Testbuch der Endspielkunst

On this DVD Alexei Shirov shows that also in the endgame, it is possible to keep struggling for the full point to the very last - if you are creative and ambitious. Because even in objectively quite balanced positions, you can frequently find ways to sharpen up or complicate the fight. For the tournament player, often all that matters is to be able to pose practical problems which his or her opponent might finally fail to solve. Thus Shirov sees himself rather as an endgame practicioner, putting down his successes in this phase of the game less to concrete knowledge about theoretical positions than to the understanding of general principles, good intuition and exact calculation of variations. One main emphasis of the DVD is the endgame with rooks and different coloured bishops which Shirov finds particularly interesting, analysing five examples. Another important feature is the very complex and difficult setting with four rooks (three examples), where he works out most helpful general principles. All in all, Shirov examines 17 examples out of his own practice, among them his famous different coloured bishop ending versus Topalov which went around the whole world. Running time: 4,5 hours. This Fritztrainer is also running under Pocket Fritz 3! Alexei Shirov was born in Riga just like world champion Mihail Tal, and also his playing style reminds many chess fans of the young Tal. In the beginning of the 90ies, a comet-like rise brought the young Latvian to the world top within the shortest of time. Being no older than 22 years, he already had an Elo rating of nearly 2750 and belonged to the absolute elite. Since then Shirov has been one of the best players in the world, delighting all chess fans with original and amazing ideas on the board. ISBN: 978-3-86681-107-2

What does a chess player need who is familiar with the rules, but often gets into trouble right away in the opening? This question was the starting point for the authors before they began to compile their material. The result is a book that gives explanations to help the reader understand the 'Semi-Open Games' – such as the French Defense and the Caro-Kann Defense (note that the 'Sicilian Defense' was discussed in a separate volume) – and instructions to show him how to use them.And no matter if he is little or even completely unfamiliar with opening theory, this book gives him easy access to this difficult and comprehensive field. The ideas and plans behind each line are explained in detail to ensure that the reader understands them properly instead of just playing moves that he has learned by heart. Even the sense and purpose of single moves are ex-plained, if they are not quite obvious.Based on the knowledge that the reader will surely acquire by studying this book, it will be easy to build a game and play interesting, entertaining and – last but not least – successful chess. ISBN: 978-3-95920-977-9