In chessy news, the Biel Festival is underway. Biel, Switzerland is a beautiful place. It would be fun to participate in something like this. Next year? Hard. It would be at the same time at the priests conference held by the St. Paul Center.
Fabiano Caruana won the Zagreb Rapid and Blitz and matched Magnus Carlsen’s 27 points record. My guy Wesley So would up in a three-way tie for second along with MVL and “Puer””. Ian Nepomniachtchi had a rough go. A couple days ago, in a blitz with Wesley, he raised a fuss because he ran out of time (aka “flagged”). He blamed Wesley for having knocked over a couple of pieces and replacing them. However, the video shows that he just simply flagged. Nepo also accused Wesley of doing this before to him, as if it were a planned accident. Yesterday, when Nepo and Wesley played, Nepo – all caught on camera of course – purposely plowed into Wesley’s pieces, which had to be reset. Wesley smiled and then beat him.
NB: I’ll hold comments with solutions ’till the next day so there won’t be “spoilers” for others.
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VF, JL, MR, DVDH, DC, LG, MMcM, MH, SB, PG, HL, MM,
Meanwhile, David Bowie and Catherine Deneuve playing chess on the set of The Hunger in 1983.
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San Clemente?
1. Q-h4
If . . . . . . . g5×h4
2. R-g2#
Otherwise (including g5-g4)
2. Q×h5#
William: Good guess! However, it is not San Clemente.
I’ll post tomorrow something which will have a clue if you know how to dig into it and search around!
There are always fliers involved with chess; and by that I mean mortals frustrated that they cannot manipulate the matter of their created world, but attempt to constantly.
They are typically the ones who don’t understand the difference between removing a King and stalemating him. Or understanding the pride of the King within themselves.
The avoiding of distractions and rather developing all pieces, or even promotions, which may serve a cause, has been a historical real-life punctuated reality, often a bloody one (indeed akin to physically shoving things and people to supposed oblivion); and often with the outcome being determinative or subsequently reflected upon by a moral standard.
This is why chess teaches, but it is limited by the parameters within which it seeks, or presumes, to teach, even regarding patience and sacrifice.