Chess Pages of Mike Donnelly

12. NEW AND SECOND- HAND CHESS BOOKS Tony Peterson. Specialist in rare and second-hand chess books and magazines. Very large stock. Contact details.

IM Sergey Bystrov. Specialist in a wide range of Russian books plus some non-Russian books. Now offering a greater range. Contact details.

Hello!

I little bit about myself: I live in the historic town of Kenilworth (close to the medieval castle) in Warwickshire, England. I have just retired (this time certainly!), after several years as a Scientific/Technical and Regulatory Advisor, from full time work as a Technical Manager at a biotechnology company that manufactures hydrogels for wound-care, monitoring electrodes, and cosmetic applications. Previously I was a research scientist working in a diverse number of scientific areas (science publications, committees, science journal refereeing etc). In my spare time I enjoy chess, the history and culture of the Ancient Greeks and their Modern counterparts, various types of music, and until recently Wing Tsun Martial Art (achieving grade 11).

Over a decade ago I shifted from playing over-the-board (o.t.b) chess as well as correspondence chess to playing only correspondence chess (peak average rating 2492, final average rating of 2454 (ICCF rating history 1993-2018). In 2016 I returned to some relatively regular o.t.b chess in local leagues currently playing at about 1950-2000 elo (a somewhat reduced level from that of a decade or more ago (approximately 2100 elo) and also from my highest many years ago of about 2275 (grading history ). After some 25 years of playing National and International level Correspondence Chess I completed my last few games at the end of 2018, annotated these games in detail for presentation in correspondence magazines in early to mid-2019, and now just play o.t.b chess.

I will attempt to offer a wide range of chess material on this site including game and opening based articles, games for downloading from famous players I have known or competed against, chess problems and some current and past results. This will include both o.t.b and correspondence play. A major part of the web site is the presentation of annotated games in the "Monthly Articles" section of the site. Often these include annotations by players other than myself.

In addition to more advanced articles, I will also occasionally provide articles for beginners to mid-club strength of player also on a very wide range of chess topics.

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MONTHLY ARTICLES SUMMARIES (section 1 of web site) *

This month two annotated games are presented from the 1946 Hoogovens Beverwijk Tournament. This is the fourth in the series on this web site focussing on post-WW2 events.

This very long running tournament started in 1938 with just a few Dutch players and has gradually expanded to become an international event. Additional sections have subsequently been added, the overall event later becoming known as the Tata Steel, then the Corus Steel Tournament and eventually moving to Wijk aan Zee. Due to food shortages in war-torn Holland inexpensive pea-soup was provided for entrants a tradition which has been retained to present times.

Much interesting chess was played in the 1946 tournament, as has also occurred in later events. For this month’s article the first game selected is a dramatic win by De Groot, who was a pioneer in chess psychology, against the eventual winner of the tournament the enigmatic Count O’Kelly de Galway. The second game selected was a staggeringly complex game between Steenis and Koomen in which a dramatic queen sacrifice is a minor component.

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All material for downloading from this site is zipped. Use WinZip, or similar, to extract. Monthly articles are in .pgn format (from May 2000, previously in .txt format) whilst games for downloading are in .pgn format (or .cbv occasionally).

Contributions (preferably one or two annotated games), suggestions for articles and comments to improve this site are welcome: mail me!

	SCCA Magazine
	The SCCA magazine is published quarterly and consists of 24xA4 pages packed with correspondence chess news, articles, reviews and games.
	SCCA members receive the magazine as part of their annual subscription (£8). This entitles them to download pdf files (the e-mags) from a secure area of the SCCA website.
	If you prefer to receive a printed copy of the magazine, an extra £5 per annum covers print costs and UK postage and you get the four issues mailed directly to you.
	The SCCA magazine is unbeatable value! You can try a complimentary copy by contacting the membership secretary.

NEWS AND NOTICES *

Kenilworth Chess Club (KCC) Individuals and Teams (August 24).

1. Paul Lam has won the 2024 English Chess Federation Award for Contribution to Junior Chess. Contact details for Paul are in section 7 of this website under Chess Coaching.

Advance warning is given to all players in both the Leamington and District Chess League as well as the Coventry and District Chess League that some of these junior players Pual coaches may well be playing for Kenilworth. For the impending start to the season in both these leagues, details on all players and their results, with an occasional good music clip, click on the following link kenilworthchess.blogspot.com

2. For the first time in many chess players memory Ben Graff does not have an article, or a picture of himself, in the famous magazine CHESS. Last month his finely written article explored the world of the chess parent nowadays an essential and often one of the critical factors in the development of young players.

Copies of Ben’s latest article, in paper or pdf format, or any of the previous ones, may be obtained from chess.co.uk

Peter Gibbs Memorial Correspondence Events (August 24).

Some details of Peter’s enormous impact on both over-the-board and Correspondence Chess are detailed in the Recent Archive section of this web site (Section 2-article for August-September 2023 inclusive of two annotated games).

The English Federation for Correspondence Chess (EFCC) has under the auspices of the International Correspondence Chess Federation (ICCF) organised two 15 player events in memory of Peter. These started on May 1^st, 2024, and features players from a wide range of countries and includes 9 Correspondence Chess Experts.

Results are still coming in rapidly in these two events and, contrary to the norm in correspondence chess in recent times, decisive games are common:

Section A- Leading positions have now changed once again and currently CCE Spanton leads with 7/11, in second place are Billington and CCE Wnuck each on 6.5/10.

Section B- In this section Flude retains the leading position on 7.5/13, with Cunningham on 6/11 moving into second place.

Changes in the World of Correspondence Chess (August 24)

Recently there was a seismic change in the world of Correspondence Chess with the amalgamation of the British Correspondence Chess Association (BCCA), which has been in existence since 1906, with the EFCC (English Federation for Correspondence Chess).

Now the ICCF (International Correspondence Chess Federation) has just announced the 1^st Annual Hall of Shame. In an astonishingly frank set of slides several people and organisation are “shamed” in a similar was as the cheaters in the Ancient Olympic games. The bases of the Zanes (statues of Zeus inscribed with the cheaters names) are still in situ at the entrance to the stadium at Olympia in Greece.

English Counties Correspondence Championship (Ward-Higgs Division 1) 2023-24 and 2024-25 (July 23).

All games have now just been completed in the 2023-24 event and in a very tight finish its Lancashire that wins this prestigious event on 9/16. West Wales finish in second on 8.5/16 with more wins scored than East Wales in third on the same score.

Team lists for the next competition were expected to be announced over recent months. However, tectonic moves have occurred in the correspondence chess world in that the British Correspondence Chess Association, which has been in existence since 1906, has now been amalgamated with the English Federation for Correspondence Chess (EFCC). It is now hoped the Ward-Higgs competition, which has existed since 1922 will now resume, perhaps later this year or early next year, now the amalgamation has been finally completed.

Next main update due early on or about September 24, 2024.

(minor updates may occur during each month)