Editorial
by Miles Patterson
Welcome to the September 2025 ACF Newsletter. Thanks for all the contributions for this issue. Please note the ACF request for nominations for the 2025 awards and medals, and the deadlines.
Please note: The ACF Newsletter is a long post. If you are reading this in email, please scroll down to the end and open the entire message, so you can enjoy the full content.
ACF Notices
ACF MEDALS & AWARDS - NOMINATIONS INVITED
Australian Players-of-the-Year 2025
Nominations are invited for potential winners of the following medals, to be awarded to Australian players who have made the greatest impact during 2025. Recipients are offered financial assistance to participate in significant forthcoming national or international events.
Steiner Medal and Steiner-Holt Award – Australian Player of the Year 2025
This medal is to be awarded to the Australian player who has made the greatest impact, not necessarily the highest-rated – it is for the most notable achievement during 2025. There is no limit to the number of times the Steiner or the Viner medal may be won by the same player.
Viner Medal & Award – Australian Senior Player of the Year 2025
On the same basis as the Steiner Medal, the Viner Medal is limited to nominees born in or before 1975.
Arlauskas Medal & Romanas Arlauskas Award – Australian Under-16 Player of the Year 2025
The Arlauskas Medal, also awarded on the same basis as the Steiner Medal, is limited to nominees born in or after 2009. The Arlauskas Medal and Romanas Arlauskas Award may not be won by the same person more than twice.
Previous recipients are listed at https://auschess.org.au/honour-boards/
Koshnitsky Medal
Nominations are also invited for the Koshnitsky medal, awarded annually for outstanding contributions to Australian chess administration at a national or a state level. The medal is a lifetime achievement award, not limited to accomplishments or services during a particular period and not awarded more than once to the same person. Links to lists of previous recipients may be seen at: https://auschess.org.au/honour-boards/
Nominations
Nominations need not be from among a State's own members or residents. A separate document or message containing the following should be provided in respect of each nominee:
• name in full (correctly spelt); • contact details (phone, email, postal address);
• a citation describing relevant achievements, suitable for reading when the medal is presented or published thereafter;
• anything else relevant to the nomination.
Please address email nominations to awards@auschess.org.au
Deadlines
Koshnitsky medal nominations – Saturday 1 November 2025.
Player-of-the-Year 2025 medals & awards – Monday 5 January 2026.
Nominators must retain copies of documents submitted and phone 0409 525 963 or (03) 9787 7974 if not acknowledged 24 hours after expected delivery time.
COMING INTERNATIONAL EVENTS
Please address registrations of interest and other inquiries concerning the following forthcoming events to selections_director@auschess.org.au and phone 0499 996 559 or 0409 525 963 if not acknowledged within 48 hours. Copies of inquiries relating to events limited to Junior, Youth, Cadet or other under-age categories must also be sent to juniors_coordinator@auschess.org.au
To enable time for local selection procedures and related purposes, ACF application deadlines can be significantly earlier than deadlines indicated in organisers’ published regulations.
Asian Schools Chess Championship 2025
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. October 24 to November 2. Time control: Standard, Rapid and Blitz. Eligibility: Birth years (or later): Under-7 2018; U-9 2016; U-11 2014; U-13 2012; U-15 2010; U-17 2008. Links: Registration of Interest Form Here Rules & Regulations Here ACF Deadline: 16 September 2025. Participants requiring visas must register interest asap.
Commonwealth Championships 2025
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 8 to 17 November 2025. Time control: Standard and Blitz. Eligibility: Players from National Chess Federations of Commonwealth Countries. Prize groups include: Open, Women, Junior, Girls and Veteran (born on or before 1 January 1965). Under-age group birth years (or later) are: Under-8 2017; U-10 2015; U-12 2013; U-14 2011; U-16 2009; U-18 2007; U-20 2005. ACF Registration Form Here Event Website Here. ACF Deadline: 24 September 2025.
Asian Youth Championships 2025
Bangkok, Thailand. 20 to 30 November 2025. Time control: Standard, Rapid and Blitz. ACF Registration Form Here Info & Invitation Here. ACF Deadline: 1 October 2025.
AUSTRALIAN REPRESENTATIVE INTERNATIONAL JUNIORS CHESS TOURNAMENTS
Any inquiries can be sent to ACF Juniors Coordinator, Mr Hui Lam Teh tehhuilam@gmail.com, with cc to ACF Selections Director Tom Saltmarsh selections_director@auschess.org.au.
