While face-to-face chess is disrupted in Dorset we are running a daily ‘Test Your Chess Knowledge’ quiz question (with 5 possible answers). For local quiz questions you may find the Bulletins and Chat articles helpful.
Martin Simons welcomes your feedback on the quiz and any submissions you have for questions.
Every day we will be publishing the Answers to the latest questions.
Older questions are still available: 1 to 50, 51 to 100 and 101-150
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.200 – You are the Arbiter!
White wishes to castle queenside. Which squares are allowed to be under attack by the Black pieces for such castling to be permitted? More than one answer may be valid.
A) a1
B) b1
C) c1
D) d1
E) e1
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.199 – International Chess
Which player has had the highest ever lead at the top of the FIDE ratings list?
A) Bobby Fischer
B) Anatoly Karpov
C) Garry Kasparov
D) Veselin Topalov
E) Magnus Carlsen
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.198 – National Chess
Who was reportedly in 1985, paid a sum of just over £1,000 by the British Chess Federation as Tony Miles’ second at the Interzonal in Tunis when he had not actually been Miles’ second.
A) Bill Hartston
B) Michael Stean
C) John Nunn
D) Jim Plaskett
E) Raymond Keene
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.197 – Local Chess
Who is Dorset’s captain for the 2021 Western Counties Online County Chess Championship?
A) Keith Gregory
B) Ian Clark
C) Martin Clancy
D) Martin Simons
E) Peter Anderson
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.196 – Chess Laws / Trivia
Which World Champion has had the longest streak of winning first class games?
A) Wilhelm Steinitz
B) Alexander Alekhine
C) Mikhail Tal
D) Bobby Fischer
E) Garry Kasparov
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.195 – You are the Arbiter!
In a 4NCL FIDE rated team tournament, who is allowed to point out a flag fall? More than one answer may be valid.
A) The player
B) The opponent
C) The captain of the opposing team
D) The arbiter
E) A responsible spectator
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.194 – International Chess
Of the 37 or more International women players who have earned the full Grandmaster title (not just WGM) how many have since passed away?
A) 0
B) 2
C) 4
D) 6
E) 8
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.193 – National Chess
Which English player claimed, in 2001, that he was playing Bobby Fischer in online matches?
A) Tony Miles
B) Raymond Keene
C) Nigel Short
D) James Plaskett
E) Danny Gormally
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.192 – Local Chess
How many Animal Openings were reviewed in the four bulletins on the Dorset Chess website over the summer 2020?
A) 16
B) 20
C) 24
D) 27
E) 30
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.191 – Chess Laws / Trivia
When the longest ‘White to win’ checkmate problem was set in 1929, how many moves do you think this was?
A) 40
B) 90
C) 140
D) 190
E) 290
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.190 – You are the Arbiter!
After a game has finished one of the players is noticed walking around the playing hall with a mobile phone in their hand whilst other games are still in progress for that round. What could the arbiter do? There may be more than one answer.
A) Ask the player to leave the playing hall.
B) Confiscate the mobile phone.
C) Award a loss for the game the player has just played.
D) Ban (or award a loss to) the player in future rounds.
E) Do nothing.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.189 – International Chess
Which player withdrew from the Candidates Tournament in March 2020 citing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic?
A) Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
B) Teimour Radjabov
C) Alexander Grischuk
D) Anish Giri
E)Ding Liren
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.188 – National Chess
Who won the Caplin Online British Chess Championship 2020?
A) Mark Hebden
B) Ameet Ghasi
C) Mickey Adams
D) Matthew Turner
E) Daniel Fernandez
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.187 – Local Chess
The following chess variants (in alphabetical order) were played locally in the online ‘Ringwood Chess Tournaments’ during the week 12th to 19th December 2020 after the In Praise of Chess Variants Bulletin (No.39) was posted on 12th December 2020. Which variant does not always require a player to get out of check?
A) Atomic
B) Chess 960
C) Crazyhouse
D) King of the Hill
E) Three Check Chess
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.186 – Chess Laws / Trivia
Which is regarded as the most famous chair in World Chess history?
A) Fischer’s chair in the 1972 Fischer-Spassky match.
B) Korchnoi’s chair in the 1977 Korchnoi v Petrosian match
C) Korchnoi’s chair in the 1978 Karpov v Korchnoi match
C) Kasparov’s chair in the 1984 Kasparov v Karpov match
E) The Mastermind chair due to the appearance of a famous World chess player
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.185 – You are the Arbiter!
Which of the following can the Arbiter not do during a game? There may be more than one correct answer.
A) Appoint assistants to observe games.
B) Award extra time to both players if there is external interference.
C) Indicate the number of moves completed.
D) Advise a player that a clock has not been pressed.
E) Advise a player that an opponent has completed their move.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.184 – International Chess
Who won the recent online $1.5m Champions Chess Tour Airthings Masters Tournament which finished in January 2021?
A) Magnus Carlsen
B) Ian Nepomniachtchi
C) Levon Aronian
D) Teimour Radjabov
E) Daniil Dubov
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.183 – National Chess
Which English player is the 2020 European Online Chess Champion?
