WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 ROUND 11 – ESIPENKO vs MAGHSOODLOO

The style of analysis in today’s game is the same as that used in my new book: Hidden Lessons From The 2018 Batumi Chess Olympiad.

The  winner of the 2018 edition of the World Junior Championship was the phenomenally talented Parham Maghsoodloo of Iran. He won in spite of losing his final round game, his only loss of the tournament. He finished with nine wins, one draw and one loss for a tournament performance well in excess of 2800.

 Winning this tournament is a massive opportunity as it is a direct seeded slot into the 2019 World Cup, which in turn is a gateway to the next Candidates cycle. In addition it opens the door to invitations to the lucrative super tournament circuit.

He has already accepted an invitation to the Challenger tournament at Tata Steel 2019.

It might seem strange to many, but when I look at chess players I always take a close look at the physical condition of the player. This comes from my background in the health and fitness industry.

Physical fitness is a vital ingredient on the classical tournament circuit where it is possible to have consecutive days at the chess board of seven hours or longer. As chess players we know how physically draining long tournament games can be.

Remember how Peter Svidler lost a lot of weight before the Candidates in 2013? It made a huge difference to his performance over the final two rounds when tension was at an extreme level.

It is clear that Parham does not rate working on his fitness highly at all. During an interview Parham indicated that he works at least ten hours every day on his chess. From my perspective, if he took just 30 minutes a day from that schedule for physical training he would be able to absorb so much more during his study sessions.

Aspirant higher level players all realize that having a coach is an important step to improvement. It is just as important to have a coach or personal trainer for the physical aspect of your chess training as well.

Today’s game features a Queens Gambit Declined that includes some Q&A style annotations.

While playing through the game, scroll slowly so that when you get to the questions you can put some time on the clock (ten to fifteen minutes) and try and find the solution.

Esipenko,Andrey (2593) - Maghsoodloo,Parham (2649)

World Junior U20 Open 2018 Gebze (11.1), 15.09.2018

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 a6 4.Nc3 d5 5.cxd5 exd5 6.Qb3 D37: Queen's Gambit Declined: 5 Bf4 
6...b5 7.Bg5 next Bxf6 is good for White. 
7...Be6 8.Qc2 The position is equal. 
8...Nbd7 9.e3 c5 10.dxc5 

XABCDEFGHY
8r+-wqkvl-tr(
7+-+n+pzpp'
6p+-+lsn-+&
5+pzPp+-vL-%
4-+-+-+-+$
3+-sN-zPN+-#
2PzPQ+-zPPzP"
1tR-+-mKL+R!
xabcdefghy

10...Nxc5N [10...Bxc5 11.Bd3 h6 12.Bh4 Rc8 13.0–0 0–0 1/2–1/2 (39) Gelfand,B (2728)-Mamedyarov,S (2800) Geneva 2017] 
11.Bd3 Rc8 12.0–0 h6 13.Bh4 Be7 14.Nd4 0–0 15.Qd1 Nfd7 16.Bxe7 Qxe7 17.Nce2 Nxd3 18.Qxd3 Ne5 19.Qd1 Bg4 20.b3 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+r+-trk+(
7+-+-wqpzp-'
6p+-+-+-zp&
5+p+psn-+-%
4-+-sN-+l+$
3+P+-zP-+-#
2P+-+NzPPzP"
1tR-+Q+RmK-!
xabcdefghy

20...Nc6 
What is Black threatening here?

00000

And now ...Nxd4 would win. 
21.Qd2 Bxe2 22.Nxe2 Rfd8 23.Rfd1 Qa3 24.h3 Rd6 25.Rac1 Rcd8 26.Nf4 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-tr-+k+(
7+-+-+pzp-'
6p+ntr-+-zp&
5+p+p+-+-%
4-+-+-sN-+$
3wqP+-zP-+P#
2P+-wQ-zPP+"
1+-tRR+-mK-!
xabcdefghy

26...d4 
Yet another strong threat from Black. What is it?

00000

Threatens to win with ...dxe3. 
27.e4 Nb4 28.e5 Rc6 29.Rxc6 Nxc6 30.Nd3 Ne7 31.Nf4 Nc6 32.e6 fxe6 33.Nxe6 Re8 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+r+k+(
7+-+-+-zp-'
6p+n+N+-zp&
5+p+-+-+-%
4-+-zp-+-+$
3wqP+-+-+P#
2P+-wQ-zPP+"
1+-+R+-mK-!
xabcdefghy

34.Nf4 
What would have been wrong with 34.Nxd4?

