Chess: How does White win?

Tuesday’s chess...

IN 1895, a young 22-year-old unknown American, Harry Pillsbury, became a legend overnight by winning the inaugural Hastings International Chess Congress ahead of two world champions and a galaxy of chess stars.

That tournament went on to be one of the most famous in the chess annals. And since 1919/20 (with the exception of the war years), Hastings became an institution for many of the world’s greatest players, who would make the annual Christmas and New Year pilgrimage to the English East Sussex seaside town.

But these days, despite still having the cachet of being the world’s longest-running international tournament, it is little more than a ghost of its illustrious past with no meaningful financial support or sponsorship seeing it reduced to the “Hastings Masters Open” - the tradition only kept alive by the Hastings council and a dedicated group of volunteers.

Eight world champions have won first prize at Hastings and previous winners include many big names from Russia and Eastern Europe. The latest on the historic roll of honour goes – for the first time – to the emerging chess superpower of China.

Top seed Wang Yue, 24, China’s No 2, is ranked in the world top 50, and comfortably eased to victory on 7.5/9, to finish half-point clear of the field at the 87th Hastings International Congress. Wang’s smooth positional victory in round eight over Ukrainian Andrei Vovk, virtually assured the GM from Tianjin the £2,000 first prize.

Wang Yue - A Vovk

Hastings Masters (8)

King’s Indian Defence

1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 g6 3 Nc3 Bg7 4 e4 d6 5 Nf3 0–0 6 Be2 e5 7 Be3 exd4 8 Nxd4 Re8 9 f3 c6 10 Bf2 d5 11 exd5 cxd5 12 0–0 Nc6 13 c5 Nh5 14 Qd2 Be5 15 g3 Ng7 16 Rfd1 Bf5 17 Bb5 Bd7 18 Nb3 Ne7 19 Bxd7 Qxd7 20 Nxd5 Nxd5 21 Qxd5 Qxd5 22 Rxd5 Bxb2 23 Rb1 Bf6 24 Nd2 Re7 25 Ne4 Ne8 26 Rbd1 Kf8 27 Rd7 Rc8 28 g4 Be5 29 c6! b6 30 Ng5 Rc7 31 Nxh7+ Kg7 32 Rxe7 Rxe7 33 Rd7 Bd6 34 Ng5 Bb4 35 Bd4+ f6 36 Ne6+ Kf7 37 c7 Nxc7 38 Rxe7+ 1–0