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MatPlus.Net Forum Twomovers What are your 2020 highlights?
 
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(1) Posted by Marjan Kovačević [Tuesday, Dec 29, 2020 15:34]

What are your 2020 highlights?


What is your chess composition highlight of 2020??

Next one is my impression of the year, from the recently published award.
I was delighted the judge Jaroslaw Brzozovicz easily recognized the evergreen value of this outstanding discovery.
Hope you will find all thematic tries yourself, and enjoy how the key simultaneously lights all the candles on this (horizontal) Christmas tree!
Dragan Stojnić
1.Prize Polish Chess Federation 2019 T.
(= 12+13 )
#2 v,v,v,v
 
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(2) Posted by Frank Richter [Tuesday, Dec 29, 2020 17:37]

A nightmare in every solving competition ...
 
 
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(3) Posted by Hauke Reddmann [Tuesday, Dec 29, 2020 20:52]

Not really, Frank. I usually solve #2 in hyperspeed.
In this case, one has a clever speedup: First look
what parades make sense at all (e.g. Sxf7,Sxg6,g4)
and find the Nowotny they kill off. Unless they
allow a new mate, this quickly reduces the key
choice. (I do not exclude that the key is no
Nowotny at all. But there are at least 5 for your
choice.) Problems which look like a sack
of figures opened over a chessboard are much
harder stuff, and those who troll the solvers
preoccupations for the lulz are even worse.
 
   
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(4) Posted by Sarah Hornecker [Wednesday, Dec 30, 2020 07:48]

Followed your advice, found the "key", but it is refuted by Ne7. :-)

The solution is elegant. But indeed a nightmare for solvers. I used the computer here to just see the solution and the refutations of the tries.
Here, however, is something really big to appreciate. Indeed an instant classic! Many thanks for sharing, Marjan!

As for me, my highlights were the more in-depth articles I wrote this year, especially on Israel - thanks to Paz Einat a lot of information in it is available for the first time to non-Hebrew reading audiences.
https://en.chessbase.com/post/study-of-the-month-2020-10

But speaking of a composing highlight, there really was none. I am happy that Martin Minski became GM, and had many studies in the FIDE Album (enough for the title even if he never had a study before, it seems?). This should lay the controversy to rest where I was accused of giving too favorable results in the previous selection where I acted as Study Director and didn't know going in that I had to judge also.

Then obviously Harold van der Heijden's sixth database is a highlight for all study lovers. Especially if you write for EG. ;-)

I like that Franz Benkö is honored with an MT (the longest "Schwalbe" member; he was not related to Pál Benkö, as far as I know).

My Serbian friend Darko Hlebec proved to be the master of insanity in endgame studies with his FIDE World Cup winner, but the often forced play is not always appealing to me.

As for the study that was the most fun solving this year (although eventually I just gave up and used the computer after having some mental blockade that prevented me from getting the beginning move order determined, while I saw until move 5 what would happen afterwards)...
(= 5+2 )

Gunter Sonntag, Schach 08/2020
White to move and draw

For some reason both the new hhdbvi and the solution in Schach gave only two of the three main variations I found. Maybe the author didn't consider 5.-Qa1+ a main variation as it is only two moves long.
 
   
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(5) Posted by James Malcom [Wednesday, Dec 30, 2020 20:58]

One of my favorite directmates that I made was this record moreover monster.

me, SuperProblem.ru 11/5/2020, #22
(= 11+14 )

1. O-O O-O-O 2. Rxb6+ Kc7 3. Rb7+ Kc8 4. Rxb5+ Kc7 5. Rb7+ Kc8 6. Rxb4+ Kc7 7. Rb7+ Kc8 8. Rxb3+ Kc79. Rb7+ Kc8 10. Rxb2+ Kc7 11. Rb7+ Kc8 12. Rxb1+ Kc7
13. Rb7+ Kc8 14. Rxd1 Rg8+ 15. Ng5 Kd8 16. Rdb1 Ra1 17. Rxa1 exd5 18. Rb8+ g8+ 15. Ng5 Kd8 16. Rdb1 Ra1 17. Rxa1 exd5 18. Rb8+ Kc7 19. Rxg8 dxe4 20. Rb1 d5 21. Rc8+ Kd6 22. Rb6#

With some dualed sidelines of course, it is a wonder of a lucky find. The longest problem with both sides castling. Try beating that!
 
 
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MatPlus.Net Forum Twomovers What are your 2020 highlights?