5

Chess Femme News!

(1) From The Huffington Post:

Phiona Mutesi, 17-Year-Old Ugandan Chess Player, Challenged By Bill Gates (VIDEO)

The Huffington Post By Krystie Yandoli Posted: 03/20/2013 10:47 am EDT | Updated: 03/20/2013 4:14 pm EDTMy Note: Comments to this article are interesting. A range of, er, diverse opinions, to say the least, har! Seriously, I find myself constantly flip-flopping on the issue of all-female events, which consistently have been relegated to "steerage class"(or worse) status in the chess world.  Sigh.   (2) From Chessbase.com:1st Chess and Science Festival for girls

21.3.2013 - Many parents still believe that science, business and mathematics are for men and their daughters should not compete in these areas. It’s sad, but it is true – girls are encouraged to go into music, art, teaching… and stay away from the areas currently dominated by men. Three-time US Women's Champion WGM Anjelina Belakovskaia wants to do something about this – with a Kickstarter project. (Will be held in Tucson, Arizona -- coincindence that Tucson is the home of 9 Queens???) 

My Note:  Monetary contributions are needed for this event planned for April 13, 2013.  While the initial goal of $1,000 has been reached, more contributions mean more funds for monetary prizes for players.  If you can help, no matter how small your contribution, please consider making a donation.  (3) Elizabeth Vicary Spiegel, the Quiet Chess HeroineOkay, that's my own made-up title for this article from English online newspaper, The Telegraph.  She is one of my chess heroines.  She is an ongoing miracle producer in a world that is far short of them, and she is doing it daily, teaching "her kids" how to play chess for all the right reasons.  Elizabeth Vicary (now Spiegel) won the very first Goddesschess prize offered at a U.S. Women's Chess Championship, in 2007.  I've followed her chess/teaching career ever since.  Here's the actual title and byline for the article:Mini masters: the hard-up Brooklyn school producing chess championsBy Celia Walden
7:00AM GMT 22 Mar 2013


Not sure if this means the women will be playing the country's version of "traditional chess" or - something else.  But interesting, nonetheless:

(4) Myanmar to hold traditional chess event in Yangon 
English.news.cn

2013-03-21 14:34:28

YANGON, March 21 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar will hold traditional chess women's singles tournament at Aung San Stadium this month, according to sports circle Thursday.

Jointly organized by Sports and Physical Education Department under the Ministry of Sports and Myanmar Chess Federation, the chess event is scheduled to take place from March 24 to 29.  Myanmar traditional chess event will be included in the 27th SEA Games to be hosted in Myanmar in 2013.


(5) Interesting turn of events on the March 18, 2013 broadcast of The Amazing Race.  In Vietnam, the detour challenge was -- play a game of Chinese chess on a giant board with live people representing the pieces, or go to a local open-air market and buy the exact ingredients for a traditional chicken dish.  Wonder how many will choose to play the chess game?  LOL! 

This week's Detour then asked teams to "Make a Move" (playing Chinese chess on a giant board with human players) or "Make a Meal" (grab two empty baskets and another two filled with live chickens, then head to a market and get ingredients for the traditional Vietnamese dish pho, picking up exact weights for the ingredients on the shopping list).

I did not watch this episode (I watch other programs on Sunday night) but judging by the comments following this article, there was a LOT of controversy about some events that occurred in the episode, including - according to the comments - some (or all?) of the Amazing Race contestants "praising"' the Communist Vietnamese government???  Well, that's sucky, for sure.  I wonder - how many of those irate posters will actually follow through and never watch CBS again?  Easier than peeing to say you're going to do this or that; it is another thing entirely to follow through and actually do the actions your big mouth said you were going to do...


(6) Dylan McClain presents an interesting perspective on the recently concluded FIDE Women's World Team Chess Championship, and had high praise for the performance of IM Irina Krush, current U.S. Women's Chess Champion:

Ukraine Wins Women’s Event Skipped by Many Big Names
By DYLAN LOEB McCLAIN Published: March 16, 2013  

Chess Femme News From Around the Web

At Chessbase, WGM Alina L'Ami writes about the IV Taca Cuca Tournament in Angola.

WCM Epah Tembo (ZAM 1909) -at time of
Alina's article, was in 3rd place after R5 with 3.5.

WGM L'Ami is a favorite around these parts since she came to play in the 2011 City of Montreal Open Chess Championships last September and took home the Women's title. 

Alina ventured forth to Angola with husband GM Erwin L'Ami and several European GMs as well as GMs from other countries, as well as female players from Africa and elsewhere.

It's not often (outside of Chess Olympiad events) that we get to see photographs of many continental-African based players.  This report has several photographs (a Chessbase trademark), including - of course - several photos of lovely ladies. 




Chessbase also has photographs of GM VladimirKramnik's cute little three year old daughter, Daria, who joined Daddy and GM Levon Aronian at a post-game post-mortem during their match at the Zurich Challenge (you can read the report here, I'm just interested in the pictures since this is a dudes-only match):

She's a future GM for sure, probably world champion in 2030.

