Spanish Courses

Hello,

RCA has launched 3 of its chess courses in Spanish language!

The courses in Spanish are -

1) Grandmaster's Opening Laboratory

2) How to beat titled players (GMs)

3) Grandmaster's Secrets

It GREAT isn't it! So now you can get these courses.

1) Get Grandmaster's Opening Lab (Spanish) - El Laboratorio De Aperturas Del Gran Maestro

2) Get How to beat titled players/GMs (Spanish) - Cómo Vencer a Jugadores Titulados

3) Get Grandmaster's Secrets (Spanish) - Los secretos del Gran Maestro

Good Luck!

Lesson about WEAKNESS and Take part in a Webinar with GM Smirnov

Recently I carried out a SURVEY First of all, I’d like to thank everyone who participated!

Your feedback and suggestions will help us to make Remote Chess Academy even more useful for you!

Quite a lot of students expressed their wish to talk to me directly and to ask their questions. Therefore, I’m going to conduct my first live WEBINAR (“Internet seminar”).

This is a chance for you to clarify your questions and to get my personal support.

I’m not sure about the date of this event yet; I’ll need to work out the technical side first. Anyway, I’ll try to prepare everything quickly and to carry out the Webinar in the next week or two. Don’t miss this event!

And now lets go to the lesson!

Today we’ll discuss a really important chess topic: WEAKNESSES. In a game, it’s important to create weaknesses in your opponent’s position if you want to win. But, at any level, it’s never easy to find the best way. That’s why today we’ll see how to do so. 

There are two important questions:

• What is a weakness?
• How to create it?

In this lesson, we’ll see how to find those answers and how to put them into practice.

To illustrate it, we’ll use an example a game played between Carlsen and Anand in the Tal Memorial one year ago.

Before we begin, please try to find the best move in the position below.

Below is a analysis board. Paste this FEN code in the specified box (FEN box) 

FEN code - r2q1rk1/pbpnbppp/1p6/3p4/3P4/P3P1P1/1P1BNPBP/R2QK2R w KQ - 0 12

The above code is for the above position. You can also see the game from the beginning. The moves are there below.

After pasting the above FEN code, drag the pieces by seeing the following moves and then you can see the game!

Or here is the direct link - LINK

WHOLE GAME -

{I am going to explain some concepts about weaknesses in the following game.
Relativity of a weakness, the principle of double weakness, and a typical
question that you may ask to yourself. What is the real weakness?} 1. d4 Nf6 2.
c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Nge2 {The idea is to play a3 and be ready to
respond Bxc3 with Nxc3. If black does not take on c3 this knight can go to the
good square f4.} d5 6. a3 Be7 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. Bd2 {White wants to keep the
tension between the knights and don't define the kingside} Nd7 9. g3 b6 10.
Nxd5 exd5 11. Bg2 Bb7 12. Bb4  {This move is a very original concept of
Magnus Carlsen. The idea is that after 12... Bxb4 13.axb4 the b4 pawn is a
"relative weakness" because it will be to attack. While the "c" and the "a"
pawn are more real weaknesses in adition to that the d2 bishop does not
control any important square while the e7 bishop controls the dark squares
that are in general weak into the black's position} (12. O-O {Was of course a
normal choice}) 12... Nf6 (12... Bxb4+ 13. axb4 Qe7 14. Qb3 Nf6 15. O-O $14) (
12... c5 13. dxc5 bxc5 14. Bc3 Nf6 15. O-O $14) 13. O-O Re8 14. Rc1 c6 {Sooner
or later black was going to be forced to play this move. This is a weak pawn
and we are going to talk later about this.} 15. Bxe7 Rxe7 16. Re1 {Probably
right now you does not understand this move. But the real idea is that
according to Carlsen's plan this was the natural position for the rook. And he
does not want to define the other pieces} Qd6 17. Nf4 Bc8 18. Qa4 {Attacking
at the weak pawn} Rc7 19. f3  {Principle of double weakness! here we can see
that usually just one weakness is not enough to make the opponent's position
collapse. Sometimes it is. But usually is not. The times where it is not we
must create another weakness in order to make our opponent's defense as
thought as possible} Be6 20. e4 dxe4 (20... Qd7 {Was a better defense} 21. Nxe6
Qxe6 22. e5 Ne8 23. f4) 21. fxe4 {Now black has to be careful about white's
center and about the c6 pawn.} Qd7 22. d5  {Concrete calculation! White is
trading 2 weaknesses for just one (as you will see in the game) But the
resulting weakness can't be defended.} cxd5 23. Qxd7 Rxd7 24. Nxe6 fxe6 {
Everything seems more quiet for black but...} 25. Bh3  {The e6 pawn is a
chronical weakness. And after the capture of this pawn. The e pawn is a killer
passer.} Kh8 26. e5 Ng8 27. Bxe6 Rdd8 28. Rc7 d4 29. Bd7 {Concepts we learned
(or reviewed) in this game. 1. The relativity of a weakness 2. The principle
of double weakness.} 1-0

