Capablanca’s Last Olympiad

The game, move by move

A Semi-Slav, and a knight to e5

1. 1. Nf3 The knight first
2. 1… d5 d5, the centre
3. 2. e3 e3 — a modest move
4. 2… Nf6 The knight out
5. 3. c4 c4 at last
6. 3… c6 c6 — the Semi-Slav
7. 4. Nc3 The second knight
8. 4… e6 e6
9. 5. d4 d4, the full centre
10. 5… Nbd7 The knight to d7
11. 6. Bd3 The bishop to d3
12. 6… dxc4 The pawn taken on c4
13. 7. Bxc4 The bishop recaptures
14. 7… Bb4 The bishop to b4
15. 8. O-O White castles
16. 8… O-O And Black
17. 9. Qe2 The queen to e2
18. 9… Qe7 The queen to e7
19. 10. Ne5 The knight to e5 It stands there for the rest of the game — thirty-nine half-moves — and at the end it is one of the pieces covering f7.
20. 10… c5 c5, at the centre

f4 and g4

1. 11. f4 f4 — the pawn that starts it It props the knight up and opens the file. Everything White does from here is on that side of the board.
2. 11… Nb6 The knight to b6
3. 12. Bb3 The bishop to b3
4. 12… Nbd5 The knight to d5
5. 13. Bd2 The bishop to d2
6. 13… Bxc3 The bishops come off on c3
7. 14. bxc3 Recaptured with the b-pawn
8. 14… Ne4 The knight to e4
9. 15. Be1 The bishop back to e1
10. 15… f6 f6, holding
11. 16. Qd3 The queen to d3
12. 16… f5 f5, shutting the file
13. 17. a4 a4
14. 17… Kh8 Kh8 — out of the corner’s corner Off the diagonal and onto the file, which is the file White is about to open with a rook.

Both rooks lifted

1. 18. g4 g4 — at the pawn chain The base of it. If f5 goes, the whole kingside opens and there are two rooks and a queen behind it.
2. 18… Ndf6 The knight back to f6
3. 19. Bh4 The bishop to h4
4. 19… Bd7 The bishop to d7
5. 20. Rf3 The rook lifts to f3
6. 20… Be8 The bishop to e8, defending
7. 21. Rh3 The rook swings to h3 Onto the file the king is standing on, with one pawn between them. That pawn is bought with a rook, nineteen half-moves later.
8. 21… Qd6 The queen to d6
9. 22. gxf5 The pawns come off on f5
10. 22… exf5 Recaptured
11. 23. Rd1 The other rook to d1
12. 23… cxd4 The pawn taken on d4
13. 24. exd4 And taken back
14. 24… Qa3 The queen to a3, out of the way Off to the far corner to take a pawn. She is on a3 when the mate happens and there is nothing she can do from there.

A rook given on h7

1. 25. Be6 The bishop to e6 It cannot be taken and it is the piece covering f7 and g8 at the end.
2. 25… g6 g6, propping up f5
3. 26. Bg5 The bishop to g5, offered
4. 26… Nxg5 Taken
5. 27. fxg5 Recaptured with the f-pawn And that pawn on g5 is what covers h6 and f6 in the final position.
6. 27… Ne4 The knight back to e4
7. 28. Rxh7+ The rook given on h7, with check A rook for a pawn, and it is the pawn that has kept the file shut for twenty moves. There is no choice about taking it.
8. 28… Kxh7 He has to take
9. 29. Qh3+ Check from h3
10. 29… Kg7 Kg7 — back down
11. 30. Qh6# Checkmate, on h6 The queen steps to h6 beside the king, held by the pawn on g5. She covers h7 and h8; the pawn on g5 covers f6 and h6; the bishop on e6 covers g8 and, with the knight on e5, f7; and g6 is Black’s own pawn with his own rook behind it on f8.