David R. Sands
Articles by David R. Sands
Jennifer Yu breaks through as Virginia’s first female chess grandmaster
Ashburn, Virginia, is the cradle of champions. Ashburn's true world beater these days is Jennifer Yu, the 14-year-old junior star who just became the first Virginia woman ever to earn the women's grandmaster title. FIDE, the international chess federation, made it official at its most recent board meeting in Bucharest this month. Published July 17, 2018
After Putin meeting, Iranian says Tehran in Syria to stay
A top foreign policy adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamanei said Friday after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin that Iranian forces will remain in Syria despite protests from Israel and the Trump administration. Published July 13, 2018
World Cup winners can expect GDP boost to economy
As France and Croatia prepare for the final in soccer's monthlong World Cup extravaganza in Moscow, data suggest that this year's champion will get a nice boost in the pocketbook back home as well. Published July 12, 2018
What the Royal Game can teach the Beautiful Game
With soccer's World Cup down to the frenzied matches as this is being written, let us recount all the things the Royal Game and the Beautiful Game have in common. Published July 11, 2018
Corneille Nangaa, Congo’s election chief, welcomes challenge of December vote
Corneille Nangaa laughs but doesn't exactly disagree when it's suggested he has been handed one of the world's worst jobs. Published July 10, 2018
Birthday boy Benko has left a lasting mark on the game of chess
In the popular imagination, he's perhaps most famous for the tournament in which he didn't play. Pal Benko, the Hungarian-American GM who turns 90 on July 14, willingly gave up his slot in the 1970 Interzonal Tournament to Bobby Fischer, putting Fischer on track to win his epic world title match against Boris Spassky two years later. Published July 3, 2018
H.E. Bird displayed a healthy appetite for chess brilliance
'I never beat a healthy man." That wry old observation, attributed to the great British 19th-century master H.E. Bird, came to mind recently on the news that Chinese GM Ding Liren fractured his hip in a bicycle accident and had to withdraw midway through the strong Altibox Norway Chess tournament last month. Published June 26, 2018
A splendid little skirmish from NATO’s chess championship
As the generals say, there's a lot to be learned from a little war. Take, for example, today's first game from the recent 29th NATO Chess Championship, held in Lubbock, Texas. Published June 19, 2018
Sam Shankland snares third chess title in a row
As it seems we have been reporting for the past two months, red-hot American GM Sam Shankland has won another tournament with yet one more undefeated, dominating performance. Published June 12, 2018
For Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, familiarity breeds respect
Time was when chess world championship matches included a lengthy getting-to-know-you phase. Published June 5, 2018
George Soros, Budapest-born financier, shined in spotlight with ‘Stop Soros Bill’
George Soros has become so prominent in the Hungarian domestic political debate that the crackdown on illegal immigration pushed by nationalist prime Minister Viktor Orban's Fidesz party in parliament this week is widely being described as the "Stop Soros Bill." Published May 31, 2018
Hungary a ‘natural ally’ of Trump as Pompeo, Peter Szijjarto meet
NEWSMAKER INTERVIEW: Hungary has no intention of joining the "U.S.-bashing chorus in Europe," in part because Budapest and Washington now are singing from the same page on issues such as immigration, security and the right of sovereign nations to set their own policies, Hungary's foreign minister said in an interview. Published May 31, 2018
Chess angels aided the wounded during World War II
As we mark Memorial Day this week, let us remember the ways chess has done its part to cheer and console those who go to war. Published May 30, 2018
Moon Jae-in, South Korea president, calls emergency meeting after Donald Trump cancels Kim summit
Apparently blindsided by President Trump's decision to cancel next month's summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, South Korean President Moon Jae-in convened an emergency meeting of his top security officials in Seoul Thursday night to discuss what happens next. Published May 24, 2018
Pompeo: North Korea shut off talks on prepping for Trump-Kim summit
North Korea shut down bilateral contacts to prepare for the proposed summit between President Trump Kim Jong-un several days before Mr. Trump on Thursday abruptly called off the planned June 12 meeting in Singapore, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told a congressional hearing. Published May 24, 2018
Britain gets a princess, but chess has a new queen
Britain, as you may have heard, has a new princess. But chess has a new queen. Published May 22, 2018
Indian minister makes first visit to North Korea in decades
In a sign other countries are rushing into the diplomatic breach opened by the U.S.-North Korea rapprochement, a top Indian diplomat is making the first trip by a senior Indian official to Pyongyang in two decades. Published May 17, 2018
Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on track for big congressional majority in Mexico vote
Leftist candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has opened up such a wide lead ahead of July 1's Mexican presidential vote that his coattails could give his party a working congressional majority as well, according to a new polling analysis released this week. Published May 16, 2018
A feisty, fun-filled fight for the women’s world chess title
If you crave feisty, frantic, fun-filled world championship-caliber chess, the women have the men beat by a mile. Published May 15, 2018
Kuwait continues Iran straddle after Trump decision
Kuwait, the one Persian Gulf Arab nation that has tried to maintain relations with Iran, is continuing its diplomatic straddle a day after President Trump announced the U.S. was pulling out of the 2015 nuclear accord with Tehran. Published May 9, 2018
