Category Archives: Chess
Gibraltar: Battle of the Sexes begins – Chessbase News
Battle of the Sexes 2022 - Opening Ceremony
Press Release, Gibraltar, 24 January 2022by John Saunders
Laurent Freyd, director of the Gibraltar International Chess Festival, opened proceedings by explaining the background to this novel chess competition, in which two teams of ten leading professional chess players, men and women, play ten rounds of classical chess against each other for a prize fund of 100,000, of which 75,000 would go to the winning side and 25,000 to the runners-up. It marked another imaginative and innovative chess initiative for a festival which has become world-renowned over the past 18 years and several times been voted the worlds top open tournament by the World Chess Federation. It also meant that the festival would maintain its annual continuity through the pandemic, with open-to-all tournaments held at the Caleta Hotel in 2020 and a Womens World Championship eliminator held there in the summer of 2021.
The women's team
Dr Cortes congratulated the Festival on its achievements and commented on the suitability of the tournament to the historic venue in which it was to be held. Gibraltar prided itself on its cultural heritage, with the Garrison Library being a prime example of heritage and culture. Gibraltar had now become known as the home of chess, itself an activity with a long cultural heritage. He wished the tournament and the contestants the best of luck and hoped that everyone involved would take home with them a small piece of Gibraltar in their heart as a fond memory.
Dr Ballantine also wished the contestants luck in their chess competition. She hoped the players would find time during their stay in Gibraltar to look at the small collection of chess books which reside in a corner of the library and which date back around two centuries.
The Men's team
Dr Cortes was then invited to effect the drawing of colours for the first round of the team event. In keeping with the library setting, two banks of traditional library card index drawers had inside them a white and black king. Dr Cortes was asked to choose a drawer on behalf of the womens team. He plumped for the left-hand drawer. It was opened to reveal a white king, which meant that the womens team will all take the white pieces in round one of the tournament which will start at 15.00 CET on Monday afternoon.
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Gibraltar: Battle of the Sexes begins - Chessbase News
Putins playing chess in Ukraine and Biden steps in as pawn – New York Post
President Bidens first press conference in 10 months, on the eve of his inaugurations anniversary, made news. But not the kind he wanted. Asked about Russias possible invasion of Ukraine, NATOs lack of unity and the likely failure of economic sanctions to deter Vladimir Putin, Biden answered that the idea that NATO is not going to be united, I dont buy ... It depends on what [Russia] does. Its one thing if its a minor incursion and then we end up having a fight about what to do and not do, et cetera.
In a stroke, Biden demonstrated he didnt understand his own Ukraine policy, undercut Kievs government and people, and handed Moscow an engraved invitation to make a minor incursion into Ukraine.
That was bad enough, but further answers made his position even more unintelligible. He said, and so, I got to make sure everybody is on the same page as we move along ... But it depends on what [Putin] does, as to the exact to what extent were going to be able to get total unity on the Rus on the NATO front.
Biden was correct that Putin was calculating what the immediate ... and the long-term consequences of [sic] Russia will be. Right now, Putin has the initiative and a broad range of options. America and the West are reactive and disunited, as Biden all but admitted. Putin is following a strategic playbook encompassing the entire former Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies, grounded on his 2005 precept that the demise of the Soviet Union was the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century.
The United States and NATO are answering this strategic threat only tactically. The West focuses on avoiding imminent hostilities, whereas Putin is seeking enduring hegemony over former Soviet territories. The White House still fails to comprehend that Putin need not conduct all-out invasion of Ukraine to win significant new advantages. Seizing pro-Russian areas, leaving a rump independent Ukraine or installing a Moscow-friendly government might be Putins real goal. Or he may make political or military moves elsewhere, in Belarus, Georgia or Kazakhstan for example, for which the alliance seems completely unprepared.
Even worse, Moscow is now suckering Washington into negotiations over security guarantees that weaken and divide NATO itself. Biden said, NATO is not going to take in Ukraine anytime in the next few decades, an astonishing unforced error. George W. Bush was ready in April 2008 to fast-track Ukraine and Georgia as NATO members, but Germany and France objected. Four months later, Russia invaded Georgia and in 2014 invaded Ukraine, annexing Crimea and seizing control over the Donbas. NATO has never admitted a country with unwanted foreign troops on its soil because that would effectively put NATO in a state of war with the occupying country. Of course, Russia is the aggressor in every case, with its minor incursions not just in Georgia and Ukraine but many others.