00000

[But not 34.Nxd4 Rd8µ] 
34...Qd6 35.Nd3 a5 36.Qc1 Re2 37.a4 bxa4 38.bxa4 Kh8 39.Qc4ƒ White has the initiative. 
39...Qf6 40.Kf1 Re6 41.Rb1 Qf5 42.Qb5 Qf6 43.Rd1 Qf8 44.Rc1 [44.Qd5 feels hotter. 44...Rd6 45.Qc5 Qf6 46.Re1 Kh7 47.Qc4] 
44...Qa3 [44...Nb4²] 
45.Kg1± Ne7 46.Rc7 Kh7 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+-tR-sn-zpk'
6-+-+r+-zp&
5zpQ+-+-+-%
4P+-zp-+-+$
3wq-+N+-+P#
2-+-+-zPP+"
1+-+-+-mK-!
xabcdefghy

47.Rd7 
White missed a very strong attacking move. What was it?

00000

[47.Qb1!+- Rf6 48.Ne5+ Nf5 49.Qe4] 
47...Qc3 48.Qb1 Ng6 49.h4 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+-+R+-zpk'
6-+-+r+nzp&
5zp-+-+-+-%
4P+-zp-+-zP$
3+-wqN+-+-#
2-+-+-zPP+"
1+Q+-+-mK-!
xabcdefghy

49...h5? 
The first grave error by the new World Junior Champion. Can you find the improvement?

00000

[49...Re4± 50.g3 Ne5 51.Nxe5 Qe1+ 52.Qxe1 Rxe1+ 53.Kg2 Rxe5] 
50.Rd5+- Kh6? [50...Qc7 51.Rxh5+ Kg8] 
51.Qd1 White is clearly winning. 
51...Kh7 52.Rc5 Qa3 53.Qxh5+ Kg8 54.Qd5 Kf7 55.Rc7+ Ne7 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+-tR-snkzp-'
6-+-+r+-+&
5zp-+Q+-+-%
4P+-zp-+-zP$
3wq-+N+-+-#
2-+-+-zPP+"
1+-+-+-mK-!
xabcdefghy

56.Nf4 
Even though Black resigned in this position, White missed a forced Mate in 13. See if you can find it.

00000

[¹56.Ne5+ Kf6 57.Nd7+ Kf7 58.Qh5+ Rg6 59.Ne5+ Ke6 60.Nxg6 Qd6 61.Nf8+ Kf6 62.Nh7+ Ke6 63.Ng5+ Kf5 64.Nf7+ g5 65.Nxd6+ Ke5 66.Qe2+ Kd5 67.Qe4+ Kxd6 68.Qxe7+ Kd5 69.Rc5#]  1–0

WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 ROUND 10 – MAGHSOODLOO vs VAVULIN

The style of analysis in today’s game is the same as that used in my new book: Hidden Lessons From The 2018 Batumi Chess Olympiad.

The 2018 edition of the World Junior Championship has as top seed the phenomenally talented Parham Maghsoodloo of Iran. He has only just turned 18 and already has a live rating of 2667. Winning this tournament now is a massive opportunity as it is a direct seeded slot into the 2019 World Cup, which in turn is a gateway to the next Candidates cycle. In addition it will open the door to invitations to the lucrative super tournament circuit.

It might seem strange to many, but when I look at chess players I always take a close look at the physical condition of the player. This comes from my background in the health and fitness industry.

Physical fitness is a vital ingredient on the classical tournament circuit where it is possible to have consecutive days at the chess board of seven hours or longer. As chess players we know how physically draining long tournament games can be.

Remember how Peter Svidler lost a lot of weight before the Candidates in 2013? It made a huge difference to his performance over the final two rounds when tension was at an extreme level.

It is clear that Parham does not rate working on his fitness highly at all. During an interview Parham indicated that he works at least ten hours every day on his chess. From my perspective, if he took just 30 minutes a day from that schedule for physical training he would be able to absorb so much more during his study sessions.

Aspirant higher level players all realize that having a coach is an important step to improvement. It is just as important to have a coach or personal trainer for the physical aspect of your chess training as well.

Today’s game features a Sicilian Najdorf that includes some Q&A style annotations.

