Question 1

In what modern-day country is the game of chess thought to have originated?

Accepted Answer

India - Chess's original predecessor, known as chaturanga (a Sanskrit reference to the four branches of a medieval army) originated in the Gupta Empire during the 6th century.

Question 2

"N-KB3+" is an example of which type of chess notation?

Accepted Answer

Descriptive notation

Question 3

Which of the following grandmasters is the only one to have NOT won both the World Junior & World Chess Championship?

Accepted Answer

Viktor Korchnoi - Korchnoi never won the World Chess Championship; he came up short in title matches against Anatoly Karpov on three occasions (1975, 1978, and the infamous Massacre of Merano in 1981).

Question 4

The Elo rating system was featured in the plot of which of the following Oscar-nominated films?

Accepted Answer

The Social Network

Question 5

Which of these world champions did NOT appear in a TV commercial matching the description below?

Accepted Answer

Garry Kasparov racing in a sports car

Question 6

Based on Elo ratings, which of the following matches was the biggest upset in world championship history?

Accepted Answer

Vladimir Kramnik defeating Garry Kasparov in 2000

Question 7

This important endgame position, which results in a win for White by force, is named after which chess player?

Accepted Answer

Luis Ramírez de Lucena

Question 8

Only one world chess championship game has ever ended in checkmate. In which match did it occur?

Accepted Answer

Alexander Alekhine vs. Efim Bogoljubov, 1929

Question 9

Which of these is the real title of a published book?

Accepted Answer

"Disney's Chess Guide" by Anatoly Karpov

Question 10

If you followed the under-1400 section of the 1986 New York Open, you would have seen that the winner of the section was

Accepted Answer

Judit Polgar

Question 11

This former World Rapid and World Blitz champion is well known for his fondness for checkers:

Accepted Answer

Vassily Ivanchuk

Question 12

In July 2015, the Norwegian newspaper VG reported that Magnus Carlsen had:

Accepted Answer

earned $6.6 million in the first half of the decade

Question 13

Put a knight at h1 on an empty board. Are there any squares that it takes more than five moves for the knight to reach?

Accepted Answer

Yes

Question 14

The FIDE logo is:

Accepted Answer

A white knight on an oval black or blue globe

Question 15

The only chess player to have won a world championship in three different formats; knockout, round-robin & traditional

Accepted Answer

Viswanathan Anand

Question 16

Which of the following is true?

Accepted Answer

All of the above

Question 17

The tallest world champion was:

Accepted Answer

Vladimir Kramnik

Question 18

There have been all sorts of international chess championships. Which group has NOT had their own championship?

Accepted Answer

Left-handed people

Question 19

What is the significance of the move that led to this position?

Accepted Answer

A blunder by Bobby Fischer that gave Spassky the lead in the 72 WC match

Question 20

Who holds the record for the longest uninterrupted reign (27 years) of any official World Chess Champion in history:

Accepted Answer

Emanuel Lasker

Question 21

In April 2011, Viswanathan Anand celebrated something that had happened to only five reigning world champions. He:

Accepted Answer

Became a father

Question 22

The only player to have won or drawn against every World Chess Champion since World War II:

Accepted Answer

Viktor Korchnoi

Question 23

What is the specific term (derived from German) for when a player interposes a check before an expected recapture?

Accepted Answer

Zwischenschach

Question 24

Which opening move did Bobby Fischer describe as "best by test?"

Accepted Answer

1. e4

Question 25

In 2016, Boris Spassky gave a new explanation why he lost his world championship title to Bobby Fischer in 1972:

Accepted Answer

All of the above.

Question 26

This former world champion infamously hung a piece against Larry Christiansen in 1993, and resigned after just 12 moves:

Accepted Answer

Anatoly Karpov

Question 27

Got into a drunken fight over a woman at a bar in Havana, and missed the first 5 rounds of the 1966 Chess Olympiad.

Accepted Answer

Mikhail Tal

Question 28

World championship match that a blueberry yogurt delivered to a player became a controversial point of contention.

Accepted Answer

Anatoly Karpov vs. Viktor Korchnoi, 1978

Question 29

He popularized terms like theoretical continuation, blunder, initiative, book position, and transposition of moves.

Accepted Answer

Wilhelm Steinitz (in his book on the 1889 New York tournament)

Question 30

When Bobby Fischer was profiled in the New Yorker magazine in 1957, his mother was quoted as saying:

Accepted Answer

"I tried everything I knew to discourage him. But it was hopeless."

Question 31

Mikhail Botvinnik became world champion in 1948. He defended his title in 1951. How many games did he play in between?

Accepted Answer

None

Question 32

Only two chess players have ever appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated. One was Bobby Fischer. Who was the other?

Accepted Answer

Lisa Lane

Question 33

Who was the chief beneficiary of the $5 million raised for the aborted 1975 Fischer-Karpov world championship match?

Accepted Answer

Muhammad Ali

Question 34

Which of these was NOT an official rule for the 2008 Anand-Kramnik world championship match?

Accepted Answer

The players must recite the FIDE pledge at the opening ceremony

Question 35

Complete the quote. Jose Capablanca in 'A Primer of Chess': A time limit of "between 20 and 30 moves per hour is..."

