David R. Sands

Bill would bounce bagels and burritos for borscht in Russian bistros

Reflecting in part a rising sentiment against all things foreign, a Russian lawmaker has proposed a bill that would require restaurant menus to devote at least half of their offerings to traditional Russian fare.

July 28, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: A Romantic chess opening gets a modern revival

It was the signature opening of chess's 19th century Romantic Era, but has become a rare visitor to modern tournament chess. Paul Morphy used it for some of his greatest wins, Bobby Fischer claimed to have refuted it, and even today, some key lines remain a subject of intense theoretical dispute.

July 28, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: Chandra, Eswaran take the honors at U.S. junior chess events

The future of American chess was on display as the country recently crowned its male and female junior champions, with rising Indian-American stars taking the honors in both events.

July 21, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: Alex Lenderman represents U.S. in capturing World Open chess honors

It was a highly appropriate Fourth of July weekend result. Just one U.S. player was among the eight grandmasters who tied for first in the 43rd World Open, held at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City from June 30 through July 5, but it was the American — New York GM Alex Lenderman — who took the official title and a small cash bonus by winning an "Armageddon" playoff match against Azerbaijani GM Rauf Mamedov.

July 14, 2015

Iran caviar and pistachios could be on the way

Whatever else the Iranian nuclear deal does or doesn't do, America's caviar lovers and pistachio fans have reason to celebrate.

July 14, 2015

‘Glitch’ shuts mighty New York Stock Exchange for much of trading day

The New York Stock Exchange had to shut down trading abruptly shortly before noon Wednesday over what officials said was a technical malfunction that froze computers on the market's fabled trading floor. U.S. officials said they saw no signs of a cyberattack, and the market was able to reopen for the last 50 minutes of the trading day.

July 8, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: Maghami doubles up as D.C. International, World Open chess tourneys come to town

Crystal City just had a golden moment as two of the best open tournaments on the American chess calendar took over the close-in Virginia suburb for the past two-plus weeks.

July 7, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: Walter Browne’s genius lives on in great chess games

Suddenly and far too soon, America lost one of its colorful and most combative champions with the passing of six-time national champion GM Walter Browne last week at the age of 66.

July 1, 2015

China celebrates Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank charter signing with U.S. allies

The United States won't be there, but dozens of Washington's closest friends and allies will be on hand Monday as China celebrates a diplomatic and economic triumph with the signing of the formal charter for its proposed new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

June 28, 2015

Walter Browne, six-time U.S chess champ, dies suddenly at 66

Walter Browne, a fearless attacker and indomitable competitor who dominated the American chess scene in the years after world champion Bobby Fischer retired from the game, died suddenly in his sleep Wednesday at the age of 66.

June 25, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: In the 64-square chess universe, home-field advantage hard to find

It's a game played on an unchanging battlefield of 64 squares with a fixed array of forces, so it would make sense that there's not much of a home-field advantage in chess.

June 23, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: When real-world wars intrude on chess battles

Chess is a war game that doesn't do well in wartime.

June 16, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: The double-edged immortality of your own chess opening

When world champion Magnus Carlsen sits down to defend his crown early next year, it's a near certainty he won't be trotting the "Carlsen Opening," or even the "Carlsen Variation" against his still-to-be-determined challenger.

June 10, 2015

Russia bans baby detergent from Ukraine

The standoff between Russia and neighboring Ukraine reached new heights -- or depths -- Tuesday as health officials in Moscow announced a ban on baby laundry detergent made by Ukraine's leading producer, citing what they said were violations of sanitary and epidemiological regulations.

June 9, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: Xiong, Wei fuel youth movement in chess events an ocean apart

There was some strange karma going on in two chess tournaments a world apart last week.

June 6, 2015

U.S. allies not waiting for Iran’s sanctions to come down

Italian oil executives visit Tehran, scouting out deals. French farmers and fisheries discuss technological exchanges with their Iranian counterparts. Pakistan prepares to lay down a major oil pipeline through Iran, while rival India opens talks with Iranian officials about developing a major port in the Gulf of Oman to ship Indian goods to Afghanistan.

May 27, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: For military men, a mixed record on the chessboard

It's the world's greatest war game, but that doesn't mean that generals and admirals are natural stars at chess.

May 26, 2015

A Doolittle Raider offers some long-distance healing

One last bit of healing from a long-distant war played out this month at Taiwan's diplomatic outpost in Washington in the run-up to this year's Memorial Day celebrations.

May 22, 2015

Russia closes NATO supply corridor to Afghanistan

The Russian government has closed down a key military transport corridor that allowed the U.S. and its NATO allies to supply forces serving in neighboring Afghanistan.

May 19, 2015

DAVID R. SANDS: Coming home, Fabiano Caruana adds pop to U.S. chess lineup

It's become a paradox of modern sports: Choosing up sides has become as big a draw as the games themselves.

May 19, 2015