Around the Blogosphere: Chess Femme News

Time to check the other chess blogs run by chess femmes and see what's up with them:

Susan Polgar

Interview with Judit Polgar
January 18, 2012
Thornhill Sisters are National Junior Chess Champions
January 18, 2012
GM Viktorija Cmilyte manages to draw a game in which she had 2 queens, hmmm...
Tata Steel Chess 2012 "En Passant" Round 4 Interview
January 18, 2012

Alexandra Kosteniuk's "Chess Blog"

The most exclusive chess pocket watch ever made!
January 16, 2012
I'm not sure what, precisely, a chess pocket watch is.  I mean, can one play chess on it?  It doesn't look like it -- so what, exactly, does it do that is "chess?"  In any event, there is a smoking hot photo of GM Alexandra Kosteniuk, who has done modelling for many years to supplement her chess earnings.  This photo is - well, see for yourself.
Girls just wanna play chess - two news reports about girls and chess
January 16, 2012

Alina L'Ami

Her husband, GM Erwin L'Ami, is playing at Wijk aan Zee (2012 Tata Steel) and she is there doing this, that and the other thing, including blogging at her blog and taking photos, etc. for (I presume) Chessbase reports.  She always has something entertaining to photograph or write.

Catch up on Jennifer Shahade.  She's been busy playing poker and doing her chess thing.  Naked Chess, anyone?  I'd be much more interested if the male players looks less like 13 year olds who can never get enough to eat and more like Chipendale hunks :)

Chess Femme News! Checking In on the Chess Femme Blogs

A trip around the internet, visiting some of my favorite chess blogs by chess femmes!

GM Alexandra Kosteniuk's chess blog:

October 4, 2011
Make a difference - you can contribute to Peace and Sport/Chess for Leadership and Creativity

October 4, 2011
GM Vassily Ivanchuk and his wife robbed at gun-point in Sao Paolo, just as they going to the airport to go to Bilbao, Spain, to finish the second half of the Grand Slam.  Mrs. Ivanchuk's passport was in one of the stolen suitcases.  Fortunately, neither GM nor Mrs. Ivanchuk were injured although, of course, both were quite shaken up by this horrible incident, just 20 yards from the hotel they had stayed in, in a "safe" area of Sao Paulo, Brazil.  Well, nowhere is safe, these days, is it? 

I can't help it - the first question that came to my mind was - who put those thieves up to this?  That GM Ivanchuk suffers from "nerves" is well-known for years.  Something like this could send him over the edge in the second half of the Grand Slam, and his wife has to travel back to their home country in order to get a new passport.  No one could possibly seriously believe that anyone would be carrying money in a suitcase - not these days!  So - what really was the goal of these thieves?  Just saying...

October 1, 2011
Strategic chess puzzle for chess-y weekend.
Video:  Chess Puzzle:  Kosteniuk v. Shen Yang (2008 Beijing).  Excellent! 

GM Susan Polgar's chess blog:

October 4, 2011
Inaugural Lecture at World Chess Hall of Fame

Dr. George Dean and GM Susan
Polgar at World Chess Hall of Fame,
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Dr. George Dean will give a lecture on his unparalleled collection of chess memorabilia.

“Chess Masterpieces: One Thousand Years of Extraordinary Chess Sets,” will explore the history and significance of Dr. Dean’s extensive collection.

For more than 50 years, Dr. Dean and his wife Vivian have traveled the world acquiring rare, beautiful and culturally significant chess sets, including those currently on view in the World Chess Hall of Fame’s second floor exhibition, Chess Masterpieces: Highlights from the Dr. George and Vivian Dean Collection.
October 3, 2011
Zambinian Teenager Shines at Botswana Invitational Ladies Section
Zambian chess whiz kid, 18-year-old Epah Tembo has won the Botswana International Invitation Ladies Section in style, after emerging unscathed after nine rounds, and sweeping aside a strong field of Botswana national team players.

October 2, 2011
Chess' Greatest Challenge: Girls
In the world of chess, boys are always in, but U.S. Chess Federation numbers confirm girls are out the minute they hit the teens.

IM Jen Shahade's blog (hint: she keeps her Facebook more current):

September 17, 2011
Autumn Means Running
Autumn invigorates me to a comical extent. I actually find myself spontaneously running in heels from place to place during this season. The energy was useful last week as I just got back from the opening of the fabulous new World Chess Hall of Fame in Saint Louis. I also hosted commentary for a special team event in honor of the opening, K v Q: A Battle of the Sexes.

WGM Natalia Pogonina's chess blog:

October 4, 2011
Avoiding Fatigue During Tournaments
We often hear or say ourselves that “I got tired, and my brain went dead”; “I was tired and blundered”, “I didn’t have enough energy left for the last few rounds”.

Liz Vicary's Blog:
No kidding, Liz Vicary is one of my favorite people.  She's so damn passionate and erudite, and she loves the kids she teaches 2000 percent!  She's also incredibly witty.

October 3, 2011
IS 218 Fund Raising Drive - Please Help! (Of course I will, and I hope YOU will too, readers.  Please please please, every dollar will help, and I know it will be used efficiently, not going to overhead and bureaucracy nonsense.)
Please help support IS 318's chess team. Our funding has been cut every year for several years now, and it's at the point that we have tomake really fundamental cuts. We won't be able to take many students to Nationals or go to many of the tournaments we regularly win/do well in (the Marshall, the NY State Championship, Girls Nationals, High School Nationals, Elementary Nationals).

87% of our students live below the poverty line, which is currrently $22,000 for a family of four. That's even harder to live on in New York City than in the rest of the country. The money you donate will give these kids enriching educational experiences they would not otherwise be able to afford. Because we bring so many kids to tournament and I work on salary, your donated dollar is spent extremely efficiently and goes really far.

Chess Femme News!