Russia creates an artificial crisis, then graciously accedes to resolve it by accepting precisely the objective it sought in the first place. Bidens response is totally backwards, signaling willingness to discuss restrictions on Ukraines NATO candidacy and limitations on missile and troop dispositions near Russias borders, all key Kremlin demands. This is a major error, which will only prompt further demands. Russia, a consistent violator of international commitments, is the aggressor, not NATO, which has always been a purely defensive alliance. Geographic restrictions on NATO deployments endanger its members and benefit Russia, as Poland, the Baltics and other central Europeans fully grasp, even if Germany and France dont. Russia has always feared violating a NATO members border, but weakening NATO resolve undermines even its historically successful defensive purpose, as Moscow clearly understands.
Playing small ball with Putin, as Biden is doing, will not durably protect Ukraine or other endangered states. Bidens inadequate and now incoherent policy is not deterring Russian military action, and timidity simply incentivizes Putin to increase his demands. We risk a downward spiral of NATO concessions to avoid military conflict today, but which will only increase its likelihood soon thereafter.
Indeed, the situation may be so far gone Putin inevitably emerges the winner. The last hope is that Biden immediately reverses course and seizes the initiative and insist the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline never operate until Russian troops leave any country that does not want them. Urgently required are more weapons and more NATO troops, not to fight but to train and exercise with Ukrainians, thereby increasing Moscows uncertainty and risk. So doing, of course, requires strength from the Europeans, especially France and Germany, that they may well lack.
This is Putins calculus, which Bidens statements and last weeks negotiations did not change.
Time is on Putins side.
John Bolton was national security adviser to President Donald Trump from 2018 to 2019 and US ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to 2006.
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Putins playing chess in Ukraine and Biden steps in as pawn - New York Post
Eddie Cha Is Playing Chess At The Highest Level – UFC
You have no family life, pretty much, he said. So having an understanding and unbelievable wife is honestly the secret, but it's hard to juggle both. It's not just me; it's our whole coaching staff. They're right there with me. We do team practices and then we gotta do these super camps. We call them super camps because we invest so much time and money and effort into them. So it's hard to juggle but it's definitely worth it and I think that's how we build the bond, relationship and rapport with these guys. When you spend eight-plus weeks, six hours a day and getting into the innermost secrets and demons and so forth, you share that bond.
The latest super camp for the Arizona squad is for former UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo, who will attempt to regain his crown this Saturday in Anaheim when he faces Brandon Moreno in the trilogy fight that serves as the co-main event of UFC 270. Its another road trip, another fight week, another pressure-filled fight night. But its everything Cha always wanted when he was building his All In MMA gym and rep back in Southern California.
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When I was starting out in Southern California, I opened up a gym and I picked up some really good fighters at that time, and I could never get a break on getting some of the bigger names, Cha recalls. I'm like, why can't I get these guys? And eventually, I just said, forget it, the guys that I have, I'm gonna build them the best I can and that's pretty much what I did and how I got started. I started with Francisco Rivera, he won six straight (three in the UFC), got to the Top Ten, and he was pretty much my first ace. And then I worked with Bobby Green, Darrion Caldwell, Dominick Reyes, Alex Reyes and a bunch of other guys.
Enter former UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson, who heard about Cha and reached out along with longtime MMA LAB coach John Crouch. Soon after, Cha moved out to Arizona.
And the rest was history, he laughs.
Still in Arizona and now working with the Fight Ready team in Scottsdale, Cha is still not a fan of the blistering heat, but he got his wish to work with the elite of the sport, with Figueiredo, Zhang Weili, Chan Sung Jung, Henry Cejudo and Jon Jones just a few of the names hes worked with over the past few years. And why has his system worked with such a diverse crew?
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Eddie Cha Is Playing Chess At The Highest Level - UFC
Young Canadian chess grandmaster credits parents and coaches for his success – The Globe and Mail
Radoslaw Wojtaszek v. Razvan Preotu, Online Olympiad 2021 (See diagram)
Every kid who starts improving at chess has hopes of becoming a Grandmaster, but for 22-year-old Razvan Preotu of Toronto the dream turned into reality.
