Possession of (or by) Mobile Phones

[IM Jack Rudd]

There was someone at the Crawley international a while back who didn't have the technical expertise required to turn his phone off. His opponent's resulting quick victory proved vital in his getting an IM norm.

[Roger de Coverly]

I see no point whatsoever to the rule you have.

I see every point. It's to make it crystal clear that the allowed presence of the phone doesn't permit you to surf the net, update Facebook, take selfies, play Pet Rescue or any one of a thousand and one non-chess things you can do with a smart phone. So if you are seen using a phone, that at the very least is an accusation of rule-breaking and whether there is chess software on the phone and whether it has been used isn't relevant.

[NickFaulks]

I see no point whatsoever to the rule you have.

It's to make it crystal clear that the allowed presence of the phone doesn't permit you to surf the net, update Facebook, take selfies, play Pet Rescue or any one of a thousand and one non-chess things you can do with a smart phone.

What's wrong with that? Done at the board these actions might be offputting to the opponent, but away from the board are they any worse than reading the Evening Standard? I've done that.

[Roger de Coverly]

What's wrong with that? Done at the board these actions might be offputting to the opponent, but away from the board are they any worse than reading the Evening Standard? I've done that.

It's the simplest possible anti-cheating measure. Someone wanting to make trouble could validly object to a newspaper being read during the game. Many newspapers contain chess columns. There's a general acceptance that you don't wear headphones either. That's been around since the days of Basman tapes.

A phone that is switched off and remains switched off for the entire duration of the game cannot be used during play. That's what we want, that a phone or other device should not be consulted. It's a straight zero tolerance of the phone being switched on. With that in place, the presence of the phone itself can be allowed and you don't need arbitrary rules about whether it's deemed to be in a bag or not. Not everyone carries a bag to chess events, a jacket is adequate to carry a pen and to keep the score-sheet for after the game. It's not the USA where everyone has to cart sets, boards and clocks around.

[MartinCarpenter]

Its also a simple 'no distraction' thing, which seems fair enough.

[Graham Borrowdale]

What's wrong with that? Done at the board these actions might be offputting to the opponent, but away from the board are they any worse than reading the Evening Standard? I've done that.

I once had an opponent who read War and Peace (at the board) while waiting for me to move

[Michael Farthing]

What, all of it??

[Lewis Martin]

What's wrong with that? Done at the board these actions might be offputting to the opponent, but away from the board are they any worse than reading the Evening Standard? I've done that.

I once had an opponent who read War and Peace (at the board) while waiting for me to move

How about eating at the board? I've had an opponent eating his lunch against me during play, where he went off and bought it, to bring it over and eat it in front of me. I've done it once before though I did ask my opponent for his permission to do so at the start of the game. Both incidents happened at the same event, a few years apart.

[Jonathan Bryant]

How about eating at the board?

I don’t particularly like this and always move away from the board if I’m going to eat something. It’s especially irksome if somebody eats something with a noisy wrapping - crisps, say - and sits there rustling away not caring a jot at the noise he is making.

In one of my very rare 4NCL games I had a junior swap off into an obviously lost king and pawn ending and then bring out his lunch and place it on the table. He unpacked it, divided his meal into the various food group (sandwiches, fruit, vegetables, chocolate bar etc) and began working his way through them. A very balanced meal, I have to say. I’ve always wondered if it was just coincidence or if he was somehow trying to send a message by getting his food out at that point.

I don’t like people eating at the board, but with evening leagues and people coming straight from working - often rushing, without a chance to grab a proper evening meal - I think it’s something that you just have to accept sometimes.

[Roger de Coverly]

In one of my very rare 4NCL games I had a junior swap off into an obviously lost king and pawn ending and then bring out his lunch and place it on the table.

You could have tried sneaking on him to an arbiter or organiser if the food didn't look as if it had been purchased in the hotel.

[Jonathan Bryant]

Good point. Although this was back before sandwiches had become the second greatest threat to tournament play after mobile phones.

[Peter Davies]

Personally I'd like to do away with the handshake thing at the start of the game.
It spreads germs.

Totally agree - having regularly gotten three or four colds or flu every year for years, I decided to experiment
two years ago using hand sanitizer before and after every chess game (I average one or two tourney
games a week) and can report that during that period I only had a total of two 'micro-colds' (very
mild symptoms, only lasted about three days.) Surely there's a better way to begin and end every game
than a forced exchange of diseases? (Apparently shaking hands is an even more reliable way to spread
germs than kissing!) How about just clinking our kings together as in a toast?

[Stewart Reuben]

The Chairman of the FIDE Medical Commission, Jana Bellin believes shaking hands at the beginning of a chess game is a negligible risk.

[John Moore]

Then I shall continue to shake Jana's hand.

[Michael Farthing]

Hmm... Just because it is a neglible risk for Jana to shake John's hand does not mean it is a negligible risk for John to shake Jana's hand