2026 AUSTRALIAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
Dates: 5th to 15th of January. Venue: The University of Sydney (On-site accommodation available - Book before 30th Sep). More details here
FIDE RATING SUBMISSIONS
Note that events for FIDE ratings that are completed in the last seven days of the month need to be submitted to ACF FIDE Ratings Officer Bill Gletsos for ratings immediately so that any issues with them can be resolved in time for events to be rated in that month. Also note that intended changes of names or dates of FIDE-rated events need to be notified immediately as they may affect the event's rating status. Note also that all FIDE rated events must be submitted for ACF ratings – no exceptions.
FIDE RATED EVENT REGISTRATION
Australian tournaments to be FIDE rated must be advised to the ACF FIDE Ratings Officer at least 40 days prior to the start of the tournament for tournaments where norms are available and at least 7 days prior to the start of the tournament for all other tournaments. Where these conditions are not met, the decision whether to register it or not is solely at the discretion of the ACF FIDE Ratings Officer.
FIDE ID NUMBER REGISTRATION
FIDE has issued a warning that they will not accept tournaments for FIDE rating where those tournaments contain players who do not have FIDE ID numbers. Although new Australian players can be registered by the ACF FIDE Ratings Officer, this does not apply to new players from overseas. Therefore, organisers should not immediately accept the entries of overseas players who lack FIDE ID numbers to FIDE rated tournaments; instead, those players should be required to first obtain a FIDE ID from their own national federation.
Tournaments submitted that include foreign players who do not have ID numbers end up not being FIDE rated. Organisers need to confirm prior to the start of the tournament that all players without a FIDE ID number are either Australian citizens or have a permanent residency visa.
Players without ID numbers should only be submitted as Australian if they are citizens or are a permanent residency visa holder; if a player is registered under the wrong country, they may incur transfer costs later. For further information/clarification contact the ACF FIDE Ratings Officer Bill Gletsos via fide_ratings@auschess.org.au.
ACF FUNDING SUPPORT PROGRAM
The application deadline for activities commencing between 1 March 2026 and 30 August 2026 is 31 December 2025. Application forms and related information are available on request to executive@auschess.org.au.
RECENT BEREAVEMENTS
Chess communities in Australia and beyond have been saddened recently by the news of the passing of several noted and respected members of whose contributions have been acknowledged in various forums, from which the following have been taken.
Norm Braybrook – 15 June 2025
Norm was a key figure of Redcliffe Chess Club from the very beginning, from around 1960, and for over 40 years was the face of Redcliffe Chess Club, running the weekly Club nights and being the chief organizer of the Peninsula Open Weekender from the very beginning. This weekend, June 28 and June 29, sees the 60th running of this event! Without Norm's efforts, it may never have begun!
We will hold a moment’s silence for Norm before R1 starts at the 60th Peninsula Open tomorrow morning.
Colin will let me know the date when the 'Celebration of Norm's Life' will be held and I will post the details on Chesschat.
Our next Wednesday night classical chess tournament, a 7 round Swiss, was to be called the Norm Braybrooke Classic, from Wednesday night July 16 to Wednesday night August 27. It will now be renamed the Norm Braybrooke Memorial. Colin and the Redcliffe Chess Club Inc will present trophies to the Winner and the Best Junior of this now extra special event the week after it finishes, on Wednesday night September 3.
All those who knew Norm so well at Redcliffe Chess Club and from the Chess Association of Queensland are going to miss him greatly but remember him so fondly.
from former CAQ President, Mark Stokes
Felix Wyss – Early June 2025
Similar condolences are also recorded in respect of the late Felix Wyss, the most senior member of the Melbourne Chess Club, whose passing was reported by the Club on 9 June 2025.
Felix had been a staunch and respected senior member of the club for the greater part of his 89 years, and a regular participant in open events in country Victoria and interstate, including the 2025 Begonia Open at Ballarat, where he was ranked mid-field, and more recently the Melbourne Chess Club’s City of Melbourne Open Championship.
A video recording of Felix’s funeral can be seen here.
Gerrit Hartland – 18 July 2025
On 23 July 2025, Melbourne newspaper ‘The Age’ reported the death on 18 July 2025 of former ACF and former CV President, Gerrit Hartland, at the age of 94.
At club level, Gerrit was a dominant leader of the Box Hill Chess Club for several decades, overseeing the club’s relocation on several occasions and inspiring the development that has put the club among the most active and successful in Australia.