Accepted Answer

"a fairly slow speed."

Question 36

In a 1992 tournament, GM Lev Psakhis accomplished something that has never been equaled:

Accepted Answer

He defeated all three Polgar sisters

Question 37

In 1986, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a chess-related resolution that:

Accepted Answer

recognized Bobby Fischer as the world chess champion

Question 38

This chess-related item sold for over $140,000 in a September 2009 auction:

Accepted Answer

The chess set used in the film 'The Seventh Seal'

Question 39

This Islamic country banned chess in 1981, on grounds it was a distraction from daily prayers & a method for gambling

Accepted Answer

Iran

Question 40

Name the famous mating trap depicted in this position:

Accepted Answer

Légal Mate

Question 41

At 13, Bobby Fischer defeated this American international master in what would be regarded as the "Game of the Century"

Accepted Answer

Donald Byrne

Question 42

Before being a Hollywood legend, this famous actor hustled strangers at chess in New York's Central Park:

Accepted Answer

Humphrey Bogart

Question 43

This FIDE president controversially halted the 1985 World Chess Championship match, causing a rift with Kasparov

Accepted Answer

Florencio Compomanes

Question 44

In a 1927 novel, this detective works a murder case for the electrocution of a grandmaster by means of a metal bishop

Accepted Answer

Hercule Poirot

Question 45

In 1985 Garry Kasparov won the World Junior Chess Championship. Which of the following players finished in second place?

Accepted Answer

Nigel Short, future World Championship challenger

Question 46

During his brief two-year career, Paul Morphy defeated all of the following chess greats one after the other EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

Howard Staunton

Question 47

Your OTB opponent offers you a draw. You instantly refuse. Seconds later, you change your mind. Can you accept the draw?

Accepted Answer

No - Just as a draw offer is binding, the rejection of a draw offer (either orally or by touching a piece) is concrete as well and cannot be revoked later.

Question 48

Name the opening.

Accepted Answer

Trompowsky Attack - a popular opening often used as a surprise to dodge opening preparation.

Question 49

Who said it?: "They say my games should be more interesting. I could be more interesting - and also lose."

Accepted Answer

Tigran Petrosian - Tigran's defensive playing style often earned him criticism from the Soviet media, which up to that point had pushed the image of Soviet chess as fast, attacking, and courageous.

Question 50

This grandmaster had the briefest World Championship reign, holding the undisputed title for just one year and 5 days:

Accepted Answer

Mikhail Tal - Tal's 1961-1962 championship reign of 1 year and 5 days was just one week shorter than Smyslov's 1957-1958 reign of 1 year and 13 days.

Question 51

True or False: It is a FIDE rule that the king must be taller than every other piece.

Accepted Answer

True - Recommended height of the pieces is as follows: King – 9.5 cm, Queen – 8.5 cm, Bishop – 7 cm, Knight – 6 cm, Rook – 5.5 cm and Pawn – 5 cm. The diameter of the piece's base should measure 40- 50% of its height. These dimensions may differ up to 10% from the above recommendation, but the order (e.g. King is higher than Queen etc.) must be kept.

Question 52

According to a 2012 survey by YouGov, what percentage of Americans play chess at least once a year?

Accepted Answer

15% - a percentage that stands in stark contrast to Germany (23%) and Russia (45%)

Question 53

In 2015, this player was caught using a phone hidden in the player-only bathrooms to cheat against Petrosian in Dubai

Accepted Answer

Gaioz Nigalidze - He received a three-year ban and had to forfeit his Grandmaster title as a result of the subsequent investigation.

Question 54

Boris Spassky once said this quote (above) of which grandmaster?

Accepted Answer

Bent Larsen - Spassky said this in annoyance after Larsen boasted he would be the next world champion in the run-up to their semifinal Candidates' match in 1968. After Spassky crushed Larsen 5½-2½, he bluntly described Larsen's play: "Much ambition, little ammunition".

Question 55

Which one of these endgame setups does NOT result in a forced mate?

Accepted Answer

King and two Knights vs. King

Question 56

True or False: Under the old (pre-1500) rules of chess, a bishop could only move exactly 2 squares diagonally at a time

Accepted Answer

True

Question 57

One of the fundamental rules in chess is 'servat regina colorem', according to Wilhelm Steinitz. He meant:

Accepted Answer

The queen begins the game on a square of her color

Question 58

True or false: A woman once held the record as the most active American chess player in a year.

Accepted Answer

True

Question 59

The goal of this chess variant is to give away all of your pieces. The first player to do so, wins. Name the variant.

Accepted Answer

Antichess

Question 60

Before World War II, which grandmaster won, and then lost the world title to the same man?

Accepted Answer

Max Euwe

Question 61

This player, after losing a game of chess, infamously jumped up on the table and yelled, 'Why must I lose to this idiot?

Accepted Answer

Aron Nimzowitsch

Question 62

What is the Encyclopedia of Chess Openings (ECO) designation for irregular openings?

Accepted Answer

A00 - Irregular Openings

Chess Trivia: History of Competitive Chess & Chess Gameplay

2) "N-KB3+" is an example of which type of chess notation?