While playing through the game, scroll slowly so that when you get to the questions you can put some time on the clock (ten to fifteen minutes) and try and find the solution.

Maghsoodloo,Parham (2649) - Vavulin,Maksim (2559)

World Junior U20 Open 2018 Gebze (10.1), 14.09.2018

1.Nf3 c5 2.e4 d6 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 cxd4 5.Nxd4 a6 6.h3 e5 7.Nde2 h5 B90: Sicilian Najdorf: Unusual White 6th moves, 6 Be3 Ng4 and 6 Be3 e5 
8.Bg5 Be6 [8...Be7 9.Ng3 g6 10.Bc4 Be6 11.Bb3 Nbd7 12.Qf3 Nc5 13.0–0–0 Nfd7 14.Bxe7 Qxe7 15.Qe3 1/2–1/2 (43) Xiong,J (2650)-Kovalyov,A (2644) Irving 2018] 
9.Bxf6 Qxf6 10.Nd5 Qd8 11.Qd3 g6 12.0–0–0 Bh6+ 13.Kb1 Nd7 14.Qa3 Nc5 15.Nec3 

XABCDEFGHY
8r+-wqk+-tr(
7+p+-+p+-'
6p+-zpl+pvl&
5+-snNzp-+p%
4-+-+P+-+$
3wQ-sN-+-+P#
2PzPP+-zPP+"
1+K+R+L+R!
xabcdefghy

15...0–0N 16.h4! b5 17.f3 f5 

XABCDEFGHY
8r+-wq-trk+(
7+-+-+-+-'
6p+-zpl+pvl&
5+psnNzpp+p%
4-+-+P+-zP$
3wQ-sN-+P+-#
2PzPP+-+P+"
1+K+R+L+R!
xabcdefghy

18.Be2 
White missed an attacking opportunity here. What was it?

00000

[White should try 18.exf5!± gxf5 19.g3] 
18...Bg7 
How could Black have retained equality in this position?

00000

[18...f4= remains equal.] 
19.g4 

XABCDEFGHY
8r+-wq-trk+(
7+-+-+-vl-'
6p+-zpl+p+&
5+psnNzpp+p%
4-+-+P+PzP$
3wQ-sN-+P+-#
2PzPP+L+-+"
1+K+R+-+R!
xabcdefghy

19...hxg4 
What should Black rather have played?

00000

[Black should play 19...fxg4² 20.fxg4 Bxg4] 
20.fxg4 
Find an even more attacking move for White.

00000

[20.exf5!± gxf5 21.fxg4] 
20...fxg4 21.Rhg1 Rb8 22.Bxg4 

XABCDEFGHY
8-tr-wq-trk+(
7+-+-+-vl-'
6p+-zpl+p+&
5+psnNzp-+-%
4-+-+P+LzP$
3wQ-sN-+-+-#
2PzPP+-+-+"
1+K+R+-tR-!
xabcdefghy

22...Bf7? 
This was a grave error. Find the alternative.

00000

[22...Bxg4± 23.Rxg4 Rf3] 
Find the move that punishes Black's error.

00000

23.h5!+- gxh5 [23...g5 is a better defense. 24.b4 a5] 
24.Bf5 Kh8 

XABCDEFGHY
8-tr-wq-tr-mk(
7+-+-+lvl-'
6p+-zp-+-+&
5+psnNzpL+p%
4-+-+P+-+$
3wQ-sN-+-+-#
2PzPP+-+-+"
1+K+R+-tR-!
xabcdefghy

25.Ne2 
What is White's winning threat?

00000

Threatens to win with Rxg7! 
25...Bh6 26.Qh3 
What would have been wrong with 26.Qg3?

00000

[Weaker is 26.Qg3 a5²] 
26...Rg8 27.Rxg8+ Qxg8 28.Rg1 Qf8 

XABCDEFGHY
8-tr-+-wq-mk(
7+-+-+l+-'
6p+-zp-+-vl&
5+psnNzpL+p%
4-+-+P+-+$
3+-+-+-+Q#
2PzPP+N+-+"
1+K+-+-tR-!
xabcdefghy

29.Ng3? 
There was an even stronger move available. What was it?

00000

[29.Nf6+- has better winning chances.] 
29...Rb7? 
What was the correct defense in this position?

00000

[29...Qg7±] 
30.Nf6? 
This was another missed opportunity to kill the game. What move did White overlook?

