A Unicorn playing with a Cyclops is an accident waiting to happen.
The Unicorn and Cyclops syndrome in Chess is a Rook and King.
Often in Rook endings the worse thing you can do is have them
playing together on adjoining squares. Accidents waiting to happen.
When I say Rook Endings I do mean Rook Endings. We have over
1,300 examples of a King and Rook v King and Rook (nothing else).
The lads play on for a few moves...in some cases quite a few moves
just to see if either walks into a skewer or a Unicorn Cyclops accident.
OomPaul - PantserKoos RHP 2012
FEN
8/8/R7/3K4/r7/1k6/8/8 w - - 0 72
[FEN "8/8/R7/3K4/r7/1k6/8/8 w - - 0 72"] 72. Rd6 Rc4 73. Rh6 Kb4 {Black is displaying Unicorn Cyclops tendencies. Best to keep them away from each other.} 74. Rh7 {Rb6+ did not work last time due to Ka5 hitting the Rook. But now White is threatening Rb7+ winning the c4 Rook.} 74... Rc5+ 75. Kd4 Rc4+ 76. Kd3 Rc3+ 77. Kd2 {Now get the Cyclops away from the Unicorn.} 77... Kb3 {The accident which was always going to happen.} 78. Rb7+ Kc4 79. Rc7+ Kb3 80. Rxc3+ {White won.}
Another? Yes. We have 1,300+ to choose from.
Norm Budman - Chollywood RHP 2017
FEN
8/6R1/8/5rK1/4k3/8/8/8 w - - 0 76
[FEN "8/6R1/8/5rK1/4k3/8/8/8 w - - 0 76"] 76. Kg4 Rf4+ 77. Kg3 Rf3+ 78. Kg4 Ke3 {Just get away from each other. It's all fun games till someone loses an eye.} 79. Ra7 {Threatening to poke Black's eye out with Ra3+} 79... Rf4+ 80. Kg5 Kf3 {Amazing. It's like they are glued to each other.} 81. Ra3+ Ke4 82. Ra4+ Ke5 83. Rxf4 {0-1.}
One more. This time the Unicorn and the Cyclops are lucky because they get away
without being tripped up. But they never learn and along came the inevitable accident
Mari Carmen Medina Gonzalez - Blade1968 RHP 2017
FEN
8/8/K7/r7/1k6/8/3R4/8 w - - 0 70
[FEN "8/8/K7/r7/1k6/8/3R4/8 w - - 0 70"] 70. Kb6 Rb5+ 71. Kc6 Rc5+ 72. Kd6 {OK Black you have had your fun now get the King and Rook away from each other.} 72... Kb5 73. Rb2+ Kc4 {Now Rc2+ and Rxc5.} 74. Rd2 {Missed it. Never mind. The Unicorn and the Cyclops will give you another chance.} 74... Kb5 75. Rb2+ Kc4 {There it is. Now....Rc2+} 76. Rc2+ {Yes!} 76... Kb5 77. Rxc5+ Kb4 {And White went onto win. This was possibly a training game, Black giving a lesson and allowing a win. I only have the bare score but I suspect that may be the case.}
The Unicorn and Cyclops Syndrome will soon be entering chess literature.
As I type this the Chess Olympiad is being played in Batumi (that’s in Georgia.)
Below is a link to the official website. Unlike other recent official websites
I have had the misfortune to frequent in the past this one is by far the best.
It’s smooth, detailed, up to date and everything else is where it should be.
As usual, like a vulture I haunt the lower boards looking for things...
S. Yearwood (Trinidad & Tobago) - N. Nadirjanova (Uzbekistan)
Women’s World Chess Olympiad 2018 Batumi (round 1)
A Battle of Back Rank Mates.
