Not Fischering this time. Actual, honest to goodness fishing for fish. My dad has organized an excursion to the Sea of Cortez with a group of friends and I'll be at a remote spot in Baja Mexico for the next few days. I used to hunt and fish all the time, but haven't done much of it since I left California 15 years ago. I'm hoping not to embarrass myself by being pulled in by a roosterfish or worse. (Roosterfish?!)
Imagine, days and nights without internet! Somebody hold me! A friend will be taking care of my apartment and cats, but unfortunately she's not exactly qualified to run a chess blog. I didn't have time to set up a guest blogger this time around. Next time, who should it be? Nominations for guest and vacation bloggers, please!
Meanwhile, behave yourselves. I just might find an internet kiosk in a palapa hut down there and check in. If I'm eaten by a 600 lb marlin, please remember me kindly until the servers are shut off.
Guest blogger, eh?
How about Nakamura? =)
Good idea considering how much he's been discussed here lately. He could do some interaction. :-)
How about Kasparov?!
I nominate Greg Koster. Now *that* would speed up Mig's vacation!
and moderated by clubfoot, that veritable institution of decorum and sensibility
Have fun Mig! I hope you catch something.
Ok, i guess we will have to speak about everything in this thread :)
Well, let's start. I find it amazing that Nakamura only lost one game in the Sigeman tournament (the famous Qh5 game). He is playing very strongly, and he is playing very freely and learning a lot. I really thing this guy has World Champion potential.
Pack a pocket braille chess set; if you are eaten by a large fish there is a good chance it will have eaten other people as well and at least one of them will know how to play chess already. If not, you'll need to teach them the rules from scratch. Let us know how it goes.
Whatever Mig catches in Mexico, let's hope its not contagious!
Hey Mig, don't forget to bring your chess set to Mexico. If your friends don't play chess,you may consider this one: http://www.funpic.hu/en.picview.php?id=5217
I bet your friends will better remember Morphy-Count Isuard game played by these 'live pieces'
What about Jennifer Shahade? She pokes an editorial in here every once in a while.
someone from washington square park! i am sick of all the GMs, give us someone with the perspective of chess on the street.
I used to Live in La Paz, where are you going ? Cabo San Lucas ?
Before you go, don't forget to put up the third part of your interview with Garry on chessbase. Please :-)
Good man! This is the wisest route.
World Chess Champion Vladimir Kramnik
Official Statement
After defending the title of Classical World Chess Champion a few months ago against Peter Leko, I consider it important now to state my position regarding the current discussion about the World Chess Championship.
First of all, I would like to make it clear that I will not participate in the FIDE Championship, which is planned to take place this Fall in Argentina.
In the agreement that was signed in Prague by, among others, FIDE and myself, it was clearly stated that the Classical World Champion, eventually determined by my final match with Peter Leko, was qualified to play a unification match against the winner of the final match for the FIDE World Championship.
I fail to see any reason why the cancellation of the final FIDE match should influence my position on the agreed unification process. It is therefore incomprehensible that FIDE included me in the list of possible participants – a decision clearly in conflict with our existing agreement. Just for the record: FIDE did not even inform me before doing so.
Nevertheless, I am still ready to complete the unification process in the spirit of the Prague agreement. Therefore, the organization of a match between the winner of the FIDE event in Argentina and myself could be a solution to break the deadlock. I want to make it clear that I would be ready to participate in such a unification match.
In the event that FIDE will not demonstrate any willingness to follow the agreed process of unification, I will start discussing proposals with interested partners, in order to defend my title in accordance with the classical line of the World Chess Championship.
Vladimir Kramnik
World Chess Champion
www.kramnik.com
April 28th, 2005
So this is official. If Kirsan agrees there probably is a solution in sight. Anand may not object to it so long there is money and a chance to become a WC. Objection by others may not hold water.
Does this means WC becomes FIDE's domain after the unification match?
Well, if Anand participates, chances are high that he'll win FIDE's tournament. If Kramnik agress to play with him, then he may become the new World Champion. It's hard to say whether the WC would become sole possession of FIDE after the unification match but I think FIDE would be the winner since it's the most legitimate organization on the planet that all chess prfessionals adhere to.
Well the problem with a "defending champion" system is that the Champion more or less owns the title. This will not change much even with unification. However, if there is unification there will at least matches, which is improvement in itself.
And the way FIDE works today, it may not be such a bad thing to diversify power...
Al,
Could you post the link to the press statement. I couldn't get it at kramnik.com. Hope this is not a fast one.
