There are some people out there who believe that the Russian Bear has been awakened and that the country is swiftly moving back to its Soviet history or at least, a future influenced by the political and ideological positions of its Soviet ancestor. While the world is distracted by the Olympics in Rio, Zika, and Russia’s (non)participation in the games, the Russian Chess Federation has made a play for control of the World Chess Championship cycle by submitting a proposal to FIDE that would effectively allow sponsors to buy positions in the championship and undermine any chance that chess has for expanding its audience and recognition as a competitive sport.
Here is the letter in its entirety:
To: Chairman of FIDE Commission for World Championships & Olympiads (WCO)â¨Mr. GEORGIOS MAKROPOULOS
Dear Mr. Makropoulos,
Russian Chess Federation asks the Commission to consider and (if needed) improve and
approve the below mentioned amendments to the current system of determining the World
Chess Champion at the 87th FIDE Congress (04â14.09.2016 Baku, Azerbaijan). RCF suggests adding an article to the rules governing World Chess Championship matches stating that the
World Chess Champion can accept the challenge of any player who can contribute to the prize fund and the costs of holding of the match.
Herewith a number of basic conditions should be fulfilled:
⢠The FIDE President would have the power to veto any proposed match. Any proposed
World Championship match would be carried out under the auspices of FIDE and according FIDE rules.
⢠50% of the prize fund will go to FIDE.
⢠The match must be held before the end of the current FIDE qualifying round, that
is, before a challenger has been determined by the Candidates Tournament.
FIDE Vice Presidentâ¨President of the Russian Chess Federation
Andrey Filatov
Needless to say that many in the world outside of neo-Soviet insanity are unhappy and have launched a petition against the proposed changes. The Association of Chess Professionals issued a response to the Russian request and has launched a campaign to encourage FIDE to reject the proposal. Of course, knowing that Kirsan and Putin are best buddies leaves little hope that the next World Chess Champion could be nothing ore than the man whose country is willing to pay the price for a seat at the board.
Here is ACP’s response to the proposal:
The Russian Chess Federation submitted an official proposal to the FIDE Congress for an addition to the current World Championship Cycle rules: anyone guaranteeing a required prize-fund can challenge the reigning World Champion.
We as ACP believe that this idea is completely detrimental to chess for a number of reasons, among which:
– The World Champion Title must be achieved only through a proper sport cycle, especially at a time when chess is increasingly recognized as a sport. The RCF proposal goes against the chess tradition and against the very spirit of modern chess. Although purchasing the right for the match was common practice 100 years ago, it was more of a sad necessity than a good system.
– Staging a “commercial” match would seriously undermine the appeal of the regular cycle match. As things stand, the Title Match is a unique event which is held every two years and which acts as a catalyst for all the chess world. Even so, it is very difficult to raise proper funds for the World Championship Match – we do remember several examples from the recent past and we are witnessing the same problems right now. Who would be interested in paying for the âregular match’ if it is no longer a unique event? Who would organize the Candidates under these circumstances? Who would regard chess as a proper sport a company can invest in?
– The World Champion Title would be devalued and, more importantly, the image of chess would suffer greatly at all levels and worldwide. It would also put the players on grossly unequal terms: some would have to battle their chances out against the best players of the world in the regular cycle, others would buy their shot at the title by securing the money. This is outright unacceptable. It could also bring a disrepute to our noble game, opening the door to problems we can’t even foresee now.
– The RCF proposal would inevitably mess up the World Championship Cycle. It would also limit the World Championâs participation in other events, as he would need to spend most of his time preparing/recovering after the matches. Again, this is certainly not desirable.
The ACP strongly opposes changes to the World Championship Cycle that undermine the very
sporting sense and the unique value of the World Chess Champion Title. Our opinion is
supported by the results of the ACP Poll – 2016, where over 80% of the chess professionals clearly disapproved the idea of purchasing the rights for the Title Match. If you share our vision, please help fighting this proposal and join the ACP stand by signing and endorsing this statement. The RCF proposal could be approved already in September, and we feel the chess world has to take a clear stand on the matter before then.
ACP Board