Karpov’s Prophylaxis

Today, for the first time, we’ll present you with a video from a guest trainer and we’ll ensure more cooperation with guest players in the future.

It’s important to say, we don’t use our guest trainers haphazardly and we publish only high quality lessons from strong trainers.

The first video, made by the famous coach IM Valeri Lilov, is about Karpov’sPROPHYLAXIS.

In this video, you’ll see why PROPHYLAXIS is very important and always present in chess.

Chess Courses from GM Igor Smirnov - http://chess-teacher.com/1511-26.html or click any of the above pages to get your desired course!

The art of Defence in chess

Hello,

GM Igor Smirnov is back with another great article! Lets go!

Today we’ll see how to DEFEND in chess.

But firstly, I would like to talk to you about an important subject. We have created a survey for our students and this is the opportunity for you to give us your wishes and needs about future lessons.

It is very important to participate in this survey. Thanks to your wishes, we’ll develop our new lessons and training tools according to YOUR needs. We need your opinion to create tomorrow’s tools.

Here you’ll find the Survey:Participate Now!

Now we’ll go to the theme of the day: DEFENCE

The position below was played in a game between Iturrizaga Bonelli (2635) and Alvarez Marquez (2410). This game is very interesting, because Black has lots of attacks and White has to stay in defence.

Iturrizaga – AlvarezWhite’s Turn

In this position, it’s White to move. Now you are Iturrizaga Bonelli and you have to find the best way to defend this difficult position. Take your time, if you don’t want to give Black the opportunity to checkmate you.

How would YOU play in the position from the diagram? Don’t leave without posting your answer!

SOLUTION:

16...Ng4Black is ready to play Qh4. White should be extremelly careful now; otherwise he risks to get mated in a few moves. 17.Ncxe4! White starts bringing his forces towards king-side. In order to withstand opponent's attack on a certain flank, you should have equal quantity of defenders on this side of the board.17.g3 is giving an escape path to White's king, and it's possible as well. However, in this case Black still can continue his attack. Qxc5Black needs to bring his queen to h-file, and now he's ready to play Qh5. Perhaps White can defend, but it's not an easy task. 17...Qh4 18.Nf3 "Offense if the best defense". White is attacking Black's queen and is bringing 1 more defender to the king-side. Qh5 19.Neg5!This is the move Alvarez missed; the knight is going to h3, closing h-file and defending the entire position. The manoeuvre c3-g5-h3 is a great example of calculation and defence. Be5+ 20.Nh3 Bf5 21.Qe2 Be4 22.Bxe5 Nxe5 23.Nfg5 Now Black is simply a piece down and he resigned. Being under attack you should be extremelly careful, and calculate all eventual attacking moves of your opponent. 1 mistake can be decisive, and you don't want to make it!after 23.Nxe5 Black has prepared a tricky mate! Qxh3+ 24.Kg1 Qxg2#
1-0

Rook Endgames

Today we will talk about rook endgames.

Even if MOST endgames are rook endgames, a majority of players make lots of mistakes in these situations. That’s why we took a typical position that can help you in your future games (when you’ll meet similar positions).

In the example we will show you, it is a rook endgame played by the famous French champion Etienne Bacrot and the Russian Grand Master Pavel Tregubov. Bacrot with White and 100 points ELO over his opponent seems to be the favourite, but rook endgames are always very difficult, as you’ll see in this lesson.

Barcot, E – Tregubov, PWhite’s Turn

Take few minutes and think about this position. Rook endgames tend to be drawish pretty often. But you’ll see that, in practice, this is not easy at all.

In this case, you must analyse the position and find:

-         What is Black’s plan to play for a win?

-         How should White defend?

After that, please click the LINK to observe the actual game with comments.