Pancevo WGM
September 10 - 18, 2011

Pancevo WGM Pancevo SRB Sat 10th Sep 2011 - Sun 18th Sep 2011 Leading Round 4 (of 10) Standings:
Rk	Name	Ti	FED	Rtg	Pts	TB1	TB2	TB3
1	Videnova Iva	WGM	BUL	2314	3.0	0.0	5.25	2
2	Vojinovic Jovana	WGM	MNE	2299	2.5	0.0	4.50	1
3	Stojanovic Andjelija	WGM	SRB	2300	2.0	0.0	3.75	0
4	Djukic Sandra	WIM	SRB	2212	1.5	1.0	2.50	0
5	Benderac Ana	WGM	SRB	2311	1.5	0.5	3.00	0
	Eric Jovana	WIM	SRB	2245	1.5	0.5	3.00	0

Maria Albulet Memorial
August 29 - September 6, 2011

Maria Albulet Mem Braila ROU Mon 29th Aug 2011 - Tue 6th Sep 2011 Leading Final Round 9 Standings:
Rk	Name	Ti	FED	Rtg	Pts	TB1	TB2	TB3
1	COSMA ELENA-LUMINITA	WGM	ROU	2325	7.0	0.0	30.50	2422
2	SANDU MIHAELA	WGM	ROU	2221	6.0	0.0	22.50	2338
3	BULMAGA IRINA	WIM	ROU	2293	5.5	0.0	20.50	2285
4	MAKROPOULOU MARINA	WGM	GRE	2282	5.0	0.5	22.00	2249
5	PETRENKO SVETLANA	WGM	MDA	2209	5.0	0.5	19.75	2258
6	FAKHIRIDOU EKATERINI	WIM	GRE	2183	4.5	0.5	17.00	2217
7	IONESCU IRINA	WGM	ROU	2245	4.5	0.5	15.25	2211
8	BOLLENGIER ANDREEA	WIM	FRA	2207	3.5	0.0	14.25	2135
9	ANUSCA MADALINA-MARIA	WNM	ROU	2076	2.0	1.0	7.00	2009
10	UTA ADELINE-RAMONA	WFM	ROU	2099	2.0	0.0	10.25	2007

Upcoming Women's Events

The remainder of 2011 is jam-packed with great women's chess events:

Panamerican Women's Championship, Guayaquil, Ecuador, 12 Jun 2011 - 18 Jun 2011
 1st Hangzhou Women International 2011, Hangzhou, China, 31 Jul 2011 - 11 Aug 2011
 World Junior Girls 2011, Chennai, India, 1 Aug 2011 - 16 Aug 2011
Women's FIDE Grand Prix Series Rostov, Russia 1-Aug-2011 15-Aug-2011

Women's FIDE Grand Prix Series Shenzhen, China 6-Sep-2011 20-Sep-2011
 European  Club Cup 2011 for Men and Women, Rogaska Slatina, Slovenia, 24 Sep 2011 - 2 Oct 2011
 Women's FIDE Grand Prix Series Nalchik, Russia 8-Oct-2011 23-Oct-2011
Women's World Championship Match 2011 10-Nov-2011 5-Dec-2011
Women's World Team Championship 2011 Mardin, Turkey 18-Dec-2011 28-Dec-2011

So, the Women's World Championship Match is on the calendar - but no city listed to host it.  Hmmmm.  The deadline for submitting bids is May 31, 2011 (in my time zone).  Will FIDE surprise us by announcing an accepted bid?

Some items of interest from the Official Regulations for the Match:

13. Prize Fund


13.1 The prize fund of the match, provided by the organizer, should be a minimum of 300,000 (three
hundred thousand) euros, net of any applicable local taxes. The prize fund will be divided 60% for the
winner and 40% to the loser if the FWWCM ends within the 10 regular games. In case the winner is decided by tie-break games, the winner shall receive 55% and the loser 45%.

13.2 The organizer shall pay to FIDE an amount of 20% over and above the total prize fund, net of any
applicable local taxes.

13.3 If the match is played in the country of one of the players, then the opponent shall receive 5%
from the Prize Fund. The balance of the Prize Fund shall then be shared in accordance to Article 13.1
above.

13.4 Before the start of the FWWCM, the players shall each receive 50,000 (fifty thousand) euros in
accordance to the terms of the contract to be signed with FIDE. This amount shall be deducted from the
Prize Fund. The balance of their share of the Prize Fund shall be remitted to the players within ten days
after the completion of the FWWCM.

14. Other expenses

14.1 The organizer shall pay to FIDE an additional 5% over and above the prize fund, net of any local
taxes, to receive the commercial rights (does not include live broadcast of the event or the games).

14.2 The organizer shall pay to FIDE an additional 15,000 (fifteen thousand) euros over and above the
prize fund, net of any applicable taxes, for the budget of the FIDE Commission for World Championships and Olympiads. This budget includes all expenses of FIDE concerning inspections,
meetings with the Organizer, stipend of FIDE Supervisor (where appointed), other meetings of the
WCOC, etc.

14.3 If required by FIDE, the organizer will provide an electronic device to block all mobile signals
around the playing area of the FWWCM. The total cost should be included in the budget of the
organizer and will not exceed the amount of 8,000 (eight thousand) euros.

14.4 If the FWWCM is played in the country of one of the players, the organizer shall provide an
amount of 3,000 euros to the opponent as compensation for transportation and hospitality for inspection
visits.

14.5 The stipends to be paid to the FIDE Principals of the FWWCM are (in euros):

Chairman of Appeals Committee: 7,500
Two members of Appeals Committee: 9,000 (4,500 euros each)
Chief Arbiter: 6,000
Deputy Arbiter: 4,000
Press Officer: 4,000
FIDE Medical Commission: 2,000

I come up with a "maximum" total of 415,500 Euros - net of taxes, which presumably the organizer(s) would have to pay out of their own pockets either directly to the taxing authorities, since turning the additional "tax money" over to the players would in no way guarantee that the funds would subsequently be used to pay the requisite taxes.  Hmmmm, wonder what the potential tax liability would be?  Another 100,000 Euros or so (using 20% as a tax rate)?  More? 

