Media comments on chess

[Nick Grey]

Holly Willoughby gets 'thrashed' at chess by eight-year-old son Harry. Nice way to spend the half term break.

[JustinHorton]

In John Naughton's Observer review of Kasparov's book he writes:

In contrast to standard tournament practice, for example, IBM did not provide a private “team room” where he could consult with his seconds.

This confuses me a bit and I've not read the book: what is Naughton getting at?

[Geoff Chandler]

Hi Justin,

Sounds odd. In Danny King's book of the match ' Kasparov v Deeper Blue' on page 53 he says

"Kasparov has his own room to which he can retreat if he wants to get a drink or something to eat."

[Christopher Kreuzer]

From the live tennis text reporting (Andy Murray versus Russian player Karen Khachanov):

"Khachanov had his first encounter with the British media on Saturday after he beat John Isner to set up this Murray match, and we learned - it's pronounced Ka-REN, he's a Real Madrid fan, even though he's from Moscow and has trained in Barcelona for the last three three years, and he used to be a demon chess player as a kid."

Googling this, you get the usual media quotes and PR soundbites about some celebrity including chess as an interest. Being a Russian, it is possible that he is: (a) better then most celebrities; (b) more evidence exists out there; or (c) that he is from the wider pool of occasional chess players within the general population, with the media hyping the chess connection, which if anything would happen more for Russians than elsewhere.

No players named Kachanov in the FIDE rating database.

[Nick Grey]

Khachanov quoted in Metro this morning..."When I was young, I was having chess classes. So I like to play chess in my free time. I think it helps maybe".

As a young tennis player he will probably go above Kyle Edmund in the world rankings.

But you may need to go back 10-14 years to find a chess rating. back in those days were there any ratings below 2000?

[Brian Towers]

But you may need to go back 10-14 years to find a chess rating. back in those days were there any ratings below 2000?

Yes, my first rating in April 2007 was 1918.
I think back then they went down to 1800.

[Roger de Coverly]

No players named Kachanov in the FIDE rating database.

I don't think the Soviet Union and by extension the Russian Republic ever had domestic ratings. Rather they worked with a system of titles such as "second category player", "first category players", "candidate master" etc. Arguably it worked well, but what were the rules?

[Roger Lancaster]

I don't think the Soviet Union and by extension the Russian Republic ever had domestic ratings. Rather they worked with a system of titles such as "second category player", "first category players", "candidate master" etc. Arguably it worked well, but what were the rules?

Perhaps not so different from the old BCF system with grades (1A, 1B, 2A, etc) instead of numeric ratings?

[Nick Grey]

I cannot imagine that any sports person in the world's top 50 has any time to play competitive chess.
I'll ask a work colleague to ask him when they go on duty at Wimbledon.
I suspect the reference is to casual chess. He is only 21.

[Geoff Chandler]

Sir George Thomas!

[NickFaulks]

More recently, Simen Agdestein. World #16 in 1989 while playing football for Norway.

[Stewart Reuben]

Your attention is drawn to Grandmaster Raymond Keene's Sunday Times Chess Competition No.1066 which will appear this coming Sunday 11th June.

To celebrate the link with Hastings a special prize will be offered. In addition to the regular £20 prize the winner will receive a free entry to any ONE of the Hastings Chess Congress tournaments. For anyone not able to take part in the Congress there will be the option of Tea for Two with the Mayor of Hastings, Cllr. Judy Rogers and a guided tour of Hastings Town Hall at a date to be agreed with the winner.

The Tradewise 93rd Hastings International Chess Congress will take place between 28th December 2017 and 7th January 2018. Full details and the entry form are now available on the Hastings Congress website www.hastingschess.com.

For further information regarding the Congress contact Pam Thomas at [email protected]

I realise possibly not the precise place this should be. But I didn't want to start a new thread. SR

[Reg Clucas]

Last night's "On Assignment" on ITV had a feature on chess in Armenia. Juliet Bremner travelled there, and interviewed Aronian, and the Armenian president who talked about being turned on to chess when Petrosian won the World Championship. She also visited a school to see how chess is taught to under 10s, and visited the home of a 9 year old prodigy.

It's available on catch-up TV - it's approximately the last 10 minutes of the programme if you want to fast forward - though you would then miss a feature on the shrinking Dead Sea - nothing to do with chess, but very interesting.

[Christopher Kreuzer]

http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk ... bout-trump

"Comey just outed the source of reporting on his memos as Dan Richman, a longtime friend who teaches at Columbia University. Comey stated that he leaked the existence of unclassified memos about his Oval Office meetings with Trump to Richman, who then leaked it to the Times. Comey said that he hoped the disclosure would be a way to force the Department of Justice to appoint a special counsel, which is exactly what happened. Comey was playing chess; Trump was playing checkers."

[JustinHorton]

Your attention is drawn to Grandmaster Raymond Keene's Sunday Times Chess Competition No.1066 which will appear this coming Sunday 11th June.

To celebrate the link with Hastings a special prize will be offered. In addition to the regular £20 prize the winner will receive a free entry to any ONE of the Hastings Chess Congress tournaments. For anyone not able to take part in the Congress there will be the option of Tea for Two with the Mayor of Hastings, Cllr. Judy Rogers and a guided tour of Hastings Town Hall at a date to be agreed with the winner.

The Tradewise 93rd Hastings International Chess Congress will take place between 28th December 2017 and 7th January 2018. Full details and the entry form are now available on the Hastings Congress website http://www.hastingschess.com.

For further information regarding the Congress contact Pam Thomas at [email protected]

I realise possibly not the precise place this should be. But I didn't want to start a new thread. SR

You could copy it to somewhere else