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World Chess Problem Solving Championships

World Chess Problem Solving Championships

SonofPearl
| 16 | Chess Event Coverage

If you appreciate the beauty of chess above all else, and enjoy figuring out devilishly difficult puzzles, then solving chess problems could be for you!

The World Chess Solving Championship is one of FIDE's less well known championship events.  The 34th edition of this fascinating competition (31st of the individual championship) recently took place in Crete and was won for the third time by the English GM, chess writer, mathematician and all-round clever-clogs John Nunn (pictured).

In second place was the five-time champion Piotr Murdzia, who led the Polish team to the Gold medal in the team event.

The format consists of six rounds of problems over two days, with 71 participants having to solve the puzzles against the clock.

 Day 1  Round 1  3 twomovers in 20 minutes

 Round 2  3 threemovers in 60 minutes

 Round 3  3 endgame studies in 100 minutes
 Day 2  Round 4  3 helpmates in 50 minutes

 Round 5  3 moremovers in 80 minutes

 Round 6  3 selfmates in 50 minutes

 

German solver Michael Pfannkuche took the bronze medal.


 Solver Country Rd1 Rd2 Rd3 Rd4 Rd5 Rd6 Total
 1  Nunn, John GBR 15.0 13.5 5.0 12.5 11.0 14.0 71.0
 2  Murdzia, Piotr POL 15.0 15.0 2.0 12.5 10.0 15.0 69.5
 3  Pfannkuche, Michael GER 15.0 13.0 1.0 10.5 15.0 9.5 64.0

 

The full results can be found here. An example of the fiendishly difficult problems the competitors were set is below.  The variations of the solution are given in the move list.

 

 

 

All the problems and their solutions can be found here.

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