FIDE is nuts!

Catching Up/Chess Femme News!

It's been a hectic weekend.  I'm still working on the family tree I intend as a gift for a friend on November 17th - I keep running into new family members and have spent an inordinate amount of time running down dead-ends in an attempt to push branches of the tree back further in time.  Anyway, bear with me! 

I was outside most of yesterday when I wasn't working on the aforesaid family tree, cleaning up the mess that the Great Midwest Cyclone of 2010 left behind, plus putting the front lawn to sleep for the winter (although I need to do one final weed/feed).  Wouldn't you know it, just a few hours after I toiled to have a pristine lawn, leaf free, the winds picked up out of the northwest as a cold front blew through, plunging the temperatures below freezing overnight, and today there is a new crop of leaves all over my front yard.  Sigh.

Today I concentrated on cleaning up the disaster area that is my backyard, but first I had to cook because the ladies of the investment club had our meeting today and in honor of the Holiday Halloween I hosted breakfast.  I have to say it turned out well.  The breakfast casserole I made took longer to cook than anticipated because of the fresh mushrooms I included at the spur of the moment in the recipe (they added liquid that had to bake off), so while it was taking extra time to finish in the oven we feasted on toast, bacon, sausages, and fresh fruit along with fresh OJ and coffee.  Eventually the casserole was done and it was pronounced delicious.  Well, what can go wrong with eggs, bread, milk, cheese, mushrooms and red and green diced peppers?  The prep took longer than I thought it would (it always does) and I had to bake it longer than usual but, really, a very easy recipe.  As a special treat we had pumpkin pie with whipped cream.  Yum!  I think, however, the house is going to smell like maple bacon for the next week!

As you know, the SPICE Cup is currently happening at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.  Right now, the young GM Wesley So from the Philippines is in first place in the SPICE Cup A Group, with 7.0 points after 3 rounds (a win scores 3 points, a draw one point, and zero for a loss).  In the B Group, IM Irina Krush is trying for an elusive GM norm.  Currently, she is in shared 7-9th places with GM Ben Finegold and rising talent Darwin Yang with 1.0.  The SPICE Cup is being covered at several on-line chess news websites, including GM Susan Polgar's own blog (for most current reports), Chessdom, The Week in Chess, etc.

The Cap d'Agde Masters (Trophee) concluded today, won by GM Vassily Ivanchuk, who seems to just improve with age, like a fine wine :)  GM Judit Polgar was the only chess femme to survive the preliminary rounds and make it into the finals, but Ivanchuk defeated her in both of their games in the quarter-finals and she was out of the tournament.  Well, if she had to lose to anyone, I'm glad it was someone of Ivanchuk's calibre and character.  In the final round, Ivanchuk faced off against USA's own GM Hikaru Nakamura who is a wiz at this kind of speed chess, and Ivanchuk took the title convincingly.  Well done!  And kudos to Nakamura.  I would like to see him in more prestigious events like this one but, really, HN, please ditch the unshaved look.  It's just gross, yechy!  I particularly thought it well done of the organizers to bring in the highest rated female player in the world (Polgar) and other highly rated female players to add some spice and new blood to the event.  Thank you! 

The World  Youth Chess Championshps has also concluded, and the USA Team won three medals (boys won the medals).  Here are the results for the USA Team:

