19.Nf6+! [Everything is ready for this typical knight sacrifice.]
[19.Qf4 Qb8 20.Qg4 Ng6 21.Qg3 Be7 22.Bb1 Nc5 23.Nf6+ Bxf6 24.exf6 Qxg3 25.hxg3 gxf6 26.Bxf6 Rc8 27.Nd2 Nd7 28.Bd4²; 19.Nd6 Qb8 20.Ne4 Qb7]
19...Kh8 [19...Nxf6? 20.exf6 Nf5 (20...gxf6 21.Qxh6 Nf5 22.Bxf5 exf5 23.Bxf6; 20...Bxf3 21.fxg7 Nf5 22.Rxc5! bxc5 23.gxf8Q+ Kxf8 24.Qc3+–) 21.fxg7 Rfe8?? 22.Bxf5 f6 (22...exf5 23.Qxh6 Rxe1+ 24.Rxe1 f6 25.Qh8+ Kf7 26.g8Q+ Rxg8 27.Qxf6#) 23.Bxf6 exf5 24.Qxh6 Bxf3 25.Qh8+ Kf7 26.Rxe8 Rxe8 27.Qxe8+ Kxe8 28.g8Q++–; 19...gxf6 20.Qxh6 f5 21.Ng5+–]
20.Nxd5 Qxd5 21.Qe2 Qb7 22.Be4 Qb8 23.Bb1 Rfe8 24.Rc4 [24.Ng5! The move is far more dangerous than the text move. 24...Rf8 25.Nh7 Rfe8 26.Qh5 Kg8 27.Ng5 Rf8 28.g3 Ng6 29.Nxe6 Bxf2+ 30.Kxf2 fxe6+ 31.Kg1 Ne7 32.Qg4+– Rf5 33.Qc4]
24...Nf8 25.Nd2 Nd5 26.Nb3?! [26.Ne4! Rc8 27.Rec1 Red8 28.g3 (28.Nxc5 bxc5 29.Rxc5? (29.a4±) 29...Nf4 30.Qf1 Rxc5 31.Rxc5 Qb6³) 28...Be7 29.Qh5 Rxc4 30.Rxc4 Kg8 31.Nf6+ gxf6 32.Rg4+ Ng6 33.Bxg6 fxg6 34.Qxg6+ Kh8 35.Qg7#]
26...Rc8 27.Rec1 Be7 28.Nd4 Rxc4 29.Rxc4 Bc5 30.Nc6 Qa8 31.Qh5 Ng6 32.Bxg6 [32.Bc1 Bf8 33.Bxg6 fxg6 34.Qxg6 Ne7 35.Qh5 Nxc6 36.Rxc6 Qd8 37.Be3 Bxa3 38.h3 Qd7 39.Rxb6]
32...fxg6 33.Qxg6 Rf8 34.Bd4 Bxd4 35.Rxd4 Nf4 36.Qg4 h5 37.Qf3 g5 38.h4 Qe8 39.Rd8 Qf7 40.hxg5 Rxd8 41.Nxd8 Qf5 42.Kh2 Qg4 43.Qxg4 hxg4 44.Kg3 Nd3 45.Nf7+ Kg7 46.Nd6 Nxe5 47.Nc8 Kg6 [47...Nd7 48.Kxg4+–]
48.Nxb6 Kxg5 49.Nc8 Nd7 50.b6 Nb8 51.Nd6 Nc6 52.b7 1–0

⚪️#35 (Endgame-‌White to Move)
🔸Vachier-Lagrave,Maxime (2780)
🔸Bellahcene,Bilel (2501)
🔸World Chess Olympiad 2018 Batumi

43.h4! [43.Rg6 Kf5 44.Rg8 Rxb4 45.Ra8 Kf4 46.Rf8+ Ke5 47.Ra8 Kf4 48.Rxa6 Rb3 49.Rxe6 Rxf3+=; 43.Rh7 Rxb4 44.Ra7 Kf4 45.Rf7+ Ke5 46.Ra7=]

43...gxh4 44.Rxh4 Kd5 45.Rh5+ Kd4 46.Rc5 Rxb4 47.Rc6 Ra4 48.Rxa6 e5 49.Ra8 e4 50.f4 Ra2+ 51.Kg3 e3 52.f5 Ra1 53.Re8 Rxa5 54.Kf4 Rxf5+?? [54...Ra3 55.Re7 Rb3 56.Re4+ Kd5 57.Re5+ (57.f6 Rb6 58.f7 Rf6+ 59.Kxe3 Rxf7=; 57.Rxe3 Rxe3 58.Kxe3 Ke5 59.Kf3 Kxf5) 57...Kd4 58.Re6 Kd5 59.Re4 Ra3=; 54...Ra1 55.Re4+ Kd5 56.Rxe3 Rf1+ 57.Kg5 Rg1+ 58.Kh6 Rh1+ 59.Kg7 Rg1+ 60.Kf7+–]

55.Kxf5 Kd3 56.Kf4 1–0

⚪️#36 (Strategy-White to Move)
🔸Markoja,Boris (2456)
🔸Gumpo,Thabo (2059)
🔸World Chess Olympiad 2018 Batumi

Unity Chess Strategy Multiple Choice 36
public poll

A) 46.gxf5 – 9
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍 82%
Jonas, @Defence1985, @Afshin3333, Vincent, @YaminiG, Nagaprasad, @Sophia_Giraffe, Michael, Alan

B) 46.g5 – 2
👍👍 18%
@A_Wild_Richard, Mahathi

C) 46.Ra1
▫️ 0%

👥 11 people voted so far.