If you wish to improve your endgame skills, you should study PRACTICAL examples. Endgame books, unfortunately, are filled with theoretical positions that may never happen in YOUR games.

Another important thing is to know the typical endgame PLANS. You are probably well versed in some middle game plans (attack on the kingside/king, pawn minority attack, etc.) but what about an endgame?

One of my friends (he’s a Russian GM) told me: “Once we reach an equal endgame, they all offer me a draw. And after I reject it, they do not know what to do”. 

Sadly, this is true of most intermediate players. If you want to overcome them, you may study the course “An Endgame Expert”. This single course will bring you to the ADVANCED level in endgames.

Click here to get ENDGAME EXPERT chess course!

The Power of a Chess Game

GM Igor Smirnov is back with an article. So go ahead and read it now!

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When I have a conversation with a stranger, usually the first questions he/she asks are:

 What’s your name? > Where are you from? > What’s your profession?

Up to this moment, the conversation has been going seamlessly. However, after I say that my profession relates to chess, the interlocutor often takes a pause to think.. 

During the following chat, he/she asks about a chess game and why people play this game. Maybe you’ve had a similar experience. Hence I’ve decided to write a short article about it.

So, why do people play chess? What’s the useful effect of this game?

1.    It trains your brain.

While physical exercises improve your body, chess, as an intellectual sport, sharpens your mind.

Some time ago I saw statistics about the hobbies of the richest people on the planet. Chess was in 4^th place on this list.

Also, chess helps you cultivate your champion psychology. Of course, there are lots of other kinds of sport, but they carry a serious risk of trauma.

Maybe this is the reason why even famous boxers enjoy playing chess.

BBC News Magazine provided this photo and wrote: “The former world heavyweight champion, Lennox Lewis, is now more likely to be seen hunched over the chess board than in the boxing ring.”

That’s why chess is  great training tool FOR KIDS. Children can train to acquire lots of useful skills without any risk.

FOR MATURE PEOPLE, chess helps slow down ageing and keep them in good shape.

2.    Chess can be a pleasant pastime or a job.

One may enjoy playing chess in one’s spare time. For others, chess may become a nice job, where you get paid for your hobby!

Unfortunately, lots of people have to take a job they dislike completely (just to make a living). That said, it’s really great if you can get money from something you enjoy and believe in. I’m happy to be in this situation 

In addition to that, chess does not have any real restrictions in terms of requirements. Almost everyone can play it. You don’t need to visit a special training hall or to buy expensive equipment. People can play chess starting from 4 years old and without any top age limit.

Nowadays, thanks to the Internet, one can study chess effectively from any place on the planet. This is especially important for people from developing countries and for the areas without “chess infrastructure” (clubs, teachers, etc.).

3.    Chess can support your traveling around the world.

Even during my schoolboy era, I visited so many countries (while playing in tournaments) that my international passport was completely filled with visas.

These days I still enjoy traveling. It’s easy to do so because I have students or other chess friends in almost every country 

Last (in this article) but not least:

4.    Chess helps you meet good friends and intelligent people.

Thanks to chess, I’ve met a lot of very nice and interesting people from various countries.

Recently I got married.

The very first time I met my future wife was… at the age of 9, in a local chess tournament for kids 

Of course, there are lots of other advantages to playing chess. But I don’t want to make this article endless, so let’s finish at this point.

Now, if someone asks you about chess, you may resend this article to him/her 

So let’s test your skills in a position from the recent game between two top GMs.

Radjabov T. – Karjakin S.Black’s turn

Black’s position is critical. Can you find the way to escape?

Solution : 46...Rb6+! Instead of protecting the pawn, Black is forcing White to capture it!

 Black's position looks critical. The only way to protect f5-pawn is46...Rb5 However, after 47.Kf6 Black is in zugzwang. Of course Black may not move his king: 46...Kg6 47.Rg8+ Kh748.b8Q+- 47.Kxf5 Rxb7! That's the point; it leads to a stalemate. 48.Rxb7 Game drawn½–½

In order to let you have some fun, I’ll share a few photos from my recent trip.

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So enjoyed the article from GM Smirnov? And now you know the power of a chess game. So why don't you try reading his chess courses! Go to the page where you want the chess course ( You are currently in HOME page ). Good Luck!

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Smirnov's courses in other languages

Hello,

Now you can also get some of the courses of GM Igor Smirnov in other languages also.

Some of them are put up here and more courses will be available in other languages also, soon!