ODT070102

=**Championship season**=


 * Problem:** White to play and mate in 3.

As the New Zealand Championship begins today in Wanganui, we can only hope to see the same flood of new talent that marked the Russian Championship Superfinal which took place in Moscow in December.

A host of young, comparatively unknown players emerged from the qualification event earlier in the year. In post-glasnost Russia, most of the younger generation of players have lacked the financial backing or opportunities to launch an international career. These hopefuls were to do battle with the 'old' guard in the form of direct qualifiers to the final such as top seed and world number four, Peter Svidler (30) and defending champion Sergei Rublevsky (33).

The result was that two of the newcomers, Dmitry Jakovenko (23) and Evgeny Alekseev (21) shared first place on 7½/11 ahead of another, Ernesto Inarkiev (21) third on 7 points and Svidler in fourth on 6½. A rapid playoff saw Alekseev beat Jakovenko 1½ - ½ and become the 2006 Russian Champion.

Today's game shows that the younger generation didn't have all their own way as Rublevsky's aggressive style nets a fine victory with the white pieces over the soon-to-be champion Alekseev. media type="custom" key="26989958" The Rossolimo Variation of the Sicilian has become very popular at the highest level in recent years. White is prepared to exchange bishop for knight (often both bishops) in return for active play against the pawn weaknesses so created. Black has the two bishops in return for some pawn weaknesses and a slight lag in development. It used to be thought that the side with the knights ought to try to close the position to block the action of the long range bishops but the modern player knows that the knights best chance is to fight on an open board. Black is ready to complete his development and use the open g-file and long diagonal to attack the White king, so if White is going to seize the initiative...
 * 1. e4 c5**
 * 2. Nc3 Nc6**
 * 3. Nf3 Nf6**
 * 4. Bb5 ---**
 * 4. --- Qc7**
 * 5. O-O Nd4**
 * 6. d3 a6**
 * 7. Ba4 b5**
 * 8. Bb3 Nxb3**
 * 9. axb3 Bb7**
 * 10. Bg5 e6**
 * 11. Re1 d6**
 * 12. Bxf6 gxf6**
 * 13. d4! cxd4**
 * 14. Nxd4 Qc5**
 * 15. Qd3 Be7**

Taking the offered pawn 16 ... Qxb4 would allow the stunning 17 Nd5!! exd5 18 exd5 Bxd5 19 Qe3 and White will regain the piece with a vicious attack, e.g. 19 ... Be6 20 Nxe6 fxe6 21 Qxe6 d5 22 Qc6+ Kf7 23 Qxd5+ and the bishop is lost. So Black looks instead to start counterplay on the kingside, but White's next maneouvre shows who is really in charge of the g-file. Not 17 ... Rg8?? 18 Rg3 winning. But instead 17 ... f5!? 18 Rg3 fxe4 19 Nxe4 Qe5 keeping the queen central may have held better chances. With the black queen sidelined, White infiltrates the weakened Black position. Desperately trying to complicate matters, since passive defence offers no hope. But the White queen defends backwards along the long diagonal. After 31 ... Rh6 32 Ra8! will start proceedings against the black king, so Black resigns.
 * 16. b4! Qg5**
 * 17. Re3! Kf8**
 * 18. Rg3 Qh6**
 * 19. Nb3 Rd8**
 * 20. Qd4 d5**
 * 21. Qa7 Ba8**
 * 22. Qxa6 Rg8**
 * 23. exd5 Bxd5**
 * 24. Nxd5 Rxg3!?**
 * 25. Nxe7 Rg5**
 * 26. Qb7 Qh3**
 * 27. Nc5 Kg7**
 * 28. g3 Rh5**
 * 29. Qg2 Qg4**
 * 30. Nd3 Qc4**
 * 31. Qf3**


 * 1-0**


 * Solution:**1 Qxd6+! Qxd6 (1 ... Qe7 2 Rxc8#; 1 ... Rxe7 2 Qxd8+ Re8 3 Rxe8#) 2 Rxc8+ Qd8 3 Rxd8#.