⚪️#36 (Endgame-‌White to Move)
🔸Galego,Luis (2471)
🔸Duda,Jan-Krzysztof (2739)
🔸World Chess Olympiad 2018 Batumi

Unity Chess Endgame Multiple Choice 36
public poll

A) 30.gxh6 – 5
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍 38%
Jonas, @Afshin3333, @rssh666, فیروزه, @A_Wild_Richard

C) 30.f6+ – 5
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍 38%
Vincent, Nagaprasad, Atharva, Michael, Alan

B)30.Rxh6 – 3
👍👍👍👍 23%
@Sophia_Giraffe, @Henrycaba, Mahathi

👥 13 people voted so far.

♦️ Today is birthday of Olexandr Bortnyk!!
Ukrainian chess grandmaster

❤️🌹💐☘️🌷🌺🌸❤️ Happy birthday !! 👏👏👏👏
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
@unitychess

UNITY CHESS INFOGRAPHIC
◼️ Chess History - Tournaments
▪️ Leningrad 1971

#chess_history_tornaments
#Leningrad_1971
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@unitychess

🔷 Chess History - Tournaments
🔹 Leningrad 1971
🔹 USSR
🔹 September 15 - October 18
🔹 CHAMPION: Vladimir Andreyevich Savon |15/21(+9 -0 =12) |

🔰 The 39th Soviet Chess Championship was a category XI event held in the city of Leningrad from September 15 to October 18, 1971. Thirteen of the USSR's strongest masters and grandmasters qualified for the round robin tournament from the four Soviet semi-finals held earlier in the year.

🔹 The qualifiers were (with ELO):
🔅 Anatoly Lein (2510),
🔅 Vladimir Savon (2570)
🔅 Leonid Shamkovich (2520)
🔺From Ivano-Frankovsk
🔅 Nikolai Krogius (2575),
🔅 Karen Grigorian (2430)
🔅 Albert Kapengut (2450)
🔺 From Perm
🔅 Anatoli Karpov (2540),
🔅 Rafael Vaganian (2510),
🔅 Roman Dzindzichashvili (2480)
🔅 Vladimir Karasev
🔺 From Daugavpils;
🔅 Yuri Nikolaevsky (2490),
🔅 Igor Platonov (2470),
🔅 Mark Tseitlin
🔺From Novosibirsk

🔹 Nine of the Soviet Union's very best players were also invited to complete the field, including (in order of ELO):
🔅 Lev Polugaevsky (2640),
🔅 Vasily Smyslov (2620),
🔅 Mikhail Tal (2620),
🔅 Efim Geller (2615),
🔅 Leonid Stein (2605),
🔅 Mark Taimanov (2600),
🔅 David Bronstein (2590),
🔅 Yuri Balashov (2570),
🔅 Vladimir Tukmakov (2565).

🔰 This edition of the championship was witness to an enormous upset as International Master Vladimir Savon, who was not even among the top rated grandmasters present, won clear first in a field that included two former world champions and five former Soviet champions.
Savon went undefeated and earned his crown with an impressive score of 15/21.

♦️ The final standings and crosstable was as above👆
♦️ Download "Leningrad 1971" Games database by PGN format👇

#chess_history_tornaments
#Leningrad_1971
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@unitychess

▪️ Leningrad 1971 Games database
▪️ PGN format
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
@unitychess

♦️ Review a brilliant tactical chess game from Leningrad 1971 chess tournament👇

▪️ Vladimir Savon vs Lev Polugaevsky
▪️ USSR Championship (1971), Leningrad URS, rd 3, Sep-17
▪️ Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen. Classical Variation (B84)
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
@unitychess

At the Hoogovens tournament in Beverwijk, Jan 1965: L to R: Vladimir Bagirov, Yuri Balashov (then, at 15 years of age, the youngest Master of Sport in the Soviet Union) and Efim Geller.

@UnityChess

Karpov-Korchnoi: 40 years after: On October 17th, 1978, a battle of nerves, which lasted over four months and 32 games, ended in Baguio City. Details,..

@UnityChess

Nana Alexandria at Wijk aan Zee, 29th January 1970.

@UnityChess

🏁✅ Amazing!! This Carlsen vs Svidler game as known as the most beautiful endgame ever.

@UnityChess