During his decades as a senior administrator at state and national levels, Gerrit coordinated visits to Australia by international notables including FIDE President and former World Champion Dr Max Euwe, former FIDE Presidents Fridrik Olafsson and Florencio Campomanes, and leading players too numerous to mention. Other accomplishments include his success in persuading the Federal Government to provide financial support for the ACF during the 1980s and his persistent efforts to preserve the special status of the Australian Championship.
In recognition of his accomplishments and prolonged service, Gerrit was among the earliest recipients of the Australian Chess Federation’s lifetime service award, the Koshnitsky medal. He was also granted honorary life memberships of the Box Hill Chess Club, Victorian Chess Association (now CV), and the Australian Chess Federation.
The Council’s deepest sympathies to Gerrit’s family, friends, clubmates and all who are saddened by his passing are here recorded.
Brian Jones 1947-2025
FM Brian Jones has passed away in Sydney, at the age of 78. Born in the UK in 1947, Brian was a significant figure on the Australian chess scene after moving to Australia in 1987 with his wife Margaret and two children Lee and Nancy (who both became Australian junior champions shortly after their arrival). Originally working in the IT industry, Brian turned his passion for chess into a full-time business (Australian Chess Enterprises) as well as being a chess administrator and tournament organiser.
Bringing his experience from the UK chess scene to the somewhat less developed Australian environment, Brian immediately began to make improvements. An early adopter of technology, Brian helped introduce the use of electronic clocks to the Australian chess scene, lending his stock of DGT clocks to organisers, before clubs were in a position to purchase their own. When the Australian National University began a series of matches between humans and computers (Carbon v Silicon) he provided a number of strong programs for the Silicon team. He also introduced a number of new tournament formats to Australia, including knockout events, and single day rapid events, which he had organised back in England. He was the Chief Organiser of the 2003 Australian Open Chess Championship in Penrith, and included a number of format changes that remain till this day. He then created the Sydney International Open in Parramatta, an important addition to the Australian Chess tournament scene, and organised the event from 2007 until 2014.
On the International stage, he was a great contributor to the development of chess in the Oceania region. He was the FIDE Zone 3.6 President and founded the Oceania Chess Confederation. Through his efforts he helped countries such as Palau, Guam and the Solomon Islands join FIDE. He travelled to many Pacific federations, both as a tournament participant, and as an administrator. He was the Team Captain for Papua New Guinea at both the 2008 Chess Olympiad (Dresden) and 2010 Chess Olympiad (Khanty-Mansiysk), and was a Councillor on the FIDE Development Commission.
In 2003 he began publishing Chess Australia (later Australasian Chess) which was the national magazine for Australia and ran until 2014. A labour of love for Brian, it remains the last printed national magazine for Australian tournament chess. During this time, he also resurrected the Australian Grand Prix series, obtaining sponsorship from both the Myer family and well-known Malaysian chess sponsor, Dato Tan Chin Nam.
Later in life he developed an interest in Correspondence Chess and served as the International Secretary for the Correspondence Chess League of Australia. Always the innovator, Brian organised the 2014 International Correspondence Chess Federations congress in Sydney, as a way of highlighting the contribution that Australia had made to international CC. He also pioneered the move away from postal chess to server based CC, introducing a number of new events and formats, including the very popular Bicycle (non engine) events. He was also the publisher of the Australian Correspondence Chess Quarterly, the official magazine of the CCLA.
In later years poor health curtailed his participation in chess events, but he still visited important events in Sydney and Canberra. He became a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 2022 for his services to chess. He will be fondly remembered by both the Australian and international chess community and will be missed by wife Margaret, son Lee, daughter Nancy and son in law Gary Lane, and his grandchildren Jasmine and Ryan.
Shaun Press
News from the States / Territories
Australian Capital Territory
Australian Capital Territory Chess Association (ACTCA)
Upcoming Events
2025 Vikings Weekender
21-23 November at Erindale. Details to come.
2026 Australian Junior Chess Championships
17-25 January, St Edmund's College, Canberra. More information here
Street Chess
Every Saturday. From 10.45 to 2.30. King O’Malley’s in Civic.