00000

[30.Nxh5 Bxd5 31.exd5] 
30...b4? 
Black seems to have overlooked the looming Check Mate threat. What was a better defense here?

00000

[30...Qg7 31.Nfxh5 Qg5] 
31.Ngxh5 a5 32.Nh7 Bxa2+ 33.Kxa2 Rxh7 34.Bxh7 Kxh7 35.Qg4 White mates. 
35...Qf7+ 36.Kb1 Ne6 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+-+-+q+k'
6-+-zpn+-vl&
5zp-+-zp-+N%
4-zp-+P+Q+$
3+-+-+-+-#
2-zPP+-+-+"
1+K+-+-tR-!
xabcdefghy

White's next move forced an immediate resignation. What was it?

00000

37.Nf6+!  1–0

WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 ROUND 9 – MAGHSOODLOO vs SINDAROV

The style of analysis in today’s game is the same as that used in my new book: Hidden Lessons From The 2018 Batumi Chess Olympiad.

The 2018 edition of the World Junior Championship has as top seed the phenomenally talented Parham Maghsoodloo of Iran. He has only just turned 18 and already has a live rating of 2667. Winning this tournament now is a massive opportunity as it is a direct seeded slot into the 2019 World Cup, which in turn is a gateway to the next Candidates cycle. In addition it will open the door to invitations to the lucrative super tournament circuit.

It might seem strange to many, but when I look at chess players I always take a close look at the physical condition of the player. This comes from my background in the health and fitness industry.

Physical fitness is a vital ingredient on the classical tournament circuit where it is possible to have consecutive days at the chess board of seven hours or longer. As chess players we know how physically draining long tournament games can be.

Remember how Peter Svidler lost a lot of weight before the Candidates in 2013? It made a huge difference to his performance over the final two rounds when tension was at an extreme level.

It is clear that Parham does not rate working on his fitness highly at all. During an interview Parham indicated that he works at least ten hours every day on his chess. From my perspective, if he took just 30 minutes a day from that schedule for physical training he would be able to absorb so much more during his study sessions.

Aspirant higher level players all realize that having a coach is an important step to improvement. It is just as important to have a coach or personal trainer for the physical aspect of your chess training as well.

Today’s game features a Kings Indian Attack that includes some Q&A style annotations.

While playing through the game, scroll slowly so that when you get to the questions you can put some time on the clock (ten to fifteen minutes) and try and find the solution.

Maghsoodloo,Parham (2649) - Liang,Awonder (2575)

World Junior U20 Open 2018 Gebze (9.1), 13.09.2018

1.Nf3 c5 2.g3 Nc6 3.Bg2 e5 4.d3 g6 5.0–0 Bg7 6.c3 Nge7 7.a3 0–0 8.b4 d6 9.e4 b6 10.Bb2 A04: Unusual lines after 1 Nf3 and King's Indian Attack [10.Nbd2 h6 11.Re1 Be6 12.Bb2 Qd7 13.Nc4 Rad8 14.b5 Nb8 15.a4 Qc7 16.a5 Nd7 17.axb6 axb6 18.Qa4 1–0 (65) Petrosian,T (2601)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2789) Riadh 2017] 
10...Bb7 11.Nbd2 Qd7 12.Qb3 h6 13.Rfe1 Kh7 

XABCDEFGHY
8r+-+-tr-+(
7zpl+qsnpvlk'
6-zpnzp-+pzp&
5+-zp-zp-+-%
4-zP-+P+-+$
3zPQzPP+NzP-#
2-vL-sN-zPLzP"
1tR-+-tR-mK-!
xabcdefghy

14.d4N [14.Nc4 f5 15.b5 Nd8 16.a4 f4 17.a5 Qc7 18.axb6 axb6 19.Rxa8 Bxa8 0–1 (34) Hofegger,J (2072)-Vitouch,A (2320) Austria 2016] 
14...cxd4 15.cxd4 Nxd4 16.Nxd4 exd4 17.Nf3 

XABCDEFGHY
8r+-+-tr-+(
7zpl+qsnpvlk'
6-zp-zp-+pzp&
5+-+-+-+-%
4-zP-zpP+-+$
3zPQ+-+NzP-#
2-vL-+-zPLzP"
1tR-+-tR-mK-!
xabcdefghy

17...Ng8 
Find an improvement for Black.

