NATO has had its issues in recent times, but fortunately, the U.S. and its military allies are still able to come together for some friendly skirmishing at the chessboard.
The NATO Chess Championship hit a milestone in August with the 35th running of the annual military team competition, held this year at the air force base in Deblin, Poland. Some 23 teams and 115 players competed in what was one of the largest fields since the event kicked off in 1989.
A powerful team from Turkey, anchored by GM Batuhtan Dasan, claimed the gold medal, with perennial NATO power Germany settling for silver. An outranked but game American squad managed a tie for third with host Poland, bolstered by strong individual performances from U.S. Air Force Academy Cadet FM Christopher Shen and Navy Petty Officer Andrew Peraino.
Peraino secured a key point in the seventh and final round, upsetting German expert Ulrich Bohn in a sharp tactical battle that tested both players. Bohn’s Modern Defense looks to set up a modest but flexible setup, preparing to counterpunch as White seizes space in the center.
But Black gets a little too casual with his development and his king’s safety, and Peraino alertly shifts to an all-out attack: 9. Nh3 Rc8?! (better was getting the kingside pieces in play with 9…Ngf6, preparing to castle) 10. Ng5 c5 11. e5! cxd4 12. e6! — White correctly looks to blast open central lines with Black’s king still in the center. Now 12…dxe3? loses to 13. exf7+ Kf8 14. Ne6+ Kxf7 15. Nxd8+ Rxd8 16. Qxe3.
In a super-sharp position, White lands a powerful blow on 12…fxe6 13. Bxd4 e5 14. Be3 (premature is 14. Ne6? exd4 15. Nxd8 dxc3 16. bxc3 Kxd8, and Black gets the initiative as well as ample material for the lost queen) Nf8? (both players are negotiating a tactical minefield here, and it’s not surprising Black missteps; the computer says 14…Qa5! 15. Bd3 [Ne6 Bf6 16. Bd3 Kf7 17. Ng5+ Bxg5 18. hxg5 b4, counterattacking just in time] Nf8 sidesteps White’s coming blow) 15. Nxb5!!, opening a second avenue of attack to the stranded Black king.
White in turn misses a killer blow after 15…axb5 16. Bxb5+ Bc6, when 17. Qd5! would have put the defense in dire straits in lines like 17…Qc7 18. Qf7+ Kd6 [Kd8 19. Qxg7 Bxb5 20. Rd2 Bc4 21. Qxh8] 19. Rxd6+! Qxd6 [Kxd6 20. Rd1+ Bd5 21. Ne4 mate] 20. Rd1 Qxd1+ 21 Kxd1 Bxb5 22. Qxg7, and Bohn must lose more material on the kingside.
Instead, the battle rages on after 17. Bxc6+!? Rxc6 18. Qd5 Qc8? (a second inaccuracy dooms the defense; mandatory was 18…Kd7! 19. Nf7 Qa8!, and Black fights on after 20. Kb1 Ne6 21. Nxh8 Bxh8 22. Qd3, with chances for both sides) 19. Qf7+ Kd7 20. Qxg7 — Peraino now cleans up on Black’s defenseless kingside while having enough in reserve to turn back Black’s desperation attack.
White consolidates on 20…Nf6 21. Qxh8 Rxc2+ 22. Kb1 Re2 23. Bc1!, anchoring the defense of the b2-square. Now on 23…Qc2+ 24. Ka1 Ne6 25. Qb8, White could cover his queenside vulnerabilities and remain a full rook up.
In the final position, after 29. Nxf8+ Kd6 30. Nxg6, Black resigns as 30…Qxa5 leads to mate after 31. Qxe5+ Kd7 32. Nf8+ Ke8 33. Rc8+ Kf7 34. Qe6+ Kg7 35. Qg6+ Kh8 36. Qh7 mate.
In the same round, Shen was securing a critical point with a win over Italian expert Damiano Lami. We pick up the game from today’s diagram, where Shen as Black has a clear edge but appears to be facing a long slog to secure the point in a notoriously tricky rook-and-knight ending: White has an outside passed pawn and it seems Black will have a hard time pushing one of his own kingside pawns through to queening.
