This post is taken from my Substack newsletter. If you like it, consider subscribing. The name is my own invention and it refers to the “trap” that arises after the following moves: 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.b3 g6 3.Bb2 Bg7 4.e3 0-0 5.d4, with ...
With the Candidates Tournament in Toronto underway, I'd like to share some inside information from the previous one in Madrid in 2022, especially as I had a priviledged position to follow it from. As I wrote in my blogpost, I had the privil...
The modern chess environment is not favourable for the common chess professional, who relies on playing opens and leagues to make a living. The general trend of sharply increased competition from the young generation (not only Indians) coupled w...
The following article is adapted from my Substack newsletter. During the previous summer, I participated in a match in the second division of the Spanish league and a rather peculiar incident occurred before the game against a Spanish FM. A se...
(Published on www.alexcolovic.com) Several months passed since Carlsen announced that he will not defend his title next year. The chess public accepted the fact and life moved on. In this post I'd like to give my view on the possible reasons ...
The following text is from my newsletter. You can subscribe to it here, using the yellow box. The match Fischer-Larsen in Denver 1971 is one of the most famous ones in chess history. It had never happened before, and it will never happen ag...
The following article is from my newsletter. If you like my writing, consider signing up using the friendly yellow box on the right side on my website. At the recently finished Grand Prix event in Berlin I served as a Fair Play Officer an...
The recently finished FIDE Grand Swiss had a lot of interesting games. I happened to be present in Riga for several rounds and I witnessed a few of them. I was in the playing hall when the following two rook endgames were played. I had my impres...
It's been a while since I posted here. Here's one from my newsletter, to which you can subscribe following this link. As I already wrote on my blog, the hybrid event went fine for me, in spite of losing the match. I already complain...
I wrote about this in my newsletter (which you can join by signing up using the yellow box on my blog page) and here I will expand a bit on the idea. Some time ago I saw the following position posted on social media. I don't k...
Ever since the draw odds were replaced in the World Championship matches (starting with the Kramnik-Topalov unification match in 2006) there has been an endless debate about the mixture of time controls in the most important event in the chess wor...
Magnus Carlsen’s domination in online chess continued with yet another win at the Chessable Masters. The win was convincing, beating everybody 2-0 in matches, but only because the other players couldn’t use the chances they were given....
I sincerely envy the people who have the time to follow all the chess that is happening now. There are so many events, commentaries, streams, webinars, banter-blitzes, courses, books, that it feels overwhelming. Perhaps that is just me, with my ...
Anatoly Karpov always had a classical opening repertoire. Against 1.e4 it was either 1...e5 or 1...c6, while against 1.d4 the Nimzo/QID complex or the QGD. The deviations from these choices were rare. The Ruy Lopez is an opening Karpov pl...
As I wrote in my Preview, the Candidates unfortunately did not finish. Or is it perhaps fortunately? In this post I will give my thoughts on the whole mess that started before the tournament and is still ongoing after its postponement. ...
The Candidates Tournament is my favourite one. It's not just another super-strong round-robin, here everything is at stake and the pressure is sky high. The players try to rise to their best and show what they are capable of when it matters most. ...
Some weeks ago I played in the 4NCL and I was lucky to get a chance to play a very strong opponent. I rarely get a chance to play strong players nowadays and I miss that, but on the other hand the rare chance I get puts additional pressure to rais...
This is from my newsletter. If you like to read posts like this one consider subscribing using the yellow box on the right. I have written before about the character of openings, how different openings require different treatment. Getting into t...
A few days ago my Chessable course on the Anti-Sicilians was published. After working on the Najdorf it was only natural to round up the whole repertoire for Black against 1 e4 with the coverage of "everything else." Now that job is done....
A few months ago I was contacted with GM Avetik Grigoryan, who was curious about me after discovering my blog. We chatted for a while and came to the idea of an interview. I thought it would be interesting for the wider public to know how a ver...
The final leg of the FIDE Grand Prix is underway in Jerusalem. As I write this the first game of the final between Wei Yi and Nepomniachtchi is being played. The intrigue of the tournament consists in who will get the final spot for the Candidat...
I like to think about chess. All aspects of it, whether they are psychology, plans in a certain type of position, openings, endgames, ways to study. I have written before about certain puzzling moments from chess history that I will proba...
I write this in the deserted Holiday Village Hotel where yesterday the European Club Cup finished. I am the last man standing as all the participants have left and the whole hotel resort looks like a ghost town. I was the captain of the women te...
As I already said in my last post, I am currently in Ulcinj, Montenegro, for the European Club Cup. I am coaching the Italian women team of Caissa Pentole Agnelli, just like last year. So far the tournament is going turbulently for us, we have w...
It’s been a month since I last posted and this is the longest period I’ve gone without a post since I started this blog back in 2014. As usual, I followed everything that was happening in the chess world, the Grand Swiss, the Europea...