00000

[17...d5= 18.Bxd4 Bxd4 19.Nxd4 dxe4 20.Bxe4 Bxe4 21.Rxe4 Rad8] 
18.Nxd4 Nf6 19.Rad1 Rfe8 20.f3 Rac8 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+r+r+-+(
7zpl+q+pvlk'
6-zp-zp-snpzp&
5+-+-+-+-%
4-zP-sNP+-+$
3zPQ+-+PzP-#
2-vL-+-+LzP"
1+-+RtR-mK-!
xabcdefghy

Time to Attack! Find the move.

00000 

21.Bf1! a6 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+r+r+-+(
7+l+q+pvlk'
6pzp-zp-snpzp&
5+-+-+-+-%
4-zP-sNP+-+$
3zPQ+-+PzP-#
2-vL-+-+-zP"
1+-+RtRLmK-!
xabcdefghy

Don't be shy. Continue building the attack...

00000

22.b5! Ra8 23.bxa6 Bxa6 24.Nb5 Re6 25.a4 Bxb5 26.axb5 Qc7 27.Rc1 Qa7 28.Ra1 Qb7 29.Ra6 d5 30.Rea1 Rf8 31.Bh3 Ree8 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+rtr-+(
7+q+-+pvlk'
6Rzp-+-snpzp&
5+P+p+-+-%
4-+-+P+-+$
3+Q+-+PzPL#
2-vL-+-+-zP"
1tR-+-+-mK-!
xabcdefghy

Find the move that will capitalize on your space advantage.

00000

32.e5! Nd7 33.Ra7 Nc5 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+rtr-+(
7tRq+-+pvlk'
6-zp-+-+pzp&
5+PsnpzP-+-%
4-+-+-+-+$
3+Q+-+PzPL#
2-vL-+-+-zP"
1tR-+-+-mK-!
xabcdefghy

34.Qc2 [Not 34.Rxb7 Nxb3 35.Raa7 Bxe5±] 
34...Qb8 35.f4 Ne6 36.Bxe6 Rxe6 37.Qd3 Kg8 38.Qxd5 Rd8 39.Qf3 Bf8 40.Ra8 Qc7 41.Rxd8 Qxd8 42.Ra8 Qd7 43.Ba3 Re8 44.Rxe8 Qxe8 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+qvlk+(
7+-+-+p+-'
6-zp-+-+pzp&
5+P+-zP-+-%
4-+-+-zP-+$
3vL-+-+QzP-#
2-+-+-+-zP"
1+-+-+-mK-!
xabcdefghy

Find White's next move.

00000

45.Qc6! Qd8 46.Bd6 Kg7 47.Kg2 h5 48.Kh3 Kg8 49.Kg2 Kg7 50.Kf3 Kg8 51.Ke4 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-wq-vlk+(
7+-+-+p+-'
6-zpQvL-+p+&
5+P+-zP-+p%
4-+-+KzP-+$
3+-+-+-zP-#
2-+-+-+-zP"
1+-+-+-+-!
xabcdefghy

51...Kg7? 
This was Black's final, critical error. Can you find the improvement?

00000

[51...Bg7 was called for. 52.Ke3 Bf8] 
52.Kd5 Kg8 53.Qb7+- 1–0

WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 ROUND 7 – MAGHSOODLOO vs SINDAROV

The style of analysis in today’s game is the same as that used in my new book: Hidden Lessons From The 2018 Batumi Chess Olympiad.

The 2018 edition of the World Junior Championship has as top seed the phenomenally talented Parham Maghsoodloo of Iran. He has only just turned 18 and already has a live rating of 2667. Winning this tournament now is a massive opportunity as it is a direct seeded slot into the 2019 World Cup, which in turn is a gateway to the next Candidates cycle. In addition it will open the door to invitations to the lucrative super tournament circuit.

It might seem strange to many, but when I look at chess players I always take a close look at the physical condition of the player. This comes from my background in the health and fitness industry.

Physical fitness is a vital ingredient on the classical tournament circuit where it is possible to have consecutive days at the chess board of seven hours or longer. As chess players we know how physically draining long tournament games can be.

Remember how Peter Svidler lost a lot of weight before the Candidates in 2013? It made a huge difference to his performance over the final two rounds when tension was at an extreme level.