A) Luke McShane
B) Nigel Short
C) Matthew Sadler
D) David Howell
E) Gawain Jones
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.182 – Local Chess
Which of these teams (in alphabetical order) won most Local Online Team Battles in 2020?
A) Highcliffe
B) New Milton
C) Poole
D) Ringwood
E) Southbourne
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.181 – Chess Laws / Trivia
Which World Champion was the chess consultant for the highly popular ‘The Queen’s Gambit’ Netflix TV Programme?
A) Anatoly Karpov
B) Garry Kasparov
C) Vishy Anand
D) Vladimir Kramnik
E) Magnus Carlsen
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.180 – You are the Arbiter!
In a tournament game, Player A’s flag has fallen but no complete scoresheet from either player can be used to determine if Player A has overstepped the allotted time. What does the Arbiter do?
A) Default both players for not keeping proper score of the game.
B) Use best estimates of the moves played providing both players agree then make an informed decision.
C) Reconstruct the game on the board being played under the control of the Arbiter to determine the number of moves played.
D) If the game cannot be reconstructed, use the current position, advise the players to play on with the next move being the first move of the following time period, unless there is evidence that more moves have been played.
E) If the game cannot be reconstructed, the game must be stopped and the players are asked to agree on a result. If there is no agreement, then the arbiter will decide on the result which may involve consultation with an independent adjudication panel taking into account all the circumstances and the final position.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.179 – International Chess
Which of the following countries has not banned chess at any point in history?
A) England
B) Iran
C) France
D) Saudi Arabia
E) Scotland
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.178 – National Chess
The musical ‘Chess’ by (Sir) Tim Rice and Abba opened in May 1986 and ran successfully for 2½ years but which famous English chess player was the chess advisor?
A) Raymond Keene
B) Bill Hartston
C) Michael Stean
D) Jonathan Penrose
E) Stewart Reuben
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.177 – Local Chess
Who was the last Bournemouth Echo Chess Problem Columnist?
A) Ivor Sanders
B) Alan Dommett
C) Richard Holmes
D) Peter Fowler
E) Roy Eggington
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.176 – Chess Laws / Trivia
Which famous strong chess player provided this great quote? … ‘I am not some sort of freak. I might be very good at chess but I’m just a normal person.’
A) Garry Kasparov
B) Hikaru Nakamura
C) Mickey Adams
D) Vishy Anand
E) Magnus Carlsen
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.175 – You are the Arbiter!
In a tournament game, an illegal move has been played. However, it was not immediately noticed by either player but was picked up by a spectator later. What should the Arbiter do?
A) Spectators are not allowed to intervene so the game continues.
B) If the position immediately before the irregularity cannot be determined, then the game should continue from the current position in play.
C) If the position immediately before the irregularity cannot be determined, the game shall continue from the last identifiable position prior to the irregularity.
D) If it is established that a player has made a subsequent second illegal move, then, because of the circumstances and that the player may not have been made aware of the first illegal move at the time, they would not immediately be awarded the loss.
E) If the game has been completed then the result should not be allowed to stand but only if the next round has not started and if it can be proven that an illegal move has been played.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.174 – International Chess
We all know who is the current World Chess Champion but who is the current Women’s World Chess Champion?
A) Anna Ushenina (Ukraine)
B) Mariya Muzychuk (Ukraine)
C) Hou Yifan (China)
D) Tan Zhongyi (China)
E) Ju Wenjun (China)
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.173 – National Chess
When was the first international chess event held in England?
A) 1851
B) 1871
C) 1891
D) 1911
E) 1931
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.172 – Local Chess
Which current active local chess player has an FM title?
A) Peter Anderson
B) Martin Simons
C) Allan Pleasants
D) Bruce Jenks
E) Mike Waddington
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.171 – Chess Laws / Trivia
Which famous strong chess player provided this great quote? … ‘Enormous self-belief, intuition, the ability to take a risk at a critical moment and go in for a very dangerous play with counter-chances for the opponent – it is precisely these qualities that distinguish great players?’
A) Alexander Alekhine
B) Mikhail Tal
C) Bobby Fischer
D) Garry Kasparov
E) Hikaru Nakamura
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.170 – You are the Arbiter!
During a live tournament chess game, when can pieces be adjusted by a player?
A) When their clock is running.
B) When their clock is not running.
C) When their opponent’s clock is running.
D) When neither clock is running.
E) At any time.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.169 – International Chess
In the 20th century, in terms of time, who was the shortest World Chess Champion on record?
A) Max Euwe
B) Vasily Smyslov
C) Mikhail Botvinnik (2nd time)
D) Mikhail Tal
E) Mikhail Botvinnik (3rd time)
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.168 – National Chess
As at October 2020, using the FIDE ratings, what ranking was Nigel Short amongst the English players?
A) 2nd
B) 3rd
C) 4th
D) 5th
E) 6th
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.167 – Local Chess
Which club that no longer plays in our local leagues had a reunion chess match in 2012 at the Bournemouth Grand Chess Congress between two of its strongest teams?