The son of Romanian immigrants to Canada, he entered his first tournament at the age of seven, and just kept improving. He won national championships for his Grade level several times, and began competing internationally.
White wants to play Rc2 to stabilize his position. What does Black do?The Globe and Mail
Finally he became a Grandmaster at 17, making him the second youngest Canadian to achieve the title.
It felt really good, as becoming a GM at any age is really hard, he says. The main reason for my success was the strong support I had from my parents and coaches.
The University of Texas at Dallas took notice, offering him a scholarship in 2017 if he would join their chess team. He completed his bachelor of Computer Science and is now studying for his masters degree.
His team is one of the top collegiate squads in the U.S., and he is constantly training for intercollegiate championships. But he also represents Canada in international events, such as the recent online Olympiad.
Preotus next goal is to hit a rating level of 2550, which is ambitious but I think achievable.
Black played 28. b3 and then after 29.axb3 a3! 30.Ne1 (White has to worry about Nc3+) a2 31.Nc2 Rxc2 Black wins.
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Young Canadian chess grandmaster credits parents and coaches for his success - The Globe and Mail
Buckhead cityhood legislation challenged by political chess moves in first week of General Assembly session – Buckhead.com
Buckhead cityhood legislation faced its first political challenges in the first week of the General Assemblys session with two chess moves aimed at a rapid checkmate.
Forthcoming legislation will seek to make any cityhood referendum a citywide vote rather than Buckhead-only. And the Senate version of the cityhood legislation, which is exclusively sponsored by Republicans, has been assigned to a committee with all Democratic members, though its chair says it will get a fair hearing.
Both appear to be chess moves against cityhood, for which backers must get General Assembly approval to place on the November ballot.
A peculiarity of the cityhood legislation is that it is sponsored exclusively by Republicans who do not represent Buckhead or Atlanta, while all-Democrat local lawmakers oppose it. Two of those legislators, Rep. Shea Roberts and Sen. Jen Jordan (who is also running for the Georgia attorney general position), are poised to file legislation requiring that any such referendum be conducted citywide and need a 57.5% supermajority to win. Roberts said she expects her version to get a first reading on Jan. 14.
The idea of such legislation was pitched in a Jan. 12 joint meeting of Atlantas House and Senate delegations by Edward Lindsey, a former state representative who is now co-chair of the anti-cityhood group the Committee for a United Atlanta. Lindsey noted that cityhood supporters have claimed that secession would be good for both Buckhead and Atlanta. He asked, why then do only the folks in Buckhead have the right to vote?
The pro-cityhood Buckhead City Committee did not respond to a comment request about the referendum-altering legislation.
The next move came Jan. 13 from Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, a Republican who has expressed skepticism about cityhood. Duncan assigned S.B. 324, the Senate version of the cityhood legislation, to the Urban Affairs Committee for consideration. The committees all-Democrat membership includes Sen. Nan Orrock, an Atlanta delegation member and vocal opponent of cityhood.
Some early political reaction was that the bill is likely to die in that committee, killing the cityhood effort for at least this year. However, the committee chair, Sen. Lester Jackson (D-Savannah), said in a phone interview that the bill will get a fair consideration.
I have not taken a position one way or another on the bill, said Jackson. He added that he personally does not think of it in a partisan way and that he is familiar with traditional cityhood efforts, including the failed 2019 proposal for Skidaway Island, an island near Savannah, to incorporate. He said he is not aware of any movements in the Savannah area for a Buckhead-like secession version of cityhood.
I know Ive had similar bills like this in my own community and I really think the lieutenant governor is doing the right thing [with the committee assignment], because it truly is an urban affairs issue, Jackson said.
Our committee will be transparent and it will be fair, and it will take time out to listen to all of the concerns of the general public on this issue, Jackson said. So everyones voice will be considered.
He indicated that, after a hearing, the committee will see where we should go with this legislation. He said he did not want to make any predetermination of what that result would be.