More information here and results/photos here
New South Wales
New South Wales Chess Association Inc (NSWCA)
Recent Events
NSWCA August Weekender
1st Bayasgalan Khishigbaatar 5.5/6, =2nd Willis Lo and Ted Power 5, =4th Pieter Bierkens, Arthur Huynh, Daniel Melamed and John Stuart Plant 4.5, 115 players
Under 2000 – 1800, =1st Vihaan Anup Kumar, Eric Liu and Daniel Wang
Under 1800 – 1600 =1st Oladoyin Fasakin, Nathan He, Yuan Huang and Anup Kumar Siva Sankaran
Under 1600- 1400, 1st Vicky Qian =2nd Kamal Jain, Emmet Murphy, Mark Patterson, Alan Tankel and Maximilian Windsor
Under 1400 1st Benjamin Dorrian, 2nd Karunya Gorantla
Purdy Big Money Blitz
1st IM Igor Bjelobrk, 8/9, 2nd= GM Anton Smirnov, CM Tri Kien Ke, 7.5. 70 players
Upcoming Events
2025 NSWCA October Weekender
4-6 October, Sydney Academy of Chess Level 2 Suite 2 1-17 Elsie Street Burwood, NSW. More details here
2025 NSW Blitz Championship
23 November, Burwood.
2026 Australian Chess Championships
5-15 January 2026, Belinda Hutchinson Building of the University of Sydney's Business School. More information here
Northern Territory
Northern Territory Chess Association
Upcoming Events
Queensland
Chess Association of Queensland
Recent Events
Arianne Caoili Memorial Weekend 2025
Open Division
=1st: IM Anish Vivekananthan and GM Zong-Yuan Zhao, 6.5/7
3rd: FM Jayden Ooi 6/7
Rating Prizes
U1600: 1st= Zining (Matthew) Jia, Daniel Woodrow, Ashwin Ramanathan, 5/7
U1200: 1st= Brian Yang, Pradeep Murthy, Ethan Wu, 4/7
=Best Unrated: Aidan McDonald and Cheuk Lun Tang, 4/7
Best Woman: Dahamsa Wickramaarachchi 4.5/7
BLITZ
Open
1st: IM Anish Vivekananthan 8.5/9, 2nd: GM Zong-Yuan Zhao 7.5/9, 3rd: FM Juan Camilo Tirado 7/9
Rating Group A 1st= Shaun Curtis, Oliver McCarthy 6/9
Rating Group B 1st: Ryo Noda 6/9, 2nd: Jonah Awad 5/9
Special Prizes
Best Unrated: Craig Brown4.5/9, Best Woman: Abigail Rowe 4.5/9
RAPID
Open
=1st: GM Zong-Yuan Zhao, IM Anish Vivekananthan 6.5/7, 3rd: FM Jayden Ooi 6/7
Rating Group A (U1600, shared) Zining (Matthew) Jia, Daniel Woodrow, Ashwin Ramanathan 5/7
Rating Group B (U1200, shared) Brian Yang, Pradeep Murthy, Ethan Wu 4/7
Special Prizes
Best Unrated (shared): Aidan McDonald, Cheuk Lun Tang 4/7
Best Woman: Dahamsa Wickramaarachchi 4.5/7
2025 Great Barrier Reef Chess Open
By Shaun Press
Top seed GM Jacek Stopa finished 1st in the 2025 Great Barrier Reef Open, with a perfect 6/6. Although he was the clear favourite in the 47 player field, he still had to work hard in some games to collect maximum points. His Round 3 game against Miles Patterson was heading for a draw until Patterson relaxed at a crucial moment, while his final round win against second seed Riccardo Mandolini involved a tricky middle game position before resolving into a winning ending for Stopa.
Mandolini was part of a group of players who tied for 2nd on 5/6. Unrated David Ball had a fantastic start to tournament chess reaching 5 points with a win over Miles Patterson, as well as beating CM David Castor earlier in the event. Dexter Newcombe was the third player on 5/6, submarining his way through the tournament, losing his 1st round but reeling off 5 straight wins, including a win over Shaun Press in Round 5.
The Cairns Chess Club organised a great event and were rewarded with a big turnout. It was pleasing to see a large number of local players take part, as well as a lot of players from North Queensland. Plans are already underway to run the event next year (at the same time) and I would highly recommend playing next year.