3) Which of the following grandmasters is the only one to have NOT won both the World Junior & World Chess Championship?

4) The Elo rating system was featured in the plot of which of the following Oscar-nominated films?

5) Which of these world champions did NOT appear in a TV commercial matching the description below?

6) Based on Elo ratings, which of the following matches was the biggest upset in world championship history?

7) This important endgame position, which results in a win for White by force, is named after which chess player?

8) Only one world chess championship game has ever ended in checkmate. In which match did it occur?

9) Which of these is the real title of a published book?

10) If you followed the under-1400 section of the 1986 New York Open, you would have seen that the winner of the section was

11) This former World Rapid and World Blitz champion is well known for his fondness for checkers:

12) In July 2015, the Norwegian newspaper VG reported that Magnus Carlsen had:

13) Put a knight at h1 on an empty board. Are there any squares that it takes more than five moves for the knight to reach?

14) The FIDE logo is:

15) The only chess player to have won a world championship in three different formats; knockout, round-robin & traditional

16) Which of the following is true?

17) The tallest world champion was:

18) There have been all sorts of international chess championships. Which group has NOT had their own championship?

19) What is the significance of the move that led to this position?

20) Who holds the record for the longest uninterrupted reign (27 years) of any official World Chess Champion in history:

21) In April 2011, Viswanathan Anand celebrated something that had happened to only five reigning world champions. He:

22) The only player to have won or drawn against every World Chess Champion since World War II:

23) What is the specific term (derived from German) for when a player interposes a check before an expected recapture?

24) Which opening move did Bobby Fischer describe as "best by test?"

25) In 2016, Boris Spassky gave a new explanation why he lost his world championship title to Bobby Fischer in 1972:

26) This former world champion infamously hung a piece against Larry Christiansen in 1993, and resigned after just 12 moves:

27) Got into a drunken fight over a woman at a bar in Havana, and missed the first 5 rounds of the 1966 Chess Olympiad.

28) World championship match that a blueberry yogurt delivered to a player became a controversial point of contention.

29) He popularized terms like theoretical continuation, blunder, initiative, book position, and transposition of moves.

30) When Bobby Fischer was profiled in the New Yorker magazine in 1957, his mother was quoted as saying:

31) Mikhail Botvinnik became world champion in 1948. He defended his title in 1951. How many games did he play in between?

32) Only two chess players have ever appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated. One was Bobby Fischer. Who was the other?

33) Who was the chief beneficiary of the $5 million raised for the aborted 1975 Fischer-Karpov world championship match?

34) Which of these was NOT an official rule for the 2008 Anand-Kramnik world championship match?

35) Complete the quote. Jose Capablanca in 'A Primer of Chess': A time limit of "between 20 and 30 moves per hour is..."

36) In a 1992 tournament, GM Lev Psakhis accomplished something that has never been equaled:

37) In 1986, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a chess-related resolution that:

38) This chess-related item sold for over $140,000 in a September 2009 auction:

39) This Islamic country banned chess in 1981, on grounds it was a distraction from daily prayers & a method for gambling

40) Name the famous mating trap depicted in this position:

41) At 13, Bobby Fischer defeated this American international master in what would be regarded as the "Game of the Century"

42) Before being a Hollywood legend, this famous actor hustled strangers at chess in New York's Central Park:

43) This FIDE president controversially halted the 1985 World Chess Championship match, causing a rift with Kasparov

44) In a 1927 novel, this detective works a murder case for the electrocution of a grandmaster by means of a metal bishop

45) In 1985 Garry Kasparov won the World Junior Chess Championship. Which of the following players finished in second place?

46) During his brief two-year career, Paul Morphy defeated all of the following chess greats one after the other EXCEPT:

47) Your OTB opponent offers you a draw. You instantly refuse. Seconds later, you change your mind. Can you accept the draw?

48) Name the opening.

49) Who said it?: "They say my games should be more interesting. I could be more interesting - and also lose."

50) This grandmaster had the briefest World Championship reign, holding the undisputed title for just one year and 5 days:

51) True or False: It is a FIDE rule that the king must be taller than every other piece.

52) According to a 2012 survey by YouGov, what percentage of Americans play chess at least once a year?

53) In 2015, this player was caught using a phone hidden in the player-only bathrooms to cheat against Petrosian in Dubai

54) Boris Spassky once said this quote (above) of which grandmaster?

55) Which one of these endgame setups does NOT result in a forced mate?

56) True or False: Under the old (pre-1500) rules of chess, a bishop could only move exactly 2 squares diagonally at a time

57) One of the fundamental rules in chess is 'servat regina colorem', according to Wilhelm Steinitz. He meant:

58) True or false: A woman once held the record as the most active American chess player in a year.

59) The goal of this chess variant is to give away all of your pieces. The first player to do so, wins. Name the variant.

60) Before World War II, which grandmaster won, and then lost the world title to the same man?

61) This player, after losing a game of chess, infamously jumped up on the table and yelled, 'Why must I lose to this idiot?

62) What is the Encyclopedia of Chess Openings (ECO) designation for irregular openings?