Chess Blog

Caruana leads alone on 6/9 as Carlsen beats Firouzja - 9 21/01/2020
Magnus Carlsen beat joint Tata Steel Masters leader Alireza Firouzja in round 9 with black in a Berlin Defence to move within striking distance of the lead. Fabiano Caruana leads the event alone after a drew with the black against Nikita Vitiugov in one of three quick draws in the Masters, the others being Anand-Dubov […]
Mark Crowther
Caruana joins Firouzja in the lead of the Tata Steel Masters on 5.5/8 - 8 19/01/2020
Fabiano Caruana one a game of fluctuating fortunes against Viswanathan Anand to join Alireza Firouzja in the lead of the Tata Steel Masters going into the second rest day. Magnus Carlsen and Jan-Krzysztof both won their first games of the event after 7 draws. Caruana was pressing for a long time against Anand in a […]
Mark Crowther
Alireza Firouzja leads the Tata Steel Masters on 5/7 after beating Jeffery Xiong - 7 18/01/2020
16 year old Alireza Firouzja leads the Tata Steel Masters alone on 5 points after 7 of the 13 rounds. Can it really be that this young player will be able to win his first super-tournament? He has certainly already shown himself to be a very, very special talent. Firouzja outplayed Jeffery Xiong on the […]
Mark Crowther
So and Firouzja continue to lead the Tata Steel Masters after 6 Rounds - 6 17/01/2020
Wesley So and Alireza Firouzja lead the Tata Steel Masters on 4/6 after the event returned to Wijk aan Zee after the only away day of this year's event in Eindhoven. Wesley So played the rare 8.a4 in a main line Catalan System which was followed by 8...Bd6 which was a novelty from his opponent […]
Mark Crowther
Firouzja joins So in the lead on 3.5/5 in the Tata Steel Masters - 5 16/01/2020
The fifth round of the Tata Steel Masters took place in the Philips Stadion of PSV in Eindhoven. By the finish of the round Alireza Firouzja had joined Wesley So in the lead on 3.5/5. Firouzja beat Anish Giri in the longest game of the day. An interesting Queen's Gambit with 3...Be7 looked to be […]
Mark Crowther
Carlsen goes to 111 games without defeat; So leads the Masters with 3/4 - 4 15/01/2020
Magnus Carlsen survived a very dangerous opening surprise in the Two Knights defence against Jorden Van Foreest in the fourth round of the Tata Steel Masters. Carlsen needed to avoid a loss to to set a new record of 111 undefeated games in the row, his last loss was to Shakhriyar Mamedyarov in July 2018. […]
Mark Crowther

ECF

Chess Congress Online Entry software 20/01/2020
The ECF is promoting a software application to English tournament chess organisers to help them manage entries, registration and payment online. The software, written by...
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RIP Robert Richmond (1956-2020) 16/01/2020
Robert Richmond, who will be well known to many players and organisers, has sadly passed away at the age of 63. He will be greatly...
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RIP Yoseph Helbawi 09/01/2020
We are deeply saddened to inform everyone that Yoseph Helbawi passed away just this last week, aged 25. Yoseph, or Yoz as he was affectionately...
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ECF Internet Chess Service now ready for use 09/01/2020
The ECF is pleased to announce that after much planning and several months of beta testing with a team of volunteers, the long awaited ECF...
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Membership doppelgängers – the sequel 06/01/2020
It has come to the office’s attention that many members who are nonplussed when it comes to renewing their memberships on the ECF/Azolve system are...
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ECF Office hours Christmas arrangements 22/12/2019
The ECF Offfice is now closed for Christmas and the New Year, and will re-open on 6th January 2020. However, while we will not be...
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