King-pawn Opening Series
Here are some chess puzzles from the games of Pavel Eljanov.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
Solutions are between the brackets under each puzzle.
Drag your cursor from one bracket to the other.
a) 
Pavel Eljanov vs S Barkov, Alushta, 1998
4rnk1/pp3ppp/2p1P3/5P2/1P3Q2/P5PP/2q3BK/4R3 w - - 0 1
[ exf7+ if Kxf7 Qc7+ ]
b) 
Alexander Motylev vs Pavel Eljanov, Polanica Zdroj, 1999
7k/7p/3p4/p3n3/2N2q2/1PP4P/5rP1/RQ5K b - - 0 1
[ ...Nf3 ]
c) 
White mates in 7.
Pavel Eljanov vs Ferenc Langheinrich, Balatonlelle, 2000
5bk1/1p2n3/r2p3n/1NpPp1NQ/2P5/5RP1/2q2PKP/8 w - - 0 1
[ Rxf8+ if Kxf8 Ne6+ Kg8 Qe8+ or if Kg7 Ne6+ Kh7 Rh8+ ]
d) 
Anna Zozulia vs Pavel Eljanov, Alushta, 2000
3r1rk1/5ppp/4q3/N2bp3/R1P2b2/8/1P2BPPP/Q4RK1 b - - 0 1
[ ...Bxg2 if Kxg2 Qg6+ ]
e) 
Vladimir Savon vs Pavel Eljanov, Ordzhonikidze, 2001
2r3k1/7p/3p2p1/3Pb1q1/2B1Q3/1R5P/2K2P2/8 b - - 0 1
[ ...Qf5 if Qxf5 Rxc4+ Kd3 Rd4+ ]
1e) 
Vladimir Savon vs Pavel Eljanov
Pavel Eljanov Puzzles, Part II.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Alexei Gavrilov, St. Petersburg, 2002
4k3/2r1qp2/6p1/p2Q3p/P7/4P3/5P1P/2R3K1 w - - 0 1
[ Qb5+ ]
b) 
Mikhail Yarmysty vs Pavel Eljanov, Evpatoria, 2002
6k1/p5pp/2pp4/2pb4/5Q1b/1PBPN3/P1P1q1PP/6K1 b - - 0 1
[ ...g5 ]
c) 
Vila Gazquez vs Pavel Eljanov, Andorra, 2003
2rr2k1/pp3pbp/3pp1p1/1N6/4PP2/Pb1P1BP1/1P5P/1RR3K1 b - - 0 1
[ ...Bc2 ]
d) 
Alexander Raetsky vs Pavel Eljanov, Biel, 2004
5bk1/N4p2/4p2p/6p1/R2P4/3nPPP1/4K1P1/2r2N2 b - - 0 1
[ ...Nb2 if Ra2 or Ra6 Rc2+ Ke1 Bb4+ ]
e) 
Black mates in 5.
Zdenko Kozul vs Pavel Eljanov, Sarajevo, 2005
6k1/2p2ppp/1p6/3P1q2/8/5Q1P/2R1RKPb/r7 b - - 0 1
[ ...Bg1+ Kg3 Qg5+ Qg4 Ra3+ ]
2e) 
mate in 5
Zdenko Kozul vs Pavel Eljanov
Pavel Eljanov Puzzles, Part III.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a) 
Mikhail Gurevich vs Pavel Eljanov, Khanty Mansyisk, 2005
3r2k1/pq4p1/3pp2p/1p3p1n/3P1nrP/2P1RP2/PP3P1Q/3RNB1K b - - 0 1
[ ...g5 if Ng2 Nxg2 fxg4 Nxe3+ ]
b) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Pascal Charbonneau, Montreal, 2007
1rrq1nk1/6pp/3p2n1/1B1PpNP1/P3P3/4Q3/1R6/1KR5 w - - 0 1
[ Qa7 if Rxc1+ Kxc1 Rc8+ Rc2 Qxg5+ Kb1 ]
c) 
Vladimir Georgiev vs Pavel Eljanov, Wijk aan Zee, 2007
8/5pk1/3P3p/4p1p1/4N1P1/3qPKPP/7Q/4b3 b - - 0 1
[ ...Qf1+ Nf2 Bxf2 if Qxf2 e4+ ]
d) 
Maxime Vachier-Lagrave vs Pavel Eljanov, Wijk aan Zee, 2007
2r3k1/pp3pp1/1q1n2bp/3Q4/2N5/1P5P/P1N2PP1/2R3K1 b - - 0 1
[ ...Nxc4 if bxc4 Bxc2 ]
e) 
Evgeny Alekseev vs Pavel Eljanov, Moscow, 2008
5rk1/p5pp/1pp5/3p1r2/3Pb1q1/5PB1/PP1Q2PP/4R1RK b - - 0 1
[ ...Qxg3 if fxe4 Rh5 h3 Rf2 ]
3d) 
Maxime Vachier-Lagrave vs Pavel Eljanov
Pavel Eljanov Puzzles, Part IV.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a) 
White mates in 6.