It is clear that Parham does not rate working on his fitness highly at all. During an interview Parham indicated that he works at least ten hours every day on his chess. From my perspective, if he took just 30 minutes a day from that schedule for physical training he would be able to absorb so much more during his study sessions.

Aspirant higher level players all realize that having a coach is an important step to improvement. It is just as important to have a coach or personal trainer for the physical aspect of your chess training as well.

Today’s game features a Spanish Opening that includes some Q&A style annotations.

While playing through the game, scroll slowly so that when you get to the questions you can put some time on the clock (ten to fifteen minutes) and try and find the solution.

Maghsoodloo,Parham (2649) - Sindarov,Javokhir (2484)

World Junior U20 Open 2018 Gebze (7.1), 11.09.2018

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0–0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0–0 9.a4 b4 10.a5 Rb8 11.Bc4 [Nxe4! C90: Spanish Opening (early deviations) 
12.Bd5! [12.Rxe4 d5] 
12...Nxf2! 13.Kxf2 Nxa5! The position is balanced. 
14.cxb4 c6 15.Ba2 Rxb4 ...e4 is a real threat. 
16.d4 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+lwq-trk+(
7+-+-vlpzpp'
6p+pzp-+-+&
5sn-+-zp-+-%
4-tr-zP-+-+$
3+-+-+N+-#
2LzP-+-mKPzP"
1tRNvLQtR-+-!
xabcdefghy

16...Bg4N [16...exd4= 17.Na3 c5; 16...exd4 17.Kg1 d5 18.Bd2 Be6 19.Bxb4 Bxb4 20.Nxd4 Bxe1 21.Qxe1 1/2–1/2 (36) Dubov,D (2661)-Kovalev,V (2598) Moscow 2017] 
17.dxe5± Qb6+ 18.Be3 Rxb2+ 19.Kg3 Bxf3 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-trk+(
7+-+-vlpzpp'
6pwqpzp-+-+&
5sn-+-zP-+-%
4-+-+-+-+$
3+-+-vLlmK-#
2Ltr-+-+PzP"
1tRN+QtR-+-!
xabcdefghy

20.Kxf3 [20.Bxb6± Bxd1 21.Bxa5] 
20...Qb5 21.Bc1! Threatening Nc3. 
21...Rb4 22.Ba3 And Nc3 would win now. 
22...Ra4 23.g3 Black must now be aware of Kg2. 
23...Nc4 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-trk+(
7+-+-vlpzpp'
6p+pzp-+-+&
5+q+-zP-+-%
4r+n+-+-+$
3vL-+-+KzP-#
2L+-+-+-zP"
1tRN+QtR-+-!
xabcdefghy

24.Bb3 
What would be wrong with 24.Bxd8?

00000

[Don't play: 24.Bxd6 Bxd6 25.exd6 Qh5+ 26.Kf2 Rxa2+ 27.Rxa2 Qxh2+ 28.Kf3 Qxa2=] 
24...Rxa3 [¹24...Nxe5+ 25.Kg2 Ra5] 
25.Rxa3 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-trk+(
7+-+-vlpzpp'
6p+pzp-+-+&
5+q+-zP-+-%
4-+n+-+-+$
3tRL+-+KzP-#
2-+-+-+-zP"
1+N+QtR-+-!
xabcdefghy

Why would 25.Nxa3 have been a mistake?

00000

[Of course not: 25.Nxa3?! Qxb3+ 26.Qxb3 Nd2+ 27.Kg2 Nxb3²] 
25...Nxa3 26.Nxa3 Qc5 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-trk+(
7+-+-vlpzpp'
6p+pzp-+-+&
5+-wq-zP-+-%
4-+-+-+-+$
3sNL+-+KzP-#
2-+-+-+-zP"
1+-+QtR-+-!
xabcdefghy

27.exd6! Bxd6 28.Nc4 Bc7 29.Kg2 g6 30.Qf3 Kg7 31.Rd1 Threatens Rd7. 
31...Rd8 32.Nb2 f5 33.Nd3 Qc3 34.Ba4ƒ White has a well-coordinated game. 
34...Rd4 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+-vl-+-mkp'
6p+p+-+p+&
5+-+-+p+-%
4L+-tr-+-+$
3+-wqN+QzP-#
2-+-+-+KzP"
1+-+R+-+-!
xabcdefghy

35.Bxc6 
Can you improve on 35.Bxc6?

