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Pure Mate
In chess, a pure mate is a checkmate position such that the mated king is attacked exactly once, and prevented from moving to any of the adjacent squares in its for exactly one reason per square. Each of the squares in the mated king's field is attacked or "guarded" by one—and only one—attacking unit, or else a square which is not attacked is occupied by a friendly unit, a unit of the same color as the mated king. Some authors allow that special situations involving double check or pins may also be considered as pure mate. Pure mates are of interest to chess problem composers for their aesthetic value. In real gameplay, their occurrence is incidental. Nevertheless, several famous games have concluded with a pure mate, including the Immortal Game and the Evergreen Game, both won by Adolf Anderssen; the Peruvian Immortal; and the Game of the Century, an early won by Bobby Fischer. Pure mate is one of a few terms used by composers to describe the properties of a checkmate po ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chess Problem
A chess problem, also called a chess composition, is a puzzle set by the composer using chess pieces on a chess board, which presents the solver with a particular task. For instance, a position may be given with the instruction that White is to move first, and checkmate Black in two moves against any possible defence. A chess problem fundamentally differs from over-the-board play in that the latter involves a struggle between black and white, whereas the former involves a competition between the composer and the solver. Most positions which occur in a chess problem are 'unrealistic' in the sense that they are very unlikely to occur in over-the-board play. There is a good deal of specialized jargon used in connection with chess problems; see glossary of chess problems for a list. Definition The term "chess problem" is not sharply defined: there is no clear demarcation between chess compositions on the one hand and puzzles or tactical exercises on the other. In practice, however, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ideal Mate
In chess, an ideal mate is a checkmate position that is a special form of model mate. While in a model mate, each piece on the mating player's side (possibly excluding the king and pawns depending on context) participates in the mate, an ideal mate involves all the pieces of the mated player's as well, typically by blocking the mated king's field of movement so that it cannot escape. As in a model mate, an ideal mate also involves the mating pieces attacking the vacant squares around the mated king's exactly once, and not attacking the mated player's other pieces occupying the king's field of movement. For example, in the second position at right, white delivers an ideal mate. The mate is delivered with the white rook, and the black king cannot stay or move to d4 or f4. The white king prevents the black king from escaping to d5 or f5 and prevents capture of the knight, while that knight prevents escape to d3 and f3, and the black rook blocks escape to e3, while not being att ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sportsmanship
Sportsmanship is an aspiration or ethos that a sport, or activity will be enjoyed for its own sake. This is with proper consideration for fairness, ethics, respect, and a sense of fellowship with one's competitors. A "sore loser" refers to one who does not take defeat well, whereas a "good sport" means being a "good winner" as well as being a "good loser" (someone who shows courtesy towards another in a sports game). Analysis Sportsmanship can be conceptualized as an enduring and relatively stable characteristic or disposition such that individuals differ in the way they are generally expected to behave in sports situations. Sportsmanship mainly refers to virtues such as fairness, self-control, courage, and persistence,Shields & Bredemeier, 1995. and has been associated with interpersonal concepts of treating others and being treated fairly, maintaining self-control if dealing with others, and respect for both authority and opponents. Sportsmanship is also looked at as bein ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Donald Byrne
Donald Byrne (June 12, 1930 – April 8, 1976) was an American university professor and chess player. He held the title International Master, and competed for his country in the Chess Olympiad on several occasions. Biography Born in New York City, Byrne was a professor of English. He taught at Pennsylvania State University from 1961 until his death, having been invited there to teach and to coach the varsity chess team. Before his time at Penn State, he was a professor at Valparaiso University in Indiana. He was a competitor in the chess club run by Brooklyn chess coach and master John W. Collins. Collins wrote about his students in the book ''My Seven Chess Prodigies'', which features both Byrne brothers, Donald and Robert (see more below), and the young Bobby Fischer. Byrne died in Philadelphia of complications arising from lupus. He was inducted into the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame in 2003. Chess career Byrne won the U.S. Open Chess Championship in 1953 in Milwaukee and around ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World Chess Championship 1972
The World Chess Championship 1972 was a match for the World Chess Championship between challenger Bobby Fischer of the United States and defending champion Boris Spassky of the Soviet Union. The match took place in the Laugardalshöll arena in Reykjavík, Iceland, and has been dubbed the Match of the Century. Fischer became the first American born in the United States to win the world title, and the second American overall (Wilhelm Steinitz, the first world champion, became a naturalized American citizen in 1888). Fischer's win also ended, for a short time, 24 years of Soviet domination of the World Championship. The first game was played on July 11, 1972. The last game (the 21st) began on August 31, was after 40 moves, and Spassky resigned the next day without resuming play. Fischer won the match 12½–8½, becoming the eleventh undisputed world champion. Background The match was played during the Cold War, although during a period of increasing détente. The Soviet Ches ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chessgames
Chessgames.com is an Internet chess community with over 224,000 members. The site maintains a large database of chess games, where each game has its own discussion page for comments and analysis. Limited primarily to games where at least one player is of master strength, the database begins with the earliest known recorded games and is updated with games from current top-level tournaments. Basic membership is free, and the site is open to players at all levels of ability, with additional features available for Premium members. While the primary purpose of Chessgames.com is to provide an outlet for chess discussion and analysis, consultation games are periodically organized with teams of members playing either other teams of members or very strong masters, including a former US champion and two former world correspondence champions. Members can maintain their own discussion pages, and there are features to assist study of openings, endgames and sacrifices. The front page also feat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Encyclopaedia Of Chess Openings
