World Championship happening NOW! | Issue 49 | MM Chess
The best monthly chess newsletter you receive.
We’re so close to our 4th birthday! It’s been quite a ride so I think it’s the perfect time to spice things up before the end of the year. Before we start, there’s a little favor I’d like to ask you🙏. We’re in the process of growing and improving our service, and we need to hear from you first, so if you don’t mind, please fill out this form and help us grow!
Let’s welcome the newest MM students: Sojas, Jay, Albert, Yuta, Sri, Willie, Brian’s sons & Eleanor.
Student Success🏆
Every month we’re highlighting some of the successes of our students. Proud of something chess-related? Send me photos!
Congratulations to Konrad, Emanuel’s student, who won 1st place in the 2nd Grade School Tournament.
Congrats to Ramiro Pando‘s students Anish and Vihaan, who won 1st and 2nd place respectively!
Congratulations to Yeison’s student, Raphael, who won 3rd place in the Hunter Chess Tournament Championship category K-12.
Congratulations to our Head Coach Yeison Gutierrez who won 1st place in a Classic Tournament and increased 35 FIDE points.
“Chess is so inspiring that I do not believe a good player is capable of having an evil thought during the game.”
– Wilhelm Steinitz
My story 🖼️
Nexplore is beginning monthly local chess tournaments in Chicago. This month, we hosted the Scholastic Qualifier #2, with Hawthorne Scholastic Elementary winning the1st Place Team Prize!
! Please join us in River North (Chicago) 3rd MAGE Classic on Sunday, December 8th! from from 12pm - 4pm
“I go over many game collections and pick up something from the style of each player.”
– Mikhail Tal
Monthly Tournament♟️
📅 This month’s tournament will take place on Wednesday 11th, at 7:00 pm EST (6:00 pm CT, 5:00 pm MT, 4:00 pm PT). Most of the players will be rated from 500-1800. In the last tournament, there were 16 students, both kids & adults!
To Play: Reply to this email or press the big green button here. If you haven’t already, you must join the MM team and press the “MM December Arena.” The Zoom for the tournament is here.
Congrats last month to Yoan, Levi & Drithi06! You rock, guys! 🏆
“Weak points or holes in the enemy position must be occupied by pieces, not pawns.”
-Siegbert Tarrasch
Chess News 📰
🤼 Ding vs Gukesh Clash World Championship! The second game of the World Chess Championship between Ding Liren and Gukesh D ended in a draw, and in the 3rd game was won by Gukesh, leading this to be 1.5 - 1.5 tie so far (we’re writing this before Thanksgiving…because we’re off this weekend.). Follow the world chess championship here!
🏆 The biggest chess showdown ever is coming to NYC! World Champion Magnus Carlsen and other chess superstars will battle it in rapid and blitz formats. This is a fantastic opportunity for your young chess player to witness the best in action and get inspired! The event features separate tournaments for girls too! Spectator tickets are available, so book yours now and see chess history unfold!
🤖 AI and Chess! Google and FIDE have teamed up to bring chess to the forefront of innovation. From exploring the game's rich history through the "Beyond the Board" exhibition to designing custom chess pieces with AI-powered GenChess, there's something for everyone. Chess enthusiasts can also participate in the FIDE & Google Efficient Chess AI Challenge on Kaggle, test their skills against Gemini's chess-playing abilities, or enjoy insightful AI-powered commentary during the World Chess Championship.
🧟 Want to raise a daring chess player? Your kid can learn to play like a hero by adding a bit of "romantic" chess to their game! This means they might offer up a piece or two (don't worry, it's usually a good thing!) to confuse their opponent and win the game. This article explores different types of sacrifices and how they can help your child outsmart their opponent!
🤔 Can You Survive Longer Than Karpov Against a Grandmaster? Do you think you can last more than 12 moves against a grandmaster? Former world champ GM Anatoly Karpov couldn't in his roughest game against GM Larry Christiansen! In a surprising twist, Karpov resigned after a deadly fork. Challenge your chess skills and see if you can spot the move that led to his downfall!
“All I want to do, ever, is just play Chess”
– Bobby Fischer
Fun Facts💡
🧠Remembering moves and watching the board can help you remember things better, a superpower that comes in handy in school and even later in life!
🥱The "fool's mate" is the fastest way to checkmate someone in chess, but it only happens if the other player makes a big mistake. Imagine forgetting your king needs protection!
Here's how it goes:
White (the player starting) moves a pawn in an unusual way that weakens their king's side.
Black (the responding player) takes advantage by moving their queen right next to White's king – checkmate in just two moves!
♔The king is the piece with the longest life expectancy on the board. Not many give the right answer when asked why this is. In short: you never capture the king, just ¨corner¨ it, so the piece has a 0% capture rate.
🏠83% of households own a chessboard! Such a crazy statistic but when you think about it, almost every home you can visit has a chessboard somewhere, either dusting in an attic or put into use in the living room.