00000

[Better is 35.Qxc6± Qxc6+ 36.Bxc6] 
35...Qc2+!= 36.Kh1 Rd6 [36...Bd8=] 
37.Bb7± Qb3 38.Rc1 Rxd3 39.Rxc7+ Kf6 [39...Kh6± 40.Qf4+ g5] 
40.Qc6++- 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+LtR-+-+p'
6p+Q+-mkp+&
5+-+-+p+-%
4-+-+-+-+$
3+q+r+-zP-#
2-+-+-+-zP"
1+-+-+-+K!
xabcdefghy

40...Kg5? 
Find the improvement on this error?

00000

[40...Qe6 41.Bxa6 Rd1+ 42.Kg2 Qxc6+ 43.Rxc6+ Ke5] 
41.Qc1+? 
White failed to capitalize on Black's error. Can you?

00000

[41.h4+ Kh6 42.Qc1+ Re3 43.g4 (43.Bxa6 Qd5+ 44.Kg1 Qe5=) ] 
41...Kf6 

XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+LtR-+-+p'
6p+-+-mkp+&
5+-+-+p+-%
4-+-+-+-+$
3+q+r+-zP-#
2-+-+-+-zP"
1+-wQ-+-+K!
xabcdefghy

42.Kg2! Rd1? 
What should Black have played instead?

00000

[42...Qb4 43.Qa1+ Qd4 44.Qxd4+ Rxd4 45.Bxa6 Rd2+ 46.Kg1 h6 47.Rc6+ Kg7 48.Rc7+ Kf6 49.Rc6+ Kg7] 
Find the move that exploits Black's error?

00000

43.Qh6 Intends Qg7 + and Mate. White is clearly better. 
43...Qb2+ 44.Kh3 Threatens Mate with Qh4 +. 
44...Qb4 45.Bf3  1–0

THE NEWEST VICTIM OF CHESS CORRUPTION IN PERU

Boris Ascue, three time convicted criminal and president of the Peruvian chess federation, has excluded their top player, Ingrid Aliaga, from Peru's national chess team. This after she laid a charge of sexual harassment against her coach, that had been hand-picked by Ascue.

Peru is one of the Latin American countries that have consistently produced the most chess talent. However, it is a sport governed by a federation wallowing in perpetual scandal. Boris Ascue, convicted of at least three crimes and banned for three years, continues to serve as president of the federation. This is thanks to protection received from the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and as a result being tolerated by the Peruvian Sports Institute (IPD). The Peruvian chess federation’s latest move as been to exclude top player Ingrid Aliaga from the national team for laying a charge of sexual harassment, with evidence, against coach that had been hired by the federation.

It seems to me what has happened here is that the action taken against Ingrid Aliaga was an attempt to silence a whistle blower before any media attention could be focussed on the deeper rot within the Peruvian chess federation.

"The sanction of banning Mr. Boris Ascue, imposed by the Superior Council of Sports Justice, is effective from the date of notification to the parties. As of that moment, the IPD does not recognize Mr. Ascue as president of the federation, nor is he eligible to hold the post of vice president." says Víktor Preciado Rojas, president of the IPD. However, he added that the IPD was not empowered in this case to appoint a management commission to administer the Sports Federation of Peruvian Chess (FDPA). That is because notices had been sent out calling for candidates for new federation elections literally days before the ban took effect. The net result is that Ascue still holds the position from which he has been banned till the new elections take place. Elections that surprisingly have failed to materialize.

That last statement clashes with common sense.

Ascue was sentenced to two prison terms of three years in 2005 (case 0860), for water pollution, and in 2007 (case 0043), for illegal appropriation. Another two years was added for culpable homicide (case 164-95). The judgment also cites the crime of aggravated usurpation (2003-0587), but does not mention a conviction. Although he did not actually serve time in prison because the sentences were less than four years, such convictions disqualify him from holding any public office, as stated in the first banning judgment by the Superior Council of Sports Justice, dated February 26, 2018.

However, Ascue held his position of chess federation president, with the protection of the IPD because his convictions were subject to appeal. His appeal was rejected by the second, higher, court on July 24.

The news was widely reported in the Peruvian media. The federation meeting to call elections that Preciado Rojas cites was held on August 8.

It is obvious that Ascue already knew of his immenent dismissal and banning. Nevertheless he called for elections and made decisions regarding the Chess Olympiad and the FIDE General Assembly, which will be held in Batumi (Georgia) later this month. None of these actions were opposed by the IPD. In fact, the official IPD website was still citing Ascue as president of the FDPA until last week Monday. Now his name has been replaced by a link to the ruling on his ban.