A) Christchurch
B) Oakdale
C) Knights
D) Kinson
E) Bournemouth School
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.166 – Chess Laws / Trivia
What is defined as a ‘Rapid game’ of chess (based on 60 moves)?
A) More than 10 minutes but less than 30 minutes for each player
B) More than 10 minutes but less than 60 minutes for each player
C) More than 5 minutes but less than 30 minutes for each player
D) More than 5 minutes but less than 60 minutes for each player
E) None of these.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.165 – You are the Arbiter!
In a FIDE chess tournament who decides where the chess clock is placed?
A) The clock is always placed on White’s left hand side.
B) By mutual agreement amongst the players.
C) The player of the White pieces.
D) The player of the Black pieces.
E) The Arbiter.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.164 – International Chess
Since FIDE introduced world rankings some 56 years ago, there have been 12 (FIDE and PCA) world champions. 7 have always been ranked in the top 3 in the world when they won or regained the title? Of the remaining 5 players, who was the lowest ranked when they won or regained the title.
A) Alexander Khalifman (1999 – 2000)
B) Ruslan Ponomariov (2002 – 2004)
C) Rustam Kasimdzhanov (2004 – 2005)
D) Vladimir Kramnik (2006 – 2007)
E) Viswanathan Anand (2007 – 2014)
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.163 – National Chess
Based on the FIDE ratings, what was Nigel Short’s highest ever ranking in the world?
A) 3rd
B) 4th
C) 5th
D) 6th
E) 7th
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.162 – Local Chess
Which of these local chess clubs were formed in the 1970s.
A) Highcliffe, New Milton & Southbourne
B) Highcliffe, New Milton & Wimborne
C) Highcliffe, Southbourne & Wimborne
D) New Milton, Southbourne & Wimborne
E) Highcliffe, New Milton, Southbourne & Wimborne
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.161 – Chess Laws / Trivia
What are the generally accepted benefits of playing chess?
A) Better brain function, improved memory, reduced the risk of Alzheimer’s but not necessarily attention improvement.
B) Better brain function, improved memory & attention improvement but not necessarily reduced the risk of Alzheimer’s.
C) Better brain function, reduced the risk of Alzheimer’s & attention improvement but not necessarily improved memory.
D) Improved memory, reduced the risk of Alzheimer’s & attention improvement but not necessarily better brain function.
E) Better brain function, improved memory, attention improvement & reduced the risk of Alzheimer’s.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.160 – You are the Arbiter!
What is allowed in terms of writing moves down in advance on your scoresheet?
A) This is always allowed.
B) This is allowed providing the player only writes down one move in advance.
C) This is only sometimes allowed in certain situations.
D) This is only allowed when the arbiter is present.
E) This is never allowed.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.159 – International Chess
When was the first official World Chess Championship held and publicly recognised?
A) 1843
B) 1858
C) 1886
D) 1894
E) 1921
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.158 – National Chess
Stewart Reuben is a well-known British chess player, organiser, arbiter and author but what else is he arguably more famous for playing?
A) Bowls
B) Snooker
C) Darts
D) Bridge
E) Poker
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.157 – Local Chess
Which local club has had the most DCCA Presidents?
A) Weymouth
B) Dorchester
C) Wimborne
D) Poole
E) Southbourne
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.156 – Chess Laws / Trivia
What is the most number of queens known to be on a chess board in a FIDE rated match at any one time?
A) 4
B) 5
C) 6
D) 7
E) 8
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.155 – You are the Arbiter!
What is generally not accepted as a valid reason for stopping the chess clock in live play?
A) To seek the arbiter’s assistance.
B) To go for an emergency toilet break when short of time.
C) To promote a pawn to a queen when there is no spare queen.
D) A medical emergency.
E) To complain that a spectator is disturbing the player.
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.154 – International Chess
By some accounts, at the St. Petersburg 1914 chess tournament, the title Grandmaster was formally conferred by Russian Tsar Nicholas II, who had partially funded the tournament. Who in the list below was not one of five international chess players to be awarded the Grandmaster title in this tournament?
A) Emanual Lasker
B) Jose Capablanca
C) Alexander Alekhine
D) Frank Marshall
E) Max Euwe
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.153 – National Chess
Who was not re-elected despite standing as the candidate for the ECF’s Chief Executive position in 2015?
A) Phil Ehr
B) Mike Truran
C) Chris Majer
D) Martin Regan
E) Andrew Farthing
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.152 – Local Chess
Which local chess club once lost a B&DCL Team Handicap Knockout Cup Final by 5.5 – 0.5 but won it on the handicap scoring system?
A) New Milton
B) Purbeck
C) Bournemouth
D) Highcliffe
E) Dorchester
Test Your Chess Knowledge No.151 – Chess Laws / Trivia
What is defined as a ‘Blitz’ game of chess (based on 60 moves)?
A) Up to 20 minutes for each player.
B) Up to 15 minutes for each player.
C) Up to 10 minutes for each player.
D) Up to 5 minutes for each player.
E) Up to 2 minutes for each player.
