ODT060314

=**Chess legend visits home town**=




 * Problem:** White to play and win.

The recent Queenstown Chess Classic tournament was the occasion of an historic event in New Zealand chess: The return of our first chess professional, Robert Wade, to these shores for the first time in 56 years.

Bob Wade won the New Zealand Championship in Wellington in 1948 and shortly after left for Europe to earn a living at chess. Gaining the International Master Title in 1950, Wade achieved international recognition as a player, author and trainer in a long and distinguished career. At the age of 84 he now mainly plays for the Athenaeum club in London.

Wade scored a very creditable 6/10 in Queenstown, including a second round draw against GM Murray Chandler, the tournament winner. While in Otago he visited the city of his birth, Dunedin, and held a fascinating talk on chess featuring games of his own and those of some of his current students.

Today's game features Wade as White in an attractive attacking success against U.S. (formerly Hungarian) grandmaster and World Championship Candidate, Pal Benko, at Buenos Aires in 1960. The annotations are based on those of Martin Beheim. media type="custom" key="27104042" The Samisch Variation is one of the most provocative attacking formations against of the Kings Indian Defence, using f3 as a base for a pawn advance on the kingside. By attacking c4 Black seeks to divert the White pieces before committing his king. An original idea in this position – White holds up the thematic f5 break by Black. In avoiding the drawish continuations resulting from either 19 ...Qxc1+ or 19 ... Qd3 20 Qc3 Qxc3+, Black relegates the queen to a square where it is out of play. Black underestimates his opponent and follows an aggressive plan of opening lines against the White king, not noticing the danger to his own. 20 ... Rac8 was better. Wishing to unpin the bishop for aggressive action, Black fails to see the combination White has prepared. 22 ... Rf7 would have stayed in the game. Black is suddenly lost. If 24 ... Kxg7 25 Nh5+ Kf7 (25 ... Kg6 26 Qg5+ Kf7 27 Qf6+ Ke8 28 Qe7#) 26 Qf4+ Ke8 27 Ng7 mate. A beautiful finish to White's combination: If 26 ... Rxd4, 27 Bf6 mate.
 * 1.d4 Nf6**
 * 2.c4 g6**
 * 3.Nc3 Bg7**
 * 4.e4 d6**
 * 5.f3 e5**
 * 6.Nge2 c6**
 * 7.Be3 Nbd7**
 * 8.d5 Nb6**
 * 9.Nc1 cxd5**
 * 10.cxd5 0-0**
 * 11.Qd2 Nh5**
 * 12.Bg5!**
 * 12. --- f6**
 * 13.Bh4 Bd7**
 * 14.Nd3 Nc4**
 * 15.Qc1 Qc7**
 * 16.g4 Nf4**
 * 17.Nxf4 exf4**
 * 18.Bxc4 Qxc4**
 * 19.Ne2 Qa6?!**
 * 20.Qd2 f5?**
 * 21.gxf5 gxf5**
 * 22.Rg1! Kh8?**
 * 23.Nxf4 fxe4**
 * 24.Rxg7!**
 * 24 --- e3**
 * 25.Qd4 Rxf4**
 * 26.Rg6+!**


 * 1-0**


 * Solution:** 1 g7+! Nxg7 2 h7! and queens.