German chess player Louis Paulsen, one of the strongest masters of the 1860s and 1870s, was born #OnThisDay in 1833.

One of the first "purely defensive players" (Nimzowitsch), he suggested that strong defense can give a rebuff to any brilliant attack of the romantic era.

Although he highly valued defense, Louis Paulsen was a strong attacker himself.

White to move and win from Paulsen-Owen, London 1862. #YourMove

Louis Paulsen was famous for his blindfold performances. His first effort of that kind stunned the public in New York in 1857, when he took on then-unprecedented five games simultaneously. A year later he extended the record to 14 games. #ChessHistory

🔗 International Chess Federation (@FIDE\_chess)

Aleksander Wojtkiewicz was born #OnThisDay in 1963. A student of ex-world champ Mikhail Tal whom he assisted in the 1979 Interzonal tournament in Riga, a Latvian & 2-times Polish Champion, Wojtkiewicz won several Grand Prix events & played in the 2004 FIDE World Championship.

"We should praise, rather, the courage of the player who, relying only on his intuition, plunges into a brilliant combination of which the issue does not appear to him too clear."

🔸 Eugene Znosko-Borovsky

@UnityChessClub

Via Chess__News - a photo of Mark Taimanov giving a simultaneous display with clocks at the legendary Leningrad Pioneers' Palace in 1958.
The 3rd opponent from the left is the young Genna Sosonko.

🔗 Douglas Griffin (@dgriffinchess)

Kupreichik (USSR) v. Nasir Ali (India), from the opening round of the New Delhi International, December 1982.
The event was won by Dorfman (USSR); Kupreichik was 2nd; 3rd-5th were Taimanov (USSR), Dibyendu Barua & Thipsay (India).
(Photo via https://sputnik.by.)

🔗 Douglas Griffin (@dgriffinchess)

Jan Timman's Best Chess Tactics -1

Probably one of Wijk aan Zee's most memorable games. The then 16-year-old Anish Giri beat already No. 1 in the world Magnus Carlsen in merely 22 moves. Will we see the youngsters revolt again this year? #TataSteelChess

Here are 41 of the best chess puzzles from #WijkaanZee.
Includes puzzles from games of many famous players.
Press the "Play" button to play 10 puzzles from the list.
#TataSteelChess

https://chesspuzzle.net/List/63

Best Checkmate Combinations Ever - 54

Puzzle of the Day!
Solve this puzzle on interactive board: chesspuzzle.net/Puzzle/130844

♟ | Our Tata Steel Masters are ready! The first round of the #TataSteelChess Tournament is tomorrow… drawing of lots and the pairings will be published at the end of today. Stay tuned!

🔗 Tata Steel Chess (@tatasteelchess)

Daniil Dubov sadly had to withdraw from the #TataSteelChess tournament due to someone close to him testing positive for COVID-19. He has been replaced by 22-year-old Alexander Donchenko of Germany. Here's the updated list of participants. The tournament starts tomorrow!

♖ The #TataSteelChess Tournament 2021 starts this Saturday!

♖ Participants include Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, and Vachier_Lagrave!

♖ Watch our coverage live on http://Chess.com/tv starting at 5 A.M. PT / 14:00 CET.

Carlsen Heads Field As Pandemic-Defying Tata Steel Chess Starts Tomorrow

https://www.chess.com/news/view/2021-tata-steel-chess-preview

Magnus Carlsen & Fabiano Caruana top the #TataSteelChess Masters field! In an interview on the eve of the event Magnus talked about a recent lack of motivation, possible retirement & how he once lost a bet on Fabi with his father: https://chess24.com/en/read/news/carlsen-opens-up-about-retirement-before-17th-wijk-aan-zee-appearance

♟ | The 22-year-old Alexander Donchenko will make his debut in the Tata Steel Masters. He will replace Daniil Dubov, who had to withdraw due to someone close to him testing positive for COVID-19.
#TataSteelChess

https://tatasteelchess.com/news/a-dream-come-true-for-alexander-donchenko/