So a wild guess would be that yes, chess is to be blamed - the king has found his queen! And no, our lovely game doesn't say everything about husband and wife, where the King has to take things one step at a time, while the Queen can do whatever she wants. But it does say a lot about the love story that brought the Georgian and Dutch together, defying distance or any obstacles they had along the way; because just like in chess, Sopiko protects her King while Anish goes the extra mile to keep his queen happy. I can vouch for that, since I was present in one of the most beautiful day of their lives, where I witnessed Anish... rapping?! But about that later, although you do have a spoiler alert already.

The opening phase of their chronicle started in Italy, continued all over the globe in a complicated yet smooth middle game, gradually but surely evolved into a...stalemate (or was it zugzwang?!) in Georgia through an absolutely gorgeous wedding that took place on 18th July 2015 – marked on the calendar – and will eventually be crowned in the Netherlands, where the new chess family decided to settle down.  All of this wouldn't have happened if not for true love... I wish I would describe it in the most romantic terms, making all the single ladies (and perhaps gentlemen?!) sigh and crave for such scenarios, but I just cannot become another Sandra Brown, portraying these two wonderful people who “surprisingly” become even better when together. I am enthusiastic and, most probably, exaggerated at times, so thank God chess has been invented to balance me out! But if all of the adjectives, metaphors, allegories, epithets, comparisons and so forth were be erased from the dictionary, one thing would yet hold: Anish and Sopiko are made for each other. I feel that if I try to explain, depict, relate or paint the moments of the wonderful Saturday we had, it would just make the moments smaller than they were.

Congratulations and all the best wishes we could possibly think of! May you enjoy the same smiles in the years to come as on 18th July 2015. And Anish, I know you like to win but I am afraid you got checkmated this time...

See the full article about the wedding.

All eyes were on the game between Awonder Liang vs. Akshat Chandra in the final round of the 2015 US Junior Closed in Saint Louis. 

After the first three rounds of the tournament these two players were the leaders, and it was presumed that this 9th round matchup could potentially decide the tournament's results. It turned out that this was true but not the way Awonder would have wanted it. In his last five games, Awonder was only able to score one point, compared to Akshat Chandra who was still leading the tournament. A round nine win for Akshat would guarantee him first place, $6,000 and a seat in the next U.S. Chess Championship. With the Black pieces for round nine, it would prove to be no easy task.

Chandra's form took a dip in the middle of the tournament, but he peaked in the last couple rounds and was playing his best chess of the tournament. He reacted to Awonder's 1.e4 in his typical fashion, playing the Taimanov Sicilian. The game was a relatively quiet Sicilian, devoid of the tactical opportunities that usually characterize this particular opening. Awonder held slight pressure throughout the opening and early middlegame, but it never led to more than mild discomfort for Chandra. Chandra slowly gained control of the game. By move 33 he had a great chance to solidify his advantage with the move f4! He made the most of this opportunity, playing this move relatively quickly. Awonder's 35th move was the cause of his demise. Rather than playing Rd3, he needed to play Rf3, with reasonable chances of defending.

By the time Black played 36... Bc6, White's position was beyond salvation. Chandra brought the point home in convincing fashion, needing only 5 more moves before forcing White's resignation. A quiet but very well-played game. With the win in round nine, Akshat Chandra won the 2015 U.S. Junior Closed Championship!

See the article.

Interview with three-time Women's World Champion Hou Yifan

Q: China is a world power in chess. What is the secret behind the success of your country?
A: We now have a lot of young and talented chessplayers. The men in particular progess very fast. Our men's team won the Olympiad 2014 and had a shining performance at the World Team Championships. They won a lot of board prizes. A lot depends on hard work, and they really train intensively. Before and during team events they prepared together for their games and have shown great team spirit.

Q: Does chess get strong support from the Chinese government?
A: Hmm... Well, yes. We have a national team which gets support. We do also have a national coach. Previously, there have always been training camps. Now it varies. As far as my person is concerned, there is less support.

Q: How are your relations to the previous Women World Champions from China: Xie Jun, Zhu Chen, and Xu Yuhua?
A: I admire the chess success of my predecessors on the throne. When one of them stopped to play, I just had started. They are or were my team mate, I see them as my sisters. We have very good relations. They support me and sometimes help me with advice.

Q: Who is your chess idol?
A: My idol as a chessplayer is Bobby Fischer.

Q: Can you tell us something about your private life?
A: My life is rather interesting, colorful, and full of surprises. Of course, chess is part of this but my life is not only chess. There are many other aspects, after all, at the moment I am still studying. I do have a number of hobbies and every day my life has something new to offer.

Q: But currently chess dominates?
A: Definitely. I would in fact like to play longer but there might be changes. I have no long-term plans for the future. Sometime, maybe in 15 years, I will no longer be a chess professional. But I hope I then will get a task that has to do with chess.

See the full interview.