SNo		Name	Rtg	FED	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	Pts.	Rk.	Group
56		Kumar Aravind	0	USA	1	0	1	1	½	1	1	0	½	0	1	7,0	18	Open U08
62		Liang Awonder	0	USA	1	1	½	1	0	½	0	1	1	1	1	8,0	9	Open U08
87		Praveen Balakrishnan	0	USA	1	1	0	1	0	1	0	1	1	1	0	7,0	21	Open U08
104		Taghizadeh Rayan	0	USA	½	1	½	½	½	1	1	0	1	1	0	7,0	22	Open U08
1		Sevian Samuel	2105	USA	1	1	1	1	½	1	0	0	1	1	½	8,0	6	Open U10
16	FM	He Tommy O	1830	USA	1	0	1	1	1	1	1	0	1	0	0	7,0	15	Open U10
19		Xiong Jeffrey	1824	USA	1	1	1	½	0	1	1	1	1	1	½	9,0	2	Open U10
24		Panchanatham Vignesh	1803	USA	0	1	1	1	1	½	0	1	1	1	½	8,0	9	Open U10
43		Chiang Jonathan	1714	USA	½	1	0	1	½	1	0	1	0	1	½	6,5	37	Open U10
153		Wheeler Cameron	0	USA	1	1	1	½	1	½	0	1	1	1	0	8,0	5	Open U10
5		Troff Kayden W	2216	USA	1	1	1	1	½	1	1	1	0	1	½	9,0	2	Open U12
12		Williams Justus D	2155	USA	1	0	1	½	1	1	1	½	0	1	½	7,5	14	Open U12
14		Wu Christopher	2138	USA	0	1	1	½	0	1	1	½	0	0	0	5,0	88	Open U12
20		Colas Joshua	2068	USA	½	1	1	0	1	1	1	0	0	1	0	6,5	34	Open U12
24		Chandran Kapil	2058	USA	1	½	1	½	½	0	1	1	1	0	1	7,5	17	Open U12
31		Viswanadha Kesav	2017	USA	½	0	1	1	½	0	1	0	½	0	0	4,5	109	Open U12
79		Lin Dachey	1805	USA	0	1	0	0	1	0	1	1	½	½	½	5,5	86	Open U12
120		Beilin Allan	0	USA	0	½	½	½	½	½	½	½	½	½	½	5,0	104	Open U12
25		Adelberg David	2201	USA	1	½	1	0	1	1	½	0	0	½	0	5,5	58	Open U14
46		Shetty Atulya	2092	USA	1	1	0	0	½	1	½	1	0	0	0	5,0	72	Open U14
26	FM	Zierk Steven C	2391	USA	1	1	1	1	½	½	½	1	1	1	1	9,5	1	Open U18
58		Haskel Jeffrey	2229	USA	0	1	0	1	½	0	1	0	1	0	0	4,5	80	Open U18
4	WFM	Wang Annie	0	USA	1	1	1	0	½	1	½	1	1	0	½	7,5	6	Girls U08
34		Joanna Liu	0	USA	1	0	1	1	½	1	½	0	0	1	½	6,5	22	Girls U08
54		Nguyen Emily	0	USA	1	0	1	1	1	1	0	0	1	½	1	7,5	9	Girls U08
64		Ramesh Kaavya	0	USA	0	1	1	0	1	1	0	1	1	½	0	6,5	24	Girls U08
41		Devina Devagharan	0	USA	½	1	½	1	0	½	0	½	0	½	½	5,0	60	Girls U10
79		Palakollu Samritha	0	USA	1	1	1	½	0	0	½	½	1	0	0	5,5	46	Girls U10
90		Singh Reva	0	USA	1	0	1	0	1	1	½	0	0	0	1	5,5	48	Girls U10
107		Zlotchevsky Nicole	0	USA	1	0	1	½	½	0	1	½	1	0	1	6,5	30	Girls U10
29	WCM	Chiang Sarah	1864	USA	1	0	1	1	1	0	0	0	1	1	½	6,5	23	Girls U14
79	WCM	Munoz Claudia	0	USA	1	½	½	½	0	1	0	0	1	½	0	5,0	57	Girls U14
95		Regam Jessica	0	USA	½	1	0	1	0	1	½	0	½	0	0	4,5	71	Girls U14
46		Matlin Anna	1923	USA	1	0	1	0	1	0	½	1	½	0	1	6,0	35	Girls U16
37		Datta Anjali	2025	USA	0	1	½	0	½	0	½	½	1	1	0	5,0	48	Girls U18
9		Hua Margaret	1943	USA	1	1	0	1	½	½	1	1	0	½	1	7,5	10	Girls U12
59	WFM	Liao Simone	1673	USA	1	0	1	0	½	0	1	1	1	0	0	5,5	49	Girls U12
62		Oreshko Mariya	1651	USA	0	1	0	1	0	1	1	0	½	1	1	6,5	37	Girls U12
82		Dong Alice	0	USA	0	½	1	0	½	½	0	1	0	1	1	5,5	69	Girls U12
113		Virkud Apurva	0	USA	0	½	½	½	0	1	0	1	0	1	1	5,5	71	Girls U12

Wisconsin's Awonder Liang had a fine tournament (I think), finishing strong and moving up to 9th place from his start place of 62nd.  All of the boys in the U8 Open section had outstanding results.  USA took home two silver medals and one gold for the performance by FM Steven Zierk (9.5/11).

In the hotly-contested Girls U-18 Section, my girl Narmin Kazimova, who broke out strong, sustained the race all the way to the end, even with higher-rated Cori Deysi breathing down her neck around the final turn!  Azerbaijan is celebrating tonight for Narmin's victory!  Hooray!  I am so happy to see Narmin have what I hope is a sustained break-out performance, fulfilling the promise I saw in her a few years ago at the Women's European Chess Championship.

Here are the top final standings for the Girls U-18:

Final Ranking after 11 Rounds

Rk.			Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1
1		WIM	Kazimova Narmin Nizami	AZE	2260	9,0	22146
2		WGM	Cori T Deysi	PER	2368	9,0	21847
3		WIM	Hoang Thi Nhu Y	VIE	2214	8,0	22065
4		WIM	Havlikova Kristyna	CZE	2318	8,0	21629
5		CM	Bhakti Kulkarni	IND	2294	8,0	21544
6			Stetsko Lanita	BLR	2148	7,5	21908
7		WIM	Tsatsalashvili Keti	GEO	2266	7,5	21668
8		WIM	Vo Thi Kim Phung	VIE	2147	7,0	48,0
9			Rakhmangulova Anastasiya	UKR	2153	7,0	48,0
10		WFM	Kulon Klaudia	POL	2196	7,0	46,0
11		WFM	Hejazipour Mitra	IRI	2239	7,0	42,0
12		WFM	Efroimski Marsel	ISR	2244	7,0	42,0
13		WIM	Eric Jovana	SRB	2218	7,0	40,5

Exciting Developments in Goddesschess Sponsorships

Hola!

Yes, I know, I know, I haven't posted anything the last few days.  That's because I've been busy attending to Goddesschess business, darlings! 

We have truly been inspired by IM Irina Krush's battle in the recently concluded 2010 U.S. Chess Championship to score her second GM norm.  She was sooooooo close...and missed it by a half a point.  Argggghhhhhh!

Last year, Goddesschess was instrumental in obtaining the appearance of WGM Salome Melia of Georgia at the 2009 Montreal Open Chess Championships. Melia was the highest rated female player ever to appear at this venerable tournament and the first-ever WGM to appear.

Melia finished in second place overall and also won the title Woman Chess Champion of Montreal.  This year, because of her commitment to playing in the 2010 Chess Olympaid on the Georgian Women's Team, Melia cannot defend her Montreal Open title. 