Pavel Eljanov vs Ivan Sokolov, Sarajevo, 2009
q1k5/3r2bp/p2Br3/2Pp1R2/1Q1Pp3/8/PP5P/1K3R2 w - - 0 1
[ Rf8+ Bxf8 Rxf8+ Rd8 Qb6 Rexd6 cxd6 ]
b) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Aleksander Delchev, France, 2010
6rk/p1pn1p1p/1p1p1qrB/3PpN1R/4P1p1/PnP5/6PP/4QRK1 w - - 0 1
[ Bg5 if Rxg5 Rxh7+ mates or if Qxg5 Rxg5 Rxg5 Nh6 ]
c) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Luka Lenic, Porto Carras, 2011
5rk1/5ppp/p1q1P3/1p1rP3/1Pp5/6PP/P1Q4K/3R1R2 w - - 1 0
[ e7 if Rc8 or Re8 Qg2 ]
d) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Dmitry Jakovenko, Poikovsky, 2013
r5k1/p1R4N/1n2p2p/2p2r1P/2P5/1R6/P5P1/6K1 w - - 1 0
[ Rg3+ Kh8 Rg6 Nxc4 Nf6 ]
e) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Sergey Volkov, Yerevan, 2014
8/2r2p1k/6p1/2BQ4/4p2p/4P2P/2q1BKP1/8 w - - 1 0
[ Bd4 if f6 Bxf6 ]
4a) 
mate in 6
Pavel Eljanov vs Ivan Sokolov
Pavel Eljanov Puzzles, Part V.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Alexander Goloshchapov, Dubai, 2014
r2r2k1/p4ppp/1pb1q3/3p4/1PnBn3/3QN1P1/P4PBP/2RR2K1 w - - 1 0
[ Bxe4 if Nxe3 Bxh7+ or if Qxe4 Qxe4 dxe4 Nxc4 ]
b) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Marat Dzhumaev, Tromsoe, 2014
4n1k1/p6p/3pqbpB/2pNr3/2P5/7P/P5P1/1Q3RK1 w - - 1 0
[ Nxf6+ if Nxf6 Qb8+ ]
c) 
White mates in 6.
Pavel Eljanov vs Evgeny Romanov, Jerusalem, 2015
5r1k/1q3r1p/3p3Q/3Np3/4P3/5n2/P5RP/6RK w - - 1 0
[ Nf6 if Nxg1 Nxh7 Rb8 Nf8+ or if Rxf6 Qxf6+ ]
d) 
David Navara vs Pavel Eljanov, Baku, 2016
8/1ppq1rk1/p2pRp2/1P1P2pp/P2Q2N1/6nP/5PP1/6K1 b - - 0 1
[ ...Qxe6 dxe6 Ne2+ Kf1 Nxd4 exf7 hxg4 ]
e) 
White mates in 4.
Pavel Eljanov vs Nils Grandelius, Stavanger, 2016
5k2/pp2rp1p/3p4/4PpQ1/1q3P2/6PK/2R4P/8 w - - 1 0
[ Qf6 if Rxe5 Rc7 or if Re8 exd6 ]
5d) 
David Navara vs Pavel Eljanov
Pavel Eljanov Puzzles, Part VI.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a) 
White mates in 2.
Pavel Eljanov vs Turkan Mamedjarova, Biel, 2018
1r2rk2/6q1/6QR/1pPBp3/1P1n4/6pP/5P2/6K1 w - - 1 0
[ Rh8+ ]
b) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Gerlef Meins, Porto Carras, 2018
3k4/1p5p/3n2p1/PpNPp1P1/1P2P3/2K5/8/8 w - - 1 0
[ Nxb7+ if Nxb7 a6 ]
c) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Nino Batsiashvili, Gibraltar, 2019
r2rb1k1/1pp1qpb1/3p2pp/p2P4/P3npP1/1BP2N1P/1P1Q1P1N/R3R2K w - - 1 0
[ 1.Rxe4 Qxe4 2.Re1 ]
6c) 
Pavel Eljanov vs Nino Batsiashvili
More Ukrainian GMs
Top 20 World Grandmasters
Back to the Index