FEN
2r2bk1/1p3ppp/p3qn2/8/NP6/P5N1/2Q3PP/5R1K w - - 0 26
[FEN "2r2bk1/1p3ppp/p3qn2/8/NP6/P5N1/2Q3PP/5R1K w - - 0 26"] 26. Qd3 Ng4 27. Ne4 {A piece dropping mistake. 2. Nc5 get the loose Knight protected before it is lost. Note 2...Bxc5 3.bxc5 Rxc5 would not win a pawn. 4. Qd8 would mate Black.} 27... Qxe4 {If 3. Qxe4 Nf2+ wins back the Queen. 4.Rxf2 Rc1+ mates White.} 28. Qd7 {White is now threatening 4.Qxf7+ and Qxf8 mating Black.} 28... Qf4 {Black defends her back rank by exploiting White's weak back rank and hits h2 with checkmate.} 29. Rxf4 {It was either this or resigns.} 29... Rc1+ {Black wins the battle of the back rank. It's mate in two moves. 0-1.} 30. Rf1 Rxf1
Now a couple of sly and cheeky attempts at stalemate.
J. Fatima (Timor Leste) - J. Garcia (Mexico) (round 1) Olympiad 2018.
‘OOPS! I’ve Left My Queen Hanging’
FEN
r4rk1/pQ3ppp/4bn2/3p4/8/b1BB4/PP3P1q/2KR2R1 w - - 0 19
[FEN "r4rk1/pQ3ppp/4bn2/3p4/8/b1BB4/PP3P1q/2KR2R1 w - - 0 19"] 19. Bxf6 {We have joined the game with White thinking this move wins back a piece.} 19... Qf4+ 20. Rd2 Rac8+ 21. Kb1 Qxf6 {White now sees 4.bax3 losses the Queen to 4...Rb8. Time to set a trap.} 22. f3 Rb8 23. Rh2 {OOPS! Black never took the Queen and played instead 5...h6 White resigned next move. Black had planned.} 23... Rxb7 {That would have been a real OOPS!} 24. Bxh7+ Kh8 25. Bg6+ {The correct way to get the perpetual because any other way...} 25... Kg8 26. Bh7+ Kh8 27. Bg6+ Kg8 28. Bh7+ Kh8 29. Bc2+ Qh6 {....and Black is winning.}
Another stalemate. This one is cruel.
J. F. Nelis Jean-Francois (Monaco) - O. Garber (Gambia) (round 1) Olympiad 2018.
FEN
8/8/8/1pp3k1/p4pP1/P1P5/1P3KP1/5N2 w - - 0 51
[FEN "8/8/8/1pp3k1/p4pP1/P1P5/1P3KP1/5N2 w - - 0 51"] 51. Kf3 {Black goes for stalemate by giving up all their pawns.} 51... b4 52. cxb4 cxb4 53. axb4 Kh4 54. Kxf4 a3 {If White takes the a-pawn then it is stalemate.} 55. Ne3 {Black must have thought he had done it. Maybe they can even win this.} 55... axb2 {White cannot stop the pawn from promoting.} 56. Nf5 {Well there is that. Checkmate.}
We end with a wee trip up to the top board and a might have been.
Wes So (USA) - Carlo Sanchez (Panama) (round 1) Olympiad 2018
FEN
2r3k1/1p3pp1/p2Q1n2/N2P3p/PPP1r3/8/1q4PP/3R1R1K w - - 0 27
[FEN "2r3k1/1p3pp1/p2Q1n2/N2P3p/PPP1r3/8/1q4PP/3R1R1K w - - 0 27"] 27. Qb6 Re2 28. Qxb7 Rce8 29. d6 R8e4 {This is beginning to look a wee but scary for White. Fortunately Wes So does not scare that easily.} 30. d7 {He has it all worked out.} 30... Rxg2 31. d8=Q+ Kh7 32. Qxe4+ Nxe4 33. Qh4 {White is a whole Rook up and the attack is over.} 33... Qe2 34. Rde1 {Black resigned. But here there was one last try.} 34... Qg4 {Qxg4 and then we can allow Black to resign. But what about the clever-clogs move....} 35. Rxe4 {That still wins...} 35... Rg1+ {...Not quite.} 36. Rxg1 Qf3+ {Black has a perpetual.} 37. Rg2 Qf1+ 38. Rg1 Qf3+ {Who knows Wes SO may have fell for it. I doubt it but....You never know till you try these things. Never give up till every trick has been exhausted.}