I'm not at liberty to discuss particulars yet, but there have been some very promising developments in obtaining the appearance of at least one noted female chessplayer at the 2010 Montreal Open Chess Championships, which will be held in the spectacularly beautiful surroundings at the College Jean-de-Brebeuf in Montreal September 10-12, 2010.  Our very own man behind the cam/webmaster, Don McLean (not the "American Pie" dude), will once again be on-site to record his unique impressions of the tournament action. Stay tuned for further news -

Also in the works is a new Goddesschess prize format for the 2010 U.S. Women's Chess Championship.  We're very excited about this -

Also in the works is a new prize structure for the chess femmes who play in the Hales Corners Chess Challenge tournaments (two times a year, in the spring and in the fall), in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, hosted by my very own adopted chess club, the Southwest Chess Club.   We've funded prizes for the chess femmes since Hales Corners Chess Challenge VIII - next up is Challenge XIII!  A Goddess Lucky Number!!!  We are hoping that the new prize structure will award each chess femme who plays in the tournament, whether in the Open or Reserve, for her efforts.  This revamped prize structure is a direct result of talks with my fellow chess femmes, Isis and Michelle, during my mini-vacation in Las Vegas in April.  More later -

Also in the works - something we just dreamed up...

This is so trite, but really, stay tuned for further news!

Chess Femme News

Hola!

I apologize up front for any editing errors that are now appearing in this blog.  Since I "upgraded" to Windows Explorer 8 I have had nothing but fits trying to get this blog to work right.  It really really SUCKS.  I am seriously thinking about removing it and going with a different browser, but I'm not techy savvy to do that and so I may have to hire someone to do it.  Damn Damn Damn!  So if stuff looks screwed up it's not that I've had too much wine (because, after all, one can never have too much wine, just like one can never be too thin, have too much money, or too many jewels), it's attempting to edit on this @%*)! b.s. site with Explorer 8.

I'm just checking out various sources to see what is new. For those of you who don't have these links in your "Favorites" or "Bookmarks", I recommend adding Susan Polgar's chess news and information blog and Alexandra Kosteniuk's chess blog as general sources for chess news and chess femme news. I have not, alas, been able to update Goddesschess' Chess Femme News - just too much on the agenda the past several months. Now that things have settled down I will try and make a dent, but no promises. I seem to have come down with a bad case of redecorating fever, no doubt due to my recent go-round with trying to sell my home. I am now thinking about painting the entire downstairs (now that all of the painting and staining of trim is finally done after 19 years, I want to change it all!), adding crown moulding in the familiy room, and a tile backsplash underneath the kitchen cabinets... I also need a new stove and refrigerator, new flooring, new carpeting, new water-efficient toilets and new faucets and hardware in both bathrooms. New furnace, new roof, a totally new deck, and major regrading work done around the house. CHA CHING! as Isis says. Dream on, as Jan says...

That urge to try and improve my chessplaying skills has also resurfaced - it was temporarily buried underneath the need to clean out closets and scour mildew off window sills, among other things. Goddess, I HATE housework. I hate vacuuming, dusting, scrubbing toilets, doing laundry and - did I mention vacuuming? I'd much rather be losing game after chess game to Shira Evans. Why was I not born rich with tons of hired help to do all of that crappy housecleaning stuff for me? Sigh.

At Chessdom today I see they have a new interview with IM/WGM Elizabeth Paehtz of Germany (2484) and she had some interesting things to say, I found the interview too short. I suppose it is a good thing to always leave the audience wanting more :)

There are three other interviews with interesting chess femmes at Chessdom too that showed up on the Interview screen, all of which I may have furnished links to, but I'm lazy today and not going to hunt them down on this blog, so I'm reposting them just in case and also catching any new interviews:

GM Judit Polgar
GM Hou Yifan
IM/WGM Tania Sachdev

Chess is played 24/7 in a world that, at any given time, is never fully asleep. The Armenian Women's Chess Championship is taking place right now, with players whose names are unfamiliar to me. That was the case, basically, in the USA too, a few years ago, before major sponsorship of the Men's and Women's championship was underwritten by Eric Anderson (ended with the 2006 Championships) and, now, Rex Sinquefield (St. Louis). It is an unfortunate fact of chess economics that the best players will routinely skip national championships for more lucrative play in events elsewhere. But, at least at present in the USA, that has changed, and with large prize purses at stake in both the Women's and Men's National Championships, the best players in the country have been attracted to the tables in 2008 and 2009. Bigger and better is the word for 2010 and I, for one, cannot wait!

But back to the Armenian Women's Chess Championship - I found this article online posted January 29th, a brief review of Round 7 action. It seems the ladies are really beating up each other in this tournament, judging from the scores at the moment, as the top two women have only 4.5/7 each!

More chess news out of Armenia - a family affair:

Chess: Two brothers and their sister awarded IM title

One of the decisions made at the FIDE Presidential Board meeting in Bursa can be recorded in the Guinness Book of Records. Two brothers and their sister, Armenian chess players Gor, Gevorg and Tatevik Hairapetyans who live in Lipetsk, Russia, were awarded the title of International Master, Armenian Chess Federation reported.

