6 NIC’s Café
Robert Redford and Fridrik Olafsson.
10 Boris Spassky
On February 27, Boris Spassky died in Moscow at the age of 88. The 10th World Champion was buried at the Troyekurovo Cemetery, amid numerous notable Russian figures, including directors of the KGB and heroes of the Soviet Union. Whether this was the desired last resting place for Spassky, who despised Communism and called himself ‘a staunch monarchist’, can be questioned.
20 Nakamura’s Secret
Hikaru Nakamura, who calls himself a streamer, won the American Cup, cementing his status as the World No. 2. What is his secret? How can he spend one week covering blunders in viewer arenas and the next week fly out to defeat some of the world’s best players in classical chess?
28 Fair & Square
Magnus Carlsen: ‘I don’t trust him, and a lot of top players still don’t trust him.’
30 Aravindh’s Masterclass
With an undisputed victory in the 7th edition of the Prague Masters, Aravindh Chithambaram showed emphatically that his recent success in the Chennai Masters was no fluke. The 25-year-old former prodigy is rising fast in the rankings.
35 Celeb 64
Albert Einstein.
51 The Killer Blow
Puzzles selected by Jacob Aagaard.
54 Interview Aravindh
The winner of the Prague Masters opens up.
62 Chess as a Business
The English Chess in Schools program, run by Malcolm Pein, has reached more than 300,000 schoolchildren. The charity is tasked with promoting chess as widely as possible and hopes for a new stream of English grandmasters.
66 Bluebaum European Champion
The first player to win the title twice.
70 James Altucher
When you compare, you despair.
72 How to Improve
A key element of chess improvement is the ability to evaluate a position. To look at a position and determine who’s better, by how much, and why.
76 The Model Game
‘The King’s Gambit of the Nimzo’ explained by Christof Sielecki.
80 The scoresheet
Giri-Aravindh, Prague Masters 2025.
82 Sadler on Books
In his new book, full of humour and larger-than-life characters, Willy Hendriks chronicles the clash between Nimzowitsch and Tarrasch.
88 Jan Timman
Boris Spassky (1937-2025) should be remembered for much more than his loss to Bobby Fischer in Reykjavik in 1972. He had a long and illustrious career, and from 1968 to 1971, he was the strongest chess player in the world.
98 Just Checking
When was Frederik Svane happiest?
Pages 100
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