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Buckhead cityhood legislation challenged by political chess moves in first week of General Assembly session - Buckhead.com
Can You Solve The Hardest Puzzles On Chess.com? – Chess.com
The 2022 Puzzle Battle World Championship is here. It's at times like these that we can catch a glimpse of what true puzzle-solving excellence looks like. It's not often that you can sit back, relax, and watch 50+ puzzles get solved in three minutes in front of your eyes!
How to watch the 2022 Puzzle Battle World Championship
Whether you're a veteran puzzle battler or are just starting to experiment with your first few puzzle rushes, the thrill of getting a puzzle right is simply terrific. This is especially true when the puzzle is particularly long or when the answer is hard to find. When you get those puzzles right, you feel like you can bend the laws of the universe. You can see the Matrix.
This is why I present you with a gift and a curse: a small compilation of the hardest puzzles on Chess.com. With more than 350,000 puzzles on the site, it wasn't an easy task to choose the finest specimens among all the agonizingly difficult puzzles in our database. Still, with the help of much more skilled colleagues, I was finally able to finish my quest.
The puzzles presented here are ridiculously complex, with the highest-rated puzzle clocking in at 3953. If you When you realize you can't find the solution, click the "Solution" button on the diagram and you'll see the answer as well as annotations written by NM Anthony Levin on all the key variations.
Enjoy the craziness, and may the gods of chess look out for you!
Puzzle 1:
Puzzle 2:
Puzzle 3:
Puzzle 4:
Puzzle 5:
Puzzle 6:
If you enjoyed the last two puzzles, take a look at this video by Chess.com's Vice President of Content, NM Sam Copeland, and watch him explain every intricate detail.
Could you solve any of the puzzles in this article? Which do you think was the hardest one? Let us know in the comment section below!
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Can You Solve The Hardest Puzzles On Chess.com? - Chess.com
The 2022 Pan-American Intercollegiate Team Championship Is Almost Here – Chess.com
College chess is starting off the new year with an exciting annual classic: the Pan-American Intercollegiate Team Championship. This year, the tournament is returning to over-the-board just outside of Washington DC. Top college chess teams will be competing for the next four days to decide a champion amongst them. The top matches will be broadcast live with DGT boards directly to chess.com's events page here, and live coverage will be provided at Twitch.tv/CollegiateChessLeague. The event will be covered by commentators IM Kostya Kavutskiy and IM David Pruess from ChessDojoLive and NM Alex King and NM Matan Prilleltensky from MasterChess.
Round 1: January 6th: 6pm-11pm ET by KostyaRound 2: January 7th: 11am-4pm ET by DavidRound 3: January 7th: 6pm-11pm ET by Alex and MatanRound 4: January 8th: 11am-4pm ET by Alex and MatanRound 5: January 8th: 6pm-11pm ET by KostyaRound 6: January 9th: 10am-3pm ET by Alex and Matan
The Collegiate Chess League's commissioner, Joe Lee, commented on the event: "The PanAms is a highly traditioned college chess event, and we are honored and excited to broadcast this prestigious tournament on the CCL channel and hope to grow college chess by sharing events like this and other college chess tournaments alongside the Collegiate Chess League's main season."
Kostya from ChessDojoLive said "ChessDojo is pumped to cover some high-level OTB chess and to support the growth of the collegiate chess scene." Matan from MasterChess added "MasterChess.org is thrilled to partner with Chess.com and the PanAmerican Intercollegiate Championship. The combination of top quality chess and strengthening the chess community in higher education makes this one of the most exciting events of the year!"
Be sure to tune in and watch some of the best college chess teams compete in this exciting over-the-board event. Will Webster successfully defend their title from last year's online event, or will Texas Tech reclaim it from the last time it was OTB? Or will the Collegiate Chess League Champions UChicago take it all? You can find a full list of all the teams and the results here, and you can find out more about the event here. For any questions regarding the event, you can reach out to the tournament's head organizer and host of the event Anand Dommalapati at adommalapati@yahoo.com. For any questions regarding the Collegiate Chess League, you can email League's commissioner Joe Lee at ccl@chess.com
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The 2022 Pan-American Intercollegiate Team Championship Is Almost Here - Chess.com
Chess Competition at Innocent Hearts, Jalandhar – The Tribune India
Jalandhar: Students of Innocent Hearts have made the school proud by winning medals in the district-level chess competition. Nirmay Jain (Kapurthala branch) secured the second position and Divyan (GMT Branch) secured the sixth position by playing Under-9 categories in the district-level chess matches. Shreyash Jain (CJR branch) secured second position in Under-13 category and Rushang Verma (Loharan) secured fourth position. Anish Sikka (GMT Branch) secured the sixth position in the Under-19 category. This chess match was organised by Jalandhar Chess Association at Satyug Darshan Academy on January 1 and 2, in which various schools participated. On this occasion, the management congratulated the winners and their parents and extended best wishes to Sanjeev Bhardwaj, HoD, Sports and coach Chandresh.