The ''Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings'' () is a reference work describing the state of opening theory in chess, originally published in five volumes from 1974 to 1979 by the Serbian company Šahovski Informator (Chess Informant). It is currently undergoing its fifth edition. ''ECO'' may also refer to the opening classification system used by the encyclopedia. Overview Both ''ECO'' and ''Chess Informant'' are published by the Belgrade-based company Šahovski Informator. The moves are taken from thousands of master games and from published analysis in ''Informant'' and compiled by the editors, most of whom are grandmasters, who select the lines which they consider most relevant or critical. The chief editor since the first edition has been Aleksandar Matanović. The openings are provided in an ''ECO'' table that concisely presents the opening lines considered most critical by the editors. ''ECO'' covers the openings in more detail than rival single volume publications such as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giuoco Piano
The Giuoco Piano (Italian: "Quiet Game"; ), also called the Italian Opening, is a chess opening beginning with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Bc4 Bc5 "White aims to develop quickly – but so does Black. White can construct a pawn centre but in unfavourable conditions a centre which cannot provide a basis for further active play." The name Italian Game is used by some authors ; however, that name is also used to describe all openings starting 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4, including 3...Nf6 (the Two Knights Defence) and other less common replies. The Giuoco Piano is assigned codes C50 to C54 in the ''Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings''. History The Giuoco Piano is one of the oldest recorded openings. The Portuguese Damiano played it at the beginning of the 16th century and the Italian Greco played it at the beginning of the 17th century. The Giuoco Piano was popular through the 19th century, but modern refinements in defensive play have led most chess masters towards op ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Queen Sacrifice
In chess, a queen sacrifice is a move that sacrifices a queen in return for some compensation, such as a tactical or positional advantage. Queen sacrifice: real versus sham In his book ''The Art of Sacrifice in Chess'', Rudolf Spielmann distinguishes between ''real'' and ''sham'' sacrifices. A sham sacrifice leads to a and immediate benefit for the sacrificer, usually in the form of a quick checkmate (or perpetual check or stalemate if seeking a draw), or the recouping of the sacrificed after a forced . Since any amount of material can be sacrificed as long as checkmate will be achieved, the queen is not above being sacrificed as part of a combination. Possible reasons for a sham queen sacrifice include: * a forced checkmate after the opponent takes the queen; * more than adequate material compensation (say, a rook and two knights) after a forced continuation; * clearing the way for a pawn's promotion to a replacement queen; * the subsequent capture of the opponent's queen, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Check (chess)
In chess and similar games, check is a condition that occurs when a player's king is under threat of on the opponent's next turn. A king so threatened is said to be in check. A player must get out of check if possible by moving the king to a safe square, interposing a piece between the threatening piece and the king, or capturing the threatening piece. If the player cannot get out of check by any of these options, the game ends in checkmate, and the player loses. Players cannot make any move that puts their own king in check. Many chess variants feature check, such as shogi, xiangqi, and janggi. Overview A check is the result of a move that places the opposing king under an immediate threat of capture by one (or occasionally two) of the player's pieces. Making a move that checks is sometimes called "giving check". Even if a piece is pinned against the player's own king, it may still give check. For example, in the diagrammed position, White has just played Be4+, simultane ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joseph Henry Blackburne
Joseph Henry Blackburne (10 December 1841 – 1 September 1924) was a British chess player. Nicknamed "The Black Death", he dominated the British scene during the latter part of the 19th century. Blackburne learned the game at the relatively late age of 17 or 18, but he quickly became a strong player and went on to develop a professional chess career that spanned over 50 years. At one point he was one of the world's leading players, with a string of tournament victories behind him, and popularised chess by giving simultaneous and blindfold displays around the country. Blackburne also published a collection of his own games. Biography Joseph Henry Blackburne was born in Manchester in December 1841. He learned how to play draughts as a child, but when he was aged 17 or 18, he heard about Paul Morphy's exploits around Europe, and he switched to playing chess: Blackburne joined the Manchester Chess Club in 1861. In July 1861 he lost 5–0 in a match with Manchester's stronges ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kenneth Whyld
Kenneth Whyld (6 March 1926 – 11 July 2003) was a British chess author and researcher, best known as the co-author (with David Hooper) of ''The Oxford Companion to Chess'', a single-volume chess reference work in English. Whyld was a strong amateur chess player, taking part in the British Chess Championship in 1956 and winning the county championship of Nottinghamshire. He subsequently made his living in information technology while writing books on chess and researching its history. As well as ''The Oxford Companion to Chess'', Whyld was the author of other reference works such as ''Chess: The Records'' (1986), an adjunct to the ''Guinness Book of Records'' and the comprehensive ''The Collected Games of Emanuel Lasker'' (1998). He also researched more esoteric subjects, resulting in works such as ''Alekhine Nazi Articles'' (2002) on articles in favour of the Nazi Party supposedly written by world chess champion Alexander Alekhine, and the bibliographies ''Fake Automata i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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