Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

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Angus French
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by Angus French » Fri Jun 19, 2015 11:54 am

danailov-for-president.com reports: "Yesterday, 18th of June, 2015, the Bulgarian Parliamentary Committee for Anti-corruption, Conflict of Interests and Parliamentary Ethics announced that it has terminated the proceedings against the Bulgarian Chess Federation and has notified Regional Prosecutor’s Office about that decision." Full story.

Mick Norris
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by Mick Norris » Fri Jun 19, 2015 2:29 pm

Danailov off again on Twitter
Any postings on here represent my personal views

Roger de Coverly
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by Roger de Coverly » Mon Jun 22, 2015 5:33 pm

ECU (not the Delaware LLP) have issued a statement

http://www.europechess.org/ecu-press-st ... 2-06-2015/

They imply that assorted invoices for commercial services given by ECU are fakes or pass offs and that the two named Bulgarian tournaments were never officially European championships.

I don't think Danailov can deny the existence of the Delaware company as it is verifiable by standard searches for American companies. So who owns it and what is it for?

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JustinHorton
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by JustinHorton » Mon Nov 23, 2015 5:16 am

Another open letter from Bulgarian players.
"Do you play chess?"
"Yes, but I prefer a game with a better chance of cheating."

lostontime.blogspot.com

Roger de Coverly
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by Roger de Coverly » Mon Nov 23, 2015 11:11 am

JustinHorton wrote:Another open letter from Bulgarian players.
If the ECF were to take a similar decision (not to send a team to the European Team Championships), who would the titled players of England write to if they wished to protest? You could try the DCMS, but they washed their hands of supporting chess some years ago. I suppose it shows the ECF as a body independent of government interference, but also a law unto itself.

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JustinHorton
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by JustinHorton » Mon Nov 23, 2015 2:20 pm

Danailov's great. On 18 November he retweets this Ocar Wilde quote:

"Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much."

On 20 November he tweets:

"Makro&friends...make me sick.They won't see one Bulgarian euro anymore."
"Do you play chess?"
"Yes, but I prefer a game with a better chance of cheating."

lostontime.blogspot.com

John McKenna

Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by John McKenna » Mon Nov 23, 2015 8:13 pm

"... They won't see one Bulgarian euro anymore."
Does that mean they'll not be sending another prototype "Bulgarian euro" as a down payment!?

http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/eur ... ria_en.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulgarian_lev

Coral Bennett
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by Coral Bennett » Tue Nov 24, 2015 11:08 am

JustinHorton wrote:Another open letter from Bulgarian players.
The Bulgarian Chess Federation is not the only Chess Union which bans those who highlight financial irregularities. It is hard to see how much money WCU Directors "re-allocate" to themselves when they do not respond to direct questions and no accounts have been available to members since 2011.

LawrenceCooper
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by LawrenceCooper » Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:10 pm


Michael Flatt
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by Michael Flatt » Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:37 pm

I presume that the CAS referred to in the FIDE statement must be the Court for Arbitration in Sport.
Website: http://www.tas-cas.org/en/index.html
FAQ's: http://www.tas-cas.org/en/general-infor ... tions.html

Roger de Coverly
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by Roger de Coverly » Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:53 pm

Michael Flatt wrote: I presume that the CAS referred to in the FIDE statement must be the Court for Arbitration in Sport.
It would also be referring to this.

http://www.chess.com/news/more-clashes- ... ailov-2280

The CAS have decided that FIDE's Ethics Commission can investigate allegations about the organization of the 2013 European Youth Chess Championship in Budva, Montenegro. One specific point which may come up is why there is a company titled European Chess Union incorporated in Delaware, USA and whether this company had any legitimate involvement with Budva event or any European chess.

http://www.bizapedia.com/de/EUROPEAN-CH ... N-LLC.html

NickFaulks
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by NickFaulks » Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:59 pm

"4. Each Party shall bear its own costs and expenses."

Evidently CAS still takes the view that, since FIDE can levy charges on member federations, paying the costs of defending itself against frivolous lawsuits is not an issue. When will this end?
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Chris Rice
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by Chris Rice » Tue Dec 22, 2015 8:51 pm

CAS 2015/A/4062 was heard by the CAS on 7 December 2015. The hearings are not open to the public and they usually take 6-8 weeks before the judgment transcript goes up on the CAS website. I have no idea what Danailov was appealing against as it could be a number of things, given the wording in the FIDE press statement I'm wondering whether they actually know themselves.

Brian Towers
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by Brian Towers » Tue Dec 22, 2015 9:16 pm

NickFaulks wrote:
"4. Each Party shall bear its own costs and expenses."

Evidently CAS still takes the view that, since FIDE can levy charges on member federations, paying the costs of defending itself against frivolous lawsuits is not an issue. When will this end?
I think if you put your brain into gear for more than 2 seconds you'll realize that's a load of nonsense.

By definition the majority of cases that appear before CAS will be appeals by "little guys" against the "big guys".

What the principle of "Each Party shall bear its own costs and expenses." says to the "little guys" is:
"Your case better matter enough to you to put your hand in your own pocket to fund your case because there is not going to be any funding of your case by the opposition."

What it says to the "big guy" is:
"Don't think you can intimidate the "little guy" by spending millions and thereby silence opposition through financial muscle because you will pay your expenses not the other party. In poker parlance - You can't buy the pot."

Poker players understand this principle very well. In poker with no limit on bet size the richest player has a large built in advantage. CAS are evening up the playing field.
Ah, but I was so much older then. I'm younger than that now.

NickFaulks
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Re: Corruption scandal rocks the Bulgarian Chess Federation

Post by NickFaulks » Wed Dec 23, 2015 9:14 am

Brian Towers wrote: I think if you put your brain into gear for more than 2 seconds you'll realize that's a load of nonsense.

By definition the majority of cases that appear before CAS will be appeals by "little guys" against the "big guys".
That is precisely the assumption CAS makes, but it is careless and wrong. FIDE ( aka "the big guy" ) does not have infinitely deep pockets, something Malcolm Pein regularly crows about. Kasparov and his billionaire backers ( aka "the little guys" ) used the process most effectively to deplete FIDE's resources. I don't know who is funding Danailov, but I would be very surprised if he were willing to waste his own money on such a pointless appeal.
If you want a picture of the future, imagine a QR code stamped on a human face — forever.