WITH THE World Chess Federation (Fide)’s Congress starting tomorrow in Turin, Italy, the countdown has already begun for the Fide elections.
It will be an electrically-charged occasion at the Chess Congress with emotions running high. A fortnight ago, I had mentioned that for the first time in more than two decades, there is a serious challenger to the incumbent Fide president, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov.
Bessel Kok, a highly respected corporate figure in Europe, is heading the Right Move team which is challenging Ilyumzhinov’s Chess Fidelity team in the elections.
Earlier this week, an update from the Right Move website, http://www.rightmove06.org, mentioned that there are 41 national chess federations that have openly declared their support for Kok’s team but the Chess Fidelity website, http://www.chessfidelity.com, claimed that the Ilyumzhinov ticket has the public support of 78 national federations.
Anything can still happen between now and the actual elections but going by the numbers so far, the Chess Fidelity team is expected to romp home easily.
Readers will remember that about two weeks ago, Malaysian Chess Federation president Dato Tan Chin Nam had issued an open letter on the Internet urging both sides to put aside their differences and form a joint presidency in the interest of chess unity.
After Tan’s letter appeared, Fide general secretary Ignatius Leong, in his capacity as delegate from Singapore, also issued an open letter to urge both Ilyumzhinov and Kok to work together.
Recognising that both men have their respective strengths and weaknesses, Leong proposed a solution where Ilyumzhinov, who is also the Head of State of the Russian republic of Kalmyk, would become the Fide chairman and Kok the Fide president.
“They are eminent persons – the incumbent president is charismatic and controversial while the challenger is a professional corporate leader with impeccable credentials,” Leong said.
In urging both presidential candidates to consider Fide’s overriding needs, Leong said a unification ticket would provide Fide with a unique opportunity to morph into a modern, professional, dynamic, transparent and sustainable organization.
In a reply from Ilyumzhinov, the Fide president declared that he would be prepared to discuss Leong’s proposal and he was always ready to work towards chess unity.
However, the suggestion was rejected outright by Kok who said that such a solution would be illegal and contrary to the Fide statutes. More importantly, said Kok, he would not misplace the trust placed in his team by the chess federations who had supported him.
Subsequently, Leong declared that since his overture to Kok has been rebuffed, he had no choice but to throw his whole unreserved support behind the Ilyumzhinov ticket.
The outcome of the Fide elections will be keenly awaited around the chess world but until it takes place, there are still opportunities that both tickets may yet accept a compromise solution. Let us wait and see.
In the meantime, with a record 146 teams in the open division and 108 teams in the Women’s Olympiad, you can watch games live at the Chess Olympiad’s official site at http://www.chessolympiad-torino2006.org/
A Google search on Turin Chess Olympiad will also uncover many other chess websites around the world that are also reporting daily on the results.
UP NEXT
MBSSKL open
The Methodist Boys’ Secondary School in Kuala Lumpur will hold their first open chess tournament at the school tomorrow. This event will be played in six age groups, from under-8 to under-17, with attractive prizes that include a two-day, one-night stay at the First World Hotel, Genting.
Entry fees are RM10 for students of the Methodist Boy’s Secondary School and the Methodist Boys’ Primary School and RM15 for all other students.
Registration and inquiries: Mdm GK Saw (tel: 016.2008797 between 3pm and 7pm), Mdm S Selvarani (tel: 016.2008796 between 8am and 12pm) or NK Chin and Mdm SP Gan (tel: 03.20782293 between 8.30am and 1pm). Alternatively, visit http://www.mbsskl.com for the details.
Penang age-group
The first leg of the Penang age-group chess tournament for under-8, under-10, under-12 and under-14 boys and girls, sponsored by the Penang state government and organised jointly by the Socio-Economic & Environmental Research Institute (SERI) and the Penang Chess Association, will be held at the Kompleks Penyayang Masyarakat, Penang on Sunday.
To register, contact Tan Eng Seong (tel: 012.4299517, email: estan64@streamyx.com). Only a maximum 200 entries will be accepted with no more than 30 players in each category. A second leg will be held at Seberang Jaya or Kepala Batas in September.
Sri Aman open
The Sri Aman open tournament for under-16, under-14, under-12, under-10 and under-8 players will be held at the Sek Keb Sri Aman in Bandar Baru Air Itam, Penang, on Jun 11.
Entry fees for members of the Penang Chess Association (PCA) are RM10 for under-16 players and RM8 for under-10 players. For non-PCA members, these will be RM15 and RM13 respectively. Entries accepted after Jun 4 are subjected to an additional RM5 as penalty. For details, contact Eoh Thean Keat (tel: 016.4540070, email: t_k_eoh@hotmail.com)
CLB open
The SMJK Chung Ling Butterworth will hold their first open tournament at their school on Jun 18. Entry fees for members of the Penang Chess Association are RM10 for under-18 players and RM15 for others. Non-PCA members are required to play RM15 and RM20 respectively.
Registration and inquiries: Tan Eng Seong (tel: 012.4299517, email: estan64@streamyx.com) or Teh Wei Li (tel: 019.4161486). Closing date for entries is Jun 17.
Stonemaster open
There will be a Stonemaster allegro open tournament, organised by Stonemaster Event Management Entreprise, at the Wilayah Complex in Kuala Lumpur on Jun 25. This tournament is restricted only to players who do not have a world (Fide) rating. The organisers will also conduct a one-hour chess seminar half-way through the event.
Entry fee is RM20 per player. To register for both the tournament and the seminar, email seme_event@yahoo.com or contact Fadli (016.2092404) before Jun 20.