Chess Femme News

Some chess news for Sunday evening. Susan Polgar's column at Lubbockonline.com Polgar: Checkmate in 60 seconds: Is traditional or rapid chess better? Lubbock Avalanche-Journal Sunday, November 22, 2009Story last updated at 11/22/2009 - 2:20 am Deysi Cori wins Girls' U-16 World Youth Chess Championship title, and her brother, Jorge Cori, wins the Boys' U-14 World Youth Chess Championship title. What a dynamic duo! It is a mistake to neglect the old masters By Errol Tiwari November 22, 2009 GM Alexandra Kosteniuk talks a little about her performance at the World Blitz Chess Championship, from which she and a number of other players travelled directly to the location of the 2009 World Cup. Kosteniuk defeated Magnus Carlsen in one of her blitz games :)) [Event "World Blitz Championship"] [Site "Moscow RUS"] [Date "2009.11.16"] [EventDate "2009.11.16"] [Round "4"] [Result "0-1"] [White "M Carlsen"] [Black "A Kosteniuk"] [ECO "C43"] [WhiteElo "2801"] [BlackElo "2517"] [PlyCount "86"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. d4 Nxe4 4. Bd3 d5 5. dxe5 Nc5 6. Be2 Be7 7. O-O O-O 8. Be3 Nc6 9. Nc3 Be6 10. Bb5 Nd7 11. Bf4 a6 12. Bxc6 bxc6 13. Nd4 Nb8 14. Qd3 Qd7 15. Qg3 Re8 16. Bh6 Bf8 17. Na4 Kh8 18. Be3 Qe7 19. f4 Bc8 20. Nb3 Nd7 21. Nac5 a5 22. a4 Ba6 23. Rfe1 Bc4 24. Nxd7 Qxd7 25. Nc5 Qf5 26. b3 Ba6 27. Qf2 Bc8 28. Bd4 h6 29. h3 Qg6 30. Kh2 Bf5 31. g4 Bxc5 32. Bxc5 Be4 33. f5 Qg5 34. Be3 Qe7 35. Bf4 Qb4 36. Re3 Qc5 37. Rc1 Rab8 38. h4 Rb4 39. f6 g6 40. c4 Reb8 41. Bxh6 Rxb3 42. Rce1 Rb2 43. R3e2 0-1 From The Week in Chess: The Russian Cup took place in St Peterburg 3rd-12th November 2009. The event was a 32 player knockout for men and 18 players for the women.Time control: 90 minutes + 30 seconds for all moves. ... The women's event was won by Tatiana Stepovaia who beat Irina Turova after a final blitz game. Official site: http://www.totalchess.spb.ru/ The official site does not feature an English translation and I don't have time to attempt a translation either by hand or by using Babelfish. Congratulations to Stepovaia.

A Litle Bit of Chess Femme News

The New York Times Leaving a Bank for a Foundation Proved Rewarding November 11, 2009 Why would investment banker Marley Kaplan, who was pulling down big bucks in the early 1990's, go to work for a mere $25,000 a year at a non-profit? Read about The American Chess Foundation - now known as Chess-in-the-Schools - and the volunteers and financial supporters who make it tick. Great article! The Brownsville Herald Local chess story seeks national audience November 7, 2009 A documentary about the chess triumphs of predominantly Latino students in Brownsville, Texas, is in the works, along with a feature film! Both sound like winners to me. Chesslife Online Abby Marshall Previews the World Youth By Abby Marshall November 11, 2009 Denker winner Marshall (first female to win the title, but not the last) is going for the Gold in her age group. I'm trying to picture a 7-year old chess femme she mentioned meeting who has a 1700 rating - and here I am, having played chess off and on for 40 years, puttering around in the unrated 800-900s! Truly scary stuff! Article from SouthCoastToday.com No board-om here; girls excel at playing chess By MOIRA E. MCLAUGHLIN The Washington Post November 10, 2009 12:00 AM A first-ever girls-only tournament was a great success! The ladies say MORE MORE MORE! (Hosted by the U.S. Chess Center, serving Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia)

Chess Femme News

Here are some links to recent news stories about female chessplayers and women's chess events from around the internet: Susan Polgar Chess News and Information Blog, October 29, 2009: SPICE and Texas Tech get go-ahead for pilot chess program in selected Texas schools Chessbase, October 24, 2009: Indian chess champ on city streets – She is thirteen, rated 2132, and won the Asian U-14 title in Delhi last month. With her chess career she has made her country proud. But Saranya's childhood is anything but a bed of roses. Her father deserted the family five years ago, and her mother sells small items made of plastic and mud on the pavement of Thiruvottiyur (near Chennai) to eke out a living. Someone must help this girl. October 28, 2009: The USCF website published an article about the final determination of the winners of the 9 Queens "best games" prizes which were set $300, $200 and $100. 9Queens Presents the Best Games at the U.S. Women's By 9Queens Best Game Judges Four judges ranked their favorite five games from the 2009 US Women's Championship in a Best Games Contest sponsored by 9queens, a Tucson-based non-profit that promotes chess to those most in-need of its benefits especially girls and at-risk youth. The prizes were $300 for 1st place, $200 for 2nd and $100 for 3rd. The first place winning game won by a landslide, while the other awards were hotly contested. Winners: #1-: Anna Zatonskih-Alisa Melekhina, Round 6, 14 points ($300) #2-4: Abrahamyan-Krush,1-0, Round 9 ($100) #2-4: Baginskaite-Abrahamyan, 1-0, Round 1 ($100) #2-4: Tatev Abrahamyan vs. Alisa Melekhina (0-1), Round 3 ($100) 9 Queens Blog, October 28, 2009: Here is Jennifer Shahade's post on her thoughts about the best games at the 2009 U.S. Women's Chess Championship. Kosteniuk Blog, October 28, 2009: GM Alexandra Kosteniuk is currently playing first board for the Russian Women's Chess Team at the European Women's Team Chess Championship. She posted her 7th round victory behind the black pieces against Zeinab Mamedjarova (Azerbaijan).

