Olympiad Captains

[Tim Harding]

It does seem to me though that the ICU may have got this right and that if arbiter and organiser titles are NOT allowed then the Welsh may need to reconsider their selection of Lawrence Cooper. (He could go but would have to pay for his accommodation etc. and would not be allowed in the playing area.) .

You may care to read my post above before calling for my sacking

Sorry about that but I was composing my reply to Nick's comment posted at 10.34 and while doing so referred to some ICU documents. I didn't read any comments later than Nick's before despatching my post. The Board system should have warned me that new posts had come in the meantime but appears not to have done so.

I have nothing against you personally - I don't know you. If what you say is correct then the ICU should perhaps reconsider the candidacy of the two applicants who were disqualified by the selection committee. (Of which I'm not a member - I don't hold any official position and nor do I want to.)

I have emailed the selected captain that this debate has progressed.

[NickFaulks]

I have emailed the selected captain that this debate has progressed.

It seems that you have inserted yourself into ICU politics. Do let us know how you get on!

[Peter Kirby]

I should have added in my original comments, that although a FIDE Trainers License is required, IM's and GM's can apply by post for DI and don't need to attend the lengthy seminars required for everyone else.

[Alex Holowczak]

I do find the conflation of the roles of captain and trainer somewhat strange.

In most team sports, I would expect there to be a captain present at all-times. In the context of the Olympiad, it might be a non-playing captain, such as Loz. If you had a captain who was playing, as I imagine some of the lesser nations sometimes have, then perhaps the person having a rest day should be the non-playing captain. It's very common in sport for the umpires/referees to talk to players through the captains, and the captains are responsible for the conduct of their team. But essentially, the umpire/referee always has one point of contact. However, at the Olympiad, captains may not be able to get into the playing area at all, so you lose that point of contact.

As for Trainers being allowed in, presumably whether captains or not ... well, unless I'm missing something, I'd have thought they were the last people you'd want anywhere near the playing area?

Can you imagine in rugby, the captain being banned from the playing area without anyone doing that job, but you have the coach wandering on to the field periodically?

[Brian Towers]

Can you imagine in rugby, the captain being banned from the playing area without anyone doing that job

Silly analogy. There is no such thing in rugby as a non-playing captain. If the captain has to leave the field for any reason (including being banned for foul play) he hands over the captain's armband to another player who then becomes the captain.

but you have the coach wandering on to the field periodically?

The coach is far too senior for such a menial job but his minions regularly do run on to the field with words of advice along with their magic sponge. It does not in any way detract from his authority or responsibility.

Some years ago when a final was heading for penalty kicks one such supplied a player with a "blood" bag which he could crush in his mouth at a suitable moment to simulate a blood injury requiring him to come off the field allowing him to be replaced with the team's star kicker. It was the coach who ended up being banned for several years with the player and physio receiving much shorter sentences.

[Alex Holowczak]

Can you imagine in rugby, the captain being banned from the playing area without anyone doing that job

Silly analogy. There is no such thing in rugby as a non-playing captain. If the captain has to leave the field for any reason (including being banned for foul play) he hands over the captain's armband to another player who then becomes the captain.

Yes, I know. That's my point. There's always a point of contact between the referee and the players on the playing area in the form of the captain. That's what the Olympiad will lose.

but you have the coach wandering on to the field periodically?

The coach is far too senior for such a menial job but his minions regularly do run on to the field with words of advice along with their magic sponge. It does not in any way detract from his authority or responsibility.

I realise that, too. In Australian Rules Football, people carrying drinks wander all over the field during play, let alone when play is stopped for some reason! But I can't think of any sport where the coach is allowed on the field of play. If the coach/manager leaves the technical area in football, a 4th official sends him back in. In most sports, the staff have to be in the stands and are only connected to their staff on the sidelines with a phone.

Some years ago when a final was heading for penalty kicks one such supplied a player with a "blood" bag which he could crush in his mouth at a suitable moment to simulate a blood injury requiring him to come off the field allowing him to be replaced with the team's star kicker. It was the coach who ended up being banned for several years with the player and physio receiving much shorter sentences.

I remember that incident. That was because the coach was cheating, and the player/physio were just following orders. Again, that's precisely my point - I think the last person you want anywhere near the playing area is a coach.

My point is that in most sports, the captain is always there, but the coach is always kept as far away as possible.

[NickFaulks]

I find it amusing that non-playing captains are being required to register and attend seminars even as their role during matches is reduced ( correctly, in my view ) to little more than keeping their players supplied with cups of water.

Of course, as with licenced arbiters, it's all about money.

[John McKenna]

I think the last person you want anywhere near the playing area is a coach.

My point is that in most sports, the captain is always there, but the coach is always kept as far away as possible.

At the London Classic 2014 I was sat seated in the front row of chairs watching Giri losing to Naka in the Rapid Open only a few feet away. Suddenly, in the narrow gap between me and that game, a man materialised. He was angled towards Giri and completely blocking my view.

I batted him away.

When he turned round and faced me I realised it was Giri's coach, GM Tukmakov!

I stared him down and he moved aside.

On reflection, perhaps I should've given him my seat.

(At no time did he cross the red rope into the playing area.)

[Roger de Coverly]

It appears that FIDE or the Azeris have backed down, to an extent, on effectively requiring all captains to be trainers.

The Irish meanwhile have escalated the qualification issue for Olympiad captains into an internal dispute, requiring an EGM.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthre ... 2057621765

[NickFaulks]

It appears that FIDE or the Azeris have backed down, to an extent, on effectively requiring all captains to be trainers.

What have I missed this time?

[Roger de Coverly]

What have I missed this time?

If you read the thread on the Irish discussion board, it seems to imply that you can still appoint anyone as match captain provided they attend a trainer's course in Baku. The match captains thing seems just an excuse for the Irish to have a fight. Whenever news of a dispute in Irish chess reaches the outside world, it's almost always the same names involved.

[NickFaulks]

If you read the thread on the Irish discussion board, it seems to imply that you can still appoint anyone as match captain provided they attend a trainer's course in Baku.

When has that not been the case?

[Roger de Coverly]

When has that not been the case?

The Irish didn't seem to think so, when they discussed the eligibility requirements for their captains.

[NickFaulks]

Sorry, but I don't consider opinions expressed on an Irish discussion board to be a primary source.

[Tim Harding]

Sorry, but I don't consider opinions expressed on an Irish discussion board to be a primary source.

Quite right too, especially as all the noise seems to be made by one or two troublemakers using about six pseudonyms each to pretend they represent the majority view.