Interclass nail art competition
To commemorate the 75th anniversary of Indias Freedom as Azadi Ka Mahotsav, the Department of Cosmetology of PCM SD College for Women, organised inter-class competition on nail art. Students of Beauty and Body Fitness, Diploma in Cosmetology and PG Diploma in Cosmetology participated in the competition. Kiranjit Kaur of BBF Semester I got first prize, Navdeep Sahota of Diploma in Cosmetology grabbed second prize and Anureet of BBF Semester I and Harnoordeep Kaur of BA Semester III bagged third prize in this competition. In addition to this, Janvi of BBF Semester I got consolation prize. The members of the managing committee and Principal Dr Pooja Prashar congratulated the winners.
NSS volunteers visit Gakhal village
NSS volunteers of Hans Raj Mahila Maha Vidyalaya visited Gakhal village under Covid awareness campaign. The day started with recital of DAV Gaan and Hum Honge Kamyaab song. Camp Coordinator Veena Arora briefed students about the days activities. General secretary, block samiti, Gakhal, Kulwinder Gakhal, president, Surinder Singh and Gurdwara Pradhan welcomed the NSS unit and briefed them about the village. The volunteers were divided into groups and these groups collected the data from approximately 150 houses. Principal Dr Ajay Sareen appreciated the work of NSS volunteers and NSS programme officers and encouraged them to serve the country through these social welfare works. Surinder Singh thanked Principal Dr Ajay Sareen for conducting such camps in their village and making the village girls empowered. NSS programme officers Harmanu, Dr Meenu Talwar, Manpreet Kaur and Pawandeep Kaur were also present.
Innovative Labs come up at KMV
In Kanya Maha Vidyalaya, a new block has been constructed which houses many innovative labs. The labs would provide the most conducive environment to the students for research and innovation in their respective fields. These labs also provide hands on training to the students to enhance their skills. Due to the availability of world class labs that KMVites have been able to achieve 14 Intellectual Property Rights in different fields. KMV has various programmes that provide hands on training to the students namely BSc. IT, MSc. in Botany, Zoology, Chemistry, Physics, Fashion Designing and Merchandising and Masters in Journalism and Mass Communication. The Fibre Forensic Lab has high end forensic servers and work stations.
Annual conference at lpu
A two-day 20th annual conference Share the Vision of Lovely Professional University (LPU) concluded on the campus, where all LPU faculty and staff members participated. The theme if this year was Abhi to aur aage jaana hain (still we have to go further). On the occasion, more than 1,050 university employees were also honoured with 20, 15, 10 and 5 year long Association Awards for providing their services. Chancellor Ashok Mittal also announced a Vision Fund for united potential and strategic activities of all departments. On this occasion, various achievements made in academics, research, placements, accreditations, rankings and awards, scientific nd technological competitions, sports and cultural activities and more were shared.
Engg students shine in academics
Students of St Soldier Institute of Engineering and Technology made the name of the institution bright by securing eight positions in the first 10 positions in the merit list of various courses declared by the IKG Punjab Technical University. Chairman of St. Soldier Group Anil Chopra, Principal Dr Gurpreet Singh Saini briefed that in BTech Automobile Avinash Kumar got third, in Electrical Amritpal Kaur got seventh, in MTech Mechanical Chandan Mehta got fourth, in Computer Science Baljinder Kaur got sixth and Rajwinder Kaur got the ninth position, in Post-Graduation Diploma in Digital Marketing, Lovepreet Bhalla got 6th, Payal Saini got seventh, Gurpreet Kaur got the ninth position. TNS
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Chess Competition at Innocent Hearts, Jalandhar - The Tribune India
Polish chess player falls off chair after humiliating defeat. His reaction to viral video is the winning move – The Indian Express
Chess is not an active sport and needs a lot of restraint and mental prowess. However, Polish national player Pawel Teclaf added a lot of action to it as he swung and accidentally fell off a chair after facing a humiliating defeat.