Chess Femme News

Some chess femme news briefs from around the world: August 25, 2009 Press Trust of India: Second seed, world U-16 boys champion B Adhiban of Petroleum Sports Promotion Board won a battle of nerves to clinch his back-to-back National B Chess Championship title here today. Overnight leaders -- WGM Mary Ann Gomes of Bengal and Adhiban -- locking horns with each other, required to win the final round to emerge champion at the Town Hall and Adhiban did not falter when it mattered most.Adhiban clinched the title with 10.5 points when Mary Ann's French defence proved insufficient to hold him.Mary Ann (9.5) lost a pawn on the kingside on the 26th move and finally the game as Abhiban's pieces penetrated her weakened back rank. Gomes had to settle for 4th place. August 24, 2009 Yorkregion.com: BY KEELY GRASSER Dora Liu, bouncing around happily in her flowered outfit and ribboned pigtails, doesn't seem like your typical chess player. But the active Markham 7-year-old will soon be representing Canada at a world youth chess championship in Turkey. It's astounding enough to see little Dora, who is going into Grade 3 at the Unionville Montessori School this fall, play advanced chess. It's even more surprising that she only took up the game this year. August 21, 2009 StatesmanJournal.com: By Tarah Campi Dana Hannibal, who will be a freshman at Sprague High School this fall, competed July 26-31 at the Susan Polgar National Invitational chess tournament at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. Her ninth-place finish is the highest finish by an Oregon girl in tournament history. Dana placed third in the puzzle-solving contest, 10th in speed (blitz) chess and 10th in team chess.

Check It Out

Every week dondelion does a yeoman's job of putting together the latest edition of Axis Mundae at Goddesschess. I think you may particularly like this week's edition - I sure did! And - I've been working on updating Chess Femme News. Yes, I know - the never-ending story! LOL! There are some things there that you won't find here, but when I finish updating, everything you found here about women in chess will be found there. Gee, I wish there were about 10 of me! We've got a few things brewing - we'll let you know when we know. How does that song go - "If I had a million dollars, oh if I had a million dollars..."

Updates, We've Got Updates!

Long overdue updates for the month of May, 2009 made at Chess Femme News (go to Goddesschess and click on the link for Chess Femme News in the left hand navigation bar). I'm now working on April. Mr. Don has also put together a new Random Round-up now that he's back in the saddle in Montreal. RR can be found at Goddesschess in the right hand column. This week he presents an interesting mix. Teeth of the God, anyone? Q: What did the backgammon player say to the crocodile? A: My, what big teeth you have. Q: What did the crocodile say to the backgammon player? A: Crunch crunch, thanks for being lunch. Okay - so I'm lame.

What's Going On?

Hola darlings! I've been too busy today. It all started at the office where we are inundated with individual income tax and fiduciary income tax returns that are all due on April 15. Eek! Then, in a way that is too convoluted to go into here, especially when I'm sitting here contemplating getting toothpicks to keep my eyelids up long enough to finish blogging for tonight! Anyway, I was revisiting much older personal research (some going back to 2003, double Eek!) on the elephant in the Middle East and Egypt. Through something dondelion mentioned in this week's Random Round-up at Goddesschess, I discovered a new clue and started following it back into my old research, and into new research. The result is - I'm totally confused (nothing new there) and exhausted; but it appears to promise new insights into our quest for the origins of chess -- I should more properly say into our quest for the origins of boardgames out of which chessly concepts arose. Is that utterly obtuse and opaque? LOL! I sound like a candidate for a seat on the United States Chess Federation Executive Board! Seriously (har!), I'm going to work on a little something to present here - or at Goddessches - about the history of the elephant and how it came to be used as a piece in chess. It's now article 6 (7?) in line with other articles I'm working on. Sigh. Anyway, please check out dondelion's March 29, 209 edition of Random Round-Up at Goddesschess (right hand-column, scroll down to Random Round-Up) - it's really good stuff and if you read all of the info provided at the links the results will take you along paths where you can join us in our never-ending game of "connecting the dots" in the never-ending quest for the origins of chess. I also did a quick update at Chess Femme News, a sort of random round-up of my own relating recent news of chess femmes.

IM/WGM Rusudan Goletiani - USA

In case you haven't heard the news by now, at the Dresden Chess Olympiad (November, 2008) the USA Women's Chess Team won a Team Bronze Medal. Adding icing to the beautiful cake, an individual Gold Medal was won by Anna Zatonskih (current U.S. Women's Chess Champion) and an individual Silver Medal by Rusudan Goletiani for their respective board performances. Hooray for USA! (BTW, the USA Men's Chess Team also won a Team Bronze Medal.) This was the second Women's Team Medal EVER won by a U.S. team. GM Susan Polgar led the way for the U.S. Women's Team at the 2004 Chess Olympiad to win the FIRST EVER Team Silver Medal, and GM Polgar earned yet another individual Gold Medal for her performance at that Olympiad. In 2006 the U.S. Women's Team had to settle for 4th place overall, losing a Team Medal by a hair. The U.S. Women's Team came back with a vengence this year! You can read all about it at Chess Femme News. The USCF's print magazine, Chess Life, for February 2009 features Goletiani on the cover, as part of a feature story at its website (you must be a member to access). Now, Jennifer Shahade, one of the ground-breaking chess femmes on that 2004 U.S. Women's Chess Olympiad Team, has a sit-down interview with Goletiani also online at the USCF website that everyone can read (no membership required). Please check out both articles, and learn more about women chessplayers in the United States.