Sweden is now a regulated market, which means that as a player you can only play at casinos with a license. See all regulated casinos in Sweden by Mr casinova.
There are few chess TV programs in the world. Probably my favorite one is "World Chess News" brought to the public by my friends from Sweden - "the Krzymowski clan": Adriana, Antonia, Amelia, Alfred and Albert. They have an impressive record: the first episode has been released in Swedish in 2004, now the show is also available in English, and today's episode is #292!
In the news today:
Pogonina vs the World (main story)
Opening school
News: Asia Continental Chess Championship - 14th Neckar Open - Bosna 2010 - Summer Cup 2010 - Doeberl Cup - Philadelphia Chess Open - San Sebastian - La Roda Torneo - Estonian Chess Championship
Chess puzzle
Chess history (Bobby Fischer - Part 3)
I love this show & watch it every week. Hope you will also enjoy it!
White is clearly ahead being 3 pawns up, but how do theywrap up the game? This endgame requires knowledge of a few typical endgame positions. Let's see if you can figure out what the solution is.
Now you can play chess with other visitors of Pogonina.com right at the website (in the "Play Chess" section)! Different time controls are supported, watch mode is available, many other nice features as well. Updates are coming too!
I will also be showing up at the playing zone to socialize, play, hold contests & exhibition matches, etc.
Thanks to Adam Berent for the idea and implementation.
Seven more Q&As this week (feel free to send me new ones):
Q1: What do you think about abolishing women's titles?
A1: I believe that currently women's titles serve as an additional motivation for girls. Thus I don't see anything wrong or sexist with them. Probably in the future, when we might have more strong female players, there will be only universal titles.
Q2: How do you memorize so many openings? A2: I don't have such a great memory for openings and memorize key ideas, piece placements and most critical refutations. Everything else can be found over the board, if you are a good player.
Q3: What was the largest chess prize you ever won?
A3: Prizes in women's chess are rather modest as compared to men's. I think it was 6,000 (about $8,000) at European Championship last year. Btw, there's a poll at Pogonina.com about this issue (see left panel of the website) - feel free to vote.
Q4: Do you want your kid to become a chess grandmaster? A4: I want him to choose his occupation himself. If he likes chess, then why not; if he doesn't, I won't be trying to talk him into it.
Q5: I suck at Math, is it possible for me to play chess well? A5: It seems that the relationship between Math skills and chess is strongly exagerrated. I myself and many of my friends are pure humanists, and it doesn't prevent us from playing.
Q6: Should I stay at the board during all the game? A6: While some people try to make the most of it and keep thinking even when it's the opponent's turn, I believe this approach is not suitable for most players. That way you often waste a lot of mental and physical energy ("what if he goes there?!") and then see a totally different move! Being surprised and tired, you are likely to blunder. Therefore, when my opponent is pondering his/her move, I prefer to relax a bit, take a walk, drink some tea, etc.
Q7: Can you tell me the strongest line against the Sicilian? A7: There are no "the lines" for humans. Unlike chess engines, we are not fighting for ethereal 0.05 of a pawn each move. Depending on your chess tastes you may choose a lot of different options which are all more or less equal.