1st Place: GM Jacek Stopa
=2nd-3rd: Riccardo Mandolini, David Ball, Dexter Newcombe
Best Adult Female: Neta Arad. Best Senior >50: Tony Weller
Junior Female: Lilian Zhang. Junior Male: Adrian Perera
Upcoming Events
2025 Leo Wilkinson Memorial
Rothwell, September 27-28. More details here
2025 Byron Capital Darling Downs Open incorporating QLD Championships
October 2 - 6, Toowoomba Grammar School, Margaret Street, Toowoomba. More information here
The Bundaberg Classic
November 1 - 2, Middle School, St Luke’s Anglican School, Mezger Street, Kalkie, Bundaberg. More details here
2025 Christmas Special
13-14 December, Grace Lutheran College, Buchanan St, Rothwell. Enquiries: Text / phone / email Gail YOUNG on 0411 704 815 / qwclqwcl@gmail.com
Oceania Junior and Youth Championship 2025
13-17 December, Brisbane. More details here
South Australia
South Australian Chess Association Inc (SACA)
Recent Events
SA Rapid Chess Championship 2025
1st place: Goran Srdic 6.5, 2nd place: Ethan Retnaraja 6, 3rd place: CM Tarush Jindal, Varun Purushotham & Mark Lian 5, 37 players.
Best under 1600: Mark Lian 5, Best Under 1300: James Moore & Vir Nagpal 4,
Best Unrated: Kiem Gia Hung Tran 4.
Upcoming Events
Hosworth Foundation FIDE Grand Prix 2025 and Hosworth Foundation FIDE High Flyers 2025
4-6 October, Chess Centre of South Australia, 10 Ranelagh Street, Adelaide. Details: Hosworth Foundation FIDE Grand Prix, Hosworth Foundation FIDE High Flyers
Tasmania
Tasmanian Chess Association Inc (TCA)
Recent Events
Tasmanian Rapid Championship
Rapid Open: 1st Will Rumley 7/7, 2nd Carl Gorka 6, 3rd= Andrew Martini, Kevin Bonham 4.5, 20 players.
Rapid U1500: 1st= Yien Zheng, Joshua McAdie, Bevin Jayathilake 5.5/7, 32 players.
Upcoming Events
Huon Chess Festival
6-9 November 2025, Scout and Guide Hall, 8 Heron Street, Huonville, TAS
Victoria
Recent Events
2025 Best in the West
1st IM James Morris 5/5, 2nd= FM Cheng Dai, CM Rhehyansh Annapureddy, 4.5. 28 players.
Upcoming Events
2025 Victorian Junior Rapid Championship
Schedule: Sunday 21st September 2025
Time: 11am registration for 12:00pm start.
Playing Venue: Glen Waverley Secondary College School. O'Sullivan Road, Glen Waverley VIC 3150 More details here
2025 Victorian Women’s Championship
27-28 September. Bingo Chess Club (Suite 1/207 Blackburn Road, Mount Waverley).
2025 Australasian Masters
Looking for potential players. Once again we are organising our traditional Australasian Masters IM Norm round robin tournament in Melbourne. 12th to 20th December at Melbourne Chess Club. Webpage with more details here. If you are interested in taking part please let the organiser, Leonid Sandler, know via email leonidsandlerchess@gmail.com
2025 Victorian Blitz Championship
21st December at Melbourne Chess Club. After the Australasian Masters!
Western Australia
Chess Association of Western Australia Inc (CAWA)
Recent Events
Upcoming Events
2025 Perth International Open
26-29 September, Manning Hall Community Centre, 2 Conochie Cres, Manning WA.
New Zealand
New Zealand Chess News (newzealandchess.nz)
Recent Events
16-17, 23-24 August Auckland Double Weekends August 2025
1st equal: FM Daqi Mao 1st equal: Malcolm Crack 1st equal: Yanbo Jin 1st equal: FM Alphaeus Ang
Upcoming Events
6-7, 13-14 September Auckland Double Weekends September 2025
24-27 September South Island Championships 2025
27 September I Love Chess Rapid September 2025
28 September South Island Rapid 2025
10-12 October NZ Women’s Championship 2025
25-27 October Merv Morrison Memorial 2025
2 November Summit Rapid Championship 2025
7-9 November NZ Senior Championship 2025
16 November I Love Chess Rapid November 2025
22 November NZ Fischer-Random Championship 2025
2-11 January ACC Chess Festival 2026
2-12 January NZ Chess Congress 2026
15-21 January Bob Wade Masters 2026
24-26 January Auckland Anniversary Weekender 2026
6-8 February Auckland Waitangi Weekender 2026
28 February 20th Bay of Plenty Rapid 2026
International News
Upcoming Events
Japan Open 2025, Tokyo, 19-23 September 6th ASEAN+ Individual Chess Championships 2025, 2-10 November, Misamis Occidental, Philippines. Details here Commonwealth Chess Championship 2025, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 8-17 November. More details here Hong Kong International Open 2025, 23-29 December
Check details via the FIDE Chess Calendar
Memorable week in Washington D.C.
