The Chess Drum’s Highlights of 2014!

Chinese men became Olympiad champions for the first time!
Photo by Daaim Shabazz.

The year 2014 was an interesting campaign and The Chess Drum covered the action in 240 published articles. Magnus Carlsen successfully defended his title in November and we have a new Olympiad champion in China… the men!! The balance of power in chess is slowly shifting as recent youth events dominated by both China and India which means 20 years from now, we could be looking at a totally different chess world. New talents are emerging around the globe in far-flung places.

There were some novel tournament ideas such as the Millionaire Chess Open and the Qatar Masters, both first-rate tournaments setting records for prize fund and strength (for open tournaments). Hopefully this means that as a few major tournaments in Europe continue to die a slow death, other regions can reinvent and perhaps make up for the loss.

This year we saw a very contentious FIDE Presidential election. Garry Kasparov gave a valiant showing, but lost a bitter battle by a decisive margin. However Africa was a continent that showed its importance on the world stage and no longer can it simply be a matter of sending a few favors. Africa wants results and sustainability! As Asia has risen, this next decade may be Africa’s chance to shine.

Will Africa begin to rise in 2015?

December

November

October

September

August

July

June

May

April

March

February

January

4 Comments

  1. I truly appreciate the artwork you have been producing over the years. I wish you continued good health and energy to keep the beat drumming for many more years to come. I am looking forward to seeing great things in 2015 God willing!

    1. Thanks Guy! I can say that out of the hundreds of thousands of people who have encountered at least one page of 20,000+ pages of The Chess Drum, only a small number of people show appreciation for the effort expended… and actually tells me. You’re one of them. Thanks for the support. It’s been a long 14-year journey in an often thankless pursuit of recording history and news. Sometimes the encouragement is the difference between continuing the pursuit or finding something else to do.

  2. Daaim, I guess you could be wrong! You have a very very very large community which appreciate your efforts. While the Chess Drum historical significant is still being written, it’s importants and potential will be greatly evoked when the unknowing masses awake to challenge kids to improve the quality of their games and their life.
    THANKs TO THE CHESS DRUM AND MR. DAAIM SHABBAZ

  3. Thank you Mr Shabbaz for another great year of great commentary in the chess world, especially in the african american community.

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