Chess: How does White win?

THERE'S one area of the game where Britannia rules the waves, and that is the discipline of problem solving, where over the past few years the Great Britain team has had a profusion of gold medals and individual world titles.

The team features three over-the-board grandmasters (all Oxbridge doctors of mathematics): England's John Nunn (a three-time world champion of problem solving), Jonathan Mestel and Scotland's Colin McNab. They have harnessed their analytical skills to this discipline and are especially strong in endgame studies.

Do you think you have what it takes to become a champion problem-solver in chess? If so, then today's diagram could be your first step towards this goal as its the opening round of the Winton Capital British Chess Solving Championship with a 1,000 prize fund. It is White to play and mate in two moves against any defence.

To enter, post White's first move only to Paul Valois, 14 Newton Park Drive, Leeds LS7 4HH (postmarked no later than 31 July). Include along with your solution a 3 cheque or postal order made payable to the British Chess Problem Society, and please mark along with your answer "The Scotsman". All those who take part will receive a complimentary copy of the BCPS' excellent magazine The Problemist.

The successful solvers will receive eight more progressively difficult and varied problems as part of the postal qualifying round for next year's British Championship final. The ultimate winner of this final will win the right to represent Great Britain at the World Chess Solving Championship in 2012.

K Sek - V Zakhartsov

Russian Higher League, (5)

Sicilian Najdorf

1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 a6 6 h3 e6 7 g4 b5 8 Bg2 Bb7 9 0–0 Nfd7 10 Re1 g5 11 a4 bxa4 12 Rxa4 Be7 13 Rb4 Qc7 14 Nf5!! exf5 15 Rxb7 Qxb7 16 exf5 Nc6 17 Qxd6 0–0–0 18 Rxe7 Nde5 19 Rxb7 Rxd6 20 Rb6 f6 21 Rxa6 Rhd8 22 Be3 Ne7 23 Ra7 N5c6 24 Ra4 h5 25 b4 hxg4 26 hxg4 Ne5 27 Bc5 Nxg4 28 Ra8+ 1–0