The 18-year-old player lost his championship to Tigran Petrosian, 37, from Armenia at the FIDE World Blitz Championship in Warsaw, held on December 29.
In the fast-moving match, playing white, Teclaf lost after his opponent made his winning move. Realising that he made a blunder, Teclaf threw himself back in his chair. The chair lost balance and Teclaf tumbled on the floor.
Petrosian lent a helping hand, but Teclaf had hit the floor already. Immediately, Teclaf sprung up and shook hands with Petrosian, hiding his humiliation.
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I usually swing on my chair because I just like it, and that was the first time I just fell down, Teclaf said as quoted by Dailymail. Then I stood up fast. Everything was fine, it was just the moment, he added.
We had a maximum of ten seconds left on the clock in a time scramble. I was gradually spoiling my position until I was unable to set a fortress, and then I even managed to screw it up, he said as quoted by Mirror.
The clip shared on YouTube channel Anti-Chess24 left netizens in splits. Petrosians stoic reaction is fantastic. What brilliant self control! commented a user.
After the video did rounds on social media, Teclaf realised he was getting popular. In the morning, I was in the elevator & a person standing next to me was staring at me and on her phone back and forth, smirking. When I go to my room, I opened WhatsApp and saw plenty of links and realised I am getting popular, International Chess Federation tweeted as said by Teclaf.
The video has garnered over 2 lakh views so far.
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Polish chess player falls off chair after humiliating defeat. His reaction to viral video is the winning move - The Indian Express
Crypto is the future and could replace dollar: chess star Garry Kasparov – Markets Insider
Garry Kasparov recently launched an NFT project.
Noam Galai/Getty Images for TechCrunch
Chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov has said he would not be surprised if cryptocurrencies had replaced the dollar in 10 years' time, and has hailed digital assets as the future.
Kasparov, regarded by many as the greatest chess player in history, told Coindesk Monday that he thinks cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin are "digital gold" and can hold their value as inflation rises.
In particular, he said cryptocurrencies are a good tool for people to fight back against what he sees as government overspending, which he says is leading to strong inflation that erodes the value of assets.
"In the democratic countries in America and Europe, trillions of dollars will be printed," he told the crypto news website. "I'm not happy to see that the government has a free hand to use my taxes, basically to devalue [the dollar]."
He added: "I think it's very important that technology would offer me an opportunity to fight back, to protect my hard-earned fortune. And I think that bitcoin which I believe is online gold and other cryptocurrencies are the way to the future.
"I'm not a financial expert, but I would not be surprised if, in 10 years' time, the dollar will be replaced by the basket of coins as a standard."
Read more: A Wall Street veteran trader-turned crypto expert breaks down how bitcoin and ethereum could potentially reach $80,000 and $7,500 and shares the 6 major trends on his radar in the year ahead
The idea of bitcoin and other cryptos as "digital gold" that can maintain their value has gained credence over the last year, with investors searching for assets that offer protection against the strongest US inflation since the 1980s.
Proponents say bitcoin is scarce only 21 million coins can ever be "mined" like gold, and so is more likely to hold its value than other assets.
But critics argue bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are far too volatile to be reliable stores of value. They point to the bitcoin "winter" that saw the price fall from around $20,000 at the end of 2017 to roughly $3,000 in early 2019.
Kasparov, an opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has long been a supporter of crypto and bitcoin projects. He told Coindesk he first got involved through the Human Rights Foundation, which advocates cryptocurrencies as a means for people to get funding without government control.
In December, Kasparov released a series of non-fungible tokens art or collectibles where ownership is verified through crypto technology. They feature images of major moments in his life, such as the famous chess match against IBM's "Deep Blue" computer in the 1990s.
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Crypto is the future and could replace dollar: chess star Garry Kasparov - Markets Insider