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The Problemist, March 2006 |
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Written by Michael McDowell
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The March Problemist featured a report on the Final of the 2005-2006
Winton Capital British Chess Solving Championship, the strongest Final
in the history of the event, with three of the top four from the last
World Championship participating. Jonathan Mestel retained the British
title, while World Champion Piotr Murdzia from Poland won the event
overall. Articles included “The Zabunov Theme” by Diyan
Kostadinov, “Some problems by Gerry Anderson” by Jim
Grevatt, “The Scope of the Miniature: Mate Transference and
Friends” by Michael Lipton, and “Seven Millennium
Problems”, in which Stephen Rothwell detailed seven unsolved
tasks as a challenge to composers. Browsing in the library featured a
1932 collection of problems by Polish player-composer David Przepiórka.
The awards for Studies 2004-2005 and Helpmates in 2½ and 3 for
2004 were published.
In the Supplement John Rice discussed the fairy pieces camels,
giraffes and zebras, and introduced a new fairy form called
Super-Andernach.
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Robin Matthews
1st Place, International Team Match, 1967-1971
Mate in 3
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Set 1...Ra8 2.Re2+ Ke6 3.Bc5; 2...Kxd6 3.Qxc6
1...Rb8 2.Rd2+ Ke6 3.Sc5; 2...Kxd6 3.Qxc6
Key 1.d7! (>2.d8Q+ Ke6 3.Qd7)
1...Ra8 2.Rd2+ Kd6 3.Sc5; 2...Ke6 3.Qxc6
1...Rb8 2.Re2+ Kd6 3.Bc5; 2...Ke6 2.Qxc6
In the Zabunov theme the firing piece of a battery becomes the rear piece
of a new battery. Robin Matthews' beautiful example shows a reciprocal
change of continuations between set and post-key play. The mechanism is
worthy of close study.
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Rudolf Prytz
Chemnitzer Tageblatt, 1925
Selfmate in 2
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1.Bd2 (>2.Qg2+ Bxg2)
1...Rb7 2.Qb1+ Rxb1
1...Rc6 2.Qc4+ Rxc4
1...Rd5 2.Qd3+ Rxd3
1...Sd5 2.Qxf4+ Sxf4
1...f3 2.Qe2+ fxe2
One of Stephen Rothwell's “Millennium Challenges”. A light and
elegant setting in which five variations show the Dentist theme, where the
black unpins are followed by checks which force the unpinning piece off
the mating line. Amazingly, given the amount of material still available,
no-one has succeeded in showing six such variations in a selfmate two-mover.
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David Przepiórka
Szachista Polski, 1912 (version)
Mate in 6
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A deep idea, which must be visualised in its entirety. White's plan is to
lure the black bishop to d4, then follow up with c3 and cxd4, but first the
bishop's potential escape routes must be blocked!
1.Qf8 (>2.Qb4/Qxa3+) 1...Sc5
2.Qd6 (>3.Qf4+ e3 4.Q or Bxe3+) 2...Re5
3.Be3+ dxe3
4.Qd4 Bxd4
5.c3.
If 2...Bc3 3.dxe4 (>4.Qf4+ etc.)
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Last Updated on Friday, 18 November 2011 14:21 |
2006 