The positions are taken from FIDE World Championship Matches 1993-2005. This was a time of division in the chess world with 2 world championship titles: a classical and a FIDE world champion. The title was reunited in 2006 with the infamous match in Elista between Kramnik – Topalov (aka Toiletgate).
My biggest takeaways from working with the material for the 2021 Chess Calendar:
- Due to the knock-out tournament format of the majority of the games selected for the Calendar, we see a vast number of different chess players and their games. So many strong GM’s participated in these matches, if only for 2 games if they were knocked out early. Thus, the 2021 Chess Calendar gives a great historical overview of this time period and most players will recognize many great chess masters.
- I ploughed through approximately 2500 games before selecting the 365 puzzles for the 2021 Chess Calendar. It was interesting to be reminded of past opening lines that were in fashion at the time, but later disappeared from tournament practice. And, the greatest tactics from this period is of course included in the Calendar.
- Many of the level 1 puzzles (Mondays) are big mistakes or blunders taken from these games, and one can sense the pressure the players were on due to the time control. At the time, 90’+30″ became the standard for these games, and the chess world experienced many games that would be played out with only the remaining 30 seconds increment per move, thus resulting in many blunders.