But Black neatly cuts the Gordian knot with 30…Rxa4!!, the point being that 31. Rxa4?? allows 31…Rc1+ 32. Kg2 Nf4+ 33. Kg3 Rg1 mate. After the game’s 31. Rab1 f5 32. Ng3 Nf4 33. Rb8 (R7b2 Ra3, targeting the f-pawn, was equally bleak for White) Rc2, Black has not only won a critical pawn but his rooks and knight are circling the boxed-in White king.
White gets in some harassing checks, but it’s over on 34. Rg8+ Kf7 35. Rh8 Kg7 36. Rd8 Raa2 37. Rb7+ Kg6 38. Rg8+ Kh6. The checks have run out and White resigns as Black’s doubled rooks are poised to do serious damage after 39. Rb1 Rxf2 40. Nf1 Nh3+ 41. Kh1 Rg2, and mate is unstoppable.
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We wrote last week of how GM Jianchao Zhou enjoyed a very successful August in the area, finishing second in the 12th Washington International tournament in Rockville and tying for first with GM Francesco Sonis in the 57th annual Atlantic Open in Washington two weeks later. Here is one of Zhou’s better attacking efforts from the Rockville event, dismantling veteran GM Jesse Kraai from the Black side of a King’s Indian in just 23 moves.
Seizing the initiative is more than half the battle in this opening, where the players typically launch competing attacks on opposite flanks. Black starts calling the shots after 15. Rc1 e4 16. a3?! (this looks too slow; one alternative was 16. Nb5! Nxa2 17. Nd4 Bg6 18. Ra1 Nb4 19. Nde6, with compensation for the pawn) Nd3+ 17. Bxd3 exd3 (this pawn looks vulnerable but will prove a bone in White’s throat) 18. Qf3 Nd7 19. Qg3 Ne5 20. Nb5 Ng6 — White’s kingside attack has been shut down, while Zhou’s two bishops and pressure on the e-file produce an unexpectedly quick denouement.
Thus: 21. Kd2 (c5 Be5 22. Qg2 Nf4 also keeps the attack going) Bxb2 22. Rce1 Qg7!, and the attack on the long diagonal proves lethal: 23. Nf3 (Rb1 a6, and if 24. Nxc7, it’s over on 24…Qc3+ 25. Kd1 Qc2+ 26. Ke1 Qe2 mate) Bc1+! (an original kind of clearing sacrifice, getting Black’s own bishop out of the way so his queen can invade decisively) 24. Kd1 (White is mated on both 24. Kxc1 Qa1+ 25. Kd2 Qb2+ 26. Kd1 Qc2 mate and 24. Rxc1 Qb2+ 25. Kd1 Qe2 mate) Bxe3, and White resigned as 25. fxe3 Qa1+ 26. Kd2 Qb2+ 27. Kd1 Qc2 is again mate.
(Click on the image above for a larger view of the chessboard.)
Peraino-Bohn, 35th NATO Championship, Deblin, Poland, August 2025
1. e4 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. Be3 a6 5. Qd2 b5 6. O-O-O Bb7 7. f3 Nd7 8. h4 h5 9. Nh3 Rc8 10. Ng5 c5 11. e5 cxd4 12. e6 fxe6 13. Bxd4 e5 14. Be3 Nf8 15. Nxb5 axb5 16. Bxb5+ Bc6 17. Bxc6+ Rxc6 18. Qd5 Qc8 19. Qf7+ Kd7 20. Qxg7 Nf6 21. Qxh8 Rxc2+ 22. Kb1 Re2 23. Bc1 d5 24. Rd2 Rxd2 25. Bxd2 d4 26. Rc1 Qb8 27. Ba5 Nd5 28. Nh7 Qb5 29. Nxf8+ Kd6 30. Nxg6 Black resigns.
Kraai-Zhou, 12th Washington International Tournament, Rockville, Maryland, August 2015
1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 Bg7 4. Nc3 O-O 5. e4 d6 6. h3 e5 7. d5 Nh5 8. g3 f5 9. exf5 gxf5 10. Ng5 Nf6 11. g4 Qe7 12. gxf5 Bxf5 13. Rg1 Na6 14. Be3 Nb4 15. Rc1 e4 16. a3 Nd3+ 17. Bxd3 exd3 18. Qf3 Nd7 19. Qg3 Ne5 20. Nb5 Ng6 21. Kd2 Bxb2 22. Rce1 Qg7 23. Nf3 Bc1+ 24. Kd1 Bxe3 White resigns.
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