By IM Leonid Sandler
World Schools Teams Championship 2025 was held in Washington D.C. the capital of USA. Hosted at the picturesque Episcopal High School during school holidays allowed several hundred players from nearly 50 countries to enjoy local hospitality in fantastic locations.
Each country could only field one team with a few exceptions given to the host nation USA (they had 4 teams). This event was organised by FIDE in conjunction with the International School Chess Federation (ISCF) and their president Timur Turlov who is one of the richest businessmen in Kazakhstan with a net worth around USD7.3billion according to Forbes magazine. Turlov is also CEO of Freedom Holding Corporation and President of Kazakhstan Chess Federation. All invited teams had their expenses paid including air fares!
Kazakhstan was represented by six teams from different parts of this vast country. All members of each team must be students from the same school. From the very beginning the favorites who were teams from India and Kazakhstan showed their class. These teams met in round 5 leaders and the Indian Team won 2.5-1.5. All players in that match were titled (3 IM's, 3 FM's, 1 WFM and 1 CM). Not bad at all for school teams.
Unfortunately no Australian School Teams were able to take part in this exciting event but it was nice to see our neighbours with a team from Wellington College, Wellington, New Zealand. They performed very well against strong competition! Full results can be seen here.
The teams and players in the tournament were very sporting and as a member of the appeals committee, I was pretty much unemployed with no appeals lodged.
A Smart Moves Summit was held over two days in conjunction with the Championship with many interesting lectures and workshops presented.
Meeting for a nice lunch with an old friend and former team mate from Riga GM Alexander Shabalov who lives in the USA. Last time we met was 18 years ago!
He gave me a nice present, a new book about Mikhail Tal in Latvian language. I managed to read this book and polished my rusty Latvian language on the long flight back home to Melbourne.
Celebrating FIDE Women’s Month in Australia
By IM Leonid Sandler
I was very happy to be part of an excellent initiative from FIDE Women's Commission in August.
Please see the focus on Australia here and a worldwide summary here.
Study of the Month
White to play and win
Solution at the end of the newsletter.
Testing a Wellbeing Informed Performance Skills Inventory
Faculty of Education, The University of Melbourne
If you’re interested in developing your mental skills for performance, the Centre for Wellbeing Science (University of Melbourne) is offering you the opportunity to receive a personal performance profile that highlights the mental skills and practices that you are strongest in, and the ones that you could develop further. You will also be eligible to win one of ten $50 AUD gift cards
You can complete the questionnaire and receive your personal performance profile here:
https://q.surveys.unimelb.edu.au/jfe/form/SV_5tddou9KSggiTMq
Book Review
By IM Gary Lane
Associative Thinking
By Mikhal Shereshevsky, published by New In Chess, 304 pages.
How to form a plan by studying the games of masters.
The famous chess trainer explores the idea that there is more to life at the chessboard than trying to remember opening moves. Instead, he introduces us to a world of associative thinking which basically relies on studying “…the decision-making methods of the strongest chess players in the world.” It is an invitation to view instructive but fun games where a theme is repeated so that in similar positions, we can also grasp the idea. It sounds simple but actually works well thanks to entertaining snippets of games, which turns out to be an engaging way to go through an annotated game and learn something at the same time.
As you might expect Carlsen gets plenty of space as his exploits of turning a slightly better position into a certain victory are looked at closely. Other famous names include Spassky, Karpov and Nakamura amongst others, so it has the latest stars but also highlights the golden oldies.
The chapter headings such as “Benchmarks and errors, “Associative thinking in rook endings” and “Associative thinking in superior positions“, indicates that this is for a serious student who wants to improve their performance with some work. I particularly liked the sections on endgames with lots of prose to explain the thinking behind the decision before concrete analysis confirming the correct choice of moves.
I think someone studious would clearly benefit and certainly boost their Elo rating.
An excellent way to learn when to plan for attack and defence.