Srikanth,
http://chess-players.org/eng/news/viewarticle.html?id=350
Oh, I see it's published on kramnik.com now as well. http://www.kramnik.com/eng/news/viewarticle.asp?iID=59
does anybody even care about this anymore? the most intersting match on the cards was a Kasparov-Anand match which is not possible anymore. World Chess is now so boring. Shirov has lost his fire, Moro seems to be on one of his downward cycles, maybe Anand-Topalov or possibly Anand-Leko to arouse some interest? Kramnik can shove his title where the sun dont shine, and it will then smell appropriately too.
Anand-Topalov would be at least six times as interesting as Anand-Leko.
Openings played in classical time control in 2005--
Anand v. Topalov:
Najdorf, Petroff, Petroff
Anand v. Leko:
Sveshnikov, Sveshnikov, Petroff
Anand v. Kramnik:
Sveshnikov
umm.. exactly what are you trying to say here greg? dont get your point.
The d-fens blasts us again with his erudition:
"Kramnik can shove his title where the sun dont shine, and it will then smell appropriately too."
Whatever polite disregard you may accord the World Champion, he won the title to take his place in the Steinitz line, where he still stands after a successful defence against a formidable opponent.
Moreover, your claim to be on such intimate terms with his anal canal is perhaps better directed to a scat website.
The FIDE planned WC has been cancelled. Kramnik will play against Madame O. for $1 million. Whatever she says, her little toy boy will do. What do you expect?
ah clubfoot that unwanted intrusion taking full advantage of the blogmaster's absence to regale us with his noisome views. I seem to be gaining some mind reading capabilities by associating with the bloggers here who frequently demonstrate the same. I think you must have already been a jerk as a kid, and you were not allowed to play with anybody. And that's why you keep trying to shove your rear end where its not wanted. Old habits die hard eh?
Gentlemen: Please!
I thought I would post a link to this..
College chess team takes on prisoners
http://www.yahoo.com/_ylh=X3oDMTB2MXQ5MTU3BF9TAzI3MTYxNDkEdGVzdAMwBHRtcGwDaW5kZXgtaWU-/s/238492
This could be interesting.. Book Smarts against Street smarts..
enjoy.
These encounters are not original and are interesting interactions. Also see article below from May 2003.
http://www.thechessdrum.net/65thSquare/65_mayjun03.html
Interesting piece Daaim. The misunderstanding of chess notation by corrections "officials" seems silly and smacks of J. Edgar Hoover type paranoia; but Pal Benko evidently got in trouble many years ago in Hungary for his postal game related notation markings. Is there a tie in to an old spy movie I never saw?
Hi all, FIDE seems to have inveted a new WCC cycle, details on their website .... http://www.fide.com/news.asp?id=693
The FIDE business as usual.
1. The document looks more like draft and shouldn't be accepted as official regulation. There is no single signature, no approval date on the document.
Even the text quality itself with numerous misspellings, absent page numbers, blank lines, etc. is shocking for a document to be released by a world governing body.
2. Too many questions left open, too many fuzzy areas left.
2. The only places I was able to find, which mention any FIDE obligations, are the following:
- $175K guarantee for the Continental Championships;
- If the Continental Championship cannot be organised, then FIDE shall organise the Championship.
3. There is a long list of FIDE rights, and even longer list of organizers obligations. Players obligations are also described in detail. Never mind there is no sigle note on organizers or players rights. Who cares?
4. The world champion is seeded No.1 in the Cup (Do they mean Kasim?) What an honour!
5. They obviously don't mind Kramnik exist.
The good thing is that after this publication, it is almost impossible Anand, Leko agree to play in this cycle. Kramink and Kasparov are out, also. Topalov and Adams can agree to play, as we had seen before. Ivanchuk and Polgar can be there, also, but the chances are very small.
P.S. FIDE found an interesting way for supporting second tier GMs by permamently organizing events none of top GMs can accept to participate ;-)
I vote for Bacrot as next FIDE WC ;-) He is young, fast growing, he'll be happy to play and he'll not make things complicated for FIDE after becoming WC ;-)
Vlad--
The top four from the 2005 Argentina WC bypass the 2005-2007 FIDE cycle knockout tournament and are seeded directly into Candidates matches. So one would expect Anand, Leko, Topalov, etc. to enthusiastically accept their Argentina invitations.
But the FIDE 2005-07 WC announcment does leave many things unresolved, the length of the Candidates matches, for example.
Greg, I was not talking about Argentina WC.
The new cycle regulations mention only FIDE rights and players obligations. I don't think top players would accept this. They had already seen this before.
Vlad--
The two FIDE WC matches involving Kasparov fell through. But haven't FIDE's other events succeeded? Why wouldn't Anand, Leko, Topalov and Adams compete in the new cycle? If they finish in the top four in Argentina they get to skip the knockout tournament and are seeded directly into the 2005-07 cycle candidates matches.