This is the third time in twelve years that FIDE has protected a president of the Peruvian Federation facing a ban from holding office. The previous occasions were in 2006 and 2010. All three instances were immediately prior to elections for the FIDE presidency. In both occasions the vote of the banned chess federation president was in for the former FIDE president Kirsán Iliumyínov.

In 2010, several Peruvian media accused Iliumyínov of blackmail. He threatened the Peruvian Olympic Committee that the national team would not play the Olympiad if the delegate in Congress was not his protege Milton Iturry. At the time Iturry had been removed from office and serving a ban issued by the Peruvian Government.

In 2006, FIDE - member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) - argued that it only followed the directives of National Olympic Committees, and not governments. But in 2010 the Peruvian Olympic Committee did not recognize the banned Iturry, and yet he attended the FIDE congress in an official capacity and his vote was accepted by FIDE.

This brings us back to the sexual harassment accusation that Ingrid Aliaga levied against coach Dorges Heredia, a Cuban hired by the FDPA. The alleged sexual harassment began last March during several federation organized training sessions.

The first reaction of federation president, Ascue, was to affirm that Aliaga was "discredited" to exert such accusation. This was to effectively try to silence anything that might bring attention to the corruption at the head of the federation.

But on March 15, two things happened: an eight-minute recording appeared in which Heredia clearly recognizes his "error" several times during a meeting with Aliaga and other players (one of the other players recorded the conversation without Heredia knowing).

In addition, her team mates testified before the FDPA in favour of Aliaga. With those testimonies and the recording, Ascue announced that he was withdrawing Heredia from conducting training sessions with the women’s team.

However, last Monday the FDPA published on its Facebook page an open letter from Heredia in which he denies the accusations against him. He attributes the accusation to indiscipline within the team. He also claims the support of the best player in Peru, Deysi Cori, whom he says he admires and appreciates. However, Cori has endorsed Aliaga's accusation repeatedly.

Aliaga, third in the national ranking (the Olympic team has five places) was champion of Peru in 2017. She has also qualified for the Women's World Championship, which will be played in Russia from 1 to 25 November 2018.

Ascue asserts that he has excluded her from the team because she has played few tournaments in 2018, and also finished sixth in the 2018 Peruvian Championship.

Aliaga has responded by stating that according to the Peruvian chess federation rules all international tournament entries are done by the National federation. Aliaga had sent the federation a list of tournaments that she wanted to contest. However, subsequent to her making the sexual harassment accusation, not one entry has been forwarded to a tournament organizer. As to her sixth place at the Peruvian Championship, that was during the time that the harassment was happening – severely affecting her psychological state.

Furthermore, Aliaga attests that Ascue is pushing to have her name removed from the World Championship entry lists. This to send a clear message to other victims that might be considering coming forward.

The Peruvian Julio Granda, 51, the current veteran world champion has also weighed in on the situation. And he has been a recurring victim of the FDPA's management disaster over the past several decades.

Granda stated that it was regrettable that, once again, the FDPA is in a both uncertain and harmful situation regarding chess in Peru. Firstly the federation has been allowed a person who has been banned to maintain the position of presidenct, effectively with the complicity of other, otherwise, competent bodies – each of which have chosen to ignore obvious things. In addition this negatively affects negatively the image of Peru on the eve of both a Chess Olympiad and FIDE elections. This lack of integrity puts a cloud over the good image of the entire country. This whole thing is positively shameful.

On Aliaga’s sexual harassment case Granda says that everything points at the very least to a tacit pact of silence between the federation and the accused, judging by the recording and testimony of the girls. It must also be noted that the exclusion of Aliaga from the team is a reprisal for breaking the “omerta”. In addition there are the thinly veiled threats against Cori for supporting Aliaga as a confirmation of an “omerta”. When Granda was mistreated years ago, the message was very clear: This is how we treat the number one, so the rest of you best keep quiet.

In addition publishing Heredia’s defence against the harassment charges, the FDPA also published on Monday a manifesto to boast of Ascue’s great achievements compared to previous presidents of Peruvian chess.

Peru, without Granda who had been sanctioned for speaking out against the federation, was tenth out of 170 countries in the last Chess Olympiad.