Cambridge IELTS 17 · Academic · Test 4 · Passage 3
Timur Gareyev – Blindfold Chess Champion — IELTS Reading Answers
All 14 answers for Timur Gareyev – Blindfold Chess Champion, Cambridge IELTS 17 Academic Reading Test 4 Passage 3, with the passage evidence and an explanation for each.
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Timur Gareyev – Blindfold Chess Champion answer key at a glance
Questions 27–40. Tap an answer to see the evidence.
What this passage tests
This passage is tested with Matching Information (Q27–32), True / False / Not Given (Q33–36), Summary Completion (Q37–40). Each section below gives the strategy for that question type, the answers, and the sentence that proves them.
Questions 27–32: Matching Information
Strategy: Scan for the idea, not the exact words. The answer is a paragraph letter, and one paragraph may be used more than once unless the instructions say otherwise.
a reference to earlier examples of blindfold chess
“The first recorded game in Europe was played in 13th-century Florence. In 1947, the Argentinian grandmaster Miguel Najdorf played 45 simultaneous games in his mind, winning 39 in the 24-hour session.”
Paragraph D cites history: 'The first recorded game in Europe was played in 13th-century Florence' and Najdorf's 1947 display, earlier examples.
an outline of what blindfold chess involves
“The nature of the game is to run through possible moves in the mind to see how they play out.”
Paragraph E explains the game's nature as 'to run through possible moves in the mind to see how they play out', an outline of what it involves.
a claim that Gareyev’s skill is limited to chess
“‘He was not exceptional on any of these standard tests,’ said Rissman. ‘We didn’t find anything other than playing chess that he seems to be supremely gifted at.’”
Rissman says the tests found nothing 'other than playing chess that he seems to be supremely gifted at', so the skill is chess-specific, F.
why Gareyev’s skill is of interest to scientists
“But the thing that’s so remarkable about Timur and a few other individuals is the number of games they can keep active at once. To me it is simply astonishing.”
Paragraph B highlights 'the number of games they can keep active at once' as 'simply astonishing', which is what interests scientists.
an outline of Gareyev’s priorities
“The most important part of blindfold chess for me is that I have found the one thing that I can fully dedicate myself to. I miss having an obsession.”
Paragraph H quotes Gareyev: the most important part is 'the one thing that I can fully dedicate myself to', an outline of his priorities.
a reason why the last part of a game may be difficult
“But the ends of games are taxing too, as exhaustion sets in. When Gareyev is tired, his recall can get patchy. He sometimes makes moves based on only a fragmented memory of the pieces’ positions.”
Paragraph E notes 'the ends of games are taxing too, as exhaustion sets in', and tiredness makes his recall 'patchy'.
Questions 33–36: True / False / Not Given
Strategy: Judge the whole statement against the text. FALSE contradicts the passage; NOT GIVEN means the passage never addresses that specific claim.
In the forthcoming games, all the participants will be blindfolded.
“While his challengers will play the games as normal, Gareyev himself will be blindfolded.”
'his challengers will play the games as normal, Gareyev himself will be blindfolded', so not all participants are blindfolded, FALSE.
Gareyev has won competitions in BASE jumping.
“He has a fondness for bright clothes and unusual hairstyles, and he gets his kicks from the adventure sport of BASE jumping.”
The passage says he enjoys 'the adventure sport of BASE jumping' but never mentions winning any competitions in it, so NOT GIVEN.
UCLA is the first university to carry out research into blindfold chess players.
“researchers at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) called him in for tests. They now have their first results.”
UCLA researchers tested him, but the text never claims UCLA was the first university to research blindfold players, so NOT GIVEN.
Good chess players are likely to be able to play blindfold chess.
“Accomplished players can develop the skill of playing blind even without realising it.”
'Accomplished players can develop the skill of playing blind even without realising it' links strong chess ability with blindfold play, TRUE.
Questions 37–40: Summary Completion
Strategy: Read the summary as a paragraph first to establish the logic, then locate the missing idea in the passage. With a lettered list, confirm the grammar fits.
“The scientists first had Gareyev perform some standard memory tests.”
The gap needs the type of test given first; 'The scientists first had Gareyev perform some standard memory tests' supplies 'memory'.
“One classic test measures how many numbers a person can repeat, both forwards and backwards, soon after hearing them.”
The gap needs what the classic test asked him to repeat; 'how many numbers a person can repeat' gives 'numbers'.
“Though the results are tentative and as yet unpublished, the scans found much greater than average communication between parts of Gareyev’s brain that make up what is called the frontoparietal control network.”
The gap needs what the scans found more of in his brain; 'much greater than average communication between parts of Gareyev's brain' supplies 'communication'.
“The scans also suggest that Gareyev’s visual network is more highly connected to other brain parts than usual.”
The gap needs which brain network was unusually well connected; 'Gareyev's visual network is more highly connected' supplies 'visual'.
Learn the question types in this passage
Frequently asked questions
Where does the Timur Gareyev – Blindfold Chess Champion passage come from?
It is Passage 3 of Cambridge IELTS 17 Academic Reading Test 4, and it covers Questions 27–40.
What question types appear in Timur Gareyev – Blindfold Chess Champion?
The passage is tested with Matching Information, True / False / Not Given, Summary Completion. Each type is explained on this page, alongside the answers.
Are these reading answers reliable?
Every answer is paired with the sentence that proves it, so you can check each one against the passage yourself. Use the page after a timed attempt, not instead of one.
Cambridge IELTS is published by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Band9Prep is not affiliated with Cambridge. This page is an independent study aid: it gives the answer key, the passage evidence and an explanation so you can review an attempt you have already made.