(19.11.2014) Here is the Award of KoBulChess Selfmates 2012. This was the first year when the website started its Informal tourneys so the entries was not so many, but I hope you will enjoy the selection of the judge. The award is open for one month period for contestations. The editors of the website thank IGM Petko Petkov for his excellent job.

KoBulChess Selfmates 2012 Award

Judge: IGM Petko Petkov (International Judge of FIDE)

Total 9 problems from 5 authors were presented in this tournament: n.8, n.9, n.33, n.34, n.46, n.47, n.63, n.78, n.99. The level of competition is quite modest in quantitative and qualitative terms, but this is a situation that exists in our days in many competitions for S#. This genre is experiencing a deep crisis!

Some remarks:

-n.33: Heavy construction and weak first move.

-n.34: Quite technical play without interesting moments.

-n.47: This style is already well known from hundreds problems of Sergey Smotrov.

-n.63: Banal mates with the black Rook, at that - both from the square h5.One another minus is the virtual (fictitious) threat.

-n.78: This simple mechanism with Rook`s mates has many predecessors.

Prize: Diyan Kostadinov 

An interesting play of the two white batteries, although the key-move is not particularly successful. 

1.Bg6? 1…g1S!, 1.Bg8? 1…g1B!

   1.g8B!(zz)

1…g1S 2.Qa1+! (Sa4+?) Kc4 3.Sd4+ e6 4.Qa4+! (Qa2+?) Kc3 5.Se2+ Sxe2#

1…g1B 2.Sa4+! (Qa1+?) Kd3 3.Re5+ f5 4.Sb2+! (Sac5+?) Kc3 5.Re3+ Bxe3#

Hon.Mention: Zoran Gavrilovski   

Two Bivalve - variations but in my view this content, although nice, is not enough for a prize.

   1.Rdh7! (2.Sd7+ Kg6 3.Bxe4+ Qxe4#)

1...f3 2.Rh6+ Kg5 3.Be3+ Bxe3#, 1...g2 2.Bxh4+ Rxh4 3.Qb6+ Bxb6#

Commendation: Josef Holubec

Surprising mates, but the black play looks very schematic.

   a)1.Qc4+Ka3 2.Kd3 e4+ 3.Kc2 e3(e5) 4.Kb1 e5(e3) 5.Ka1 e4 6.Bh6 b3 

7.Ra2+ bxa2 8.Qc3+ Bxc3#

   b)1.Rb2+Ka3 2.Rd2+ Kb3 3.Rd1 Ka2 4.Qa1+ Kb3 5.Kd3 e4+ 6.Kd2 e5 

7.Qc1 Ka2 8.Kc2 b3#