Looking Back
From The Northern Champion (Taree, NSW), Saturday 5 September 1925, under ‘Scientific and Useful’
Clocks For Chess Matches
As chess clocks—clocks for measuring time at chess matches—hour-glasses or sand-glasses were formerly used, but now specially constructed timepieces are in general use. One of these has two clocks fixed on the same level, with a small brass arm reaching from the top of one to the top of the other. This arm acts on a pivot, and can be brought down into actual contact with one clock at a time by a touch of the finger. When it is thus in contact, by an ingenious device the clock is stopped. The working of the clock during a match is simplicity itself. At the commencement of the match the hands of each clock point to 12. Then, at the call of “time to commence play,” the clock of the first player is started; then as soon as he makes his first move he stops his own clock, either by depressing it or touching the arm referred to, the same motion starting his opponent’s clock. So it goes on during the entire course of the game.
Links
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Vega or Orion only accepted for FIDE and ACF rating with effect 1 June 2021
Other FIDE endorsed pairing programs:
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Queensland Chess Association of Queensland Inc (CAQ)
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Victoria Chess Victoria Inc (CV)
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Junior Chess
West Australia See "Juniors" tab
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Correspondence Chess League of Australia
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Variants
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Blogs
chessexpress FM Shaun Press
chess.business/blog Gary Lane's Book Reviews
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Suppliers
Australian Chess Enterprises Richmond NSW
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Gambit Chess Supplies Harrington Park NSW
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Lakner Chess Perth SA
Northern Star Chess Balwyn North Vic
Sydney Academy of Chess Burwood NSW
Topchess Qld
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Chess Clubs
Australian Capital Territory
Australian Capital Territory Chess Association Inc (ACTCA)
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Street Chess Canberra Home Page Street Chess
New South Wales
New South Wales Chess Association Inc (NSWCA)
For details and links of NSW chess clubs, see: NSW Chess Association (nswca.org.au) chess clubs
Albury
Armidale
Bathurst Community Chess Club Inc.
Cabra-Vale Diggers Chess Club – Canley Vale
Campbelltown Collegians
Canterbury Bulldogs - Lakemba
Central Coast Leagues (aka Gosford)
Circular Quay Chess Club
Coffs Harbour Chess Club
Dooleys Lidcombe Catholic Club - Lidcombe
Dubbo
Ettalong
Harbord Diggers - Freshwater
Knightclub – Marrickville
Laurieton
Moree Chess Club
Newcastle District Chess Association
Norths (Chatswood) – Cammeray
NSW Junior Chess League (for players Under 18)
Optus Yes Chess Club – Macquarie Park
Orange NSW - Colour City Chess Club
Parramatta Chess Club
Penrith RSL Chess Club
Richmond Club Chess Club
Rooty Hill RSL
Ryde Eastwood – Rest Ryde
South Sydney Juniors Chess Club – Kingsford
St George -Kogarah
Sydney Academy of Chess – Burwood
Sydney Chess Club – Burwood
Tamworth Chess Club
University of NSW – Kensington
University of Sydney
UTS Chess Club – Ultimo
Wagga Chess Club
Wollongong Chess Club
New Zealand
New Zealand Chess Federation Inc (NZCF)
Mount Maunganui RSA Chess Club
Northern Territory
Northern Territory Chess Association
Queensland
Chess Association of Queensland Inc (CAQ)
Brisbane Woolloongabba
Bundaberg https://bundabergchessclub-com.webs.com/
Cairns Facebook
Gold Coast Coomera/Burleigh Heads
Logan City Rochedale
Magnetic Island magneticislandchessclub@gmail.com
Mackay Mackay Chess Club
Noosa Shire Tewantin Contact Peter Cam: noosachess@gmail.com
City of Redcliffe Rothwell
Suncoast Buderim Suncoast Chess Club https://suncoastchess.com.au/
Springfield Ipswich Chess Club Springfield Lakes. Contact Tyson Walker, president@springfieldchessclub.com.au
Toowoomba Contact: Sam Buckley sam@toowoombachessclub.com.au
Townsville Pimlico
South Australia
South Australian Chess Association Inc (SACA)
Adelaide University North Terrace
LeFevre Queenstown
Marion Cultural Oaklands Park
Modbury Modbury North
West Torrens North Plympton
Tasmania
Tasmanian Chess Association Inc (TCA)
Burnie Havenview
Devonport East Devonport
Hobart Sandy Bay
Launceston Kings Meadow
Victoria
Chess Victoria Inc (CV)
Bandicoot Craigieburn
Box Hill Ashwood
Canterbury Junior Ashwood
Chess Artists Caulfield
Hobsons Bay Altona
Melbourne Fitzroy
Western Australia
Chess Association of Western Australia Inc (CAWA)
Albany Chess Club e-mail: akritaspearce556@gmail.com
Rockingham City Chess Connection e-mail: gregburgess1949@yahoo.com.au
South Perth Senior Citizens Social Chess Club Tel: 9367 9880
Southern Suburbs Chess Club (Facebook page)
UWA Chess Association (Facebook page)
Crobs Coffee and Chess (Facebook page)
ACF Personnel
The Australian Chess Federation Inc is incorporated under the ACT Associations Incorporation Act 1991 and is recognised by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs as the governing chess organisation in Australia.
ACF COUNCIL
State Association Delegates
NSWCA Delegate: Richard Gastineau-Hills nswcouncillor@auschess.org.au
CV Delegate: Walter Wolffs walterwolffs.ca@gmail.com
CAQ Delegate: Michael D’Arcy michaeldarc@gmail.com.au
SACA Delegate: Misheck Muza sacouncillor@auschess.org.au
TCA Delegate: Tom Saltmarsh tascouncillor@auschess.org.au
ACTCA Delegate: Cam Cunningham actcouncillor@auschess.org.au
CAWA Delegate: Tim Hare wacounsellor@auschess.org.au
NTCA Delegate: Chris Depasquale agechess@ozemail.com.au
Executive Committee
President: Gary Wastell president@auschess.org.au
Deputy President: Bill Gletsos deputy president@auschess.org.au
Vice-President: Kevin Bonham vice president1@auschess.org.au
Vice-President: Andrew Hardegen vice president2@auschess.org.au
Secretary: Rob Watson secretary@auschess.org.au
Treasurer: Bob Keast treasurer@auschess.org.au
COUNCIL-APPOINTED PERSONNEL
Arbiter Training Director: Peter Tsai chess@t-s-a-i.com
Archives Director: Mahesh Kulkarni sellaus14@gmail.com
Assistant Secretary: Mahesh Kulkarni sellaus14@gmail.com
Assistant Treasurer: Bill Gletsos asst treasurer@auschess.org.au
Auditor: Ross Hamilton auditor@auschess.org.au
Equipment Coordinator: Bob Keast equipment officer@auschess.org.au
FIDE Delegate & Admin Officer: Dr. Kevin Bonham fide delegate@auschess.org.au
FIDE Ratings Officer: Bill Gletsos fide ratings@auschess.org.au
Government Relations Director: Kuanysh Batyrbekov Kuanysh.Batyrbekov@anz.com
International Ambassador: Anastasia Sorokina sorokinachess@gmail.com
Juniors Coordinator: Hui Lam Teh tehhuilam@gmail.com
Medals & Awards Convenor: Gary Wastell awards@auschess.org.au
National Ratings Officer: Bill Gletsos acfratings@auschess.org.au
National Ratings Officer: Graham Saint g_saint@tpg.com.au
Newsletter Editor: Keong Ang auschessnews@chessnews.asia
Newsletter Editor: Miles Patterson newsletter editor@auschess.org.au
Public Officer (incorporation): Cam Cunningham public_officer@auschess.org.au
Publicity Director: Paul Power publicity@auschess.org.au
Selections Director: Tom Saltmarsh selections director@auschess.org.au
Trophies Officer: Terrence Tang terencetjc@gmail.com
Webmaster: David Esmonde webmaster@auschess.org.au
Annual Appointments
All Council appointments terminate each year at the first Council meeting after 30 June, when incumbents and new applicants are eligible for reappointment. Offers to serve in any of the above positions need to be written (email acceptable) and emailed to executive@auschess.org.au.
Applicants should phone 0409 525 963 or (03) 9787 7974 if an application has not been acknowledged within 48 hours of transmission.
Solution to Study of the Month
White to play and win
Solution:
1 Bd8+ Kf5 2 Ne7+ Kf4 3 Bc7+ Ke3 4 Bb6+ QxB6 5 Nd5+ and 6 Nxb6
(Alexey Troitzky, 1934)
Newsletter Article Contributions
Please email the editor if there is something you would like published in the next edition of this newsletter.
Examples of articles:
Upcoming chess event.
Results of a chess event that was completed since the last newsletter was published.
Any information that is chess related, especially Australian chess, that could be interesting.